Quote from: kerick on February 09, 2025, 09:18:45 PMThese really give the imagination a workout.
I saw a website for a guy that built spaceships from airliners or ships. He would turn them upside down and front to back. Makes it harder to recognize the origin of the build.

Yeah that's giving the squishy bits a work out fir sure .

StarshipModeler used to have "Box O' Stuff" build challenges.  It caused a lot of work for the owner of the site, OneZero - which is why they don't do them anymore.  Basically those who wanted in filled and sent to OneZero a copier-paper box full of random plastic bits & chunks of models (broken or not).  OneZero went through all the boxes, made sure they were basically similar in content, and sent them back out.  Once all the boxes were in the hands of the contestants - who were honour-bound to use only the contents of the box, plus glue, putty, and paint at the builders' discretion - in one year the contestants had to build whatever "sci-fi" they could.  Build pictures were posted and "winners" were by acclaim.  Builds could also be brought to Wonderfest and displayed for the better appreciation of the builds. 

There was one bloke who, needing more clear plastic than was included, used the shipping tape from the box.  He was worried about the 'legality' of this, so cleared it with OneZero

I managed two builds from my box o' stuff.  But - I also got a box of different bits of plastic - and that was a win right there!   

My hover-Centurion used the track enclosures as housings for the lift-plenums with the hover-nozzles at the bottom, with the turbine exhausts out the back.  Unfortunately I got the gun barrel too long, so it looks a bit ... meh.  I should probably address that someday ...

Quote from: RebelScale on February 09, 2025, 09:55:47 AM

Quote from: Weaver on February 07, 2025, 09:19:05 AMRezna P.II hovertank by Johnathan Campbell, done as a challenge to build a what if using ONLY what was in a Tamiya Panzer.II box. He ended up using strips of the box cardboard, the parts bag and the staples! There are more sci-fi what-if on his blog page.

Finished model: https://www.rebelscale.com/models/sci-fi/rezna-pii-hovertank/
Build Log: https://www.rebelscale.com/models/build-logs/rezna-p2/

Hey, that's my little hovertank. I had a lot of fun building it. I didn't put too much thought into how it would raise it's gun, other than as a hovertank, it would bob up and down on the front or back to shoot.

I did several of these. It's fun to limit yourself to one kit to use for kit-bashing.

It'sa great model - well done. Somehow I think you'll like it here....  

When I was a kid, my dad had a pretty decent woodworking shop in the attic. One time I used his tools (mostly a power-sander, IIRC) to carve a hovertank out of bit of scrap planking. It looked quite good, with a prismatic shape to the hull and turret, but I never did detail it (probably got distracted/discouraged: story of my life...). My dad was pleased that I'd shown an interest in woodworking, but he absolutely didn't understand the project!

I don't think I have it any more and I definitely don't have pictures of it, sadly.

Very cool. 

Am I correct in it being a "hovertank" of the Ian McQue anti-grav sort rather than an ACV?
 

Hmm.  Maybe someday we do something like that where we put names into a virtual hat, each draw a name and we have to send that person a model, any (reasonable - nothing with a gazillion pieces or photoetch larger than a sheet of paper or explosive materials

Joe C-P

Quote from: jcf on February 10, 2025, 12:02:45 PMVery cool. 

Am I correct in it being a "hovertank" of the Ian McQue anti-grav sort rather than an ACV?
 

Yep - repulsorlift has been mentioned.

Funnily enough, this has already got me thinking about a more overtly Ian McQue style vehicle made from a Jagdpanther hull turned upside-down. it's really quite boat/barge-like when you look at it like that.

I considered mine a repulsorlift. But the one pictured here was just to rile the guys that made the build-off. They said use only what's in the box, not that I had to follow directions.

Quote from: Weaver on February 10, 2025, 02:43:49 PM

Quote from: jcf on February 10, 2025, 12:02:45 PMVery cool. 

Am I correct in it being a "hovertank" of the Ian McQue anti-grav sort rather than an ACV?
 

Yep - repulsorlift has been mentioned.

Funnily enough, this has already got me thinking about a more overtly Ian McQue style vehicle made from a Jagdpanther hull turned upside-down. it's really quite boat/barge-like when you look at it like that.

Sturmtiger and use the funky mortar as
as a combo lift/propulsion device.

Quote from: jcf on February 10, 2025, 05:21:34 PMSturmtiger and use the funky mortar as
as a combo lift/propulsion device.

I've read a sci-fi story where the main character found his Plasma Cannon* (a hand-held weapon in this instance  ) could be used as a propulsion device in low/no-grav environments... of course, this left a trail of destruction behind him, but hey - there're disadvantages to anything...

*the Strohl Munitions BH-209, if you're interested.

Quote from: jcf on February 10, 2025, 12:02:45 PMVery cool. 

Am I correct in it being a "hovertank" of the Ian McQue anti-grav sort rather than an ACV?
 

I was thinking of a hovertank from The Zone series by James Rouch. Tactical nukes and super cannons etc

I'm more of a Hammer's Slammers type hovertank guy.

Ah, Meter-thick Iridium Armour... and Bolos! What's not to like?!

There are a couple of fanfics out there where the Rag-Tag Fleet encounters some Bolos... interesting.
And the encounter Caprica Six has with one ends... very badly for her; Oh Dear, How Sad.

Quote from: Rick Lowe on February 10, 2025, 10:57:48 PM

Quote from: jcf on February 10, 2025, 05:21:34 PMSturmtiger and use the funky mortar as
as a combo lift/propulsion device.

I've read a sci-fi story where the main character found his Plasma Cannon* (a hand-held weapon in this instance  ) could be used as a propulsion device in low/no-grav environments... of course, this left a trail of destruction behind him, but hey - there're disadvantages to anything...

*the Strohl Munitions BH-209, if you're interested.

There's a Larry Niven story ("The Deadlier Weapon" IIRC) where exactly the opposite happens. A crew of totally peaceful future humans, who firmly believe all advanced species must be equally peaceful, encounter violent & predatory aliens for the first time in hundreds of years. One of them studied history and was sufficiently mentally stable to be allowed to view the restricted-access History of Warfare. He turns the ship around as if to flee, engages the drive on full-power, and cuts the alien ship in half. Afterwards, far from cheering his victory, he's profoundly depressed, because he knows all the dreadful arts that humanity is going to have to relearn very shortly.

Quote from: philp on February 11, 2025, 09:39:01 PMI'm more of a Hammer's Slammers type hovertank guy.

Me, too.  I basically used those stores as a raison d'etre for this: