Wednesday, June 29, 2011

More Astronauts and Scientists...

Here are three work in progress scientists and astronauts.
They are in various stages of painting, but highlight the conversion possibilities of the Crooked Dice figures.

There is one additional figure in this set, he uses the scientist holding a beaker body (holding a beaker, not with a beaker body), the bouffant head from the Minion head set and the hand holding the tablet computer from the ARC astronaut figure (the body being used for Commander John King below).

This is Dr Melody Lake, a simple head swap of the ARC Melody Lake head and the female scientist. I smoothed off the clipboard detail and rounded the edges to make it more representative of a tablet computer.
 Dr Milly Fogel is a slightly more complex conversion, the female scientist head, the 'unarmed' Minion optional pistol hand and the removal of the Photonic Spanner hand from the Melody Lake astronaut.
 Commander Jon King uses the male scientist head, the ARC astronaut with tablet computer and the 'unarmed' Minion pistol.

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Distractions are the 'Bain' of my life...

I have just received the excellent Scientists miniatures from Crooked Dice, together with some of the Albion Rocket Consortium astronauts.
The photograph shows the female scientist (Dr Milly Fogel) and the ARC astronaut Melody Lake (I removed the Melody head from the sprue to check for conversion purposes).

The intention (assuming nothing else distracts me) is to build a Melody Lake in lab coat (head swap and change the clipboard - so end of last century- to a tablet computer), and Dr Fogel in a Vac Suit (head swap plus a replacement for the photonic spanner - either scratch build a staple gun or the gun from the minion sprue). The bases will be Slaters' 7mm scale granite setts (ship or lab).

Of course, Crooked Dice have just released The Guru figure, and one of the heads just cries out to be used with the Scientist Pointing Binatone TV. There are also some additional heads, and the bearded Tweedy head would suit the Scientist Holding Beaker of Meths.

I have done some work on the Finecast Huron figure, built up a 40mm base and used the Chaos base bit from the Chaos Terminator Lord, but this has grabbed my attention at the moment.

Sunday, June 5, 2011

Quiche for the Quiche God!

So, here is the previously promised Vegemarine.
















He is a standard Khorne Berzerker, though I have reposed the right leg from the supplied Morecombe and Wise pose.

Now I need to start on the Forge World conversions (plus the Khorne Jump Infantry - with the winged back packs from the Possessed).

So, while I had the camera out, I thought I would add a few more Marines (Loyal and otherwise) to the blog.
Soul Drinker versus Word Bearer


Word Bearer (with bolt pistol in focus!)


Another view of the Word Bearer


Soul Drinker Space Marine


And again, with painted Chapter symbol













Now what I need is a more 40K background to the figures.

Finecast review (part 1)

 
So having photographed the new Finecast Huron Blackheart and the Forge World Assault Marine, here are the pictures:

The packaging of the Fincast model is interesting, full colour photograph of the assembled miniature on one side of the blister pack, the other side allows you to see the sprues. The blister pack appears to require you to cut through the blister (other manufacturers blisters are 'reusable', but do not need to stand up to the level of handling - and possible associated 'shrinkage' - the GW ones experience). There is more plastic than the previous card backed blisters.

As you can see, both are very fine mouldings, and both have components that have fallen off the supporting sprues. The Forge World figure has been rattling around in a Salute bag, the Finecast I bought today.
The resin material of the Forge World miniature feels slightly slippery, I have not washed it yet (as recommended by Forge World) so that might change.
 The next test is to assemble and then paint them.

Playing Catch Up (1)

As I was talking to Scott, my local purveyor of plastic and resin (none of those oh so twentieth century toxic metals) this afternoon and mentioned this blog, I thought I had better put some suitable (GW) pictures on the blog.

Forge World Nurgle Terminator
As you can see I have some 'depth of field' issues. Forge World Nurgle Terminator body and pads, modified Chaos Terminator legs and a Heavy Flamer and tentacle arm (counts as Power Fist).

Grey Knight Captain
To even things up, a Grey Knight Captain (Sergeant body and a Captain Stern Sword - I think). This is from the previous all metal range. It was only as I got the figures out to photograph that I spotted the Grey Knights power armoured troops were lacking back packs. Something to sort out before I publish those pictures.

Inquisitor Scale Genestealer
Way back when, I had the idea of building some Inquisitor (54mm to the rest of us) scale Genestealers from the previous Tyrant Guard bodies and the Tyranid Warrior weapons sprue.

Other relevant blog entries are the Venerable Dreadnought Bede and two cruelly enlarged Marines.

I hope to have finished and photographed my Vegemarine plus a quick comparison of the new Finecast Huron Blackheart with a Forge World 2011 Games Day Assault marine (I do not have the Badab War figure) by the end of the day.

The Lilith Hesperex comparison will have to wait (the other two versions are stored somewhere in L-Space).

As for assembling and painting the Dark Eldar, that is for another day...