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Showing posts with label Grymn. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Grymn. Show all posts

Sunday, 30 July 2017

Snipers arrive!

Hello and welcome to Inso's World again.

This week has been one of highs, lows and indifference so I will try to keep things light.

The low point was talking to Cancer specialists with my dad and to cut a long story short, his Chemotherapy starts in just over a week. That will mark the start of things becoming very real and it will also be a time to be stoic.

The indifferent thing was an attempted hair dying thing. I added blue to my red... but it appears that the blue doesn't like sticking to the white bits in my hair... so the results were not 'vibrant blue roots with purple tips':


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Before on the left, after on the right. Fortunately I have a friend who is a hairdresser and I will turn myself over to her expertise at some point (there is talk of leopard print!).

So... now 'life' has been covered, here's a nice little Hasslefree Miniatures 'Roddy' that I have painted. He will join my Grymn Martian Patrol as a hired mercenary:


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He is a genetic hybrid of some kind so he will make a good tracker. I have kept his skin tone as pale as I can whilst still using my usual painting process.

Well... it has happened. My Halfling snipers have arrived from the casters and I am very pleased with them. Hysterical Games has done a fantastic job:


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I will be keeping a set or two for myself but the rest will be going up for sale. You will be able to find them HERE, when they are ready for sale. In the meantime, I have cleaned a set up, washed them in soapy water, based and primed them and they currently look like this:


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Pretty soon, these guys will turn green and will become part of my Squat army. They will also be used to showcase the miniatures for the shop/blog.

Well... I will be putting up more information when I have sorted through all the casts, got hold of some packaging materials and decided how I am going to sell them.

Interesting times... interesting times...

See you from the happy seat!
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Sunday, 23 July 2017

Some finished painting.

Hello again and welcome to Inso's World.

This week has been all about painting and as I mentioned last week, it has mostly been about painting Grymn... so I'll get straight to it with a little squad of painted Grymn:


Click the Pic!

As you can see, I have been trying out some of Games Workshop's textured paint on the bases and I think it looks pretty good. I think that they could use a little more depth, however, I quite like them as they are because they look really dry... which is what I was aiming for. 

These Grymn are painted up as a small patrol that potters around on a mars that has been Terra-formed with a breathable atmosphere. I have started to paint up one of the characters that will be joining them and I think that he should be ready for next week.

In other news, I have also painted the first of the Primaris Marines:


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The photo is a bit rubbish but this particular miniature does not like being photographed in any kind of light so this is as good as it gets. If you look closely, he has a moon and castle emblem on his shoulder pad. This links him to the Lead Legion of Space Marines. This particular legion has been formed as part of a community project over at the Lead Adventure Forum... you can find out about it HERE and you can see some of the results HERE. I thought that I would use the opportunity to give the guys a chapter because I haven't come up with one of my own.

In a random direction, I tried to prevent a friend falling over and this happened:


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Everything is OK but I reckon I'll have a cool scar over my eye and, at the moment, I am finding painting a little bit tricky because I bashed up my hands/wrists a bit. That said... it was a great night on the town and sometimes you just have to roll with it... even if it happens to be rolling on the floor! Drunken shenanigans eh? Where would British culture be without them?

So... this week, I am popping up to see my Dad and accompany him to the hospital to find out where the land lies. It is going to suddenly become 'A THING' when we know what is going on, what treatment is available and how bad/good things are so, fingers crossed, it will be more positive than negative.

What's next? Who really ever knows that, eh?

See you from the bus stop, at the corner of main-street!
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Sunday, 16 July 2017

Going back to the start...

Hello again and welcome to Inso's World.

Way back in the dim and distant past, I started using the internet and suddenly became aware of the wide range of miniatures that were available on the market. Up until that point it was Citadel / Games Workshop only... apart from some Scotia Grendel Kryomek that used to be available in HMV (of all places).

It surprises me that I only started this blog in 2008... because, prior to that, I had been pottering around for a good few years... and I am also NOT surprised that the first miniatures I posted on here were from Hasslefree Miniatures. I found Hasslefree Miniatures in 2004 and was instantly drawn to their Grymn range. In fact, it was a single picture of Aylton the Grymn (sculpted by Kev White) that made me hunt down the manufacturer so that I could get hold of a few Grymn myself.

...That was the start of it. My big obsession. Why Grymn? Well... I'll tell you a story...

When I was about 15, I started sculpting miniatures. I used the only putty that was available to me (Milliput) and just went for it. I bent up a paperclip attached it to a plastic base, and built up an armature, followed by a full miniature. It was a Half-Dwarf in powered armour. The next sculpt was a Halfling in powered armour, followed by a Halfling in terminator armour and then one riding a Citadel, Judge Dredd, Lawmaster bike. Not long after that... I joined the military and off I went into the big world.

The reason I sculpted what I did, was that I always thought that Halflings were a missed opportunity. They always seemed to be portrayed with chicken drumsticks in their hands and saucepans on their heads and were, for all intents and purposes, a joke. I hated that. I wanted my Halflings to be warriors with hi-tech weaponry and equipment and certainly no bare feet! That's why I sculpted little people with tough kit.

... Then Aylton the Grymn showed up:


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It was the above picture (the miniature was painted by Jenova... a very talented and well regarded painter of miniatures) that immediately caught my eye... back in 2004. He looked just like my idea of what a tough space Halfling should look like. Big gun, decent equipment and a strong character. 

I found Hasslefree Miniatures, ordered a set of five (which was all that was available at the time) and painted them up... then more were released and I snapped them up... then the cycle continued up until today. When new ones are released... I can't help myself.

So... why all the reflection on Grymn today? Well... with things being the way they are at the moment, my sculpting muse has decided that, just when I am starting up a little bit of a selling thing, she would go on holiday. Now, that isn't a bad thing... I have had quite a run on sculpting for a good few years and it was about time I started painting again. So I saw the new Primaris Marines and dived straight in... BUT... I stalled. The miniatures are great but what I really needed was something familiar and I knew just what to do. Not only would it help me to get painting again but it would also allow me the opportunity to try out some new basing materials in the process. I dug out a few of my many spare Grymn and, after cleaning them up, basing and priming them, set to work. After a while, as is usually the case, I got to thinking about what comes next so I dug out some walkers I converted (from Critical Mass Games... before they closed shop) and slapped a rough coat of paint on one to see how it looked. Well... this is where I am, at the moment:


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In the picture, there are three walkers at the back, three specialists in front and then a squad of 8 standard Grymn troops. They still have a way to go but I am really enjoying painting them and the familiarity is a bit like meeting old friends again. It was definitely the right time to be painting Grymn because I have been out of the military now for 8 months and haven't finished painting anything... what better way to break the duck than with some of these excellent little miniatures.

For the record... I can't wait for the new ones to be released... I can always find money for more Grymn!

See you from the Grymn High-Council Chambers!
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Sunday, 18 September 2016

It's Grymn out there.

Hello again.

This week has been a a complete write off due to a complete lack of sleep so there won't be any hobby content today because there hasn't been any hobby going on at home for me.

So... when I am tired I plonk down at the computer and browse the interweb and this week a few Hasslefree related things happened.

First, is the Kickstarter.

Lots of fantasy stuff and different versions of a number of miniatures which basically equates to nude, glamour and toasty warm. Not my genre and not my taste but I thought I'd share anyway.

The thing is that, in a conversation on Facebook, it would appear that Kev has decided that he needed a 'pallette cleanser' to work on during the Kickstarter so will be trying to get these Grymn finished (or some very much like them):


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Add to this news that he also mentioned that he was thinking of replacing all of the existing Grymn armour with something similar it could be the start of something great...

... assuming Kev can keep the momentum going on this idea. Only time will tell (you all know the fickle nature of muses... I've told you about it enough).

He also mentioned that he may have a way of getting the alternative Walker arms sorted out and put into production (they will have hands and weapons rather than just weapons); which will be great news for my Walker platoon that has been sat, unassembled in a box for a few years waiting for these new arms to appear.

So what better way to fire up my enthusiasm for the little chaps again? I have so many Grymn projects on the go that I could be here all day posting pictures so instead, heres just a few of the bare metal miniatures I have (mostly allocated to my New Model Army):



Click the Pix!

Unfortunately, with things being so up in the air at the moment, I can't really start too much because of the imminent move... but I can let my mind wander and see what it comes up with.

That's about it for now.

See you from the Grymn homeworlds!
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Sunday, 21 December 2014

Sunday again.

Seeing as it is Sunday and I haven't been putting any work into the hobby lately, I thought I'd dig out a few more bits and bobs for army pics.

First up... the enemy that lurks under the earth on the Tunnel Fighter's world:


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The bugs are Tyranids (of course) but instead of being the GW idea of bugs, these are indigenous to the planet and occur as a result of bug-like breeding. I have deliberately not used any form of ranged weaponry to add to the 'naturally occurring' look of them. I deliberately chose a desert theme because they are on a desert planet and have naturally occurring camouflage. There are more of these in the 'to-do' pile but I doubt very much whether they will ever get done.

Next up; this next little army started out as a WH40K patrol force and expanded a little:


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This little army was put together using an older Imperial Guard Codex where platoons could have partial squads in them. The army has a command HQ, a storm trooper squad, 2 special weapon squads, a heavy weapon squad, 2 platoons, a sentinel and an ogryn squad. One of the platoons has an extra five troops because I happened to have them sitting around. All it would take is the addition of some transport and it would make a good starter force.

This next little army was the one that started my Grymn obsession all those years ago:


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The army has a few conversions (including the only female OGrymn alive - scratch sculpted apart from the hands and weapon), features the very first incarnation of Torge's Tigers and is still very close to my heart (even though I couldn't finish the army due to TOO MUCH BROWN).

Finally today, we have a selection of specialist troops:


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At the front, we have an inquisitor with a small retinue. Behind him are a couple of small stormtrooper units. Behind them, a few Grymn Spartans and over to the right are some Judges with a bit of support in the form of a justice department riot control walker.

Well... in other news, I purchased a Revell starter kit (wiith paints, glue and brush) today... a 1/144 A-10 Warthog. I just felt like I needed something to take my mind off everything while I was alone in the house. It is tiny :).

Well, it will soon be Christmas so I hope you all have a great one. I also hope that Christmas, for you, is the way you would like it to be... and if you don't celebrate Christmas, I hope that you have a great time during your religious celebration / holiday and spend it doing the things you want, with the people you love.

See you from the undergrowth!
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Wednesday, 17 December 2014

It's Grymn down South...

I was sitting, minding my own business, when I suddenly realised that I haven't posted an army pic for my Tunnel Fighters.

The only previous picture of any note was this one but it was only the basic units:


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Well... seeing as I have time on my hands and had nothing too pressing to do, I decided to dig everything out and plonk it on the table... so here is the entire army (including the white vehicle which is the only unit that remains unfinished):


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As part of this random event, I decided to make a rough tally of how much it had cost and I suddenly realised that I spend far too much on my hobby. Without taking into account the paint, glue, putty and man-hours to build it up, it comes in at around £1100.00... that's a whole lot of money spent on a completely unpractical thing... Anyway, here's a pic with a few labels:


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Hopefully, when I get back from my tour, I will dedicate the required effort to finish the command vehicle, varnish the remaining un-varnished items and finally finish this project once and for all.

If nothing else, this project shows that you can take fairly random items and tie them all together with a coherent paint scheme and a bit of explanation. It also shows that it is possible to complete an army, even though every single unit is converted in some way.

See you from the cupboard!
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Sunday, 16 November 2014

A week of nice distractions.

I knew I wouldn't be able to focus on the Squat project this week... especially when I have my Mechadrome mechs sitting so close. As a result, I have spent a lot of the week messing around with my mechs and... to be brutally honest... first impressions didn't last.

Don't get me wrong, the mech casts have suberbly sharp and crisp details but while I was cleaning up the resin components, I quickly realised that quality control at Gangfight Games could be a little better. This week, I have focussed on cleaning up the resin components and getting them washed ready for filling/assembly.


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The light mech bodies aren't too bad apart from one or two being fractionally misaligned and the steps on the right side being in various states from perfect to missing... but not so bad that I couldn't fudge it enough to look OK (that means 24 little brass foot rails need to be made and fitted into 48 little drilled holes).

The medium mechs took a lot more work and to be frank, for the money I paid for them, the work was too much. However... they are cleaned and washed ready for filling. Here are the components for the medium mechs:


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The picture shows the torsos, legs, gun-arms, rocket pods (they go on the top of the torso), a pair of fists, the shoulders, the little pistons (for the rear of the legs) and two mystery components (I think they fit to the front of the cockpit... but I guess I'll just have to wait and see).

Overall, the details are fabulous and the design is excellent but there are a number of things that bothered me about the resin components:
  • The legs were slightly misaligned and took a lot of work to look OK.
  • The torsos were slightly misaligned and took a lot of work to look OK.
  • There are a good few airbubbles and blobs of excess resin that obscure details.
  • The guns were so misaligned that I had to cut them down their length to realign them.
Here is a picture of the guns:


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I think that the main issue I had with the legs could be as a result of them being cast as a single item, rather than being broken down into two legs and pants for casting. 

What about the metal components? Fortunately, they were much better and didn't need too much clean-up. Iwas disappointed to find that I have been given opposite fists rather than two left fists (like I ordered) but I am not hugely concerned as it will just mean that one of my eight mechs will be a lefty (a special character... maybe the overall leader).

I still have to sort out the metal components for the light mechs but I have checked them and they are all correct so it will just take me the time to clean them up prior to assembly.

So quality control could be better but I am not unduly concerned (however... it did take the shine off a little). I could complain but I can't really be bothered as I have made the best of them anyway and it just adds time and awkwardness to the whole thing... and I want these to be assembled... NOW!

To cheer things up, an online friend of mine (DWartist), sent me a very generous gift this week:



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You may not be able to see the pic very clearly but there is a veritable horde of Grymn and a rather handy Old Crow Hammer's Slammers vehicle. I'd like to extend a public THANKS! to DWartist for his wonderful gift that really cheered me up after fighting with my mechs all week. And what better way to highlight how much it cheered me up by showing what I plan for the vehicle:


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That's right. The Engineseer now has some transport for him and his two servitors. I will be adding a servitor head in the hatch on the front to act as the driver and I will also be adding a mechanical arm and a pair of bolters. Big Robot will either have to walk or be sent off to another army.  

In other news, I recently spotted my work on the Impact Miniatures site. Unfortunately, it was labelled as being sculpted by someone else... so I contacted tham and queried the mistake. They got back to me straight away, corrected the error and are sending me a gift. I didn't ask for anything, other than the change of details so I am really very impressed with Impact for their kind gesture. The miniature in question uses the body from this miniature that I sculpted for Goblin Aid:


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but with the head sculpted by another sculptor.

This coming week should be one of more component cleaning, assembling, filling and maybe a bit of converting. 

... and I have to go into the gas chamber again (yes... it is that time of year again). 

See you through the bleary eyes of realisation!
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Sunday, 15 June 2014

Tigers!

I know I sound like a bit of a stuck record but I have had another slow hobby week this week. I have put a bunch of plastic space Dwarfs into the Dettol and cleaned them off. I then separated them down into their components and quickly discovered that I have got enough heads/bodies/weapons for about 35 troops... but not enough arms. It isn't a problem because I'll just sculpt them on but it does add to the length of time it will take to put them all together... and it is something that will be on the back burner for now anyway.

I've been throwing bids on Ebay this week and failing in glorious fashion... so I don't have any news about that.

I am looking forward to the end of this Kickstarter project (Mechadrome):


I have pledged for a small gathering of these awesome little mechs and I hope that they are as awesome in hand as they appear on the site.

Speaking of mechs, Prodos Games has been updating a lot of their Warzone Resurrection miniatures and they have been doing a great job. The one that really caught my eye was the new version of the Bauhaus Vulkan... a proper stocky little chap:


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I think that this will make an excellent addition to any Squat/Space Dwarf force... oh... and Warzone Bauhaus force (of course).

In other news, the Forum of Doom is having an Unofficial Diorama of Doom competition again this year. At the moment, the final poll is up to vote for a theme. If you want to pop along, have a look and vote it would be very cool of you. Here's the link:


You never know; you may be inspired enough to join in with your own offering.

From a personal hobby perspective, I managed to throw a basecoat on my Torge's Tigers dropship. It is still very WIP but, I think I have the patterns roughly in place:



Click the Pix!

So... tomorrow I am travelling down to Somerset for the funeral of my friend who recently passed away after her fight with cancer. It's not one I am looking forward to but I wouldn't miss it for the world...

See you from the pit!
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Sunday, 1 June 2014

An interesting week...

Hello again. Welcome to Inso's World and you find me sat at my PC on a glorious sunny day. I can hear the sounds of lawn-mowers, smell the smoky air of BBQs and listen to the wonderful sound of bird-song. Today is a flip-flop day... so, what has been going on this week? To start with, work has been mental. Every time I clear a job, three come in so I have been run ragged. As a result, my hobby time has been restricted to what I can be bothered with... and that seems to be cheap, plastic dinosars. I have managed to paint another two:



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As you can see, I have now got three finished and the beauty of these is... no matter how badly I paint them, they will still look much better than how they started. That means I can practically switch off while I paint and still end up with an OK finished product... and that works for me when I am tired out.

In other news, I have had a proper 'couple' weekend. Friday me and my better half went to the pub and had such a good evening that we booked a room and stayed over night. After a smashing cooked breakfast, we walked the three miles home in glorious sunshine, through the Oxfordshire countryside. We've been shopping, dining out and enjoying life all weekend while our two teenagers go off and do their own thing. After all this time being attentive parents, we are starting to enjoy being a couple again... and it is great. In fact, this morning we went into town and had brunch together... no children in tow. But enough of all that... here is a picture:


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The other day, I noticed a strange noise coming from the ventilation fan in the kitchen so I investigated and discovered that the outside vent had a hole in it and there appeared to be nest material sticking out. I disabled the fan switch (so it couldn't be switched on), kept an eye on things and soon found out that Robins were busy flitting backwards and forwards with beaks full of food. I decided I'd wait until things were properly settled and take a peek... and the best way I could think of doing it was with a camera... and as you can see, we have at least five Robin chicks in our fan duct. How cool is that?

Ebay has been a friend to me again... and this time Torge's Tigers get the benefit of my luck:


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They get a nice Devilfish to travel about in. As you can see, it is still WIP and still needs clean-up but the basic assembly is finished (apart from the front guns).

Well, that appears to be the end of another mixed bag of stuff.

See you from the hide!
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Sunday, 20 April 2014

Easter Sunday

Welcome to this week's blog update. I'll start by saying hi to my two newest followers; Darcy Perry and Fred Jackson. Welcome to you both, feel free to get involved and share your thoughts.

Where do I start?

Let's start with this:


Yes, it's 'The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Me and my better half went to see it and I won't share any spoilers but here are a few observations:
  • It is a couple's movie (one to take your significant other to).
  • There is a lot of romantic angst.
  • Spider-man is pretty cool (he is so much better than Toby Maguire ever was or could be).
  • Gwen is a cool character.
  • Electro is very cool... he gets better and better during the film.
  • Green Goblin is very sinister... the best representation of the villain yet.
  • The Rhino is a big mechanical suit (rather than a cybernitc body suit)... so it was different.
  • The Rhino is only in the film for less than 2 minutes! 
It was an OK film but I was pretty disappointed to see so little of the Rhino. The door is very much open for a sequel. I'd say that it was a chick-flick with some decent action and nowhere near as good as the Avengers films.  

Do you like art? Sometimes I view life as art and part of life is making altered egos. One of my altered egos is a Velociraptor and when I saw a dinosaur picture on Facebook I asked the painter to paint me a picture of a Velociraptor. It will be arriving soon... here's a preview:


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It's by a very talented artist called Jacob who is just five and a half years old and I think the picture is brilliant. I can't wait to hang it on my wall (I did, however, insist that he signs it first). 

OK... let's talk about Miniatures. First of all, I have been busy adding decals and varnishing lately. My Powered armour platoon is finished and if you would like to see it, and the rest of the NMA (what has been finished so far), then check out this link:


You will soon see why I have put it on the Grymn blog... but that is not all. I have been ticking along with the Squat program and have managed to get a bit more sculpted... and the Dreadnought painted:


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The Squat on the left is the first spotter for my sniper unit. The other two are troopers for the first squad (currently up to five models now... the Squat with the bolter is going to be part of the command squad). I think I am likely to add some decals to the dreadnought at some point but he will do for now.

In other news... my resolve is weakening for this:


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It is available from Puppet's War and has been on my radar for a long time but a reduction in price has made things worse. I am likely to get one soon to see how big it is and if it is suitable, it could be used for all sorts... watch this space.

Well, that is that!

See you from the edge of the dam!
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Tuesday, 15 April 2014

From little acorns...

... Giant oak trees grow.

What do I mean by that?

I have completed all of my Grymn powered armour troopers for my NMA (including Torge's Tigers).

They are all decalled up and matt varnished ready to have some photos taken tomorrow evening.

My painting table will look quite bare without them but they will be leaving soon and joining the rest of the NMA.

I am very happy about this... I just thought I'd share that!

See you from the edge of darkness!
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Sunday, 13 April 2014

Decals and varnish... amongst other distractions.

Hello again, it's Sunday and that means another blog update.

But before I start, I'd like to welcome Shaun McTague as the newest follower of Inso's World. Welcome aboard and I hope you find something to inspire you... and feel free to comment on things.

In a week of ups and downs, I have manged to continue with my current project and throw a few distractions into the mix as well. Hmmm what first? I guess I should start with the latest IG to Squat conversion...


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As you can see, he is armed with a las-carbine like the last one but apart from that, he's just a bit more of the same. Unfortunately, I haven't painted number three or four yet... but I did manage to find a random distraction in the form of this:


Click the Pic!

The mech on the left is going to be a dreadnought for this little Squat force and the guy on the right is a Squat made from Tau and Catachan parts. The rifle is a pulse carbine without the grenade launcher. He's a little bit taller than the otherSquats I have been making but not so tall he doesn't fit.

This week, my decals arrived from Dom's Decals and they were screaming at me to be adhered to my Powered Armoured Grymn... so that's what I spent four hours of today doing! Yes... 4 hours! 84 tiny little decals are now attached to my Powered Armour platoon and have been varnished over. I haven't taken any pix yet because the troops are still gloss but once I have matt varnished them all, I will show them off. I am glad that the little task is done... I don't have a lot of patience for decals.

...and finally...

Do you remember these?:


Click the Pic!

Well, they are now available to buy as a part of a pack of Leets from HERE. It is always nice when your own work gets put into a shop.

That's it for now.

See you from the end of the space-time shift!
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Sunday, 30 March 2014

I am mostly distracted!

Hello again. It's Sunday and time for a bit of a round up of this week's activities on the hobby front... so...

...Let's talk about Captain America and the Winter Soldier.

Over all, it was a great film with excellent tech, some great characters and expanded characterisation, spectacular special effects and some great bad guys. The film has a host of little plot twists and the action is fast paced. What really helped in this film was that we got 'under the skin' of some of the characters (Cap, Black Widow and Nick Fury) and it helped make them more human. The one thing that always bothers me about superhero films is that they have a mix of super and non-super characters that sometimes all take the same pounding and carry on fighting. I would suggest that if a normal person was struck in the face by a metal arm that was attached to a super-soldier, they would be hospitalised straight away... apparently, this is not always the case.

Did I like the film? Yep, I loved it. It was also better than the first one and the addition of The Falcon was a fantastic idea (he is a great character).

Remember to stay after the credits because there is extra stuff that may well tie into the next Avengers film... who knows?

I made a terrible mistake this week. I did the 'random bid' thing on Ebay and as soon as I'd bid, I thought "Why did I do that?!" Well... I won the auction and this turned up in the post:


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I really can't say why I bid on it but I now have a box of 30 'on the sprue' Imperial Guardsmen with another 6 poorly assembled and covered in glue. Well... 5 poorly assembled and covered in glue... one of them has now been converted:


Click the Pic!

He's not perfect and the next one will be a bit better but it was just an itch that I thought I'd scratch. I'll convert the 5 remaining 'off the sprue' troopers and then make a decision as to whether I continue with the brand new ones. One thing I do need to sort out is what to arm the Squat troopers with. I am not keen on the lasguns in the box and have Catachan lasguns, Cadian lasguns and bolters that are available to use... but I am not sure which will be the best? I am probably either going to use bolters or a chopped down Cadian lasgun...Hmmm...

###EDIT###

A small update:


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Just the base to paint. I thought I'd pay homage to his origins with his paint job.

This week, I should have been painting these:


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Well, I have been but they are not finished... due to other distractions. They are currently basecoated, awaiting a tidy up before being washed. I should have them finished this week but with so many distractions... who knows? 

I have been sculpting again! My commissions have had some work so they are getting closer to being finished.

Now onto Kickstarters. I was part of the Deadzone Kickstarter last year and have still not received all of my wave one stuff, even though it is being sold in the Mantic store. As a result, I must admit that my patience ran out and I have written an email to Mantic for a swift resolution. I had hoped that the process of filling in the 'missing items' form would have sorted this out by now but it seems not to have... so let's see what happens now. 

In other Kickstarter news, the Mechadrome Kickstarter is still ticking along but needs all of the support it can get so that I can get hold of my 28mm mechs! They have recently shown off the medium mech renders with all the weapon options and also a set of automated weapon platforms... well worth a look and a pledge.

My decals haven't arrived yet so I still haven't finished the Grymn Powered Armour. I am not worried though. Dom's Decals are top quality but I think they are printed to order so I expect to wait a little while. 

Well... I think that is about it for today. I know it has been a bit random today but I hope you all found something of interest in amongst the ramblings! The trouble is that I've had too much sugar today so everything is a bit hectic...

See you from the belly of a T-Rex!
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Sunday, 23 March 2014

Spring is in the air.

This week has seen the first day of Spring... and the temperature has taken a dip! However, nature has decided to make a stand and there is blossom on the trees, there are daffodils and snowdrops in the hedgerows and the birds are being decidedly frisky and vocal about things. Spring is great because it is like an awakening after the pause of winter.

Why all the gushing about Spring? The seasons of 'more light during the day' are here and that gives me a bit more enthusiasm to do things.

I could make lots of excuses this week about being tired out (which I was), distracted with work (which I was) and generally not being in a very motivated place (which I was) but I'm not going to. Instead I'll talk about my Grymn powered armour platoon...


Click the Pic!

The above picture shows two images of the same painted squad. You will notice (if you look very hard) that they are all painted; including rank markings. Well, since this picture was taken, I have gloss varnished them ready for adding the decals. Yesterday, I sat down and trimmed all of the number decals ready for them to be applied... but I haven't put them on yet. It may be because I have some regiment decals coming from Dom's Decals and I want to get all of the decals out of the way at once or it may be because I have had another small distraction to keep me busy. Needless to say, I expect that they will have the decals added at some point and then I will matt varnish them and lose sleep over what vehicles to use for them (I have ideas but am not sure if I want to pay the price for them...Hmmm).

Did I mention a distraction? Well... here is a very purple distraction:


Click the Pic!

He is a powered armoured Kieran from Hasslefree Miniatures and is a resin master. I bought the miniature for four main reasons:
  1. It is a very cool miniature.
  2. I wanted to see how it measured up against the Grymn.
  3. I already have powered armoured Meg (his sister).
  4. I was ordering a few other things so it made sense to order him at the same time.
When I got him in hand, I quickly realised that he fits in perfectly with the Grymn (as you can see from the Grymn in the image) and also that a little bit of chopping would mean that the Grymn powered armour arms could be added for more variety. When I first saw the miniature I saw the potential to have a small command squad for my Grymn NMA but needed to check before I bought a batch. Seeing as this was a resin master and, as a result, was more expensive than a metal miniature, I decided that I wouldn't chop him up but would add him to a small unit instead. It was an obvious choice to add him to the Pug Squad:


Click the Pic!

... And that is why he is purple. The trouble is, all I can see is an empty space on that movement tray and as a result, I have quickly assembled a miniature to fill the gap... but you'll have to wait for that!

In other news, I have bought into another Kickstarter. I shouldn't have... but then there are a lot of things in life that I shouldn't have done but I can live with it! The Kickstarter in question is Mechadrome. It is a game aimed at 15mm and involves a number of rather neat mechs. As a result of my questions (and other people's too), the creator has decided to put together some 28mm mechs as a side-line (at the moment, they aren't catered for in the game, they are just 28mm 'show-off' miniatures for people to paint up and use for whatever they want) so I jumped on board. Here is a teaser showing examples of a 15mm and 28mm version of a Terran mech:


Click the Pic!

They are cool, aren't they? Jump on board and pledge here: MECHADROME KS LINK.

Have you ever seen the film called 'Pay it Forward' or heard about the idea behind it? Pay it forward is where you help five people or give them a gift and they agree to do the same to another five people... and so on. I am involved with a Pay it Forward project on Facebook and have already gathere things together for three of my list of six people (there is always that one person who you want to add... you know, the person who is awesome, selfless and never asks for anything). One is complete, so I just have five left. It is a good feeling to be spreading a bit of hapiness about... maybe you should give something similar a go? It may completely change your outlook on life... who knows?

That's your lot for today.

See you from the edge!


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Sunday, 16 March 2014

Hellboy on the box... and an almost but not quite...

It's Sunday again and I was hoping to show off a fully painted (but not marked) powered armour platoon. However, fate took a hand in stealing away some of my painting time as I was called in to help a damsel in distress... and spent a good couple of hours assembling a children's kitchen playset for a neighbour. Mind you, it was quite entertaining so I wasn't too bothered. I have managed to get this far with my platoon... just three more troops to go before I can start giving them rank and squad markings::


Click the Pic!

The three at the front are now ready for the wash stage and then it will be a case of final highlights and basing. Once they are marked up, the real problem starts... that of finding suitable transport for them. I have a Quinjet that I hoped to convert for them to ride in but I am not so convinced now... but I guess we'll see nearer the time.

In other Grymn related news, I have been searching for four scout vehicles to go with a sniper unit (four fire-teams with four troops in each) and have looked at what is available and nothing really suits what I want so I bought some wheels so that I can build my own. My record for scratch-building vehicles is very poor but you never know... maybe this time I will be lucky.

You may remember me mentioning a parcel that I recently received from Pewter Ponies... well, here is a tiny teaser pic of what I got in the box:


Click the Pic!

I have no idea what I am going to do with them... I only supported the miniatures to help with funding as they are really quite cute and worth a chance. Only time can say what will happen to them.

So a good few months ago, I sculpted a goblin for Goblin Aid and have sat back and waited for some paint jobs to be completed on it. Well, I found one and it is great:


Click the Pic!

It was painted by Orlando the Great over at Frothers Unite and I think it shows my sculpt off really well and I am very pleased to see what has been achieved. Hopefully, there will be many more versions of it.

Well, that about sums things up for today. I need to get some Devlan Mud slapped on a few Grymn.

See you from the brink of war!
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Sunday, 9 March 2014

A monumentous occasion.

This weekend has seen the 18th birthday celebrations of my son. Friday was his birthday and after he'd spent the afternoon with his mum, he came to the pub with me for the first time as a legal patron. Needless to say that the evening was spent drinking and playing pool... with a lot of good natured chat along the way.

Yes... I had to carry him home but I think it was a great evening and he agreed.

The following night (for him) was his first nightclub experience with his older mates, which he also enjoyed greatly.

So... I have had a few distractions. This has meant that although I have managed to get a bit of painting done, I haven't got any pix again.

From a Grymn perspective, I have just got the final grey highlights and the bases to add to another three powered armour troopers and they will be finished... leaving just six more to finish for the whole platoon. Once the platoon is painted, I still have to add all the trandfers/decals but I'll wait until they are all painted so I can do them all together.

In other news, two more Votoms kits turned up from Japan so I can now say that I have all of the kits I need. I also had a surprise arrival from SLAP miniatures... my pewter pony miniatures (which I will show off at another time).

So... last week I went to Overlord and bought a few bits and bobs. One of which was this:


Click the Pic!

He's a Cybertronic Immortal from the Warzone Resurrection game. I didn't really know what to do with him so I had to get my thinking cap on... but it wasn't too hard to find a place for him in my Super team:


Click the Pic!

He's big but I think he still fits in.

I also bought a box of cheap Space Rangers from Em4, some little robot technicians from Crooked Dice, some 15mm Werewolfs from MJ Figures, some pack-less GW Kasrkin stormtroopers from the bring-and-buy and finally a Warmachine character from the same place. I bought a few laser cut bases as well but I binned them because they smelt terrible. The Space Rangers are on the paint table next to the Grymn in powered armour... so they are getting a bit of paint when I get fed up with painting angles and lines.

This week should hopefully be a bit less hectic... we'll see I guess!

See you from the pool table!
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