Three more Vikings Done

 I based these 3 tonight.  A couple of conversions, the two on the right are using heads from Warlord Games' barbarians.  The shields get better with the more of them that I do.  I'm also happy with the way the leather is turning out with these.  The wood tones are also different from what I have done in the past.

 So, I'm doing a variety of things with these that I do not normally do.  That is good thing as it opens my eyes and allows me to grow.  Definitely enjoying these models.

Much more to follow.....as always.

Plugging Some Fellow Bloggers

I haven't plugged anyone else's blog in awhile.  I'm sometimes very slow to do this, slow to join others blogs, I lurk about alot on blogs and forums.  A long time back when I was first getting started with this blog the Sons of Taurus blog plugged my blog and gained me much attention.  And I thank him for doing that.  So, that said I have a couple blogs that I would like to direct your attention to, because if you like the variety of things that I do or just similar things I think these two blogs will help you out and I again encourage you to join them.

The first is terrain blog.  Baddogz Engineering   This the blog is the brain child of Mark Sommer [founder and terrain master] and Mike Butcher [Blogger, mastermind, maniac modeler, and fellow Grumpy Old Coot].  I was first introduced to Mark's terrain work last year at Adepticon's WAB big game and I can tell you his terrain was awesome.  Mike needs no introduction, he and I have been friends for quite sometime, his work is inspirational and you can find a link the Butcher's Bill blog in my Blog Lists.  Mike and Mark are teaming up for this years WAB big game and you will be able to see some (if not all) of the terrain that is being built for the big game that I plan to attend with my Vikings.  I very much look forward to playing on this terrain.  So please check it out and join his blog.

The second is blog that I was lurking, failed to join and plug in my list for sometime.  The blog is
Kampgruppe Engel .  Now if you like what I do and like my variety, I think you will like the work that Engel does as he has his own style and bounces around history and scifi kind of like I do.  I don't think he races go-karts though, he really needs to take up that hobby.  I particular like his Vikings and Kushites (not a project that I would undertake, but I can appreciate it).  So please check out his work and his blog, I don't think you will be disappointed.

So what are you waiting for, go to their blogs...... ;)

WIP on the Desk....Don't try this at home

...unless you are mad.  Which sometimes I am.  Sometimes, I'm not sure why I do such things, it just sometimes, feels right to punish yourself to get a project done.  Adepticon is not that far away, and I have alot to do yet.  So why not do just about all of what remains at one time, assembly line fashion.

This is what is on my desk currently.  Yep.  75 Vikings and 6-movement trays laying on my floor.  Well....this is why I called this place the Madhouse Workshop afterall....

1st Viking Character and some of his companions...

 My first Viking character, and actually this a Anglo-Danish character model from Gripping Beasts Saga packs.  I have changed up the pose slightly.  Since he did not have a shield and he had this wimpy little axe, I decided to give him a much bigger Dane axe.  I took my time on the face even though it will get lost in the rank and file, I plan to use this model as part of a Saga force in the future.

The cape turned out fairly nice.  I do like the short fur that they put on the cape also.

The face has a very pronounced profile.  I like that.

Below is the first of the bus-car style base work for the Vikings. These models are actually in the second rank all spear and shield.  The shields are using some of the Little Big Men transfers.  So far I think my shield painting and these transfers work well together.  They don't work as well in a ultra-magnified photograph, but from a table top stand point I think they are alright.

One of the nice things about the GBPs, unlike the Warlord Games EIRs that I recently completed, is that they actually fit the 20 mm bases quite well.

The left and right model is the same pose but different spear arms.  My striped pants turned out pretty good, I will be doing more of that.

On the chainmail, I decided to go with a fairly dirty look.  I think that is working well and giving the models a nice look, and it really works well on the helmets also.  All of that is mostly using Secret Weapon washes, finished off with Vallejo Smoke.

More, More, More Vikings....

Some choice pics from first rank and file unit that I'm finishing up. I'm mostly using the Gripping Beast Plastic models for the Hirdmen. They paint up very nicely, good looking minis, really easy to paint. I'm quite impressed with their detail. The above mini is actually a converted one using a head from GW's Empire Flaggelants.

This is one of my favorites from the unit. Pretty cool mini. I think the ones without the helmets have so much character. This head is from the command sprue. It has a really cool scar. Below you can see his shield slung on his back that I painted.

This one above is a fun model. I finally figured out what to do with all of those damn Warlord Games plastic barbarian models. They have become Vikings. They unlike Warlords early Imperial Romans don't have as much of that midget feeling, and some of them actually work quite well. Many of the poses, are quite dynamic, maybe too much so. The above model uses a Gripping Beast axe, sword, shield and head. As you can see it works pretty well. The WG Barbarians are not quite as badly scaled as their EIR models.

Below are two of my front rank Dane axe wielders. They are cool mdels also. They are both converted, one using the GW Empire Flaggelant head (on the right) with the GBP two-handed axe arms, the other using a metal GB head (on the left) and axe arms from the Wargames Factory Viking kit.

Below another pic of the models.

I'm beginning to like the base work a bit more all of the time. At first I was not sure about it, but I believe its going to be pretty nice once altogether.

Until next time......

Viking Shield Wall Markers....Finished

Mike Butcher did something similar for his Saxon army.  I liked the idea so much that I completely stole it and did my own.  WAB uses shieldwall rules for the rank and file and so these are eye candy markers for gaming purposes.

It was also a good way to practice painting shields, again I was looking to match my rank & file thath will have some with the Little Big Men transfers.  Based much like my army.

I think this was a cool idea.  The shields were some metal ones leftover that Mike sent to me.

Bondi Archers part 2

Well, last post you saw the first complete unit of my Viking army.  So I took a few of the miniatures and shot some close ups.  That is what follows:

I did a painting seminar locally late last fall and picked up one of the GW blue shade colors figuring someone might ask me what I thought of them.  The two miniatures on the right in the above pic, I used that on to shade starkly highlighted blue colors.  It works fairly good.  As you see on the green, I did that with a dark green acrylic paint that was heavily watered down.  So you really don't need to go out and buy that GW stuff to achieve a shade.  But I know people like it so, and I now need to use it up.

A couple more.  These two were fun, I had shields strapped to their backs.  I'm painting some and I'm using some Little Big Men studios for others.  So the goal was to paint the shields in that style of the LBM transfers.  I think these turned out pretty good for experiments.  The next ones should be better.

Here be Vikings...Bondi Archers

 

Well, finally some final pics of the Bondi Archers for my new Viking Army.  I'm making slow progress at getting things done.  These are the metal Gripping Beast models.  Castings are a bit dated and bit rough.  Some of the heads have mold lines in bad spots.  I really wish they would surprise us all with some plastic bondi one day.  Probably a pipe dream on my part.

I decided to go with a more summer like approach on the basing for this army, so green static grass, green tufts, and yes...flowers.  I think it looks fairly cool.  I've been doing so much dead fall looking bases for so long now that this was more of a happy change.

This was the first batch that I did with lots of different colors.  I think it turned out well, does not look quite like circus candy.  The red, blue and burnt orange schemes are old hat for me.  The other colors are lot of experiments with things and using paints that have sat in my case for years.  My goal is to use virtually every color I own.  Maybe I will discover something for the future.  That is kind of fun painting different colors and using different things to change their tones.

WIP on the Desk: Viking Unit #3 Update

Made some progress on the third unit tonight.  Slow going.  Got all of the colors dones, leather and wood. 

Base coated the flesh tones.  Should have time tomorrow night to get more of the flesh tones done.  Then I will need to do all of the washes.

I should be to finish this unit by the weekend.  Then I will have the last unit, some characters and all of the skirmishers to do.  I need to move a long a bit faster, so I have time to work on the display base.  And like last year, I'm building a new LTO go kart frame at the same time.  Burning the fuses of the stick dynamite from both ends again.  Don't seem to ever learn....

Fallen Banner-Beastman

One of the things I enjoy doing is making pieces that I like to call eye candy.  Stuff that could be used for objective markers or captured standard markers.  I often forget to do this and come back to it after I have built the army.  This is one of those pieces.  I built this for my beastmen army.

I really need to finish it one of these days, by freehanding some design on the banner.  The figure is a leftover gor torso.  I took the top half of a beastmen standard and clipped it off.  I then added a bottom half made out of greenstuff, using a technique that you can find in my GS Cloth Sculpting Tutorial.  Link to Tutorial - Click Here

The feet/hooves sticking out from under the banner were sculpted by me.  The bottom of the banner, I simply drybrushed to add a bit of dirt and carnage.

The sword was a cool piece from one of Reaper's weapon packs.  I still need to go back and add the Tamiya clear red to make the blood more viscous looking.

I happy with the result.  I need to remind myself to do this with my vikings.

Roman Officers up for Sale

I put them up on Ebay to dump these minis off of my overly crowded desk.  I will ship internationally to the places that are listed in the auction.  Link to the auctions:
Ebay Link to the Romans, Click Here.

The miniatures that are up for sale are the following, they are cheap, they are ready for your basing materials:

Custom Motorcycle Work

Alot of people ask me where I get my building things from.  Well it happens to run in the family.  My dad has been building things for as long as I can remember.  This is one of his projects, about 2-3 years in the works and nearing completion.  The motorcycle is his design, all bent in our shop.  The engine as you can see from the air cleaner below is a 124 cubic inch v-twin by S&S Cycle.  That is 2,032 cc's for our non-American friends.  An engine that he built and polished. 

The tanks are stretched Harley Davidson twin bobs. All the paint work is his.

He bobed the rear fender and added some custom bullet holes.  Battle damage for you 40k fans in the real universe.

The pic below is of the swing arm and brake.  The rear wheel is a large polished wheel, I believe he has 180 rear tire on this.  Supertrap muffler so you can tune the exhaust.

Its a pretty cool bike and one that even a 66 year old kid can get a kick out of.   Will be ready for spring, as will our new modern karts, and hopefully my old truck.  All the major projects coming to a close.

Old Stuff Wednesday - January - Beastlord or Wargor #4

Circa 2004, I introduced a fourth Wargor and sometimes Beastlord to my beastmen army.  I realized after posting the previous Wargors that I've never shown this miniature on-line before.

The model is a converted GW Mordheim Beastlord.  Its not quite as nice looking as the other Wargors that GW has sculpted, but still it is a neat looking miniature.  Definitely unique amongst the beastmen and suitably powerful looking.

The painting style was much crisper than my normal beastmen, painted in the same scheme.

The decapitated head suits Khorne well.

WIP On the Desk: Viking Unit #2

Well after a marathon painting session while watching bowl games and Badger loss, I'm nearly complete with this unit's paintwork.  This unit did not go as fast as the previous for some reason.  Not sure why.  I did paint up both movement trays for Unit #1 and #2.

I am happy with how they have turned out thus far.  I still have eyeballs and eye brows to paint on a few of them.

I think the trays are doing a good job conveying a story with the added eyecandy.  And I still have all of the banners to do yet.  I'll wait to do all of them at one time.

I'm missing one model in this group as I found a problem with it while painting and had to send it back to the greenstuff table for additional work.  The blood is using Tamiya Smoke and Clear Red, makes for a very viscous bloody look.

I also saw while working on this before football that the History Channel is going to do a series on the Vikings.  Look forward to seeing that, think they said it was following Lothbrokson, not sure about that.  One of the actors is the guy that played Arn in the Last Templar.