Monday, October 12, 2009


PLASTIC MINIATURES: ENGLISH CIVIL WAR FREE FIGURE

Warlord Games

This will be the first of a number of reviews of the new plastic wargaming figures available now – more reviews will follow. I must say that I was initially skeptical when it came to plastic figures – they would be too difficult to clean, they would be too time consuming to build (they looked like old fashioned models) and they would lack the comforting weighty feel of metal figures. I am writing now to say that I was completely mistaken about plastic figures – they are every bit as good as any other line of figures available!

Warlord Games is producing an excellent line of plastic miniatures to include the English Civil War and Ancients. They come out with new figures regularly to supplement all lines – cavalry, infantry, artillery and some very cool personality figures. The ECW free giveaway is a 28M on the Barrett Scale and comes with two sets of arms and hats. The detail is crisp and the sculpting shows a realistic looking running/advancing figure. Cleaning the plastic figures was dead easy, far easier and quicker than cleaning lead. I like to use a beat up old drybrushing paintbrush around to dust off the figures after cleaning. Putting the figures together was remarkably easy and brought back old memories as I used good old airplane model glue to fix the arms and hat (scoring both parts of the glued surfaces first to allow better attachment); this, too, proved very quick and easy – after preparing a few figures it was impossible to tell the difference between preparing metal and plastic. The clincher came when the figures were finally based and mounted - avoiding plastic bases and using my standard square bases, they felt suprizing good to me. Another set of myths down the drain.

The figures I had were fun to paint – the only challenge is, due to the separate arms structures, these miniatures can be like no other single cast figure would be and getting paint into tight spaces takes care. Still, it is a minor thing to do when you consider the wide range of poses that can be made and are available. My first foray into the realm of plastics using Warlord miniatures was completely successful – look for more reviews of their figures here.

I finally got some decent photos made of the free give away English Civil War figures available from Warlord Games. The combination of three types of headgear (he can always be hatless!) and two arm styles allows for six different figures. Not being contented with that and being the tinkerer that I am, I tried to do a quick conversion figure using the unused, spare arms from the first two kits. I removed the musket from one hand for the right arm and the right arm for the musket carrying left arm (I chose the left arm from the pair that appeared to hold the musket more in the middle). I severed the left hand/musket just above the wrist in the seam of the cuff to turn the musket a bit more forwards instead of across the body. Using an old spare pin (I had removed the round top to make a set of stacked cannonballs), it was a simple task to drill in the plastic to reinforce this new seam. I used old fashioned model glue to put the figure together.

Another small change I made to these figures was to include seams at the top of the Montero style hat. I used a sharp dental tool, though any type of scribing tool will work, to etch six lines into the top of the hat. I liked the extra detail it gave and made the Montero look even better (it is my favorite style of ECW era hat!)

These figures are beautifully sculpted and are great for beginning armies or as additions to existing forces. I am looking forward to more of their releases – please check out their website, listed below – their entire line is worth checking out!

www.warlordgames.com

ARMY PAINTER SUPER GLUE

The Army Painter

When I first got a package of Army Painter products and saw the Super Glue, I thought that I would use up the cheapo glue I already had and wait for something important on which to demonstrate it. What a dope I was for waiting – this glue has been nothing less than a sleeper product! While I have been impressed with all the products available from Army Painter the quality of their glue has surprised me the most!

I know what you must be thinking: “It is only glue. What is so special about it?” I can tell you that it is the best super glue I have ever used. I have used brand name to the dollar store bulk products and this glue surpasses them all – I have been using is for about three months now as I have been building my Russian Civil War Train and converting some Ford Model T vehicles, both available from Company B. Despite frequent use, the glue has clogged only twice and the simple screw off top made it too simple to clean without loss of any glue. With the “Army Sized” bottle (20ml), I still have tons of glue left that flows as nicely as it did the first day I used it – the photo posted shows my actual bottle after use – it still looks sharp! Compared to name brand super glues, this bottle is 10 times the size but only 3.6 times the cost – a real bargain.

The glue flows very smoothly from the tip of the applicator. The larger sized bottle allows for more control when squeezing so that large globs of glue bursting forth from the container are a thing of the past. The pin type cap did not work with the snap on cap but I found this was not necessary. I, unfortunately, accidentally removed the very thin applicator attachment that allows pin point precision of very small amounts of glue (likely where the pin cap is used) and the glue dried inside it. When I did use it, I had even better control; I was able to place the precise amount of glue exactly where I wanted it to go.

Army Painter Super Glue is an amazing product and a “gotta have” product. I know I will be using this as my primary glue from now on!

Price: $8.99 for 20ml

BLUE AND GREEN PRIMER
The Army Painter

Like the black primer, Army Painter Blue and Green primers are excellent spray paints, covering figures quite well with a very smooth and gentle spray. It was very easy to cover the sample figures (that I purchased specifically to show off these paints!) completely with only one coat of spray. I was able to spray these paints directly onto the miniatures (both plastic and metal parts) without any problems, drips or bare patches. It should also be easy to alter the shades of blue and green with the choice of base primer – black offering a darker shade and white, a lighter shade of the base color.

In painting the figures, it is very easy to see how these shades can speed up the entire painting process. Considerable time can be saved by being able to place the basic primer and shade for an entire army in one spray for each side – for the base painting of the figures I used for this example, I was finished drybrushing the shades I wanted in only minutes. This saves not just time but sanity as getting the base color into all the nooks and crannies of every single figure can be tedious and boring, as well! You can well imagine how quickly large armies can be painted using these shades – painting large armies will LOTS quicker!I have included the initial look of these primed figures in these pictures. I am currently putting the finishing touches on the final figures and will upload those pictures at a later date. The paints were just too good to keep a secret! There are a dozen different base color primer color, so definitely check them out – any aid to help speed my painting is a bonus!

Price: $13.49