Fun minis to paint 28mm...

Here are a few sets of miniatures I  really enjoyed painting up recently. They are so different from the usual historical sci-fi or fantasy minis (not that there's anything wrong with those) one might usually paint. They are all from the excellent The Assault Group within their 'Ultra Modern - Western Civilian and Corporate' range. First up is their Goons in President Masks. I used some pictures from the Point Break movie for some inspiration, an enjoyable film back in the 90's starring the late Patrick Swayze, and Keanu Reeves. I hope you enjoy the pictures...

Here is my inspiration picture..

Next up is Rioters in Clown Masks..

And lastly my favourite group of all, Rioters in Anonymous Masks

They will be going up in my Ebay sales very soon

Barman - Dixon Miniatures

Here's a quick post of a miniature i've just finished. He's been in my lead mountain for a while and just had the urge to get him painted. Its a great sculpt from Dixons Miniatures, which made it all the more easier to paint. The base is a 25mm circle of Wills planking, and i think it finishes the mini off for the better. Hope you enjoy !!

28mm Warlord Roman Sentries

Its been a long time since my last post, nearly 6 months i think. It's nice to be back and spending some non-work time, relaxing and getting back into my hobbies. Over the past few weeks i've been getting some of my barricade designs ready for contract casting, and also started work on a Roman Fort.

No camp would be right without a few sentries to keep an eye on the local tribes, and the sculpts from Warlord are perfect.

The shield transfers are superb and really give the figures something. I wish i could paint to that level, and envy those that can. The tents in the pictures are from some camp dioramas i've also been working on. I think they add a little atmosphere to the pictures, even if they aren't 100% historically correct.

I'll post a few WIP pictures of the Fort tomorrow, its good to be back!

Super J Charity Miniature

I know this post isn't about something i've been working on but its for a great cause so i think it deserves a mention.

I came across a fellow blogger who had this miniature sculpted in the image of his son, who has rare genetic disease called Friedreich's Ataxia. This is a degenerative disease that attacks many areas of the body, including the brain, spinal cord and heart. There is currently no treatment for Friedreich's Ataxia and it is a life-shortening illness, so he's trying to raise money for the Friedreich's Ataxia Research Alliance (FARA).

He is selling Super J minis on eBay, where all proceeds will be donated to FARA. Please take a look at his blog and his ebay page for a better explanation of the cause, and how to buy these Super J minis. Mine recently came through and it really is a great cast and i'm hoping to start painting it up soon. I hope i can do it justice and get somewhere near the superb quality Simon Bradley at Stone Cold Lead has done.

Artizan WW2 Commandos

After my varnish nightmare back in June, I stripped these guys back to the metal and started all over again. I finished the flesh areas last night and managed to get a good days painting in today to get these far. With the Olympics on in background i had a good bit of inspiration, and chuffed with how fast these boys have come along.

Hopefully I'll get them completed tommorrow and be able to post some finished shots up in evening

Praetorian 40K Objective Markers

Ok, so here's the last one if finished making up. I've had to do a load of green stuff to get it right but i think it serves its purpose. I originally had the idea of a wounded Praetorian being dragged to safety but with my limited green stuff skills and the limited poses of the metal Praetorian models, i went for the next best thing of a guy being picked up by his legs prior to being dragged to safety.

I basically took a running trooper, cut off his arms and head, repaired his torso with some green stuff scuplting, added some plastic arms from my bits box and finished with some epaulettes.

His legs were bent into shape a little and his head reattached to a downward facing position. The casualty was a standard one with his legs bent into a just lifted postion.

I'm happy with the result and how they turned out. I had another chap on the go, but i've decided to put him on the back burner until these chaps are painted up. Here's a few more shots of all the conversions before the primer coat goes on tomorrow..

Praetorian 40K Objective Markers

In a moment or two of conversion madness i've been working on these objective markers. To be honest i'm not sure how they could be used, but i just liked the idea of each piece. I have two more on the go, but there's alot more conversion and green stuffing to be done til they're finished. I'm sure they'll look better when painted but these WIP shots give a rough idea of what was going through my mind at the time!

They are mostly made up from classic GW Praetorians, but there's a dead Foundry horse, a Renedra barrel, and my favourite has to be Ernest Carrying his wounded comrade (a Scarab Miniatures piece) to which i've added some Praetorian details such as boot straps, and epaulettes.  

Praetorian Conscripts 40K

I managed to get round to finishing this group off this week, with just the varnishing to be done. I'm quite happy with the results, i've puposely put off varnishing until the wet weather backs off a bit. I dont know if thats caused my problems, but i feel better waiting!

Next up is some Praetorian Casualty and Objective Markers....

Praetorian Conscripts 40K

After the other nights varnishing disaster, i immersed myself into painting these Necromunda braves. The idea is for them to be used with a 40k Praetorian Army, and to try and tie some of the colours in with the regular army. The trousers and webbing were the most logical items, so i continued with the blue and white colours as shown in the Army pictures. (I apologise for the poor quality pictures, i must take some better shots of te completed army at some point!)

There's still a fair bit to do on these, boots, webbing and all the fine detail bits. Not quite sure what i'll do varnish wise when their finished!  

Varnish Nightmare !!!

I tried varnishing these guys up and had one of 'wish i didnt' moments. As my previous posting explained i normally use a semi sheen acrylic, followed by a coat of dead flat testors. For some reason i couldnt get rid of the sheen and tried more coats of testors. Nothing would get rid of it so i tried an old pot of Humbrol Matt, and as you can see it completely ruined one of the figures. I really dont know what to do now, i dont like the sheen finish but i'm reluctant to keep putting more varnish coats on... I'm thinking of stripping them back and starting again.....

Artizan WW2 Commandos

Wow these boys flew along, and now they're pretty much finished. All ready for varnishing and just the bases to finish. I normally use two coats of varnish, an acrylic first coat of a tough wearning matt coat, followed by a coat of testers to get that dead flat finish.

Hopefully i'll get these boys all done tommorrow, and some more pictures up in the evening.