Gunners wargaming

WIP 15mm Mechs

2012-02-16T21:39:00.004+11:00

Hi guys, a troop of Mechs being prepped for undercoating, I'm thinking of using a grey urban commo pattern, I recieved them in a swap, not sure who made these, I was told but have forgotten, anyone know? The heavy shotgun is a conversion, I'm not sure if I should use the rotor blade things or leave them off, what do you think? Thinking of using them as Mechs for sci fi Russians or Chinese.

15mm Empire War Band finished

2012-02-15T16:53:00.003+11:00

Hi guys, I've mostly finished the Empire War Band, just a couple of small detail to do, I'm pretty happy with how they turned out, next up in this project, Dwarves.

What do you think of this style and size mech for 15mm?

2012-02-14T20:47:00.003+11:00

Hi guys, what do you think of this Mech model? (the grey one, not the green), is it to big to use with 15mm? I got it cheap from Hobby links Japan, the head is a similar shape to the Khurasan Mekanoids and was thinking of using it as a large walker in a Mekanoid army, I usually prefer Battle tech type mechs then Gundum style, but it sort of looks like a large version of the Mekanoid, I don't like the size of the weapon, so will either drop it and use arm mounted weapons, or change it from a long sniper type to a short carbine type of rifle.

Norse War band Snow Troll finished

2012-02-10T16:50:00.002+11:00

Hi guys, Norse War Band snow troll finished.

WIP 15mm Empire Ogre

2012-02-10T12:30:00.001+11:00

Hi guys, I wasn't happy with the Ogre, so did some putty work, I think he is a bit more "Empire" now, what do you think?

WIP 15mm Empire War band ready for paint

2012-02-10T11:21:00.003+11:00

Hi guys, the Empire War Band ready to paint, I have decided to touch up and improve the current paint job, rather then a full repaint, I wanted them to look more like they are ready for war then party, so swapped some of the flowery hats for helmets and leather caps, shortened the pikes to spears, added some armor and shields, the big guys is an old GW Chaos Marauder that I will use as an Empire Ogre, (any ideas on how to make him look more like an Ogre?) I will give all the chips and green stuff a black enamel undercoat, then paint them up.

WIP 15mm Empire War band

2012-02-09T18:48:00.003+11:00

Hi guys, while I've been working on the Norse, I've been planning my next War Band, and have decided on Empire, probably Averland, I will use these old Museum Landsknecht figures and give most of them head swaps from some old Gothic knights, the knights are to small but have big heads so the fit will be good, and they will all get a re paint.

WIP 15mm Norse War band

2012-02-08T17:06:00.006+11:00

Hi guys, the Norse War band almost finished, just have to do a couple of details on these figures, have to do the base on the Jarl, find a warewolf to lead the wolf pack, do 3 or 4 bowman, and paint up a yeti and I will be done, the converted Celts turned out pretty nice.

Group shot

Jarl Ragnar the Red and his Huscarls, Erik halfstride, and Jorg Bloodaxe.

Jarl Ragnar the red (still need to finish his base)

Jorg Bloodaxe (if you meet Jorg in battle you will find out how he got his nick name)

Erik Halfstride (he walks with a limp from a battle wound to the thigh)

Shaman, Thordal the strange

The Norse Marauders.

The wolf pack.

WIP 15mm Norse Marauders

2012-02-04T19:52:00.003+11:00

Hi guys, finished the green stuff work on the Norse marauders, 4 figs got a head, weapon and shield swaps, the whole warband is ready for an undercoat.

15mm Mordheim style war bands projects

2012-02-01T17:22:00.004+11:00

Hi guys, a preview of my next project, some 15 mm Mordheim style war bands, I am finding my concentration challanged painting big forces, so I decided small groups is the way to go, I plan on doing a few of these, but here are the first 4, Norse, Chaos Circus freaks, Bretonnian, and undead, most of the figures will be converted, and some may be replaced or more figs added, we will see.

The first group will be the Norse, just need to find a nice Wulfen figure, I will probably use Splintered light werewolves, I will heavily convert the marauders, (5 figs on lower right) they are celts at the moment, I plan to change the shields to a round version, add fur caps, helmets, and give them axes, the Jarl, 2 Huscarls, Shaman and snow troll are all from copplestone castings, I will only do minor conversions (if any) to these superb figs, the wolves are from Black Raven foundry, and will not be converted.

The Bretonnians will require a bit of work, I'm not sure were the bowmen are from but they are rather nice and will stay in the group, the 3 knights are from Museum Miniatures (I think), I may replace these, they are slightly smaller then the bowman, I may just build up their bases, not sure, if I keep them they will need, head changes or at least head crests added, and the surcoat lengthened. The men at arms are from Essex and suffer from their usual dwarfism, I'm sure I will replace these, which is a pity, they are not bad poses, I will need 3 squires to round this group off, I will discuss the other groups later.

Not a group, but i got this lovely Khurasan giant ape for my 15mm fantasy collection, he's a beauty, more on him later.

15mm Splintered Light Mountain Giant finished

2012-01-31T18:58:00.003+11:00

Hi guys, here's the Splintered Light Mountain Giant finished, I added the shields on the arm and thigh and the unfortunate halfling hanging from the belt, theres a couple of mold lines I didn't do enough work on, not a bad figure, and he is massive in 15mm, photos are a bit dark, its pretty overcast in Sydney today, now off to work on some 15mm Mordheim style war bands.

Mountain Giant fixed

2012-01-18T20:31:00.003+11:00

Hi guys, have fixed the knee, added some shields, and a unfortunate Halfling.

Splintered light Mountain giant review

2012-01-18T15:45:00.013+11:00

Hi guys, I have been procrastinating over the last few days about how I will tackle my 15mm Darth Vader, I want him to be a great figure, so it was a god send when my Splintered light package arrived to distract me, part of the package was a Mountain giant (number 2) (pictured with a Copplestone 15mm barbarian), this figure is awesome, he is 66mm to the top of the head, the detail is very nice (these pics don't do it justice) he will make a nice distraction from Vader for a while, the only fault is a flat spot on the left knee (see pic 5) this seems to be a casting flaw as the pic on SL website has detail here (I might just fill in the detail with green stuff, but I will email SL so they know there is an issue) I also ordered some halflings and armored Fauns (no casting issues here) this was a test order to see what SL products are like, and I will happily order through them again, so this will be the start of a new 15mm fantasy skirmish project, casting issue aside I will give this figure a 8/10 he loses a point because I would have liked to see more detail putting him into scale with 15mm e.g. shields used as armor plates, a deer or halfing hanging from his belt etc, he loses another point for his pose, his stance makes him look skinny from the front and gives him a little flatness (2Dness).

15mm Stormtroopers conversions finished

2012-01-10T17:21:00.006+11:00

Hi guys, the Stormtrooper platoon finished, 3, 8 man sections (support weapons to come) not sure if I will put grass on the bases or go for a desert look, I'm pretty happy with how they turned out, might sculpt Darth Vader next.

15mm Stormtroopers undercoated

2012-01-07T15:39:00.002+11:00

Hi guys, just a quick update, these are undercoated only, but the uniform white colour really makes the figures come together as stormtroopers, just waiting for the undercoat to dry and I will start painting.

WIP 15mm Stormtroopers

2012-01-06T14:10:00.004+11:00

Hi guys, my 15mm Stormtrooper conversions ready for paint, I used the body from a GZG NI trooper, head from the 1/72 plastic stormtroopers, shoulder pad from GS and cylinder on lower back from stretched spru, will give the squad leaders the orange shoulder pad, I know the head is a little big, but I'm happy with them, after painting these I will sculpt Darth Vader, I will also be making scout troopers, snow troopers and other various troops and characters.

15mm Crusty Power armor finished.

2012-01-05T18:07:00.004+11:00

Hi guys, the Crusty power armor is finished, 3 sections of 4 Crusties each, up next will be WIP picts of my 15mm Stormtroopers.

WIP 15mm small Crusty Mechs

2011-12-31T09:36:00.005+11:00

Hi guys, painting these 4 small Crusty mechs along with the power armor, I love the design of these mechs, they closely resemble the movie mechs, there are a few small flaws in the sculpting however I still love them, you get 3 left and right arm options and 2 left and right legs, they are a solid 8.5/10 for me, these are only 50% done, just waiting on the oil wash to dry.

WIP 15mm Crusties power armor

2011-12-31T09:20:00.002+11:00

Hi guys, have done some work on my Crusties, starting with the Power armor and 4 small walkers, the power armor will be organized into 3, 4 crusty squads, I decided on a nice contrasting orange/white.

These are really nicely sculpted figures (the crusty range is from GZG) they originally came with 2 wing/antenna like protrusions off the jump pack, but I decided to remove them, I rate these a 8.5/10, they lose a point for only having 3 poses and no obvious command figure. I still have some cleaning up and detailing to do on these figures (as well as the bases)

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

2011-12-19T15:50:00.003+11:00

Hi guys

I have been so busy with work and social events in the run up to Christmas that I have not had much time for the hobby, I should have a blog update on my Crusty project and an up date on my Star wars Stormtrooper army just after Christmas, so until then Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!!

WIP 15mm Crusty Mechs

2011-10-24T11:03:00.003+11:00

Hi guys, here are a couple of EM4 mechs I am converting for my Crusty army, I am really not sure about these, I like the legs body and head, but the arms aren't fitting, maybe once painted it will come together, what do you think? any suggestions/additions?

WIP 15mm Crusties

2011-10-23T14:09:00.003+11:00

Hi guys, the next 15mm scifi project will be Crusties, I have 2 of the large EM4 walkers that I will convert for crusty use, 4 small GZG crusty walkers 12 power armor and about 40 crusty infantry, I'm thinking of doing these in orange armor with white markings and brown crusty skin. Have to find suitable arms in the bits box for the EM4 mechs.

Felid peace keepers finished

2011-10-21T16:03:00.007+11:00

Hi Guys, here are 4, 8 Felid mini Prides plus the Pride baron, finished for my mixed race united species peace keeping company, added some extra packs, pouches and caps here and there from green stuff, these Felid figures are just brilliant, excellent detail and good poses, they get a 9/10 from me, the are 15mm and available from Khurasan, check here for backstory to this force, I will be adding some vehicles, walkers and other species to the force, sorry, the pics are a little washed out due to the bright sunlight today, my favorite figure of this force is the support gunner with the red bandanna, the mini Pride leaders and Pride Baron wear their personal livery, the force wears the blue of the United Species Command, all comments welcome.

WIP Felid peace keepers and background fluff

2011-10-20T10:22:00.003+11:00

Hi guys, here are my WIP Felids, they are about 60% done, the blue will end up 1 or 2 shades lighter.

When I originally bought the Felids I planned on making them a terrifying race (ever watched Lions hunt on National Geographic?) lacking the human emotions of pity, empathy or mercy, they were going to be slaves to their primeval instinct of the hunt and feeding, evolving their technology to those purposes, and becoming mortal enemies of all other races, however I have decided to use that background on my Harook (when I get them) and have gone the total polar opposite with the Felids.

My Felids are a proud race, who realize that their primeval instincts are a barrier to their acceptance into the galactic community, and as such they have developed strict rules of behavior for their population, with harsh penalties for transgressions, the average Felid is in a constant battle with their dark side to behave correctly in mixed species company, Felids love to drink, alcohol, short tempers and dark sides don't mix and they don't always win these internal battles, this has caused many individuals to leave their society and seek employment/adventure amongst mercenary groups, outlaw gangs, adventurers, or joining together in groups, living outside the laws of their society, causing terror amongst the rim worlds. .

In an attempt to gain acceptance the Felid government has dedicated many military assets to united species peace keeping forces, this force is one such unit, I am painting them in UN blue (not sure what I will call this organization, the United Species? United Races?), the average trooper would normally were dark grey armor, only leaders are are aloud to wear their livery.

In battle the Felids true nature appears, they are masters of tactics, their favorite tactic is the ambush, and it features heavily in their battle plans, often using a hammer and anvil approach, driving their enemies into deadly fields of fire.

The Felid government has found enforcing the rules of conduct in battle almost impossible, and victories often end in ferocious feasts, in which prisoners a rarely taken, the government is forced to turn a blind eye to this behavior in battle, giving the Felids a reputation as much feared enemies and allies, nobody wants to mess with the Felids, as these battles inevitably always turn to a struggle for survival, except of course those equally ferocious races, like the Harook, who love the taste of Felid meat.

100000 hits!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2011-10-14T14:04:00.004+11:00

Hi guys, 100000 hits, never thought I would get that many, thanks to all my followers and occasional visitors, hope you enjoy the blog as much as I enjoy creating it.

Cheers

Dan

First SAGA unit finished

2011-10-14T12:50:00.004+11:00

Hi guys, this unit is almost done, shields are only blu tacked on, just a couple small details to paint.

Initiate containment protocol

2011-10-12T17:07:00.005+11:00

Hi guys, these are Khurasans lovely "Initiate containment protocol" figures, I have painted the female in scientist yellow and the soldiers in a more military scheme, these figures are great, the proportions are good, the poses are suitable, and the detail is nice, interestingly there is a left handed soldier, or he may be patrolling cacky handed, there are 4 with M4s (one with a geiger counter) an officer type with a pistol, a flame thrower and a scientist, I'd give these a solid 9/10

Tomorrows War thumb through review

2011-10-11T18:19:00.005+11:00

Hi guys, I arrived home to a package today, a bright shiny copy of Tomorrows War, blog followers have seen a few reviews of these rules over the last couple of weeks, so I hope to do something different, I intend to do a review from a solo gamers point of view as well as the normal multiplayer view, however before I can do that I will need to read the rules. Today I will give a brief thumb through review , and will answer the question, would I buy this book off the shelf on first impressions?

Before I start, full disclosure, I was asked if I would like to review these rules, and obviously agreed, however my review will be truthful as I see it, I have no links to Osprey publishing.

Publisher : Osprey Publishing, Ambush alley games

Pages : Hard covered, 260

The first thing I do when picking up a book like this, is thumb through the pages, and this is a very professionally produced product, thick nicely printed pages, hard covered, and nicely laid out, these designs on the borders of the pages give it a nice scifi feel, what really caught my eye was the pictures, its packed full of photos of various well known ranges of 15mm painted minis (and 28mm) and has a good spattering of really nice scifi artwork of vehicles and troopers, I am already seeing the potential of using some of these pictures as painting/modelling references.

On closer inspection, there is a comprehensive contents page, which seems to be laid out logically, there is some back ground fluff (which I am yet to read) the rules, and a campaign system, and much more. I can't see any specific solo gaming rules on the contents pages, but that does not mean it can't be played solo with some tweaking.

So would I buy these rules of the shelf after just a thumb through? Yes, at $30-35 US I think this looks like a good valued product, but will it produce a fun game? only time will tell, next review will be after a complete read and an attempt to play solo, the third review will be after a multiplayer game.

WIP SAGA Normans

2011-10-07T16:19:00.002+11:00

Hi guys, I recently swapped my GW Space Marine collection for a shed load of Crusader Normans, I have enough for a good size Impetus Army and a large SAGA warband, so have started on the SAGA warband. I have painted 15mm Medievals but these are my first 28mm Medievals.

I have only done the metals and skin so far, they will come to life with a bit of colour on the shields and clothes, these are pretty good figures, only slight mold lines, no flash, the poses are nice, detail is good and anatomically they look right, my only gripe is the hands are a little big, but I can live with that, I give them 8/10.

The warband will have these 8 axe/swordsman, 8 armored crossbows, 12 levy bows, 8 spearman in padded armor, 8 unarmored spearman, 2 X 4 mounted knights, William and Bishop Odo.

WWII German 1/72 force part 6

2011-10-03T16:58:00.005+11:00

Hi guys, my Stug IIIG section finished, any comments or criticisms welcome.

42nd highlanders Black Watch finished

2011-09-30T10:24:00.007+10:00

Hi guys, commission finished for my mate Scott (A.K.A Trailape) just in time for his hoem coming from Afghanistan, the 42nd Black Watch on campaign in the Peninsular, 26 figure strong, pretty happy with how they came out. Now onto some of my own 15mm Scifi.

TMP 15mm SCIFI Board vehicle swap

2011-09-27T17:08:00.003+10:00

Hi guys, my TMP 15mm scifi board vehicle swap package arrived today, Jeff sent me a beautiful VTOL in a very nice Urban camo scheme, and one of his own creations, a drone, created using a 3D printer.

The VTOL is superb, and when I find out where its from I will buy a couple more, for an armature creation, the drone is simply amazing, it is easily as good if not better then a lot of professionally created vehicles, the detail is simply stunning, and the cherry on top is, it is quite unique, not sure if it will ever be commercially available, if it were I would buy it.

Colonist vehicle finished

2011-09-12T20:42:00.004+10:00

Hi guys, I've finished this vehicle with a pastel chalk wash around the lower half, I think it turned out pretty good all round, anything I would do differently? I forgot to seal the decals before the oil wash, and half of them dissolved on contact with the wash, the decals on it are the survivors, I will be dropping this in the post for the new owner this week.

15mm test Stormtrooper

2011-09-12T14:17:00.005+10:00

Hi guys, fellow gamer, blogger and friend Arjun sent me his micromachine star wars figures to test some conversion possibilities, and here is my test Stormtrooper conversion, using GZG NI body and micro machine stormtrooper head, the head looks a little big, but not overly, 15mm figs generally have big heads anyway, and the design of the helmet may just also just be big, what do you thinks? does it work? I'm tending to say yes, the other types of troops, e.g. rebels are also looking promising.

The Department

2011-09-09T09:37:00.002+10:00

Hi guys, I don't usually do posts without pictures, but there is a project in process at Kickstarter to produce a Scifi tabletop war gaming/RPG set of rules called "The Department" it looks like it will be very Blade runner like, they are looking for donations to get the project off the ground and are nearly there, you will receive the rules and various other things for your donations, I think the rules look pretty interesting, for more info go to

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1931671462/the-department-sci-fi-noir-tabletop-wargame-rpg

WIP Colonist vehicle 5

2011-09-06T21:30:00.002+10:00

Hi guys, starting to get there, when the oil wash is dry, I will start with the pastels. the dozer blade is detachable.

WIP Colonist vehicle 4

2011-09-05T20:43:00.001+10:00

Hi guys, done the chipping and rust on the tracks, the emblem is hand painted, oil wash is up next.

Colonist vehicle crew finished

2011-09-05T19:05:00.003+10:00

Hi guys, here is the crew that will go with the colonist vehicle, I have painted them in Weyland - Yutani corp uniforms, as these will go with the vehicle in the TMP mini swap I have left the bases bare so the new owner can do them as they wish, very nice delicate figures with potential to be used as any type of ship crew or even civilians, the figs can be found here, http://astrominiatures.blogspot.com/ I got home to late for natural light, so these were taken with a flash.

WIP Colonist vehicle 3

2011-09-04T13:39:00.002+10:00

Hi guys, the basic colour is done, I pre shaded with black and white then did the base yellow, i also added a crew cabin roof hatch and some stowage in the back, its coming along nicely, next I will add the decals.

DP9 drones

2011-09-03T13:38:00.002+10:00

Hi guys, here is a comparison shot of the DP9 drones with Khurasans Mekaniods, I think they are a good size for section heavy weapon support and will use them with my Khurasan figures in a trade federation style droid army, the shape of the head really suits the Mekanoids, theres 8 to a box and the detail is very nice, I'm very happy with this purchase I would give these and the Khurasan figs a 9/10.

WIP Colonist vehicle 2

2011-09-02T19:14:00.003+10:00

Hi guys, have added some mesh screens, I will make the dozer blade detachable, what colour should I paint it? it will be a Weyland - Yutani Corp colonist vehicle, and will paint that logo on the side, I'm thinking white for the vehicle, because it will look great when I do the weathering and wear n tear, and I have some nice black/yellow industrial strip decals I can put on it.

The 3 figures will be the colonist crew, in corp uniform, these are Matt's (AKA Malleman) great crew figures, I bought 2 packs and 2 spare heads and recommend them highly 9/10

WIP Colonist vehicle 1

2011-08-30T19:25:00.003+10:00

Hi guys, well its time for the snow plow to get a spacey face lift, when I'm finished it will look at home on LV-426, the original had ugly thick rubber tracks, I did consider trying to to shape them into track sag, but thought I would be wasting my time, so decided to replace them with some spare plastic kit tracks, the most difficult part was I had to re position the 3 road wheels, if left they would have been to high and left a gap of about about a millimeter between the road wheel and the bottom run.

WIP 42nd Black Watch in campaign dress.

2011-08-27T15:23:00.001+10:00

Hi guys, the 42nd Black Watch ready to be undercoated, the 79th was in firing line, these ones are advancing.

Votes for 15mm scifi vehicle swap needed

2011-08-27T10:51:00.003+10:00

Hi guys, the TMP 15mm board is organizing its second mini swap, this time it will be a vehicle swap with a couple of crew, this has me looking at some 15mm scifi vehicles that I have on the work bench, I plan to do all of these at some stage, however have decided to do one now for the swap, I see merit in all these models and think I can do a good job of creating something unique and interesting out of each, so I would like a little help in deciding which to do.

So here is the question, (ignoring the value of the donor kit, all these kits will be pimped up and painted appropriately) which one of these vehicle would you rather receive in a swap? which would suit your collection more? to keep it a surprise for the recipient the end model will be randomly (dice roll) chosen from the top 3 voted vehicles.

1) Mech (weapons and armour will be added)

2) Hover Police car (wheels will be removed, siren added)

3) Hover scout speeder, stowage and weapons added)

4) multi tracked Civi exploration vehicle (not sure how I will pimp this up)

5) tracked civi exploration vehicle (there is one of these in my local, I have eyed it off a few times thinking of the potential in sci fi, if it gets enough votes I will buy it and do it up)

6) dropship (wings, engines, landing gear and weapons will be added)

7) buy a commercially available 15mm scifi model you cheap bastard.

79th Cameron Highlanders

2011-08-23T15:54:00.007+10:00

Hi guys, the 79th Cameron Highlanders, nearly finished, just need to add the yellow stripes to the last couple of kilts, and paint the tasseled cord on the flag pole (anyone know what colour it should be? gold?) this is a commission for Scott (AKA trailape) which I will send to him when he returns from Afghanistan, I have one more regt to do for him, the 42nd, and have just started converting and building those figs now. The light wasn't great so I ended up using the flash, so the colours are a tad brighter then in person.

TMP 15mm scifi mini exchange

2011-08-22T13:58:00.002+10:00

Hi guys, my exchange figures from the TMP 15mm Scifi mini exchange arrived today (thank you Jeremy AKA Loco smoko), they are Rebel minis Gun clerics, this is good for my collection, as I don't have any Rebel minis, they are painted to a good standard, the 15mm scifi board is already talking about having another swap, this time it looks like it will be a vehicle swap, I'm tossing up between a converted dropship or making a walker/mech, I have some promising Mechs on order but they are on back order so I don't know if they will arrive on time.

Colonial Marine dropship concept

2011-08-20T13:51:00.004+10:00

Hi guys, talk on the TMP 15mm board of another mini swap (maybe vehicles this time) has me looking at a stalled dropship conversion project I was doing for my colonial marines, if the next mini exchange ends up as a vehicle swap I may complete this for it, I intent to eventually complete it anyway, it will have wings and landing gear, maybe some external rocket engines for VTOL capabilities (I have some rocket engines from the Indiana Jones rocket sleds) I want to add some sort of tail wings, not sure how I will do that yet, the pilots cabin will end up armoured and enclosed, some weapons will be added, the donor kit was a Russian Heli.

Completed 15mm Berserker/Terminator army

2011-08-19T15:48:00.003+10:00

Hi guys, this is my Berserker/Terminator force finished, last to be added was the man sized infantry bots from the Scene, these guys are ready to start destroying all natural life in the universe, mwahahaha

WWII German 1/72 force part 5

2011-08-19T12:16:00.005+10:00

Hi guys, these are almost done, only a couple of little details to paint.

Tracks - got a base coat of Vellajo Hull Red, a oil wash of burnt sienna to replicate rust (this was done on the exhaust as well) a dry brush of dark gray, then a dry brush with silver on the areas that are polished from wear.

weathering - these are only war gaming models so I'm keeping the weathering simple, I crushed some Gold Ochre pastel chalk, add water until is a muddy water consistency, similar to the oil wash the pastel chalk sediment will settle on the bottom, this allows you to use either the dirty water on top or the chalk mud on the bottom, the chalk mud was used around the running gear and the dirty water used on the rest of the model, when dry it gives a dusty look, when applied like this it is very resilient to wear and is not messy to handle (unlike unsealed pastel chalk that's brushed on dry) on the gun tires, I dampen (not to wet) the end of my finger and rub off the pastel chalk on the sides of the tire, this gives a nice effect of dirty worn tires.

Next up will be the crew and gun teams.

For swap or sell 1/16 Ancients miniart Hoplite model

2011-08-15T19:04:00.000+10:00

Hi guys, time to offer up for swap or sell (all reasonable offers considered, will break this lot up) some stuff that whilst I still like, somebody else may have a more immediate use for, when something is no longer available I will remove the post altogether or the pick of the box that is no longer available, the still available stuff will remain in the "swap" folders until they are gone.

Contact me on dan.dunbar@hotmail.com

Stuff I want

SCI Fi mechs of any scale suitable for use with 15mm

DP9 Mechs

Caesars WWII French

Trumpeters 1/72 Char B1 Bis

Hat WWII 1/72 Romanians

1/72 WWII kits and figs, will consider any, but am after early war French, Poles, Germans

1/72 WWI will consider any

15mm Sci Fi will consider any

28mm Sci Fi, Heresy, Infinity, Hasslefree, Copplestone, pig iron, GW (Nids only)

15mm WWII will consider any

15mm Fantasy

15mm post apoc will consider any

15mm Napoleonics AB, old glory, preffered but will consider any

28mm ancients and medieval will consider any

For swap or sell 1/72 Ancients

2011-08-15T19:01:00.002+10:00

Contact me on dan.dunbar@hotmail.com

Stuff I want

SCI Fi mechs of any scale suitable for use with 15mm

DP9 Mechs

Caesars WWII French

Trumpeters 1/72 Char B1 Bis

Hat WWII 1/72 Romanians

1/72 WWII kits and figs, will consider any, but am after early war French, Poles, Germans

1/72 WWI will consider any

15mm Sci Fi will consider any

28mm Sci Fi, Heresy, Infinity, Hasslefree, Copplestone, pig iron, GW (Nids only)

15mm WWII will consider any

15mm Fantasy

15mm post apoc will consider any

15mm Napoleonics AB, old glory, preffered but will consider any

28mm ancients and medieval will consider any

There is also 1 or 2 boxes of Hat Republican Roman infantry to add to this lot.

For swap or sell 1/72 Civil war

2011-08-15T18:59:00.001+10:00

Contact me on dan.dunbar@hotmail.com

Stuff I want

SCI Fi mechs of any scale suitable for use with 15mm

DP9 Mechs

Caesars WWII French

Trumpeters 1/72 Char B1 Bis

Hat WWII 1/72 Romanians

1/72 WWII kits and figs, will consider any, but am after early war French, Poles, Germans

1/72 WWI will consider any

15mm Sci Fi will consider any

28mm Sci Fi, Heresy, Infinity, Hasslefree, Copplestone, pig iron, GW (Nids only)

15mm WWII will consider any

15mm Fantasy

15mm post apoc will consider any

15mm Napoleonics AB, old glory, preffered but will consider any

28mm ancients and medieval will consider any

For swap or sell 1/72 Russian Napoleonic

2011-08-15T18:57:00.000+10:00

Contact me on dan.dunbar@hotmail.com

Stuff I want

SCI Fi mechs of any scale suitable for use with 15mm

DP9 Mechs

Caesars WWII French

Trumpeters 1/72 Char B1 Bis

Hat WWII 1/72 Romanians

1/72 WWII kits and figs, will consider any, but am after early war French, Poles, Germans

1/72 WWI will consider any

15mm Sci Fi will consider any

28mm Sci Fi, Heresy, Infinity, Hasslefree, Copplestone, pig iron, GW (Nids only)

15mm WWII will consider any

15mm Fantasy

15mm post apoc will consider any

15mm Napoleonics AB, old glory, preffered but will consider any

28mm ancients and medieval will consider any

For swap or sell 1/72 Prussian Napoleonic

2011-08-15T18:54:00.002+10:00

Contact me on dan.dunbar@hotmail.com

Stuff I want

SCI Fi mechs of any scale suitable for use with 15mm

DP9 Mechs

Caesars WWII French

Trumpeters 1/72 Char B1 Bis

Hat WWII 1/72 Romanians

1/72 WWII kits and figs, will consider any, but am after early war French, Poles, Germans

1/72 WWI will consider any

15mm Sci Fi will consider any

28mm Sci Fi, Heresy, Infinity, Hasslefree, Copplestone, pig iron, GW (Nids only)

15mm WWII will consider any

15mm Fantasy

15mm post apoc will consider any

15mm Napoleonics AB, old glory, preffered but will consider any

28mm ancients and medieval will consider any

For swap or sell 1/72 Britain and her allies Napoleonic

2011-08-15T18:41:00.004+10:00

Contact me on dan.dunbar@hotmail.com

Stuff I want

SCI Fi mechs of any scale suitable for use with 15mm

DP9 Mechs

Caesars WWII French

Trumpeters 1/72 Char B1 Bis

Hat WWII 1/72 Romanians

1/72 WWII kits and figs, will consider any, but am after early war French, Poles, Germans

1/72 WWI will consider any

15mm Sci Fi will consider any

28mm Sci Fi, Heresy, Infinity, Hasslefree, Copplestone, pig iron, GW (Nids only)

15mm WWII will consider any

15mm Fantasy

15mm post apoc will consider any

15mm Napoleonics AB, old glory, preffered but will consider any

28mm ancients and medieval will consider any

this lot is made up of British troops and her allies

For swap or sell 1/72 Bavarian Napoleonic

2011-08-15T18:35:00.002+10:00

Contact me on dan.dunbar@hotmail.com

Stuff I want

SCI Fi mechs of any scale suitable for use with 15mm

DP9 Mechs

Caesars WWII French

Trumpeters 1/72 Char B1 Bis

Hat WWII 1/72 Romanians

1/72 WWII kits and figs, will consider any, but am after early war French, Poles, Germans

1/72 WWI will consider any

15mm Sci Fi will consider any

28mm Sci Fi, Heresy, Infinity, Hasslefree, Copplestone, pig iron, GW (Nids only)

15mm WWII will consider any

15mm Fantasy

15mm post apoc will consider any

15mm Napoleonics AB, old glory, preffered but will consider any

28mm ancients and medieval will consider any

This lot is made up of 1 line inf and 1 cav (the cav is missing 4)

For swap or sell 1/72 Austrian Napoleonic

2011-08-15T18:28:00.004+10:00

Contact me on dan.dunbar@hotmail.com

Stuff I want

SCI Fi mechs of any scale suitable for use with 15mm

DP9 Mechs

Caesars WWII French

Trumpeters 1/72 Char B1 Bis

Hat WWII 1/72 Romanians

1/72 WWII kits and figs, will consider any, but am after early war French, Poles, Germans

1/72 WWI will consider any

15mm Sci Fi will consider any

28mm Sci Fi, Heresy, Infinity, Hasslefree, Copplestone, pig iron, GW (Nids only)

15mm WWII will consider any

15mm Fantasy

15mm post apoc will consider any

15mm Napoleonics AB, old glory, preffered but will consider any

28mm ancients and medieval will consider any

This lot is made up of early and late infantry and a couple of cav lots 1 cuirassier and 1 Chevauleger

For swap or sell 1/72 French Napoleonic

2011-08-15T18:10:00.007+10:00

Contact me on dan.dunbar@hotmail.com

Stuff I want

SCI Fi mechs of any scale suitable for use with 15mm

DP9 Mechs

Caesars WWII French

Trumpeters 1/72 Char B1 Bis

Hat WWII 1/72 Romanians

1/72 WWII kits and figs, will consider any, but am after early war French, Poles, Germans

1/72 WWI will consider any

15mm Sci Fi will consider any

28mm Sci Fi, Heresy, Infinity, Hasslefree, Copplestone, pig iron, GW (Nids only)

15mm WWII will consider any

15mm Fantasy

15mm post apoc will consider any

15mm Napoleonics AB, old glory, preffered but will consider any

28mm ancients and medieval will consider any

This lot is made up of line inf (about 200-300) light inf (about 150-200) 2 boxes of mounted Arty, a heap of Cav (will break this lot up) and a box of commanders/field Marshals. If you are interested in anything in particular and want an idea of numbers etc just contact me (most lots are complete as I haven't really used these for anything, they have been removed from their boxes for storage)

For Swap Dwarf Warriors

2011-08-13T14:52:00.000+10:00

Hi guys, time to offer up for swap some stuff that whilst I still like, somebody else may have a more immediate use for, when something is no longer available I will remove the post altogether, the available stuff will remain in the "swap" folders until they are gone.

Contact me on dan.dunbar@hotmail.com

Stuff I want

SCI Fi mechs of any scale suitable for use with 15mm

DP9 Mechs

Caesars WWII French

Trumpeters 1/72 Char B1 Bis

Hat WWII 1/72 Romanians

1/72 WWII kits and figs, will consider any, but am after early war French, Poles, Germans

1/72 WWI will consider any

15mm Sci Fi will consider any

28mm Sci Fi, Heresy, Infinity, Hasslefree, Copplestone, pig iron, GW (Nids only)

15mm WWII will consider any

15mm Fantasy

15mm or 28mm post apoc will consider any

15mm Napoleonics AB, old glory, preffered but will consider any

28mm ancients and medieval will consider any

For Swap Dwarf Miners

2011-08-13T14:51:00.000+10:00

Contact me on dan.dunbar@hotmail.com

Stuff I want

SCI Fi mechs of any scale suitable for use with 15mm

DP9 Mechs

Caesars WWII French

Trumpeters 1/72 Char B1 Bis

Hat WWII 1/72 Romanians

1/72 WWII kits and figs, will consider any, but am after early war French, Poles, Germans

1/72 WWI will consider any

15mm Sci Fi will consider any

28mm Sci Fi, Heresy, Infinity, Hasslefree, Copplestone, pig iron, GW (Nids only)

15mm WWII will consider any

15mm Fantasy

15mm or 28mm post apoc will consider any

15mm Napoleonics AB, old glory, preffered but will consider any

28mm ancients and medieval will consider any

For Swap Necron parts for 13 troopers

2011-08-13T14:49:00.000+10:00

looks like there are enough parts for 13 troopers

Contact me on dan.dunbar@hotmail.com

Stuff I want

SCI Fi mechs of any scale suitable for use with 15mm

DP9 Mechs

Caesars WWII French

Trumpeters 1/72 Char B1 Bis

Hat WWII 1/72 Romanians

1/72 WWII kits and figs, will consider any, but am after early war French, Poles, Germans

1/72 WWI will consider any

15mm Sci Fi will consider any

28mm Sci Fi, Heresy, Infinity, Hasslefree, Copplestone, pig iron, GW (Nids only)

15mm WWII will consider any

15mm Fantasy

15mm or 28mm post apoc will consider any

15mm Napoleonics AB, old glory, preffered but will consider any

28mm ancients and medieval will consider any

For Swap Revells 1/28 Fokker

2011-08-13T14:46:00.000+10:00

Contact me on dan.dunbar@hotmail.com

Stuff I want

SCI Fi mechs of any scale suitable for use with 15mm

DP9 Mechs

Caesars WWII French

Trumpeters 1/72 Char B1 Bis

Hat WWII 1/72 Romanians

1/72 WWII kits and figs, will consider any, but am after early war French, Poles, Germans

1/72 WWI will consider any

15mm Sci Fi will consider any

28mm Sci Fi, Heresy, Infinity, Hasslefree, Copplestone, pig iron, GW (Nids only)

15mm WWII will consider any

15mm Fantasy

15mm or 28mm post apoc will consider any

15mm Napoleonics AB, old glory, preffered but will consider any

28mm ancients and medieval will consider any

For Swap Necron lord

2011-08-13T14:44:00.000+10:00

Contact me on dan.dunbar@hotmail.com

Stuff I want

SCI Fi mechs of any scale suitable for use with 15mm

DP9 Mechs

Caesars WWII French

Trumpeters 1/72 Char B1 Bis

Hat WWII 1/72 Romanians

1/72 WWII kits and figs, will consider any, but am after early war French, Poles, Germans

1/72 WWI will consider any

15mm Sci Fi will consider any

28mm Sci Fi, Heresy, Infinity, Hasslefree, Copplestone, pig iron, GW (Nids only)

15mm WWII will consider any

15mm Fantasy

15mm or 28mm post apoc will consider any

15mm Napoleonics AB, old glory, preffered but will consider any

28mm ancients and medieval will consider any

For Swap space marine dreadnought

2011-08-13T14:38:00.002+10:00

Contact me on dan.dunbar@hotmail.com

Stuff I want

SCI Fi mechs of any scale suitable for use with 15mm

DP9 Mechs

Caesars WWII French

Trumpeters 1/72 Char B1 Bis

Hat WWII 1/72 Romanians

1/72 WWII kits and figs, will consider any, but am after early war French, Poles, Germans

1/72 WWI will consider any

15mm Sci Fi will consider any

28mm Sci Fi, Heresy, Infinity, Hasslefree, Copplestone, pig iron, GW (Nids only)

15mm WWII will consider any

15mm Fantasy

15mm or 28mm post apoc will consider any

15mm Napoleonics AB, old glory, preffered but will consider any

28mm ancients and medieval will consider any

For Swap space marine landspeeder

2011-08-13T14:34:00.003+10:00

Contact me on dan.dunbar@hotmail.com

Stuff I want

SCI Fi mechs of any scale suitable for use with 15mm

DP9 Mechs

Caesars WWII French

Trumpeters 1/72 Char B1 Bis

Hat WWII 1/72 Romanians

1/72 WWII kits and figs, will consider any, but am after early war French, Poles, Germans

1/72 WWI will consider any

15mm Sci Fi will consider any

28mm Sci Fi, Heresy, Infinity, Hasslefree, Copplestone, pig iron, GW (Nids only)

15mm WWII will consider any

15mm Fantasy

15mm or 28mm post apoc will consider any

15mm Napoleonics AB, old glory, preffered but will consider any

28mm ancients and medieval, will consider any

Stalled project 4 1/72 Napoleonic Swedish infantry.

2011-08-13T10:48:00.005+10:00

Hi guys, these are Hats Swedish figures, I think they are one of their worst efforts, some of the figs are just down right ugly, but they are the only plastic option at this scale.

Stalled project 3 1/72 Napoleonic Austrian Artillery

2011-08-12T22:28:00.002+10:00

Hi guys, these are Hats Austrian Artillery, the crew in helmets are head swaps, these aren't quite finished.

Stalled project 2 1/72 Napoleonic British infantry.

2011-08-12T22:13:00.002+10:00

Hi guys, another stalled project, 1/72 Brits, nice figures, but I also have 28mm and 15mm Napoleonic Brits.

Stalled projects 1/72 Austrian Napoleonic German line inf

2011-08-12T15:25:00.008+10:00

Hi guys, whilst looking for my old stash of plastic 1/72 Napoleonic stuff (with the idea of maybe swapping or selling it) I found some painted figures from old projects that have stalled, I plan to do some 28mm Austrians in the future so am not sure if this project will ever be completed. many of these figs have been converted, I have replaced some of the blanket rolls with sculpted putty ones, have done head swaps etc.

15mm Star Wars characters finished

2011-08-12T10:32:00.004+10:00

Hi guys, first lot of Star Wars characters finished, I sculpted R2D2 and Chewbacca's cousin H.S Elvis, Han Solo, Chewbacca and Boba Fett are from Highlander Studios, I decided to give them plain bases, I'm pretty happy with how they turned out.

Concept 15mm Tau Devilfish or Hammerhead

2011-08-09T20:59:00.004+10:00

Hi guys, here is my concept for a 15mm Tau Devilfish or Hammerhead, I have used the Piranha as the donor kit, unfortunately I paid the ridiculous full price for it, but it was in my local and I wanted to test the concept, I'm pretty happy so will order a couple more of the net, I was going to try and re size the wings and drones, what do you think? should I try and scratch build some smaller drones? which would mean I will need to reshape the wings. I need another drone (for a turret) if anyone has a spare (or a couple) happy to pay or swap for them. Am I on the right track with this? any ideas?

WWII German 1/72 force part 4

2011-08-06T11:39:00.006+10:00

Hi guys, part 4 covers the washes stage, I have included some comparison photos for you, firstly I paint up the details, tools, rubber tires etc (these aren't completed yet, just a base coat) I add some scratches with a dark grey (don't over do these, less is best)

The washes are done with artist oils diluted with Mineral Turpentine, I have added 2 washes, the first was done with Burnt Umber, the second was Burnt Umber with a little Carbon Black, I don't use exact measurements, I take a small dollop of oil paint on the end of a brush and add Turps to it until it is like dark dirty water, the first wash is applied all over the model, and will darken the paint a little, the 2nd darker wash is applied only to the detail areas, not the smooth surfaces.

The oil paint in the wash solution has a tendency to quickly sink to the bottom of the solution, this is a very handy trait, it gives me the option of how much pigment I want in each brush full of wash, if I have very fine detail I am washing I will use the wash at the top of the pool, if I have a deep crease I want to fill with darker wash I will stir the sediment starting at the bottom and the last couple of stirs at the top, this ensures the actual oil paint washes out of the brush, so you are not applying straight oil paint to the model.

the benefits of using an oil paint/turps wash over say an acrylic wash are

1) the oil/turps mix flows very easily and covers an area evenly, and the paint particle tend to gravitate to the creases, acrylic washes can pool and leave rings of pigment in unwanted areas.

2) oil paint has a very long drying time (around 2 days), this can be annoying if you are trying to work fast, however it does allow the paint to be adjusted and manipulated or removed if over done, the thickness/darkness can be adjusted using a brush damp with turps. Next up will be the tracks.

Review 15mm Space pals and nemesis

2011-07-25T18:25:00.005+10:00

Hi guys, my Space pals and nemesis arrived today, so I thought I would do a short review, my first impressions were, wow these guys are perfect, the helmeted guy and the hairy dude bot come in 2 parts, helmet guy has a separate back pack, and the hairy guys has a separate piece to his gun, they are really very nice sculpts and have a striking resemblance to some pop culture characters, there is a Felid in the pic for size comparison, his base is a little raised though, the 2 humans are comparative to the new GZG NAC in size, they are more 18mm then 15mm, I measured them and they are 15mm from foot to eye, however they are both slightly crouching, this is a great size for me so I am happy, I have included a comparison photo between my sculpt and the Highland studio sculpt, and the Highland studio sculpt wins hands down, mine looks like a hairy Elvis, I can't wait for more of these, these type of characters are very welcome in 15mm Scifi, 9/10 for more info go here http://highlanderstudios.blogspot.com/2011/07/two-in-one-day-what-hell.html

WWII German 1/72 force part 3

2011-07-22T13:22:00.006+10:00

Hi Guys, a mid war Das Reich Pz Gren platoon, there's still a couple of little details I have to paint here and there, but basically finished, they are a little glossy due to an oil wash that's still drying, once dry I will hit them with a matt coat, they are mostly the excellent Pegasus figures with the odd Revell, Caesar Hat and Imex added in, a couple of head swaps in there as well.

1/72 German force part 2

2011-07-15T11:13:00.005+10:00

Hi guys, I thought I would turn this project into a bit of a tutorial.

Historical note - when I make static display models, I will do a fair bit of research to create at least a reasonably accurate model, however this is a wargaming project, all I'm after is a good looking cohesive force that is usable in mid to late war scenarios, so there are bound to be inaccuracies, but I can live with that, this force is based on Das Reich at Kursk, but will be kited out to be able to be used mid and late war, so I will keep everything generic, the only thing that will really tie them to Kursk will be the unit emblem (which will be used sparingly so I can use the same vehicles for other German units, I plan on making Herr LW and FJ forces as well).

Spray paint - I prefer Humbrol enamels for spray painting, they are easier to spray and clean then acrylics in my opinion, I started by giving all the models an undercoat of black, once touch dried, I did the base coat with Humbrol Ochre 83, I did this by spraying the colour onto the middle of the panels first and working my way out, this way less paint is applied to creases and edges, the effect is subtle on these models but can be as obvious as you want, it creates shading and improves the overall look, I used the same colours but differant patterns for each vehicle type, for ease but also adding variation, the green is Humbrol 117 US light green, the brown a 50% mixture of 100 rec brown and 186 brown, these aren't official colours, just close enough colours I have in my collection.

Decals - all the decals are from my spares box, I used generic numbering and placed crosses in an appropriate place, I had to cut them up a bit to go on the uneven surface of the kit, once applied I coated them with a Matt varnish to help the adhere to the kit.

Filter - I won't go into to much detail there is a very good tutorial at this link

http://www.missing-lynx.com/rare_world/rw02.htm

Basically it is a 5% paint 95% thinner solution (I used Vallejo Red Leather 70818, but you can use almost any colours to get different effects), that is painted on thinly, not slopped on like a wash (its not designed as a wash), but to change the colour of the paint very subtly, in the following pics the model on the right has the filter, left unfiltered, its hard to tell from the pics but the effect is brilliant and well worth the effort, the first pic is probably the best, the top Pz IV has a redder tone, the filter ties the base and camo colours together. For best effect, its important to not add too much paint to the solution, or slop too much solution onto the model, Tip : apply the filter to a patch on the bottom of the model first to test the effect, I will only add the 1 reddish filter, I'm happy with the effect.

Next post will cover the oil paint pin wash.

WIP Felids

2011-07-10T13:35:00.004+10:00

Hi guys, making a mixed race force based on the UN, called the UR (united races) here are some Felid that will be part of the force, I want the force to look like modern soldiers with heavy packs etc so I've added more detail around the back pack area, also added some caps with GS.

2 WIP Pz IV Gs and 1 F1

2011-07-10T13:07:00.002+10:00

Hi guys, a couple of Pz IV Gs and an F1 with base coat, decals weathering, shading and highlights to come, these are the PSC Pz IVs.

WIP Pz IV Hs

2011-07-10T12:55:00.004+10:00

Hi guys, a couple of Pz IV Hs with base paint, decals weathering shading and highlighting to come, these are both Italeri kits, as they are for war gaming I used the crapy rubber band tracks.

WIP Stugs III G early

2011-07-10T12:22:00.004+10:00

Hi guys, 3 Stugs III G with the base paint on, need to add decals, highlight, shading and weather, 2 Italeri and 1 Trumpeter kits, these are for war gaming not static display.

15mm starship/Merc/bounty hunter/smuggler crew

2011-07-01T11:09:00.005+10:00

Hi guys, thought I would paint up a group of tough Starship/Mercs/smugglers/bounty hunters, the leader is my Han Solo that I sculpted, (I will sculpt another Han solo later) an outcast Preditor, a re programmed battle droid, an adventurous Felid, and Pink in space.

Merc/Rebel Walker, and thanks Arjun

2011-06-27T18:33:00.003+10:00

Hi guys, firstly a big thanks to TMP member Arjun Choong, he saw some of my previous walker conversions and liked them so much he sent me a spare Kolossus, we talked about a swap but I didn't have anything he needed, he is making a Star Wars droid army out of the Star wars collectible figures using Battle droids #28 and #30, I have looked in the local stores with no luck, if anyone reading this post has any spares I'm willing to buy or swap for them, and will pass them on to Arjun.
So onto the Kolossus, wow this is a great model, it is a really good size for 15mm, I wish I had 2 or 3 more of these (anyone with spares, I'm willing to swap or buy for more) it will be used as the center piece of a mixed race mercenary/rebel army, it will be made up of Felids, Humans, and CMG mixed alien mercs, should I leave it with this paint job (its pretty nice, but links it to its original origins) or should I paint it? not sure what colour scheme I will make this army, any ideas? I don't think I will convert it in any way, it is to nice as is.

Colonial Marine force so far

2011-06-27T14:57:00.003+10:00

Hi guys, this is my Colonial Marine force so far, I still need to add, 3 Vtols, 3 fighter bombers, 1 Grav APC, 3 4 wheeled APCs, 2 8 wheeled APCs, 2 large walkers, 1 recce inf platoon, 1 rifle platoon, 4 grav cars, 3 light grav tanks, 3 large tanks, 3 heavy APCs, 1 heavy weapons support platoon, 1 power armour platoon and anything else i think of.

15mm mini exchange WIP

2011-06-27T12:49:00.005+10:00

Hi guys, these are my entry into the TMP 15mm mini exchange, a tough crew of adventurer looking for their big pay day, they can often be found working as runners, bounty hunters, or mercenaries, I will undercoat these today and start painting tomorrow, should I leave the bases bare for the recipient or base them up?

WIP PSC P IV F1 and Gs

2011-06-25T17:29:00.005+10:00

Hi guys, there have been a few reviews of the PSC quick build Pz IVs lately, however these reviews seem to usually be done by war gamers with war gaming in mind, my WWII modelling to date has all been static display models, so I will do a review with war gaming in mind but a static display background, I have decided to build mine into 1 F1 and 2 Gs for a Mid war German force.
I have experience with a range of models from the very basic quick build Armorfast to the very detailed, fiddly but accurate Dragon models, and everything in between, so where do the PSC Pz IVs sit? somewhere between the 2, they are much more detailed then Armorfast, with more parts, especially the tracks, I have used Armorfast hulls (which are generally correct in shape and dimension) as the basis of several detailed model conversions, but the Armorfast tracks/running gear are probably the worst out there (for static modelling, but sensible for quick builds) PSCs are much better, there is inside and outside detail on the tracks themselves, which come in 2 parts, and they have accurate looking track pattern (missing on Armorfast tracks)and track sag, the addition of an outer idler and drive sprocket give good detail, the only let down is the solid road wheels, this can be forgiven as it is a quick build kit and adding outer road wheel parts starts to get into the realms of detailed modelling.
The general shapes and dimensions look pretty good, and I'm happy with this, however old habits die hard, as I was building these three kits, I started thinking of how to improves them, this road leads to madness, I have to decide, am I making a detailed model or a war gaming kit? and the answer has to be an accurate, but fast built, war gaming kits, so I will only do some minimal detailing.
Firstly the hull machine gun had to go, the original is a thick stump with no detail, the barrels and exhaust need drilling, I have beaten up the fenders for some realism. Next I will add some stowage, and finally I may replace the headlights and notek if I can find some in my spares box, the ones on the kit are just detail less lumps.
I have mixed feelings about the figures, PSC figures have a tendency to have no necks, and this is the case here, there are 2 poses and they are both rather bulky figures, 1 has a side cap and looks like he is doing the chicken dance, his elbows are supposed to be leaning on the hatches, but he doesn't really look comfortable, the other is in a peaked cap and is standing higher in the hatch, I prefer my tank crew commanders to be low in the turret so have carved them to sit with just their heads out, and they look good like this.
One thing I learned during display modelling is to use references rather then build instructions when building kits, the perfect example is here, if you build using the rather poor instructions the command cupola will be wrong, it should have a vision block facing forwards, the other issue with this kit is that it is not possible to build an accurate Pz IV H out of this box, the Pz IV H had a round commanders hatch, only split hatches are found in this kit, this may not be a worry for most war gamers, and its not hard to scratch build one, but its something to be aware of. I am not 100% sure but I don't believe it is possible to make an F2 out of this box either, I believe (please let me know if I am wrong) that most if not all F2s were armed with the KwK 40 L/43 with a round muzzle break, the G later recieved the KwK 40 L/48 with the squarer muzzle break, and this is the only long barrel present in the kit.
There are no decals in this kit, and the build instructions are very basic and inaccurate.
Overall, with 3 kits for almost the price of 1 Dragon kit these are a brilliant buy, with the exception of the Hs commanders hatch, they are exactly what they are advertised as, a pretty accurate and not badly detailed fast build Pz IV that can be accuratly built into either an F1 or G, and a partially accurate F2 (apart from the muzzle break) or H (apart from the hatch), I highly recommend this kit, lastly this score is not one with display modelling in mind, it is taking into account, ease of construction, value for money and end result once built as a war gaming kit, 8/10.

Berserker heavy infantry bots.

2011-06-24T13:48:00.003+10:00

Hi guys, some heavy infantry bots finished, these are from the scene, I also have the man sized ones, these are very details figures and are an imposing size, with lively poses, there is 1 pose that the master must have had his face a little squashed before making the mold, but he isn't that noticeable, I would give these guys an 8/10. I will take a full army shot when the man sized bots are finished.

Colonial Marine wheeled APCs finiashed

2011-06-24T10:12:00.004+10:00

Hi guys, the wheeled Colonial Marine APCs finished, I will need to order another 6 of these to convert, when the light is better I will take some pics of my whole Colonial Marine force so far.

Colonial Marine Grav APCs finished.

2011-06-24T09:57:00.005+10:00

Hi guys, the suns a bit bright this morning, so the pics are a little washed out, but here are my Colonial Marine grav APCs finished, pretty happy with how these guys turned out.

Gearing up for war

2011-06-23T19:06:00.003+10:00

Hi guys, some mates and myself have decided to start a 1/72 WWII war gaming club, we will be using platoon-company size forces for skirmish style battles, (not sure of the rules yet) so I am starting a project to make a flexible infantry company plus assets and armour of each major country, so here is the first unit, 3 stug III Gs, 2 from Italeri and one from Trumpeter, I'll be giving the models a little bit of detail without going over the top.
Th Italeri kits hold up well with age, they have link and length tracks, but these are very average in detail, LnL tracks are good for static display models but not so good for war gaming kits, detail is a bit chunky but this will lend itself well to painting, overall they look right 6.5/10, the Trumpeter kit is a little more delicate, an looks more accurate, it has rubber tracks, these glued easily to the wheels, 7.5/10, the gunners hatch is closed on both kits.

WIP Colonial Marine APC crew

2011-06-18T10:30:00.003+10:00

Hi guys, I have converted some command decision German tank crew into crew for my Colonial Marine APCs, I am going to do the recce (3 grav APCs) crew as SF types with bush hats beards and sunglasses, just need to add the beards and sunnies, should I do the other 3 with bush hats or give them NAC helmets? I was a little nervous about attempting NAC helmets.

Update on WIP Colonial Marine APCs

2011-06-16T16:12:00.006+10:00

Hi guys, the Colonial Marine APCs, well on the way, just weathering and basing to go, I have 6 crew figs on the work bench, so they will all have crew commanders in the turrets, I'm pretty happy with how they are turning out.

WIP Next 8 Carmeron Highlanders

2011-06-11T10:01:00.005+10:00

Hi guys, these are the next 8 Cameron Highlanders and are about 80% finished, need to do some highlights and give a matt coat.

15mm Kroot and Tau test figs finished

2011-06-06T18:50:00.005+10:00

Hi guys, some updated photos of the Kroot, they are finished and a first look at the Tau, not sure if the helmet came out right, I need to fill a couple of seams on the helmet and helmet less heads, I'm happier with the Kroot then Tau, but the Tau will do, what do you think? now this project will need to go on the back burner for a while, I need to finish of some Colonial marine APCs, Berserker infantry bots, and 79th Cameron Highlanders for Napoleonics.