The Inner Geek

Need Some WHFB Empire Advice

2011-12-12T10:07:00.000-06:00

I'd like to get something out of the way right off the top. I'm not asking for advice because I'm too lazy to research, I've done that. It's more a matter of incompetence.

On to the blog...

Being a well rounded Geek I dabble in a wide variety of Geeky things. One thing I've always wanted is an Empire army for fantasy. While I technically have one, it is mostly in boxes... packed safely in bigger boxes. Having some precious free time recently I decided to take an inventory and see if I had enough Empire junk to make an army. When I was done I looked at the list and realized, I have no idea what it takes to have a decent Empire army? So, I would like to show to you the Grand List of Empire minis and solicit advice as to the following; is there enough for an army here, how should I build some troops (still on sprues you know), and what will popular in 13^th edition as that is how long it would take me to get this all together.

On to the list!

2x General/Standard sprues
4x wizards (two boxes)
1x Empire Champ w/mace
1x Empire Captain w/sword & shield
1x Freelance Knight on foot & mounted (from Mordheim but cool looking)
1x Warrior Priest w/2 hammers
1x Warrior Priest w/hammer & Shield
2x Champion w/pistol & hammer
1x Marius Leitdorf
1x Kurt Helborg
1x Pirate Ogre (I was going to use him as "filler" in a state troops unit or a pirate themed free company unit)
24x Knights
25x Pistoliers/Outriders (still on sprue can go either way)
40x Militia/free company
40x Flagellants (20 assembled)
87x State Troops (37 assembled with swords, the rest on sprues)
60x Handgunners/Crossbowmen (20 partly assembled as handgunners)
20x Greatswords (10 finished)
1x Cannon/Mortar sprue
2x Hellgun/Rocket sprues

I also have some old loose metal minis from long ago...

12x metal Flagellants
3x metal Engineers w/repeater musket (outrider equivalent)
2x metal Pistoliers
5x metal knights of the white wolf (two missing legs, all missing horses)
1x metal volley gun with crew

Behold the Empire in all its glory...
I know it is a lot of stuff, I just don't know if it can be carved down to a decent Empire army? For State Troops, Sword, Halberd, shield? The interwebs can't seem to decide. HandGunners or crossbowmen, what are the cool kids doing? Pistoliers or OutRiders, they both look cool but which typically sucks less?

So, if you have any knowledge of Fantasy or Empire, I'd love to get your thoughts. If you don't but you have a friend who does, send'em over!

So, What Ever Happened to The Inner Geek?

2011-11-10T09:23:00.003-06:00

Blogs come and go. This one hasn't gone, but it is on pause. Here is to the whys..

It's hard to say where I lost my GW Hobby oomph exactly. I know I had it before Games Day in Chicago. I got to meet some awesome bloggers there and hang out with all the coolest folks. Really, I think that was the high point and the Games Day was just kind of going on at the same time. Whatever the reason, interest waned. I started thinking about other things I could do with my time, and going back to school seemed a likely candidate.

I signed up for a couple of classes at the local College and away I went. Between school, working full time (until recently), and family, I've had very little time for distraction (and that tiny bit has been squandered on Battle Field3).

I've tried to keep up with at least a few blogs and comment now and again. I really do enjoy the antics of my fellow bloggers. I just haven't felt too bloggy myself of late. Maybe this post will break the ice? I was recently laid off work so you'd think I'd have more time, but seeking work and a newly expanded honey-do list has left me about the same amount of free time as before! Even as I write this I'm looking at a pile of stuff I need to mail off to people (Drax I need your address again).

I have been looking longingly at the Scratch Built Titan and thinking I need to put some detail on it. Not to mention some other projects I'd like to find a little time to mess with. When I do, I'll be sure to share it here on the rusty old blog. While the lack of hobby time has me looking longingly at some projects, it has me feeling like letting some of them go. I have too many armies, too many minis, and not enough time. Maybe there is some ebay in my future? Some of these thoughts, no doubt, come from the fact that I recently reorganized the closet where the game stuff lives. Holy crap you can accumulate a lot of stuff over twenty years in a hobby!

Anyway, I pegged out the ramble-meter some time ago, so I'm going to close for now. There will be more posts, there will be more hobby, but it may be slow. So be patient... or go away. Till next time!

Painting Across the Pond Inner Geek Edition Pt III

2011-08-20T12:01:00.002-05:00

I don't have much money, but if I did, I'd spend it buying some time. Since I can't buy time, this will be a post short on words.

Drax and I engaged in a project some time back. The idea was to each send the other a mini to paint then send back. Basically painting a mini for each other. I sent him an Ogryn, as I'd never seen him paint one and I have a cruel streak. He sent me a ForgeWorld Cadian IG Colonel!

Here are the results...

Not being one to leave well enough alone, I decided to fabricate a little extra work for myself. He is painting a rather larger model for me after all.

I decided that every great commander needs that certain special someone in their life. For this commander, that person is his personal body guard Major Payne. Being a trusted member of the Colonels inner circle, he has access to exotic weapons like his antique las pistol. I meticulously cut, greenstuffed, and stretched my modeling abilities to give this guy a bigger chest and beef him up a bit. After all my trouble I noticed that there is a plastic Catachan torso with flak armor available. It's technically better than what I made, but mine has that home made look... kinda like your kids macaroni art. Anyway, here is the Major.

And finally a group shot. I think this photo, even with the flash on, most closely represents the colors of the models.

While taking these photos it occurred to me that I forgot to paint the bodyguards las pistol... or maybe it's just really dark... no I forgot. Anyway, I'll leave this for Drax. That way he can say he worked on the pair too! Now, to say that these look a hundred times better in person would be an exaggeration. But two to three times better would be accurate. I've purposely given the bodyguard a pretty generic load out so he can be used a sergeant if preferred. I hope Drax enjoys them and they bring him lots of luck on the table.

That's all for now folks. Be sure to check out the Admiral Drax blog
as he should be posting his edition of Painting Across the Pond about the same time this one hits the blog rolls!

Scratch Built Titan Pt. 10 (Build Complete... ish)

2011-07-26T08:05:00.003-05:00

Finally! The building of the Titan is complete! This blog will conclude the build process of the Scratch Built Titan Project. There is still more to to with detailing and such, but this is the point at which you can call this build done.

If you've been following along, you know the work that's been put in, but not the cost. I'm going to lay that out for you briefly, then on to the pics!

3 x sheets of matte board on sale at $4.00 each
1 x bottle of Gorilla brand Superglue at $5.00 each
3 x Aleene's Quick Dry Tacky Glue at $2.77 each
3 x Excel #11 exacto blades package of five at $1.99 each
1 x package of assorted rubber bands at $0.99 each
1 x Krylon Easy-Tack adhesive spray at $7.59 each
1 x brass rod at approximately $2.00 each
1 x package of six ping pong balls at $1.99 each
1 x Gorilla Glue at $7.00 each
2 x pvc pipe pieces from DIY store at approximately $1.75 each
Several sheets of printing paper (if you have a printer, you likely have this already)
Several recycled Cereal Boxes at $0.00 each

So the entire project up to this point has cost about $54.35 US. Getting to this point should not require a top hat... Decorating and details will cost additional. But, as I've mentioned before, the point of this part of the project is to show what you can build for the bare minimum. Will it look better after detailing... yep. But I think it already looks pretty cool as it is! On to the pics!

First is a shot with some IG and a Leman Russ for scale...

A shot of the side...

The rear angle...

The other side...

Here is a picture showing the Titan broken down into its parts...

Strangely, I also noticed there is a baby in the gun???

A couple more pictures for scale purposes. A shot with the Reaver Titan...

And a shot with Godzilla... why not...

I don't think the Godzilla is 28mm Heroic scale, but he's still cool...

A quick note on the building materials. I'm very happy with how the matte board is holding up. It wasn't the easiest to cut, but it is very solid. As an example; I'd been trying to ignore the fact that the front balcony was slightly crooked. I couldn't take it anymore and decided to remove and straighten it. It took some serious doing to get that one piece to come lose. It is now replaced in a straighter position since these pics and I'm quite happy with it. There is, in fact, only one place that I think is a little weak which brings me to the next paragraph...

While the Titan is perfectly fine the way it is, I'm going to put it on a base due to the nature of how the lower toes are attached and their inherent weakness. The base will be just big enough to set the feet on with a small 'bridge' in the middle to prevent the legs from trying to splay at the hips. This is a lesson I learned with the Reaver. This Titan stands very well on it's own and this will simply be an insurance policy against toe breakage in the future.

One last note. In the title it says, "Complete... ish". The ish is because there are more weapons available in the plans. There is a large chain sword type of close combat weapon, and a giant belt fed cannon. I will likely build these in the future, but they aren't coming anytime particularly soon.

I hope you've enjoyed watching this project move forward, I know I've enjoyed working on it. While it's probably a project for an advanced modeler, the great thing is you can always try again if you mess up a part. So even a novice can make this work if they have a bit of patience!

Comments, questions, and witty insults are welcome as always!

Forge World Has a Chick on a Dragon!

2011-07-22T12:34:00.004-05:00

On a freakin dragon!

It's a little known fact that the Inner Geek has an Empire army for Fantasy Battle. Mostly in boxes. But man, this is a super cool mini. I wonder if it will be in Chicago next week? I wonder what time I'll have to line up outside to get to the Forge World booth in time to buy anything?

Scratch Built Titan Pt. 9 (Legs Assembly)

2011-07-20T08:05:00.001-05:00

This week brings us to the legs. Getting this titan to stand on it's own two feet takes some doing.

In the interest of making the pose... er... interesting, I played around with the legs a good amount before gluing anything. Because of the way the legs go together I realized that you can adjust them from the hips to the knees and if the hips and knees still line up, you're set. In the picture below you can see that the hips are level with each other and the part that will attach to the lower leg are both on the same plane but the legs are angled differently...

There are some random pieces holding the parts in position by resting the knee caps on them...

Confident that I had two legs in slightly different positions, but still able to line up, I moved on to another area that needed some help.

The lower legs are modified from the original plans and this causes the 'shin' to be very thin where it comes down between the front toes. To correct this I glued brass rods inside the shins running from the thin points to the top. When I say glued I mean I tacked them on with superglue then drenched them in regular tacky glue for a solid hold...

There was some fun times gluing the legs to the hips. The trick there is to set the legs on the ball joint ankles, but don't glue them down. Once they were firmly attached to the hips using Gorilla Glue, patience, and prayers then you can glue the ankles at their ball joints. I didn't get any pics of this, because it would just look like the pictures at the end of this blog but with various items propping things up.

At this point I realized that the ankles were going to be a weak point. While securely attached, they had a lot of 'flex' to them. So I made some homemade braces. First I cut some strips out of matte board...

Then, for the sake of speed, I superglued them into shape...

Then I trimmed them to fit between the inner shin piece and the actual foot. Once installed, I slopped a good bit of glue around them to secure them and help hold them together. Below you can see a couple of them in place...

This only left the toes to add! The lower toes were simply glued on using tacky glue, then reinforced with more tacky glue. Here you can see them added...

This brings us to the final leg piece, the upper toe thingies. These I tacked on with super glue, then I used an old brush and a q-tip to apply glue to the areas where the pieces made contact... which weren't always large areas. I'm happy to report they feel reasonably solid though! Here are a couple shots of the legs in all their glory...

The tiny object at his feet is an Imperial Guardsman...

So what's left? Not much really. There is finishing the fist by way of gluing the fingers on. Finishing the weapon arm and... that's about it. Next post on this project should see a completed titan ready to be detailed. I'll also try to put together a materials list and prices to show about how much this project costs. I'm doing this before detailing because the point is to show what you can do with a minimum expenditure and any detailing would be to the builders taste, budget, and discretion. Some folks have asked and I'll be putting up pics with more objects to demonstrate scale, including the Reaver. I may even make you suffer through some Inner Geek fiction and write some fluff about this titan... lucky you!

As always, thanks for stopping by. I know you have a choice of rambling blogs, and we appreciate you choosing The Inner Geek blog!

Scratch Built Titan Pt. 8 (The Weight of the World)

2011-07-14T08:05:00.002-05:00

It's on your shoulders! Well, ok, maybe not the weight of the world... but the weight of a 40k Cathedral.

Work continues on the Titan. I've had to move around and work different parts at different times, but I'm going to try to keep blog posts focused on one area at a time. This week that area is the shoulders.

Not a lot of pictures this week. The shoulder amounted a lot of pieces that really didn't do much interesting until they started coming together. I would like to make mention of materials in this post though. I've been using a lot of "cereal box" cardboard for parts. It's lighter and easier to work than the matte board but sacrifices strength. I was concerned at first about obtaining this material as you usually have to invest in cereal to get it. However, I spread the word with my family and friends that I was looking for that type of material and it started flowing in. But I also wanted to note that it's not just cereal boxes. For example, this...

While odd shaped you can still find enough flat spots that are clear of glue or creases to make all of these...

These are each two parts put together, top and bottom.

My point is, don't get caught up in names, ie; "cereal box", there may be other sources of the same material. Also, just because you don't see a lot of potential in a material doesn't mean that it isn't there.

Here is a quick mock up of how the roof line of one shoulder goes together...

The instructions assume you are building the "Crusader" titan then adding the "Blockhead" bits so they put the large center spire on first then add the smaller spires. Since I'm moving straight to the "Blockhead" design I found it easier to glue the small spires onto the larger one, then add the whole fixture to the Titans shoulder.

Here is a picture of one shoulder completed...

And a shot of the entire upper body so far...

That's all I have to show this post. There is a lot more work done though, and the end of the actual build is coming soon. There will be a ton of detailing to do as well as other loose ends to tie up along the way though.

Thanks for stopping by. I will add in parting that it may be time to start thinking of names for this Titan. I think Ferrus Pontifex "The Iron Priest" has a ring to it! Feel free to drop a comment if you have any thoughts on suitable titan names.

Oh yes! And google+... anyone up for starting a geeky circle of friends? As a geek I felt it my duty to get in on the ground floor of what ever the hell it is.

Break Time Cometh!

2011-07-07T08:45:00.000-05:00

So I've droned on between the lines for a couple months about how I could really use a break/vacation. Just a couple days to get away. I finally decided to pull the trigger and make a decision. The Inner Geek will be attending Games Day 2011 in Chicago!

Why Games Day? Well, despite my ire with GW's recent corporate activities I'm still a fan of the hobby. I'd like to go once before they run the company completely into the ground... joke... sort of. Also, I've never been to Chicago or even Illinois for that matter, so it sounds like an adventure. I'm all about adventure as long as it's reasonably safe and free of any real danger. On top of all that I think it might be fun to meet other bloggers or even blog readers who may be attending.

Thus, I'll be flying to O'Hare early Friday morning the 29^th of July. Enjoying the scenery Friday day, some cold adult beverages Friday night, Games Day Saturday Day, some cold adult beverages Saturday night, and flying out Sunday around noon. I'll also try to mix in some Chicago style pizza at some point.

I'll be there, will you be there? As I mentioned above, I'd really like to get a chance to meet some of the folks I know only from their blogs. If you're reading this and you plan to be there, drop me a comment. Maybe we could enjoy a cold refreshing adult beverage (that's beer if you haven't picked up on it yet). If you see me at Games Day, stop and say hi. You'll know me because I'll be dressed as an albino polar bear wearing a space suit and scuba gear. Or I'll have a t-shirt on that says who I am. I'll decide which one morning of.

Scratch Built Titan Pt. 7 (A Big Hand for the Titan, Ladies and Gentlemen)

2011-07-04T14:37:00.004-05:00

As work continues on the shoulders. I wanted to get an arm done to get some confidence up about my magnetized shoulders working. So I printed out the plans for the hands and got to cutting and gluing.

Here is a shot of the hand parts laid out. I've gone and glued one piece before photographing again... it may become my signature...

The finger tips were difficult to cut, fold, and glue. They are a pretty complex shape. I've done most of the arm in lighter "cereal box" cardboard to save weight.

Here is a shot with everything assembled except the fingers and thumb...

I put a lot of thought into how I might dry fit the fingers. I don't have any blu-tac handy but my wife does have some scrap booking supplies. So I scavenged some sort of little double sticky tape picture attachment thingies and decided to give them a shot.

How do you feel about Chaos Titans Mr. Scratch Built?

The sticky stuff was not as sticky as I would have liked and the fingers fell off/apart several times before I could get the above shot. So, I may be looking for something more like blu-tac after all. The cereal box material is paying off in the weight department. This arm weighs in at only 3.1oz including the upper arm with magnets (I finally found my scale)!

Finish the shoulders, one to three more weapon arms, and then it will be time to start decorating this beast with all sorts of bits. Well... not all sorts.

Thanks for stopping by and I'll see you next time!

Scratch Built Titan Pt. 6 (Titans are Disarming)

2011-06-30T08:05:00.000-05:00

As I began work on the shoulders of the Titan, it occurred to me that being able to remove the arms would serve a couple of purposes. First, any dis-assembly should improve transport-ability. Second, there are a total of Four weapon arms on offer from the plans I'm working off, so being able to swap arms down the road may be cool as well. But how to accomplish such a feat of magic? With magnets!

I've had some decent size rare earth magnets left over from another project and by sheer luck, I had just the right amount (after one broke in half). Most of this process will be explained in the following pictures. A couple of bits O'knowledge for reference; the shoulder is a large octagon. The arm bit is intended to be glued straight to the bottom of this octagon. The upper arm is different for guns vs fist. Only the upper arm for guns is shown in the pictures. Ok, lets go!

The plan is to put to magnets in each shoulder that will be mirrored in the removable upper arm pieces. After some measuring I found that these magnets can be placed about 1" apart and still fit nicely. I cut some pieces of scrap matte board to 1" to help line up the magnets while they are glued...

Here are the magnets lined up on the shoulder piece. You may notice they are not lined up with the geometry of the shoulder octagon. This is because I don't want the eventual pose to be arms straight at sides. Hopefully this slight angle will allow the arm to have a slight outward twist. How do I keep the magnets in place? With more magnets on the outside (not pictured)!

The next step is to liberally coat the whole inside of the piece with a mess of glue. I make sure to get a lot in the joins of the inside of the shoulder too, for extra strength...

After a few hours it dries strong and clear...

The great thing about this is, I used this first shoulder to line up the magnets in the upper arm, then used that arm to line up the magnets in the other shoulder, then used a shoulder to line up the magnet in the other upper arm.

Here is a shot of a shoulder and upper arm magnetized and in position...

One last thing worth mentioning. I had intended to set the magnets so that both in the shoulder were the same polarity up then both magnets in the upper arms have the opposite polarity up. I messed this up on the first shoulder and one magnet is "north" up and the other is "south" up. However, I decided that this was a happy mistake. My plan for arm removal is to twist the arms moving the magnets away from each other laterally. The poles being opposite doesn't change the holding power but does mean that if I twist too far they will repel instead of locking back together with the arm backwards. Does any of that make sense in words?

As of now I have the shoulders and upper arms magnetized and assembled. There are several more pieces to do on the shoulders so there will be a proper shoulder update later. I may decide to build an arm first to test the magnet strength... not that I can do much about it if it's too weak. Also, leg assembly has begun, or at least leg sub-assembly. I'll have to post an update on that soon too. It starts to look Titan-y when you start putting legs together!

Thanks for stopping by and feel free to leave a comment, question, or haiku.

HiTech Miniatures Product Review "Six Nil Six Factor"

2011-06-26T09:00:00.004-05:00

This is a quick(ish) product review I did for a miniature from HiTech Miniatures out of Poland. The miniature is their 28mm ArchFather Six Nil Six Factor. The bulk of the review is a video review as I'm still trying to get better at using my camera. It's really not the camera that needs much improvement though, it's me! You can see some detailed pics of the mini on the HiTech website I've linked to above. You all have the Table Top Fix blog to blame for this review. That blog catches just about every mini from every company known to man and shares it with the blogosphere. After the video I'll post some thoughts, some of which aren't included in the video.

Enjoy!

Pros:
Fast shipping from Europe, less than a week!
Quality sculpt
They included metal pins needed to complete mini
The subject is appealing and reasonably original (my opinion)

Cons:
The checkout process on their website is not user friendly
A few more pin holes than I'd like to see for the price

Overall, I'd say that if you see something on the HiTech website you really like, give them a shot. Just understand that you may be filling a couple pin holes when you get the mini. If you have any specific questions, I'd be happy to answer them.

Back to work on the Scratch Build Titan. The shoulders are in the works right now.

Scratch Built Titan Pt. 5 (That's Church)

2011-06-23T07:45:00.001-05:00

Part five of the Scratch Built Titan project brings us to the body of the titan. The body, in this case, being a church. Need help bringing the faith of the Imperium to a backwater planet? Drop a walking church on'em!

There was the printing, the sticking, the cutting, and the pasting. But when it was all done we end up with a collection of parts assembled as shown below...

You may note that there are two pieces in the upper left corner already assembled with a "roof" between them... I got a little ahead of the camera...

The different colored bits you see are made from cereal box material. It's a little thinner and easier to work with than the matte board so it's a great choice for the really fiddly tower bits. After some sub-assembly we end up with a group of three main pieces. The church itself on the top of the body of the titan in the middle of the shot below, the front balcony in the left of the shot, and the rear chapel & balcony on the right...

The above pieces then go together to form the overall structure of the titans body/church. This is not an exact science and much referring to the instructions and a finished example over at Tanks and Trolls was needed before I felt confident enough to glue the pieces together. This step also includes the addition of the head. I'm really not sure it was necessary to add the head at this time, but I went along with the instructions and did so. There is not much in the way of pose-ability with the head, so I don't feel like waiting for the final pose (as I do with man sized minis) would have changed the head's final position. Here are some assorted shots of the titan from the hips up so far...

I'm not sure why I didn't take any shots of the titan from the rear? Maybe the head seemed too pretty? Anyway, that's the progress so far. As I'm building this I'm really tempted to go ahead and assemble the legs. The left to right should balance themselves out reasonably well and I now have pretty much all the front to back assembly done. Which balances itself out nicely as you can see from the shots above, a little front heavy, but only slightly. Details and decoration may change the balance a little, but I can't imagine it will change drastically from where it is now. Besides all that I'm excited to see the legs under this thing!

Please feel free to leave a comment if you like. I'm happy to answer questions, ignore complaints, and hear your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by!

Scratch Built Titan Pt. 4 (Waist not, transport not)

2011-06-18T11:00:00.000-05:00

In the comments of my last blog entry, Mordian 7^th of Mordian 7^th fame suggested an awesome idea. So awesome in fact, that for the next week he shall be known as Mordian 7^th the freaking genius. I've even added a holiday to my Imperial Calendar in the left sidebar in his honor. The suggestion was in regards to a way to make it so that the Scratch Built Titan would be able to be separated at the waist.

The items needed for this bit of the project were picked up at my local DIY store for about $3.50 US. They consist of a piece of pvc pipe and some sort of fitting I found that slips over it nicely. And of course the parts of the titan to be modified...

The first job was to carefully trace the holes that would need to be cut in the titan using the actual pvc pieces as a guide. Then of course, cutting those holes out. This one was a pain as it is two parts glued together, so three layers of matte board to go through...

Next I inserted the female part of this joint into it's titan piece and traced a line around where the cut needs to be for it to be flush. I've raised it up a bit so you can see the line in this pic...

Once that was cut, I placed the male part of the joint inside and traced around the edge where it needed to be cut off. I then subtracted just a bit for good measure and cut it to length. The results can be seen below...

Being extra careful and using Gorilla Glue (hence the extra caution) I glued each piece into its respective titan part...

Then I realized I needed some way to keep the waist from spinning around, which would cause imbalance I theorize. To do this was a little extra work, but I think it was worth it in the end.

I got a spare piece of the pvc pipe I bought and cut a small section out of it...

Then I cut a corresponding section out of the male part attached to the titan piece. You can see the beginning of this in the photo above. I cut vertical lines in the piece over and over until it was easy to snap the thin pieces off and clean it up with a hobby knife. This leaves a bit that will fit like this...

Next I cut an access hole in the top of the body. This will be covered by the Church part of the titan so no worries about the hole...

After roughing up the surfaces to be glued, I put the two titan parts in the position I wanted them to "lock" into. I glued the piece in place with Gorilla Glue using the access hole and a small clamp (sorry I didn't get a pic of that) to hold the piece while it dried. Resulting in a waist that no longer spins!

Here is a finished shot. It's straighter than it looks, but there is some sort of optical illusion going on in this pic...

Remember, this whole idea was sparked by a comment on my last blog. Your fellow bloggers can, and will, often think of things that you never considered. We are our best source of ideas for each other to tap.

Thanks for stopping by. Feel free to leave comments, criticisms, and witticisms in the comments area. Especially if you have any awesome ideas, I love to steal those!

Scratch Built Titan Pt. 3 (It takes hard work to get a head)

2011-06-15T07:50:00.002-05:00

I've decided to head for the... um... head for the next part of the scratch built titan project. No, not the restroom/water closet, the actual head. Bear with me, the blog gets better though the jokes stay bad.

The head of the BlockHead titan, which is the one I'm working from, is a nice conglomeration of fiddly bits. Once built, the fiddly bits go together to make bigger fiddly bits before finally being assembled into a head of sorts. But on to some pictures, I'll add more wordy bits at the end.

Here is a shot of the sub-assemblies...

Since some areas will be particularly hard to access once assembled, I went ahead and sprayed some black primer on them. I made sure to mask areas that I wasn't ready to have paint on yet...

A little glue and patience and we have a completed head (minus detailing)!

An ancient Space Marine has volunteered for scale showing duty

Some items of note...

1) I've decided that the pieces will never be perfect. While the plans are awesome, they do not take into account the thickness of the material so you will never have perfect pieces.

2) Number one above doesn't really matter. In the big picture with detailing and paint, the imperfections will be less noticeable. I've looked online at a lot of scratch built items and I've noticed that if you look long enough you start to see the little imperfections in them all.

3) Klaus over at DEI GRECI is the exception to rule number two.

4) While not completely necessary, a coat of slightly watered down pva glue (white glue) brushed on seals the surface nicely, hides some surface flaws after priming, and is too easy a step not to do.

5) If you get Gorilla Glue on your skin after it becomes tacky, you must submerge the affected area in warm soapy water or acetone for about five full minutes. No amount of scrubbing will substitute.

Now, for all you folks who actually made it this far, I have one more head conversion to share with you. I present a peek into the Inner Geek's real world. Think of it as a reward... or possibly a punishment. I give you... The Hair Cut...

Here we have a common variety Hairy Geek...

Yes, hide your wives and daughters...

Next we come to the awkward "Mohawk" phase...

The Mrs Geek really digs mohawks...

And finally we come to the full on summer do!

I've never had a shaved head before!

A big thank you to my awesome wife for the haircut!

Why? I guess curiosity overcame vanity?

Comments and pointing and laughing are welcome... as always.

Scratch Built Titan Pt. 2 (Legs and Hips)

2011-06-02T07:30:00.000-05:00

While I've not updated on the scratch built titan, it isn't from lack of work. It is, however, very slow going. That's a lot of matte board to cut and paste! I know it won't look like it, but the update today is actually many (many) hours of work. Let's get on with it, but first a look at a mock up of a shin and toes... basically everything below the knee...

Getting there took a ton of cutting out and building toes though...

Sixteen pieces to make eight toes in total...

Next is a shot of the toes all assembled and the feet with their ping-pong ball joints. The small circles are homemade washers as I could find no one that sells a washer with a 1" inside diameter...

The more middle-y bits, from bottom to top; feet, shin armor, inner shin, lower knee, middle knee, knee cap, and upper knee...

A quick look at the upper leg and hip area. From the bottom up we have; thigh, ping-pong ball hip joint parts, hip to body connector (yes out of order for visibility sake), hips, and body base...

Finally we have a group shot of all the parts up to this point...

There are some parts that have a definite placement and others that can be adjusted to pose/balance. I'll glue the pieces with no adjustability next, but the final leg assembly will probably have to wait till near the end to ensure proper positioning and balance.

Things I've learned so far;

Ping-pong balls come in two sizes 38mm and 40mm. (I used 38mm)
You can cut a ping-ball in half, but it isn't necessarily easy.
Paper can/will dull an exacto blade faster than you ever imagined.
The legs of this model will use more than 6 exacto blades and 5 oz of Tacky Glue.
I'm a ninja at cutting a straight line with a hobby knife. No really, I am.
The legs and hips have used about 1.5 sheets of 32x40" matte board.

That's going to wrap up Pt. 2 of the Scratch Built Titan project. Work continues and is fun enough to keep me chugging away. However, if you want to watch another scratch built project come to life, I'd recommend checking out Admiral Drax's "decidedly blocky 'landing craft'-type assault vehicle". Must be something in the air making folks want to scratchbuild... or something missing from our wallets!

Thanks for stopping by. Comments and witticisms are welcome as always!

Metal vs Finecast Quality Showdown!

2011-05-28T13:27:00.004-05:00

There has been a lot of back and forth about how much better, worse, or the same Finecast would be compared to metal minis. So I thought I'd try to post my findings in a side by side comparison with two of the same model, one metal, the other Finecast. Having a bunch of stuff still unopened finally came in handy! I also grabbed a mini that, while I don't have the exact same mini in metal, I do have a similar type mini. You'll have to watch the video to see how that one went though.

One thing I found, it is hard to compare a metal and Finecast mini. The two materials mean that they don't show up the same under a camera (or a light bulb for that matter). But I've done my best to compare the two and will give you my thoughts.

The pictures below are the Empire Captain with Hammer and Pistol. I dig the epic beards on the Empire guys.

The front side of both...

Feel free to click for a larger version...

And a shot of the backs of both...

Feel free to click for a larger version...

I'm also going to subject you to another video so you can enjoy me rambling in full audio as well in the written word...

If you have bandwidth to burn, I'd recommend the 720 version...

Over all the quality of both is great. I have no complaints on the cast quality of the new Finecast. However, I'm just not seeing the superiority of detail that others have mentioned. Could be just this sculpt though? I will say there was a guy in my GW store this morning droning on about the Finecast and how you can now see so much more detail. He pointed out that you can now see the rivets on the armor of the Emperors Champion... I've always seen the rivits on the Emperors Champion mini though, so I'm not impressed. My biggest complaint is the price increase on these. In my opinion we are getting a lighter mini and paying more. I'd like a heavier mini and my other six bucks back. Thanks.

Till next time folks, enjoy the Finecast and keep out of trouble!

New Space Marine Video Game Vid

2011-05-26T14:45:00.003-05:00

Or as I like to call it, my September is spoken for...

There is so much cool stuff happening on this vid I want to spit. Pre-orders from the right vendor will get you Space Wolf, Black Templar, Emperors Children, or Iron Warriors multiplayer skins. Or some vendors will give you blinged out weapons... meh.

Work on the Scratchbuild Titan is coming along. Not a lot to share as it's cutting and pasting pieces of paper. Should be an update in the next few days though.

A Project For Those Without Top Hats

2011-05-11T12:14:00.000-05:00

A recent commenter mentioned that he would like to buy a certain resin kit if he were rich like me, and inquired as to whether or not I wear a top hat? It was all good natured poking and I responded that, no, I had to pawn my top hat to buy the Crusader from Dream-Forge Games.

It will be missed...

It did get me thinking though. I'm very blessed to have the things I have and even luckier to have an understanding Mrs Geek. Not everyone has the chance to build some of the things I build on my blog. But, maybe I should build something more within the means of the community at large? I had been considering just such a project and this clinched it!

Thus is born, The Scratchbuild Titan project. Will it be free of cost? No, but it will utilize easily attainable bits and hopefully easily attainable skills. There will still be materials cost, but nothing close to a full blown resin monstrosity. At it's very simplest I could see this project done with a few dollars worth of exacto blades, some glue, some paper to print on, and about twenty to thirty dollars of building materials. I plan to add a good bit of detail which will up the price in bits and materials. However, I plan to show how you can have something basic, but awesome, on the cheap and you can add details as your budget/bits box allows.

First off, I have to give credit to those who made the project possible. I found the inspiration for this project on the Tanks and Trolls website. Shaun, or Bulldog, is an amazing scratch builder. Some of his stuff I thought was ForgeWorld until I read the description. The particular Titan I'm going to be trying to emulate/copy is his Brother Humungous. I can't stress enough how awesome his website is for inspiration and reference. I stalked his page so much working on my Reaver that I actually sent him a paypal donation to offset the bandwidth I sucked up (I had my Top Hat on). Another person who deserves some credit here, is Mark Mondragon of Dream-Forge Games. The build is based on a Titan he designed that was snuffed out by an IP happy company who will remain nameless but whose initials are GW. He also created the plans for the Titan that I'm working from.

So to begin, let me tell you that there is a lot of trial and error in this project. For each thing I share with you, there are many attempts that didn't make the cut (pun). I'm going to be starting on the lower parts, legs etc, and working my way up. I've got paper, building material, parts, parts on the way, and even some casting materials to replicate a few parts. To give you a basic idea about how this all goes together I've collected some WIP pictures of a bit of leg coming together.

While the material recommended is "Cardstock" I couldn't find any that I found suitably sturdy enough. I did find Matt Board, as used in framing pictures, for $4 for a 32"x40" sheet at my local Hobby Lobby. By printing out the plans and cutting them down from the 8.5"x11" paper I can get a lot of parts out of each sheet of Matt Board. I used a spray on adhesive to stick the plans onto the Matt Board... and then found I did it wrong! I sprayed the adhesive to the Matt Board then attached the paper plans. The adhesive never really loses it's tackyness. What I will do in the future is spray the adhesive to the back of the paper and attach it to the Matt Board. The 'attacher' gets and stays tacky, the 'attachee' does not!

First we have a shot of the plans put to material.

Since the 'Toes' on the original plans are a little sad, I've drawn some extra cutting lines to accommodate some cooler toes, ala Shaun style. I've also added some 'tabs' to the twelve sided circle to use as attachment points. The plans do not have glue tabs included, but it's easy enough to add your own with a little planning.

Note the darker lines I 'sharpied' onto the plans

Cutting the Matt Board requires a sharp blade and a bit of pressure behind it. There are also score lines on many pieces. These are cut only part way through to allow the piece to be shaped. After some careful cutting it was time to glue. I'm using something called 'Tacky Glue' which seems to be very similar to plain old white glue. I first glued one half of the lower leg, the back half, to the circle using the glue tabs I'd added.

Then I worked the front lower leg piece around the circle the same way. I also added a couple of long very thin pieces of card to the join between the two shin pieces as trying to glue the pieces edge to edge would have been weak and difficult.

Because of my adhesive problem I'll probably have to do all this work over again. But, it's all part of the learning process.

A couple of quick answers to question you may or may not have. No, the Warhounds are not on the back burner... they are on the side burner. I plan to alternate between these projects as the sea of grey resin was threatening my sanity and this project makes me feel a little more creative. Will I post the plans that I'm using? I'm not sure what the legal ramifications could be by doing so? I would certainly be willing to share them, but I'm not sure about posting them for download.

So I hope you enjoyed this first post on the Scratch Build Titan project. If you have any questions, comments, critiques, or interesting commentary; please feel free to leave a comment!

WHx2 Pt 6 (Torso, Back, and Turbo Lasers)

2011-05-01T15:30:00.000-05:00

I'm combing the torso and back bag of parts with the Turbo Lasers bag. Both are pretty sparse in parts so there is no need to give them each their own blog.

First a couple of shot's of all the parts.

Here is the torso and back parts bag...

I have it on good authority that if you miss the strainer when rinsing this bag of parts, the small bit int he middle of the above photo will go down the drain. I can do a tutorial on how to retrieve a small bit that has gone down the drain from a "p-trap" under your sink if there is any need for it expressed by my readers...

Next up are the Turbo Laser parts. Pictured below is enough parts to make two Warhound arms...

You may have noticed that these parts contain some of the largest channels in the entire kit. Notably on the back pieces...

And the backs of the Turbo Lasers...

I'd like to share how I handle channels this large. Though my method is not an option for everyone, it does demonstrate how some extra tools can speed up a process.

Low Bandwith version:

High bandwith version:
(warning, you will hear my voice and the sound of my bandsaw in this video. Try not to fall in love with either, we will only break your heart)

There was a short follow up on the belt/disk sander and the results are below...

The back pieces still look a little rough, but the parts where the channels were are covered by the rear exhaust vents anyway. Good planning on that one Forgeworld!

If you watched the video and found it at all useful or entertaining, please feel free to leave some feedback in the comments. I'm playing around with video but I'm not yet sure how large a part it will play in future blogs.

Other news on the horizon. Have you heard of DreamForge Games? Did you know that the pre orders are up for the Mortis and Crusader kits?

I don't know about you, but that Crusader screams 'Knight Titan' to me, though it's a work of art with it's own merit. Expect a product review up once they ship. I'm pretty freaking excited myself. DreamForge has the assembly instructions posted on their website. I suggest anyone interested in these kits look those instructions over. They show a lot of the detail and planning that went into these kits that the webpages' photos don't quite do justice to.

Till next time, enjoy yourself... or if you can't enjoy yourself, enjoy someone else!

Off Topic, News, and Distractions

2011-04-18T07:55:00.003-05:00

I've pretty much decided in the last week or so that I have adult ADD. The first clue came while listening to the audio book of Prospero Burns in the car on the commute to work and back. It's good and I should do a review in the coming days... should do. Anyway, while listening the narrator might mention a mountain (complete with descriptives) 20 seconds or so later I realize I haven't really heard anything since then because my mind has wandered to thinking about some mountain I saw once... or would like to see... or might want to almost get to see. So, rewind and continue. Maybe I'm just distracted and having trouble concentrating?

So I've spoken to the lovely Mrs. Inner Geek and secured a weekend break. Now I have to decide how to spend it and exactly when. Two things are on the forefront of possibilities. I live in North Texas and several years ago while staying a while just outside Austin, Texas I got to go float a section of the Guadalupe River in an inner tube and drink beer. Water, beer, floating... what else could you ask for? Austin also has a hopping night life, so a nice dinner and refreshing adult beverages wouldn't be out of the question. Another bonus, it's three hours drive by car. The problem I'm running into is finding a friend who can go and wants to. I don't mind going to a movie, bar, or dinner by myself, but I'm not sure I care to do a whole weekend adventure alone. Sad, eh? My second option I've considered is flying up to Chicago for Games Day. More of a money sink, but it might be fun? I've never been to Chicago or a Games Day. For some reason going alone doesn't bother me so much on this one, I'm just not sure what I'd do at a Games Day? Thoughts and suggestions welcome in the comments section.

On to distractions...

Have you ever heard of MineCraft? Well, if you haven't, run for the hills... the awesome, blocky, 8 bit graphic hills. I can't stop. It's the most addictive game I've played in recent memory. Seriously people, I'm losing sleep. And when I do lay down to sleep, all I can think about is the next mine I'm going to dig and what I'm going to build with the rocks I excavate. House, castle, palace? I really can't do it justice with a description, so check out some youtube videos when you have minute or twelve. I'll link you to one to get you started...

So I apologize for not posting a Warhound update, but I really needed to get some of this out there. I appreciate it if you've made it this far. If you are playing MineCraft or want to go on Vacation with The Inner Geek, be sure to let me know. I welcome all comments... well... pretty much all.

WHx2 Pt 5 (Head, Shoulders, Armor & Pilots)

2011-04-15T08:00:00.000-05:00

The next bag of parts is done. This one includes head, shoulder, Princeps, Moderati, some armor parts, and cable mounts. I've got big plans for the cable mounts, but that story will have to wait till a ways into build time.

Here is a family shot of the parts from this bag...

Of the two Warhounds, one had a parts fitting problem that the other didn't. I'm guessing that either they have multiple molds, or perhaps these Warhounds were just cast at times far enough apart that the mold started having issues. Since only one has the problem, I'd say it's a hit and miss issue that you may or may not see when building one of these.

The issue comes down to the way the armor cover fits on the cockpit (head). In the pic below you can see where I've marked the head piece to be trimmed so that it will fit inside the armor piece which is inverted over it for easier viewing...

I used my hobby knife and carefully cut the piece to fit. Unfortunately, careful is not always good enough! There was a weak spot in the resin and I wound up losing more material that I had marked off due to splitting!

(Note the extra material missing on the viewers left side)

I'm not going to fret about it too much though, as the armor now fits beautifully and the bad spot is covered up when the armor is in place.

Just for fun I've thrown in a couple more detail shots.

The shoulder, complete with integrated servitor to assist with gun calculations...

The Princeps, sitting proudly on his command throne.

And, finally, the cable mounts I mentioned earlier...

(In the way of a hint, I'll tell you these are part of a plan that is going to make weapons magnetizing a cinch!)

This leaves us with just one more bag of part for the Warhound itself. Thank goodness! I'm so ready to start putting these together I could spit.

Comments, critiques, and riddles are welcome in the comments as always. Thanks for stopping by!

WHx2 Pt 4 (Hips & Guts)

2011-04-12T08:00:00.002-05:00

Another bag of parts down! This time it's the hips and some internal pieces.

I'm afraid this will be a short post as there is not a lot to say about this bag O'parts. They cleaned up pretty easy and, except for some largish channels, were pretty quick going.

One item of note, I'm trying out a new camera. It's technically a video camera that also does still shots. I think the still shots have come out pretty well. I may have to try my hand at a video clip to drop in the blog. I wonder if that's something my readers would be interested in seeing? If you have an opinion, feel free to leave a comment and let me know what you think. I've also invested in a tiny desktop tripod which I failed to use at all.

Here is a shot of the parts for this installment.

The good news is, with this post being so small, the next is already well on the way. And it promises to be slightly more exciting as I've run into a part that actually needs a little fixing!

Thanks for stopping by for this quick post. They will get longer and more detailed I assure you! Comments, questions, and words that rhyme with Geek are welcome as always.

WHx2 Pt 3 (The Rest of the Legs)

2011-04-10T08:00:00.003-05:00

The final bits of legs are cleaned and trimmed! Hoo-frikkin-ray!

Yes the next bag of Warhounds parts through the wash & cut^TM treatment is the last of the leg bits. This bag has the toes, thigh armor, mid-leg, cooling vents (not a leg bit, but yay for bits style ADD), and the large shin armor pieces.

These parts are also done quite well across both kits with very little needed in the way of trimming. Though that is not to say that some of these parts aren't full of mystery or in need of some work...

The shin armor in both Warhound sets includes two blank and two adorned with Imperial iconography, for a total of four per kit. When they pack these I believe they stack them... maybe even straight out of the mold? I believe this because in all cases one is wider and one is narrow. Enough so that one can fit inside the other.

This isn't too big a deal as I can easily reshape them using some very hot water. However, I'm not sure if the narrow one needs to be the size of the wide one, or if they need to meet in the middle? I'll figure it out when assembly starts.

Another mystery has surfaced as well. Ironically it has surfaced on the surface of a part. After soaking in Simple Green, rinsing well, and allowed to dry I find one part that looks almost oxidized? Here is a shot of the strange toe with a more normal one on either side...

If you click for a larger pic you can see that it almost looks powdery, though it's not. This bit was treated identically to the other two in all respects so I have to assume it is something to do with manufacturing? I'll see how the part takes primer before I get too worried though.

Here is a shot of all the parts cleaned, trimmed, and laid out.

That wraps up this installment. Just three more bags of parts (per Warhound) to go, then we can start the fun stuff! Truthfully, it's five bags if you count weapons, but those will clean super fast and all at once.

Thanks for stopping by. If you like, you can leave a comment. If you know anything about resin parts turning albino I'd especially like to hear from you!

WHx2 Pt 2 (More Leggy Bits)

2011-04-06T08:00:00.004-05:00

For the sake of time and simplicity, I'm only photographing one set of parts during cleaning. Unless of course there is a worthwhile reason to show both sets of parts.

The next bag o'bits is another bunch of leg parts. Well, primarily leg parts. There also some detail bits included, likely to cushion the heavy leg parts. These parts have been pretty easy to trim as there is not too much in the way of molding defects. This goes for both Warhounds.

As you can see I've left some of the detail bits on the sprue. This keeps them together and also gives them a bit of survivability when being tossed around. Safety in numbers! The only bits I'm finding a bit fiddly are the servo skull bits...

They are super small, barely attached, and many of the parts are prone to wandering off! Honestly, they are likely to go in the bits box for a while anyway. Servo skulls are pretty far down on the priority list right now!

Not the most exciting update, I know. But we're taking baby steps here. Painfully slow ones, and for that I apologize. I've been a bit distracted lately. Besides having a completely awesome wife and two beautiful babies I've been gaming on the pc a bit... and if anyone needs help hacking their Epic 4G phone I'm now competent in that art too. I've even tried my hand at photo editing. But it's back to 40k now, back to resin, and back to blogging!

Thanks for stopping by and I welcome any and all comments.

More Sisters of Battle Leaks, New Mini Pic!

2011-04-01T07:55:00.003-05:00

Another important leak to whet our appetites for the eventual release of a new Sisters of Battle Codex. These leaks are coming so quick, I don't even think GW is trying any more!

It appears that the upcoming Sisters of Battle codex will have a new and updated Penitent Engine! Details are sketchy, but apparently it will be called the Penitent Miraculous Sister Engine.

Behold in all it's glory, the P.M.S. Engine!

I can't help but think that it looks familiar though... like maybe GW is reusing some bits from other armies?

I for one can't wait to start a Sisters of Battle army. And you better believe the PMS Engine will be in very army list I make!

Have a really great April 1^st everyone!

EDIT: Another great pic of an upcoming SoB flyer is on display over at The Hogs of War blog!

Dangers of the Intwebz (not about Grey Knights)

2011-03-09T13:12:00.001-06:00

Today I'd like to share a story to demonstrate the dangers of the internet...

Long ago, GW pulled the Tau race out of a dark region towards the back of the human anatomy. I wasn't thrilled that the Kroot, who'd been around since Rogue Trader fluff-wise, had been made the Tau's lackeys. So early on there was no temptation whatsoever to ever touch a Tau anything.

After a while, the look of the Fire Warriors started to grow on me. Of course, mold will do the same thing if you stand still too long. Then I decided that the Tau tanks didn't really look as bad as I'd first thought, and even the Ethereals were cool in their own unique way.

However, the one thing I could never (ever)(ever) get past is the armor suits. They look like a young childs' attempt at drawing some Japanese mecha. I know, because I used to be that young child. The Tau tanks are sleek and look fast and agile when standing still... the Crisis and Broadside suits look blocky and immobile even when moving. So, there was no temptation in the Tau army at all for me.

On another related note, I was assembling a solitary Fire Warrior for an as yet undisclosed project. I really kinda liked the little dude. So I did some reading about Tau on scribd.com. Research for the project I mentioned, of course. Then I thought to myself, "I wonder what Forge World has done for Tau?". This is where the internet gets dangerous...

A quick flashback to my burning hatred of Tau armor suits...

This sucks (in my humble opion)...

However, this freaking rocks (cold hard fact)...

Commander McUgly Pants...

Commander UberKewl with a side of awesome-sauce...

So what I'm scouring the internet for now is the answer to a particular question, but maybe some fine reader out there may know and be willing to share. These XV9 Suits are featured in IA Apocalypse II... are there rules for them in regular games of 40k anywhere? I have no desire to ever own an apocalyptic amount of Tau. I know there are people that won't play with you if you have FW toys, but I'd like to know if there are rules to do so.

That my friends is why the internet is a dangerous place. I'd advise you to close your browser, shut down your computer, unplug it, and run for the hills. Right after you leave a comment if you like.

WHx2 Pt 1 (saving the worst for first)

2011-03-04T13:52:00.003-06:00

Welcome to Pt 1 of what will undoubtedly be an extremely many parted series. The project is to build two Mars Pattern Warhound titans simultaneously. I know what you're thinking, "what a great way to really slow down a cool project". I feel that if I build them at the same time they'll develop intertwined personalities as we go. Kind of deep and tree-hugger-ish I know, but trust me on this one.

The plan is to start at the bottom and work my way up. I have a goal to make the pose on one, or maybe both, extremely dynamic... like, how does that thing stand up, dynamic. We'll see if that is able to happen. I also plan to magnetize the weapons for interchange-abilty. I know a lot of folks have done that, but I have a plan that will allow me to still use the cabling that goes to the weapons. So let's get on with it!

The title of this post is Saving the worst for first, and for good reason.

(welcome to piston hell)

As I mentioned I'll be working from the bottom up. So that means two Warhounds worth of hip, leg, ankle, and toe pistons. Note: above you see only one Warhounds worth. In tedious matters such as cleaning and prepping parts I'll not make you look at pictures of two identical processes.

I'm happy to report that there is very little in the way of mold lines on all this mess. Sure, a little trimming, but not bad at all. Some pieces, like these toe bits shown below, needed nothing more than the resin channels trimmed off...

A quick shot of the feet themselves shows the kind of trimming that is needed there...

On to the washing we go. For cleaning resin I'm firmly in the Simple Green camp. I typically soak in it for a day or so then scrub with an old toothbrush and rinse well (the parts that is). In this case I've soaked all the pieces in a large cup. I would like to salvage my liquid for another batch of resin to soak in. I've found with small pieces (like hellish pistons) there is a common household item that can help me remove the pieces and keep the liquid...

A Strainer! I won't lie, I felt a lot smarter than I should have for thinking of this one. If you want to use one of these I suggest you a) use one your wife no longer uses, b)take it out of the kitchen while she isn't looking, and c) know if she reads your blog so you know whether 'a' or 'b' is your best option.

After much patience I've found that ForgeWorld was kind enough to place some extras of most of the piston types in the bag. Or else even they get so sick of them that they just throw a bunch in. Here they are all trimmed and laid out in their piston-y goodness...

(one Warhounds worth)

I already have the next bags of parts going through the cleaning process and hope to have all the leg parts cleaned and trimmed in the next week or so. I'll post as I get each bag of parts (x2) ready to go.

Thanks for visiting! Comments are welcome, as always. See you next time!

Old Stuff Day at The Inner Geek Blog

2011-03-02T06:00:00.003-06:00

Rob over at Warhammer39,999 had a great idea that you can read all about by clicking the banner above. The gist of it is that we should pick a post or two from our past blogging and dust them off. While I'd like to just repost a couple blogs I'm particularly proud of, I'm going to link to them instead. Otherwise this would be one long winded post indeed! The first two posts are about working with resin and I'm quite proud of the way I documented my processes. It's something I've gotten out of the habit of and need to get back into. They are also good reference material moving forward into my Warhound Twins series that is just beginning...

Reaver Titan Pt 3 WIP Resin Tips

Reaver Titan Pt 5 (Legs Major Parts Assembly)

The third blog I'm proud of is a book review. I think I'm proud of it because I feel like I manage the review without rambling too much. I can be a bit of a rambler... but now I'm rambling.

Titanicus Book Review

There are a lot of great blogs of the past that will, no doubt, be on display again today. I'll be out enjoying them on the interwebz today and I hope you enjoy them too.

Painting Across the Pond Inner Geek Edition Pt II

2011-02-26T16:53:00.000-06:00

So Drax has posted his second installment in our collaborative paint series and now it's up to me to show mine. I'm notoriously bad at taking pictures as I go, so this is less and WIP and more an 'almost done' post. Drax is not quite as far along, but in his defense I tasked him with a mini with lot more surface area to paint!

For anyone needing to catch up, I've linked the first Editions of painting across the pond below;

Painting Across the Pond Drax Edition Pt I

Painting Across the Pond Inner Geek Edition Pt I

Now that we're all caught up! Drax gave me free reign to paint his Colonel as I please. This is very trusting of him, so I'm trying not to disappoint him. I've been trying to make sure that this important fellow is different enough to stick out, yet similar enough not to look too out of place with Drax's army. I also wanted to add some color, as he is a ranking officer and likely to have some freedom in how he wears his uniform. I didn't want too much bright though, it would only make him a glaring target in the grimdark of the 41^st millennium.

Without further ado, here is the Colonel in progress... really quite close to finished...

I hope you all like the direction I'm taking with this guy, but I especially hope Drax likes it. He's the one who has to live with it after all.

So that there is still something to spring on my readers I'm saving one last surprise for the next post. It's a little thing, but could be very important to someone as high ranked as a Colonel!

Thanks for stopping by. Comments, suggestions, and vague hints at total annihilation are welcome, as always, in the comments. Look for a post about my adventure seeing the UltraMarines movie in the theater in the next few days!

Proposition, Name Calling, and a Peak into the Future

2011-02-24T21:28:00.001-06:00

Two posts in one week! You lucky readers!

First off, I'm looking for a date. Don't worry, my wife knows. I have seats for Inner Geek plus one reserved for the theatrical showing of the Ultramarines Movie on Saturday February 26^th in Denton, TX @ 11:00am. If anyone in the greater North Texas area would like to go, I'm only using one of my two seats. Email me, there is email info in the left sidebar. On a side note, the movie is at a studio movie grill, so if it's as bad as the folks on the interwebz say, we can drink beer till it doesn't matter. (beer is assumed to be available and will not be provided by The Inner Geek)

Nextly, I'd like to start off a sentence with a made up word. Done.

If you read my previous post and the ensuing comments, you will have noticed that there was some discussion on naming/designating miniatures. If not, you can go read it now, or just hang tight as we move forward. The gist of it is that I'd like to name my minis to add some personality to each one. I got the idea of marking their bases from my pal across the pond, Admiral Drax. I've printed out some homemade decals and given it a go. Here are some troops from the Cadian 5^th regiment, 3^rd company, 1^st platoon, 1^st squad.

I've learned that Testors decal paper works in a Brother laser printer (black only anyway) and that the decals suck. When trying to remove them from the paper and add to mini the decals curl back and stick to themselves like the most infuriating sort of sticky tape you can imagine. For the record, 8pt font fits about right on a standard base. The curvature of the base is a bit of a pain, but not too bad to if you use a decal solvent like MicroSol.

Anyone interested in being immortalized as a lowly guardsman is welcome to email me their name and I'll be happy to get you inducted. It's that many less random names I have to come up with. I'm trying not to get to the point of resorting to names like 'Jack Handy' and 'Phil MacKrevice'.

So what's coming up on on the blog? Of course now that I'm making some progress on my IG, my attention span is starting to wane. I'm not stopping them, but I am going to keep another project going so I can switch back and fourth in hopes of avoiding burn out on either. So what will it be? Here's a clue...

It should make for some exciting times as I'm really wanting to push the proverbial envelope on dynamic posing.

Thanks for stopping by. As always comments, critiques, and giggling are all welcome in the comments. Oh, and I'm serious about that Ultramarines Movie. If anyone in the North Texas area wants to go, email me. All the reservations are filled so I intend to get there early to get my seat(s).

More IG Finished, a Page Change, and Other Thoughts

2011-02-21T21:30:00.000-06:00

Well, my self imposed goal to post once a week was certainly short lived. Sadly, other blogs may be without updates as well. Big Jim over at Galaxy in Flames is going to be taking off a couple weeks and, sadly, Ron over at From The Warp will be discontinuing his blog completely. Thankfully Ron will be at least keeping us up to date on his new WIP blog, Black Dot Barrel Studios. Still, it was a sad night of blog reading when I got on Sunday night.

In other news, I've made a subtle change to my blog. Can you see it?? Did you notice it right away? Yea, probably not, but I'm proud of it anyway. With my meager html/css and graphics know-how I managed to widen my blog. Why, you may ask? Why not? It will allow me to post my pics a little bit bigger (though you may typically click on them for a larger view anyway) and it will fill up a screen a little better. The total width is now 1024 pixels which is about the minimum size of any monitor anyone uses these days. Trust me, there was a temptation to try and really stretch it out, but I decided not to show too much favoritism to my readers with wide screen displays.

On to the newly finished IG minis!

My camera skills are weak after all that painting, but you get the idea.

Now I'd like to share some thoughts on assembly line painting I've had over the last couple weeks.

First fifteen is too many to assembly line paint. Sure it was probably efficient, but it became tedious quick. In the future I'll probably work on five minis at a time. I think that will be my magic number to knock a few out and feel accomplished in a reasonable amount of time. Plus, at five every week or two, I could knock out all my guard dudes in about a thousand years... or, minus the exaggeration, a year or so... yea probably not with my attention span. Realistically I'll probably work on other projects some weeks. So then my guard will never get finished... damn. But, you wouldn't want to see me post every week about another five guardsmen anyway.

Thanks for stopping by and reading my rambling thoughts. If you'd like to leave a comment, I always enjoy hearing from you folks. As a fond farewell to updates over at From The Warp, I'd like to ask that any comments work the word "warp" into them somehow. That is all. Thank you.

IG Beast Squad Finished

2011-02-10T21:06:00.004-06:00

Just a quick update today. I've been working sporadically (when babies and real life allow) on my first full squad of Imperial Guard Beastmen using the new fantasy Ungors. I really like the way these guys came out! I'm thinking I'd use them for counts-as penal legion, but I might do a whole platoon with command made of beasties. Well, the junior officer might be a human of some sort... you can only trust these beasts to far!

I've got parts to do another ten of these guys. So, two penal legion squads or the start of a two squad platoon. I don't think I'd ever do an entire army of these as the cost per trooper is about double that of a plain old Guardsmen... in money that is. But, a couple squads will make for a nice visual on the field!

I've also been playing around with a salvaged Leman Russ tank and a Chimera. I'm not much of a tank painter, but once I have some decent progress to show, I'll do so.

Thanks for stopping by and having a look. If you have any comments, critiques, or at least a decent catch-phrase, feel free to share it in the comments section!

IG Using New Ungors Prototype Finished

2011-01-29T14:30:00.001-06:00

Last week I spoke a bit about the new Ungors and their naked butts. More importantly, I asked the question will they convert to beastman guardsmen as well as the old Ungors models did. This week I'd like to share the results... and another gratuitous butt-shot of the new Ungor models.

First a group shot to see how they fit in with the old Ungors (I encourage you to click for a larger view)...

I think they would blend in well enough if you have a quite a few models on the table though you can tell they are more closely related to each other than to the rest of the herd.

And as for the new Ungors converted, here are a couple shots of them. First the front.

Finally, the sans-pants shot of the rear...

First off, my opinions (you are welcome to share your in comments). I didn't have high hopes for these guys at first glance out of the box. However, since then they've really began to grow on me. Of course, so will mold if you stand still too long. I think that the old Ungors were more of an animal that walked upright. The new Ungors seem more like a beast-man to me. This is also true of them when not converted and used as actual Ungors in Fantasy Battle. Since they are more man-like, I chose to paint them in the general theme of the GW painted ones. They have human flesh colored skin where there is no fur, and a darker color for the fur. Once again, I think this makes them look more like beastmen than upright animals. Another thing to note is that these can be bought by themselves in a box. The old Ungors were the minority in a box full of Gors. Not so much left over bits with the new Ungors. All in all, I think I like them just as much or maybe even more than the old Ungors I converted to guardsmen.

So what do you think? Old or new, which is better? Feel free to leave a comment and let me know what you think!

Ungor Booty Call... WTF?

2011-01-23T09:29:00.003-06:00

I just wanted to share a quick observation with you guys...

As you may have noticed, I like to do conversion and I have a soft spot in my heart for that rare creature, the 40K Imperial Beastman. I've used some Ungors from the old box to do some of these conversions and I think they have come out pretty nice.

But, those Ungor models are no longer made. There are new models for the Ungor that came out with the WHFB most recent Beastman Army Book. This could turn out to be a good thing, as you used to have to buy a box of combined Gors and Ungors to get just the Ungors, and you got more Gors than Ungors for your trouble. Now, you can buy a box of just Ungors... better right? That remains to be seen. I recently picked up a box of the newer style Ungors to see what kind of converting I could do to them. I was pleasantly surprised to see that they are not covered in Chaos symbols I'd have to shave off, nice start!

Then I turned the sprue over. I was dumbstruck. I think there is a reason you never see a rear shot of these models on the box, website, or anywhere else. But, I'll let you in on their dirty secret...

Yes, just like all cartoon bears, they have no pants on. That's right, bare, beastie, buns for all the world to see!

I haven't honestly decided how I feel about this yet. I guess there is something fittingly feral about running around with your (literal) tail hanging out. I will reserve judgment until I've had a chance to convert one or two and paint them up. Besides, I think they'd be the only bare bottoms on the average 40K game table. They might even make for a decent distraction technique? Maybe it won't be that bad? I've already found some reference material to work off of!

Thanks for stopping by. I'll keep you all posted on how these conversions turn out, until then, keep your pants on!

New IG Go For A Dip

2011-01-16T09:00:00.003-06:00

Quite some time ago I bought a can of the Army Painter Quickshade product, Strong Tone. My original intent was to paint a lot of skeletons for an Undead WHFB army. I dipped a few test skellies and they turned out really good. However, that army fell to the wayside and was eventually traded away on the Barter Bucket over at Santa Cruz Warhammer. Since I've been wanting to work on some Imperial Guard I was cruising the interwebs and found someone mentioning that they used Quickshade on their IG. So I figured since I already have the stuff, why not give it a shot? What follows here are my steps on some test minis and the results. One other note. I've been trying to get better at taking pictures as I work, so this post is pic heavy. And, as always, you can click any picture for a larger view.

As seen in my previous post, I have been trying out some new paint from Krylon in their camouflage line. So these guys were painted first in that product for a base coat of khaki.

Then I put some Catachan green on the armor and guns. Two light coats is quick work over the khaki color...

Chainmail for the gun parts, blades, and other metal bits. Shining Gold for the Aquilas, belt buckles, and a couple of details on the beastman.

High Elf Flesh for the Guardsmen flesh and Vomit Brown for the beastman flesh & fur with Bleached bone for his horns & hooves. I also painted the belts, accessories and any other leathery bits with Snakebite Leather...

While it's hard to see, I did do some very basics highlights. I edged the armor and guns with Camo Green and highlighted the khaki just a bit with actual Kommando Khaki, which is very slightly lighter than the Krylon spray. So much so, that I'm not sure the highlight really did anything. I also hit the beastman's horns and hooves with a little Skull White...

I'm terrible about squad markings and things like that. So I figured I'd use the IG decal sheet to cheat my way out of some freehand painting. I brush on 'Ardcoat first, then apply the decals using some Model Master Decal Solvent. After they are good and dry, I put another layer of 'Ardcoat on, just to make sure they are sealed down and hide any decal edges. I hit them with Testors DullCote to take the shine off before continuing...

Next up is the dip. After reading lots of reviews and how-to's online, I decided that actually dipping the minis was not my best bet. So I used an old brush and slopped it on them manually. One thing I read that does seem to help is to hold the mini upside down while doing this. It really does help. As you can see below, they come out very shiny.

After a 24 hour dry time, the DullCote really makes them look better!

Some work on the bases and these guys are done.

I'm not sure what happened with the bases. They don't look like my bases usually do? They might get a redo eventually. And oh crap! That beastmen has a nose ring. As you can see the Quickshade will not hide my glaring base coat faux pas, but it does shade a mini nicely.

I know some folks hate the dip, and say it's not the quality result that you get from hand painting. But I can say it makes these guys look better than the ones I hand paint and in a fraction of the time. So while I won't use it for everything, my Guard is definitely getting the Quickshade treatment.

Comments and critiques are welcome as always, I only ask that you work a wild African animal name into your comment somewhere. Something you've seen on safari perhaps...

Ah that new paint smell... Camouflage Spray Review

2011-01-10T21:36:00.004-06:00

I could have wrote a whole blog about how ideas and what you like changes over time. And that would explain some of the direction this posts starts my hobby off in, but instead I'll give you a short synopsis before the actual blog.

I always wanted a gray, urban camo style guard army. Always. Since Rogue Trader. None of that silly army looking paint scheme for me. Then for a long while I wanted a guard army with black armor and red fatigues. Green and khaki was for sell outs with no imagination! Well, I've sold out. I've been painting outside my comfort zone, color-wise, while working my project with Admiral Drax. It turns out that traditional Guard colors are pretty nice when you get right down to it. They just look right.

So I started looking around on the interwebs and found something interesting. Some folks have been using Krylon paints to prime their minis. This is not too much of a shock (compared to GW Primer sticker shock anyway). But I found out that Krylon makes a line of paints for camouflage applications. So after being fooled by their corporate website into believing that Home Depot or Autozone carry their product, I finally found some at Ace Hardware. In all fairness, Wal-Mart does carry Krylon, but the one near me did not have the camo colors.

I picked up a couple of cans, one of khaki and one of a 'jungle green' sort of color. I have to say that I'm impressed. The paint went on smooth and coated well.

Here is a shot of some guard that had been painted, (in some cases twice) already.

If you click and view the larger image you may notice some "grainy-ness". That is my camera and post processing. The actual minis are smooth as butter.

The product claims to be ultra flat. I've put some paint on these since taking that picture and I will say that it goes on fine despite the fact that this is not, technically speaking, primer.

That worked well, so I grabbed a tank that has been in need of some love for a while and went to town on that too. I sprayed it with the khaki then taped off some pattern and hit it with the green color. The green is a little lighter than I would prefer, but it will darken up a bit when I paint the tank...

All in all I'd say, if you aren't using this paint for base coating, you're stupid. Ok, maybe that's a little extreme. But, it does seem to be really good paint so far. You can google around for other reviews by folks much more eloquent than I. You can also have a look at the product webpage. But I think if you have an army that could benefit from one of the available colors, you should consider giving it a shot!

I'll share the progress on the four guard and the tank. I might even sneak in another totally over reviewed product in the project!

Painting Across The Pond - Geek Edition Pt I

2011-01-01T08:55:00.003-06:00

Greetings and Happy New Year! Now that's out of the way...

Some time back one of my favorite bloggers, and I dare say friend, Admiral Drax (who lives across the pond) offered up a prize for best suggestions of name for a vehicle he was working on. He would paint a mini of the winners choice for them. I was lucky enough to be one of those suggestions and thought I'd be a pain by taking him up on the offer. Then after thinking about it, I began to feel that he was the one getting to have all the fun! So I suggested we do an exchange of minis and paint one for each other. So, without telling each other what we were sending, the mini's were shipped out. My mini took about one week to reach him, his took exactly one month to reach me... go US Postal service! Remember, it's only a race if I'm winning.

Opening the package was pretty exciting, I do love a good surprise! This is who I found inside...

Or for a easier to view picture taken from what I'm sure is a better camera than mine...

Drax is very brave to let me paint such a nice figure. And he's given me free reign to paint him as I see fit. Unfortunately I can't recall any guard units who wear primarily pink, so I'll have to dress him some more traditional hues. Seriously though, this is an awesome mini and it's going to be a blast to paint. Of course, I'm not one to leave well enough alone, so there will be more to this project that just a bit of paint. But Drax doesn't know anything about that, so we'll hold on to that secret till it's ready to be shown.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you'll go check out the Drax Edition Pt I of this collaborative post. Pt II will be some painting WIP and maybe a sneak peak the as yet unknown facet of this project. Feel free to drop a comment, otherwise I'll wonder ceaselessly as to what you internet people are thinking.

Another Xmas Tale

2010-12-23T22:52:00.004-06:00

Another tale I picked up off of some board or other many years ago when the internet still had that new web smell.

A Christmas Warning
Attributed to Pat Marstall

Begin Transmission Repetition of General Directive 264-A-XCIV
To: Distribution, Sectorium Primus From: Office of The Grand Inquisitor, Ebineezar Grinchanius Re: Yearly Chaos Incursion This purpose of this notice is to remind the forgetful of the annual visitation by the minion of Chaos known to the unworthy as Santa Claus.
+++ The Emperor's Light Banishes the Shadows of Heresy +++

As the diligent will recall, the incursion occurs regularly every 8742 to 8766 terran hours, roughly corresponding to a terran year. This trespass has occurred with disturbing regularity since at least the Horus Heresy, and perhaps longer, as many records were misplaced. +++ Love and Obey the Emperor +++ The faithful will recognize the target on sight, as his garb and gear mark him immediately as an agent of the abominations.
Santa Claus is a corpulent, bloated creature approximating the human form. It wears a crimson tunic the color of fresh blood, marking him as a possible follower of Khorne. It is bearded, mocking the honorable squats, and its hair is a sallow shade of gray, betraying its unnatural age. Be advised that despite the creatures fearsome name, no claws have been observed, and the former is likely a ruse. The target has been observed in the company of smaller creatures having the appearance of thin (less than 30 kg, approx.), stunted (1.5 meters) humanoids with pointed ears. Their appearance suggests the involvement of the decadent Eldar, and although that race denies involvement (*reference the Rudolphian Campaign [index 4111-BGE-MMXCII-Primus], specifically the Battle of Yukon Coneliaus IV [ibid., index 6]*), agents are advised to be prepared for their involvement, as the Eldar are known for their deceitful ways.
Santa Claus is conveyed by means of a grav-sled powered by unnatural livestock as detailed below. The target's vehicle is a grav-sled. It has superfluous runners which are used only on landing and take-off. Despite the appearance, no frozen water is necessary for its operation (another ruse). The vehicle's resemblance to the foul Palanquin of Nurgle should not be discounted, even though the colors continue to be reminiscent of Khorne. The device is powered by the unholy ministrations of eight or nine quadrupeds. Ordo Malleus scholars have identified these creatures as warped versions of an extinct species of terran mammal known as a Moose (reference 900002-ER-CIV). These beings single-mindedly pull the target's vehicle during its yearly invasion. They are outfitted with belled harnesses which are apparently imbued with the ability of flight. These beasts have been likened to the Fiends of Slaanesh, and such a comparison should not be dismissed too lightly, as the creatures shed a luminous substance as effluent as they move. Inquisitors should take care to avoid exposure.
Perhaps more disturbing is the variable number of the minion-creatures. On occasion, a ninth Moose has been observed, placed before the other Moose. This creature radiates a sickly reddish glow from its snout, as a psychic beacon to other followers of the Vile Ones. This Chaotic device has allowed the target to navigate despite our best efforts to jam its navigation systems.
+++ Blessed is the Virtue of Blind Faith +++
Santa Claus gains entry to the domiciles of loyal Imperial Citizens (see below) and leaves small Chaos Rewards to tempt the faithful. Inquisitors are reminded to confiscate and incinerate these items before any lasting damage is done. As a localized temporal distortion field is in effect around the target, these items are secreted in the habitations of the Imperium at exactly 2400 hours in every location defiled by the creature. It is therefore possible to gain entry to the citizens' cretches and remove the items (often cunningly hidden in footwear) before the citizens are aware of the heresy that has been committed upon them. In other cases, removal of the items after the citizens have discovered them is possible. In such situations, small children are occasionally loath to surrender the items, as the tainting of the juveniles has already begun.
Executions of the above are to be handled in the most expedient manner possible. Often, juveniles that are well within the Emperor's Grace are given small blocks of graphite ore rather than the more tempting gifts visited upon the less faithful. The identity of these individuals are to be recorded, as future recruitment into the Inquisition or Adeptus Terra is possible. [Note: Inquisitors or other agents who do *not* receive the graphite stones should be watched carefully]
Santa Claus enters the domiciles be way of heating ducts and waste vents. The size of the opening is not a factor, as the creature can adjust its mass and displacement by means of psychic manipulation. Mining these openings with frag, krak and other demolitions has proven unsuccessful. The creature egresses by the same means, after ritually caressing his nostrils. No mucus has ever been recovered.
+++ The Death of Emperor's Enemies is the Only Gift We Can Give +++
Although all previous attempts at the destruction of Santa Claus have failed, Inquisitors are urged to make such an attempt whenever possible. However, of more importance is the suppression of cultist activity associated with the yearly incursion. The Tainted have been known to erect shrines in their homes in the form of shrubbery adorned with baubles and lights [Note: the shrubbery is often highly flammable, and offers a discrete method of executing the offending heretics without calling undue attention to the operation]. Other warning signs include: hallucinations involving sugared candies during slumber; excessive singing; references to 'A magical time of year' (note the influence of Tzeentch); the construction of effigies made of snow; and the performance of Slaanishi rituals while underneath plant clippings of the genus _phoradendron flavescens_. Once again, executions should be handled in an expedient manner. End Transmission

40K Xmas "The Night Before 986996.M41"

2010-12-21T21:37:00.003-06:00

I found some nice writings many years ago and have kept them ever since. I thought I'd share a couple with you before Christmas arrives. Here's the first one...

The Night Before 986996.M41
by Patrick Marstall

'Twas the night before 986996.M41, and all through the station
All there was clear, there was no abomination.

My helmet was set on the desk to my right,
On the chance that I was to need it that night.

The guardsmen were ensconced, asleep in their beds,
All the tanks too were safe, secure in the sheds.

Marines in the barracks, some manning the wall,
Assured me that the bastion never would fall.

When out in the yard there arose such discord
I grabbed up my bolter and unsheathed my sword.

Away to the window, I ran to take aim
As the marines around me all did the same.

My bionic eye turned the night into day
Allowed me to see, and to seek out my prey.

When what did my loyalist ocular show,
But an ancient conveyance, knee-deep in the snow.

The vehicle was pulled by horned quadrupeds
And a fiery red nimbus glowed from the sled.

The driver was mighty, his eyes full of scorn,
Dressed all in crimson like a servant of Khorne.

I gestured for other to shoot without pause,
For I was now certain this was Santa Claus.

"Fire Marines! Fire Guardsmen! Fire Ogryn and Ratlings!
Fire bolters! Fire lasguns! Fire mortars and gatlings!"

"You in the courtyard and you men on the walls!
Now blast away! Blast away! Blast away all!"

But all through this maelstrom the evil one flew,
Past plasma and bolt shells and frag that we threw!

And then, to my horror, I heard on the roof
The vile cavorting of each decadent hoof.

Screaming my orders, I spun quickly around,
As down the chimney shaft it came with a bound.

I saw its eyes glow, its vast stomach gurgle,
Bloated and fat, like a deamon of Nurgle.

Blinded by anger, I attacked with a scream -
Charged into battle with my brave space marines.

As we thundered towards him, closing the rift,
He reached in his satchel and pulled out a gift.

Then it tossed the vile boxes - I fell in a stoop,
As they arced through the air at me and my troops.

The wrapped missiles fell short, and plopped at our feet,
Our morale was quite strong, we did not retreat.

But the marines paused - our charge was disrupted,
They picked up the gifts and were quickly corrupted.

For each box contained a chaotic present -
The marines (damn their souls), found them quite pleasant.

A bolter, a flamer, a new power fist,
The Claus gave to all, and he checked off a list.

It moved through the station and left in its wake,
The sound of bright laughter and the stench of fruitcake.

The others succumbed, but it failed in its goal,
For to me it gave only a small pile of coal.

The station was lost, I could only instruct
The bastion computer to set self-destruct.

I failed to kill him, for I saw as I fled,
The target escaping, quite safe in his sled.

I heard it cry out as the base burst into light,
"Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!"

Off Topic (it's broke) And Happy Thanksgiving

2010-11-24T09:50:00.004-06:00

What is it that's broke? My bank account? My ability to finish projects? My will to continue blogging? No, none of these... well, the bank accounts getting there.

But no, what's actually broken is my toe.

So, this Thanksgiving I'm thankful that falling down the stairs in my home only resulted in a broken toe. Actually, strangely, not even a bump or bruise anywhere else. My toe seems to have taken the full brunt of the fall. My wife and others have asked how it happened and I'm embarrassed to say, I don't know. It happened so fast I was coming downstairs one second and laying at the bottom of them the next. I do vaguely remember hitting the baby gate we have at the bottom of the stairs which keeps the toddler from trying to climb the stairs. That thing was totally unprepared for my assault.

So, I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving. If you live in a part of the world where they don't do Thanksgiving, have a turkey sandwich and be thankful for something anyway. It can't hurt... unless you're allergic to turkey. Then substitute chicken or ham... or tuna.

I really haven't had a ton of time for hobby stuff lately, but I do have an awesome project coming up. It's going to be a bit of a collaboration with one of my favorite bloggers, Admiral Drax!

Pride (and knowing when to swallow it)

2010-10-07T22:04:00.005-05:00

I'm not sure whether to file this blog as advice, tutorial, or product review. So let's just get on with it.

I have a friend named Pat. In fact, now that I think of it, I believe he is my oldest friend. Pat used to work at a local comics and game store many (many) moons ago. He was the manager, in fact. Probably about 24 ago years now. Pat is a great guy with only one glaring fault. He's freaking good at everything he tries to do.

So one day about five years ago, Pat is trying to help me sculpt something. Towards the end of the day he says, "here, take these extra sculpting tools and stuff, I have plenty". Very generous of him. But, in the mix of proffered supplies are these...

I was a little befuddled as I had (and still as of last week have) 20/20 vision. He assured me they were simply for magnifying things close up and that apparently I wasn't getting any younger. "Just try'em", he said. Well, to hell with that! I don't need glasses to see! I buried those suckers way way down in my pile O' tools.

Here's where the lesson comes in...

A few months ago I noticed that (despite my awesome 20/20 vision) my minis seemed to be getting farther and farther from my face as I paint. Simple enough solution, move hand toward face... but... but... what the crap!

So that day, the great bell tolled and my pride died in the heat of painting battle. I tried the glasses. Freakin Pat was right again! The glasses allow me to get the subject closer and still keep it in focus. So now I can be found slipping the 'reading' glasses on when I'm painting or sculpting anything detailed.

Now I know a lot of folks wear prescription glasses. This article may not mean much to you as you are quite used to wearing glasses. But, while I've seen a million blogs about paint brushes, paints, techniques, sculpting, blending, washing, inking, and the use of electric fences in Suburbia (thanks Suneokun), I've not seen anyone mention the fact that at some point you have to make sure you can get the mini where you can see it to do any of it. I think it's kind of assumed, but I can tell you as a person who doesn't wear glasses, I'd have never thought of it if someone hadn't shared the knowledge with me.

If you've made it this far, bless your heart. I try not to get too wordy, but I'm not always successful. I'll have more picture-y blogs coming soon. I've even made some decent progress on the Marauder Destroyer!

In closing I'd like to thank you for stopping by. And I'd like to thank Pat for the great advice that it only took me about five years to follow. If anyone is interested, you can visit Pat's project blog here. He is now a full time sculptor and he does take commissions!

Feel free to drop any comments or complaints you may have in the appropriate area.

I've got the biggest horns (so I'm in charge)

2010-09-16T12:30:00.004-05:00

A quick update to share some progress I've made on my beastly kill team.

I wanted my squad leader type beastie to stand out from the crowd. So I gave him the biggest horns, the custom armor, a combi melta, and a bionic arm too! He was born with white fur, which I'm sure is some sort of rare omen of awesomeness when you're a space goat.

From the front you can see most of the conversion work. He has a torso that is made of a terminator chest with regular power armor back. I also slipped in a piece of plastic card to bulk him out a bit. The shoulders, bionic arm, and combi weapon are from the marine Commander sprue.

Not much to say about the back. I did use procreate putty to extend the chain mail that the mini already had in the front of the lower torso all the way around. It's not perfect, but it passes for chain mail.

Here is a group shot of the team so far...

I'm not sure I'm happy with the overall stance of the Great White Goat. I may try to get a little creative with the belt sander and grind away a bit of his base on one side. The idea will be to make him lean a tiny bit less to his right.

Well, work is slow due to the real world constantly interloping on my hobbies. It's not looking to get any better any time soon. Especially with Civ V coming out next week... woot. I just want to say I do appreciate all the folks that stop by and I'm determined not to let slow turn into stop.

Also, I've joined the Special Operations Killzone forum. All the cool people are doing it and you want to be cool don't you? Well, ok, it's for all the cool people who are interested in the Special Operations Killzone project. And, there's games on the bottom of the forum index page. Silly, fun, time wasting games. Damn them.

Hope you've enjoyed your visit. Feel free to drop a comment and say hello.

Multiplying Beasts (Beast Marines Post)

2010-09-05T21:38:00.003-05:00

I've been really enjoying working on this little side project, so I thought I'd share my work.

These guys are a project inspired by horRAiN on his blog of the same name. I built one just for fun and liked it so much I wanted to build a few more. Luckily for me, Big Jim over at Galaxy In Flames gave me just the excuse I needed to build a small force of these guys...

The Special Operations Killzone rules are the perfect excuse to put together that small, flavorful, army you've always wanted but never had a reason to build. In fact, there are couple folks out on the interweb putting together forces made up of old or out of print minis. Check out Big Jim's Squat Team or B. Smooves cool Roge Trader era Marine Team for example. As a guy with not much hobby time and virtually no gaming time, I'm really hoping this skirmish game takes off. It would be awesome to be able to get some games in and this may be the way I find time to do so.

Anyway, back to the Beasties. I've got two with bolters and one with heavy bolter finished. I say finished, but I'm sure I'll be touching up crappy paint work till the cows come home. You can click the pictures for a larger, flaw spotting good time version...

You may notice that the flesh is not identical across all three. Since these are going to be part of a reasonably small force, I wanted to give them each a bit of personality. This will mostly be achieved by back story and festive naming, but also by not all having the exact same skin tone. We are all different, why wouldn't huge mutant power armor wearing goats be?

Comments, critiques, and pointing & giggling are welcome as always. So feel free to leave a comment if you like. Thanks for stopping by!

Beastly Marine (and camera fighting)

2010-08-30T21:42:00.004-05:00

This blog is to show the prototype Beast Marine I've done up. I won't get sidetracked by how it took me all day to get a decent (but still not great) photo of it. I will however ask that if someone can explain to me how to adjust white balance on a point and shoot, that would rock. I get everything lit up all nice and pretty, then my camera helps me out by adjusting the white balance making the background grayish and darkening my pics. The armor on this guy, for example, is not such a bluish gray as it looks. I think it looks better in 'real life'.

Anyway, here are the pics. I realized while taking them I forgot to finish the bolter. Doh! You get the idea anyway...

I've also tried my hand at cork basing. I think I rather like the results. I don't see myself doing a huge army of these guys, but a Kill Zone team might be a good goal to go for!

Feel free to drop a comment. They are always appreciated!

Awesome, Cool, and WTF (Off Topic)

2010-08-25T12:31:00.004-05:00

There are a few off topic things I wanted to share, so I thought I'd bunch them all up into one post.

First off, the awesome. My lovely wife gave birth to our daughter on 08/17/2010 (or 17/08/2010 depending on where in the world you are) at 4:23pm. Her name is Mackenzie Jane and she was born 8lbs 2.5oz and twenty inches long. She and her mother are both doing well and healthy, though me and her fourteen month old brother are both a bit frazzled. Here's a pic!

Next up is a trailer for a movie coming out next spring I stumbled upon. The movie is Sucker Punch and it looks terribly interesting. Anytime you have samurai, dragons, mobsters, nazis, and well... just take a look...

Then we come to the WTF. I don't know what else to say...

Oh, one more thing you can try, just for fun. Go to google and type in "French Military Victories" and then press the "I'm feeling lucky" button. It's good for a laugh... unless you're French.

Hope you've enjoyed my completely 40k-free post. On topic posting will resume in a few days.

Opinions (I need yours)

2010-08-21T13:53:00.004-05:00

Opinions, everyone has one and I need yours!

I stumbled upon this lovely little tutorial on the horRAiN blog about making Beastman Marines. I've made a few beastly guard in my day, but I'd never tried my hand at Beastly Marines!

Now I followed the tutorial with just a couple differences. My body to legs joint is a bit different, and I greenstuffed the heads to let them sit a bit more naturally. This is my opinion only as there is nothing natural about a goat wearing armor and firing a bolter. Swinging a two handed axe, maybe... but not firing a bolter.

I also tried incorporating the original beastman shoulder pads into the conversion. I've shot a pic of one with Marine pads and one with beast pads. I thought I liked the beast pads better until I looked at the pic a while. Now I'm not sure if it's better or just seemed better because of the extra work put into it. Have a look.

(end models are included for scale purposes)

So, which do you like better, Marine pads or Beastman pads? I guess I'll put up a poll for a couple days, though I'd love to hear your reasoning if you have time to drop a comment. Poll is at the top right of the page.

Thanks for stopping by!

New Stuff from Forge World

2010-07-30T11:39:00.002-05:00

Kinda makes me want to cry. I'd pretty much said no to my marines, now I want to add to them again. Dammit!

http://www.forgeworld.co.uk/New_Stuff

Marauder Destroyer Pt. 7 (Camo Time)

2010-07-20T23:14:00.000-05:00

The next step in the Marauder Destroyer build is to get the major colors onto this bird. I'm going for a gray on gray camouflage scheme. This would be suitable to Ash Waste type worlds, or even worlds covered by urban sprawl.

The idea when it comes to airplane camo, is not to be seen... of course. But you are going to be searched for from primarily two directions. Below by anti-aircraft weapons, and above by fighters hoping to put a stop to your deadly payload. For this reason many planes are a lighter color underneath, to blend into the sky when the enemy looks up, and darker more complicated patterns on top to make it harder to see them from above with the ground as a backdrop.

On to the how. A solid base coat is the first step. That can be seen in the previous post. There are many (many) great articles on the internet that go into great detail on how to paint a camouflage pattern. I'm just going to show you how I do it.

First I take a strip of blue painters tape and lay it out on my cutting surface. I use the blue painters tape because it is tacky, but not sticky enough to take off previous layers of paint.

I then cut the tape into a pattern using a sharp hobby knife. This is not a precise thing and randomness is all the better. Using wide tape I can get a couple of strips like this one from one stretch of tape.

Peel up the tape and find a spot on the model and start pressing it down. Then just repeat this process.

Here is the finished product...

(You can see it is already blending with the test colors on the box in the background.)

As I mentioned, there are many articles on the internet about how to do this. Some give you a sharp demarcation, some give you a softer line, some require more skill, some require less. This is just my method and it seems to have worked out well for me.

Questions, comments, and whatnot are welcome as always. See you next time in part 8!

Marauder Destroyer Pt. 6 (Your Name Here)

2010-07-18T22:43:00.002-05:00

I could tell you about the hellish weekend I had trying to find adapters for adapters for fittings to make my new (though cheap) compressor work with my airbrush, but I won't. I will tell you the old compressor is still working fine and I'd be done if I hadn't wasted time trying new things. The moral of the story is, don't try new things... Unless it involves sushi or the opposite sex.

So, while not getting much done, I had lot's of time to think...

Bombers, and most planes, have some form of nose art. Here are a couple examples that don't involve naked women.... though there is nothing wrong with those either.

As you can see, these are usually a simple picture (though it could be a symbol) and a name of some sort. Now, space on the nose of a Marauder Destroyer is minimal, but I may also look into integrating the 'nose' art onto the midsection, or even a wing top or rudder. It's the 41^st millennium, leeway must be granted.

Your name here? I want to give my fellow bloggers a chance to have their blogs name on my Marauder Destroyer! Here is how this will work;

First, you will leave a comment letting me know that you want to participate. We will work out a name to be used if you win in the comments section. For example, if your blog is named The 51^st Cadian Doom Weevils, we may make it the Spirit of the 51^st Cadian Doom Weevils just to keep it sounding like an airplane name.

Second, you have to do my dirty work and get me some traffic. I don't care if you mention my blog in yours, write a blog about my blog, or just sucker your friends into coming to my blog. The caveat is they have to come here from your blog to count. I'll be adding up numbers of visitors who linked here directly from each participants blog and whoever sends the most traffic, is the winner! And no fair just coming here yourself a million times (though you are welcome to do so), I'll be skimming the traffic to make sure it's not all from the same IP address.

So why the cheesy tactic? I used to have quite a bit of traffic, but then I was off due to personal obligations for several months. I want to make sure that folks out in the blogosphere know I'm back on it! Especially before the WarHound Twins project starts.

So I'll close with a couple of pics of the work in progress...

So, if you want to participate, drop me a comment. I look forward to hearing from you... yea, you!

Marauder Destroyer Pt. 5 (Some small progress)

2010-07-13T21:38:00.003-05:00

As promised, before 537.010M3! Even if just barely.

I've finished out the cockpit details and the crew. I say finished, but what I mean is, "gone back and fiddled with" as much as I'm going to. I'm not the super interior detail master that some out on the interweb are, but I've put some paint on the inside of the plane anyway.

Here are a couple shots of the crew, cockpit, and dorsal gunner...

The rear of the cockpit is molded onto the plane itself. This shot is from the 'nose' looking towards the tail.

So now comes the joyous time of airbrushing. I've been doing a lot of pondering on how to paint this odd shaped beast. The answer finally came to me just yesterday! I think this idea is many shades of cunning and should work on a Marauder or Marauder Destroyer...

And a close up...

That's right, just hang it out to paint! Now I just need something to hang it from that's within reasonable reach of my airbrush. This will be great and allow me to spray it all over without having to wait for bits here and there to dry so I can turn it over and such. Please hold your applause till the end of the blog.

On another note, I've been reading the Gaunts Ghost third omnibus, The Lost. I'm working through the first book, Traitor General right now. It's a great book, but then all the Gaunts Ghost stories are. I don't know about you, but when I read a good 40K book, it makes me want to work on stuff for that army. I think this time is the exception. I just keep thinking how much easier the Ghosts would have it with a couple of Warhounds traipsing across the countryside. I can't wait to finish the Marauder Destroyer and start the Hounds!

Please feel free to leave any comments you wish. I like the praise and have a pretty thick skin in regards to critiques, so bring it on!

Do You Know What Today Is?

2010-07-08T22:18:00.004-05:00

Sure you do. If you don't, you can always take a look down at the clock in your system tray... or wherever the clock is for you wacky Linux/Unix and Mac folks. But, what if you need to know the Imperial Date as used in the 40K fluff??? Well, look no further! Well, no further than just to the left of this post. I've added a widget to the left sidebar that will tell you today's date displayed in all it's Imperial glory!

First off, the thank-you's. This is by no means my invention. I stumbled upon it on The 18^th Lyubov Rifles website. The sites owner was happy to share the script and even tweak it a bit for me as his forwards the clock to the 41^st millennium. He's really a great guy and has a site worth checking out!

I won't go into too much detail about how to read a calendar done in the Imperial fashion, that information is readily available at the link above. But the gist of it is, for those not in the know, the first three digits are the time of year based on a thousand parts. This puts each part at about 8.76 hours. To be honest, my calendar will update based on day, but not time of day. So, in theory, at the end of June which is halfway through the year, the first three digits would be close to 500. Near the end of December they will be approaching 000, or one thousand. The next three digits is the year of the millennium. So last year was "009" and next year will be "011". Nine hundred years from today will be "910". The "M" and the number after represent the current Millennium, of course. Remember, we may be in the 21^st century, but we are technically ten years into the the third millennium. Knowing this while reading some of the Black Library books is nice, as it at least gives you a since of what time of year it is when they use a full date.

You'll have to excuse me if I'm a bit too excited about this for my own good. I love gadgets (and widgets), so this has really tripped my trigger. I can even set holidays. The day of this posting (and the next day too) are to be Calendar Celebration Day, but there will be other 40K themed holidays showing up on appropriate days... Can you feel the Geek-ness yet?

Thanks for stopping by. As always critiques, comments, and other babbling is welcome in the comments. Also, I've been getting a bit of work done on the Marauder Destroyer, though it's slow going right now. I expect to have an update on it by 537.010M3!

I've Moved!

2010-07-02T22:46:00.003-05:00

Online that is. A new domain to spiffy the place up a bit.

Ok folks, the last few months have been beyond busy for me. Not too much sign of letting up either. However, I do plan to try and get some work done. Maybe a Marauder Destroyer painted... maybe some other resin products built and/or painted. My plan is to sleep less, I think. Let's face it, the beauty sleep isn't living up to it's name in my old age.

I want to apologize for falling off the radar. I have lurked many of your blogs over the last few months. Speaking of you guys blogs, when I moved my blog to it's new address, I mysteriously lost all my blog roll entries. I'll be building that back up over the coming week. That's how I keep up with you guys, after all!

Google has assured me that all old links to my blog should still work... of course, I thought my blog roll would be coming with me too! So, while you shouldn't have to, any links to this site can be replaced by http://www.theinnergeek.net.

I hope to have some sort of progress to show on the Marauder Destroyer to show in the next few days. Till then, thanks for stopping by!

Super Glue Quick Tip

2010-02-28T21:35:00.003-06:00

I was reading a post by Ron over at From The Warp about Pinning a BloodThirster. In his article, Ron uses green stuff as sort of a filler/adhesive along with super glue to pin some items. This works great on larger parts where you need a great deal of strength... though I usually two part expoxy anything needing a pin personally. It did remind me (in some odd round about way) of something I read somewhere (if someone can cite where I'll add the link later) about using paper towel material as a filler for a super glued joint.

The idea is that many times there is excess room in, for example, a ball and socket joint that makes the point of contact for the glue on the surfaces very low. When you put something in there to soak up the empty space, you get a more solid join. Here is how I do it.

In the picture below you can see the Retribution Invictor is ready for his arms. The arms are ready and two tiny pieces of paper towel material are nearby. The paper towel was cut from a blue design to show up better in the pictures.

Next, I put a very tiny amount of super glue into the receiving side of the joint, in this case the main body of the mini. Then I use the tip of an exacto knife to pick up the tiny pieces of paper towel and place them into the joint. You don't want to put so much glue in there that they become soaked. Once soaked the paper towel hardens pretty darn quick and we want it to stay soft and pliable at this stage.

For the final step I put a generous amount of super glue on the remaining part to be joined, in this case the arms. When I place the arms in the sockets the paper towel will soak up the excess glue and conform to both halves of the join. So instead of arms that are glued on, but only touching in some areas of the join, I now have arms that are solidly glued to paper towel (which is hard as a rock now) and paper towel that is solidly glued to the rest of the mini.

I don't know how many people know this tip already, but if I help just one person prevent the arms of their tiny warriors from falling off, then I've done my job! As always, feel free to let me know what you think. I'm always keen to hear from you folks out on the inter-web!

Marauder Destroyer Pt. 4 (Flying Stand)

2010-02-22T10:43:00.003-06:00

Just a quick update in an attempt to prove that I really have been working on this project!

I've sorted all the building out and even magnetized the Hell Strike missiles that go under the wings. All parts are ready to prime (have been for almost a week now) but the weather here is not cooperating. I have a garage I can spray primer in, but the weather has either been very wet and/or cold lately. The one nice day we had, when spraying primer wouldn't make me nervous, I had other obligations and wasn't able to get it done.

I cut the base from a bit of scrap 1/4" MDF board I had laying around. I folded a piece of paper in half twice to and cut 1/4^th the shape. This insured some symmetry in my pattern. The base is an oval of about 10"x7.5".

I also cut out some smaller pieces to use to build up the base where the stand would be placed.

Here are a couple shots of the Marauder on the stand. You can see that the three extra pieces cut in the photo above give a total depth of 1" into which the acrylic stand was inserted. This was glued with wood glue and is amazingly solid!

Bonus points if you can spot and name the distraction in this last picture...

The stand actually goes up inside the model, through the hollow body, and into the original mounting kit provided by Dragon Forge Design (who also came through with a 12" acrylic rod if you missed my previous post). I notched the top of the rod in a way so that I could glue the cut out notch into the mounting kit in the top of the fuselage. This prevents the model from spinning around on it's stand.

So there it stands... pun! Anyway, I'm excited about getting this primed up and painted. It's by far the worst Forge World model I've assembled as far as quality of parts fitting together. But, I'm hoping that the flaws are less noticeable to someone who didn't actually assemble it. Thanks for stopping by and, as always, comments, criticisms, and pointing & laughing are welcome!

Chaos for DoW II vids!

2010-02-06T21:57:00.002-06:00

For those of you who like your 40k on the pc screen as well. Check this out!

You may now resume your normal hobby activities...

Marauder Destroyer Pt. 3 (The Bends and Acrylic Rods)

2010-02-03T19:11:00.004-06:00

A quick update on the progress of the Marauder Destroyer and an impromptu product review as a bonus!

As with any other resin kit from any manufacturer in the world, the MD suffers from its share of warpage. So I thought I'd share my technique for taking the bends out.

I start with boiling a pot of water on the stove. Once it's boiling I back the heat down from a high setting to a medium setting. This should let the water get down to just below a boil temperature-wise. I keep a bowl of cool water on hand as well, to cool the parts down once I get the shape I want. I skipped pictures of that stuff as I'm sure you know what a stove, pot, water, and a bowl look like.

Instead I thought I'd show you the kinds of things I had to straighten out. The thicker pieces, like this Tail Plane, I hold submersed or partially submersed (depending on how much of the part is affected) for about 20-25 seconds.

For thinner bits like these Flaps and Bomb Bay Doors 10 seconds or less should do.

For even thinner bits, you have to be careful and probably use a 5 second or shorter dip in the hot water...

For the thinnest of parts, like the Canopy Frame, I literally just dip and remove. This still gets the parts as soft as a wet noodle so extra care must be taken with parts this thin.

Whenever possible, it's also a good idea to have the piece that the part will mate up with on hand. This insures you get the shape you really need. In this case I put the part in it's position over the cockpit to make sure it fit correctly.

These are not all the parts I had to straighten out a bit, just examples of different types and sizes of parts. With this stage out of the way it will be some priming and painting and some parts assembly next.

For the product review, I'd like to share with you my experience in finding a suitable mount to fly this bird when it's complete. I found acrylic rods for sale over at Dragon Forge Design. The site lists a six inch acrylic rod with a resin bit to assist in mounting the rod to the flyer of your choice. The product page can be seen here. I knew I wanted my Marauder to fly a little higher than 6 inches, in fact 12 inches is more what I wanted. I emailed Jeff at Dragon Forge Design and he was able to custom cut me a 12" acrylic rod with no problems. Not knowing much about acrylic rods and such I was a little worried that the weight of the Marauder might be a little much for a 1/2" diamter rod. Nothing could be further from the truth. I think you could just about put an actual airplane on this rod and not bend it.

I would definitely recommend Dragon Forge Design for anyone looking for a way to raise up their flyer model. He also carries a large assortment of custom bases and such. In my opinion the products are priced reasonably and the customer service is excellent!

Marauder Destroyer Pt. 2 (Landing Gear Magnets)

2010-01-29T22:10:00.003-06:00

I've been working for a couple days on the landing gear for the Marauder Destroyer. Well, a day and half was thinking type work... better to over think it than under think it, right? My whole reason for even considering this is that I would like to have the option of a flying base with gear up or a static pose with gear down. With the ability to pose the plane with gear down it can double as scenery or even a largish objective marker when not in play.

I figured magnetizing the struts and such to the plane would be easy enough. The problem was magnetizing the flat pad at the bottom of the gear in a way so that it could attach to either the bottom of the struts, or the bottom of the plane with struts set aside. Then it occurred to me that the pads are only detailed on the upper side. When the gear is up you see only the flat bottom, easy to replicate with plastic card. More on this towards the end. First, here's how I got my landing gear struts and plane magnets to line up.

First I drilled a hole almost deep enough to set two magnets on top of each other into.

It is important that the top magnet is slightly out of the hole as can almost be seen here...

I placed a small drop (very small) of super glue on the top magnet surface and then held the gear strut assembly in place firmly.

This attaches the top magnet to the strut assembly in the just the perfect spot. Next I went back and drilled the hole a little deeper so that two magnets would sit in the hole without sticking out. They are quite flush with the planes surface. I placed a second magnet on the one that is now glued to the strut assembly. Put a little glue into the hole in the plane and used the magnet and strut to push the second magnet into the plane body. This assures that the magnets are polarized correctly, though if you're careful you could just as easily push the magnet into the plane with your finger or other non metallic tool.

Now with the strut assembly magnetized, I added a brass rod pin to help against twisting forces. There were two small rivets on the back side of the struts, I simply shaved one off and drilled through where it once was. Leaving the brass rod sticking up out of the whole replaces the rivet. The rod is larger than the diameter of the old rivet, but I think it looks fine. They might have used a larger rivet in order to make it more secure in 40k pretend land anyway!

I mentioned earlier about the pads on the gear being fabricated. I just laid out an existing pad and traced around it to get the general shape. Then, cut it out and trimmed it to exact size. There is a slant at one end and this was added by scoring the plastic and bending it carefully.

The original...

And the copy...

(Since you never see the underside of the 'up' landing gear, it doesn't matter much how it looks!)

And a shot of the whole bunch happily magnetized together...

I know this was a lot of post for just a bunch of landing gear. I wanted to share the way I did it in hopes of inspiring others. Even if they're only inspired to tell me their favorite way to magnetize flat surfaces together!

WHx2 (What's on my porch?)

2010-01-27T13:41:00.003-06:00

Quick break from the Marauder... I know, we just got started, but this is important stuff!

The parcel delivery person rang my bell and left a box on my porch...

Well, the insides looked packed nicely. (Spoiler: I won't be able to get it packed that nicely when I'm done rummaging thought it.)

Not a bad start, we have the eight Hellstrike missiles I'll need soon for the Marauder Destroyer!

Next I find an Inquisitor Rex and retinue set. He's super cool looking and maybe will inspire me to dig out and repaint some Daemon Hunter stuff!

But wait, there's something hiding beneath all this (really it's not that hard to see, but I'm going for drama here)!

Yep, two Mars Pattern Warhound bodies! Here is a shot of the bits within their protective bags.

And for weapons? Eventually there will be a variety that are interchangeable via magnets, but for now, five Turbo Lasers...

I know, five is too many for two Warhounds. I plan to modify one to go on the carapace mount of my Reaver Titan.

I'm happy to say that after going through each bag of parts, the quality is amazing. Nothing like the problems I had with the Marauder Destroyer upon arrival. All parts are cast well with minimal air bubbles. Some minor, but expected, warpage that will easily be straightened out during assembly. I'm sure tiny flaws may come to light during wash when I handle each piece more extensively. But as of now, I was only able to find one tiny fault as shown below.

Not bad for two large kits worth of parts! The tiny ball joint has been mended using my nemesis, Super Glue. Overall, I'm extremely pleased with the kits. That and the super fast shipping. It was maybe three days in process and post to Texas, USA.

I'm excited to start on these Warhounds, but I'm not going to rush the Marauder to get to them. Well... maybe a little. I'm thinking they will be a simultaneous build, but honestly once I get started that idea may change. Of course, at some point down the road I'll be pestering Ron over at ++ From the Warp ++ to work me up some of his amazing banners like the banners for my Reaver Titan he did.

I'm always looking for ideas and input from you folks out there in internet-land so feel free to drop me a comment.

Marauder Destroyer Pt. 1

2010-01-21T21:21:00.003-06:00

Just as I warned, the work on the Marauder Destroyer has begun...

This is actually a kit I bought about three years ago. I think it would have got done soon after arriving except it had some pieces that had to be resent by our friends at Forge World. I'll show you the offenders below. This gave me time to pursue other projects and here I am finally getting to this awesome kit. Now, let me quantify the term, "awesome kit". It's a kit that becomes an awesome model, not necessarily one of awesome quality. This kit came with a lot of broken pieces. Some were fixable, some rebuild-able, and some that had been ground into a fine powder in shipping to the point that I thought at first they were just missing until closer inspection of the debris. This is not my normal experience with Forge World and I think a lot of the problems can be attributed to shipping, the fine details, and thin bits included in this kit. I will say that Forge World made the process of getting replacement parts very easy and I can't say enough about their customer service.

So lets have a look at the major bits!

And here are the parts that had to be re-shipped (Please note as I mentioned above that Forge World provided excellent customer service and was very helpful in getting this parts replaced). These are the parts there were battered beyond recognition upon original arrival.

Here is another piece of damage I didn't pick up on until trimming the parts.

Compared to the opposite sides' shape...

So I used the good side to find the shape I needed for a plasticard repair job.

With the piece secured with some super glue (I still hate the stuff), it's ready for some putty and sanding that will come at a later stage...

Some seriously large channels from the resin pour meant I had to call in the big guns for a couple parts. (Don't breath in resin dust when sawing or sanding!)

Then it was into a bath of Simple Green and a bit of dish washing liquid. A large container for the bigger parts and a cup for the fiddly bits!

And there the parts remain. I'll be rinsing and drying them shortly. I've departed from my usual order of things in that I've trimmed the pieces before the wash. I figured why not wash away most of the debris and junk from trimming instead of washing then creating a whole new mess. There will still be some parts that will need a last minute trim or tweak, and I have magnetic plans for the landing gear yet to implement so I know that some pieces will need another rinse. But, doing it this way, most parts have suffered all the handling they will need prior to wash.

Now, here is what I need from you folks out in the blogosphere. Ideas for a base on which to have this beast flying. If you've built a flyer and found something that makes a decent base, tell me. If you have seen a good solution used by someone else, let me know. If all else fails I'll have to manufacture something myself, but I'd hate to miss out on a ready made solution or product if one is out there. Also, thanks to all you guys who voted on the recent poll. It's still up for a day or two but I think the victory of the twin Warhounds is a foregone conclusion.

Any thoughts, suggestions, critiques, and random musings are welcome. I always like to hear from you guys!

Hypothetical Question (and a Poll)

2010-01-18T15:41:00.004-06:00

Wow the Holidays were a mess! I'm back and I'm itching to work on some stuff. The Marauder Destroyer is out and trimming will begin shortly, look for a post when it begins. While I plan to take my time and enjoy the MD, I don't think it will take anything like as long as the Reaver did. So, I'm thinking ahead to my next project. Hence the poll I'm putting up!

So, hypothetically speaking, which of the following sounds like more fun; A) Another Reaver, probably with lots of Laser Blasters. Think one on each arm and a converted Mars Pattern Turbo Laser on the carapace (I like the 'D' shots). Or B) a pair of Mars Pattern Warhounds, once again with lots of Turbo Laser luvin? I'm posting a poll but I'd really like to hear what folks think the pros and cons are in comments as well. Another Reaver really sends a message to anyone across the table (that I'm crazy?), but two Warhounds makes a formation I believe?

So please attack the poll on the left and leave me a comment. I'd really appreciate it!

A worthy site (shame-less plug)

2009-12-07T09:47:00.003-06:00

I recently found an awesome blog where a guy is doing a Chaos Reaver Titan! I recommend it to anyone interested in anything whatsoever. Go check him out at Acolite Reaver Art. Do it now! Those of you of the "Dakka Dakka" persuasion can also see his work on his Dakka Dakka post.

So far he looks to be doing a detailed build, so anyone thinking about doing either a Loyalist or especially a Chaos Reaver should check him out. I even learned something already. And drop him a comment and let him know what a horrible heretic he is too!

Way Back Wednesday #2

2009-11-25T14:10:00.002-06:00

This installment we have another Inqusitor circa 1989. Close friends and one time blister-mates with the subject of the first Way Back Wednesday, this guy also lost his original backpack in a high stakes poker game. A custom pack was made and some new paint hastily applied.

(Yes, that's an antique Plasma Gun!)

Nothing brings out flaws in a paint job like a close up picture. Ignore those and enjoy the musty, aged, goodness. As you see, this fellows haircut is more reminiscent of a the sort a Monk might sport. He could easily be used as some sort of Ecclesiarchy zealot. Though, the Inquisition might come after you if you did so!

BRIEGEL Pt 1 "Unboxing"

2009-11-16T21:38:00.003-06:00

A month or two back I acquired a resin model kit from Kallamity.com. The site, and the models/art found therein, are the work of Luca Zampriolo from Italy. I would encourage anyone interested in mecha or any kind of mechanical art to check out his website. In particular there are picture galleries of some of his work being designed as well as painted. If you pay attention to the painting in progress galleries, there are non verbal hints and tips to be ferreted out. He has quite an interesting style that I've become quite keen on.

The kit I purchased was the BRIEGEL with optional 'Walrus Units'. The Walrus Units are simply big guns that can be used to replace the arms, though I have other ideas I might try using them for! This kit is billed as a 1/35 scale model and features a cockpit that can be modeled to open and close upon completion. This scale lines up reasonably well with my Warhammer 40k addiction so the completed model may at least make for interesting scenery or a mysterious objective when finished. On to the unboxing...

The kit arrived reasonably quickly from Italy, less than a week in shipping, and in great condition. The box was packed tight, but it was an efficient kind of tight, not overcrowded. Little things like the picture on the box and the stamp on the end proclaiming the print number of this particular kit add to the professionalism Luca shows with this kit.

Inside the box the parts are laid out in individual bags with labels as to what the parts in that bag will be used to build. Some of these bags also contain smaller bags within to hold smaller parts or parts of a particular sub assembly. This is similar to the way ForgeWorld lays out some of their larger kits but with the addition of a small piece of paper as a label, it comes off as more organized and feels more put together.

Besides the parts there is a packet of instructions and other goodies. There is the manual proper, a small sheet of decals, a snazzy and unique business card, a custom postcard with the numbered and signed edition info on it, a small card of information and products, and three pins of the sort you can pin to a shirt or hat. I know it's silly, but it's the little things that really make me smile, maybe because they're so unexpected. The pins, the business card... will I ever need them? No, but he went through the trouble to put them in there anyway. The decals are of a high quality including whites, not just something that was done on someones HP printer. I don't recall getting decals with other companies resin kits in the past...

I've looked through the instructions and handled the resin a bit already. The instructions are thorough and easy to read, despite being designed by a person whose first language is not English. On a scale of one to ten I'd put the usability of these instructions at an easy nine. For reference I'd put the Reaver Titan instructions around a four at best. There is even a line drawing of the mecha on the last page which you can photocopy and color to try out color schemes before you begin painting, very thoughtful. On to resin quality. The overall quality is good, but there are some parts that have quite a few pinholes in them. These are easy enough to fill but are, so far, the only real complaint I have with the kit. I will say there are no warped or miscast parts to be found though, that's a plus. Another note on this kit; the kit is positionable. The arms and legs have hinge points which require brass rod to be used in the hinge. While the instructions are very clear on what size rod and what length go where, the rod material is not supplied. It just seems like it would be that much better if the kit had the rods included and it wouldn't cost that much extra to add them.

Overall I'm pleased with the kit and excited to start building it. Unlike the Reaver Titan project, this will not be a straight through all in one go project. I will take breaks and work on other things as needed to not go ape-shit crazy like I nearly did working on the Reaver. So, look for updates in the future. Cleaning and assembly could start very soon!

Way Back Wednesday #1

2009-11-11T11:07:00.003-06:00

I was inspired by John over at Santa Cruz Warhammer and his blog Remember the Titans, Some Bits Box Justice to delve into the realm of old minis. I've decided to make this a semi regular event of between one and twenty or so parts. Depends on when I run out of old minis or motivation. So welcome to issue number one of Way Back Wednesday!

The mini I chose for this week is an Inquisitor from way back in autumn of 1989. You can see this fellow and his compatriots on the Stuff of Legends site, HERE.

The paint job is not going to win any Golden Daemon awards, but I assure you it is an improvement on what was there before.

As you can see, this mini is from before the Inquisition started sporting their ubiquitous -I- symbol on everything. He could be used equally well as a Rogue Trader or other adventurer. The backpack is not original, though it is custom made. The originals were not that spiffy anyway and are nigh impossible to get hold of now days. Besides, some custom power armor should come with a custom power plant! The catalog description says he has a combi weapon. I can only guess it's a combi bolter/sap.

Thanks for stopping by and checking out the first installment of Way Back Wednesday! As usual all comments, critiques, and name calling are welcome. Though any name calling comments must rhyme and include the word porridge.

Crimson Fist Dreadnaught Conversion

2009-10-12T18:34:00.004-05:00

This is a project I started about three years ago and just now got around to finishing. At least mostly finishing, I can always find one more thing to touch up. At some point you just have to put the brush down!

I can't take any credit for the idea on the conversion. I saw it on the internet several years ago and decided I'd have a go at it. I'd reference the page where I saw it, but that page was several pc builds ago and I no longer have the bookmark.

This is also my first attempt at painting vehicles and also at using decals "correctly". By correctly I mean I used 'Ard Coat to put down a slick finish then applied the decal and put more 'Ard Coat on top, finishing up with a spray of DulCote.

I've tossed in a couple Marines for scale. One of them is a slight conversion too, he's a lefty. Here's some pics!

The legs, obviously, come from a Sentinel. I feel that they convey movement much better than the standard legs and with the armor plates to bulk them up a bit they don't look too spindly. As for the paint, well I'm still not sure I'm set on how I want to paint my Crimson Fists. I think they are already dark enough not be mistaken for Ultra Marines, but I'm going to play around with the blue a bit more before I commit.

I hope you've enjoyed seeing what I've been working on for far longer than it should have taken. Hopefully future updates will be at least a little quicker. All I can say is, babies slow you down sometimes... as Drax is about to find out!

I'm still here... lurking...

2009-09-23T21:10:00.003-05:00

So as some may have noticed, I've not blogged in a fair bit. What? You didn't notice? Um... well... it's a fact, I haven't. I'd like to blame a plethora of things for my not doing much hobby stuff, and therefore having nothing to blog about. Alas, it all comes down to me not doing anything when I do have time. It seems the longer you go without doing anything, the easier it is to put it off one more day. Even things you enjoy, sad as that my be!

I'm really hoping to get some inspiration and get some work done. Lord knows I have plenty to work on! I have a couple Space Marine Dreadnaughts to work on, the minis from my Space Hulk, a Tyranid army still in boxes, an Ork army still (mostly) in boxes, Marauder Destroyer, Macharius Vulcan, Land Raider Prometheus, tons of IG, fantasy Undead army still in boxes, fantasy Empire still in boxes, some Eldar Storm Guardians for my Altansar force, many boxes of Imperial terrain that are to be a large fortification one day, an AGX-04A1 Gerbera Tetra Custom to be assembled, and a fantastic BRIEGEL resin kit by Luca over at Kallamity.

This brings me to another problem I have. I created this blog as a 40k hobby blog. But, as can be seen by the last two projects listed above, I have a very diverse Inner Geek. And working on non 40k projects does help me avoid total burn out. So, here's the deal. I would like feedback from the community as to whether I should create a separate blog for non 40k material, or just lump all my geeky-ness into a pile here? I'm not big on polls, but I'm going to post one for a few days. Look left. Any advice on blogging, time management, baby burping, or general commentary are welcome!

Finished Reaver Titan (pic heavy)

2009-07-12T12:14:00.003-05:00

Here it is, the final Reaver Titan post. The following is mostly pictures of the finished Reaver. Questions and comments are welcome as always! I’m using a new blog editing tool, so if anyone has any strange issues with the appearance or functionality of my blog, please let me know that as well, thanks.

Some shots of the banner details follow. The banners were done by Ron over at From The Warp and he did an excellent job!

I always enjoy the looking up view…

Some various pics with alternate weapons on the carapace.

That’s it! This has been a challenging, but unbelievably fun project to work on. There are definitely things I’d do different, but that can wait for another post… or another Reaver?

I’d really like to thank all the folks who have been reading this blog and following along with this project. I’ve enjoyed it, and I’ve enjoyed bringing you all along for the ride. I hope you’ll all join me again for my next project… I think this Reaver needs some air support, Marauder Destroyer inbound!

Off Topic News and Updates

2009-07-07T13:52:00.003-05:00

It's been a while since I've posted and I do apologize to my friends out there in the blogger world. I've been pretty busy and distracted the last month or so, but I have been lurking your blogs as I've had time.

So, what's been keeping me so busy? A several things really. I'll share the largest distractions with you here in this blog.

First off, two weeks ago my wife gave birth to our son! Thomas Elliot was born June 23^rd, 2009. He was 8lb 5oz and 21" long at birth (ten fingers, ten toes and all that good stuff). He and his mother are doing fine and everyone seems to be healthy. Here are a couple pictures of him taken today.

It turns out that nobody makes a 40k "one-sie". And his mother tells me he's too small to assemble or paint anything yet too. I guess I'll just have to give him a few months and let him roll dice for me... come to think of it... those are probably too small for him to play with, double damn. Ok, so he probably won't be old enough for the 40k hobby anytime soon. Maybe by the time he is I'll have an army painted for him to play with!

My second distraction came just a short time before Thomas arrived. While it doesn't compare in ability to be cute, fill a diaper or keep me up all night, distraction two is a lot of fun in its own right!

I've always wanted a bike and recently had a chance to take the rider safety course and get my motorcycle license. By the way, I recommend that class for anyone who rides or wants to ride a motorcycle. The bike is a Ducati Monster 1100S, and it's a blast! I've always wanted a Monster, so choice of bike was pretty easy. Also, a couple guys at my local GW store and I are thinking of starting a 40k biker gang... well, not really, but we may be terrorizing the streets together all the same. It would be a bit of an eclectic group, one Ducati, one Aprilia, and a Buell.

I appreciate folks stopping by. I do plan to get back on the blogging and I think this little ice-breaker might be just what I needed to get back to blogging after too long away. I still owe you guys a finished Reaver blog and blog on Reaver building 'what to watch for'. Later guys!

New Space Marine Game Trailer on IGN

2009-05-27T22:44:00.006-05:00

Have a look at this.

IGN Video: Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine Xbox 360 Trailer - Battle Trailer

I'm pretty freaking excited. I've been following this game for a while now. Looks like it will be pretty freaking cool!

Here is an earlier build video with designer commentary. It appears that they've changed design teams and possibly the antagonist from Chaos to Orks, but it's still cool to see.

Leaked Warhammer 40K: Space Marine Footage Shows 'Intimate Brutality'

GW Valkyrie Painting Contest...

2009-05-16T20:46:00.005-05:00

I won! Yes, I know I've not posted much the last few weeks. I've been concentrating on getting my entry for the Valkyrie Painting contest finished. That, and reading as many of you guys blogs as possible. Oh, and working on some prototypes for my Ad Mech themed guard.

I was pretty confident going into the competition, at least until I saw the other entries. There were some really nice Valkyries. An interesting note also, out of five entries, there was only one that was not a Vendetta! But, I think that a striking paint scheme (or at least a unique one) and attention to interior detail probably helped me stand out.

Usual camera caveats apply. It really looks a good deal better in real life than I am capable of capturing in a picture. If I can get some better pics with some better light later, I'll add them to a future post. So here we go!

First up the all important ID shot...

Then a couple shots with ground support...

And last we have a shot of the first of the Ad Mech themed guys this Valk might tote around...

Not shown due to lack of camera skill are a detailed interior including door guns/gunners that swing back out of the way so the doors can be closed. The model was done mostly with an airbrush with large chunks being assembled after painting. The las cannons were converted from extras I had left over from a Land Raider Prometheus.

The prize was pretty sweet as well. First up I received a thirty dollar gift card, not a bad deal on its own. The real prize though is a free landing pad terrain piece of some sort that I get when they are released with Planet Strike in July! While I've not seen it yet, judging by the past 40k terrain pieces I'm excited. Plus, it'll make a nice place to park the Valkyrie!

I appreciate you stopping by. Any comments or critiques are welcome as always. No pressure but for extra points you can leave a comment in Quatrain Poetry style.

Reaver Titan Pt 17 (So close I can taste it!)

2009-04-23T11:34:00.003-05:00

Work has progressed at as fast a pace as I could keep. My last estimation of 'one more week' was obviously a little optimistic in hindsight. The gold trim all over the Reaver took almost half a week by itself! It involved two to three layers of gold to get a good coat, using wash to line the boarder between trim and armor, then washing the actual trim, and in most cases going back and adding a little extra wash to rivets to pick them out. This part alone makes me think I'll probably never do another Reaver again!

Anyway, the Reaver is almost done. I still need to add the Ad Mech guy in the back, the hoses to legs and arms, put some words on the scroll work, and add some other details like purity seals and what-not. Let's look at some pics of the almost finished titan with some guard minis for scale comparison... the priest from earlier posts even managed to sneak in there.

A group shot first...

A Guardsmen eye view...

A view from above...

A generic side view...

And, the last thing the enemy sees...

I wanted to share what I had so far as I won't be able to finish till after this weekend in all probability. We have company coming and so I don't expect to be able to wrap this up till next week. There will likely be two more Reaver posts. One will be mostly pictures when the Reaver is really completely finished. The other will be a small collection of things I've learned and things to watch out for if you ever build one of these. Not sure which will come first yet though.

Thanks for stopping by. I appreciate the name suggestions from the last post. So far Moridan 7^th's Ignis Domini is looking like it may be the name. Comments, critiques, and criticisms are welcome as always and are appreciated most in that order!

Titan Names?

2009-04-22T20:21:00.005-05:00

Time is fast approaching when the Reaver Titan will need a name. In fact, tomorrow when there is some decent natural light, I'll be posting pics of an almost finished Reaver! That's right tomorrow, mark your calendar... it's the day after today. Just scroll work and some details left to finish. In fact, I took it for a ride this evening to my local GW to see if it would hold together during transport and it came through without a hitch! It was a big hit there, by the way.

On to the question at hand. I'll be needing a name. Here is a list of Legio Astorum Reaver Titan names from the Imperial Armor Six book; Tritus, Honorum, Invictorus, Astor Tyrannis, Questor Tyrannis, Invigila Alpha, Invigila Beta. There are a couple others, but that should give a feel for the way the names go. I purposefully did not paint my Reaver to copy any in the book and so that's why I'm not borrowing names from it. I went to an English to Latin translator, but as we know, Imperial Gothic is more like latin-lite. I would appreciate suggestions in the comments. All suggestions will be taken seriously and I may pick my favorite few for a poll. Come on folks, gimme some ideas!

Reaver Titan Pt 16 (No Lack of Progress, Just Updates)

2009-04-13T13:34:00.003-05:00

I'm sorry for the lack of updates on the Reaver Titan project this past week or so. I've had a lot going on and all of my free time has been spent working on the Reaver instead of blogging about it. I thought I'd give you guys at least a quick update to show that work is, in fact, continuing!

The past week has been spent airbrushing, masking off areas, more airbrushing, and in some cases repeating the whole process all over again. I've been working in the Kitchen as it affords me easy access to water for diluting paints as well as for cleaning up. A hearty Thank You to my lovely wife for being so understanding and sharing her counter space with me! Without further ado, on to the pics.

First off, let me explain the flames you may have noticed on the Titans legs. They are based off the art in the Imperial Armor Six book. Yes, the flames are reverse flames. A quick glance around the 40k universe will show that GW uses reverse flames on dark backgrounds and regular flames on light backgrounds. I'm sure this is for contrast. With that out of the way, the flames aren't as crisp as I would have liked them, but I'm going to call it good.

The work done to get to this point has been exhausting. What's left? Trim, touch-ups, basing, and final assembly. I'm hoping to be done in the next few days, certainly by the end of this week!

I thank you for coming to take a look. Feel free to leave a comment if you wish!

Things Aren't Like They Used To Be...

2009-04-06T21:50:00.004-05:00

And they probably never were. One of the wisest things I've ever been told.

You all have Ian over at Heroes Of Armageddon and his Blast From the Past blog to thank for this post. After reading his blog, digging up some GW fossils started to sound like fun.

First off we have a rare old figure. The Female Adventurer In Power Armor. I will tell you that the head is from a Reaper miniature as the original was basically a blob with a bowl cut. There were two different minis made, this is one, the other I lost a million or so years ago.

The next mini is one of my all time favorites. It's an original Keeper Of Secrets. It's been pulled apart as it has been my intention for the last couple years to redo this guy/gal/thing. I always liked the minotaur shape of these guys. It's more menacing than a scrawny hermaphrodite in my opinion.

The next is a complicated piece. It would make an awesome tutorial, but it would be over ten years too late. It's an old style Rhino that can be transformed into a Whirlwind. You see, once upon a time, there was no model for the Whirlwind. Conversion was the only way to go. I've got two of these around and about. The other is in need of some repair though. Believe it or not, the only bits absolutely necessary that didn't come with the rhino are two fantasy shields, and a large square fantasy base.

Here it is a typical Rhino...

Inside extra bits can be stored. The openings on the opposite side (old rhinos were the same hull piece top and bottom) have been covered up with plastic card.

A Whirlwind launcher is fabricated from plastic card and bits. It's mounted on a set of rear doors with a pair of old Warhammer Fantasy shields and some scrap sprue to make it able to rotate.

Swap out the front hatches for a blank one and one with a home made radar dish (that also rotates), and you have a Whirlwind!

The Aquila on top of the launcher is carefully cut out from a Second Edition Wargear Card and glued on. Gives a nice three dimensional decoration. The missile rack itself is made from the bottom of an old square Fantasy base.

Note the little bumps inside each 'tube' on the launcher which are the missiles.

There is my trip down memory lane. I've more old stuff hidden all about, but it will wait for another day. Thanks for indulging me.

Reaver Titan Pt 15 (Warnings and Updates)

2009-04-03T09:20:00.003-05:00

Just a quick update and words of warning/wisdom for any future Reaver builders out there...

While it's often advantageous to assemble things in a different order than the instructions show, be sure to test all variables first. When gluing the toes in place on the foot, I made extra sure that the large piston guards would be able to be put into place with the toe already on. What I did not test, probably due to it's smaller less important looking size, was the ability to place the smaller toe pistons into position with the toe already on. Because of the way the toe pistons (two per toe) go into the large piston guard, there is no way to do it without placing them as you slide the actual toe into position. So, I got to wrench, twist, wiggle, sweat, and pray in an attempt to get the toes back off the titan with minimal damage. Thank goodness they all came off without damaging the feet or legs!

Another spot that can be troublesome, whether you follow the directions or not, are the pistons that actuate the hip joint. These simply don't fit well as the plating on the outer hip (the gold part) gets in the way. Here is a shot of some titan butt, or as I like to call it, "mechanicus porn".

On to better news!

The legs are starting to go together (now that the toes have come apart). The banners are in the works and we can all watch them come together over at From the Warp as Ron works his magic! And, I've finally found the right size drill bit and flush mounted some magnets to hang the banners from when they're finished...

It's Friday, things are moving along nicely with the Reaver so I'm not even going to suggest any kind of off the wall prose for comments. I will say that Klaus over at DEI GRECI mentioning his beergarden may just convince me to grab some beer and head out by the pool this evening! The wireless reaches out there so I can even check up on my fellow bloggers whilst I chill. That sounds nice... why do I even come in the house at all?

A Peek Into the Far Flung Future of The Inner Geek

2009-04-02T14:44:00.004-05:00

As I can see the light at the end of the Reaver Titan tunnel, it's time to start obsessing over a new project...

Strings have been pulled, currency has changed hands, and reference material has arrived...

With the recent release of the Apocalypse Data Sheet for the Emperor Titan, it occurred to me that there needs to be at least one of these in the North Texas area. It also occurred to the Cyborg Trucker that Wisconsin would need one too! There may even be some long distance collaboration down the road. This is a project I'm getting more and more serious about as I think on it. Today's mail arrival will serve as a reference and also as a mascot of sorts. I don't intend to build something that looks exactly like the Epic scale Imperator, but it will be based largely (pun intended) upon it.

Thanks for stopping by. While work on the Reaver continues (the airbrush is crying for mercy), I'm hoping folks will get start to get excited about my next crazy project. I know I am!

Reaver Titan Pt 14 (Dry fit)

2009-03-30T14:05:00.003-05:00

A quick up date on the Reaver progress...

I've pinned the carapace weapons as well as the mount that the weapons sit on. The pin in the weapon mount which goes down into the carapace helps to prevent the weapons from making the weapon mount lean forward. The weapon pins allow the weapons to be swapped out, of course. Here are some pictures of the Reaver dry fitted with each carapace weapon on. Please excuse the messy work area, it looks like a titan has walked through it.

The Apoc Launcher.

The Vulcan Mega Bolter.

And, the Plasma Blast Gun.

Aside from writing this blog today, I'm also working on finishing up priming the larger pieces. The armor is getting a good coat of primer then the insides will be airbrushed with Boltgun Betal then Devlan Mud. I'm hoping to at least get the leg armor mounted this week. Plans on how I want to paint the armor are gelling and that might even come out later this week too.

Comments are welcome as always. Extra points for commenting in Iambic Pentameter. This may be your time to shine Drax!

Reaver Titan Pt 13 (Be sure and Wash from the waste down)

2009-03-26T09:35:00.005-05:00

Another short update on the Reaver.

I've tried something new, and the results are better than I would have ever expected. After getting the base colors of the legs painted on, I decided I'd just wash the whole mechanical structure in Devlan Mud wash. Not wanting this to take forever I decided to shoot it through my airbrush. Wow. It acts like a wash in some areas, and like a transparent color layer in others. The crazy thing is, it seems to know which to do in which area. Now, I did use about half a bottle on just the legs, but if you invest in a model this big, the extra couple bucks for wash is worth it. It did an unbelievable job of giving the mechanical bits a grimy almost oily look in places. Here are the pics. I think it looks good in the pics, but I promise it looks even better in person.

Hope you enjoyed the pics. I'm going to try to do shorter posts more frequently, otherwise I feel like I'm forever getting a blog post put together. But, we'll see. Also, if you look carefully you can see a bit of blue comforter in the background of the pics. If any of my blogosphere friends are ever in North Texas and need a bed for the night, that's the comforter you'll get. I know Drax likes to sneak shots of Mrs Drax into his blogs, but all you folks get is a shot of a blue comforter.

Take care and enjoy yourself. And if you can't enjoy yourself, enjoy someone else. Comments and critiques are always welcome. No need to comment in limerick form, it's late in the week.

Reaver Titan Pt 12 (Quick update and cracks)

2009-03-23T23:23:00.003-05:00

This is just a short post to show that I have been working. Granted, if I wanted to show you all the work I've accomplished this past week, you'd be suffering through pics of a half bath that's been repainted, had the pedestal sink replaced with a vanity & new faucet, new light fixture added, and another room partially primed for painting. But, between honey-do's I've got a bit of painting and work done on the Reaver too!

Probably the biggest step forward I took this week was to simply make a decision. I've decided that scouring the internet and finding pictures of Reaver Titans and how they've been painted, then trying to match those colors is an impossible task. The armored parts I know how I want. The mechanical parts have been the problem. So, I've decided that the mechanical bits will be the color I paint them. Period.

I did some painting on the Head/Cockpit and the interior walls of the Titan. I apologize for not showing the interior walls, but they refused to photograph well this evening so I'll save them for another more daylit sort of time. Here is a peek at the head...

I've also been putting thoughts into where the Titan will stand. I've decided, for now, to go with a base on each foot. The beast balances fairly well, I just want to avoid putting pressure on the toes or legs. If balance does become an issue, I'll mount the two smaller bases on a large base I already have made. That said, it occurred to me that a Reaver Titan should be a heavy sort of thing. Since I'm modeling a base for each foot I decided to use plastic card and cut it up to simulate the ground cracking beneath the Titans feet. I also plan to use carefully placed texture around the toes to give the appearance that debris has flown out around the foot. Not too much, just enough. Here are the bases sans feet...

As you may notice, they are not identical. I got better at this from one to the next. However, with the feet on them, it makes little difference...

Sorry it's only three pics this week. I hope to get the carapace mounted weapons pinned in the next week. With that done, I should be able to dry fit the entire Titan together for a look.

As always, thanks for stopping by and having a look. Drop me a comment and tell me what you think. You can make it rhyme if you like, but it's not required... I have a dollar that says Master Darksol will opt in for the rhyme.

Product Review: Miniature Scenery Paint Racks

2009-03-16T13:01:00.004-05:00

I have been eyeballing the products over at Miniature Scenery for a while now. Since I'm getting my work space organized, I thought I'd go ahead and pull the trigger. And, since I planned to do a review here on the blog, I decided to get the Master Workstation Combo... to provide the best information to my readers of course!

First off, the purchase itself. The company's website has a lot of information to try and explain their international shipping. They even have charts and graphs that would make a mathematics major blush. However, the gist of it is, the price they charge for international orders is higher than for Australian orders but the shipping is subsidized into the price. There is also weight and method of shipment to take into account. I'd say, if you're interested, drop some stuff in their online basket and see what you get with shipping. For this purchase, the fastest shipping was actually the cheapest and because of the subsidy ended up crediting me about $4 off the price. With the purchase out of the way, let's continue to customer service and shipping time. I purposefully emailed the orders department and inquired when my purchase might ship. Within 12 hours I had a response explaining that Monday was a holiday in Oz and there would be no post, but that it would ship out Tuesday. I was promptly sent a shipped notice when the items were in the post which included a tracking number (note: not all shipping methods include tracking). Friday early afternoon, and my product had arrived here in Texas. Not a bad three days to make it from Australia to Texas!

The products arrived in a smaller box than I had envisioned, but all was accounted for and packed neatly within.

Each 'module' of the paints and tool racks is individually packaged.

The modules are, of course, supplied in kit form on sheets of 3mm thick MDF approximately A4 in size.

Assembly is not too complicated, nothing an experienced gamer/modeler can't handle. The instructions are simple but to the point. It's not rocket science and it doesn't pretend to be. The only thing I would caution is to make sure you know exactly what you are cutting out. Sometimes scrap can look like a part and vice versa. I thankfully had no flubbs, but I did very carefully cut and trim a couple pieces of scrap thinking it looked like something important. Cutting is easy to do with clippers. The pieces of "sprue" need to be trimmed off the parts after they are removed form the frames. This can be done with a hobby knife, files, or as I found out, a belt sander! What a time saver that was. Once the pieces are cut out, you can assemble them using whatever glue you prefer for wood work. I personally use a fast setting wood glue I found at my local DIY store. It sets reasonably fast and is stronger than wood when it's cured. I'm not going to go into the assembly of the modules as I believe that anyone who has even beginner level experience with model building will be able to accomplish this.

The finished product is sturdy. Much more sturdy than you would believe when you hold one of the parts sheets. Everything fit together perfectly and not once did I have to pry, bend, or trim any part to go where it was meant to. Here are some shots of the finished product.

Some corner paint modules details...

The straight paint racks...

The corner tool modules...

And a shot of one of the parts holder modules. Note the opening drawer and removable dividers...

Overall I'm very satisfied with this product and the company that provided it. The customer service was excellent. The product lives up to all the manufacturers hype. The modular design means you can place each piece where ever you feel comfortable. All eight pieces are completely interchangeable (the corners in my layout are actually two pieces each). I don't think the price is cheap, but I do believe it is fair for what you get. It's definitely more of a convenience than a necessity, but I'd say if you have some tax return money or birthday cash laying around... or if you just want to get your hobby more organized, go for it!

Reaver Titan Pt 11.5 (Carapace Weapon update)

2009-03-11T22:08:00.003-05:00

Just a quick update on the Carapace Weapons project progress.

I've been working on getting the weapons introduced in the last post to look less like arm weapons and more like carapace weapons. The armor on the weapons was meant to look good on a Warhounds arms and thus was asymmetrical. I've been playing with plastic card, green stuff, and even Squadron Green Putty over the last couple days. The results won't win any beauty contests, but I think they'll look good with some strategic paint application. I even tried out the Rivet technique as featured on the Exponent Wargames site.

The photos will be presented all at once. The first two are the Vulcan Mega Bolter, Forgeworld armor side first then mine. The second two are the Plasma Blast Gun, again, original sculpted armor first, then my approximation. The last photo is a view of both weapons from the top. Enjoy!

Keep in mind I'm not a champion sculptor or scratch builder... yet. These skills need to be developed though... just in case... you know in case I have to start work on an Emperor Titan after this is finished. Oh come on! The Cyborg Trucker is doing it, I wanna be cool too!

Any comments, questions, or hideous laughter are welcome as always!

Reaver Titan Pt 11 (What's on your back?)

2009-03-08T22:09:00.004-05:00

Finally, back to the Reaver!

Warning, the camera is not my friend today. I'm completely out of practice and the pictures in this blog show it. I apologize up front.

The internet, being the glorious place it is, affords us a chance to meet a lot of people in exotic far away lands. One such person made me a rather unique offer a while back. This person was in a position to send me a couple of Warhound Titan weapons that were miscast. Now, the hows, whys, and WTFs I'm perfectly fine not knowing. The ends, in this case, justify my means.

This gives me the chance to do a little converting and add the possibility of variety on the Reavers Carapace mounted weapon. Except for the Apocalypse Launcher all the weapons available for a Reavers carapace are Warhound class weapons. So, I was more than a little excited when I got these in the mail a while back...

These will take a bit of cleaning up, and a good deal of conversion to look the way I would like. First off, the bottoms will have to have a bit of roundness added to them to mount to the part that rides in the carapace and allows the weapon to rotate. You can see the bottoms here, and the rounded area on the Apoc Launcher that the two new weapons are lacking...

So, with this in mind, I went to my local DIY store and found a piece of PVC pipe. To my joy, I found that you can even buy it in two foot sections which is great as I don't need ten feet of the stuff. The curve matches that of the rounded part of the bottom of the Apoc Launcher perfectly!

After a few minutes in the garage with two of my favorite tools, I had small pieces of rounded PVC pipe ready to attach to the new weapons. I really do love the Band Saw and the Disk/Belt Sander...

With the PVC bits ready to be added, I had to make sure that the weapons were ready for this step. The Plasma Blast gun has two small hoses that are right in the way of where the curved bit is going. As shown below...

A careful trim and I not only get the hoses out of my way, but have a couple of bits that can be used elsewhere sometime!

Two part epoxy is my weapon of choice for gluing large pieces. I'm a huge fan of JB Quick, but I found something new on the shelves at my DIY store. Loctite Weld. It claims right on the package to be a better bond than JB Weld (JB Quick's stronger slower big brother), so I decided to give it a go. So far so good, but I'll save a full review for another post...

Last I have a series of shots with the carapace propped up and each weapon mounted. Ignore the piece of cardboard holding the weapons up in the front, it's just for staging the mock up...

Standard Apoc Launcher

Vulcan Mega Blaster

Plasma Blast Gun

The weapons will take a good deal of work to make them look right, as I mentioned above. You can see from the pictures that the place where the Warhounds arm attached is a large socket joint. It is my intention to cover this and rebuild the armor plating to be more symmetrical. I also will try to extend the armor plating down to cover up part of the curved PVC that I added to each weapon the way the armor on the Apoc Launcher does. Some plasticard, putty, and bit of patience and I think I can do it.

Look for an update later this week in which I will have (hopefully) made some progress on the carapace weapon swap project. Please feel free to leave some feedback. Questions and comments are always appreciated!