TIM’s Miniatures & Musings (No: 61)

by theimperfectmodeller, posted in Musings, Uncategorized

Welcome to this weeks Miniatures & Musings!

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Another Hasslefree Miniature this week, this one goes by the name of “Vince”.  As with “Earl” which I posted a few weeks ago, this figure was intended to be a part of a diorama which failed to get off the ground.

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Well It Made Me Laugh …

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Interesting Site?

I thought I would share this site with you this week – Small Scale Lights.

This one women site is run by Jennifer and it was from her that I bought the bits and pieces for the three models I put together where I used lighting.  I am no electrician but all we are talking about here is a battery holder, a switch and linking some wires.  Simples.  The harder part is concealing the components but even that is easy if you like scenery.

Lighting is so cool and inexpensive that I don’t know why more people have not embraced it.  She also has a small section for Warhammer 40k/SciFi.  Just looking at her site again has got me thinking of what I might do next.

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This week TIM has been listening to …

“The Monster Mash” by Bobby ‘ Boris’ Pickett and the Crypt Kickers.  By chance I stumbled across this track which I hadn’t heard in absolutely years so I thought I would share it!

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This week TIM has been watching…

“Dances with Wolves” starring Kevin Costner.  It will come as no surprise for you to learn that I do like a good western movie.  I suspect I will feature more in future posts but for now I will kick off with this one.  I do like a long film, the longer the better as far as I am concerned, providing it’s a good one of course.  So I was in my element sitting down to the 4 hour version of Dances With Wolves.  My sympathy has always been with the Indians which is why I love this film.

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Remember…

If you don’t know what apocalypse means it’s not the end of the world.

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TIM

TIM’s Memory Monday (No: 29)

by theimperfectmodeller, posted in Memory Monday, Uncategorized

One of the things I learnt from this little piece is that sometimes all you need is a couple of quality and well composed figures to tell a moving story.

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Casualties of War

This week’s offering is a simple 28mm vignette of a couple of wounded WW1 British soldiers being attended by a clergyman officer.  I figured that within my growing sequence of scenes for WW1 something along these lines was a must have. Photos appear below.

The figures  – the one on the stretcher and the clergyman officer offering a cigarette – are both from Gripping Beasts while the standing smoking figure is from Great War Miniatures.  All white metal and excellent castings.

The Great War preceded the British National Health Service by some 30 years so back in those days a cup of tea and a woodbine was generally regarded as a “cure all”.  Whether you’d lost a limb, been the victim of a mustard gas attack or just suffering from undiagnosed post traumatic stress there was nothing like a fag, a cup of tea and a pretty nurse to ease the pain while reflecting on how lucky you were!

Brave men all of them. Arguably ignorant of what they signed up for but brave none the less. I do however wonder what they would have made of the world we now live in and if they felt their efforts were worth dying for?  Think I may need to set up another blog for the purpose of having a daily rant!

Wishing you all very Merry Christmas and  Happy New Year.

TIM

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Wastelands

by theimperfectmodeller, posted in Miscellaneous, Uncategorized

I don’t know if the sculptor of these two Hasslefree miniatures intended for them to go together but for me they are a natural fit.  The female figure goes by the name of “Pulse” and is one I have painted before.  How you get so much sex appeal into a 28mm figure I will never know.  The chap is called “Oscar”.

The idea of the two figures simply walking along was an obvious one given their design.  In my head Oscar has just said “It’s time to go” and then picked up his gun and bag and walked off leaving Pulse with little choice but to follow him.

The base was a very simple affair.  Dust and dirt ground work with a couple of bricks and a few pieces of wood (coffee stirrers, what else?) thrown in.  No need for anything more elaborate, the figures tell the story.

Images below.

TIM

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TIM’s Miniatures & Musings (No: 60)

by theimperfectmodeller, posted in Musings, Uncategorized

Welcome to this weeks Miniatures & Musings!

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This weeks figure is from a company called Lead Adventure who are based in Germany and sees a return to Steampunk.  Not a great deal to say.  A nicely cast figure duly painted and put on a basic base.

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Well It Made Me Laugh …

A nun walks into the Mother Superior’s office and plunks down into a chair. She lets out a sigh, heavy with frustration.

“What troubles you, Sister?” asked the Mother Superior. “I thought this was the day you spent with your family.”

 

“It was,” sighed the Sister. “And I went to play golf with my brother. We try to play golf as often as we can. You know I was quite a talented golfer before I devoted my life to Christ.”

 

“I seem to recall that,” the Mother Superior agreed. “So I take it your day of recreation was not relaxing?”

 

“Far from it,” snorted the Sister. “In fact, I took the Lord’s name in vain today!”

 

“Goodness, Sister!” gasped the Mother Superior, astonished. “You must tell me all about it!”

 

“Well, we were on the fifth tee — and this hole is a monster, Mother — 540 yard par 5, with a nasty dogleg right and a hidden green … and I hit the drive of my life. The sweetest swing I’ve ever made. And it’s flying straight and true, right along the line I wanted … and it hits a bird in mid-flight!”

 

“Oh my!” commiserated the Mother Superior. “How unfortunate! But surely that didn’t make you blaspheme, Sister!”

 

“No, that wasn’t it,” admitted the Sister. “While I was still trying to fathom what had happened, this squirrel runs out of the woods, grabs my ball and runs off down the fairway!”

 

“Oh, that would have made me blaspheme!” sympathized the Mother Superior.

 

“But I didn’t, Mother!” sobbed the Sister. “And I was so proud of myself! And while I was pondering whether this was a sign from God, this hawk swoops out of the sky and grabs the squirrel and flies off, with my ball still clutched in his paws!”

 

“So that’s when you cursed,” said the Mother Superior with a knowing smile.

 

“Nope, that wasn’t it either,” cried the Sister, anguished, “because as the hawk started to fly out of sight, the squirrel started struggling, and the hawk dropped him right there on the green, and the ball popped out of his paws and rolled to about 18 inches from the cup!”

 

The Mother Superior sat back in her chair, folded her arms across her chest, fixed the Sister with a baleful stare and said …

 

“You missed the fucking putt, didn’t you?”

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Interesting Site?

Grekwood Miniatures is another site I have never ordered from but I came across them when I was searching for some zombies, an idea for a diorama which has yet to materialise.  If it does then I shall look at what they have to offer more closely.  They appear to be a supplier rather than a manufacturer as I notice they also sell some Crooked Dice miniatures as well.

At Telford last year one of the diorama group winners used a water effect called Making Waves.  The result was excellent.  How much it was down to the skill of the modeller and how much it was down to this stuff I have no idea.

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This week TIM has been listening to …

“Get Down Tonight” by KC and the Sunshine Band.  I didn’t ask to be a teen in the disco era but there was no avoiding it if you wanted to go out to a club in the mid 1970’s and meet with the opposite sex.  Every generation will claim they had the best music and I am no different.  For all the bad press the period gets it did have some of the best music ever.  I loved this track back then and I still do.

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This week TIM has been watching…

“The Equalizer 2” starring Denzel Washington.  Thought I ought to watch this to show Black Lives Matter!   Never saw the first one but suspect it was the better of the two.  This was OK and that’s all I have to say on it.

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Remember …

If you have a fear of lifts take steps to deal with it.

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TIM

TIM’s Memory Monday (No: 28)

by theimperfectmodeller, posted in Memory Monday, Uncategorized

In this post I mentioned that the Attestation papers which appear on the table were real ones and that they had been scaled down and printed.  What I failed to say was that they were my Great Grandfather’s Attestation papers.  I am also reminded that I need to take some photo’s of this model again with a stately home background.  My winter projects are beginning to mount up!

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“It Will All Be Over By Christmas” – WW1 28mm Diorama (Part 2)

A little narrative on the completed diorama, images of which appear below.

Following the declaration of war with Germany a patriotic call to arms led to mass recruitment the length and breadth of the country.  Recruitment centres were set up just about anywhere with lengthy queues forming outside town and village halls as well as on the open streets. My diorama is set in the grounds of a modest stately home with men queuing along the pathway outside the main gates.

A few observations regarding the construction of the diorama. The recruitment posters are all real posters which were downloaded images appropriately resized. The table was made from match sticks and the red, white and blue bunting from paper. The railings were constructed using wire mesh and simply cutting away pieces here and there. The paper forms on the table are real Attestation papers printed and downsized.  The tree was another wire tree constructed along the same lines as others I have done and which I have covered in past posts.  The shrubs and bushes were constructed using seafoam and leaves from Noch.  The grass edging was constructed using twisted wire to replicate Victorian rope tiled edging often used in grand buildings of the day.

The figures are all commercial 28mm figures from various suppliers and are without any modifications.

Although I’m not creating my WW1 models in the sequence of the timeline I am hoping to create this particular model will be number two in the sequence and is the natural follow on from my “War Declared” vignette which I recently posted.

Images of the completed diorama are below.

TIM

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Quadrophenia

by theimperfectmodeller, posted in Miscellaneous, Uncategorized

I thought I would enter this one in Azazel’s Jewel of July as well.  Why?  Well it might be a small piece but I think it is cool.  How can a 1960’s Mod, a Lambretta and the Who not be?  Feel free to argue.

So what do we have here?  Well first and foremost this is a TIM conversion!  OK so it’s only a hand that has been changed but it is still the only figure in the world like it.

The figure itself is from Crooked Dice and one I bought a while ago.  It is one of three scooter figures, this one being the gang leader.  I knew what I wanted to do with it immediately I saw it but there was a problem to be overcome.  The figure, a picture of the original little chap appears below, was holding a gun.  Not in keeping with 1960’s Britain so it had to go.  The trouble was I didn’t have an alternative hand.  Move forward a few months and a new supply of figures in the post and as luck would have it one of the figures I had bought came with an arm alternative and voila, up and running.  Eat your hearts out Wudugast and IRO!

Thereafter the figure became a paint job and an opportunity for a little freehand.  Do I paint the classic who logo on the back of the parka like the Crooked Dice images or a Union Jack?  I decided on the latter, I couldn’t do the same and besides I had settled on the Quadrophenia album cover for the base.  Slightly thicker black around the eyes for eye shadow and a registration of WHO1 plus my initials painted to either side of the front of the scooter and there you have it.   If I could only have added some mirrors it would have been perfect but hey ho!

64498b72bd8ba88450ba5e30671322c9I then decided the front of the wooden base could do with a lift and I managed to find a little print which made reference to the Brighton Beach clashes between the Mods and the Rockers in 1964 which was also the central theme of the movie.

Job complete.

For me this is a little nostalgia piece and as cool as it comes.  I was only seven in 1964 but I remember my dad talking to my mum in the kitchen and showing her the front page of the Daily Mirror and saying “Whatever next!”.

Images of the model below.

TIM

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The Crooked Dice images of the original figure
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TIM’s Miniatures & Musings (No: 59)

by theimperfectmodeller, posted in Musings, Uncategorized

Welcome to this weeks Miniatures & Musings!

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This weeks figure is from Crooked Dice and goes by the name of “Talia Torino”.  A nice little paint job but I got stuck with how to make the base a little more interesting.   A rather dull basic tarmac was the order of the day but I really wanted to inject a little colour.  A look at a few race track images gave me the idea for a small piece of red and white edging.

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Well It Made Me Laugh …

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Model Shows

It will soon be time for IPMS to decide what, if anything, is going to happen in respect of this years Telford show.  Whilst the event doesn’t take place until November the level of organisation is huge.  If it does go ahead in any shape or form I suspect it will be a very diluted affair.  It is hard to see how international participants and visitors will be able to travel and social distancing for such a large and popular event will be challenging to say the least.

Model shows are one of few things I have missed since the Coronavirus took its deathly grip and I went into self isolation.  In some ways that feels like an odd thing to say because it was only 3 years ago that I really started attending them.  I didn’t appreciate at the time how important these events would become to me.  They are a great source of inspiration, motivation and banter and I miss it.  Insignificant in the bigger scheme of things I know but I do hope this aspect of my life can return sooner rather than later.  Meanwhile thank goodness for the blog.

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Coronavirus Update

After nearly 5 months  of self isolation I ventured down to the town for the first time.  Boy had it changed.  Outside there were cones everywhere to ensure pedestrian safe distancing and people wearing masks or crossing the road to avoid each other.  Inside 2 metre signage covers the floors, perspex screens are everywhere, you cannot browse easily and offering cash to pay is unacceptable.  I get it and I understand it but I don’t like it.

These changes will be with us for some time, they may even become permanent but I don’t think I want to adapt to living with them.  These steps, as necessary as they are, have moved the world on and I don’t like the way the world looks at the moment.  I am sure I will go into town again but it will be for emergencies only and when I cannot get what I want online.  I was quite happy in lockdown and self isolation so I shall return to it until the world returns, if it ever does, to something I want to be a part of.

As someone who loves the Old West period living as a Homesteader and occasionally saddling my horse or hitching the team to the wagon to venture into town once a month or so works for me.

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This week TIM has been listening to …

“All These Things That I’ve Done” by The Killers.  Great track.

 

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This week TIM has been watching…

“Uncle Buck” starring the late John Candy.  Continuing to work my way through my John Hughes collection.

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Remember…

If you don’t pay your exorcist you will get repossessed.

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TIM

TIM’s Memory Monday (No: 27)

by theimperfectmodeller, posted in Memory Monday, Uncategorized

This model turned out to be a personal favourite when it came to the WW1 timeline that I ended up putting togther.  One of those rare occassions when every thing seemed to come together with out too much of a hitch.  The completed model will feature next week.

TIM

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“It Will All Be Over By Christmas” – WW1 28mm Diorama (Part 1)

“It will all be over by Christmas” – well at least that’s what many of those brave men thought when they enlisted following Britain declaring war on Germany.  The truth was far different of course.

In my last post I mentioned my aim of trying to put together a modelling timeline of significant WW1 moments with the intention of creating a few depicting less obvious images of the time.  Life in the trenches is the image most people think of when reflecting upon the Great War and rightly so but there are others too which I (and perhaps it is ony me!) think are relevant.

The idea behind this latest model is the enlistment and recruitment of the civilian men into the armed forces of the day.  Only when I looked into this a bit more did it get me thinking about how significant I felt this was.  There was the obvious bravado of young (and old) men thinking it truly would be over by Christmas and that all they had to do was give the “bosh” a bash on the nose.  What I hadn’t appreciated until I googled images of recruitment posters was the level of propaganda. No punches were pulled in implying you were a coward if you didn’t sign up!

All in all it certainly made me wonder just what would happen in this day and age.  Would the people of today sign up quite so readily to be lambs to the slaughter?  Hopefully we will never know.  Nevertheless this is definitely a topic for a deep and meaningful conversation to have after consuming large quantities of alcohol!  I digress, back to the modelling.

So, having decided on the subject for the model I set about trying to find appropriate figures.  Civilian figures as I think I may have mentioned before present a challenge, too few out there on the market.  That said I came up trumps having found some great figures by Footsore miniatures.  Military figures proved easier to find and so before too long I was getting started.

Painting the figures is well underway and a rough outline of the diorama is floating around in my head (I never work to plans or drawings – perhaps I should?).  All things being well the diorama will be finished next week but in the meanwhile a few figure images to be going on with along with sneak preview of the base work.

TIM

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Knights Hospitaller – 28mm Diorama (No: 2)

by theimperfectmodeller, posted in Dark Age, Uncategorized

Just recently my modelling has mostly been all about knights and to be fair I have enjoyed it.  The Baron’s War figures from Footsore Miniatures are excellent and I will be keeping a close eye on the range as it continues to expand.  Included in the range are some mounted knights and I decided to buy one and feature it in another little diroama.  You might recognise the figure as a foot knight I have shown in a previous post.

Since I completed and posted my previous diorama I discovered some interesting information on Hospitaller Knights.  Long story short it seems that black tunics and shields both with white crosses owes more to artistic licence than fact.  It would seem that black tunics with white crosses are fine but the shields were in fact red with white crosses.  Based on this discovery I felt compelled to do another diroama sporting the correct colour scheme.

The model provided another opportunity for plenty of freehand, albeit only crosses, but getting size and spacing consistency proved a challange.  The flag was another one made using Japanese writing paper and the method described in my other diorama post.  Overall a simple affair, just a few knights standing around together really.  That said it’s probably my best bet for an entry into Azazel’s Jewel of July.

Images below.

TIM

 

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TIM’s Miniatures & Musings (No: 58)

by theimperfectmodeller, posted in Musings, Uncategorized

Welcome to this weeks Miniatures & Musings!

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On display this week is 28mm Reaper Pathfinder figure which goes by the name of “Jolistina Susperio”.  I cannot take credit for the colour scheme as I essentially copied it from the example on the Reaper website.  I loved how the original artist injected interest in the figure using a red and yellow diamond design and decided to try and give it a go myself.  My freehand was not as good as theirs but I am more than happy with it from a personal level.

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Well It Made Me Laugh …

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Life Colour

Paul, a mate at my model club, decided pre-lockdown to start up a modelling business sideline.  On a personal level I wasn’t interested in the kits he was selling.  As nice as they were they aren’t my thing but I did want to support him so I checked out the paints he had.

Now I am no paint expert.  I stumbled upon Vallejo as a brand when I started to make the transition from oils to acrylics and have pretty much stayed exclusively with them.  As such I had never heard of the Italian company which produces “Life Colour”.

The paints Paul had were in sets.  I’m sure you have all seen the sort of thing, all the colours you need to paint a British uniform for example.  As I paint figures very much at random a uniform set seemed pointless so I decided to buy a face paint set as it would be far more useful.  The set came with six paints, 2 x base colours, 2 x shade and 2 x highlights.  On arrival I was a little disappointed.  I have grown to like dropper bottles and these were screw tops which seemed like a backward step.  Then I reminded myself they were Italian and I should not be disappointed by the country which gave us both the Ferrari and Nutella.

Putting aside my storage and dispensing prejudices I opened up the paints and gave them a go.  All I can say is that for the foreseeable future I will only be using these paints when I paint faces on my figures.

Now where did I put that spoon and jar of Nutella?

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Interesting Site?

I have only used CP Models once and that was to buy a couple of Wasp Jumpers for a little diorama I put together a year or two ago called Get Out Of My Room.  On a sample of one the quality of the figures was very good.  Having just taken another look at the site I think I will pay another visit at some point as one or two other bits have caught my eye.

Unfeasibly Miniatures is a small UK site I have never used but I liked the look of a couple of Foreign Legion figures they have.  Unfortunatley they are currently out of stock.

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This week TIM has been listening to …

“Song 2” by Blur.  I can’t remember when I last listened to Blur but it was far to long ago.

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This week TIM has been watching…

“Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” starring Matthew Broderick.  Back in the 80’s John Hughes wrote and directed some classic movies.  This was one of the best.

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Is it just me?

Don’t you hate it when you clean out the freezer and find people you don’t even recognise?

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TIM