bench update 02 December 2024

I think the new 16 are all trimmed out. None too sure about spears/pikes because some of these are "Strelets natural" with thick spears while my other minis all had florist wire spears. I need to mount all of them before I give everything a detergent wash and stick them all on paint sticks.

IV/16 Scots Common rebase begins

Earlier this year I popped the minis off the "green sawdust" bases and soaked the paint off.

Unlike the Mongols the minis were guilty of being too colorful. Apparently what I'm aiming for is grey, which results from the mixed raw wool blends used at the time.

The pikes I had installed, based on the Strelets packs, are all too long. The length I'm aiming for is about 9' or no more than 40mm in scale.

Top left, the McHairies in packet. They will need to morph with Isles and Highlands. 

Second from top left, weirdly bad minis or minis hopelessly wrong for the Wars of Independence period that I want.

Left on the cutting board, the 16 minis I like from the originals.

Right, the Strelets militia that are my first pick for joining the pikemen ranks.

Mongol Conquest IV/35 complete!?!?

After so many months it's hard to believe but yes, the rebase and repaint project is finished. This shot is prior to the final anti-shine spray, which is smelly and takes at least a day to cure off. They do look a LOT better than the original. The basing had to fit in alongside the Steppe collection, because that's where the extra 2 LH come from. They are at bottom left and right.

bench update 17 November 2024

After a short vacation I'm back and the Mongol mounted are nearly done painting. I had an idea about highlights on the leather armor while adding a white-yellow highlight yesterday. But it will involve dry brushing and sometimes that backfires.

bench update 03 November 2024

Good progress yesterday! I have that "these are pretty close to finished" excitement. I have some more color decisions to make though. 

bench update 28 October 2024

This is my country's Labour Day and as is traditional, the weather is poor. Which is great! Because my plan to just focus on this project was put into practice. 

These have now had a varnish/sepia wash layer to lock in most of the color. I may or may not have made a mistake by adding barbarian flesh after, not before. 

bench update 26 October

As long as you don't look closely, the checker effect on these Mongol heavies looks good

My main reference is mounted Steppe Archers from Osprey, but I've done some more art hunting and I think it's paid off. This week I added black or white to saddles and horse armor. It removes that "all brown" impression.

(This post was inadvertently put in the wrong blog twice, these are entries from the past 2 weeks.)