Category: Musings

Welcome to this weeks Miniatures & Musings!

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This weeks miniature is actually two figures for the price of one!  Sorting through my bits box I discovered a number of Dixon’s American Civil War Confederates which I had completely forgotten I had.  In all honesty I didn’t feel like painting them but then felt guilty and decided that I ought to make the effort to do so.   I divided them into two batches and committed myself to doing half in the coming weeks and half after a break, rewarding myself if you like.  Nothing much to say on these at all really.  Confederates provide a little more colour contrast than Unionists so I do prefer painting them.

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Well It Made Me Laugh

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Christmas Shopping

The pandemic has made Christmas shopping very difficult this year.  I’m stumped with what to buy She Who Must Be Obeyed and my son and daughter will not be easy either.  Then there is my mum and dad.  What do you buy an 89 and a 94 year old?  Well obviously something they can use straight away but narrowing it down doesn’t particularly solve the problem.  The thing is I really need to actually go to the shops but online shopping is going to be the order of the day.  Restrictions might be lifted but having spent so much time in lock down I’m not going to throw it all away by joining the mass hordes as they go mental shopping in the city. 

There is, however, some good news.  Whilst others might have to go without or settle for what can be bought on Amazon everything I want for Christmas can be purchased online.  Such is the beauty of our hobby.

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Give Me Five

Back to the movies this week and the genre is Westerns.  OK it’s and age thing on my part but it’s also my blog!  Now this was tough because there are so many classic films to chose from.  I could have made this a top thirty list and still left loads out.  In the end I went for the films I can watch again and again.  It was still tough but my top five in no particular order are:

1. Once Upon A Time In the West
2. Shane
3. Tombstone
4. The Outlaw Josey Wales
5. Dances With Wolves

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This week TIM has been listening to …

“Only You” by Yazoo with Alison Moyet.  Before there was Adele there was Alison Moyet.  I hadn’t listened to her in a long time but I recently watched the final episode of The Office starring Ricky Gervais which featured this track and was then reminded that it was time I dug her music out.  

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This week TIM has been watching …

“Tolkien” starring Nicholas Houston and Lily Collins.  As it turned out this film was interesting but not at all what I was expecting.  A love story and an historical drama which proved watchable but the moral of this tale is read the synopsis first.  Not a Hobbit or a Wizard to be found anywhere.   

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Remember …

Don’t trust atoms, they make every thing up.

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TIM

Welcome to this weeks Miniatures & Musings!

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This weeks miniature is another from the Hasslefree range and the young lady goes by the name of Mythic Helen.  Another lovely sculpt as far as I am concerned and a relatively straight forward paint job with just a freehand eye painted to the shield.  

The more observant of you might have noticed that the last couple of figures have not been stuck to the small oak plinths like other more recent figures.  Part of the reason for this is I feel I have lost my way a little with my base work.  I need to get my act together on this.  Even though the bases are only 25mm square they could be a little more interesting.  I need to do some research.  If I can go back and add to the bases then I will.  If not I will try and sell them on Ebay and start over.

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Well It Made Me Laugh

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Speed Painting

On a personal level I have never seen the point of speed painting.

I get that Gamers might prefer painted figures to non-painted figures and want them on the table quickly, even if they have been painted badly.  I can see why a commercial figure painter would want to churn things out as fast as possible.  I can even see the fun of a competition too but as none of these apply to me then I just don’t get it.

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Slow Painting

I am happy to chug along at my own pace enjoying the painting as I go.  That said a I have noticed a worrying trend.  Whilst I have never been a fast painter I am getting slower and slower.  An age thing for sure, mental as well as physical.  The good news is my hands are still steady but on the flip side they periodically cramp up and my eyesight is not what it used to be.  For now all is well but I am starting to realise that at some point in the future I’m gonna be fucked and not in the way I had envisaged!

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Give Me Five

This week I thought I would go with my top five greatest groups of all time.  Now if I’m being honest this one was a breeze to do and the reasons for that are simple.  To many groups these days are manufactured, last all of five minutes and their music is shit.  To be honest I feel sorry for young people these days.  Not only is the future of the planet fucked for them but they have no decent music of their own era to listen to either.  In no particular order:

1. The Beatles
2. Queen
3. The Rolling Stones
4. The who
5. Led Zepplin  

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This week TIM has been listening to …

“Time Warp” from the Rocky Horror Movie.  Now I am no dancer but when I have had sufficient to drink, by which I mean I am drunk, then in my own mind I am awesome at this!  She Who Must Be Obeyed might argue that though.

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This week TIM has been watching …

“Ocean’s Eleven”.  Oddly this film and its various sequels had passed me by.  No reason for that specifically but having been reminded of that fact I thought I would give the film a go, after all it has quite a cast.  Now maybe because the film is a few years old now or the fact that I am becoming more and more of an old git but the truth of the matter is I didn’t think that much of it.  It was OK and it was watchable but some how I expected more and my overall conclusion was one of disappointment.

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Remember …

With Christmas coming up remember to jingle all the way, nobody likes a half arsed jingler.

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TIM

Welcome to this weeks Miniatures & Musings!

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This weeks miniature is a 28mm figure from Reaper, a young lady who goes by the name of Kristianna and who lists her occupation as a Crusader Warlord.  I suspect she had no problem getting through passport control, assuming any of us can remember that term these days!  When you buy this figure it comes with a little lad too.  As far as I can see he is not named so I don’t know if he is a son or some sort of aide but it’s all irrelevant because I haven’t painted him yet, not even sure I will but I wont rule it out completely (I have).

As always with a single figure I am finding it harder and harder to say much about them these days.  The paint job was straight forward enough and I didn’t have it in me to do any freehand.  Perhaps I need to start making up some character blurb to go with it?  Not sure I have the imagination that others do for that sort of stuff but one to ponder perhaps.  Which is typically my way of saying I wont do it.

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Well It Made Me Laugh

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Covid-19 – Lockdown 2 The Sequel

Back in the days of the first lockdown it was as, far as I was concerned, a fun time.  The sun was shining, the roads were quiet and most people were scared shitless so we had no holiday makers to speak of in the South West.  All in all life was pretty good but for the threat of impending doom. 

Now the UK is part way through the second lockdown and so far I can’t say I am enjoying it much.  Don’t get me wrong I am playing my part once again and following all the rules but the weather is crap, the days are short and I spend most of the time trying to get my waterproof clothes dry in readiness for the next dog walk.  Oddly I am getting less modelling done too which quite frankly is bazaar.  

Sequels are all to often a disappointment and this one is no different.  On the positive side there is much talk of a vaccine.  I wont be top of the list to receive it when ever that is but my age shouldn’t put me at the bottom either.  In any event the time frame is some ways off so it looks very much like the sequel will in fact become a mini series.  Here’s hoping none of us find ourselves in the boxed set. 

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Give Me Five

This week I thought I would go for films with a war theme set earlier than WW2.  Go back as far as you like.  In no particular order I ended up with the list below.  Again I suspect age comes into this. 

1. Zulu (1964)
2. Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
3. All quiet on the Western Front (1930)
4. Paths of Glory (1957)
5. Ran (1985)

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This week TIM has been listening to …

“I Love It” by Icona Pop.  Even at my age I can bounce to this one.  Any record with the lyrics “I don’t Care”, “You’re from the 70’s but I’m a nineties bitch” and “I threw your shit in a bag and pushed it down the stairs” works for me. 

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This week TIM has been watching …

“TheGood Liar” starring Helen Mirren and Ian McKellen.  I do like Helen Mirren in particular so this was a must watch film for me.  Very enjoyable.  A twist was expected from the very start which gives nothing away but the story line shoots off in an unexpected way.  I’ll say no more. 

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Remember …

Two can keep a secret if one is floating down the river.

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TIM

Welcome to this weeks Miniatures & Musings!

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This weeks miniature is from Hasslefree and goes by the name of “Mystic Warrior Libby”.  A rather neat little four piece figure which like all Hasslefree figures fits together with a minimum of fuss.  I chose to go with a basic paint job and base and that’s about all there is to say!

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Well It Made Me Laugh

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Domain

Well this week I finally took the plunge and took advantage of my free upgrade, albeit for the first year only, and changed my site address to theimperfectmodeller.co.uk.  Despite my apprehension following my trials and tribulations with the new wordpress editor everything so far seems all well and good.  Hopefully it will continue to stay that way.  If there is one thing I hate more than glue it’s technology when it goes wrong.  Oh and I don’t like broccoli much either.

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Give Me Five

This week I thought I would list my top five British stand up comedians.  There have been some great individuals over the years so selection was way tougher than I anticipated.  I could have made this a list of twenty and still left loads out.  I suspect some of the names on here, perhaps all of them, will be lost on overseas readers.  Opinion will be divided I’m sure but over the years these people have given me some great laughs, some still do.  So, for better or worse my top five in no particular order are:

1. Ricky Gervais
2. Rhod Gilbert
3. Rowan Atkinson
4. Billy Connelly
5. Dave Allen

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This week TIM has been listening to …

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This week TIM has been watching …

“The Invisible Man”.  This was the 2020 release, not the 1933 original.  Other than the title I’m not sure the two films have a lot in common.  As to the film itself it was OK and worth a watch in my opinion.  It made She Who Must Be Obeyed jump a couple of times and that alone made the whole thing worthwhile!

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Remember …

Whatever you’re doing today, do it with the confidence of a 4 year old in a Batman T-Shirt.

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TIM

Welcome to this weeks Miniatures & Musings!

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This weeks miniature goes by the name of “Commander Slaughter” and is from Hasslefree Miniatures.  Not sure if the figure is based on anyone in particular but he is a lovely single piece sculpt in my opinion.  A simple base and a straight forward paint job.  Nothing much else I can say really.

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Well It Made Me Laugh

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Give Me Five

This week we are back to films.  In fact the more I think about it the more I think this will become more about films and TV than anything else!  This week we have a very, very tough one, WW2 films.  So many great films left out.  In no particular order my top five are:

• Saving Private Ryan
• Hacksaw Ridge
• The Great Escape
• The Bridge Over The River Kwai
• Schindler’s List

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IRO’s Podcast

I regularly listen to IRO’s Podcast and enjoy it very much (I know what you’re thinking – “so you’re the one?”) and as we all know he has a face for radio and an unbridled enthusiasm for our beloved hobby in all its forms.  His finest work was undoubtedly Episode 9 and I would encourage you to check that out but this little article is about Episode 38.

At the end of Episode 38 IRO refers to an email he received from a guy called John W.  Apparently John W had listened to Episodes 1 & 2 and thereafter felt compelled to email IRO to say that having done so he would rather watch paint dry.  I thought it was great that IRO was big enough to read the email out and in typical style laugh it off. 

Now IRO is six feet two, follically challenged, covered in tattoo’s with muscles in his spit and quite capable of looking after himself.  However, he considers me to be his Hobby Dad which therefore makes him my Hobby Son which in turn leaves me compelled to comment.  So I will.

Unless someone had to do it for him I assume that John W was capable of switching off the podcast in the same way he switched it on i.e. without the need to email IRO.  Then again perhaps someone had a gun to his head forcing him to do so, an option we should not be too quick to rule out.  There is also the do-gooder scenario which is to say maybe John W was simply being humorous.  Possible but far from rib tickling John W if I may say so.

All in all I am inclined to conclude that John W was simply being sarcastic and couldn’t resist a put down.  Sadly we live in an age where far too many people cannot resist the opportunity to put out negative and poisonous comments.  We now live in the era of the Troll.  The days of saying – “If you can’t say anything nice don’t say anything at all” appear to have gone.  Which reminds me of another expression – “If you can’t beat them join them” so if you are reading this John W then “Fuck off and stop being a pratt”.

To my sensitive readers apologies for the profanity.

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This week TIM has been listening to …

“Wake Me Up” by Avicii.  Unusually for me something relatively modern!  A cracking little number that with a good few beers in me would get me jumping.

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This week TIM has been watching …

The film “Yesterday”.  As a general rule I like Richard Curtis films and I certainly like Lily James but personally I found this utter crap.  Sorry for sitting on the fence.

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Remember …

If a woman tells you that you’re right that’s called sarcasm. 

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TIM

Welcome to this weeks Miniatures & Musings!

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This weeks miniature goes by the name of “Doc Scurlock” and sees a return to the Old West genre and to Knuckleduster miniatures.  As with all the Knuckleduster figures it is very nicely sculpted and arrived with no cleaning up being necessary. 

A straight forward paint job and a simplistic base.

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Well It Made Me Laugh

Five Rules for Men to Follow:

Here are the five rules for men to follow for a happy life that Russel J Larsen had inscribed on his headstone in Logan, Utah.  He died not knowing that he would someday win the “Coolest Headstone” contest …

1. It’s important to have a woman who helps at home, cooks from time-to-time, cleans up and has a job.
2. It’s important to have a woman who can make you laugh.
3. It’s important to have a woman who you can trust and doesn’t lie to you.
4. It’s important to have a woman who’s good in bed, and likes to be with you.
5. It’s very, very important that these four women do not know each other or you could end up dead like me.

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Give Me Five

If money were no object these are the five classic cars I would immediately go out and buy.  Prices vary significantly but in reality 1 of the 5 I could buy now in theory. 

E Type Jaguar Convertible

Aston Martin DB5

Mini John Copper Works 1275

Ferrari 250 GT Spyder GT Convertible

MG A Roadster

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This week TIM has been listening to …

“Paranoid” by Black Sabbath.  Ozzie Osbourne before the drink, drugs and Bat diet.  A classic head banging blast.

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This week TIM has been watching …

“Anna and the Apocalypse”.  Billed in some reviews as High School Musical meets Shaun of the Dead.  Not a film I had been aware of but gave it a try and thoroughly enjoyed it.  

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Remember …

90% of being married is shouting “What” from other rooms.

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TIM

Welcome to this weeks Miniatures & Musings!

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This weeks miniature is from the Footsore Baron’s War range.  I thought this was my last foot Knight that I had left to paint but I have a horrible feeling I have one or two banner men tucked away somewhere still to do.  If I have then they will have to wait that’s for sure.

As for this little chap he was a straight forward except for his shield which was a freehand paint job.

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Well It Made Me Laugh

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Painting Rules

A recent exchange of comments between Wudugast and my good self found us touching on the subject of self imposed painting rules.  We didn’t get into specifics but it made me consider what rules I apply when I set out to paint figures.  Now I say rules, it could probably be argued that these are simply habits, either way I never deviate from them.  To my surprise I only have three which are cast in stone.    

• I only ever prime using Humbrol white matt enamel paint thinned with white spirit and applied with a brush;
• I always paint the face first;
• I stay true to colours of historical and true life pieces as much as possible.

With the exception of IRO who has only the one rule (follow no rules) feel free to confess your own idiosyncrasies. 

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Give Me Five

Now I am not an avid reader despite the number of headaches that She Who Must Be Obeyed has.  My reasoning is simple, I will have plenty of time to read when I can no longer paint.  Never the less here are my top 5 books.

• Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett
• I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes
• Kane and Abel by Jeffrey Archer
• The Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsyth
• Jaws by Peter Benchley

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This week TIM has been listening to …

“Rock and Roll” by Led Zeppelin.  One of the worlds biggest ever bands and a classic track.

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This week TIM has been watching …

“A Good Women is Hard to Find”.  I hadn’t heard of this film and had no idea what it was about or when it started where it was going.  Turned about to be well worth a watch if you don’t mind violence.

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Remember …

If it says “Don’t try this at home” pop round to someone else’s place and give it a go.

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TIM

Welcome to this weeks Miniatures & Musings!

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This week saw a return to my “to do” pile.  I didn’t have a great deal of love for this figure.  It is one from Reaper rather than Knuckleduster which might surprise one or two of you.  Not entirely sure why I had such a lack of interest, I think he was just a victim of wanting him done to move on.  I’m not normally given to such moods when painting, perhaps it’s indicative of the current times.

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Well It Made Me Laugh

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Give Me Five

I thought I would start something new from this week, my top 5 things under whatever category happens to take my fancy.  Could be film categories, music, places visited, food I like, books – you name it.  To start with I thought I would kick off with something not to random but probably controversial – my top 5 Science Fiction films. 

Feel free to agree or disagree or even add your own list.  The films are not ranked in any order and of course I have left a great number of fantastic films out.  These just happen to be 5 films I can watch again and again and which blew me away at the time of there release.  So, in no particular order:

• Blade Runner (1982)
• Alien (1979)
• The Terminator (1984)
• The Thing (1982)
• Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)

What no Star Wars?  Not even Star Trek?  Nope.  The longer the list the easier it is to simply pick everything and remove the debate process so that’s why I went for 5 rather than a top 10 or 20. 

Even if we all disagree we should at least come up with a great list!   

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This week TIM has been listening to …

“Footloose”.  I enjoyed both the original film and the remake and loved the title song.   This version is an extended one and is a mash up of dancing sequences from movies.  I do think the people who put these things together with such perfect timing are very, very clever. 

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This week TIM has been watching …

“Broken City” starring Mark Wahlberg and Russell Crown.  I seem to be on bit of a role in terms of watching crap at the moment.  I like both actors and thought I would be on a winner with this one but sadly not.  Maybe it’s just me.

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Remember …

If at frist you don’t succeed try doing it the way your wife told you.

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TIM

Welcome to this weeks Miniatures & Musings!

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This weeks mini is another Hasslefree miniature.  This one goes by the name “Shamanic Boudi”. 

I apologise for the photo’s.  I am far from pleased with them.  Done in to much of a rush in order to get this post out.  That said I could have taken my time and they probably wouldn’t have been much better!  For some reason I just couldn’t seem to get everything in focus as I would like. 

I used some Green Stuff World acrylic to create a water effect base and although it looks decent enough looked down upon it looks poor side ways on.  This really hasn’t helped with the photo’s at all and something I will take on board when I re-do them and, as and when, I use the stuff again.

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Well It Made Me Laugh …

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Everything I Touch Turns To Gold!

Have you ever had one of those weeks?  No neither have I.  In fact this last week pretty much everything I touched turned to shit.  

So what went wrong TIM?

Nothing major, just all sorts of small irritating bits, one thing after another, enough to wear you down.  My mum always says bad things come in three’s.  She’s right, the current count stands at 33.

On the positive front my mood got so bad She Who Must Be Obeyed stopped talking to me.  Maybe things are on the up and I’ve turned a corner.

Next week will be better

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Poll Result

Thanks to all of you who kindly took the trouble to answer my recent question about Work In Progress posts.  The majority it seems like to see the builds as they progress although one or two others prefer the wow factor (always assuming there is one!) of seeing the completed diorama first. 

It seems the real challenge is trying to keep each post interesting and, if possible, try to hold something back so that the completed model still comes as a bit of a surprise.  Not entirely sure how I am going to manage that but I will give it a good try.

As I mentioned at the time this is all to do with gearing up to start a couple of slightly larger dioramas, something I haven’t done for a while now.  Slowly I am getting there in terms of getting the bits I need and hopefully it wont be too long now before things get started.  My available time though is also competing with a great many outdoor jobs and a room which She Who Must Be Obeyed (yes she’s still around) keeps on about being decorated.  I wouldn’t mind but I told her quite clearly that when I say I will do something I will do it.  OK so it was more that four months ago when she first mentioned it but compared to how long her headaches last it’s a drop in the ocean.

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This week TIM has been listening to …

“Do The Strand” by Roxy Music.  One of my favourite bands and one I don’t listen enough to these days.  Still, with the onset of winter and the expectation of wet days for the next 6 months there should be plenty of time to put that right!

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This week TIM has been watching …

“Man On A Ledge”.  An OK film and nothing more as far as I am concerned.  Films which don’t take themselves too seriously, for example Bond movies, can stretch the bounds of reality and I am fine with that but this on was a bit to fanciful for me.

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Remember …

Tequila may not be the answer but it’s worth a shot.

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TIM

Welcome to this weeks Miniatures & Musings!

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“King of the Castle”.

As kids it’s a game we used to play and for whatever reason the composition of this figure reminded me of that and of a time gone by.  The figure is from Hasslefree and goes by the name of “Alyx” and it is one I have painted a couple of times before, albeit in other variants as it comes with three choices of arms.  I just love the attitude of this figure and as sculpts go it has to be one of my favourites.

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Well It Made Me Laugh …

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Monday Monday 

Originally the song title to a track by the Mamas and the Papas but in this case it is a reference to my Memory Monday posts.  To cut to the chase Memory Monday will come to and end in a few weeks time, not entirely sure exactly when but I will keep you posted.  The last post I have planned will be when I reach the concluding part of my WW1 timeline.  Memory Monday will return but it needs a break.  I’m conscious of the fact that for many of you now it is becoming repetative as it wasn’t long enough ago that they were originally posted.  Not sure how long the break will take but it will be for a few months that is for sure.

What will you replace it with TIM?

Well I am glad you asked me that dear reader.  For a period of time it will be replaced by “Dio-Bolical Monday”.  I have a couple of dioramas planned and as you know these don’t get get done in five minutes so, like it or not, Dio-Bolical Monday is going to be charting my progress on these builds.  Will it be interesting?  Maybe, maybe not but either way you’re stuck with it!

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This week TIM has been listening to …

“You Shook Me All Night Long” by AC/DC.  Needed to blow away a few cobwebs and something loud was the order of the day.  Never quite got the cloth cap or school boy look but the track is a classic.

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This week TIM has been watching…

“Fury” starring Brad Pitt.

If I ever do get around to doing a tank, and I’m not saying I will, it will either be the “Oddball” tank from Kelly’s Heroes or this one from Fury.  A tough decison and one which will probably never be made because it’s that tough!  And before anyone makes the suggestion, no I am not doing them both.

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Remember…

Surround yourself with people who have issues because people who have issues always have alcohol.

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TIM