1:35 Italian Rooftiles No.1

Italian roof tiles No.1 in 1:35 scale from RT-Diorama

This item is not a kit of a vehicle or a figure but a diorama accessory - a building element with which the scene around a model is completed. The RT-Diorama range concentrates on the architectural details of buildings in 1:35 scale, that is in the proportion in which the overwhelming majority of military figures and vehicles are made. The accessory therefore matches the usual equipment of a diorama in size and nothing has to be converted. The subject is in the southern European style you know from Italian dwelling houses and farm buildings.

What the accessory is for

A roof is one of the areas in a diorama that a viewer notices first, because a scene is watched from above. It is on the roof that it shows whether a structure has been handled well: a regular rhythm of roofing, the right size of the individual tiles and a readable edge at the gutter make a building a convincing object. The set is aimed at exactly this subject and deals with the part of a scene that tends to be the most demanding on a model building.

Tips for placing it in the scene

First lay out the plan of the structure and only then decide how much area the roof will take up - with dioramas seen from above it pays to leave the roof more room. Watch that the pitch and the orientation match the rest of the architecture and that neighboring areas join up. The region and the period of the scene should agree: Mediterranean roofing suits the Italian and Balkan campaign and sits less well on a Northern European town. The result looks best when the structure is tied in with other elements of the same range.

Who the set is for

• modelers who build dioramas in 1:35 scale
• anyone interested in the Italian and Mediterranean battlefields
• makers of display cases where a building is the main subject
• those looking for an architectural detail instead of another kit