Modelzona 2015

Today was my first trip to the IPMS Modelzona Model show and competition. I entered 5 models: Space Wolf Drop Pod, Space Wolf Rhino, Imperial Guard Salamander, Imperial Guard Wounded Soldier, and a Kabuki Miniatures 'Napoleon X'. To my surprise I took home medals for three of my models in two categories.

My Space Wolf Rhino took first place in the Sci-Fi category.

My homemade Imperial Guard Salamander took second place in the Sci-Fi category.

My Kabuki Miniatures 'Napoleon X' took Third Place in Figures - Sci-Fi & Fantasy category.

WIP - Ork Dakkajet Conversion

I've been looking for various models to complete outside of my typical builds for upcoming model competitions. One idea I had was to convert some Hasegawa Egg Planes into Ork flyers. What follows is my current work in progress, an Ork Dakkajet converted from a Hasegawa Egg Plane.

Doesn't this kit look like it was designed with Orks in mind? These kits only run about eight dollars on Amazon!

 A lot of styrene was used to make this conversion.

 I also used lead solder wire to make the cables. This was the first time I've used it in a model for this purpose and I absolutely loved the effect. It was so easy to work with!

 Panel lines were emphasized with a razor and dental tools. The rivets were created using microbeads.

I used zip ties for the ammo belts. I saw that technique online somewhere but I can't remember where.

 The grot is from the gretchen box. I had to cut off the arms legs and waist and resculpt the shoulders and arms with green stuff.

Various bits helped to fill out the build.

I've got two more of these kits on hand to make conversions out of. My ultimate goal is to apply three of these to one base. That way as each hull point is removed during game play I can remove one model for each point.

Terrain - Citadel Scenery Barricades

A while back I picked up a set of old school Citadel Scenery barricades. This week I finally got around to painting them and I can't wait to get them out on the table.

The barricades are made of hard foam, come primed and flocked with static grass.

I used a combination of craft and Army Painter paints. Shading was achieved using a wash of Army Painter Dark Tone, water, and black craft paint. Weathering was done using Secret Weapon Miniatures rust tone weathering pigments. The final step was to seal them all with Dull Coat.

Terrain - Citadel Scenery Chimera Bunker

A while back I picked up the old school Chimera Bunker at a local swap meet. The piece is made from hard foam and comes primed and flocked with static grass. I finally got around to painting it this last week and I have to say that I'm quite pleased. I can't wait to get it out on the table.

I used a variety of craft, Tamiya, and Army Painter paints. I used the sponge method to apply chipping to the paint of the chimera. For shading I used a wash of Army Painter Dark Tone, water, and black craft paint. Secret Weapon Miniatures weathering powders were used for rust tones and ground charcoal was used for smoke stains. A gloss coat was applied, followed by an oil paint wash to all the rivets, which was allowed to dry slightly and then dragged down with a dry brush. Finally everything was sealed with dull coat.

Fallout Hobbies Custom Decals

After participating in their Kickstarter campaign I have finally received my order from Fallout Hobbies. I have to say it has been well worth the wait and Ron was great to work with. Not only was he able to produce some amazing custom decals, he made sure to keep his Kickstarter backers well aware of the overall progress of the project and touched base with me to let me know when he planned to have my order out the door.

The Shipping

I had ordered a custom set of decals and their standard Military Airbrush Stencil 2. From the time the Kickstarter closed to the time my package arrived was indeed a while, but one should expect that from a business being built from the ground up and I had no illusions going into it that I would have a speedy turn around. That being said Fallout Hobbies kept us customers well informed throughout the processes. My order arrived today packaged in a durable cardstock envelope and both my stencils and decals were packaged in zipper bags with card stock backers. All of this was consistent with the high level of professionalism I have come to associate with Fallout Hobbies.

The Stencils 

Fallout Hobbies Airbrush Stencils are low-tac self adhering vinyl which are cut to allow use as either positive or negative stencils. Fallout Hobbies offers a variety of pre-designed stencils from simple lettering to complex Chaotic Stars symbols. If they don't have a stencil that fits your needs you can either provide them with a finished graphic to use, or have them design what you need. I will be using these for my vehicle lettering.

Please excuse my cruddy pictures but it is damn near impossible to get a good picture of the semi-gloss of the vinyl.

The Decals

I am currently working on a Gaunt's Ghosts army and really didn't want to go full bore into it until I had some quality decals to bring it all home. When I placed my Kickstarter pledge in mind I was just hoping that I might get something designed that would be decent enough to pass for the classic Tanith skull and daggers. What I received exceeded my expectations.

I had provided Ron an example of the Tanith patch and requested white decals in his Army Standard Spacing. This is a sheet of infantry, vehicle, and larger sizes. I also requested that the infantry decals be no larger than 5mm in diameter to fit the shoulder pads of standard Imperial Guard infantry. Due do to their small size over 200 infantry decals fit on the sheet! As part of the custom order process Fallout Hobbies will send you a proof to approve before they print allowing you the opportunity to ensure that your custom order will be exactly what you want.

The sheet included 4 extra large decals, 5 large decals, 18 vehicle size decals, and 209 infantry decals. Keep in mind that I requested specific sizes which allowed Fallout Hobbies to pack in a lot of decals. They make sure you get your money's worth out of each sheet.

The detail in these decals is amazing. Each one is crisp and clean. The lettering in the banner can be read on all but the infantry size decal, granted a magnifying glass is needed to read the smaller ones, but the detail is there even if you can't see it with your naked eye.

The quality of the decals does not decline as the scale decreases. Each is detailed and read well, despite my poor attempts and photographing them.

So many decals! With two sheets of decals in hand I don't think I'll ever need another Tanith decal but I know I'll be ordering different decals for other armies and projects.

I'm eager to get some more of my infantry assembled so I can start slapping these decals on my ghosts. I'll follow this post up soon with a review and photos of the decals after application. In the mean time I highly encourage you to stop by Fallout Hobbies and see what they have to offer. No doubt they either stock something you need or could make it for you.

Tutorial - Magnetizing a Pintle Mounted Weapon

I have a few works in progress but as I worked on them I thought I could put together a few tutorials on what I've been doing. I'm a big fan of magnetizing weaponry on my models, you never know when you're going to want to swap out a weapon or two.

In this example I have magnetized a heavy stubber. The magnets I used for this project are the tiny 1/16 inch x 1/32 rare earth magnets from AmazingMagnets.com part #D032-063. They have great prices and an amazing selection of different shapes, sizes, finishes, and strengths. 100 of these magnets cost me less than $10.

Start by drilling out the hole on the interior of the stubber. It's almost already 1/16 inch but it will need to be opened up just a little to fit the magnet.

Cut off the post on the pintle which fits the same mounting hole which you just reamed out. After that, drill out the area where the post was with the same bit.

Drop a very small amount of superglue into each of the drill holes and sink the magnets. When placing the magnets make sure that the polarities are opposites, you don't want them repelling each other. I would also suggest that you always arrange your polarities in the same way. This way each model can swap weapons with the next. If you don't make this a standard in your models then there really is no sense in magnetizing at all.

Once this is done you will be able to add or remove the stubber as needed and swap out other weapons which you've magnetized, like a storm bolter or hunter killer.

Fallout Hobbies Custom Decal Shop - Kickstarter

As I've been working on my Imperial Guard army one of my biggest problems has been that I can't find a producer of quality custom transfers. It looks like my problem is no more as I have found Fallout Hobbies Custom Decals on Kickstarter. Take a moment to check them out and if you like what you see give them some support. For $40 I was able to order two sheets of custom decals.