Paper Models - ChickenHawk

I like building models. This should probably come as no surprise considering that I’m also into miniatures, and for the most part they’re pretty much the same thing. Right now on my shelf I have a number of models I want to build, including the Enterprise A from Star Trek V, a federation runabout, the original 1701, and a large model of DS9 that comes with fiberoptic lighting! That last one is what I consider to be a massively major quest that I expect to take a significant amount of time (months!), and that I am not yet ready for. I’m planning on the runabout being a test model for including electronics before I tackle DS9.

However all of these will take a fair amount of time, time that I really don’t have to spend right now on toys.

When I really just want to build something without any fuss, without worrying about painting or anything beyond putting the thing together, I usually don’t have much in the way of options, especially when factoring in limited funds.

One option I recently decided to explore was paper models. There are a lot of them out there, and a lot of them are free. I’ve known about them for a long time now, but until recently I never took advantage of them. I stumbled upon this site: http://www.toposolitario.com/workshop/index.html I don’t remember where. It’s in Spanish, but the pictures are pretty clear, and Google Translate does a fair job if you have difficulties figuring it out. I decided that I’d give his ChickenHawk Utility Dropship a try. He has it available in a number of different styles, and I decided that the A-Team paint scheme looked fun.

I printed it out on regular paper, and over the course of a single evening I made some decent progress. The pieces were cut out as I worked on the component, rather than cutting everything out ahead of time, and I used Elmer’s to glue it all together.

After several hour worth of work, and a few stumbles, I ended up with this.

I probably should have picked a simpler model to start with, but I'm still pretty pleased with the results. It isn't perfect, far from it, but aside from being given it's clear coat, it's done.

I didn't use all of the thruster assemblies or the antenna. For the thrusters I couldn't find another spot I wanted to put more onto. For the antenna, I couldn't see putting them on a model that would be used in a game, or stored in a basement.Some of the Last Chancer's for scale. As you can see, it's perfectly scaled for 40K or any other 28mm scale game.

Some hints if you decide to work with paper models. I made mine with basic printer/copy paper. I would suggest something heavier if you can get it. Also, make sure to pre-fold everything. It might also be worth it to print an extra copy in case you mess up a part.