With the spring clean I have lost the thread relating to the debate on chain. The last post by Mike Turpin asked me for some more detail on photo etch as an alternative to chain.... always happy to oblige
When fine chain is required there is only so far you can go with real chain and stay in scale. The manufacturing process of photo etch allows chain to be made much finer than real chain, the compromise, however, is that photo etch is flat. In the case of Chain the paint applied will flesh out the chain
let me use the canon as the example. I have used Aber photoetch manufactured in 1:35 scale for militery trucks and tanks, but chain is chain. The chain is cut to the required lenght and then shaped with the tip of a craft knife into the hanging position. carfuly placed on the cannon and then a small blob of super glue added to each end. oce dry a quick brush of paint.
advantages:
easy to shape
cheap
finer chain for small scale
disadvantages:
can look a bit flat
very fiddley
“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.”
-Mark Twain
US
