It Lives!

 Well it certainly has been a while since I posted on here. Life actually does happen to us and interrupts our plans but at last I find myself with enough time to update this little blog. My painting has always been my main hobby and that never changed although its style probably has. 

Going forward with recording my miniature adventures I intend to place more pictures on the blog and even cover the odd solo games that I have. Over the years I have grown to love Games Workshop which is astonishing but true, I will explain why shortly...

Thanks for reading this very short update. I will be back during the week.

Isolation is Bliss to a Solo Gamer!

Hi Chaps,

I pray that you are all healthy and avoiding the virus?

On to business... the UK is in "lockdown" which makes sense to me and as a solo gamer makes very little difference... work will continue as will my hobby though disaster has struck on the figure front.

As I am sure you have all experienced I wanted to paint a period that I had no figures for! Usually I do not watch TV but I am now on the third series of Narcos and to my shame I am thoroughly enjoying it! So having sold my modern figures I have ordered a few more from Empress... will they arrive before I return to work?

I do have clear outs of figures and have no regrets as my painting moves on and well I enjoy painting! One thing I will not be clearing out is the second edition of Spectre Miniatures modern ruleset. Over the last few days I have been reading this manual and with the handful of figures that I still possess trying to work out the rules-great fun.

So with a 3 foot square board and plenty of time for two weeks I am left with a dozen figures and about 50 zombies. What will you guys be getting up to?

Stay safe and enjoy the ride.

Sick just in time for the weekend.... typical

Hi Chaps,

Well the weekend finally arrived only for the cold I had been valiantly fighting all week to cut me down for the last two days! Obviously this is a case of man flu and its to the death but I did still manage to start some figures. I purchased an Ogre by Reaper which on the packaging in forms one not to use a spray undercoat... indeed no undercoat at all. During painting I felt that the paint was running away from crevices and not covering as it should. Still after a few coats it did seem to work and I am now the proud owner of an Ogre for the princely sum of £6.70 delivered.

The Tau are time consuming to paint and a bit repetitive but once done I can tick them off the miniature bucket list.

Well I hope that your weekend was more fun than mine Guys and Gals (ugh that sounds too much like Jimmy Saville! Ugh).

Keep Blogging Chaps.

The Tau of Painting Mini's

Hi Chaps,

Of course the above should read Tao, it's a lazy play on words but I was at work before 6 and its a Monday...

I have long wanted to paint the Tau miniatures from Games Workshop and attempted them once before but this time its going to be a proper attempt. Who knows this may be the start of something beautiful between myself and 40K? The other day I downloaded the Battle Primer from the Games Workshop website and it does look a lot more user friendly... we shall see.

Blogger has started to delete things after I attempt to put a pic on it which has been driving me nuts so I may even move over to a paid for site where I can have a little more control and a few more features...

Please find below a pic of the new toys and my ancient Codex for the Tau...

Last of the Zombies.

Hi Chaps,

I have just completed the last of a box of zombies from the Zombicide board game, having never played the game I have no idea if it is any good but I can confirm that the zombie figures are well detailed and fun to paint. Please forgive the somewhat slanted pic...

A white undercoat and a few quick base coats then a couple of different washes then highlight. Quick and simple which is handy because zombie games require a LOT of undead. The best zombie rules that I have come across were free on the net by Akula "Nightmare on froth street" I do wonder if they made it into print as they are excellent?

The buildings behind the figures are being put together a little at a time each day after work and I am now at the "first fix" stage of adding door and window frames. A few more are in the planning stage and will be a little more elaborate.... I coat the buildings with a mix of PVA and poundland filler-it dries rock hard and gives strength to the foamboard but needs sanding before painting.

Have a good week Chaps and keep blogging!

Yesteryear Y-14 Maxwell Roadster

Hi Chaps,

I was rummaging around my bits boxes-I have a lot of those as I am sure most war gamers do when I came across a rather worn looking model car. My late father had given me the car many years ago and it has survived three house moves and lived for a decade out in a shed! So I decided to do something with a shabby but (to me) valuable little keep sake.

I drilled out all the rivets holding the model together and stripped the metal parts using boiling water and caustic soda crystals. This is pretty horrible stuff so one has to be careful with it.

During this process I managed to lose the steering wheel and the spare tyre-I blame shift work and no time. I moulded a new tyre using greenstuff and Omiroyu (not sure how its spelt) and will source a new steering wheel at some point, probably by taking something off another model.

Some parts were undercoated black and the body was done in white... then onto the best bit of painting and adding little details. The canopy was always missing so greenstuff was shaped into a roll behind the driver. 

So the model is now complete and is ready for service maybe in the Back of Beyond, VBCW or something similar. I am pretty pleased with the end result and will plop it onto a warbase mdf base at some point. This won't be the last vehicle as I was given a box full of Lledo/Yesteryear vehicles... 1930's technicals may have to be built with a few of them!

Keep blogging Chaps you keep me sane!

A Lazy Weekend of Painting

Hi Chaps,

I have had the best weekend in months and it has consisted of painting miniatures, watching youtube about painting miniatures and beer. Perfect. Almost.

Taking pictures of my minis is starting to drive me nuts. Even using my wifes iPhone with two lamps still produces pants pics.. maybe I am too far away? Anyway if anyone has any tips or can recommend a midi camera to purchase I am all beers..... sorry ears.

Here is what was completed this weekend, 10 chainrasp (guys in bedsheets) 4 mymourn banshees and a handful of zombies from coolminornot.

A little hobby time each day

Hi Chaps,

We all experience a busy life and I find it hard to put aside some time for our hobby but this week I deliberately set aside 30-40 minutes after work in an attempt to see what could be done. I have no big plans in mind but I have been inspired by posts on the Lead Adventure Forum (a great site) and so had a go at some colonial Brits.

Mistakes have been made and the first mistake was a black undercoat! Vallejo Khaki grey 880 does not cover black! So I was slowed by having to paint 3 thin coats to even start covering the base coat....

Still progress was made which included assembling 20 models and with enough time to build a cart for scatter terrain and even begin a Battalion HQ building though this may be stuck in a box for some time.

I do envy the people who have a full on love of a period at the moment I am floating around the hobby but I have discovered something strange. Previously I would happily mix manufacturers, especially back in the day-my 20mm Airfix fought alongside Irregular miniatures quite happily... now that makes me shudder! Accidentally I have become a wargaming snob!? Recently I painted some medieval from different manufacturers but they don't match at all... whats going on? Have we all been spoiled or has it always been this way for people?

Oh well I will leave with a pic of the front of my HQ which is as far as I have got... Keep blogging Guys you keep me sane.

 

The Untidy Desk

Hi Chaps,

Well we are into February which is usually a busy hobby time for myself but I am experiencing a bit of a lull this year... I have no idea why!  The long winter nights are great for keeping warm around the painting desk or reading a book, maybe it is the mild winter to blame!?

Anyway in an effort to kickstart the years hobby projects I did buy a few boxes of Perry medieval and a stack of different sprues from ebay… as yet I just have a couple of units for Lion Rampant painted and based but I am not getting the urge to do much more with them yet. I am sure that we all have experienced a dip in our devotion to the hobby at some point?

What I did end up with was an unholy desk mess as all the clipping, gluing and parts storage seems to produce a dozen little storage boxes every time I use plastic figures!

The desk will be cleared ready for the arrival of yet more plastics in the form of Perry Sudan British which will serve in the North West Frontier. Another Dan Mersey book is also on the way and I have had some great help over on the Lead Adventure Forum to try and source a picture of a British cart...

Have fun guys and keep posting.

Creating order from ebay chaos

Hi Chaps,

As Christmas approaches (seasons greetings all) I have been spending very thriftly and my painting fix has arrived via an ebay purchase. After watching a youtube video by Lukes Aps-found here...

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsmD5774MOQhjYBkXqu3Jdw

I was enthused enough to try and strip paint from plastic minis. Given that one can often buy figures for half price or less on fleabay it had to be worth a shot. So I purchased a bunch of Games Workshop elves and gave them a bath in methylated spirits-I do have a cleaner that probably helped to speed up the process which was painfully easy even for me... 20 minutes tops.

A little paint remained after scrubbing and another dip in the meths would have taken it off but I decided it would not be worth the time and effort. The figures that had been painted had a THICK coat of paint on that I was sure would never move... but it did...

Within 30 minutes of fiddling around I took this picture and 10 minutes later another picture with the undercoat on... despite two swords being broken the figures were very acceptable and ready to take paint.

Painting these figures is not really a pleasant experience for me as they are the small side of 28mm which is standard for Perry designed miniatures generally. I do prefer more heroic scale figures as this helps my old eyes but the bowmen are practically done and will work for any games system as Elves.

The 16 figures cost just under £8 including delivery, I am not sure how much they would be buying from Games Workshop but I expect probably double that. Two more "sets" have been purchased which total around 40 men of Rohan which will need a chemical bath to prepare them but for less than 50p per figure it is worth the 30 minutes of messing about. 

I do recommend buying plastic figures if you are financially challenged (like myself) or if you just want to have a go at painting something different on the cheap it does make sense-the methylated spirits was £1.75 and can be used again and again-do wear gloves if you have any cuts on your fingers though as the meths can sting.

Have a great Christmas everyone.

PS 

Lukes Aps Arid Grasslands base ready is great for finishing bases, cheap and speedy delivery as well.

Games Workshop Back in the Game? Old world returning?

Hi Chaps,

Well I can't complain. I have been lucky enough to have a spare few quid to buy 3 boxes of figures to make a proxy Imperial army for Warhammer and what happens? The day after the last box arrives Games Workshop reveal that they are bringing back the Old World as a separate game system!!

Makes me think that despite waiting a couple of years I was too hasty! So I will send Warlord Games Landsknechts over to my son in Barcelona and keep a box of Perry Mercenaries and Light cavalry in my stash... I had no intention of starting a Wars of the Roses army so if anyone has any GW Imperial Guard (the human looking guys right?) kicking about I would be up for a trade...

Anyway this is what I have been working on the last week or so...

To a certain extent all are a bit of a work in progress as they need a matt varnish and a few things added... the Dwarf flag needs some runes bases need completing. Games Workshop have really put a spanner in the works for what I had planned to do but despite throwing almost £60 at it I am not even cross that the project is now on hold. 

So probably back to the Russians unless I can get hold of some Imperial Guard to mess around with. I don't play 40K and the starter box has no appeal for me so I have no idea what they will be used for. I really must see if I can take some pics of my figures as they are on my shelves...

Keep blogging Guys-I feed off your ideas!

Still Alive and kicking (well painting)

Many Apologies Chaps,

My absence can be explained by the usual life hassles working a 6 day week usually over the weekends... we have all had it. Anyway I have still been painting but still not gaming. I had considered staring a new blog as I pretty much only bother with 28mm due to my aging eyes but thought I would keep updating this until I have worked out which platform to use.

I sincerely hope that you have all been keeping well, that you are happy and that you are gaming.

I insanely purchased the winter German boc from Warlord then the Grenadier box which then led to a few other metal and 3d printed stuff... no idea if they will ever see a gaming table.

Oh there were some Russians purchased as well as zombies just a distraction. Finally two boxes of Perry Wars of the Roses and a box of Landsknechts from Warlord as well as a few wizards. 

So Chaps, plenty to paint but very little time to paint it all in... saving them for my retirement possibly.

What have you all been up to? I have missed you.

A new computer...

Hi Chaps,

It is certainly difficult to update a blog without a computer! My old laptop developed the infuriating habit of randomly deleting files if you attempted to open them! If anyone knows the cure I would be very happy to hear from them as I still have the accursed item. The replacement item is a cheap and cheerful laptop from PC world-but it did come with Microsoft office which made its princely sum of £190 seem a little less eye watering.

Anyway despite the technological hitch I have still been clearing out and have firmly decided to play a few games this year. Bolt Action in 15MM is looking the favourite as I had ignored this scale until seeing the Battlefront and Plastic Soldier Company figures in the flesh. They are so effective and "armies" for this system become very affordable.

My recent obsession with 15MM has caused me to scratch build a couple of African buildings and accidentally purchase a large (for me) group of modern figures and the pdf for AK 47 which upon re reading does indeed deserve its cult status. I am keeping those away from the painting table for the moment, I want to savour painting those little guys and will watch some appropriate movies beforehand.

I do want to keep painting 28MM but I am undecided on what period... Black Powder looks like a great game to play I just need to resist the urge to buy 6MM as my collection is shrinking in size and not number.

The unit of troops and cannon above are currently on ebay…. I made the artillery from scratch and have purchased more mdf wheels so that I can make a battery for some 28mm WW1 Brits

 which have waited patiently on my to do list for a long long time.

Keep blogging Chaps.

18 Pdr Completed and ready to roll dice.

Hi Chaps,

Well with some great advice from Tinshed (Mark) from the Lead Adventure Forum my little artillery piece is now completed and ready to roll dice in anger. The build was actually pretty straight forward once the length of the barrel was worked out and wheels found.

A cereal packet provided the front shield and other iron plate bits of the gun and greenstuff helped create the breach. The crew are Plastic Soldier Company Russian plastics with new heads from Sloppy Jalopy and the Warlord German box set.

The same was done for the Infantry unit... so now almost for free I have a little Spanish Civil War/VBCW unit. More importantly if I ever need artillery for something I can be sure of scratch building if I can't afford to buy one.

The scratch building will continue as I have just purchased the Peter Pig Pdf for AK 47. I really do want to make some little terrain pieces for this game-15MM will be a massive change but I used to love this game back when I actually used to play!

Thanks for popping by Chaps you keep me going with your blogs, I love them all.

A Very British Civil War 28MM

Hi Chaps,

Well its been the most productive day or two for months-years? During my clear out I came across some Plastic Soldier Company 28MM Russians still on the sprue. Out came the clippers and the bits box and a few hours later I had a company of Spanish Civil War types...

So with the 18 Pounder that I had begun earlier in the week it seemed logical to see what I could cobble together for the wonderfully British idea of a civil war in 1938. As it turns out I ordered a group of miners from Sally 4th (they arrived very quickly) and some odds and ends-drivers and a dispatch rider from Empress and Footsore...

Whilst passing my local hobby shop I rashly purchased a box of Warlord British Expeditionary Force troopswhich are now based and awaiting an undercoat. So, for the first time in a long time I have 30 or more metal figures awaiting delivery or paint, happy days indeed.

A second 18 Pounder will be started and if I can source more wheels more artillery will be constructed-it really is addictive and I just like the thought of them being home made. I believe that the Perry twins (are they knighted yet?) are going to release plastic figures for world war one which is the best war gaming news I will have ever heard.... the next best would be a re release of the Warhammer Great War set.

Keep gaming and blogging Guys I will update when a few militia units are painted