The plan for the last week was to get the turret done and begin work on the top section of the tower. Every section of this model is a painting marathon but so far I am loving every minute of it. Yes I know an airbrush would have quickened things up but I’m a brush guy and am happily losing myself in this project. Although I consider the progress I am making to be very pleasing I’m conscious of the fact that from a blog posting point of view things might be a little dull. Hopefully though the images towards the end of this post will provide some idea of scale and why it is a beast of a model.
The first couple of photos today are of the outside of the turret. There are five turret windows and each one takes a while to do but I love the way they look. Not my idea as I have said before but thanks to the YouTube link I have previously posted. The wooden shingles have all been painted using a combination of various earth coloured oils and most of the weathering has been done too. The grain and texture engraved in the model is simply brilliant. As you can see in the second image their is a top piece still to be painted. I’m leaving that for now so I can pick the top up rather than manhandling the paint work so far done.
With the turret largely out of the way it was time to move on to the stone section. As with the rest of the model it is very highly detailed and getting into the various nooks and crannies to paint everything is time consuming and more than a little repetitive but with YouTube on I was happily zoned out. No real secret to any of the painting here. Just a couple of base colours, washes to get into the dark recessed areas and highlights and dry brushing on edges and where else I felt it was appropriate for weathering. As with the all the tower painting so far done there is much more weathering to be done but that will come later.
In the third image below I have inserted the room which I got painted last week. The fit is perfect and was easily glued into place.
With the room in place I added the turret. Again the fit is perfect although there is only one way the turret can be positioned so I colour marked it for ease as it will not be glued down, that way it will be possible to see inside the room. The colour marks aren’t visible when the turret is on.
With the top section put together it was time for a motivational assembly of the main pieces. It is nice to take time out and see how things are progressing. So far so good and I am very pleased with things as they currently stand. That said there is a long way to go.
Plenty more to paint on the tower. The base hasn’t even been started and there are figures and other bits and bobs to be done. A good many weeks work lay ahead. Next week I will aim to get the rocks done on the base section. Then I might start to think about how to go about getting the base done.
TIM
I know I’ve said it before but this is an amazing model and you’re doing a fantastic job with it! 🙂
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Thanks Wudu old chap. I am pleased with how it’s going and a big project right now is a welcome distraction. 🙂
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Not dull at all mate. I’m loving it. It’s looking so bloody cool. I really want to use it in a game hehe
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It’s an awesome model mate, you’d love it. Of course your next diorama could be to make your own? 🙂
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Gee yeah maybe. Another thing to add to my loooooong list of projects haha I’m still thinking something as a prequel to your fools gold one
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I did see that Knuckleduster do a nice prospector with a mule which I’m thinking about getting at some point. There are few other figures I think I could put into a Crazy Pete story line as well. I’m thinking along the lines of three or four little vignettes at some point that lead up to Fools Gold.
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Coooooool. I’m thinking of doing a small dio of a young crazy Pete. Possibly he was a sherif. I’ve got a bunch of minis coming from Dead Mans Hand and I’ve also got some knuckleduster and wargames foundry ones coming. All these are for a Wild West game I’m developing. It’ll be basic but have lots of feuding gangs.
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Sounds like it. Will look forward to seeing what you end up doing. 🤗
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Sounds cool. I didn’t like Westerns as a kid, SciFi was more my thing. But then I really learned to like Westerns. We’re currently watching Deadwood, second time for me, first for my Wife. Games wise, I always thought a Western RPG would be interesting, but wasn’t sure exactly how to run it. I should probably check out Red Dead Redemption someday, and that would probably scratch that itch!
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Red Dead is pretty bloody cool. I’m not really a gamer but I remember liking that one. I need to get into Deadwood. I watched the first episode and found it a little slow. Does it get better?
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I’ve heard Red Dead is good from a lot of friends. But I imagine it’s a lot like Skyrim…once I get into those games, mini painting goes by the way side and I lose hours, if not days!
Deadwood is not really an action series. It’s more about the actors performances and the characters than anything. I still think it’s pretty great and having fun watching the story unfold.
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😵 Hell’s teeth, that is a big chunk of terrain. Spectacular mate, certainly not boring!
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Cheers Alex, it is big beast for sure but one I’m very much enjoying.
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Great to see how it’s coming alive- very impressed!
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Thank you. It has quite a way to go and if I dare say so myself it will hopefully get better. Fingers crossed!
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This looks better with each update, so not dull at all!
Cheers Roger.
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Thanks Roger, glad I am going in the right direction. Whilst I personally like WIP posts I’m conscious of the fact they are not everyone’s cup of tea so always grateful for positive feedback. 🙂
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I knew it was a big model, but those last few shoots really show its sive, wow!
And the paint is coming on great, looking very realistic keep it going!
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Cheers mate. At about 2 feet tall it is a fair size. Great fun though! 🙂
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Excellent looking contrasts on all the levels TIM, I’m guessing the base rocks will be a different colour to the stonework as you haven’t painted them at the same time as the stonework
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Thanks Dave. Yes I’m aiming to provide some contrast. Nothing too much as other colours will come into play later hopefully but enough to keep the thing looking real(ish) and interesting. 🤞
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It is impressive, no doubt about it! 🙂
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Thanks John and the Tower is pretty good too – Boom, Boom! 😂
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That looks really good. Love watching it come together.
Cheers,
Pete.
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Thanks Pete, glad you’re enjoying this one progress. 🙂
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Excellent progress all around and that picture with just the unpainted stone parts really gives a sense of how special this project is going to be. I’m glad to hear that you’re really enjoying the paint process too. Keep the updates coming! 🙂
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“with just the unpainted stone parts to go…” I hit send accidentally before I could proofread it!
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There is a long way to go and I hope it’s special when I get to the end but I’m certainly enjoying if. 🙂
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* it!
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You know, Peter Jackson is likely to come knocking on your door now, looking for a mini artist for his next movie!
Just glorious work here. A part of me wants to see some lights on the inside to breathe some life into it. Another part says “nah”. Not sure what your plans are. It’s looking damned amazing either way. When you say you’re a ways off from finishing, would you say you can usually estimate how long these projects take you in general? I always find with the Blood Bowl teams, I think I’m close, then it ends up being several more weeks!
Keep throwing those WIP pictures at us!
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Lighting would have been nice but the windows are solid so it was never an option unfortunately. Now if I made my own tower that would be a great thing to do. Estimating would very much be a finger in the air job. Part of the problem I face with this one is that the idea I have for the base work is not something I have done before and as such it might work first time but then again it might not. Then of course there are other life factors which come into play. All of that said I reckon there is around 7 or 8 posts to go. Hopefully I can keep it interesting enough until the end. 🙂
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Well, you have at least one interested party! 😀
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Looking good, I love the stonework on the floor.
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Thanks Steve.
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That’s so neat. I would cry as I didn’t know where to put it. But I really wanna have my own 28mm town… with castle and gigantic tower!
Love how you painted the roof.
I really have to do some catching up. : x
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It’s a great model and I’m sure in the future you’ll havee all the space you need for a tower and buildings of your own. 🙂
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I am loving this so much! Just brilliant choice of colors, use of weathering and painting to die for. I am not bored at all by the WIP, I find it fascinating. Honestly, I think there have been strippers that have held my attention for a far shorter time frame🤪! Only eight more posts, wish there’d be more!
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Haha, loved that line. Might have to use that myself when the occasion arises. Eight is just an estimate. Might be less but if I can make it more I will! 🙂
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