The Abominable Snowmen

[Rassilons Rod]

The Abominable Snowmen 1967 NN Season 4 Story 38

Location photos from The Abominable Snowmen:

[Rassilons Rod]

[Scarfwearer]

Some larger versions from Tony

[Rassilons Rod]

Cheers for adding them Tony and Crispin

[tony farrell]

This picture was posted earlier in this topic:



Here is a larger and clearer version which I think I got from Jonathan/Markofrani (apologies if this isn't the case). Open the photo in a separate tab and use the 'magnifying glass' to see it at full-size.

Note the hinges on the nearside of the lamp's base, the fact that the woodwork above the sign-boxes isn't weathered and the eye hook at the top of the right-hand side's central divider.

The extreme right-hand window also appears to retain some of its original white paintwork (this is the window which was fitted with the mixture of plain and pebbled glass in the 1966 refit - originally this 'glass' came from one of the front doors. This window retained this mixture of glass until the late Pertwee era):



T

[galacticprobe]

You can also get a great look at the construction of the corner posts as, with some of the early overhead photos of the 2005 Richmond-Thomas TARDIS, there are no post caps or any other covering over the now-open post tops.

Dino.

[Rassilons Rod]

Not sure if this applies to the unaltered box or not. But it appears that the sides had a crosspiece that went all the way across the top of the windows, and isn't split by the centre divider. (This can't be true for the front/back because otherwise the doors wouldn't open).

The lower cross pieces (stiles?) appear to follow the standard method of just being as wide as each panel.

Open in a new tab to see the image at full size.

[Scarfwearer]

Yes, this was true of the original box as well.

[Rassilons Rod]

Curious that it's just the top one.

[tony farrell]

Is it? Or, is it true of the bottom rail too?

It might be an artefact on the picture and the foliage doesn't help but, I think I see a one-piece base rail as well.

T

[Rassilons Rod]

Really not sure.

I think I'd need a clearer picture to be convinced....

Is it? Or, is it true of the bottom rail too?

It might be an artefact on the picture and the foliage doesn't help but, I think I see a one-piece base rail as well.

T

[galacticprobe]

Maybe this will help. (NOTE: I didn't put any highlighting in these images because sometimes that can detract from the actual detail you're looking for.)


Cropped so it shows up full-size in this window; lightened as much as I dared to; and sharpened as much as I could.

There is a faint white line that looks like an artefact, coincidentally right along where the join would be on the rail and stile. I say artefact because it doesn't appear to go all the way across from one side to the other (it falls short on the right side of the image). Those weeds certainly don't help, being strategically placed right where just about all of the join lines would/should be; neither do the layers of paint and weathering, nor that "clean line" on the box where the center divide snapped off (though that possible artefact does go across that spot, so it could be a join line).

So our possibilities are:

1) The original prop builders simply cut all rails and stiles out the same way as they did for the doors and assembled the side walls in the same fashion, which would make the sides' rail-stile joins the same as on the doors, or;

2) The original prop builders cut the bottom (and possibly top) rails for the sides longer knowing the sides would be one piece and not have to open, and would be assembled differently than the front/rear doors' sides.

I'm leaning more towards #2 because looking at one of the other images up-thread:


Again cropped to show it full-size in this window, also lightened and sharpened. What looked like an artefact in the first image is also present in this image, and in the same place on the box. You can also see what looks like a dark join line straight across the bottom rail, which would make it one long piece. (You can even see a split on the bottom of that bottom rail just to the left of the center divide snapped off and it goes beyond where the rail would end if it was cut like the other above it.)

I included that top rail in #2 above because, when looking at the full image, there does seem to be a join line in that same place as speculated on the bottom rail:


Again, cropped, lightened, and sharpened. You can see that horizontal join line across the top rail, indicating the top rail could be one long piece from outer (front end) stile to outer (rear end) stile. If they'd done that for the top rail (sides only), then there is every possibility they did it for the bottom rail (sides only) as well, as the sides would be assembled the same way, which was differently than the method used on the front/rear sides.

And when you look at the "clean spot" where the center divide snapped off, the "stile" under the divide has no join in the center (which would normally be under the center divide). This indicates that (possibly for strength?) the stile under the side center divide is also made from one piece, and not two joined together with the join hidden by the center divide.

I hope this is helpful.

Dino.
P. S. If we could get a "clean" image of the TARDIS from 'Marco Polo' (http://tardisbuilders.com/index.php?topic=8618.msg109016#msg109016), as in without the green wire frame over the Old Girl, since she's not so heavily weathered in that image we may be able to see if there is a join on the base rail (even though bottom of the center divide hasn't broken off yet).

[deafeningsilence]

The lamp dome and cylinder look to be one whole piece, at least to my eyes. It's unusual, but not unprecedented. At that point, the old girl had obviously seen better days and was astoundingly beaten up.

[Scarfwearer]

Having the top and bottom rails unbroken across the width would make the walls more rigid. I nearly did that with my build last year, but hadn't realised the prop was actually built this way until I later saw this high-res image. I think the wall panels are probably a sheet of 1/4" plywood like the doors. If all the rails went the full width the wall would flex in the other direction rather more, so from a carpentry point of view what they did makes perfect sense.

[Scarfwearer]

The lamp dome and cylinder look to be one whole piece, at least to my eyes. It's unusual, but not unprecedented.

It does look that way - we should probably have a new topic for the lamp variations.