Fergee - to paint or not to paint?

Came across this fella up in the attic. He's one of Judge Dredd's allies and comes from the early 80's when Forbidden Planet were selling a range of 70mm Dredd figures.
The quandry is: do i leave him in this colour scheme (all Humbrol paints, done back when i didn't know what i was doing) as an example of what i could do then - or strip it back to bare metal and make, hopefully, a better job of it.
By the way, i've put Fergee alongside a Foundry Minatures Dredd to show how much bigger they were. And the Foundry figures (at 28mm) are a bit bigger than standard 25mm minatures.
Don't know why the went bigger in both cases - maybe both didn't want folk to build/display/play/convert with other companies figures?

Tyranid Lictor - nailed it.

Yup, that's what i did alright - used watered down Tamiya Clear paints, mixing together Green and Red for a nice icky colour and varying the proportions to give different effects.
I've used more Green than Red on the Genestealer though just to make them a bit different.

Tyranid Lictor - going wrong

Well, i certainly didn't use inks on the Malanthrope then...
First pic is after i'd put on some watered down "Flesh Wash" ink. That showed up a lot of the detail and warmed up the basecoat - but wasn't anything like what i wanted. The Malanthrope has some fleshy tones in there but they're really icky. So, in this pic i've drybrushed with the Bleached Bone to take it back a bit.
Next pic is after using Green Ink. Again, it showed up the detail was was far TOO green and nothing like the shade i'd done before. And again, i've pulled it back with another drybrush.
Okay, if i didn't use inks there's only one other choice i'd have used - watered down Tamiya Clear Red and Green.
And that's what i'm gonna do after typing this.

Sov Judge - nearly done.

Okay, face all done, hair done, reds done, leather done, gun done. I've put a grey/blue on the inside of the cloak as if i'd just used black you'd never see the body.
Next up is the outside of the cloak which'll be black but am planning on different finishes on the panels to break it up a bit.

Tyranid Lictor

So, have braved the local Games Workshop store to have a look at that new plastic kit built up and in the flesh. Yep, its nice and big and i think worth the 30 quid. Trouble is, right now, if i had that amount of spare dosh i'd rather get 2 Blu Ray's from HMV or a new pair of combats.
Instead, to tide me over, i got this here Lictor which was a much more affordable £12.00.
Assembling was the usual bloody nightmare these days of sticking it together - no brand of superglue works on the stuff so its a case of using Araldite. But because of the pose and the weight of the limbs, each part had to be glued seperatly and allowed to set before moving on to the next one.
Anyway, finally got it done and it comes out real well. I've chosen to have the lower arms splayed out and the top spikey things away from the head to enable a clear view of that fantastic face and the luvverly chest detail.
Top pic is it assembled alongside a plastic Genestealer thats been sitting in my Space Hulk boardgame box for about the last 25 years.
Reason i'm going to paint him as well is i want to do the same colour scheme that i did for my Malanthrope but i made that so long ago i've forgotten what i did. So figure i can experiment on the 'Stealer first before applying it to the Lictor.
Second pic is them primed up in grey. Trouble is, i'll be using Bleached Bone for the basecoat and thats notoriously tranluscent and if i didn't apply this here drybrush of Skull White then it itd look kinda dull and muddy.
Last pic is the BB drybrushed over the White.

Slab Ship - ready for dirtying down

Here she is wityh details picked out, decals on and some red pin striping added. Needs a coat of matt varnish to get rid of the gloss and make a nice surface for the pastels next step.

Original Star Trek on Blu Ray

Got this just recently- and its been a revelation.
Not only because they've remastered the show by going back to the negatives, cleaning them up and doing a fautless transfer (although the frequents change of film stock and switching to soft focus is VERY obvious here and rather jarring).
Not only because they've replaced the somewhat ropey effects (seen now) with CGI equivilants - although you can thankfully choose between original or revamped versions of each episode.
But mainly its because, what with the endless movies and even more endless TV derivitives, i'd forgotten what a GREAT show it was.
Its been at least 20 years since i've watched any of Series 1 and its a real blast to re-discover them.
Best so far has been "What Are Little Girls Made of?", with the brilliant bad guy in Ruk, played by Lurtch off the Adams family, but also that indelible image of Kirk and a lump of clay on the ever rapidly spinning turntable, in order to make an android duplicate.
But next up is "The Corbomite Maneuver", my favourite ever episode.
Can't wait.

Maybe a Tyranid

Bought the latest White Dwarf as its a Tyranid special. Always liked the beasties, even though they're a blatent Giger rip-off.
Turns out there's a new bad guy in town - this here plastic kit. Its a bit pricey, at 30 quid, but you do get a load of parts enabling you to make it in tons of different ways.
And, as usual with Games Workshop figures, you have to look beyond the rather crappy colour schemes to the sculpting underneath.
No more so than with these guys. Some of the choices of pallette are downright Disney-like in apperance and you have to wonder what they heck they're playing at. You've an unstoppable Aliens-esque race and they're white, pink and purple????
Pffttt.
Anyway, if i do get one i'll be going with the colour scheme that i used here on my Tyranid Malanthrope.
I came up with this as its an incredibly detailed resin casting from Forge World and i used inks as i felt i wouldn't be able to drybrush in all the hard to reach places.

Dredd Badge

Just got one of these beauties - full scale, super shiny and dead heavy too. And a snip at under 20 quid.
Recommended.
Available from:

http://www.termight.co.uk/

Slab Ship - white.

Right, here she is coated in "Peugot Alpine White", a nice yellowy-tinted shade.
Over that i've picked some panels out in Skull White, then outlined all the panels with a 2B pencil.
That makes it look knida crap, but i've found that when using pastels for dirtying down - which i'll be doing - if i don't outline the panels first in a dark shade, everything looks very wishy-washy.

Slab Ship - all grey

Okay, wanted to see how things look so attached the ship to this box with some cocktail sticks and coated it with Halfords Grey Plastic Primer.
Its done the trick in that its pulled everything together and given it some "weight".
Also brought a few probs to light that i'll have to deal with before moving on - a few gaps and some panels which have buckled or raised up a bit.

Slab Ship - almost done

Sorry for not much in the way of an update on this for quite a while, but my Modelling Mojo has been absent of late, in favour of readin' and writin'.
But had a bit of time the last couple of days and we're nearly done now. I've been adding tons of panels and the odd widget here and there and i'm pretty pleased how its shaping up. Just need to focus on the engine area and i'm done.
You see here i've drawn lines in coloured pencil. This is where i plan to put on red stripes over the white basecoat and i've drawn them on so i don't put anything in the way of them.
You can also see i've drawn some circles on the front. These will be observation windows made from the bubble windows of WW2 bombers and i'm putting them on in an unordered pattern to maybe get a spider-eye effect. Maybe.

Sov Judge - progress

Okay, been working on the lady in dribs and drabs over the holiday period and here's what i've done.
Top pic is me putting a coat of white on the flesh and red areas - i'll be using Games Workshop paints and they're notorious for their transparancy.
Next is the flesh done and pastelled, with reds finished.
Last is the eyes and hair blocked in, ditto the gun and a bit of black on to see how it all contrasts.

Merry Christmas...

... To you all, my Blogging chums. All the best for 2010.

Sov Judge - grey

Well, went with a gun in the end. Its a spare weapon-thing from an old Gundam kit, with a tank wheel for a spacer between it and her hand.
And now in a coat of Halfords Grey Plastic Primer.

Sov Judge - assembled

Right, here she is all together. I wasn't able to put the right arm into its old position of hand on hip as the cloak wouldn't allow it.
Rather than cut away the cloak, i've moved the arm upwards which fits into the fold of the cloak nicely.
Trouble is, its looks a bit daft just up like that, so am gonna raid the bits box for some blaster or wicked looking knife that she could be sporting.

Sov Judge - Anderson decapitated

A sorry looking state and no mistake. I've removed all the bits needed to facilitate her attachment to the cloak. Not doing anything with the belt - i need the pouches as they'll be visible but the buckle can stay as it'll be totally covered up

Mega City One

Again on the 2000AD Forum, there's a "Location, Location, Location" contest - do your own backdrop from one of the strips.
This is mine and it was pretty easy to do.
Street and buildings made out of Foamboard and then tons of kitbits and toy parts for detailing, so of which are: the grid thing top left is a holder from my Mach 3 razor. The door below that is a top from a milk carton. The big ball thing on the right is half a container from an Anime toy.
I wanted a shop front in there and had an odd deformed pairs of lips whistle in the bits box so repainted it and that became the focus of - what else? - Jaggers Emporium.
I needed to people it, so here we have the Foundry Minatures Dredd and Alpha facing off in the street. The bystanders are a mix of figures i've collected over the years, including a couple of the old Games Workshop Judges.
The craft are, on the left, a solid resin jobbie and, on the right, the ship i made from the engine of the 1/24th Airfix Harrier.

Torquemada at Christmas

There's a really rather nifty advent calender idea going on over on the 2000AD Forum, where folk are invited to put up an image each day in December.
Just done mine, and here it is.
Its my quite large Torquemada bust i made a while back, based on the classic Kevin O'Neill Nemesis cover and made from Das Pronto over a tinfoil and wire frame, with GW Green Stuff for the tentacles.
Moody lighting achieved by plonking him on the ironing board, the kettle with a t-shirt draped over it for the background and me holding me reading lamp just inder him, pointing up.

Sov Judge

So, looking around for parts to start off a couple of projects and still on the rummage for bits for the Slab Ship.
But, for the first time in a couple of years i guess, i've a hankering to do a figure.
But what?
Had a rummage through my den and came up with a nice simple project - not original though as i've seen someone do this before.
Here you can see my old Halcyon Judge Anderson, which has had a bit of accident and the extra head and shoulders from my Iria kit.
The idea is to combine the body of Anderson with the head and cape to produce a Sov City Judge.
Pretty darn easy as the Sov version of the shoulder pads will be hidden. The article i saw on doing this before had the guy cut away the cape to reveal more of the body, but that would mean sculpting a new badge and belt buckle - something i'm not too confident at doing.
So will be keeping the cape as is, and the only bits of Anderson that'll be seen are her right arm, left boot and right leg. Which'll be fine as the Sov elbow pads, gloves, knee pads and boots are the same as Mega City's, except red.
As i say, a pretty simple little job. Of course, i'm down an Anderson figure then, but i was never really a fan of the pose and the face, while certainly being correctly based on Debbie Harry, had far too sunken cheeks.
And it does mean i finally get to use the really rather nice Iria piece, rather than let it collect dust in the bits box.

A couple of potential projects

Fret not my modelling chums, i'm still around.
Not much from me just lately, mainly due to my needing neato, tiny bits for my Slab Ship, but can't justify the 20 quid plus for the Tamiya kit to provide them.
So, eyes are roving for something new to start and i've in mind two 2000AD-themed one's.
One of them is Shakara's ship seen here.
Thought it'd be a doddle - make the basic shape out of Plasticard and sculpt the unusual prow right?
Not that simple when you see from the rear shot that its actually more of a handle shape rather than a long box affair.
Not being up to making such a shape, i'm lurking in hardware and homegoods stores looking for a suitable donor.
Will keep you posted.
Second project i may or may not do, again its a matter of being able to find the right materials, so i'd rather not waste mine or your time inposting about it if i don't give it a go.

My new Blog

Nothing to do with modelling, but thought you might like to swing byand take a look at my new Blog - basically a bunch of rambles on me being a nipper in the sixties and seventies:

http://a60s-70schildhood.blogspot.com/

Alien Documentary update

More interviews and some excellent, very rare photos have been added to this site. How i love the Internet:

http://www.zen171398.zen.co.uk/Alien.html

Slab Ship - getting there

Sorry, my modelling chums for the lack of updates just recently - work, a stack of graphic novels and pointless distractions (like yesterdays course on what a ladder is), has been keeping me out of my den.
Anyway, a quick photo for you today, not too clear as the thing is just so long and an odd shape that its hard to photograph.
As you can see, the conning tower is now back on after priming and i'm almost there with the detailing.
Trouble there is, i need very small, flat bits for the detailing, so as to not take away from the "slabness" of the ship.
And i've run out.

Slab Ship - starting priming

Thought i'd put a bit of primer on just to see how things look, and to make sure the bits i'm putting on aren't too clunky. Jury's out on that one...
Went with the conning tower as its still seperate from the rest and you can see in the middle pic how i've drawn on in red felt-tip where i'm planning on putting contrasting striping.

Our War Of The Worlds walk

Last Sunday i finally got round to doing something i've been planning for years - during the autumn follow the narrators journey in War Of The Worlds as he returns to Dead London and finally discovers the dead Martians.
Wells was brilliant at describing just where things happened so, armed with the book and an A-Z, we set off.
Documented it here:

http://thewarsoftheworlds.blogspot.com/

My Biog Living Axe

Think this fellas made an appeance here before, but the big 2000AD site has a show us your alien contest, so thought i'd dust him off. And while at it, put the pics here.

2000AD TV Advert

Like to watch this from time to time, partly to remind myelf how much the comics evolved and partly to remind myself what Tharg sounds like.

Slab Ship - hiding the joins

As well as putting on panels and small details, i've also got to address the problem of how to disguise the vary obvious joins between all the sections of Foamboard.
Getting round it partly by the use of Plastruct strips.
These are excellent - made out of styrene and come in a variety of shapes. You should be able to make here that i'm using "L" shape ones for some areas and "U" shapes for others.
Incidently, it looks like a whacking great gap there at the front where the prow joins on to the sides. There isn't - i've used clear tape to cover it up. And will be covering it even more with small panels soon.
You may also be able to make out that, for the join between the side and the bottom, i've used a cable-tie at the front, then a "L" strip and, beyond the sitckyoutbit, a "U" shape.

Dr Who meets FHM

Tsssk... Know Who has always had, to use a Tom Baker phrase, "crumpet" to bring in a certain section of audience but, really, its not subtle is it?
Give me Mary Tamm any day.

Slab Ship

You may remember this project from waaaaay back. Put on the back burner as new projects came along, but i've dusted it off and carried on adding bits to it. You can also see i've removed the conning tower for now for ease of detailing.

Dropship - done

APC - done

Der Schnecke - factory finish

All the colours are on and i'm starting to put in the metallics. Figuring it needs a "face", i'm picking out the front bulbous area to try and suggest a canopy affair.

APC - factory finish

Feel MUCH better about this project now i've reached this stage. It makes for a nice, big model and i can almost forgive the trauma of the build. You can see i'v started putting on paint chips and next its some mud i think.

Dropship - factory finish

Just about done now. Its been a real odd project, with things not going quite the way i planned.
I originally wanted to have it with the landing gear down to display it in this here hanger. But the legs were so damned awkward and spindly i gave up on that idea.
So, landing gear up and a in-flight mode. But would look daft without the crew in their seats eh? "No probs" thinks i, "i've loads of spare pilots i can put in there".
Nope. If you put anyone in the front chair, its head hits the canopy, stopping it from fitting. Hmmmm... So i'm going to be stuck with a properly fitting canopy but no crew.