Hex vs Non-Hex Terrain

[Ritter]

double - posting bug!

[Ritter]

I am a fan of terrain Maker too.

The sliding issue can be eliminated with the felt and flocking the BOTTOM of a few clear hexes. They stick like velcro. Put about 3 on an edge and that seems to hold the hexes all in place.

Dont over-do the trees or buildings in a hex. There will be no room for your minis! I use a darker flock and 5 or so small trees for woods/brush and 6 or more larger trees for forest.

Troy

[pmskaar]

Tom

Thanks very much for your kind words. Great to hear from you again. I have not done any taping of the hexes as you mentioned. My concern would be 2 fold here. One is that I need to know that the masking tape would not damage the hexes when pulling off the tape after the game. The other would be taping hills and woods together and getting everything to line up while taping. There probably is a way to do this but I have not tried it yet.
I have had good luck with the felt mat to put the hexes on and this keeps sliding to almost nil unless someone really bumps the layout while the game is in progress. Before that I did have problems with sliding due to the styrofoam on a fairly slick surface. The felt has a certain velcro like quality that prevents this. I may try taping the felt to the table for an even more secure layout. Have a great day!

Pete

[Bruce Morris]

Hi,

I started making my own 5" hexes last year using a jig that someone had posted for a band saw. I used the idea and buit one for my table saw.

With regards to the sliding hex problem I took a cue from a non slip pad I use in the shop for sanding and routing on the table top. Grip Lilner shelf and drawer liner works great. I bought some 20"X16 rolls at Sam's Club a cople of years ago. You can find different widths and lengths at most home self help stores, grocery stores or department stores.

Bruce

[CountRingworm]

Bruce- If you happen to come across the plans for that jig, or if the original poster of those happens to see this, could you post them again?

i'm trying to decide what to buy next for my shop- band saw or drill press. this would help the decision if i could use it for both my woodworking AND ww2 modelling

[rct75001]

Count

It was definitily using a bandsaw - I am trying to find the original word doco that had the layout in it but not having much luck at the moment.
Richard

[Bruce Morris]

Richard,

I found the the document by Mike Gregory. If you can't find the article PM me and I'll send it to you. He also had a article on the Arnhem Bridge.

Bruce

[tanker]

Thanks again for the additional replies. Tom, Pete and Troy, you guys are good with Troy leaning way over into the Just Plain Scary category. I swear the machinegunenr in the squad you have on your main page has blue eyes and a mole on his left ear.

Tanker

[tanker]

I have 2 sets of Geo-Hex terrain from the early 90's and have moved away from the hex model for the same reasons mentinoned above. To set up a 5x5 table took almost and hour and a half. Also I don't like the table edge not being "dressed" out.

For those that are doing hex terrain I'd look on the geo hex web site the show diagrams for how edge pieces should be cut.

I understand that GeoHex closed their doors back in February and are out of business. I remember seeing their stuff several years ago and it looked pretty nice. Never picked ny up though.

Tanker

[1ComOpsCtr]

We have used the Geo-Hex system as the basis for our simulations for many years. The size (roughly 12") made them easier to work with than the small GHQ hex size.



You don't see the separation lines as much and they can be made geomorphic if desired or, as we have done, made with interlocking parts of a whole general feature. The hexes in the view above are a small part of a complete town contained within a valley in south central Bosnia. This is the view of part of the southern end of the town with the view below illustrating the northern part of the town. When the whole valley is deployed it is 2 K by 1 K in scale with 3mm equalling 1 meter ground and vertical scale.



In this larger overview image you can easily see the hex size and the amount of scenery possible during a CPX with a Marine Reserve unit prior to their deployment to Iraq in 2003.

One of the primary reasons we went to Geo-Hex is because they offered finished product "off the shelf" that could be combined to fill in where we had not provided one of our own finished hexes. As you can see from the photo there are basic and modified hexes in general use during the simulation. This picture is from the AAR.

Just my opinion...

Will
ComOpsCtr

[sfcgreg29er]

Hey all,

If you go to the following Micro-Armor yahoo group you will find my article on how to make the jig for making hexes. I also have the Arnhem Bridge article posted there as well. Pics of the finished bridge posted here on this forum. (I think on the scratch built topic). If you don't want to register onto the yahoo group, give me a PM and I can email the instuctions to you.

http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/Micro-Armor/files/

I prefer hexes for five reasons.

1. They look great.
2. They are fun to make.
3. You can create an infinite number of layouts.
4. You can make any type of terrain feature.
5. Its too late to use anything else. ( I have well over 200 hexes and too much time and materials invested )

Here's what I've done to stop "hex slippage" and reduce set-up time.

I made a frame tray to lay out the hexes on. The frame tray is made with 1/4" plywood as a base with 3/4" x 3/4" strips fastened around the perimeter. The overall size of my current setup is 34" x 47". The frame tray is in two pieces so you can move it through doorways. I plan to make some other sections to increase the playing area. The frame is keep together with knockdown furniture fittings which only require a screwdriver to take apart and put back together. The frame keeps all the hexes tightly together. I even have the frame marked with a grid coordinate scale so you can plot your artillery strikes without using a tape measure. I usually create the battlefield several days before the game and then all that is required is to take it apart and reset it back up on game day. That way all my extra hexes stay at home in the storage tubs. I use a bed sheet to cover it up while moving so no hexes blow away or get wet during inclement weather. It only takes 15-20 minutes set up time.

Pics of my terrain are on the SCENARIO topic of this forum. I will post some pics of the frame tray when I get my camera back this week.

[jb]

http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/Micro-Armor/files/

I prefer hexes for five reasons.

5. Its too late to use anything else. ( I have well over 200 hexes and too much time and materials invested )

I'll buy that one...

[Paul B]

The frame is keep together with knockdown furniture fittings which only require a screwdriver to take apart and put back together

Mike,

What are these knockdown furniture fittings? I have been think of making a frame, and am very interested in how you made yours.

[pmskaar]

I am in total agreement with Mike G's 5 reasons for hex terrain. Reason #5 is very true for me as I have 3 complete sets of hexes including my European summer terrain, winter, and desert terrain for N. Africa. I have been using the summer terrain mostly the last few years because that's what the majority of my finished vehicles are set for. I am in the process of remedying this by getting some British N. Africa vehicles painted. Winter on the Russian Front will also happen one of these days.

Pete - Binpicker, Out!

[atiff]

I've made hexes in the past (basically Geohex copies) and they are still being used by my mates back in New Zealand. Now that I'm in Taiwan, I have restarted my terrain again and am making squares (easier to make than hexes). By having my "join features" (roads, rivers, hedgelines, etc) placed at the 1/4 - 3/4 points on each side (rather than the 1/2-way point) I can do both a "square" layout and an "offset/staggered squares" layout, which is similar hexes.

(sorry, no pics yet, camera has gone walkabout)