On the bench - Dust Medium Panzer Walker

Another day, another model for another gaming system.  This time it's a Medium Panzer Walker for Dust Tactics...

UCM Albatross - Heavy Dropship

Hey guys, more Dropzone Commander goodness for you.  This time it's the excellent UCM Albatross Model.

Dropzone Commander - Neptune Dropships

Hello!  Well, it's been a while hasn't it? Apologies for the gross negligence of my little corner of the internet over the last couple of months.

I'm hoping normal(ish) service will now be resumed for the forseeable future and I'd like to kick things off with some pics of my most recent project, 3 Neptune Dropship miniatures for Dropzone Commander!

Leman Russ - Final

Leman Russ project complete!

WIP - Leman Russ

I wanted to share some photos of my latest project, an Imperial Guard Leman Russ tank.

Ork Bommer, step-by-step #2

Part 2 of my SBS on the Ork Bommer.  Today I'll be showing you how I finished the pilot and the gunner as well as the all important weathering!

Ork Bommer, step-by-step #1

Part 1 of a step by step guide on how I built and painted the Ork Bommer.

Ork Bommer finished

Finished! I may have overdone it with the weathering...a bit...

New direction

New project! It's yellow! New direction for the blog! (that's not yellow...)

Tau Army finished

Finally! All done and posted on eBay!

Tau army (nearly) finished (again)

Hi guys, sorry I haven't updated for a while but I'm very nearly finished my Tau army. Pics and details after the jump...

Ultramarines (again)

In between trying to get a decent paint job on my Perdita Ortega mini, I've also been faffing around with space marines again...

Perdita Ortega - WIP #2

Quick update to show you how I'm getting on with Perdita...

Perdita Ortega - WIP #1

In a departure from GW and in the interests of painting alternative/interesting mini's I'd like to introduce you to Perdita...

Space Wolf Terminator pics

Hi guys, as promised some proper pics of my recently completed Space Wolf Terminator, after the jump.

Salute 2012 #3

I had some more photos that I wanted to post up from Salute.  I also wanted to share a couple of observations from the day, now that I've had a chance to recover!


Sorry about that

First of all an apology.  I didn't get even one picture of any of the entrants to the painting competition (other than my own...). For a painting blog that's pretty atrocious! It was so busy early on that it was difficult to get through to the display cabinets and I didn't take my good camera and basically I'm making excuses... Assuming I get the chance to go again next year I'll try harder I promise!

Rude health

This is the first time I've been to an event like this and I have to say I had a brilliant time.  There was so much to look at and there was such a great buzz, I was like a kid in a sweet shop.  I was very happy just being there and soaking in the atmosphere, so happy in fact, I stayed the entire day.

What struck me most was that this is an industry that appears to be thriving and incredibly diverse.  Everything you could think of in the wargaming universe was well represented, from 40k, fantasy, historical, steampunk, boardgames, card games, scenery... you name it, it was probably there.  And it was 'so' busy!

That might all sound a little naive for those of you who've been around the scene for a few years, but I was hugely encouraged by it.


Favourites

My favourite stands were actually side by side in the huge hall the convention was held in, namely
The Basement, Miniature Factory and Studio Mcvey.  Some busts and mini's painted by The Basement are pictured below and in my previous post.  Trust me, the photo's just don't do them justice at all, they're absolutely breathtaking.  I got talking to one of the painters, Mark Taylor, who I later saw stepping up to receive a prize in the painting competition.  That'll be me one of these days hopefully!

I also got to meet, Thomas David of the Miniature Factory.  As some of you may know, Thomas featured in a speed painting video from Miniature Mentor, which inspired me to try zenithal highlighting (with modest success) on my own miniatures.  Very nice man.

In the end I didn't get to speak to the McVeys as they were constantly surrounded by fans but it was great to see they were supporting the event.

While I'm name dropping, I have to tell you that right at the end of the show I was able to chat to Paul Sawyer, former editor of White Dwarf! Paul has been working with Warlord Games for some time now and you can see that his passion and enthusiasm for this industry is absolutely undimmed.  Absolutely top bloke and happy to chat even though it was right at the very end of the show.

Gaming

This blog is primarily focused on painting.  In fact I haven't produced one gaming post since I started this blog at the end of January.  Gaming wasn't even on the radar for me... until yesterday.  I have to say I am sorely tempted by at least 2 of the gaming systems/scales I saw. Both historical and both set in my favourite historical period, World War 2.

Vying for my attention is Flames of War with their 15mm miniatures and the 28mm Bolt Action miniatures form Warlord Games.  I'm told that the Warlord WWII miniatures will have their own gaming system arriving in August.  Good grief, there goes the rent money...










Final thoughts

As I worked my way round the show and got chatting to the various stand owners and participants it was clear to me that this is an incredibly friendly, diverse community full to the brim with thoughtful, creative people of all ages and walks of life.  Everyone I spoke to was more than willing to give up some time to chat. It was an absolute pleasure to be there and I've come away overflowing with inspiration.

I voiced these thoughts to Paul Sawyer during our brief conversation and he was able to perfectly sum up when he said "I think this is a golden era for wargaming..."

And long may it continue.

Salute 2012 #2

Wow, there's so much cool stuff here. It's the kind of place where you want to buy everything! I've restricted myself to some Vallejo Model Colour paints that were going for a good price.

Couple more pics for you:

Salute 2012

Totally overwhelmed! It's amazing here. The only slight problem is my eyes can't seem to focus properly due to last nights painting marathon…

The standard of painting is absurdly high. Already I can see I don't stand a chance in the painting comp but I don't care. It's such a pleasure to see so many well painted mini's.

Pics below from some of the war gaming tables and I'll post some more as the day goes in.

Wolf Guard Terminator - WIP 8

Finished!

Wolf Guard Terminator - WIP 7

A change of direction... for the better...

Wolf Guard Terminator - WIP 6

Armour finished...
...probably...

Citadel Paints for sale!

It's been a little while coming, but I've decided to sell my Citadel collection and switch to Vallejo.

Wolf Guard Terminator - WIP 5

Armour basecoated!

Wolf Guard Terminator - WIP 4

Face and hair done...

Wolf Guard Terminator - WIP 3

Priming and zenithal(ing) complete!

Wolf Guard Terminator - WIP 2

Quick post to show you where I'm at with my competition mini...

Wolf Guard Terminator - WIP 1

This friendly looking chap will be my entry for Salute 2012...

Tau army WIP: The Big Push - Part 5

Day 5 of the, now legendary, 'Big Push' to complete my Tau army.  Did I succeed? Find out after the jump...

Tau army WIP: The Big Push - Part 4

Day 4 of the big push...

Tau army WIP: The Big Push - Part 3

Welcome to day 3 of the big push!.  My attempt to finish the Tau army I started 2 months ago.  The push continues after the jump...

Tau army WIP: The Big Push - Part 2

Day 2 - The big push continues.  With mixed results...

Tau army WIP: The Big Push - Part 1

So, it's been over 2 weeks since I worked on my Tau army, but this week it's the big push...

Zenithal highlighting experiment - Ultramarines, Part II

I've finished my Ultramarines experiment and posted some pics for you...

Zenithal highlighting experiment - Ultramarines

Hi guys, seems this blog has been very Tau oriented ('Tau-riented'?) from the outset so I thought I'd post something different but very familiar too...

WIP - State of the (Tau) Nation

Every once in a while it's a good idea to take stock of where you are.  This post to is to bring you (and me) up to date on where I'm at regarding the Tau army I'm working on...

WIP - More Devilfish pics

Hi all, thought you'd like to see more pics of the Devilfish I'm working on. Click to see more...

WIP - Devilfish magnetised doors

This is one of 3 Devilfish, where I've painted the interior and magnetised the doors to make them 'open-and-closeable'.  More pics after the jump...

WIP - Preshading + magnetic Devilfish

Welcome to another Work in Progress Report for my Tau army.  Now before you judge my pre-shading work, lets all remember that airbrushes are tricky things to master ok?...

WIP - Hammerheads, FireWarriors and army list

Some tangible progress on the Tau army I'm putting together... Both Hammerheads have received the first coat of primer! I've also taken a step forward with the highlighting of the Fire warrior squads and finalised(ish) the army list.

WIP - Magnetised Tau Battlesuit + video

Hi guys, I've been exploring the modelling possibilities of  magnets a lot lately and I thought I'd share where I'm up to with one of my Tau XV8 Battlesuit miniatures. Video and more info after the jump...

Creating the Tau Battleforce - Step by step Part 4

Welcome to the 4th and final part of my short series on assembling and painting my Tau Battleforce.

For this last instalment I'll be focusing on how I went about completing the Devilfish APC.