NSL Mammut & Goliath

I now had loads of the new NSL gruntz by Gzg thanks to his generosity in the winter sale. but no Panzers ..... with so many models around I couldn't decide which I was going to get , then it hit me. Why not make my own since I have always enjoyed building stuff . So here they are , models in the making.
The basic shape is made of MDF,  fibre board is very easy to cut & sand to shape but should be done preferably outside since it produces a lot of very fine dust or wear a filter mask or have adequate ventilation.

I recommend getting steel templates like the ones Antenocities have, I got all 3.These give you loads of different shapes to use.You will need a very thin scriber so as to use these templates to the full & not damage them in the process. Here's the link You can check them out here.

Mammut Apc on the left & Goliath Tank on the right.

Card is used to flesh out the basic shape

The Goliath being a tank is wider

Here I'm using flat cable tracks as explained in my previous post

Nsl Soldat for scale purposes. Btw just discovered that plasticine ( non hardening modelling putty) can be mixed with milliput to lengthen hardening time.

New track type, these are lower than the previous ones & gone are the side doors.Decided to lower the tank body also

Rear door access like the Merkava.I think that Gruntz should have the option of having tanks that can carry an infantry support squad.

This is the original side + rear bit.

Too high !!!

Apc has side & rear access as I think that is the best Apc design.Infantry have to be able to exit from whichever side is on the other side of enemy fire not just the rear as most apc's. I lowered the Apc body also.

Hope you like it & find inspiration, imagination you already have , you're gamers after all .
Now all you need is creativity.You can do it , yes you can.....
More will follow.

Enjoy.
Z

Tracks,tracks & more tracks. Need tracks ? Here's how to make them

Hello again all,
This is my first blog & i've reached 1000+ hits thanks to you .As a small thank you I decided to show you how to make simple tracks for any vehicle & most probably for any scale from 6mm to 30mm.

Pc's & electronics in general offer the scratchbuilder loads of material to use & this is a clear example.
Here's an IDE flat cable , this comes in different shapes & sizes & for those not tech savvy  is used to connect hard disks, floppy disk drives, cd's etc. It can also be found in SCSI type.

Simply use a small screw driver to remove the black connectors' side clips, as seen in pic. once you remove this the connector can be prised off  ( I teach H&s and so I cannot over stress the need to be careful.Your eyes & fingers are priceless. DO take care of them. Follow basic safety rules & wear safety gear ). Once you prise all 2 or 3 out flatten the cable & put it under a heavy flat object. The connecters make great missile launchers & the metal connections found inside make excellent aerials & pins.Pull these out with a thin flat long nose pliers .Once you decide on the width you can cut it out and glue with superglue to the desired shape.Here are some designs I did .I used plastic tank wheels or wooden wheel with small blobs of white glue for rivets.Oh btw I suggest you glue the wheels first on a sturdy piece of plastic/card/wood first.

Top L/h WW2 1/72 Panther wheels, Top r/h 1/76 T34 wheels, Middle right 1/76 Pzkpfw 4 wheels.

Btm row wooden wheels

Here are examples on an MDF vehicle I'm building

Hope someone finds this useful

Enjoy
Z

15 mm.co.uk - Grey Warhost

The Grey Warhost - We are not Alone - Death to all Humans ....

Mostly 15 mm.co.uk minis. I like these minis, they have a certain comically serious look to them & are not too small not to paint. The detail is good with little clean up , perhaps there greatest flaw is the rather thick base they have but this is not really a problem.
 I also did Khurasan's squad, like these also, the detail is very good , amazing what can be done on such a smale scale . Unfortunately my poor eyes , especially when trying to paint their eyes got the worse of the deal ......

All the vehicles are scratchbuilt -  the project was inspired when I found what was left of Lego Robot bits & pieces from when my son was younger ( & the dog hadn't chewed  :).

- Assault Mech - Top Body was made using a medicine measuring cup, Vertical Centre piece an Electrical Grommet, legs lego bits & pieces, plastic sprue weapons, paper pistons etc.
- Command TriMech - Guinness Stout in a Can shaking ball , legs lego bits & pieces, plastic sprue weapons & arms.
- Medium TriMech - Top is a copper fitting, legs lego bits & pieces, plastic sprue weapons & arms.

Still have to paint Khurasan Flying Saucer & Robots from various makers.
Would really like to get the 2 Rebel Minis walkers someday, especially the smaller one.

The crisscross pattern was achieved by first undercoating in white, then sand base & finally spraying brown Plasticote sandable primer over stretched bandage gauze. This created a nice 3D effect as the paint is thick not like an airbrush's. The idea is to represent solar panels or ablative armour or just a simple texture.
I admit they came out a bit rough & ready but the overall effect looks good which is enough.

Hope you find this useful.
Z

Assault Mech

Flying Saucer ( obviously )

Galaxy Hilton Suburbs overrun by the Grey Warhost

Size Comparison

We have been telling you for ages, are you convinced now ? The Commander with the high collared cloak & mike looks like an Elvis impersonator.:)

Command mech with death laser,blare horn & electro magnetic clamps.

Engineering

Gruntz

Infiltrators

Medium TriMech

Science Division

Using 1/76th - 1/72nd kits for 15mm

I have been in the gaming hobby for around  35 years now & like many have collected quite a number of models along the years.I decided to check the model kits I have still unmade & discovered that some of them would look good in 15mm.These 2 are an Airfix Chieftain & a Heller Amx 30 .
I had these 2 models for years.....waiting for the time to build them... the Chieftain still had a price tag of around 1.15 euros in today's currency !!!! and we used to think that prices were high in those days.

I hadn't built any kits of this scale in ages but lucky for me I just got me a brand new pair of specs & details just popped out.

Well here are the pics , along side an Old Crow buggy & a MicroPanzer mini for scale . The Chieftain was a joy to build & Airfix had great minis even in the 80's . Heller , perhaps a lesser known french company had a small range of afv's in 1/72nd & 1/35th scale. The Heller model is nice also , not as detailed as the airfix one & the rubber tracks leave much to be desired.I added those plastic screw plugs to make them look more scifi.

I decided to paint them in a winter Camo somewhat like WW2 German winter camo.

First grey spray undercoat ( plasticote sandable grey primer) , then diluted Windsor & newton black indian ink, then drybrush in white ( GW skull white ).Highlights & low lights were built up with diluted white & thin peat brown ink ( Windsor & newton) washes.

Heavy & medium Tanks of the "Black Death " Mercenary Free Company.pacification of Birguma c. 2150

Converted 1/72 esci Sherman

I had painted this Esci 1/72nd Sdkfz250 quite some time ago in Russian winter campaign.Now it will fir perfectly with my Mercs theme.