How-to: Scratch Build Weapons (Meltagun Added)

[Paradigm]

http://i39.tinypic.com/6gc09t.jpg


Getting autocannons can be a real pain, luckily they are one of the easiest weapons to make at home. While I'm not particularly skilled, it just goes to show you how easy it really can be. A few brass rods, a couple tools, and some plasticard odds and ends will take you far.

The first step is getting the tools together. You will need the following: A Hobby Knife, a Pair of Flush Dikes, Super Glue, a Ruler, a Razor Saw, and a few drill bits.

http://i48.tinypic.com/16kdr86.jpghttp://i50.tinypic.com/34nr19j.jpg

Optional extra tools include: a Hand drill, a Hobby Vise, and a couple Pairs of Small Pliers.

This is the basic toolkit. There are other useful tools to have as well, but for the vast majority of scratch building this is all you need.

For building Auto Cannons you need to make a trip to the hobby store for Copper or Brass Tubes, Styrene Sheets and Tubes, and a small jewelry chain. The only other thing you will need is a piece of sprue or a sheet of 1/8th inch styrene.

http://i50.tinypic.com/11hc4s6.jpg

You will need at least two different sized widths of copper or brass tube. Ensure the interior diameter of one matches the exterior diameter of another. The actual size is up to you, I like my autocannons to be about the size of the GW Havoc autocannon. I use 3mm and 2mm brass tube. You will need an assorted bag of styrene card and tubes. Evergreen Scale Models manufactures a bag called "odds and ends" which happens to have everything styrene needed to make multiple autocannons. Sheets of styrene can be purchased separately, you will need a very thin sheet 0.1-0.2in and a thicker sheet, 0.4-0.6in.

Lets get started:

1. Using your dikes, cut a piece of sprue down to about 2cm. I use my dikes to ensure I get a nearly square cut, and I cut a little extra off and file it down to where I want it.http://i50.tinypic.com/2cnv2bc.jpg

2. Using your razor saw, cut a couple pieces of your smaller diameter tube, one should be about a cm shorter than the other. Now cut another two peices of tube, this time from your larger diameter tube. One only needs to be 1cm long, the other needs to be about 2cm shorter than your longer piece of small tube.http://i48.tinypic.com/kbf5on.jpg

3. Get Drilling. Specifically two small holes down one side of the sprue like the above picture. Make sure you use a bit that is the exact size of your smaller diameter tube. Drill deeper for a shorter barrel, shallower for a long barrel. Try your best to keep them square. While sprue is soft enough that you can turn the bits between your fingers, a hobby vise and hand drill are useful here if you have them. Next cut a small square of your thicker styrene, large enough to contain another two holes spaced the same as the ones in your sprue piece. This will be your spacer.http://i47.tinypic.com/2wr0lmf.jpg

4. Now you should have the following parts:http://i46.tinypic.com/33o1xcm.jpg

5. Assemble them like this photo and insert them into the holes in your sprue. Play with the proportions till you find what you'd like, then add just a bit of super glue to each connection.http://i47.tinypic.com/v7cbbm.jpg

6. Now you have the basic design down, it's time to add smaller details. I started by adding an extra heat shield that resembles GW's model. Most of the details added are going to be made from your thin sheets of styrene, while the rails along the top look better when they are made of thicker styrene. Also if you want to add a notch to the back of the weapon, now is the time. Most GW weapons have them even if their Havoc autocannon doesn't. I cut one by removing a 45 degree slice from weapons posterior.

7. Before you get too crazy with detailing its a good idea to think about where your magazine will sit. If you want standard marine arms to carry this weapon, you will need to use a bolter or other gun, for reference, to place the magazine between the hands. I greenstuff my hands around the weapon so the magazine you see in the photo will not allow for un-altered marine arms. Usually I build box magazines like the one on the GW model, however this time I decided to change it up by using a bit of tubing and sealing the ends with styrene.http://i50.tinypic.com/2db6ixv.jpghttp://i48.tinypic.com/2d1a60z.jpg

8. Now is a great time to clean op the spacer. Take your flush dikes and carefully cut back the square so that it becomes a rounded rectangle, conforming to the barrel and support strut. You'll need to smooth out the cuts to keep a nice continuous edge all the way around. If you want a bayonet, a thicker piece of styrene cut into a very acute triagle will suffice, you can give it dimension by running the edge of your hobby knife along the longest side to form a blade. I cut a couple notches into mine to complete the effect. Glue the finished bayonet like the following photo:http://i47.tinypic.com/mlggug.jpg

9. Finish the bayonet by cutting a couple of small rectangles from your thinnest piece of styrene. Carefully cut them into an L shape. Attach them with super glue like the following photo (it helps to use the point of your hobby knife to grip the smallest pieces. Just tap the point into the part and then twist after the glue starts to dry to release):http://i45.tinypic.com/2uibzgz.jpg

Don't forget to do both sides!

10. Final touches include any little detail work you want, however you should save adding a chain lanyard for last if you want one. Cutting a single link from the jewelry chain carefully enough to keep half of it on the chain attached is very very hard. Gluing it to the weapon is even harder. It is also a very delicate join, and will break off every time you add a new detail without fail. Nothing says you need exposed rounds to make this thing an autocannon. I happen to like them though. However I've discovered through experimentation that its very hard to make ammo belts from scratch so I ordered these from dragonforge. While they are a bit small, I've found them to be extremely useful and time saving. http://i47.tinypic.com/m76z34.jpg

Here is the completed product:http://i48.tinypic.com/2gwfafp.jpghttp://i45.tinypic.com/15ytc88.jpghttp://i48.tinypic.com/2s1vor7.jpg

While it looks a bit plain, I'm waiting on an order of brass etch to fill in some details for me. I'll be adding the chain lanyard once the etch is firmly in place.

http://i50.tinypic.com/2efjk91.jpg

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments, or if there is something you'd like another look at or more information on. If there is any glaring errors please let me know as well. Thanks!

Edited August 7, 2013 by Fortnight

[J!MM!L!C!OUS]

Hi dude, thanks for taking the time to make this. However it would be much better with pictures between the steps to mak eit easier to to visualise the process that you're talking about :)

[Paradigm]

Photo's are up, as promised. Thanks for waiting on them. I started writing this and ran out of time to upload the photos. Early work the next day and all. Hope this helps anyone interested in scratch building. If there are any questions, please post them and I'll elaborate as best I can.

[Kierdale]

Very, very nice work, Fortnight!

And thanks for the PM <_<

[Brother Nihm]

Aye these are great, thanks! :P

[Paradigm]

If anybody wants other scratch built weapon tutorials let me know. I can throw out a plasma gun guide pretty fast and just about anything else if needed.

[AGPO]

Really great guide Fortnight, I'll definitely give these a go. Personally I'd very much appreciate a meltagun guide if you've got the time.

[dRewsus]

I'm going to have to go ahead and second Meltaguns, please. Plasma guns would be greatly appreciated as well, though!

[Paradigm]

I am about to be deployed, as I'm in the military. So, unfortunately, at the moment I don't have time to post a melta or plasma tutorial. I promise that when I do have an afternoon available, I'll roll through each as both of them are relatively easy, and I have all the required materials. Meltaguns in particular can be made to look great with very little work. Plasmaguns are only slightly harder, but the secret is guitar wire.

[mikethemutalisk]

nice!

[Paradigm]

Meltaguns tomorrow. Plasmaguns before weeks end.

[Paradigm]

http://i39.tinypic.com/245edjb.jpg

To Scratch build Melta Guns, you'll need the same tools as above. A small tube cutter is optional and very useful as well:

 

http://i39.tinypic.com/2rogxfq.jpg

 

Materials: You will need various brass or styrene tubing, 5/32" works great for melta barrels. Ensure you have at least one other size of tube, and that it fits snugly inside the 5/32" tubing.  If you want an external fuel tank, add some smaller tubing as well, 1/16" tubing works here, but anything similarly sized should be fine. Lockwire is very useful for fuel lines. Lockwire can be purchased at a better hardware store, and comes in many gauges. Tin, Copper and Aluminum lockwire is perfect for scratchbuilding. For the weapon casing get 0.4mm thick sheet styrene or strip styrene. You will also need 2mm thick sheet styrene.http://i39.tinypic.com/2njld9l.jpg

 

Your first step is to create a "blank"  to base the gun on. To do this, take any weapon you already have, such as a bolter, another melta gun, etc. You will need to measure this out, and cut it from 2mm styrene:http://i42.tinypic.com/2popett.jpg

 

 

Keep in mind, you are just building the "bones" of the gun. So if there are slight errors or you aren't able to keep your lines very straight, it wont matter much. We are going to cover most of the upper (and optionally the lower portion as well) with much thinner styrene, and cut off most of the exposed corners.

 

After you've measured out your dimensions, score and snap the styrene to remove the base rectangle.

 

http://i39.tinypic.com/ehzwqo.jpg

 

Next use your flush dikes to cut a notch out of the corner, and space for the pistol grip. Since this is a melta gun, you can make yours look more like GW's by cutting an optional notch on the lower forward corner. If you do, leave about half the facing. Now your "blank" is complete, and should look like this:

 

http://i42.tinypic.com/2vih5ds.jpg

 

Now its time to make the weapon's "casing". This will be glued onto the blank, and be what makes this look like an actual weapon, and not just a cut up piece of styrene.

 

http://i43.tinypic.com/v42au8.jpg

 

I used 0.4mm sheet styrene for this, but you can use strip styrene as well. Cut the styrene into a strip half the width of the height of your meltagun, then glue it flush with the top of the meltagun and cut off the excess. Do it again to the other side, and lastly the top to complete the weapon "casing". Here's a shot comparing it to a Chaos Melta:

 

http://i43.tinypic.com/hvnif9.jpg

 

Next we make the barrel. 5/32"(3.97mm) tubing is the perfect size. Using your tube cutter (or very, very carefully with flush dikes, or razor saw.) cut a barrel from the tube. Be sure to measure and mark the tube to make the barrel the length you want. I went with 3/16ths of an inch. http://i44.tinypic.com/4l5103.jpg

 

Here's where I made a mistake. I forgot to pick up tubing that would fit snugly inside of the 5/32" tube. So I had to improvise: http://i43.tinypic.com/2q881ag.jpg

 

Normally you'd just put another smaller diameter tube cut slightly longer (about 1/16th" longer) inside the larger tube and glue them as a unit to your "blank" weapon.

 

You should now have something that looks mostly like a meltagun: http://i42.tinypic.com/wix0m9.jpg

 

Next we add the detail. For this you can go one of two ways, either pick up a bag of strip styrene cut to very small size, or just use your scrap styrene to do your detailing work. I've used both here: http://i40.tinypic.com/2upe695.jpg

 

Don't try to glue on the tiny details by themselves. Its just going to get superglue all over your fingers and lead to frustration. Instead cut extra material and cut to suit with your dikes. Once the glue sets, you can clean it up with a sharp Xacto blade if necessary. http://i43.tinypic.com/2udz6zn.jpg

 

Next I grabbed a spare piece of tubing for a tank. I decided I wanted my melta to look mostly like a GW one so I'm going to mount it on the side of the gun. I use flush dikes to cut this smaller tubing as my tube cutter couldn't. This can help in giving you a more rounded end if you so desire. http://i43.tinypic.com/k2l37n.jpg

 

After gluing the tank to the side of the melta, I'm going to add more detail to tie the tank into the weapon. Like so:

 

http://i40.tinypic.com/10nhp1g.jpg

 

If you want to add a line for the fuel, lockwire is invaluable. You can pick up it up at better hardware stores. It comes in many, many gages and also many different metals. I use copper frequently and also aluminum, and tin. To shape lockwire you'll need to something to shape it to, and some possibly some pliers. http://i41.tinypic.com/x3zh38.jpg

 

Now that I have my fuel line, I can add further detail as desired. Now the meltagun is effectively complete, I can make it as intricately detailed as I want using the same techniques as above. Using a little liquid greenstuff can go a long way to smoothing out any mistakes and filling minor gaps as well.

 

http://i43.tinypic.com/qyeu15.jpghttp://i39.tinypic.com/245edjb.jpg

Edited August 7, 2013 by Fortnight

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

I think the autocannon could be a bit cleaner, but the melta looks pretty good.

[Klaymour]

Any Gravgun ideas?

 

Thanks

[Paradigm]

You know, I'd forgotten all about this thread. I even forgot to come back and add the plasma gun tutorial. I'm currently on a business trip and won't be home till mid March. However when I get back I'd be happy to finish up both a plasma and grav tutorial, I also need stormbolters for my inquisition, so I might tutorial-ize some guard sized stormbolters as well, if there is any interest.

 

I appreciate this thread-omancy, as it reminded of this project.

[Venemox]

Holy crap.  That is AWSOME.  End of line.

[Father Mehman]

A Storm Bolter would be great!

[Firepower]

Kinda feels a bit excessive in the muzzle.  A bit of a blunderbuss as far as melta guns go :lol:

 

Still, a very thorough walkthrough.