The brush is dead! Long live the brush!

I have been meaning to replace my brush for the last year as hairs got less and less. But it was always I’ll do one more figure. I did briefly toy with another brush, but it split so I went back to my old faithful.

I bit the bullet about a week ago. i was sorting stuff out to make a painting area for Number Two Son when I came across a box of brushes carefully stored. Read hidden. In it was another of the same brush. Foundry Sable Mix General Detail.

If this new brush paints as well and lasts as long as the old brush I will be buying a few more.

So what have I been up to during radio silence?

Well I haven’t been painting prolifically as I have been mostly working on the house.
I joined a Facebook group called 1houranight which sets monthly targets and this has been keeping me motivated.
Anyway here is a selection of work. Apologies for the variable quality of photos, one of this year’s targets is to set up a little photo set-up so I can take decent photos.
Moonraker Miniatures
The Adventurer, his Concubine, his Accountant and his Bodyguard.
These are from Moonraker Miniatures and are part of my Rouge Trader collection.
Mirleton
This was a Christmas present.
It’s from Mirleton. I was disappointed to find out that there is only one pose of this as I wanted a small unit of Skaven cavalry.
Bad Squiddo
Another Christmas present a Female Orc from The Dice Bag Lady aka Bad Squiddo Games.
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This is from Scibor and I bought it because a friend of mine is really into Dwarves. Seriously into them. And the thought of one of his little men consorting with one of the hated enemies will drive him to dispair.
Spellcrow?
This one is from Spellcrow I think.
Ozzy
This is Ozzy. He was a giveaway from Casting Room Miniatures. An offshoot of Foundry. Sculpted by none other than Kevin Adams. This plus a sale and free postage was too good an offer to pass up.
Ogryn
This is a test paint for my Imperial Guard Ogryn unit.
Dirty tracks!
Some armour for my Imperial Guard. I think I may have gone over the top with dust and mud.
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This is from Kromlech. They are doing some very characterful Orks and Goblins. I have my eye on some more Goblin Pirates.
Anyway that is a round up of most of what I’ve painted. That I can remember. Sometimes I am getting a bit “Senior”.

November progress

Wukka Wukka from the Arcworlde Kickstarter

Wukka Wukka from the Arcworlde Kickstarter


My Bolt Action Dad's Army Command Section

My Bolt Action Dad’s Army Command Section


Bolt Action Dad's Army Squad

Bolt Action Dad’s Army Squad


Fir Bolg for my Albion Army

Fir Bolg for my Albion Army


This month I have mainly been despondent. A mixture of birthday blues and the weather. After an amazing autumn the winter has come, it’s all grey and bleak. This month’s workbench was all about finishing the unit of Fir Bolg for my Albion Army. I really started to hate batch painting and not really liking the colour scheme I used. So I broke off to paint one of Alex Huntley’s Arcworlde miniature. Do check out his company, Warploque Miniatures.

http://www.warploqueminiatures.com
He is alarmingly young and alarmingly talented. His figures have a certain style, not to everyone’s taste I will say, which I like. I backed his Kickstarter because I believe that in about ten years if we keep supporting him he will be an awesome sculptor. This perked me up a bit. I do enjoy painting single figures.
Then I got on with the Bolt Action Dad’s Army squad. These were Foundry figures. Much nicer than the ones that Warlord Games released. It’s obvious when you know that the Foundry ones were sculpted by the Perrys. Some of the figures I had already painted in England. I just wanted to get the squad finished and the command. Had a little play around with the movement trays to make them a bit more interesting.
Then it was back to the slog of the Fir Bolg. I painted them in block colour and it was only a couple of days ago that I finished that. I dug out two new brushes to finally replace my old ones. The fine detail one was down to four bristles and the blocker wouldn’t hold it’s shape. My new fine brush is a Creative Models Synthetic 2/0. So far impressed. And the blocker is a Daler-Rowney Dalon D77 1. Not so sure yet. New brushes suddenly made the painting easier. I perked up a bit but the figures were just not doing it for me. Then two days ago I finished the blocking. Time for a wash, using Army Painters Strong Tone Wash. POP! Much more interesting. Shadows, grubbiness more depth. I’ve highlighted the bones. It just remains to finish the bases, paint the eyes a glowing pink (or green, haven’t quite decided) and paint the Cross of Saynte George in Tamiya Clear Red; once varnished.
So still a couple more days work before starting December’s work.
And having to go to Vienna for a Nicholaus Party.
Oh the suffering!

Can you tell what it is yet?

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Can you tell what it is yet?

Can you tell what it is yet?
A little side project.

A new bit of kit. Almost. Well not really

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A new bit of kit. Almost. Well not really

Warning this contains product placement!
This is nothing new or revolutionary, it’s just a bulldog clip holding some hand towel. But it is something we all use in some form or another. Something to wipe your brushes on.
I started off, like many I suppose, with hand towels from the toilets at work. These did me for many years. I still have a couple of packs left, now used for drying resin pieces after being scrubbed in bicarb solution. Then when I bought a house with my now Wife I was introduced to kitchen towel. Definitely a step up in the right direction. About two years ago I started to take painting a little more seriously. About this time my Wife started to work for her friend Jane at The Begging Bowl, London.
Note: if you want possibly the best Thai food outside of Thailand at non wallet bursting prices try this place. Jane, the Owner/Head Chef, worked under David Thompson (Goggle him) at NAM. *
After a few weeks I was invited down for lunch. When I went to freshen up I was struck by the sheer quality of the hand towels. Soft and luxurious almost like cotton. Brush heaven!
Needless to say on every trip a few would vanish into my pocket.
The moral of this story, check out the hand towels next time you fine dine.

* Other Thai restaurants apparently exist

Stealing toys from my Boys

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Stealing toys from my Boys

I’m guilty as charged m’lud. Recently I’ve started using a little bit of black-lining on my models. It’s made up of Vallejo Black, Johnson’s Klear and a touch of water. I store it in an old Vallejo bottle and use the lid to dip my brush in. Problem is the bottle top is not the most stable and I’ve been propping it up in the corner of my tray. I had thought of getting some wood from my Father in Laws and drilling a hole in it. Tidying up my Boy’s room this afternoon, “Lightbulb!” There were some wooden blocks that I had to put away and in amongst them was a little red cube. It was a matter of moments to get the drill and make a small hole with a slightly chamfered edge. Just the right size and not too space consuming on the tray.

Ten Books

These are the ten books I would recommend for a bookshelf. Bear in mind that this is my choice and that it isn’t to everybody’s taste. I would welcome any suggestions as there is always something new to learn regarding our magnificent obsession.

So here they are in no particular order.

Editing is an arse on WordPress. I want my text aligned left and the bugger centers it!

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FAQ 2 by Mig Jemenez.
It was a toss up between this or the excellent Tank Art by Michael Rinaldi. This won by a gnats as it covers so many techniques. Military modelling is leading miniature figure painting and these techniques can feed into miniatures.
As an aside, I am really surprised there is no brass etch after market for GW/Forgeworld vehicles. I suppose I could just look out for 1:48th scale accessories.
You are going to see these techniques more and more often so it doesn’t hurt to be ahead of the curve. Don’t be surprised if GW bring out some form of chipping medium in the near future.
In the also rans is Forgeworld’s Model Masterclass Volume Two

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Art of War published by Battlefront.
This is a bit of a cheat as it is two magazines. Sadly Battlefront haven’t followed up on these. This has proved to be inspirational showing it is possible to paint 15mm figures to the standard of 28s rather than the blobs of paint that I see so often.

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These are great for seeing the uniforms of the armies I am painting “in the flesh”.

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British Napoleonic Uniforms by C.E. Franklin.
A bit dry but a useful reference. The only things missing were Aide des Camp (?) and artillery which is covered in another volume.

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Foundry Miniatures Painting and Modelling Guide by Kevin Dallimore.
The three colour paint style popularised by Kevin and supported by Foundry’s paint system is a bit cartoony, but when you apply the “Three foot rule” (ie you look at the figures on the tabletop, not in your hand) it works very well. I want to perfect this technique. My figures look quite good close up, OK not competition standard, but tend to be indistinct at a distance. I have a friend whose armies (he has quite a few) really Pop on the tabletop but are a little disappointing close up. My aim is for Pop and Wow.
This book is full of examples and step by step guides. Starting with One Colour models, tournament basic standard, then Two Colour and finally Three Colour painting. Helpfully the guides use the same model so you can compare and contrast.
If I had to pick one book from this list of ten, it would be this one. The techniques can be applied can be applied to any manufacturers paint system. Or a mix’n’match as I do.

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Warhammer Fantasy Battle Rules Third Edition and Warhammer Armies. A bit of a cheat again again having a two in one. There is a joy in these rules. A game can be fun. I do miss the humour of the Fluff from the eighties. This is what got me into gaming when I was reading my friends White Dwarfs. I think I’ll stick to these rules rather than spend another fifty odd quid on yet another humourless set of rules and army book. Rumoured for later this year.
There is a growing community of gamers going back to Third Edition rules with a friendly forum to exchange ideas.
Oldhammer
http://forum.oldhammer.org.uk
Saying that I’ll probably get some of the new Orc figures when they come out. It would be nice to see some new Orcs, Goblins, Wolfriders and Chariots.

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Cool Mini Or Not Annual. Sometimes the photography is a bit iffy. But it is so inspirational to see figures from manufacturers you’ve never heard of painted to really high standards. I’ve bought figures on the basis of what I’ve seen. Reaper I name and shame you!
I haven’t yet dared to enter any figures on the site, but nothing ventured etc. I’ll post when I have.

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This one is a toss up depending on your tastes. Sadly Rackham are no more, so unless you have won the lottery their figures are out of reach of us mere (skint) mortals. So this is just meditation material. Gaze with amazement at the figures you’ll never be able to paint.
The GW catalogue is also another dreamers book. I would love to have pictures of the individual sprues next to the models. Sadly GW no longer do parts, just imagine the kit bashing opportunities?

Next on the workbench

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Next on the workbench

This is the next job on the workbench, or rather the kitchen table. A unit of the 95th Rifles for my Black Powder British Peninsular Napoleonic Army. Most are by Foundry (thanks CSM) and there are a couple of Perry plastics in the mix as well.
Everytime I finish something now I put away the paints, clean brushes, new paper towels, basically a clean slate.
I’ll post a picture of the command group that has just been finished later this month.

Work in progress

Here is the next project I’m working on.

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You can see in the background a squad of Tox Troopers from Anvil Industries. I often undercoat several projects in one go.

Just picked up a GW brush to block in some colour. Absolute shite. I’d picked a few up at the Artisan’s workshop a while back. At the time they had to give me a non GW detail brush because I complained so much about the quality. Still it’ll do for glue or something.

One down, how many to go?

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Here is the first unit finished in Austria. A unit of Halflings, made by Battleforge, for my Albion army. The sculpting isn’t amazing, but they are so full of character and fun that I’d rather have these than a unit of dull but amazingly sculpted figures.

I had a lot of angst about finishing this unit. I had started painting them before I left Blighty and I had promised myself that when I got my stuff this was to be the first unit I’d paint. When I unpacked them I did a double take. The quality of the painting was so much higher than I thought I could do. Could I match it? I wasn’t sure and spent a while prevaricating before sitting down and starting.

The end result is good, but still not up to the standard I set.

I used a couple of new techniques that I have mentioned previously.

Microplaned sponge, I’m fairly pleased with the result, though you have to make sure that the particles are really fine.

Tester pots for the basing, this works well and I am pleased with the result.

I have started cataloguing and photographing, more work needed on the model photography. When the website is live I’ll post the address.Image

So here is unit WHFB/A/1/numbers 1 to 30.

Predictions for 2014

I’ll put my money where my mouth is and offer a glass of decent red wine if this doesn’t happen.

This is based on me taking a small interest in Military Modelling and observing how that particular branch of the hobby is advancing painting techniques.

GW will introduce two, at least, weathering products. One will be a spray of chipping medium, Hairspray to you and me. And the other will be a Dust Wash or a Mud in a jar.

Just my ten pence worth.

Revell brushes

As you’ve been reading I’m moving to Austria and have spent the last month or so packing up the house. My Pro  Arte brush finally gave up the ghost so I dove into my stash to get a new brush. I must explain here, because I’m moving into the middle of nowhere with no initial income I’m building a little stash of supplies to tide me over until better times.

The first brush I picked up was a Revell Painta Luxus. Bad mistake, this brush just does not hold a point. A touch of paint and I might as well be using a chimney sweep’s brush.

As I’d bought it some months ago from Modelzone there was no way I could return it. There was only one thing for it, contact Revell direct. I sent of an eMail to Revell.de expecting a polite rebuff. Within twenty four hours I’d received a reply from Annette in their German office who promised to send out a replacement.

Two days later the replacement arrived.

Do they have quality control? It was exactly the same.

Another eMail sent off to Annette. Another brush promised.

I had thought that Revell was a purveyor of  quality products for the modeller. Let’s see.

Well I got a new parcel in the post today. Opened it up and there were four brushes inside. Three were useless and one might pass muster, just.

This is such a pity, Revell’s customer service has been exemplary, why can’t the product match?