CoolMiniOrNot - A little bridge base

A little bridge base Beginner Return to article index	Rating: 9.39 Votes: 18 Views: 9699	By: wrestlerguy21
Category: General Subcategory: Misc		Date: 2005-10-03 15:17:12

I had some comments on two bases that I did so I thought I would post an article on it. I appologize about the photo's as they are blurry. I had my cammera set on the wrong setting and I cant redo the photo's as the bridge is done. So I start out with a set of bamboo shish kabob sticks. You can get these at the store or substitute for some other kind of wood. I then clip (using nail clippers in this case) out a group of these, maybe 7 or so. I will cut these about 1/2 an inch or so. I then cut 4 more pieces about 1/4 inch. Now I roll out a ball of green stuff and then roll it onto a can. In this case I am using a can of primer. Anything cylinder shape will work but make sure it has a paper cover. If not roll paper around it..You will see why in a sec. I will shape out a basic rectangle shape though I am not too worried about how the green stuff looks. I then press in the LONGER pieces of the previously cut bamboo. I press them in horizontaly with each one touching the other and I make sure to keep them in a straight line. Once this is dry I use a razor to cut the paper around the green stuff. Now for those who are challenged I will warn you that If you cut too hard into the can , and it still has pressure, you will coat yourself in exploding paint. I was able to do this without injury. Now I am sorry for my lack of photo's on this part but you will see it in the finished product. I will take a plastic base and paint it the shade of water that I want. I use dark blue or a brown..and you will be able to see both at the end of this. In the first example I paint the base a seinna brown. Once it dries I sprinkle in a few rocks near the area where my bridge enterance is going to be. While this is drying I sand both sides of my bridge so that they are even. This also hides the extra green stuff. Once this is done I take the bridge and glue each side of it down onto my base. I use a little extra pressure (to the ends) if I want my bridge to have more of a curve or less if I want it to be more straight. Finally I will glue all four (remaining 1/4 inch pieces) on the four corners of the bridge. Now for the paint. I paint and highlight the bridge any color (in this case brown). Next I use realistic water effect (woodland scenics makes this..I think) and I carfully spread it onto the river bottom. I find that an old paint brush and an eye dropper works good for this. I also make sure not to put this on to thick because I don't want to cover up my rocks. Once the water effect dries its should look perfectly clear. Next I paint a series of lines that will represent the flow and splash of water. I start with a light grey then highlight with white. I have found that if you make short wavy lines that the water flow looks slow and calm. If the lines are long and straight the water flow looks fast. I make sure to put a little extra grey an white where water would hit things, like the bridge posts, rocks ect. Here is a photo of this bridge with a brown river bottom. And one with a blue river bottom. Hopefully this can add some fun to your bases. Happy painting.

wyatt doc 08 September 07		Rating: 10 Wow really cool I never thought to base any of my charachters with bridges.
roninjr 03 April 07		Rating: 10 Freaking great idea! I'll try it. Thanks.
Meridian 14 June 06		Rating: 10 Wow!!! I really like the little bridge idea, I think it adds so much more to the minature, If you could put up some more walk throughs on some other cool bases you do that would be wicked!!!
Tony Manero 30 October 05		Rating: 10 i'll steal ur wonderful idea to create a sakura saku (cherry blossoms in japan) diorama with a geisha mini o mine ^^
Khepris Throne 20 October 05		Rating: 8 A brilliant way of adding detail to small bases. Thanks for sharing!
maindd 16 October 05		Rating: 10 Hi, a very good article about your bridge and a godd instruction to do this by myself. Thanks maindd
Vhaidra 13 October 05		Rating: 10 Great idea, it looks very good. Thank you for writing this article.
leopardpixie 12 October 05		Rating: 10 I i love it! This is sooooooo uber cool!
EArkham 11 October 05		Rating: 10 Holy crap, that's just what I needed to see to get around a problem I was having with a diorama! I'll need to do it in a bigger scale, but kudos -- this is excellent.
wrestlerguy21 10 October 05		Thanks for the feedback. Glad I can help.
airhead 10 October 05		Rating: 10 sweet. Have just the mini in mind for this. Thank you for sharing.
Gin1906 10 October 05		Rating: 10 Pretty nifty idea, I like it! I may have to try this one one of these days. Gin
Magnus the Red 09 October 05		Rating: 10 Wow, cool idea. I never would have thought of this.
Modderrhu 09 October 05		Rating: 8 Sometimes the simplest ideas can be the most striking. While the bridges are a little small, there's not much else that can be done on such a small base. I'd personally have used a smaller diameter stick for the bridge itself, those logs are rather out of scale, but just fine for the uprights. But still; what a splendid idea!

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