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Post by Wendy on May 28, 2004 8:35:02 GMT
I just got M303 - Great Eagle Attacking Orc (yay!). I am having a little trouble putting it together. Will it be necessary to scrape off the primer in the connecting areas or possibly even to pin it? I just do not want it to fall apart after it has been painted. I am not rough with my miniatures, but there is the curious cat to factor in.  Thanks, Wendy |
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Post by Dave D on May 30, 2004 12:16:59 GMT
Wendy, not having built this one yet, but looking at a picture of it I think the following options may serve best. Definately pin the eagle in some way or another, I rekon over time the weight of the eagle will bend the support post.
Perhaps make a new tree (or rock) out of scratch material, either use a real twig/root and drill a new locator hole in the side of the eagle and mount it this way. Or...
Wire coated in modelling putty etc. with a metal pin forming part of the tree armature.
Take a look at Julius Visser's beautiful little vignette in the fans gallery section.
It would also be beneficial to scrape of any primer as otherwise the joint is only as strong as the paint surface.
Hope this is of some use, I will get around to my own eagle one day perhaps.
regards, Dave Daines
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Post by Zoetrop on May 30, 2004 13:23:32 GMT
Hello Wendy, I have built them 3 years before and take only normal glue. And until today I haven´t any problems, but I don´t play with my figurines. They are only for viewing. The balance from the figurine is very good!  Best regards Herbert Lukaszewski |
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Post by Ori on May 31, 2004 13:05:17 GMT
I just finished a dorama with that eagle. I will post some pictures at my web in a day or two. www.iespana.es/mithril/mithril.htmI just glued the "tail" of the eagle to a home made tree. And for the moment it stands still regards |
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Post by Geert Demarsin on Jun 1, 2004 7:32:30 GMT
Ori,
your eagles attacking orcs make a great diorama ! Wonderfull !
Great pictures too of your other dioramas !
Geert
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Post by Michael O'Brien on Jun 2, 2004 6:41:08 GMT
Brilliant diorama - very realistic and dynamic |
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Post by Ori on Jun 4, 2004 10:00:23 GMT
Thanks!
Everybody says it is very "dynamic", but that is all Mithril´s work.
My only achivement was mixing the eagle from M303 with the orc from M308, instead of using the M303 as a set.
Eagle still stands on its place after a week. The secret is a good balanced position plus a strong glue.
regards
PD: Any idea on what diorama could I start working on?
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Post by Wendy on Aug 25, 2004 17:42:22 GMT
Thank you for all the help regarding the assembly of Great Eagle attacking Orc. I did get it assembled, then my husband sat on it.  However, it worked out ok because upon reassembling it, it looks more natural because the tree isn't perfectly strait anymore. ;D Ori, your diorama is great! Thanks for sharing the link! I seem to be deficient in assembly ability...Now, I'm trying to assemble M384, Ranger and Haradan Fighting. It just doesn't seem to fit correctly no matter what I try. Has anyone else had diffulty putting this figure together? Any words of wisdom? Thanks in advance for any help. Wendy |
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Post by Tibbo76 on Aug 31, 2004 7:10:40 GMT
Your husband sat on it? ;D ;D ;D Sorry but this is really funny . . . I guess he don`t like your miniatures  just kiddin` But on the other hand if the tree looks now more natural it was worth it . . . Please take a picture and show it I am really interested in it! |
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Post by Ori on Sept 3, 2004 20:05:12 GMT
M384 took me a wile to asamble it. I recommend to paint some of the parts before asambling all together, as most of the inner pats of the body will be out of reach once glued. An after that paint all unions again, and aply some green stuff in the unions if needed. I also got this mini painted at my web (In the miniature section) www.iespana.es/mithril/mithril.htm |
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Post by Axe99 on Sept 7, 2004 2:38:49 GMT
That's a nice job you've done of Denethor there Ori, top stuff |
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Post by Wendy on Sept 28, 2004 15:07:26 GMT
Well, the Eagle is no worse for the wear. The tree is bent closer to the orc now. My husband isn't too enthusiastic about my painting, but he does like Mithrils better than Games Workshop. He'd be happier if I'd sell some though.
I'll have to send a picture of the eagle attacking orc to Michael (along with some others) when I finish. I just have to figure out how to get the file size small enough.
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Post by Wendy on Feb 1, 2005 16:21:23 GMT
Well, two tries and almost six months later, I finally assembled Ranger and Haradan Fighting... ;D
Now for my question, which I am almost afraid to ask - Is there an easy way to remove figures from the base for diorama purposes or would it be easier to just put stuff (gravel, grass, etc) over the base to make it look like it's not there? After assembling Ranger and Haradan, I found a really neat flat piece of split rock that I'm thinking of using for a diorama of Rangers and Haradan's having a little skirmish. I would leave some areas rock and put grass and gravel in other areas to give it a little color. (Ranger and Haradan didn't really fit well on the base anyway, so I'm just going to pull it off.) Now I just need more Rangers.
Happy February!
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2005 18:24:49 GMT
Wendy, hope this helps. my main interest is in displaying Mithrils' in scenic/diorama settings and the bases are a complete pain in that respect.
I have two main ways to tackle the problem, but a question worth considering is what area of figure ,i.e. feet will be left in which to insert a support pin or rod. A Hobbit foot doesn't leave much room for error - I have the holes in my fingers to prove it!!
Anyhow back to your query. I managed to get hold of a jewellers saw - these have VERY fine, delicate blades, and do snap easily if not handled carefully, but can be useful for cutting reasonably 'thin' areas of metal. What I tend to use is a pair of hobby 'snip' pliers and I cut away the base in a careful bit by bit way until most of it is removed. Finally I make a cut underneath the feet to get rid of the last bit of metal (be careful of flying metal in the eyes). A file can then be used to flatten the area out prior to drilling a 'pin' hole. You may get some slight distortion of the lower leg so practice carefully.
Hope this helps you, personally ;DI think it looks better than hiding a chunky base. I also wish horses could be supplied with separate reins that you can bend to shape and not have to 'hollow' out.
Good luck, Regards, Dave.
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Post by Wendy on Feb 2, 2005 16:01:41 GMT
You hollow out the area with the reins?!? Wow, that's dedication! I hadn't even thought of doing that. Though now that you mention it, it would look better... I'll have to give that a try. The figures I'll be using for the diorama aren't really expensive ones, mostly from the M300's Rangers of Ithilien. I have Faramir almost painted (except I still can't figure out how the quiver should fit in the hole on the bottom of his cape  ), but I'll have to dig through my other minis to see exactly what I do have. I might hold off and do a bigger diorama when I get the Oliphant. It's in the mail, I hope... I'll give the systematic base removal you suggested a try (since I lack a jeweler's saw). If I screw up, I guess I can make feet with green stuff. Thanks for the advice! |
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Post by Ori on Feb 2, 2005 19:26:38 GMT
This issue have always driven my mad. As I have plenty of minis to paint, I allways choose the minis that do not come with a base. There are some in the hole M range. I recommended Michael to cast Mthril minis without bases, but he said it was imposible
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Post by Michael O'Brien on Feb 3, 2005 10:09:53 GMT
I'll have to send a picture of the eagle attacking orc to Michael (along with some others) when I finish. I just have to figure out how to get the file size small enough. Most art packages allow the saving of a picture for the internet. Even free CDS from PC Magazines often have trial packages of Paint Shop Pro that would do the business. Save it as a jpeg and compress it about average (some packages have sliders or dropdown options). DON't compress it too much or it gets really blocky. Jpegs compress by crushing up the image and getting rid of information that is not essential, but it has to replace that information when it is opened again so the result is always inferior. I use Photoshop and Corel Photopaint. |
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Post by Wendy on Feb 21, 2005 16:30:06 GMT
Well, I removed two bases from their respective figures. It didn't take as long as I thought, though there was much filing on the feet. So far so good.
By the way, what would be the best source of fake water, and lots of it? Since my Vengence of Smaug completely bent and fell apart, I decided to put him in a dead pose on the bottom of the lake with pieces of Laketown under and around him. I would like to have him under water (in the shallows, so probably a couple inches deep), so what would be the best kind of product to use that I could still see the figure?
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Post by Ori on Feb 21, 2005 19:11:50 GMT
Woodland scenics water works prety well. You can see some results in my Smeagol&Deagol diorama. You have to pour 1/8" layers at a time. Its easy and non toxic
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Post by Deleted on Feb 21, 2005 19:24:11 GMT
You may find some useful tips from David Fisher's 'Model Mania' videos - he is one of the USA's leading figure painters and co-editor of Amazing Figure Modeller. check their web for details. In one video he uses Ezee Water (not sure of the spelling) which comes as a bag full of clear balls that you melt down in a saucepan and pour. in the video this is very effective AND if you have a direct heat source you can carve ripples etc, and soften the edges. Looks very effective. I have some but have never used it yet. Also I am not sure of its limitations, but I believe you can normally get it in railway hobby stores. Clear resins can be used, but do have to be mixed, and if you use them make sure any materials on the lake bed are glued down as they might float - I've been there, and there is no way back! Woodland Scenics may also do some stuff, I think this is an American company so you should be able to get hold of them ok. Another useful product may be perspex (not sure if you would be familiar with the name over the 'pond') shower screens (off-cut), some do have a water surface texture, but may not be too transparent for viewing and would be expensive too. Hope that helps Wendy. Regards Dave. p.s. most materials would require building up in layers as well. p.p.s. Have you checked some of the fans painting galleries, a Spanish site (I think) Modelika.com has some lovely dioramas, maybe you could contact the owner for tips etc. The site is well worth the visit anyway. |
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Post by Wendy on Mar 30, 2005 3:05:42 GMT
It's been a little quiet in the forum lately... I just went on a shipping spree at a hobby store. (Thankfully, I had a 20% off coupon.) That fake water is really expensive! I really hope I do it right the first time. I decided on the Woodland Scenics Realistic Water. I would have gone with the other kind that you melt, but the bag said not to try to use it in large amounts. Now I get to experiment with it on my Riddles in the Dark diorama before attempting the Dead Smaug. Does anyone know if you can make a wall of sorts with it? If I try and hold it back to form a wall, will it stick to whatever I'm using to hold it back? On a side note, I bought some old, badly painted Mithrils. What's the best way to strip them and start over? Or is it better to try to paint over them? (I have some Star Wars minis for my brother that need to be stripped also.) Thanks for all the help! ;D |
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Post by Michael O'Brien on Mar 30, 2005 10:37:02 GMT
It's been a little quiet in the forum lately... I just went on a shipping spree at a hobby store. (Thankfully, I had a 20% off coupon.) That fake water is really expensive! I really hope I do it right the first time. I decided on the Woodland Scenics Realistic Water. I would have gone with the other kind that you melt, but the bag said not to try to use it in large amounts. Now I get to experiment with it on my Riddles in the Dark diorama before attempting the Dead Smaug. Does anyone know if you can make a wall of sorts with it? If I try and hold it back to form a wall, will it stick to whatever I'm using to hold it back? On a side note, I bought some old, badly painted Mithrils. What's the best way to strip them and start over? Or is it better to try to paint over them? (I have some Star Wars minis for my brother that need to be stripped also.) Thanks for all the help! ;D Turpentine is ideal for taking acrylic paint from a model. It is far better to strip and restart the paint job from scratch as it means you don't have to worry about flakes of the old paint coming loose later and ruining the new job. Remember to undercoat the figures also. |
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Post by Michael O'Brien on Mar 30, 2005 10:40:39 GMT
This issue have always driven my mad. As I have plenty of minis to paint, I allways choose the minis that do not come with a base. There are some in the hole M range. I recommended Michael to cast Mthril minis without bases, but he said it was imposible Well our clearance sale is to provide figures for dioramas, and that include cutting the bases off. If you want to buy a figure without a base let me know the number and I will ask if it is possible to supply you with that figure unbased. WE cannot sell them all that way, but a special order might be possible. |
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Post by Zoetrop on Mar 31, 2005 13:52:42 GMT
Hello Wendy,
I mean turpentine is not strong enough.
I get the best results with thinner.
One week in a dip of thinner and it´s very easy to remove the paint. For removing I take a "Dremel" with a brass brush.
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However, it worked out ok because upon reassembling it, it looks more natural because the tree isn't perfectly strait anymore. ;D
), but I'll have to dig through my other minis to see exactly what I do have. I might hold off and do a bigger diorama when I get the Oliphant. It's in the mail, I hope...