Bumper Sunday... the second.

In the second post for today's Bumper Sunday, I will be talking about the past.

A few years ago, I decided that I was going to convert a few of the old style plastic GW terminators (the ones that came attached to a single sprue and you had limited options for them) into 'true-scale' power-armoured marines... and that is what I did. I converted a terminator into a chaos lord in powered armour and it looked like this:

Click the Pic!

Well, I posted a pic or two and I got a request to sculpt one for a guy in the USA... which I did and he loved it... but that distraction was enough for me to put the conversion project on hold for a while. However, when I got back to it, I thought I'd convert a terminator or two... which led to this:

 Click the Pix!

Then a few years passed but finally a chance discovery during a sort out meant that I found the big terminator with the servo arm and I started painting him. Well, finally, he is finished and here he is:

Click the Pic!

Since I finished him, I thought about how he will fit into the little group I have planned and that led me to the conclusion that the Demon Prince needed a base change so I have removed the Catachan from the base, repainted it and varnished everything (it was painted with gloss varnish!). Here is the finished item:

Click the Pic!

Of course... I couldn't just leave it there... OH NO... so I dug out another couple of assembled/converted marines and here they all are together:

Click the Pic!

You can see that there is a difference in size between the Terminators/Demon Prince and the standard marine on the right. This was planned to show the continuing power of corruption that chaos has. You will also notice that there are different colours. That is because this is a band of renegades so expect them all to be different colours with the only unifying mark being the 'three claw' mark on a shoulder pad that shows them to be Dire Wolves.

Whew! What a lot of stuff today!

In other news... I just bought a copy of White Dwarf on a whim! I am a lost soul indeed!

See you from the safety of a pentagram!

Bumper Sunday... the first.

What a week!

Lots of computer training, a trip to Boscombe Down to measure stuff, a Merlin '10 years on operations' event, a 25 year anniversary, news of a short term promotion, painting things AND even a little bit of sculpting... not to mention joining in with the latest UDoD on the FoD!

One of the great things about being in the Royal Air Force is that when you have to travel anywhere, you can get transport provided. Depending on cost and where you are going, this can be anything from rail-fare to a hire car. For my trip to Boscombe Down, I was given an almost new Ford Fiesta. It was a diesel and was great fun to drive (better than my own car). It sort of makes up for all the short notice travelling you are sometimes asked to do.

The 10 years on Operations event was a great opportunity for me to catch up with friends who I haven't seen for as long as ten years! My better half and I, had a lovely evening of good food, good drinking and excellent company so it was really worth going. One thing about the forces is that once you make a friend, no matter where they go, they are a friend for ever and you just pick up where you left off.

Yesterday was the 25th anniversary of me joining the Royal Air Force. I can still remember raising my hand and swearing on the bible that I will be the Queen's (or her successors) humble servant. It was in Exeter and the very next day, I was on a train to Royal Air Force Swinderby to start my journey. Over the last 25 years there have been plenty of ups and downs but I wouldn't have changed a thing. I have achieved so much and been to so many places that I would never have gone to had I not joined up so I can safely say that it was the perfect choice for me to make. It was most certainly 'one in the eye' for many of my friends at home who thought that it wouldn't last (and they are still back at home doing the same-old, same-old). I would recommend the Royal Air Force to anyone. It is just like any other job... but with more opportunities.

So... Dragons. It is with trepidation that I can reveal the first finished Dragon:

Click the Pic!

It is the very first Dragon (or large creature) that I have ever painted and although there are areas that could be improved, I am pretty happy with it. I have kept things fairly natural looking and this 'theme' will transfer to all of the Reptiliad Dragons that I paint. Speaking of which... I have finished the basic assembly of the next dragon:

Click the Pic!

It is a Reaper Dragon of some description and has slipped a little in the mould so it is going to need a lot of green stuff action to sort out all of the scales and things. I am thinking that this one is going to be a plains Dragon so it will be green with maybe a bit of yellow here and there. The base is going to be a mix of stones, rocks and vegetation. I have a lot of work to do on this one and am already looking forward to the next Dragon because I have checked it and it is pretty clear of any major issues to sort out.

Away from Reptiliad, I have been doing something very strange... it all started when I realised that I still had membership to the Bolter and Chainsword forum. I decided to log in and see what was what and realised that the forum had been updated and I had no posts! Well... after a bit of digging, I posted up a picture of my Chaos Terminator:

Click the Pic!

and that made me dig him out of hiding... so I have been painting Space Marines (yes... plural!).

But I'll save that for a bit later on today.

See you from the time portal!

Wednesday... BORED!

It's Wednesday and it isn't even 21:00hrs in the evening and I could just go to bed... but I can't because I am over tired and I'll just wriggle.

I have had one of those weeks (so far) where I don't know what the heck is going on. I've had 'floorwalkers' around at work and they insist on helping you learn the latest computer system when, to be honest, I can work it out. No sooner did that finish on Tuesday when today, I start another course to learn about another computer system! It really does make me wonder where I went wrong in life... I'm an aircraft technician, not an I.T. consultant!

This week is actually a bit special for me. Not only is it the25th anniversary of me joining the Royal Air Force but it is also the tenth anniversary of the Merlin helicopter being on Operations. There is a big party on Friday and I am looking forward to seeing a load of people I haven't seen since I was in Iraq with the Merlins in 2007/2008. I have to pick the tickets up on Friday but on Friday I am also having to go on a road trip for work... so I hope I get back in time!

On a hobby related note, I have been painting the Dragon and have got a fair bit done so I hope that when I show it off on Sunday, you can see the progress. I have also dabbed a tiny amount of paint on the golem. I would be painting tonight but I have not been sleeping lately and it has started to catch up with me... lots of headaches and a 'can't be arsed' attitude.

I have decided to give the Diorama of Doom a go again this year...here's the LINK. I don't have any miniatures for it yet but I haven't decided what to do yet... or have I?!

On the bright side, I am getting a temporary promotion in a few weeks... Flight Sergeant for a month and a half. Can't be bad, can it?

Sheesh! Is it bedtime yet?!

See you from a place on the edge of the circle... not inside the circle or outside the circle... but on the edge of the circle!

I see a Dragon.

Well, this has been a week of chopping up plasticard and filling holes and it has nothing to do with Command transports for my Tunnel Fighters. I have been 'tinkering' with my little aircraft and have got to a point where there will need to be a lot of sanding... so as you can imagine, there is very little of interest to show off that doesn't just give a general impression of shape.

In amongst the plasticard work, I have had the urge to start a little painting again so I had a bit of a rummage in my cupboard and found a rather interesting miniature that would fit into the Reptiliad setting. It is a machine of some sort... a mechanical golem maybe. Who knows? I think it could have been made by a Dwarf smith and powered by some power-stone even. Well... as it happens, digging the 'golem' out of the cupboard got me looking at the dragon again so I threw a bit more paint on that too...

Click the Pic!

There are two things to note... they are both WIP and they both have a way to go.

The golem is a bit of a strange mini but I can see him accompanying a Dragon Slayer who controls it with some sort of mystic gift from the Mhurni (I haven't really thought about it too much at the moment but there is a seed of an idea there).

The dragon is at a point where I am going to have to make a difficult decision... do I highlight the darker scales or leave them as they are? It is a tough one because highlighting them will look good but the thought of 'dotting' all those scales individually is a bit of a daunting experience. I may well finish the rest of the dragon and worry the decision at the end... 

In other news, Iron Man 3 is now out on DVD; which is nice.

I have put in an order with Puppets War for a few of their 'Air Strikers' and some alternative heads. It is a joint order to split some packs with a mate so it is a good way to sample the products without breaking the bank... especially because I have plans for the jet packs if they are the correct size... but that is another story for another time.

And so another week came to pass... another week that inevitably drags us all towards Christmas.

See you from the cellar under the secret room!

Is it Sunday already?!

Before I start this week's post, I'd like to welcome Dungeon Master to Inso's World. Please feel free to share ideas and comment on the posts.

This week has been an interesting one. Lots of work during the day, lots of disturbed sleep due to the dog next door and an evening in the mess to commemorate the Battle of Britain has meant that my hobby time has taken a hit this week. All I have managed to do is add a few plates to the side skirts of the command vehicle.

It has also been one of those weeks where I have been gripped by an idea that has been circulating around my head for a while... but at the moment, it seems that it won't go away until I have at least tried to scratch-build something... so I have started to do just that. What is it? Well... it is 'hopefully' going to be a Grymn aircraft but beyond that, I'll keep it to myself until I have something solid to show off.

So... not a lot to speak of really.

Oh... I almost forgot about the Crossover Superheroes:

Click the Pic!

As you can see from the picture, I have three males and three females. I haven't assembled them (obviously) but I can see that they are well cast, have minimal clean up and have some nice details (not to mention plenty of head options). I can also see that the females in particular, have some serious proportion/anatomy issues that will need fixing... but nothing too disastrous that can't be fixed once I decide to get to work on them. My personal thoughts on these are that the original sculptor did a much better job and the latest sculptor needs to get to grips with an anatomy book and learn to sculpt the female form. Am I disappointed? Not really. Many people will be able to look past the proportional flaws and just live with it so it means that there are now a few more superhero miniatures on the market for everyone to enjoy... and through Kickstarter, I helped that happen so how can I be disappointed? With a little work, I will sort the miniatures to my satisfaction as well... not ideal... but liveable with.

So there you have it... great quality miniatures but with a few odd proportions.

I think that will about do for today... I have a fuselage to build.

See you from the manufacturing hangar!

A super day!

Welcome to Dungeon Master, the newest visitor to my blog! I hope you enjoy your travels here.

This is just a quick post to say that I had a nice surprise at lunchtime... my Kickstarter parcel from Crossover Miniatures arrived.

Inside were six metal superhero miniatures one quite large one and five human sized ones (in a 28mm sort of way). Three boys (one of which is the big guy) and three girls. Lovely crisp casts too.

When I get around to it, I'll post a bit of a review.

Now all I need is for my other two Kickstarters to follow suit and I'll be really happy (although I don't expect one of them until next year).

Interesting stuff.

See you from under the sofa!

Turtle power and command vehicles.

I have noticed another follower has arrived and I believe it is Maj. Diz Aster. If it is you or indeed, someone else... you are very welcome to my blog. Please feel free to get involved.

So... I have been thinking about my Deadzone miniatures that will be turning up at the end of the year/beginning of next year and am very much looking forward to them arriving. What sparked this train of thought was a post on Facebook about a Teraton Dreadball team:

I am really rather fond of these large creatures and have two kitted out for sci-fi combat coming as part of the Kickstarter. Here is the Dreadball special player (Dozer) confronting an Orc:

As you can see, they are large and a cross between dinosaurs and turtles... but everytime I look at them I just think of Pokemon. With minimal conversion, I reckon these could easily be turned into a decent sci-fi force and for £14.99 for a box of eight players or £9.99 for Dozer, they are tremendous value.

All that Mantic stuff aside, I have been diligently plodding on with the last vehicle for my Tunnel Fighter army and have reached a point where the main body is complete and ready for details to be added. It looks very plain at the moment but it should be treated as a frame:

Click the Pic!

As you can see, it is quite a beast but needs to be so that the walker in the pic can clamber inside. It will also be acting as a command centre so there will be extra crew and technical gizmos to fill up a lot of the space. You can see from the picture that painting the wheels will be really tricky (due to the side skirts) but never fear... with the use of magnets, I can do this:

Click the Pic!

Clever eh? Looking at the base unit... can you tell where the magnets are? I bet you'll never guess...

So I still have a way to go but it is a very good start.

That is it for today.

See you from the bus lane!

Just one more to go!

Well this has been a week and no mistake!

Bank holiday Monday, action packed day at work on Tuesday, Health and Safety course for the rest of the week with a presentation to do on the final day. All that and, as you saw on Thursday's post, a bit of hobby stuff on the side too.

Well... to repeat the title of today's post 'Just one more to go'... yes, I have finished the medical vehicle:

Click the Pic!

I have painted it in line with the rest of the vehicles so it looks a bit 'flat' but that is just the way of it. It is funny but, when I put this one up against the other Marauder conversion, I noticed that the colours were different. The older vehicle was lighter grey and had different coloured tyres! My excuse? It was put together in a different workshop that specialises in medical vehicles and they used different tyres and didn't have the perfect shade of grey! That is my excuse and I am sticking to it.

With the Tunnel Fighters still firmly in mind, I have also started to build the final, Command vehicle:

Click the Pic!

It is based on a Flakpanzer Gepard 1/35th scale kit so it will be quite large. Due to it needing to be quite tall, I may make it so that the top section can be removed for transport (by using some magnets). I have still not decided on how I want it to look but it will be able to feasibly contain two OGrymn, a battlesuit and a small selection of Grymn (the Special Command squad). Fortunately, I was in town yesterday and was able to pick up some cheap paint from Modelzone (due to it closing down) so I will be able to spray the wheels before going too far with the build.

What else is happening? Well... Kev over at Hasslefree Miniatures has been designing and building some new arms for the Grymn Walker. Here is what he has come up with:

Click the Pix!

Cool stuff, I am sure you will agree.

See you from the beach!