Finger and Toe Models Quonset Hut

My latest card building, the Quonset Hut, appeared in my last batrep "Who's Laughing Now?" and I thought you'd like to see a much closer look at it. I've only just recently discovered Finger and Toe Models, who make this model and although they only have a few contemporary 28mm scale models, I like what they do, especially as they offer building interiors with their models. Mind you, the Quonset Hut comes without an interior, but that wasn't going to stop me from adding one!

According to the blurb given with the instructions, Quonset Huts were intended as temporary structures to create bases quickly. Although actually invented in the First World War (as Nissen Huts), Quonset Huts didn't achieve their widespread distribution until redesigned and mass-produced for the U.S. Navy in the Second World War.

This model represents a 20' by 40' version with corrugated steel ends, instead of the plywood found on the original versions. Quonset Huts can be any type of structure you like, from an airport terminal, base operations to barracks and offices, even a research station plunked down in the Antarctic. The structure is so simple, some version will likely continue to be used for many decades to come. I decided to use my model as a small barracks, configured for four residents.

 This photo shows the front of the Hut, with the door still open from Team Vampifan's visit. I cut the windows out and replaced the "glass" with an offcut of transparency paper.

The front and back walls were easy to make. I just glued the printout of the interior and exterior to a piece of mounting card. With the walls and roof being a curved structure I did wonder if reinforcing them with mounting card would work. I was considering using thin card to reinforce my printouts but in the end I was able to use thick mounting card.

If you look closely at the front and back walls, you can see that the curve is made up of 12 angled straight edges.

This made making the walls and roof much easier as I was able to score the mounting card about halfway through, so it could fold and match the shape of the front and back walls. The roof is reinforced and kept in shape by two inserts glued at either end that match the shape of the upper part of the front and back walls. There is a thick black line that runs a third of the way up along both sides of the roof/walls, which would have made a good place to separate the roof from the walls. The only problem was that it gave a lot less room to get your fingers inside to move stuff about. So, I made the side walls three sections high and the roof consists of six sections. The join between the two is more visible than if I'd used the cut where the thick black lines are but against that, I can reach inside far more easily. It's a compromise between aesthetics and playability

This photo shows an overhead view of the interior of the Hut. All of the furniture and props inside come from the Ebbles Ambient Elements set, specifically the Barracks, Storeroom and Workshop sets. I know that these sets are now no longer for sale but Chris Roe (aka Mel Ebbles) is reintroducing his back catalogue of models to the WWG webstore, so hopefully they will be available for sale soon. For the interior walls I simply printed out a second set of the external walls and used them. The only thing I had to change was the position of the door knob. For the interior doors I painted it out and repainted one on the opposite side of the door.

Here is a side view of the interior that you never got to see in my last ATZ batrep. As well as a bunk bed in each corner, there are two locker cupboards and a stack of four foot lockers, where the occupants can keep their clothes and whatever gear they need. The cupboards and foot lockers came from the Ebbles Storeroom set. The two cupboards had to be cut down in height and have their sides reshaped so that they would fit flush to the walls. Fiddly work that required some precise measurements to get the cupboard walls the correct shape.

This is the interior view that appeared the most in my last ATZ batrep. There is a bunk bed in each corner again. The table in the middle had to have its support base trimmed so that I could fit the chairs under the table at the two short ends. The support base originally ran the length of the table. I cut it in half. I added an Ebbles laptop computer and a sheet of notepaper on the table for some decoration. The table came from the Ebbles Workshop set and the chairs and bunks from the Barracks set

This is a view from the back of the barracks, showing the cramped conditions inside. You can see that on the front and back windows I painted a cross on them to indicate the window frames, rather than just leave them blank. It's the little details like this that add to the overall feel of the model.

I haven't commented on the window shutters on the side walls. They certainly help break up the drabness of the walls and roof but the way they're angled I do wonder how much light they would allow inside. The shutters do not come with interior detail, so I was able to counteract that when I printed out my second set of walls.

The Quonset Hut was not an easy model to make because of the curved roof and walls but I'm very happy with the final outcome. Mind you, if you were to build it as per the instructions, without any interior detail, then I'd describe it as an easy model to build. It fits in very well the Ebbles Folding Unit Structures. As I mentioned earlier, it is the kind of building you could find anywhere from World War One up to the near future. You could just imagine a load of these being used in the early stages of the zombie apocalypse to house refugees fleeing from the zombie menace. 

I should mention that if you do purchase this model, it comes with a 15mm scale version as well, which will be of use to some of you who prefer gaming in a much smaller scale.