1:35 Broken house wall

The real subject

A broken wall is the most eloquent piece of building in a diorama. Unlike a whole facade it shows what is inside: the layers of plaster, the masonry under them, rough fracture surfaces and rubble at the foot. At the same time it opens a view into the interior, so the scene can be read from outside and from inside, and a whole house does not have to be built for that.

Field of use

• scenes of street fighting and of a built-up area after shelling
• a set piece that closes a scene off and yet lets you look inside
• cover or a firing position for figures
• a still life for a display case built around a single wall

Building and painting tips

Before painting, wash the element and degrease it, cut excess material off with a sharp blade a little away from the part and sand the remainder. Leave the fracture surfaces rougher than the smooth plaster, because it is exactly the contrast of the two surfaces that makes a ruin believable. Work from a dark base toward lighter coats sprayed from above, so that shadow is kept in the recesses. Add rubble and dust at the foot of the wall with loose material and pigment; let the streaks run vertically, as rainwater would lead them.

Who it is for

For modelers who build combat scenes in 1:35 scale and want a ready-made basis instead of laboriously breaking a wall of their own. The element can be combined with further sections into a longer frontage of houses. When ordering, go by the manufacturer code, because other walls with similar names exist. Paints, glue and loose materials are not part of the delivery, unless stated otherwise.