1:35 Chernobyl #6. Feat of Divers

Chernobyl, the sixth set of the series, in 1:35 scale from ICM

This figure set in 1:35 scale follows on from earlier parts of the series that the Ukrainian manufacturer ICM devotes to the emergency and rescue work after the 1986 accident at the Chernobyl power plant. The sixth part focuses on the divers, the men who worked in the flooded spaces beneath the reactor block. These are injection-molded plastic figures intended for dioramas, for a standalone display scene or as an addition to a model of equipment in the same scale.

The real subject

After the accident in block number four in April 1986, flooded process tanks lay in the underground spaces beneath the reactor. A group of plant workers went into them to open the valves and drain the tanks. The work took place in complete darkness, in flooded corridors and in whatever protective equipment was available. The ICM series records this stage of the cleanup soberly and factually, as the work of specific people in specific conditions; the figures match civilian rather than military equipment.

Building and painting tips

Assemble the figures according to the instructions and clean the mold seams carefully, because every irregularity shows clearly on wet protective suits. A coat of primer forms the base that the further layers attach to easily. The protective suits come out well if you paint them matte and then suggest wetness with a final coat of gloss varnish, ideally only on the lower parts and in the folds. Reflections of water and of a wet surface are the main storytelling device in this scene: the difference between a matte and a gloss coat does more for the effect than the number of shades. Dark concrete corridors and the diffused light of a flashlight suit the diorama.

Who the set is for

• For builders of dioramas on the theme of technical accidents and rescue work
• For collectors of figures in 1:35 scale outside the classic military subjects
• For modelers collecting the whole Chernobyl series from ICM
• For more advanced builders who enjoy working with light and wet surfaces