How To Build...

By Paul Davies

a V1 launch site
Some weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to get a sneak preview of the Flames Of War Open Fire boxed set when
I was invited to the Wargames Illustrated 300th issue celebration, and was very impressed by the quality and
amount of models and figures in the box. I was particularly interested in the V1, complete with launching ramp,
and the possibilities for making it into something more than just a terrain piece or objective marker occurred to
me immediately.

Obviously there have been a few needed to make the sites less obvious, fillers will attack the foam so always test
compromises with the model, most particularly regarding the distinctive fillers, glues and even paints, on a piece
notably regarding the scaled down length ski building. of waste material before using them!
of the launching ramp. The original I experienced this problem during this
Walter Schlitzrohrschleuder WR 2.3 GENERAL CONSTRUCTION project even though I was using a filler
catapult launch ramp has been quoted I used Styrofoam for the buildings in that Id used before so, when opening a
at anything from 36 - 58.4 metres this How to. Its cheap, light and easy new tube or pack, my suggestion would
long depending upon which source to cut with simple hand tools as long as be to test the contents before applying
you consult. Assuming the longest them to your precious model.
you ensure that you use a sharp blade.
dimension, then at 1/100th scale the
Blunt blades will rip the foam, which will As always, the plans are intended as a
model would be almost 24'' long, which
mean youll need to use filler to make starting point and they should be scaled
would clearly dominate most wargames
good the damage. Be warned, that some to suit your figures
tables! The ramp sections supplied in
Open Fire, make a ramp that is just
under 6''. Unfortunately at the time of
writing this How to there were no
plans to separately release any of the
plastic components from Open Fire,
so if you want to create a longer ramp,
or for that matter, have more of the very
.net
nice infantry figures youll need to get As with most of Paul Davies terrain
together with someone else and pool building articles, you can find his
your resources. plans ready for download at our
website. Once downloaded you may
Anyway, for this How to I decided need to rescale the plans to match
to create a selection of generic buildings the scale of your own project.
associated with the early V1 launch sites.
I stress early because thanks to excellent
Allied air reconnaissance and information
from the resistance in Occupied Europe,
the Germans quickly realised that they
 THE LAUNCH RAMP

The launch ramp and catapult was usually protected by a
wall each side of it, either made from bricks or concrete. My
interpretation is based upon a wartime intelligence drawing
(Zaloga, S J, German V-Weapon Sites 1943-45. Osprey
Publishing, 2008).
Cut out all the components. Consult the exploded view below
and you will see that the ends of certain components need to be
cut at a 45o angle.
Pin and glue the components together.
Where parts 4 and 5 join youll need to trim the Styrofoam
slightly, because a cut made across an angle will be longer than
one made at right angles to the edge.
Modelling
Painting &
Ideally I always leave the pins in place, simply pushing them
right into the Styrofoam to make a really strong joint, but you
need to take care that your pins arent too long otherwise theyll
project through to the material.
I will cover painting in one section at the end of the article as
it is basically the same for all the different constructions and
theres no point duplicating information. Similarly, I
constructed some simple bases to go with each model, but
the basic principles are the same for each one, so once again,
Ive slotted these in at the end of the article to avoid duplication.

FIRE CONTROL LAUNCH BUNKER

These buildings varied in design; some

looked like a basic pillbox; some, if time
allowed, were built into the ground with
the vision slot at ground level. Unless
Im building terrain for a particular game,
perhaps for a wargame show, I avoid
building terrain features or buildings into
the terrain because it limits the playing
options, so I chose the above-ground
pillbox style because, if nothing else,
I could use the building as a pillbox in
another scenario. Incidentally a similar
design of building was also used to store
various V-1 related items including the
warhead fuses which, understandably,
needed to be stored safely well away
from the warheads themselves!
Cut out the component parts. Pin and
glue parts 2, 3 and 4 to the underside part
1 (the roof).
Pin and glue part 5 to part 6.
And then pin and glue the two
assemblies together.
Finally trim back the sidewalls to match
the roof.
The building needs a door, but it makes
sense to add it after the building has been
painted, so constructing the various doors
for these models is covered at the end of
the article.
 NON-MAGNETIC COMPASS ALIGNMENT BUILDING

As a final stage before launching, the V1 was taken to a specially

constructed non-metal building where it was suspended and the
magnetic compass aligned and adjusted.
Note that the roof is not shown in the plan because its precise
dimensions will depend upon the size of the model, and
the thickness of the material being used. Therefore taking
measurements from the actual model is the most accurate option.
CONSTRUCTION
Cut out all the parts. Pin and glue parts 1 and 2 together, and
parts 3 and 4.
Glue the two assemblies together.
As with all the buildings there seem to have been slight
variations from site to site. In the case of my version of the Non-
Magnetic Alignment building, I have decided to have the outer
walls in concrete, but the walls separating to the two side rooms
from the main space, in bricks.
The way I created the effect of the concrete and brickwork was
by etching the surface of the foam with a suitable pattern using
a cocktail stick. You could create this effect before assembling
the building, but I decided that it would be easier to add it after
the building had been assembled to ensure that the lines of bricks
and concrete aligned properly. The outer walls were a mix of
bricks for a short distance up from ground level and then larger
concrete sections.
Youll notice I used filler to repair some slight damage.
After creating my concrete effect on the outside walls, I added
the two supporting buttresses, parts 7 and 8.
It makes your life easier if you paint the interior of the building
before adding the inner walls. I painted mine in a Mid Grey.
The inner walls, parts 5 and 6, that created the two side rooms
were brick and so a suitable pattern was lightly etched into the
foam. Obviously this HAD to be done before assembling the
building.
Paint the inner dividing walls. I used RailMatch concrete. To
lift the bricks from the mortar, instead of drybrushing I put a bit
of white paint onto a palette; dabbed at it with a piece of sponge
and then lightly dragged the sponge over the surface.
Glue the inner walls into position. Taking measurements from
the model, a roof in two sections was cut from foam, which was
bevelled along the edges that formed the apex of the roof.
 THE SKI BUILDING

Prior to launching, the V1s were stored on trolleys, inside CONSTRUCTION

specially designed buildings. The Allies nicknamed them ski
From various sources, including those credited at the end of
buildings because of their distinctive shape, which from the
this article, it was evident that the curve of the ski could be in
air looked like a ski lying on its side. It was this easily spotted
either direction.
design, which made it easy for the Allied reconnaissance flights
to identify the early V1 sites and was in turn, the reason why Cut out and glue part 1 to part 2.
the Germans decided to resort to a less obvious building and
The two side walls are a little complicated as they incorporate a
site configuration, preferring instead to try to integrate their
curve and its difficult to determine their length. My procedure
sites amongst existing farm buildings where possible. However
was to first lay a piece of string along the length of part two and,
theres no doubt that the inclusion of a ski building on your V1
allowing a couple of inches extra, cut out two strips of foam the
site adds interest.
same height as part 1.

The first step to bending the foam is to score a series of vertical

lines partially through the material around the curve. I scored
my lines 15mm apart. Start with the outer curve part 3, because
its easiest as the curve is less sharp than the inner one.
Very carefully bend part 3 until it matches the curve of part 2,
and then pin and glue it in place.
As a matter of interest, possibly for another project, if youre
really careful you can, following the above method, bend
Styrofoam virtually back on itself!
Curving part 4 follows the same procedure as for part 3 except
that, as the curve is tighter, the vertical score lines should be
closer together; about 10mm worked well and the score cuts
must be on the INSIDE of the curve. The other difference is
that this wall includes a door. Carefully carry out a dry-run
and once youre happy that the curve is good, cut out the door
aperture, and then pin and glue the inner wall in position.
Cut out the end wall to fit between the sidewalls and pin and
glue it in position. Trim off the excess walls.
Fill the cracks where you made your scoring. Its not really
necessary to fill the cracks on the inside of part 4, but it does
add strength to the assembly which is always a good idea.
And thats it for the basic constructions. The next step is
painting the buildings.
 PAINTING THE BUILDING EXTERIORS

Ive grouped my painting procedure into

a single section rather than repeating it
after each building because the painting
of all the structures basically follows the
same steps.
The models were given an undercoat of
Citadel Astronomican Grey, which was
then dry brushed with Concrete Matt
from the RailMatch range of acrylic
paints, but you could use Citadel Desert
Yellow or whatever the latest name is
for that colour! For the next stage, you
need a kitchen scouring pad; the ones
that are like a sponge on one side and
slightly rougher on the other. Pour a little
matt white emulsion into a tray and dip
the rough side of the sponge into it. Wipe
off most of the paint and then drag it
across the model to create white streaks.
Immediately youve made your streaks,
turn your pad over and rub the sponge
side over the building. This has the effect
of softening the white down.

MAKING DOORS

The doors in the Anti Magnetic Alignment building would have The doors were sprayed matt black and then drybrushed with
been wooden for obvious reasons. To create them, I scored a Games Workshop Boltgun Metal.
series of lines onto balsa sheet and then cut out a door to fit the
To date, Ive yet to find a glue that will work with both Styrofoam
aperture. As for painting, wood that has aged tends to look
and plastic card, so to hold the doors in position I added a piece of
grey, but the wood in these doors would have been fairly new,
foam behind the door, pinning and gluing it into position.
so I decided to use Citadel Kharlock Green, followed by a
very light drybrush of grey to pick out the grain in the balsa. The same basic procedure was followed for the other door for this
Dont be tempted to drybrush until the previous colour has building and also for the door for the Fire Control Launch bunker.
dried completely. To finish off the door I created a door handle
by pushing a pin through the door, and snipping off the excess.
Be careful when you do this as the sharp pointy end has a
nasty habit of shooting across the room at something
approaching escape velocity! Paint the head of the pin black
and thats it, one simple door complete with door handle. Just
glue it into position.
The doors for the Fire Control bunker and the Ski building were
more likely to have been made from metal, so I used plastic card
for them. The main doors were created by making a backing
piece slightly larger than the door aperture. Onto this was glued
a slightly smaller piece to represent the doors. A thin vertical
strip was added to suggest where the doors joined and finally
hinges were added, made from thin paper.
 BASES

Its up to you whether or not you create bases for your

buildings. It depends on what terrain you already have and
also just how permanent you want to make your V1 site.
Assuming you want to make bases the following steps are
how I made mine.
Cut out a piece of thick card for the base and from thinner
card cut out some rectangular shapes to represent paving
type slabs and concrete.
Position the respective building onto its base, draw
around it to create a guide and then glue the card tiles
into position

I followed the same painting process for each base; paint the tiled area
matt black, and the surrounding ground dark brown. After this had dried
thoroughly I dry brushed the earth and drag-sponged the tiles.
Dont worry too much if youre a bit heavy handed with drybrushing over
the brown as youll be covering most of it with static grass or flock, but try
to be careful when working on the stonework.
All that remains is to bring together your buildings and bases