INTRO
These instructions are for the assembly of the M03-QuadPod terrain piece, however, since all ModPod buildings are designed with similar parts, the instructions here could easily be used for other ModPod structures with slight modification. For a basic introduction to model assembly, please see our article on that subject here.
For everyone else, please cut and sort your parts, and let's get to it!
FRAME ASSEMBLY
Step One
We'll start by attaching the walls to the floor plate. Working quickly, and ensuring that the etched part of the wall is facing inward, apply glue to the edge of the floor plate, and insert one wall section into the slots while curving the hinge around the corner.
Step Two
Grab the corner support pieces, and apply glue as needed to the notches around the upper area of the corner. Insert a corner support piece into the slots around the curve. Try to keep the corner supports horizontal to the floor plate. There's a little play in the corners, so you might want to keep an eye on it as you go.
Continue adding wall sections and corner supports until all four walls are in place. We suggest using a little blue painter's tape to help keep the walls aligned with one another and snug/flush with the floor.
Step Three
Next we'll attach the out fascia walls. These pieces have multiple uses, they add detail and character, but structurally they also hide seams, lock the corner supports into place, and help square the model along the sides.
Apply glue evenly to the back (non-etched) side of the fascia, and slot onto the outer wall. It should fit neatly between the corner supports, be even with the tops and bottoms of the inner walls, and the door and window holes should align. Tape or clamps are useful to once again hold things in place while you work and let things dry.
Repeat for the other three fascia.
Step Four
Next we'll add the floor details and door rails.
Working one at a time, apply glue to the underside of the corner floor details, and insert them into the the corners. There are slots along the baseboards of the wall for the door rails to anchor. Use these to help align the pieces.
Lastly, glue down the central hexagon detail, aligning it with the etching on the floor plate.
Congratulations, that's the biggest part of this build complete! Everything after this point is optional or semi-optional, depending on your tastes, but we really recommend adding these additional features and details to complete the look and give you more options for play.
SMALL PARTS
While the previous steps dry, we'll work on some small bits and detail pieces.
Step Five
Let's work on the removable floor hatches. Technically, you don't need to pop these out of the floor or ceiling pieces to enjoy this kit, but we made them removable to accommodate other accessories that could slot in their place.
Each hatch is made of the grate, a top, and a bottom handle.
Start by gluing the bottom handle to the grate, and then glue to top handle to both of them. Repeat until you're out of hatches.
If you chose not to remove the the grates, just glue the handles directly down to the floor/ceiling and they should stay put.
Step Six
Next we'll mount the ceiling support rails on the roof/ceiling. These rails allow the stacking of smaller ModPod units on the roof to be level and stable. Theoretically, they're optional, too, but we recommend them.
These pieces all slot in from the underside.
Make sure the notched area of the long rails point toward the center of the ceiling. In the completed build, the raised areas should be parallel with each other and the raised sections along the tops of the walls. This is critical to allow for smaller ModPod units to stack evenly on top.
The small support rails slot in with the notch section and raised area pointed toward the corners. See the following photos for reference.
Step Seven
Door and window handles! If you want to forgo doors and windows, you can ignore these pieces. Otherwise, add some dabs of glue to the handles and pop them into the slots before allowing to dry long side down (to make sure the handles adhere).
Step Eight
Door and window tracks are up next. This part is fiddly, so pay close attention. Again, if you're not putting in the windows and doors, this part is optional, but you'll be missing out on one of the ModPod's most interesting visual features.
At the end of this step you'll need four left-facing and four right-facing curved tracks, and four straight tracks. Break your pieces out into organized stacks to reduce confusions, then glue one thin rail to the top of a matching flat cap piece. Be sure to align the edges, and be careful not to use too much glue, as it can impact how well the doors and windows slide along the track.
Clamps are a great tool to apply even pressure while these pieces dry, and make for a superior bond.
These are the completed tracks.
FINAL ASSEMBLY
Now that all of the fiddly bits are together, we can start gluing them to the main body of the build.
Step Nine
Let's get some doors on this unit!
Place one door in the bottom rail as shown below, and for Pete's sake, no glue! It doesn't work if it's stuck in place. Be careful with glue for this whole section. Face the door handle in whichever direction you prefer. We like to have the long side facing out.
Add some glue to one of the complete straight tracks and pop it in the correct slots above the door. Repeat for the other three doors, and use some clamps if you have them to make sure they stick in place. After a few minutes, move the door to keep it from sticking to any overzealous globs of glue.
Step Ten
Lower window tracks are next.
The process is mostly the same as the upper door tracks we just complete, but the curved area adds a slight challenge.
Start by slotting the straight section into the hole on the right, check to make sure the middle peg is aligned, and then gently apply pressure to the peg on the curved side to pop it into place. The corner should flex ever so slightly, and it'll take more force than you'd think. Still, be careful not to break your model at this stage.
Repeat for the other three lower rails.
Step Eleven
Once the bottom tracks are dry (it's a good idea to check to make sure the track is clear of excess glue before this happens), we can complete the windows.
Drop a window in the track, and cap with an upper track in the same way as the lower tracks.
This is another good time to clamp pieces in place. This is, in a lot of ways, the last chance you'll have to really square this piece up.
Step Twelve
These are the roof support rails. They're pretty similar in dimension to the straight door tracks, but they won't fit into the same slots, so you shouldn't have too much trouble telling them apart.
Apply a little glue to the inner edge, and slot into place as pictured. Clamp 'em if ya got 'em.
Step Thirteen
Lastly, we're going to drop in the small steps in front of the doors.
Glue liberally in place and make sure it slots in straight.
And that's it! Your GEC ModPod M03-QuadPod modular unit is complete! Pull off all the tape and clamps once enough time has passed to sufficiently dry everything, drop in the hatches and the roof, and you'll be ready for play!
