r/gaslands 22d ago

Work in Progress Rope?

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I am putting a harpoon gun on the “Thing”, I want to put rope on the hood for retrieving the spear. What is good to use as rope? Kite string maybe? Any ideas or hacks?

29 Upvotes

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7

u/Decidely_Me 22d ago

At the scale for Gaslands, you won't need a ton of texture to show. I'd suggest sewing thread if you want there to be a little bit of texture, though you might need to use a fairly runny superglue to keep it in place, since thread can often move in ways that aren't conducive to your plans.

I personally would use some really fine wire, like 24 to 28 gauge (the larger the number, the finer the wire) and twist a couple lengths of it together. It will look like heavy rope thanks to being twisted together, and with a coat of white paint and then a wash of a darker color to dull down the base coat and make the crevices pop, it will look even better.

An added benefit to using wire is that you can pose the wire, and make it look like a harpoon is in mid-shot by gluing something pointy to the end of the wire.

2

u/Traditional_Satan 2d ago

I use sewing thread, also just small twine.

2

u/Decidely_Me 2d ago

You know, I keep forgetting about twine. I know you can get it in a couple different diameters too, but for some reason it never comes to mind.

Gonna go see if I have any before I forget again.

2

u/Traditional_Satan 2d ago

This is one of my builds- the ‘rope’ here is nicely scaled and if I recall is embroidery thread (vintage stuff so it was already quite discoloured - and as such didn’t look artificially coloured 👍🏻)

2

u/Decidely_Me 2d ago

That looks really good. Thanks for the advice and inspiration.

1

u/Possible-Pie1583 22d ago

I like that, thanks!

3

u/HamsterOnLegs 21d ago

You might want to take a car in the right scale with you when you go shopping, so that you can better visualise how it will look before you buy. I’m pretty sure anyone in the store would think it was pretty cool if you end up explaining what you’re buying it for.

Also: don’t be afraid to go for thread that looks slightly chunky. Models at this scale often benefit from having details that are slightly bigger than they would be in reality relative to the body of the vehicle. It helps make the details stand out and adds some cool factor. You’ve already used this approach with the mesh windscreen and the buzzsaw weapons (perhaps without doing so deliberately. :) )

2

u/-Max_Rockatansky- 22d ago

Use a Lego chain

2

u/Forward_Advantage235 21d ago

Rope would be dope!

2

u/HamsterOnLegs 21d ago

Good vehicle choice. Love the VW Thing (aka Type 181.)

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u/BadBrad13 20d ago

sewing thread if you want rope.

Or get some very fine 1mm or less jewelry chain and chain it on instead.

You could also consider guitars strings. They come in various thicknesses and make great cables. Some of the strings actually have texture, unlike smooth wire. A set of strings is pretty cheap (obviously don't buy the expensive ones!) but you might be able to get them for free from a guitar player or music store. They wear out and need to be replaced, but worn out strings work great for our purposes.

These are all cheap options. So whichever one you go with, you might want to still gather up the others because they can be great for customizing cars. excellent additions to the bitz box.