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Mamuk with Howdah
The Mamuk was an interesting challenge.
Having seen the small
version that the games workshop sell
for £50 I thought it would be cheaper and some fun
to make my own.
Looking on the web helped
convince me that this was
an achievable task.
The first idea was to
do the same as the example found on the net. Adapt an existing model elephant.
The problem was
finding such an example. I did try several toy and model shops and
even e-bay on the www. But nothing came close to the size
required.
Remember that there
has to be a howdah on top of the animal to carry the gaming pieces. I also
wanted the size to resemble that of the actual animal from the film/books. This
would also allow the cavalry to pass through the animal and make it interesting
in a game scenario.
It was suggested to me
that I could make a model out of plaster of paris but
I decided that this would be too crumbly. Then super sculpy
was suggested but this seemed to be a bit expensive, after a visit to a craft
shop I was shown a clay that would dry hard without
firing and seemed to be just what was required.
First I made myself a
card and wood structure that would hold a wire frame skeleton. This would hold
the clay. Using a model from the Early Learning Centre and pictures from the
film I modelled a Mamuk. It was soon realised that
the clay would not work for the tusks. I tried many different ideas but in the
end found a friend that could make then in pottery clay. These were fired and,
although heavy they would be tough enough even as the tusk tapered to a point.
To attach to the clay
and structure a two part epoxy resin was used and although this was messy it
has held them in place for many game play battles.
Before the clay was
completely dry I put the skin texture on.
After the clay had
hardened I painted the piece in the normal way with acrylic paint
The last bit to build
was the howdah. This was made from mainly cereal box card and straws. Inside the
straws were tooth picks and or kebab skewers.
The material/animal
skins that are hung between the posts were made from kitchen roll soaked in upva glue. They were attached while wet, so this was a
difficult and time consuming procedure.
I then laid string
from the posts and draped them over the sides.
The tusks were also
decorated with string and balsa wood spikes. Flags and the decorative paint
added to the finishing touches.
Because of the size of
the mamuk, the howdah is a lot larger than the
shop-bought one and can take more Haradrin.