Indoors micro crawler course?

[Jabot]

Hey y'all, could you give me some ideas for my indoor crawler course? I already built a 6' by 3' table out of wood from the hardware store, but out of ideas as far as obstacles to put onto it. We all drive 1/24th scale vehicles. Thanks!

[SurlyBurly]

In no particular order

Gather some interesting rocks and branches and debris, and so on. Save some cardboard and plastic waste for a little while. Old toys, disused parts like axles, old body shells, etc etc. Get a hot glue gun and some glue. Get some plaster cloth. Get some peg board, and some 1/4" dowels.

Cut a 1' x 3' strip of the pegboard, to use as a template for putting holes in the table, for the dowels. Not every hole in the pegboard mind you, just the corners and maybe a couple in the center of each square foot. *Then*cut all the pegboard into 1' squares. Gather your wheelin buddies and your supplies, and build a bunch of self contained obstacles on the 1' squares of peg board.

Hot glue for the rocks and branches and recycled waste. But when using the cardboard and plastic pieces you're just looking for general shapes, pie pans and disposable muffin pans and the like are great for this too. Then you cover that with the plaster cloth which will dry firm, making landscape like steps, side hills, rocks, ruts , wallows, whatever you can think of really. Paint and treat each completed square to your own tastes.

It will probably take some experimentation but the basic idea is to use cut down dowels in the holes you drilled in the table, as mounting points for the pegboard squares. The squares can be rotated, and rearranged ad infinitum, so your indoor course never gets old, and you can always make more and more squares when you want.

Then you get your buddies to build their own tables, and whenever you get together everybody brings a handful of squares, and you guys trade squares and so on and so forth.

[Shape_Shifter]

Here are some ideas:

Shape_Shifter Makes an Indoor Course

[Gramps]

Originally Posted by SurlyBurly

In no particular order

Gather some interesting rocks and branches and debris, and so on. Save some cardboard and plastic waste for a little while. Old toys, disused parts like axles, old body shells, etc etc. Get a hot glue gun and some glue. Get some plaster cloth. Get some peg board, and some 1/4" dowels.

Cut a 1' x 3' strip of the pegboard, to use as a template for putting holes in the table, for the dowels. Not every hole in the pegboard mind you, just the corners and maybe a couple in the center of each square foot. *Then*cut all the pegboard into 1' squares. Gather your wheelin buddies and your supplies, and build a bunch of self contained obstacles on the 1' squares of peg board.

Hot glue for the rocks and branches and recycled waste. But when using the cardboard and plastic pieces you're just looking for general shapes, pie pans and disposable muffin pans and the like are great for this too. Then you cover that with the plaster cloth which will dry firm, making landscape like steps, side hills, rocks, ruts , wallows, whatever you can think of really. Paint and treat each completed square to your own tastes.

It will probably take some experimentation but the basic idea is to use cut down dowels in the holes you drilled in the table, as mounting points for the pegboard squares. The squares can be rotated, and rearranged ad infinitum, so your indoor course never gets old, and you can always make more and more squares when you want.

Then you get your buddies to build their own tables, and whenever you get together everybody brings a handful of squares, and you guys trade squares and so on and so forth.

The peg board squares is an interesting idea, would like to see some pictures them in action

[23drumerboy]

Originally Posted by SurlyBurly

In no particular order

Gather some interesting rocks and branches and debris, and so on. Save some cardboard and plastic waste for a little while. Old toys, disused parts like axles, old body shells, etc etc. Get a hot glue gun and some glue. Get some plaster cloth. Get some peg board, and some 1/4" dowels.

Cut a 1' x 3' strip of the pegboard, to use as a template for putting holes in the table, for the dowels. Not every hole in the pegboard mind you, just the corners and maybe a couple in the center of each square foot. *Then*cut all the pegboard into 1' squares. Gather your wheelin buddies and your supplies, and build a bunch of self contained obstacles on the 1' squares of peg board.

Hot glue for the rocks and branches and recycled waste. But when using the cardboard and plastic pieces you're just looking for general shapes, pie pans and disposable muffin pans and the like are great for this too. Then you cover that with the plaster cloth which will dry firm, making landscape like steps, side hills, rocks, ruts , wallows, whatever you can think of really. Paint and treat each completed square to your own tastes.

It will probably take some experimentation but the basic idea is to use cut down dowels in the holes you drilled in the table, as mounting points for the pegboard squares. The squares can be rotated, and rearranged ad infinitum, so your indoor course never gets old, and you can always make more and more squares when you want.

Then you get your buddies to build their own tables, and whenever you get together everybody brings a handful of squares, and you guys trade squares and so on and so forth.

Most absolutely EPIC take on DIY crawler course (1/24), that i have EVER heard of!!! Perfect idea, without flaws of any kind! And the TRADING?! ALRIGHT, no one told me einstein rips through these forums! Absolute genius, my friend, I'll now be selling my 36"x24" course, as well as my O.G. (who knows the dimensions?) Crawl section.

Read-Up! Mod-On! Crawl EXCESSIVELY!

[Jabot]

Originally Posted by SurlyBurly

In no particular order

Gather some interesting rocks and branches and debris, and so on. Save some cardboard and plastic waste for a little while. Old toys, disused parts like axles, old body shells, etc etc. Get a hot glue gun and some glue. Get some plaster cloth. Get some peg board, and some 1/4" dowels.

Cut a 1' x 3' strip of the pegboard, to use as a template for putting holes in the table, for the dowels. Not every hole in the pegboard mind you, just the corners and maybe a couple in the center of each square foot. *Then*cut all the pegboard into 1' squares. Gather your wheelin buddies and your supplies, and build a bunch of self contained obstacles on the 1' squares of peg board.

Hot glue for the rocks and branches and recycled waste. But when using the cardboard and plastic pieces you're just looking for general shapes, pie pans and disposable muffin pans and the like are great for this too. Then you cover that with the plaster cloth which will dry firm, making landscape like steps, side hills, rocks, ruts , wallows, whatever you can think of really. Paint and treat each completed square to your own tastes.

It will probably take some experimentation but the basic idea is to use cut down dowels in the holes you drilled in the table, as mounting points for the pegboard squares. The squares can be rotated, and rearranged ad infinitum, so your indoor course never gets old, and you can always make more and more squares when you want.

Then you get your buddies to build their own tables, and whenever you get together everybody brings a handful of squares, and you guys trade squares and so on and so forth.

WOW!!! Thank you for your idea, will look into it. Did you have pics of it in action? Thanks Anyways!

[SurlyBurly]

Originally Posted by Jabot

WOW!!! Thank you for your idea, will look into it. Did you have pics of it in action? Thanks Anyways!

I do not, I haven't built mine yet lol. Got a lot of work to do in the Garage before I can even start, but I've been mulling the concept around in my head for awhile now. Right now I'm trying to figure a good way to address elevations without it dictating the location of certain squares, and to add crossings and things to go under. Maybe a few designated pairs of squares for crossings, and maybe a handful of "mesa" or raised square styles and tunnel styles, could be tricky. I think ultimately there's just going to be have to be quite a few more squares than are necessarily needed to cover your available space.

[23drumerboy]

Originally Posted by SurlyBurly

I do not, I haven't built mine yet lol. Got a lot of work to do in the Garage before I can even start, but I've been mulling the concept around in my head for awhile now. Right now I'm trying to figure a good way to address elevations without it dictating the location of certain squares, and to add crossings and things to go under. Maybe a few designated pairs of squares for crossings, and maybe a handful of "mesa" or raised square styles and tunnel styles, could be tricky. I think ultimately there's just going to be have to be quite a few more squares than are necessarily needed to cover your available space.

I was just thinking the same thing in regards to a handful of squares for each type of elevation. But but then my brain told me to tell you maybe you can have a set of specific call them "Mesa" squares, but Every Square MUST have a cliff-face, or "flat side" whereas the other three can have a mode of access, each different.. ie: one with 1.3-1.5inch deep "ruts" (as if someone with lockers NAILED it "up" the "hill"?? If that makes sense?, Then one with a ladder-bridge or somethin?

Read-Up! Mod-On! Crawl EXCESSIVELY!

[23drumerboy]

Originally Posted by SurlyBurly

I do not, I haven't built mine yet lol. Got a lot of work to do in the Garage before I can even start, but I've been mulling the concept around in my head for awhile now. Right now I'm trying to figure a good way to address elevations without it dictating the location of certain squares, and to add crossings and things to go under. Maybe a few designated pairs of squares for crossings, and maybe a handful of "mesa" or raised square styles and tunnel styles, could be tricky. I think ultimately there's just going to be have to be quite a few more squares than are necessarily needed to cover your available space.

Alternatively, you can do "transitions" squares? Where with each terrain-ous square, comes one that offers a "way down" the paired-elevated-square.

Read-Up! Mod-On! Crawl EXCESSIVELY!

[SurlyBurly]

When I said Mesa square I meant like a plain block, probably Styrofoam or something, that would basically go under any of your other squares to raise it to some degree. Like a blank spacer so that all of your existing squares could be a raised square.

Then you'd probably want to pick a few heights as standard, so you could make transition squares that adjoin smoothly. Say a 1", a 3" and a 5" spacer as standard, that way you could make a handful or transition squares that go from level to 1" level to 3" or level to 5", and then make some that are one edge transitions, or two edge transitions, some that are "level" on two edges but 1" one edge and 3" and on the other edge and all the other iterations from there.

[2xDeadbolt]

Here are pics of our indoor course. It is pretty tricky to climb up on the bridge but it can be done.

[Jabot]

THanks you all for the support and ideas. Just figured it was about time to build on since I finished my build:

It's an old Pro-line Ambush, It was a 4 month long build.

For more info, heres the rccaraction listing: https://www.rccaraction.com/readers_...ry-number-294/
appreciate it if you could give it 5 stars

Anyways, I got some spray foam, styrafoam, and some card board, and I also plan to paint it afterwards. What other materials and course obstacles are there? I'm out of ideas to fill in my space.

Thnks