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Like the title says, I'm trying to find out how I can make custom Mortars for my Guardsmen using stuff I can get at a hardware store/online for fairly cheap. I don't really want to buy the necessary bits online and because my army is heavily converted/using stand-ins having a more custom feel would mesh better.

I've tried to poke around online but haven't really found what I'm looking for. Maybe someone can point me in the right direction?

A hardware store might not be quite right for the diameter of tube for a simple mortar. Pens might be a better bet as they are narrower?

Alternatively pick up a single pack of plastic tube of the right diameter, maybe 5 to 8mm, and make more mortars than you could ever conceivably use.

 Flinty wrote:
A hardware store might not be quite right for the diameter of tube for a simple mortar. Pens might be a better bet as they are narrower?

Alternatively pick up a single pack of plastic tube of the right diameter, maybe 5 to 8mm, and make more mortars than you could ever conceivably use.

I'd be happy to have the tubes but I don't know where to get them. I suppose that's what I'm looking for information on. Googling small tubes and such hasn't turned up much. ><

Evergreen styrene tubes are what I've used in the past.

https://evergreenscalemodels.com

Don't necessarily buythem direct though. Check.out eBay or Amazon for similar things.

 Flinty wrote:
Evergreen styrene tubes are what I've used in the past.

https://evergreenscalemodels.com

Don't necessarily buythem direct though. Check.out eBay or Amazon for similar things.

What size would you recommend? That's been one of the difficulties online, I have nothing to use as a reference.

https://evergreenscalemodels.com/
My go-to source for plastic sheets, tubes and darn near everything else. "I" beams are particularly useful and often overlooked. Lots of model train shops have a good selection too, recommend trying them or Amazon before going direct though.

Poop, looks like the exact same response has already been given while I typed mine!
As for size, try some stand ins. Put a plastic pen next to a Guardsman, look too big or small? Try something else. I roll paper to about the right size, measured the diameter and buy that in plastic.
Cool tip, even numbered tubes will slide in each other. Example, a size 2 will fit perfectly inside a 4. A 5 goes inside a 7 etc

Buy an eBay special bundle of styrene rods from China. You’ll get various tubes, beams and rods, half a metre long x 45-60 in a bundle. Then happily use said bundle for the next few years of making stuff, at a fraction of the cost of buying Plastruct or Evergreen. Takes a month or so to arrive but well worth the wait. I’m only just buying my second bundle some 2-3 years after the last one, and I still have lots of the square section tubes left... need more rods and cylinders though!