Need Ideas for Broken Windows

[revshag]

Hi Guys,

I'm making plans to build a model with a broken rear window. It's replicating a rear window that was shot out. So I need to break it, remove a large portion of the center of the glass, and then place it in the location on the model. My idea is to cover the kit glass with a piece of packing tape (it's clear, should cover the whole glass, and will be strong enough to hold everything in place), break it (probably with a hammer), then cut out the tape and pick out the pieces of the glass I don't want. I'm not sure if the packing tape will be too thick, but I need something to hold it all together once I break the glass.

Any thoughts and ideas would be greatly appreciated.

[disabled modeler]

Hi Chris...I usually will make the shattered look by scraping the bare glass with a knife blade( back of tip ) untill I have the desired look. Then I will very carefully scrape the hole outline area untill the glass opens the hole you want. It has always worked for me in the past, taping the glass and breaking it with a hammer is not going to give you the affect your probably looking for and it ends-up being harder to do. Get a scrap window and give it a try...with some practice you will get there. Mark

[Nick Winter]

I've done this two ways, if you want it like lets say the part of the blues brothers were bob and the good old boys shoot out the blues mobiles back window and it's gone I take a soldering iron, heat it up and run it through the window and work my way out, for cracked windows, I hit them with a screw driver lightly.

[DanielG]

I may be wrong but I think the only window that holds together is the windshield because of its lamination. Don't the other windows just shatter into millions of tiny glass cubes?

[David G.]

I may be wrong but I think the only window that holds together is the windshield because of its lamination. Don't the other windows just shatter into millions of tiny glass cubes?

For the most part, you're right.

Cars built in the US since the mid 60's will have back and side windows made of tempered glass. Because of this they will hold together to some extent, but not as well as a laminated windshield. If a back window on such a car were shot, say, with a handgun, most of it might remain in place, at least for a short time. Most of what remains could be reduced to little bits with a light tap from a hammer, or be shaken loose by driving over a rough stretch of road.

Sometimes they will continue to break, sort of shattering in slow motion. Hours later one can sometimes still hear occasional creaking and grinding noises as this happens.

Of course, it would be just as likely to completely shatter leaving a jagged fringe of cubed-up glass around the inside of the frame.

********

revshag,

Given that, I'd say you could justify just about any effect you wanted to create!

But, creating random damage is almost never the way to go in model building. Most of the weathering, distressing and damage effects you see others modeling on their projects are actually carefully planned and executed proceedures used to create apparently random results. I would do a Google Image search on "shattered broken car window" find an image or two you like and use some of the cutting and scratching techniques given above to replicate the the features that appeal to you. As always, practice new techniques on scrap stock!

Hope that helps.

David G.

Edited March 20, 2010 by David G.

[Karmodeler2]

Hey Chris,

I saw a diorama that had what you are looking for. I asked the guy and he said he used sugar (fine and course) to replicate the pieces on the back deck led. Very convincing.

David

[envious8420]

Hey Chris,

I saw a diorama that had what you are looking for. I asked the guy and he said he used sugar (fine and course) to replicate the pieces on the back deck led. Very convincing.

David

thats what came to my mind too, but salt. sea, table and rock salts should replicate shattered glass well.

[Eshaver]

Well you might try to locate some microscope viewing slides . These Flat slides will work on American cars at least to about 1964 as the side windows were then starting to go curved . By genty breaking the thin glass , you might be able to replicate some damage there . Ed Shaver

[diymirage]

what if you found yourself a teeny tiny gun and just shoot it out ?

[Talbot90]

Hi, I cut the window to the desired shape, then used 200 grit woodworking sandpaper scratched across it in two directions to replicate the shattered window. i just used plain Table salt for the shattered glass fragments.

Hope this helps.

Ian

[Harry P.]

Ed recommended the same thing i was going to. microscope slides are real glass, or at least they used to be.

Dave

There's no way to control the break pattern with a glass slide.

[CustomFerrari]

Hi, I cut the window to the desired shape, then used 200 grit woodworking sandpaper scratched across it in two directions to replicate the shattered window. i just used plain Table salt for the shattered glass fragments.

Hope this helps.

Ian

very nice

[96Delta]

Hello everyone, good to be here.

Let me take a second to introduce myself.

My name is David and I'm new to scale auto modeling,

having only built one auto kit about 15 years ago.

I'm currently 'collecting' scale auto kits to

someday build (much to my wife's angst) but

hope to start building in the fall?

Anyway, I've spent most of my modeling 'career' building

1/35 armor and 1/48 aircraft and it's from the 1/35

arena that I ran across this tutorial for broken glass.

I think this modeler really nailed the effect.

Not sure if it will work for a gunshot shatter

but for battered windows in say, a junkyard setting

or crash scene, it looks like it would work well.

http://www.migproductionsforums.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=4826&start=60

I hope that my first post was of some help to someone.

Happy modeling,

David

Edited June 30, 2010 by 96Delta

[torinobradley]

Everything about that VW is spot on and awesome. Where's the tutorial for that?!?!? That one blows me away.

It's funny when you think about it. What takes the least amount of effort on the 1:1 (basically, leave it alone and ta-da, weathered) takes the most work on the little guys...

[96Delta]

Where's the tutorial for that?!?!? That one blows me away.

Visit this link and scroll down a little more than half way

and you'll see where the modeler explains how to achieve the

effect. Bear in mind that the model depicted is 1/35 scale.

As for the VW itself, read the whole thread. I don't think

he describes the VW build but you never know.

http://www.migproductionsforums.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=4826&start=60

Here it is if you can't get the link to work:

STEP ONE:

White glue on thin plastic (the kind you wrap around food)

STEP TWO:

Spread it out to a thin layer

STEP THREE:

Sprinkle on Deluxe materials 'Icy Sparkles'

STEP FOUR:

Let it dry and peel it off the plastic.

STEP FIVE:

Cut to size and glue it onto the vehicle.

STEP SIX: Enjoy!

To simulate broken glass on the ground simply sprinkle on the Icy Sparkles

to the ground and secure it with Mig Pigment fixer.

Edited July 1, 2010 by 96Delta

[VW Dave]

The technique laid out above makes for very impressive broken glass IMO....I'm just curious where I can fnd those 'Icy Sparkles' or a similar product locally.

On my junkyard Monte, I covered the rear shelf with small glass beads I got at my local Michaels store:

[96Delta]

Came across this tonight while watching

videos on YouTube...and why sniffing glue

is a bad idea.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9wtVXtxaVc&feature=related

Edited July 13, 2010 by 96Delta

[Dr. Cranky]

Very cool technique. Thanks for sharing it.