Saturday 30 November 2019

Medieval Battering Ram - Scratchbuilt

As with the Catapult, Do I need another battering ram? No,  but as with the Catapult, this is for the same  upcoming Project,  so ..yes, I do need another one :-)
Stuff used. 
Wheels from the chariots in the Airfix Ancient Britons set,  coffee stirrers, toothpicks, and copperwire.
Crew -  Airfix Robin Hood .
Basing on a piece of an old CD case which had one Surface roughed up with sandpaper and scoring with a sharp blade. Base material,  sand mixed with PVA.
Make a Frame,  drill holes for the axles. The Frame alone could be laid on a flat Surface to check wether it´s Level but the holes for the axles could be slightly out of line so the axles are glued in place, the wheels added and then it´s placed on a flat Surface.  If the Frame isn´t sitting flat it can still be twisted gently to level it out.
Roof spars added. This is a bit of a balancing act but second glue (I used Pattex gel) helps. The upright spars get added first, the supporting beam after they are fixed in place. It´s a bit longer on one end (the back) so any troops waiting for the break through or have aided in pushing the ram into place have some cover.
Paint. Add the ram using copperwire as Suspension ropes.
The ram was made by slicing up a bit of vegbox Wood.
Removable roofing  also made with coffee stirrers.
Like the Catapult, It´s a Rough and Ready looking device but I reckon, unless the army using it had a decent road and Transport System, they would  make one more or less as needed. I mean, how complicated would it be to source the timbers needed? Kick some poor serf out of his house and requisition the roofing timbers.