BCK's Thread of Stuff: Super Heavy

[oldschoolsavant]

I like you BCK. Just when I think my hobby butterfly syndrome is acting up a lil', you outshine it good sir.

[Andvarr A]

I like you BCK. Just when I think my hobby butterfly syndrome is acting up a lil', you outshine it good sir.

It's a talent

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

I don't know if "talent" is the word I'd choose...

[Andvarr A]

I don't know if "talent" is the word I'd choose...

Divine madness then?

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

I think he meant how I drift from one project to another so often, usually without finishing them.

 

Did some more tweaking on the Repulsive, and I was mistaken previously about the size of the plastic spacer I used because I was looking at the wrong plastic strip package; it was 2mm, not 3. With the new work, it's about 3.5mm wider than the original.

 

http://i.imgur.com/tCAg8tK.png

 

Now that is what I'm talkin' about!

 

http://i.imgur.com/Zmp12Il.gif

 

The new channel I made with the plastic strip will soon have some macrobattery cannons put in there. The antennae are gone, as well as the turret on top of the prow section. My intention was to build a new and hopefully better looking turret to replace the one I removed, but I'm liking the sleeker look to that upper section without it. Finally, the bottom end of the new section has a lip that lines up with the lower trim on the nose section. Here's a couple more angles that might show that better.

 

http://i.imgur.com/FDcyTJN.png

Edited September 1, 2016 by Brother Chaplain Kage

[Andvarr A]

Cool...

[Mechanist]

I got lucky on the price of the second two. First one was strait from GW. That little change looks great I'll be watching this closely I want and may have to steal some of these changes. Some may even find their way into the plastic cruisers as I never liked how a heavy cruiser was basically the same size as a normal one.

[Andvarr A]

I got lucky on the price of the second two. First one was strait from GW. That little change looks great I'll be watching this closely I want and may have to steal some of these changes. Some may even find their way into the plastic cruisers as I never liked how a heavy cruiser was basically the same size as a normal one.

Now now, it's not stealing...it's...sharing a creative idea....I think?

[Soldier of Dorn]

God, I admire your dedication, BCK. Any sane person would probably have just said "meh, it's good enough" and stuck with the original Repulsive-class' model, but you actually went and modified it, you madman! (that being said, I've never actually encountered any Battlefleet Gothic models in person, so I've no idea how tricky they are to customize. They seem difficult though.)

 

And regarding Lysander, I realized it was a standard Terminator arm, but I know that some of the metal characters aren't quite in the same scale as the current plastics, and the arm looked a little bit long in the second picture, so that's why I was wondering about the proportions. Seeing it from that other angle assuaged me of my doubts, assuring that anything I saw was merely an optical illusion. He looks good, perfect (and I do not mean to use that word lightly) in every way.

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

That little change looks great I'll be watching this closely I want and may have to steal some of these changes.

 

You want to make changes to your Repulsives based on what I think makes them look better? By all means, man, have at it!

 

God, I admire your dedication, BCK. Any sane person would probably have just said "meh, it's good enough" and stuck with the original Repulsive-class' model, but you actually went and modified it, you madman! (that being said, I've never actually encountered any Battlefleet Gothic models in person, so I've no idea how tricky they are to customize. They seem difficult though.)

 

And regarding Lysander, I realized it was a standard Terminator arm, but I know that some of the metal characters aren't quite in the same scale as the current plastics, and the arm looked a little bit long in the second picture, so that's why I was wondering about the proportions. Seeing it from that other angle assuaged me of my doubts, assuring that anything I saw was merely an optical illusion. He looks good, perfect (and I do not mean to use that word lightly) in every way.

 

Dedication, or illness? That's the important question.

 

And working on the BFG models is definitely not as easy as working on a marine or a tank because there's so much fiddly little detail that you could easily obliterate and it would much more difficult to put it back, unlike putting a replacement rivet on a vehicle that you accidentally sanded off. So far, I haven't done anything to the model that can't be undone - I even made a greenstuff mold of the turret I removed just in case I royally screwed up making my own. Also, your last line inspired this.

 

http://i.imgur.com/GBHkDMP.png

 

Since I got a kick out of making the Lysander/Deathwatch conversion, I thought I might have a go at a few more since I have so much 40k termie stuff as well as some extra Heresy bits. Any guesses as to what Chapter this guy is from?

 

http://i.imgur.com/ohr9qOq.png

 

 

Yup, Scythes of the Emprah. After looking at this guy for a little while now, I think I'm going to do away with the scythe because that cliche of a Chapter going overboard with its iconic theme or name is one of the things that really drove me away from 40k in the first place. Besides, if this guy is a tyranid war veteran, I seriously doubt he would want to get into close combat with more of them. Maybe an assault cannon instead.

[Andvarr A]

I was gonna say that it's pre heresy Typhon, but on second glance seeing the scythes on the legs, and actually reading your post..

 

I'm not sure on it, but the head on the Terminator doesn't seem to fit the torso...might just be me tho

[Brother Aiwass]

Nope, that GK head sadly seems out place. Besides that, the termie looks good :)

[DuskRaider]

I really can't picture anyone using Power Scythes but Death Guard... I believe in the Black Crusade RPG book it says they fell out of use shortly after the Heresy. Probably because of the whole "the only Legion that used this are now heretical space zombies" thing.

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

I've seen a few Scythes of teh Emprah conversions using scythes, and I had some handy so I gave it a try and it didn't work. (Even Maestoros went through some changes.) Moving on.

 

http://i.imgur.com/ZmwF3NO.png

 

I think the reason the GK helm didn't look right is because I hadn't Dremeled out more head space in the back of the armor 'cause the battery was charging at the time. I think it looks better now. Also, I really don't like the normal terminator helmet and avoid using it at all costs.

Edited September 2, 2016 by Brother Chaplain Kage

[Brother Aiwass]

Definitely (way) better now. It looks cool and not hunchback (if even possible for a termie :lol: ) besides I usually don't like GK helmets. But seeing that despicable shoulder pad (might Khorne fest on you!) I understand¹ your approach :P

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Note 1: Adeo mori servus Imperator fictus Ave Dominus Nox.

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

The shoulderpads will be converted to the Deathwatch icon at a later point. :)

[Andvarr A]

Nice Kage, knew you had some secret up your sleeve...

 

I miss my dremel tool....in fact I miss a lot about the hobby :(

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

I use my Dremel all the time and think it's an invaluable tool for this hobby, especially if you're working with metal minis. When I first got into the game in the late 90s, I couldn't even attempt some of the stuff I've done these days with metal figures thanks to the Dremel. A lot of it is excavating more head room in terminator armor to allow for alternate heads, like Lysander and this most recent plastic termie.

 

My VIII Legion praetor.

 

http://i.imgur.com/PytCkt5.png

 

On power armored marines.

 

http://i.imgur.com/B051OPf.png

 

And on other figures, greatly reducing the amount of time needed trying to get where you want using files and a hobby knife.

 

http://i.imgur.com/xUf849D.png

 

http://i.imgur.com/J7tEleI.jpg  http://i.imgur.com/PN07TGP.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/jXgUZzG.jpg  http://i.imgur.com/j8Pa0Dw.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/pffmuLq.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/zV3bIFJ.jpg  http://i.imgur.com/OhuBqvx.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/LqbNcdh.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/8PhpVCQ.jpg

 

I love my Dremel and unfortunately, I'm gonna have to get a replacement battery soon because fully charged, I only get 10-15 minutes working time out of it now, and then it take several hours to recharge, and none of the stores around here that sell Dremels and their accessories sell replacement batteries.

Edited September 22, 2016 by Brother Chaplain Kage

[Olis]

I have to concur that dremels are absolutely worth getting. I remember converting an old metal Tyrannic War Veteran model years ago (it was a head removal and the obliteration/alteration of various details) and all I had to hand were snips, a hobby knife and my trusty files. I managed to get a metal shaving in my eye which proved tricky to extract and, now that I've got the experience to say so, was bloody lucky I didn't end up putting the knife in a finger or something. Using a dremel on a similar conversion later on got rid of all that faff and inherent danger, while taking much, much less time. Invaluable. ^_^

[hushrong]

Oh my my my! Loving these works of art! Everything looks awesome but I would kill for that female inquisitor and that commando (a squad of them really). The mix of bitz to make his rifle look awesome is fantastic!

 

Darn...thinking about an inquisitor kill team after seeing this.

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

I have to concur that dremels are absolutely worth getting. I remember converting an old metal Tyrannic War Veteran model years ago (it was a head removal and the obliteration/alteration of various details) and all I had to hand were snips, a hobby knife and my trusty files. I managed to get a metal shaving in my eye which proved tricky to extract and, now that I've got the experience to say so, was bloody lucky I didn't end up putting the knife in a finger or something. Using a dremel on a similar conversion later on got rid of all that faff and inherent danger, while taking much, much less time. Invaluable.

 

Yeah, always wear eye protection when doing anything that might send bits of plastic or metal flying! About the only time I don't have safety glasses on is when I'm gluing or sanding... I practically live in them when I'm at my hobby table.

 

To give some specifics on what bits I use, I have several sizes of the spherical high-speed cutters like these:

 

http://i.imgur.com/a1qFh2D.jpg?1

 

The small ones are for removing small surface details and the larger ones are for when I need to really take out big sections of a figure. One of the larger ones is also a perfect size to make new neck holes in a metal mini after removing the old head. I'll have an example of this on a new conversion a little later.

 

On my Dremel, it has a low and high speed and I quickly found out that on the low speed, which you think would be easier to control, it made the cutting bit bounce a lot more after hitting a spot it couldn't immediately cut into, frequently resulting in the bit landing somewhere you didn't want and cutting into the figure. One of the earliest examples I have of this is way back before I even started this Thread of Stuff and I was making a Chapter Master for a 40k Imperial Fists army from a finecast Inquisitor Coteaz figure. I wanted the torso, cape, and initially the tabard thing hanging from his belt so I used a cutting disk bit to remove the legs.

 

http://i.imgur.com/8o0dcRs.png

 

Then I came in with one of the high-speed spherical cutters to remove all the parts of the left leg that the cutting disk couldn't get as well as what remained of the details around his waist and while working on the left side, the bit jumped and gouged a chunk out of the left side of his chest.

 

http://i.imgur.com/Wlbc4mQ.png?1

 

After that, I started using it on the high setting, and there are still occasional jumps, but I've learned how to minimize them.

 

The other bit I use frequently is an aluminum oxide grinder, like this:

 

http://i.imgur.com/2MCkbz5.jpg?1

 

When I first tried making a metal blade for my Inquisitor conversion out of a hammered paperclip, I tried to use files to smooth out the metal and after an hour of solid filing, I had barely done anything. There really is a huge difference with what a file can do to the pewter or plastic minis versus the steel wire of a paperclip. In a matter of seconds with the grinder bit I was able to do more than I had in an hour with files.

 

I don't have any pics of the hammered paperclips before they were worked, but here's a shot of the nearly-finished blade for the Inquisitor next to some other plastic blades for scale, but the hammered brass rod to the left gives you an idea of what it looked like before.

 

http://i.imgur.com/KWCQxdB.png

 

http://i.imgur.com/IVUq3FM.png

 

And the kukri I was making for a Son of Sek commander.

 

http://i.imgur.com/yxhBoFt.png

 

http://i.imgur.com/1ZNrLwC.png

 

The drum shape of the grinder bit was invaluable for getting a smooth curve to the bottom edge of the blade.

 

More recently, I did a figure conversion originally for a Pathfinder RPG character and didn't post it here, but now I've decided to use it as my seneschal character in a Rogue Trader game I've started running, and I used the above Dremel bits for it. The figure started life as a Reaper Miniatures Iconic Investigator from their Pathfinder line. The first change was to remove as much of the original head as I could with clippers, then go to the cutter bit and remove the rest as well as make a new hole in the neck for a plastic head.

 

http://i.imgur.com/rZndWYt.png  http://i.imgur.com/jEzzbi1.png

 

You can also see where I started to remove detail from the front of the coat. And more removal...

 

http://i.imgur.com/36NRVgD.png

 

Rebuilding...

 

http://i.imgur.com/QuMJxCc.png

 

More rebuilding and adding a metal sword.

 

http://i.imgur.com/R1I16aR.png

Edited September 22, 2016 by Brother Chaplain Kage

[Andvarr A]

Wow....I've the urge to go out n buy a dremel now...but..which one..I know there are a good multiple dremels now on the market

[Race Bannon]

I can support the talk on Dremel. I've had mine for 30+ years and it's the modeler's tool.

 

In my humble opinion.

[Olis]

 

I have to concur that dremels are absolutely worth getting. I remember converting an old metal Tyrannic War Veteran model years ago (it was a head removal and the obliteration/alteration of various details) and all I had to hand were snips, a hobby knife and my trusty files. I managed to get a metal shaving in my eye which proved tricky to extract and, now that I've got the experience to say so, was bloody lucky I didn't end up putting the knife in a finger or something. Using a dremel on a similar conversion later on got rid of all that faff and inherent danger, while taking much, much less time. Invaluable.

 

Yeah, always wear eye protection when doing anything that might send bits of plastic or metal flying! About the only time I don't have safety glasses on is when I'm gluing or sanding... I practically live in them when I'm at my hobby table.

 

Oh yes, undoubtedly. To anyone reading the thread: I was lucky and learned my lesson without losing my eye. You might not be so fortunate. It might seem unnecessary or unduly cumbersome but it's far better than the alternative.

[Andvarr A]

Well at least you could claim bionics...get all artificer