Project #1 - AoS WoC Marauder Horsemen - Priming Complete

Priming isn't exactly a challenging or exciting part of this hobby, but a surprising number of people do it poorly.  I thought I'd take a few moments and share some of the things I've learned over the last couple of decades.

First off, get prepared.  I bought some goggles and an air filtration mask at my local hardware store.  The paint fumes can sometimes cause me to have allergies, so this is a must.  Plus, when I don't use it, black paint sometimes comes out when I blow my nose.  This is gross and can't possibly be healthy.  My neighbors probably think I'm a psycho, but I like being able to breathe.

I also picked this magical device up at a local arts and crafts store for about 4 USD.  It's made by Krylon and it's called a "Can Gun".  It makes it super easy to prime large models or to prime lots of small models without your fingers getting tired.  It's mainly a quality of life thing.

Lastly, I picked up a large, but cheap, lazy susan from IKEA.  It's called a Snudda and is only 8 USD.  You can pick one up here, although I imagine any cheap lazy susan would work.  I use the Snudda to be able to spin my models as I prime them.  It makes all the difference in the world when you can easily get to all the angles.  It's also ideal for when you're priming only the lighter colors from "above" to get the illusion of shading in your priming step.  I'll generally prime one large model or five smaller ones at a time.

As to technique, I first lay the model on it's side or back and then prime with the spray angled to come from the bottom of the model.  This is sure to get the underside covered.  I then flip the model to its front or other side and do the same.  Lastly, I stand the model up and hit it from front, left, back and right.  Sometimes with the cork I find that I need to come back after the model is dry and hit the base with another coat.  The cork seems to soak up the paint much more so than anything else I've encountered.  I make sure to use small bursts of primer from about 8-10 inches away.  The can should be making a "pshh pshh pshh pshh" sound and not a "psssshhhhhhhhh" sound.  Small bursts.  Also, avoid humidity if at all possible.  Humidity can make a primer coat a little "fuzzy" and textured.  It especially happens with white primer.  You can get around this by doing multiple thin dustings of primer and allowing the paint to dry before applying the next dusting.  It's doable, but tedious.  I tend to queue up things I know will need to be painted white and save them for a nice, dry day.  I also try to prime a ton of stuff during the summer and fall to get me through the winter.

After all that, here they are...  ready for paint!  Before and after.

New Tau Models Spotted!!!

I'm so excited!  It looks like new models for my primary army are coming out soon.  This probably also means that Tau Empire is getting a new codex.

Looks like the first new model is a Riptide chassis variant just bristling with ranged weaponry.  This is basically going to make Broadsides look like babies.  The White Dwarf cover farther below seems to indicate that this is a 'KV128 Stormsurge'.  The legs look more or less like standard Riptide legs, so I'm assuming this is a Riptide box with an extra sprue added.

Next up is the 'XV95 Ghostkeel Battlesuit'.  It looks amazing.  It's clearly some sort of stealth variant and is equipped with ion weapon of some sort as well as shoulder mounted twin-linked fusion blasters.  I'm guessing that it's an advance unit designed to put the hurt on armor and monstrous creatures.

You'll also not that the Fire Warriors are clearly wearing new helmets and look generally crisper.  The Drones floating by the Fire Warriors are also clearly new.

Last up is a copy of the White Dwarf intended to be released on October 10th, featuring the XV95, but referencing the KV128.  If I had to guess, the October 7th issue will feature the KV128.  October 17th will probably have the Fire Warriors and maybe the Codex.  Past that, I have no guesses as to what is coming out.

I'm super excited.  Time to start saving money.

Project #1 - AoS WoC Marauder Horsemen - Basing Complete

Today I did a little work on my Marauder Horsemen unit.  It's not much, but it's a tedious part that I tend to find I have no motivation for.  In my mind, assembly is putting the model together and gluing it, along with a little cork or whatever, to the base.  I consider the cork a part of the model's assembly.  For some reason, I consider gluing sand on to be a part of the basing.  It's annoying because I always forget to do it and then when it comes time to prime, I can't because I've got to do the sand.  First world problems, right?

I keep my sand and PVA glue in an old Chinese take-out container.  I like that the glue fits and keeps me from having to store it separately.  The glue, incidentally, comes two for a dollar at my local dollar store.  Cheap glue works just as well as expensive glue for this.

When the lid is off, I use the container for dipping the models.  That's why it's important to keep your sand in something wide enough to accommodate a flying base.

To get started, I apply some glue straight to the base, like so...

I use an old brush to smear the glue flat, making an effort to keep it off the cork and off the rim of the base.  Then I scoop it into the sand.  You have to scoop it almost as if it's a chip and you're trying to scoop up some salsa.  It's the same motion.  Once submerged, I swirl it around.  It's critically important that all the assembly related glue is dry at this point or you'll glue sand onto the model proper.

Now, if you do get sand on the rim, just use your finger to wipe it off.  This is PVA glue we're talking about.  If you used something like super glue, the results would be terrible.  PVA takes a while to dry, but is very forgiving.

That's pretty much it.  I need to wait at least an hour (or more depending on local humidity) for this to dry completely.  I'll probably go ahead and prime them at that point to prepare for painting.

I find the cork and sand thing works really well for bases.  It gives you three different textures...  the smooth rim, the rough sand and the stone like cork.  Usually I add some static grass or grass tufts to add a fourth texture.

Here they are, ready for priming...

Once last thing.  I always forget to close the cap and my glue harden in the cap.  That's a pain.  When I'm done with a container of glue, I wash out the cap quickly and toss it in with my other supplies.  If I ever forget to close a new container, it's no issue as I usually have a few unclogged caps laying around.

Warhammer Age of Sigmar Unit Cards

Ok, I posted a sneak peek in the last week, but since then I've done a little more work.  I'm still tweaking the layout, so forgive me if the values on the card are wrong.  I've found a place that will print decks of playing cards in different sizes.  The first one below is a standard poker sized playing card.  The larger ones beneath are 3.5" x 5.75".  They're much larger, but still perfectly practical for my purposes.  I'm thinking about using the larger cards for the core units and then maybe using poker sized cards for equipment details.

I decided to split units that have multiple equipment options into multiple cards.  I think this will make things easier as you'll only have what you need on a given card with nothing extraneous.

I've been made aware that the background is way too busy.  I'm still debating on how best to handle that.  I want some sort of imagery.  I might go with a Magic the Gathering style border or something.  I'm just not sure yet.

Project #1 - AoS WoC Marauder Horsemen - Assembly Complete

I've decided to have no more than three projects going on at any given time.  I'll be tracking this through the simple expedient of having three IKEA bins marked WIP #1, WIP #2 and WIP #3.  The goal is to have no more than 10 models in each bin at any given time.

Each Project will be assigned a number.  The first project I'll be working on are five of the old Warriors of Chaos Marauder Horsemen.  I say old because the sculpts are starting to show their age a little.  I am putting them on the new oval bases to match with the new round/oval Age of Sigmar aesthetic.

My plan is to muscle through assembly, basing, priming and painting before I'm allowed to free up the bin for a new project.

This is all part of the new, more organized Kris.

Here are the initial pics showing assembly.  The only conversion (other than the base) is a Khorne specific banner.  I think it might have come from the Bloodletters box, but I'm not sure.  It actually came from my bitz box.

More Work on Organization

I think I've finally gotten my 'hobby room' into a shape that I'm comfortable with.  The IKEA furniture along the wall with the different colored slide out bins is really nice and makes keeping track of projects trivial.  I put together a small IKEA table for next to the window just in case I want some natural light while I'm working on things, but the main table remains in the corner.

This room has been cluttered for so long that my wife walked in and couldn't believe what she was seeing.  I'm not sure if that's a compliment for the work I've done or a shocking condemnation for the state I let things descend to.

Teaser!

I'm just gonna leave this here...

Stay tuned for more.

40k AoS

I'll hopefully be posting a large post this weekend.  I've been working on Age of Sigmar compatible 40k War Scrolls.  I've been starting with Tau Empire.  Here's a taste.

Site Updates...

I've set myself a goal of October 1st as the drop dead date for site updates.  My plan is to revamp the look a little and come up with a fixed schedule for posting.  Lately I've been waiting until the last minute and that hasn't been working too well for me.  I've had a lot of things going on in my personal life that have taken attention away from my personal hobby time.

So...  expect shiny new things within a month or so.

Incidentally, the chief distraction right now is this thing...

That's right...  a kitten.  Sigh.  She's too adorable to ignore.

Non-Metallic Metals

This is stupid hard to do.  I think I didn't do enough layers.  I'm also not getting the reflections right yet.  Oh well.  This is only a test.  I like how the model's left hand armor looks.