Painting miniatures, terrain and scenery.

Just a suggestion for that one - and I am by no means any sort of expert - but some grey heavy dry brushing then light grey light dry brushing would bring the texture of the base out.

Yep I’ve got a few more models to do then going over the bases for the whole army!
Prior to that death guard army I’ve always struggled to properly base stuff. Come to think of it, hardly anything is based at all. Thank god for these texture paints, make it seem far easier...


On iPhone using BigFooty.com mobile app
 
Awesome thread. Just stumbled upon it!

Anyone else collect Napoleonic era miniatures? Below pic is my first group of about 287 28mm soldiers. Mostly French line infantry but the bottom right squad at the front are Russian Grenadiers and the rear group on the right are Prussian Landwehr (just overlook the fact I gave them French flags lol - got them as they were on sale). My eventual goal is to get around 1000 French minatures and then oppose them to 1000 allied (British, Russian, Prussian, Austrian soldiers) on a battlefield table mainly for display purposes. Very long way off achieving that dream though given the time and effort required.

I just bought and assembled 2 light infantry squads and a howitzer team over the weekend which I might start painting later this week.

My love of Napoleon Total War has really planted a strong interest in this period of military history - so much so that I've started collecting books and even have some aspirations to write a book in the time period. Collected 40k as a teenager so I guess maybe the hobby was dormant in me all this time. I think it resurfaced after watching Frank Underwood painting American civil war soldiers in House of Cards - just thought how cool would it be to have some giant battle diorama sitting at home.

Elroo saw you had some pretty impressive 6mm figures.

upload_2018-5-28_16-19-26.png
 
P.S I know this is a painting thread but does anyone have any general tips for gluing? Nothing more annoying than sticking a head to a body and leaving it to set only for you to then need to revisit it due to something not sticking and falling off. I also often get glue on my fingers and end up peeling some of the skin when I pick at the glue scab which can be annoying.

I invested in a pair of hobby pliers to remove parts from the plastic much easier but sometimes I struggle with the assembly part - not sure if it's the glue I use or just my general lack of incompetence. :D
 
Well for gluing hard plastic, ie ABS/HIPS sprues, I use Tamiya extra thin cement. For everything else, I recommend Loctite Gel Control Super Glue, though it is a bit pricier than getting 10 tubes for $2 from the cheap store.

Where are your Napoleonics from, Warlord? Perry Brothers?
 
Well for gluing hard plastic, ie ABS/HIPS sprues, I use Tamiya extra thin cement. For everything else, I recommend Loctite Gel Control Super Glue, though it is a bit pricier than getting 10 tubes for $2 from the cheap store.

Where are your Napoleonics from, Warlord? Perry Brothers?

Ah - I might need to invest in better glue then haha. I usually just grab some super glue from the supermarket that says it can bond plastics, metals, wood etc.

They are all Warlord Black Powder miniatures - I bought the first batch online from their store and then more recently started buying sets from MightyApe which seems a bit cheaper as they are a local business (also faster shipping deliveries obviously). I've been to a few model and hobby stores in the Melbourne CBD but yet to come across any Napoleonic stuff. Must be kind of niche here (only seen medieval, Roman and lots of WW1 & WW2 sets).

Have recently been looking into buying different sets from other places - have my eye on a few sets by Victrix (French Old Guard and some Scottish Highlanders). The Warlord figures aren't bad but they all come in one pose (marching with muskets shouldered) so it would be cool to get a few other poses (some with leveled muskets ready for firing, some reloading etc). Found a few British places that seem to do these so I might hit them up once I save some money again.
 
https://www.perry-miniatures.com/

The Perry's are legendary sculptors and do historicals of that era (and many others), should put them on your list too. They're the ones who made the Gallipoli diorama at the museum in New Zealand, and worked on the LotR movies.

Cheap superglue is usually fine, but because it dries out in the tube so often I now only buy and use a tube if I have a large amount of PVC, resin, or metal to glue at once, the Loctite doesn't dry out because it's in better packaging so better for small things. Superglue still works fine on hard plastic, but doesn't produce as strong a bond as plastic cement, which melts parts together like welding metal.
 
Funny you mention the Perry brothers - I came across their names last night as I was reading up about Warhammer Historical. I got a bit excited when I thought Games Workshop must have expanded into historical miniatures recently but was sad to read it is now defunct. I guess that might be partly why they started Perry Miniatures as they helped found Warhammer historical and that they had a preference to sculpt models with more realistic sized proportions.

Perry Miniatures have a pretty comprehensive product listing. I might grab some more niche/hard to find unit types from them.

I've definitely had the same problem with supermarket glue. :p
 
Bought a bunch of 28mm boxes off eBay - brand is Hat. The quality seems less (in terms of miniature detail) than my Warlord models but they were dirt cheap (about half the price) and you get more per box (about 48 soldiers per box compared to the usual 32 I get from Warlord). Also had the benefit of coming in a variety of action poses (some kneeling, aiming, reloading, marching etc). Planning to sink in a few hours over the long weekend painting (want to finish off my howitzer crew, mounted generals and 2 light infantry squads) and assembling the new arrivals.

upload_2018-6-7_13-10-15.png


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P.S - I bought a brush in Thailand last month and it's amazing - a good brush for painting makes a world of difference (huge improvement over using a brush with split strands). I'm also taking extra care to look after it. :p
 
P.S - I bought a brush in Thailand last month and it's amazing - a good brush for painting makes a world of difference (huge improvement over using a brush with split strands). I'm also taking extra care to look after it. :p
Office Works have "Incredible Brush Cleaner" - or brush soap. Its about $15 a bottle but you use a few drops in your palm and swirl your brush around in it and it cleans out old acrylic paint. Wash it out afterwards and the brush can spring back to life. I've done it with brushes I thought dead, and they are usable again. I don't know if you're using acrylic or enamels.
 
15mm stuff for What a Tanker, Tanks, Battlegroup, and Flames of War. The A9 and A10 cruisers, and 5 of the T-34s, are PSC, the rest are Battlefront/Gale Force 9. Eventually I'll get some decals from PSC, I'm not up to painting recognition markings that small.

Wu8PGVr.jpg

A10, A10 Desert, A9, A9 Desert

bWmYdo0.jpg

Sherman V

huNYwmv.jpg

2x Sherman V Firefly, 2x M4A3(w) Shermans with 75mm and 76mm turrets

S3Ugg1K.jpg

M26 Pershing and Comet

q2kKUDl.jpg

6x T-34 with 76mm and 85mm turrets
 
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Office Works have "Incredible Brush Cleaner" - or brush soap. Its about $15 a bottle but you use a few drops in your palm and swirl your brush around in it and it cleans out old acrylic paint. Wash it out afterwards and the brush can spring back to life. I've done it with brushes I thought dead, and they are usable again. I don't know if you're using acrylic or enamels.

Interesting...I might need to check this out at lunch. I'm building up a small collection of brushes but anything to help add to their longevity might be worth the investment. I actually was planning to go in search of some new hobby pliers as the ones I bought mid last year broke last night. (Is it normal for pliers to have a certain use by date? Wouldn't have imagined metal would break after cutting mostly plastic sprues and the occasional soft metal flakes from metal miniatures).
upload_2018-6-8_10-24-47.png
 
15mm stuff for What a Tanker, Tanks, Battlegroup, and Flames of War. The A9 and A10 cruisers, and 5 of the T-34s, are PSC, the rest are Battlefront/Gale Force 9. Eventually I'll get some decals from PSC, I'm not up to painting recognition markings that small.

Wu8PGVr.jpg

A10, A10 Desert, A9, A9 Desert

bWmYdo0.jpg

Sherman V

huNYwmv.jpg

2x Sherman V Firefly, 2x M4A3(w) Shermans with 75mm and 76mm turrets

S3Ugg1K.jpg

M26 Pershing and Comet

q2kKUDl.jpg

6x T-34 with 76mm and 85mm turrets

Looking at these makes me want to rewatch Fury. :p

musSCea.jpg

3x StuG IIIG

sGWmAm1.jpg

2x Panther with Jagdpanther upper hull swaps

ZPzYaqk.jpg

Sd.Kfz 234 with swappable /1, /2 'Puma', /3, and /4 'Pakwagen' options

And these make me want to play Company of Heroes again (as I usually enjoyed playing as the Panzer Elite or Wehrmacht factions). :D
 
the ones I bought mid last year broke last night. (Is it normal for pliers to have a certain use by date? Wouldn't have imagined metal would break after cutting mostly plastic sprues and the occasional soft metal flakes from metal miniatures).
View attachment 508768
That sux.

Google "Plato 1mm shears" - $10 from Element14. Have had mine 2 years+
 
That sux.

Google "Plato 1mm shears" - $10 from Element14. Have had mine 2 years+

Going to order a pair and try and find a cheap pair today so my weekend model plans can resume, thanks for the tips! :cool:
 
Anyone know a good place to get cheap, random miniatures. My 4 year old niece loved getting to paint one at Pax last year, so I want to get her a little set to throw splodges of paint on.

Reaper Bones are far and away the best fit for that purpose, both in terms of price and kid friendly material, if your local store doesn't have any you can get them from tabletop empire, ie 6 Goblins for $8

https://www.tabletopempires.com.au/miniatures-fantasy-10/reaper-miniatures-161/reaper-bones-160
 
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I bought this off ebay a while ago to keep my brushes good. can't seem to find it again but i'm sure any art shop should have something similar. it makes a world of difference

Capture.JPG


also i'd suggest paying the money on something like this. you'll notice the difference

https://www.ebay.com/itm/000-Winsor...m=183071965464&_trksid=p2054436.c100039.m2059

and lastly, NEVER store your brushes pointing UP. Always have them pointing DOWN so the paint doesn't clog in the bottom and fray them

buy something like this to hold your brushes

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Stainless-...lder-Spring-/331758388204?hash=item4d3e5743ec
 
Added my howitzer team, 2 light infantry squads and 2 mounted officers to my growing army last night (all on the left hand side). Think I'm at just under 400 miniatures now. Individually, they aren't painted fantastically with great detail but IMO they look pretty cool in a large group side by side (could be just me though given the personal bias). The more I add, the more I feel like I need to invest in a proper table and environmental setting - might be another project in the offing haha.

upload_2018-6-15_10-50-3.png


Got about 200 Hat miniatures to paint now (all the above are Black Powder figures from Warlord). Will be interesting to see how they turn out next to one another. The Hat minatures have less detail and actually appeared smaller/slighter in stature - that could be as they were Voltigeurs (basically French skirmishers who were often selected due to being small in height and stature) and the figures I stood them next to for size comparison were line infantry. Could also just be different sized proportions due to different branded kits (most likely). :p
 
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