Sarissa MDF Trailer...Modified (& Some Scatter)Zombie RV: Unemployed? In Greenville..??

    MDF Trailer from Sarissa Precision modified with corrugated siding and large 3-D printed deck

It has been about 2 1/2 years since I finished a heavily-modified Sarissa Precision MDF trailer. Finally, the second one I had purchased at the same time is completed! I modified this one a bit, too -- but not nearly as much as the first -- which you can see here in this post. The first one was meant to represent a survivalist's repaired and reinforced trailer. Individual panels of metal had been "bolted" on, as well as metal bars over the windows. Instead, this new trailer was meant to look like one surfaced with corrugated siding material -- just aged and abandoned. 

    I prefer the plastic patterned material I used over the model's original scored or incised detail

The corrugated material I used for both models is textured plastic. This time, I ended up having to buy it online because the local craft store had stopped carrying it. I prefer corrugated plastic over the incised MDF it comes with because it looks more three dimensional. This time, I also took a big shortcut. Instead of cutting and gluing on individual pieces of the corrugated material, I did each of the four sides as one sheet. Before I constructed the trailer, I took the MDF sides of it and placed them over the plastic material,  tracing its outline, windows and all. I cut it out with a hobby knife and checked to make sure it was as exact a fit as possible. This would end up working out VERY well, and I finished this trailer in less than half the time it took to do the survivalist's one back in 2022. 

    Close up of the L-shaped plastic material I used to "cap" the four corners of the building

Once the corrugated sides were cut and ready, I glued all the MDF pieces of the trailer's model together with Aleene's Tacky Glue. The model goes together very easily, as do most Sarissa Precision kits. I then let it dry overnight. The next day, I epoxied the corrugated plastic onto the four outer sides. It looks better, but you could still see a noticeable gap where each face of the trailer ends and its neighbor on the next side begins. I wanted to cover this up. So, I cut small pieces of "L-shaped" styrene that you can buy from a model train shop to "cap" those seams. This gives it a much smoother appearance. It was tricky for the curved section, requiring about four pieces per edge, instead of one cap for the square ended half of the trailer.

    A look at the MDF roof which I left "as is," except for adding small MDF pieces to cover open slots

At this point, most of the construction was done. I let it dry overnight again. The next morning, I primed the whole structure. Knowing that I was going to paint the exterior siding a dun yellow color, I used a "Camo Sand" spray acrylic paint primer that I had purchased at Menards. Being a lighter color, it would required fewer coats to paint over than if I had primed it black like I usually do for terrain.

    A look at the light green interior & wooden floors - I chose to paint rather than paper both this time

I started the painting by "wet brushing" (think dry brush where you don't wipe off as much paint) my dun yellow color  over the ridged corrugated plastic material. Next, I did a straw yellow colored highlight as a dry brush. I painted the window trim and doors a medium green. It ended up needing two coats to really cover the doors, but not so much with the windows. Finally, I dirtied it up the exterior here and there with splotches and streaks of an Autumn Brown color. At this point, the exterior was done except for the black wash, which would come once the interior was also ready.

    Close up of the interior showing my "hillbilly decor" - posters made from Google Images

The interior I did in a very light green. It also took two coats to smoothly and evenly cover the walls. I did mess up here and there and I had to repaint sections of the medium green in a few places. By using a flat square brush, though, I was able to do a better and more controlled job than I would have with a round one. I need to remember to use the square brush more when I want a large area to be covered smoothly. The floor was next. I decided I would actually use the scored surface incised on the model and not cover it with scrap booking paper like I have for most other trailers. I painted on a dark brown base coat. This was followed by a Camo Brown wet brush. Finally, I did a light highlight of khaki. 

    The clear plastic skylights included in the kit are a nice touch, which I showed off with scatter leaves

With all the coloring done, by and large, it was time for the black wash. Here is where I screwed up the most, I feel. Rather than using a wide, flat, square brush, I used a round one, again. This gives the black wash a very irregular streaky appearance. You would think I would learn after having just noticed how much easier the interior was doing it with a square-tip brush! I ended up having to go back over it and re-apply a light green dry brush to tone down the streaks and darkness of the wash. It was simply too dirty looking!

On the outside, I remember to use a flat wide brush and it ended up looking MUCH better. I was amazed at how much quicker this trailer had gone than the first one. I still had the roof to do, though. I wet brushed the dun yellow that I had used on the trailer, and then used a khaki highlight because it seemed much darker.  Looking at it, I decided I didn't like the unused slots in the roof. There are six open narrow rectangular slots that MDF tabs from the trailer are supposed to fit into. However, the way I put together the trailer (did I make a mistake?), only two of them had corresponding tabs. So, I covered up the other four with spare MDF pieces that I had from other kits to look like hatches or mechanical stuff.

    I used brown splotches and a black wash to "dirty up" the trailer and make it look weathered

I painted both the spare pieces and the area around the two skylights Iron Wind Metals Steel. I highlighted them Pewter, to give it a more 3-D look as the detail was incised onto the MDF, not raised. The kit includes two clear acrylic pieces that I would epoxy onto the underside of the roof for the glass (or plexiglass) skylights. However, I would not affix those until after I had done any clear coating -- I didn't want them to "fog." At this point, I was mostly done with the trailer. 

Now it was time to add the other obvious modification I made to the Sarissa kit. I added a big, 3-D printed, wooden deck I bought from Bad Goblin Games to the long side of the trailer with the door. I wanted to wait until the entire exterior was finished before I glued the deck down, though. Otherwise, painting the exterior portions under the deck would have been a pain! Luckily, the Bad Gobin deck was just about the correct height for the Sarissa trailer. It probably should have been a tad shorter, but I wasn't going to try to saw off exactly the same amount from the eight posts holding up the deck. I primed the deck black, did a Camo Brown wet brush, and Khaki highlight. I also gave it a black wash. 

    Less than a week after being finished, the trailer was used in one of my games of Zombie RV

Now it was time for the posters! When I save an image online for a poster or sign, and then go to print it out for a model, I usually make it in three sizes -- the one I think is right, as well as one slightly bigger and another smaller. I also save my unused posters and signs. So, I dug this folder out and looked through it. I was able to find enough "hillbilly decorations" to put onto the open wall spaces of the interior. I also glued on a No Trespassing sign of sorts on the back of the trailer, too. I thought about putting gluing down some scatter on deck -- chairs, etc. However, I decided to leave them unattached and just sit them on the deck. I picked out four chairs from the one of the Mantic Games scatter boxes (Abandoned Office?) and painted them up. Those are the ones you see in the pictures, above.

    5 pieces of 3-D printed scatter from A Critical Hit and one MDF Outhouse I finished recently

All that was left was the flocking, which I did with my usual method. I painted the base (underneath the deck was the hardest) with a mix of brown paint and white glue. Then I poured in Woodland Scenics Fine Brown Ballast. Once it had dried, I added Blended Turf. Next I added irregularly splotches of Blended Green. For this building, I also added more tufts than I usually do to make it look weedy and overgrown. Finally, I used my tiny bag of leaves that I had bought at ATC 2025 and placed some on the clear plexiglass skylights and in the corners of the deck with white glue. It was done, once again, in about half the time the other Sarissa trailer had taken me. 

    More easy to get onto the tabletop scatter from A Critical Hit -- two 3-D printed picnic tables

I made my deadline, too, as I wanted to use this trailer in Sunday's game of Zombie RV: Unemployed? In Greenville..??. I now have an acceptable looking trailer park with six trailers and at least another half dozen buildings that don't look out of place alongside them. As I finished up the trailer, I was also hurrying up to finish some more modern scatter that have sat in my closet for a year or longer. 

    I bought these from A Critical Hit in 2024 and they've sat in my closet for a year...oops!

The two picnic tables and crates of tomatoes and salt were purchased at Cincycon 2024 from A Critical Hit. It is crazy that 3-D printed pieces that took so little time to get ready for the tabletop just languished in there for a year. For the picnic tables, I simply did a Camo Brown wet brush and Khaki dry brush. That was followed up with a black wash and they were ready (other than a clear matte spray). The crates took a couple more steps. I did the same thing to the wooden slats, but them painted the metal bands Iron Wind Steel. I picked out the bolts with Bronze and then did a black wash over the crate part, but not the produce. I left the salt alone. After clear coating it, I brushed on a clear gloss over the tomatoes.
 

    I *believe* this MDF outhouse is from Sarissa, but am unsure - it has sat unpainted for even longer!

So, if I'm embarrassed that the A Critical Hit pieces sat for so long, I should be mortified by this outhouse. It came with one of my kits -- I believe from Sarissa Precission. Not sure, though, as it has been so long. I assembled it long ago (before I even moved into my new house), and even primed it black. And there it sat, forgotten, but clearly visible on the shelf of my closet containing my unpainted or unassembled terrain and scatter. Literally, all I had to do was a Camo Brown wet brush, Khaki dry brush, and black wash, and it was finally for the tabletop!

    Look! Proof the Outhouse finally made it into a game, as 2 zombies feel an urgent need to "go..."!

What's next? Yesterday, I finished my Colonial Marines from Aliens: Another Glorious Day in the Corps. I photographed them tonight, and you will likely see a post on them tomorrow. I've begun working on the 3-D printed ruins and turn marker that I bought at DayCon 2025 from Sword & Scabbard Games. What about miniatures, you may ask? Well, I think the time has arrived. After finishing this blog post, I plan on sorting through my 28m Vietnam and getting started on my first squad of U.S. Army troopers! The Vietnam project is finally underway!!

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 119
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 54 

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 10
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 19

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 53
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 50