tisdag 14 juni 2016

Hello.

I enjoy the modelling part of this hobby a lot more than painting, and sometimes even more
than playing as well.
Most of my modelling projects for any game the last fifteen years or so have had extensive
conversions done to some or all of their models.
With Guild Ball models being available in resin, this opens up a lot of possibilities for
conversions and repositioning of the models.

One model I have recieved a lot of praise for is my converted Tenderiser, so I decided to
make another one, to try making a tutorial of how I made it.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y8/bengtslaanesh/Guildball/3E16757C-6791-4BB6-B6E2-D55FF92775CD_zpsojrymqtu.jpg

Here is a try to help others who want to make a similar Tenderiser, a step by step with text
and pictures for you to try and follow.

An important first step (which I often skip, to regret it later) is to clean all parts of mold lines/flash and release agent from the moulding. (Yes I forgot some mold lines here as well)
Wash the model with dish soap and scrape/cut/file away all visible mold lines.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y8/bengtslaanesh/Guildball/E5862056-CE17-4713-A70B-4A88410CC333_zpsaceeknjx.jpg

This conversion is made using almost exclusively an industrial razor blade and a scalpel.
I also use a drill and steel rod of 0.7mm and a bit of greenstuff from varying manufacturers
plus superglue. And a lot of hot water.

I start by carefully removing the models outstretched right leg. I do cuts from multiple
angles, to make sure the "exit wounds" are controlled, as I don't care about the middle part
of the cut at all.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y8/bengtslaanesh/Guildball/F80C2528-1895-431A-894A-FC7C8D9D939D_zpsx1ziobc6.jpg

To straighten the leg, I make controlled cuts halfway through the leg in the places I want to
bend it. I then pour up a cup of newly boiled water and toss the part in and it goes soft in
less than half a minute. I pick it up with some sort of tool (a fork) and quickly bend it as
I want it and then hold it under running cold water for a couple of seconds.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y8/bengtslaanesh/Guildball/FF40D6AE-E24B-4A47-8BD1-2076D4287A7C_zpssqn8cdym.jpg

I do the same procedure with the second leg and the head. Cut it half way through from the
back of the bend, to leave the details in the front. Heat it up and reposition and then cool
it down. The good thing is you can do this multiple times with the same detail until you are
happy with it.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y8/bengtslaanesh/Guildball/12B2B257-9CE0-4B34-8C00-1D7212A6B9BA_zpsephazykk.jpg

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y8/bengtslaanesh/Guildball/725558DE-17A1-489A-859A-0793E10191FD_zpsmi77uxpe.jpg

When reshaping the arms, I start of by pinning the handle for the weapon, to prevent it from
bending. Then multiple cuts where I want to bend the model, carefull to ruin as little detail
as possible.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y8/bengtslaanesh/Guildball/E87CC24D-FE9C-4FC6-B9B3-9F4EA8394D6B_zpsppe7u1im.jpg

When reshaping with water, I managed to break the left arm of, but that also made it easier
to position it correctly.
As seen in the picture, you can carefully pour hot water on just a part of the piece you are
reshaping to just partially heat it up.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y8/bengtslaanesh/Guildball/832F212D-45CE-4B8D-BE6C-0763166A2AE2_zpsfb8ukcck.jpg

As neighter arms nor legs will "fit" on the butchered torso, you will have to pin them in
place and probably remove some excess material from the body as well.
Carefully reheating some parts might be needed too. I had to reheat the feet a couple of
times to make them stand straight on the ground and look balanced with the rest of the pose.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y8/bengtslaanesh/Guildball/EBCA88AB-82CB-4201-B18D-C527FC887414_zpsqajh4qde.jpg

Here it's basically trial and error, but here is how he ended up before greenstuff.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y8/bengtslaanesh/Guildball/AD3D3AA2-82EB-4D66-A96C-66ACA7772AB7_zpsswkasuic.jpg

Some basic greenstuff just to hold the model together and reinforce the joints, and then
you'll have to wait until the next day for it to cure.
A large apron covers up all the anatomical wrongdoings done to his midsection.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y8/bengtslaanesh/Guildball/EADD95A2-4A65-4D17-85D1-35FB09FE7468_zpsmpsnfixe.jpg

Then comes the boring part (for me) which is to carefully add details and wait for them to
cure before moving on to the next part.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y8/bengtslaanesh/Guildball/0F0BF079-5C3C-480D-B4D6-1931A7419AC3_zpsfd06isck.jpg

I highly recommend cheating and adding bits to cover up your poor greenstuff work.
Here I had a spare set of knives (from Meathook?)

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y8/bengtslaanesh/Guildball/062F8C8B-75E6-46C7-B2A5-9972E7187821_zpsirinztwq.jpg

After a couple of short evenings of work, you will be ready to spray your model, so see if
you need to fix some joints better. If so, I usually just paint them over with white glue.
So here he is, in all his upright standing glory. Tenderiser.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y8/bengtslaanesh/Guildball/820B6C01-0683-4F06-B1D7-330554FE7560_zpsnfpcf1hk.jpg

Hopefully, this post has inspired at least some of it's readers to try something similar,
with Tenderiser or some other model.
Please show of your results to inspire others.
And remember, stealing is the highest form of praise.
So go ahead and
Steal and Improve!

torsdag 14 november 2013

Dominar Eeyore - the saddest mascot.

Now what is this?



When I saw Trevor Christensen's new nickname and avatar I must say it made me really happy.
I've always enjoyed the Chain-attack podcast and I really like that Trevor and a bunch of other experienced players have started to make an effort here on our forums.
That said, I really wanted to be give something back and this new avatar of his really got the balls rolling for me.

What if I could give him a custom made Dominar Eeyore to fit his existing Skorne army...
That would also give me a chance at my fifteen seconds of warmachine fame and probably get me mentioned on chain-attack...

So the same evening, I started this stupid project that I've now finished.

I started with a wire armature and covered it in aluminium foil and then a mix of supersculpey and cernit polymer clay. This has to bake in the oven, but is way cheaper than epoxy clays.
I started adding skorne details by copying parts of existing models. Copies are made by making a press mold of oyumaru (InstaMold) of your desired parts and then filling the mold with green or grey stuff.


I added the mane of a GW Wargheist and started detailing the bulked up model with a thin layer of green and/or grey stuff and then carefully pressing a piece of textile to the surface.
I also started on the face by dremeling of excess material and adding new detail.

The weapon is an elongated version of one of Xerxis' clubs.
The face is intentionally sadder than that of the avatar.
As everyone knows, Eeyore is the saddest panda.

I have sprayed the model white and gave him to one of the americans at the WTC for further transportation to Trevor.
I'll leave it white, so he can use his regular way of having it painted to fit his great-looking Skorne army.

























Trevor will hopefully get his mascot delivered at the WMW.

Thank you Trevor and the rest of you for all you are giving to this community!

Cheers!

torsdag 31 oktober 2013

8 Ripjaws = Deathjack

I was recently at the World Team Championships as a spectator and it was one of the best wargaming events I've ever attended.
As per usual the event had a store where you could buy new plastic and metal crack to fill your unsatiable hunger for new models and as they often do, they had a nice pile of stuff on discount.
As on many other events, the evenings are quite free for socializing and this was no exception.
The exception however, was that this event had an awesome bar with awesome Belgian beer and one thing let to the other...
You could buy one box of Cryx Ripjaws and get another three! boxes for free.
In a drunken haze, me and a friend joked about how awesome it would be to build something really crazy like a Deathjack if you had enough Ripjaws and suddenly, I sat there with eight of them in my hands...


How to proceed to make a Deathjack out of eight shitty bonejacks you wonder?
I have no idea, but I know it's going to happen. I am a man of my word you know...
I literally had no idea on how to do this conversion, but as per usual, I pulled out my trusted old razorsaw and started cutting of random parts of the models.
I think the shield on top of the Ripjaw is the most useful part, so I carefully cut it away in a few different manners.


I started by building arms, as I had a good vision of how to make the hands, by combining several jaws as fingers and using the front of the Ripjaws body as the main part of the lower arm.


The rest of those two bodys made a great start for them legs, so they where next in line in the process.
Much of this whole building process was slowly finding out which parts to use where and at the same time saving as much of the rest of the bits to not go to waste.
Making clean cuts with the razor saw was essential and many of my modelling projects wouldn't have happened if not for that great tool.
The lower part of the Deathjack's legs was made from Ripjaws legs repositioned and pinned to the thigh, made from the bodies left over from making the arms.
Up untill now, I've only used two full Ripjaws and a bunch of extra jaws, so I think I have enough bits left for the rest of it.


So now it was time for the torso, and still trying to keep as many good bits as possible, I carefully started chopping up moar Ripjaws.
The lower part of the torso in a full Ripjaw body without the smokestack and I built a ribcage with a couple of jaws.
Then I added two back halves of the body without the main shielding, since that part is way to useful to waste where it would probably end up obscured by other details.
The head was a great challenge and I ended up using parts from three legs and a grill from the smoke stacks.
The eyes are actually just the empty space created between the parts.
Having a limited supply of bits, I went with tusks instead of horns, as the jaws looked a lot better as tusks than as horns.
The head ended up looking quite nice, but maybe a bit to much as a Cygnarian or Khador jack.


Apparently I missed out on taking some of the pictures of my journey, but if you go all in mad scinentist, it's easy to forget to log it for the minions.
By using a couple of armour plates I hade previously carefully removed from the Ripjaw bodies, and by reshaping them with boiling water, I made a large armour plate for the Deathjack.
Three more Bonejack had to pay with their worthless lives for the sake of the greater good.
Combining their three peices of neck armour made a nice start for a bunch of exhausts as well.
Six down and just two more Bonejacks to go...



Added an upper arm made of a chicken's leg, I dry-fitted it all together to see how it all looked.
And it sure did start to look like a big menacing robot of death and destruction, but with a big hole through it... 


Shoulders where the easiest part of the whole thing. It was just to saw the two remaining Ripjaws in two, remove the neck and slap it on.


After adding shoulders and upper arms, next step was just to put it all together and use the spare bodyparts to bulk him up and cover any holes in him.
Here I could have decided on cheating and using greenstuff to fill in gaps and enlarge his toes, but I decided against it and just went with the purist way, using only the eight Ripjaws and thus having silly little chicken feet for the king of the hen house too.
Behold the Chicken King!