1:35 Manhole covers

1:35 Manhole covers - shaft covers for a diorama, 77propeller

This is not a model of a vehicle and not a kit but a set of small scenic elements for a diorama in 1:35 scale. Shaft covers are among the details a viewer does not notice at first glance, but without which a road or a paved square looks empty and untrue. Set into a roadway they give a scene scale at once and show that this is an inhabited town, not an abstract surface.

Use

• The accessory is meant to be let into the surface of a base. Mark the outline on the board or in the layer of modeling compound first, carefully sand or cut it out and seat the cover so that its upper edge is flush with the surrounding surface - a cover standing proud is distracting.
• Fill the gap around the cover with a thin layer of filler or structural paste and roughen it once dry, so that the transition into the asphalt or the paving is not noticeable.
• Degrease the parts before painting and spray them with primer. Choose a dark gray to blackish-brown base; cast iron is then well drawn out by a dry brush in a lighter shade over the relief.
• It is dirt that makes it convincing, not paint: let a dark wash run into the recesses of the relief and dust the edges with pigment matching the surrounding roadway, so that the cover does not look as if it had fallen into the scene from another diorama.
• Think the placing out in advance. In reality covers have a logic - they follow the run of services along a road and are not scattered at random over an area.

Who it is for

For builders of urban and road dioramas in 1:35 scale, for figure modelers who want to anchor a base in its surroundings, and for vehicle modelers who display a vehicle on a piece of street instead of on a bare board.

This is a diorama accessory. A base, compounds, fillers, paints and glue are not included in the package, unless stated otherwise.