28mm Cart & Stagecoach

 

Not a lot of time in the workshop this week, but here's something I've been tinkering with for a while that finally got the finishing touches.

These two pencil sharpeners came to me at a garage sale for the low price of $1. I had them for years and didnt know what to do with them. Last week sometime I was struck with inspiration to use them for 28mm fantasy terrain.

I first removed the oxidation by letting them sit in Coka Cola overnight, then hit them with Brasso and a toothbrush. I used an enamel primer after, then hand painted.

There were 5 wheels between them, so I used the 4 good ones for the coach. I took out the pencil sharpener, and in its place I installed a flickering candle light. I covered the windows with painted rice paper for the desired effect of curtains.

Since the wagon had no wheels, I crafted some by drilling holes through 1" wooden bases and mounting them on toothpick axels. I cut some metal away from the bottom so that the axels sit in place and can be removed. The woodgrain was detailed by hand (not terribly happy with it, but oh well). All the bits in the wagon came from my bits box.

I think these look great on the table and the price was definitely right! Here's an action shot of a band of bandit rats and mice using a broken cart to block the road, springing an ambush on a traveling hedgehog noble's detail!