Building a multi-part sisters of battle kit

[Smurfben]

Hi all,

I thought I'd join this wonderful community and share a little project with you all, which I started about a week ago. Various threads on this forum have provided me with some fantastic inspiration to get my project rolling so I thought it was only fair to join myself and add my own input to an already vast resource!

Anyway, now that's over I'll get to it

Like many others, I have decided to have a go at re-doing the sisters of battle with a view to having an easy, interchangable, 'multi-part' like kit. The main goal is to have 5-10 torsos, 5-10 sets of legs and 5-10 bolters all sculpted up and cast in resin. Using these parts, I should be able to swap the parts around to create a diverse range of models. Here's what I've managed so far

Converting the base components:

I've used the Dark Eldar warriors kit as the main base for my conversions. The kit comes with 4 different female torsos and one of those four is almost identical to the original sister torso design. I also think the dark eldar have the correct proportions for sisters so all in all, they make an ideal base.

I've cut away all the spikes etc... and shaved away the back section so a sisters backpack will fit. Then I've added wire (available at dragonforge) and greenstuffed the piping on the chest. These torsos are still WIP, I'm unsure how good the detail will be after the casting process because I've never cast anything before. Therefore, I thought it would be more sensible to get the basic armour right and then add the details like aquillas etc... later.

Here you can see a couple of completed robes and some more WIP robes. I just wanted to show you how I'm using the original Dark Eldar tabards as the base and then building them up with greenstuff. Although the robes are complete, the legs are not. More details are needed on the knees and I want to add a belt/buckle icon to the front.

Finally, here is an idea of the proportions I will get once they are assembled. I've included a Dark Eldar head just for comparison, I'll be ordering female heads from hasstlefree, statuesque and brother vinni for the finished models.

Hopefully, you'll agree that the proportions seem fair. The diologus is a bit misrepresentative as it's mounted on a high base, in reality the sister stands slightly taller.

So there you go everybody, my first project post . What I would dearly love is any and all advice on two part casting (I've seen a few you tube videos) and most importantly, ideas on a slim-lined bolter. I could cast up a load of original sisters bolters, but I'd rather have a go at creating my own first

Have at it folks!

Oh and do check out my blog if you have time :)

http://musingsofasmurf.blogspot.co.uk/

[Aridene]

Great work so far brother, looking forward to more.

[Brother Arcturus]

looking good. You might try looking at FW umbra pattern for the bolters. .Looking forward to seeing where this goes.

[Dark Rage]

Looking good, always thought those elder parts would be great for SoB and you have done a great job proving it really like the progress you made so far and I have to agree with Brother Arcturus about the FW umbra bolters.

 

Great stuff!

[Grotsmasha]

I quite like where these are headed....but, and this me just being finicky, I think they're a little tall, realistically they should be comparable to Guardsmen rather than SMs for height, sisters are still unaugmented humans after all. How to achieve this? Maybe cutting 1-1.5mm out of the waist or thighs (not both) would do it.

 

Either way this is a really cool project, and will look kick-ass once completed.

 

Cheers,

Jono

[ephrael]

They look really good so far and you have quite an ambitious project in mind.  If you have any questions about the mold making and casting process feel free to pm me, I'm quite sure I can give you some suggestions that will help you out quite a bit.  I also have to agree about the Umbra Pattern Bolters for your Sisters, they are really slim in profile.

[Smurfben]

Thank you all for your support Especially a thank you for mentioning the umbra pattern bolters. I'm a bit behind in my FW releases and these had completely slipped me by. Fear not, I've just ordered a set

@ mikhail: Thank you for your offer of support, it's very much appreciated. I'm awaiting a set of lego blocks to make the initial mold frame. I'll give it a go first then if I run into difficulties I'll give you a PM

@ grotsmasha: I think I know what you mean with regards to height. Overall I'm happy with the scale (it could be worse!) but the height did catch my eye. I'll take a snap with a guardsman for comparison soon. Also, the torso is suspended a couple of mm's with blue tac in the photo. Perhaps it won't look so bad when properly glued. Having said that, shaving a bit off the bottom of the torso wouldn't be a problem.

More coming soon

[Blissful Brushes]

It's a great idea and a great start I must admit!

I would second the issues about heigh though - it's taller than the smurf!

[Smurfben]

Hello all! I thought I'd add a quick update on the sisters project. The plastic masters are coming along nicely I think :) So far I have 5 torsos:

 

 

 

 

I added some detail to the stomach areas on a couple and added detail to their shoulder pads like the piping and the flur de lys. I think I'm pretty much done with these 5 now. Hopefully, my lego will arrive soon so I can begin casting.

 

Progress on the legs:

 

 

 

These legs are pretty much complete. I may smooth some of the folds in the robes out a bit more but otherwise I'm happy.

 

 

 

These legs need a belt buckle adding and some more detailing on the folds but are almost complete. One more set should complete the 5 :)

 

Also some heads arrived for me from Brother Vinni, here's a preview

 

 

As always, please let me know what you think. Also I need a good name for my order. I'm going to paint them teal/turquoise and silver. I was thinking of 'Order of the Righteous Heart', I'm not sure if that sucks.

 

[Dark Rage]

Looking great, look forward to seeing these with some arms and weapons you decided yet on the bolters your gonna go for?

[Smurfben]

Yeah I went with the recommendation and bought a pack of umbra pattern bolters. As soon as they arrive I'll post up a pic :)

[ephrael]

They look even better with the additional detail added to them.  I would advise you not to use Lego bricks to make your mold box.  They have a tendency to leak and fall apart, they are not designed to hold liquid.  Get yourself some foamcore board and make your boxes from pieces of it held together with hot glue.  The foam core peels off the silicone rubber mold once the mold has cured and you have much less mess and headache. 

[Smurfben]

Cracking idea! I've actually jumped the gun a little and used a sturdy box. I have no idea if it will work, but if not, foamcore it is. I can borrow my friends glue gun

[GooseDaMoose]

Pretty awesome man, I like the look of them. If I would suggest one thing it would maybe be to bulk em up a bit to give them some sturdiness, since Eldar are pretty skinny.

[Smurfben]

Hi Goose :)

 

Thanks, I'm glad you like them. I'll be bulking them up once I'm happy with the resin casts. I'll be adding the pouches, grenades etc... I quite like that they're slender though, I think it looks more feminine and I'm also trying to go for a slightly different look from the original models

[Smurfben]

Hello all, just a short update to keep the ball rolling. So far I haven't been very successful with my casting! I just don't get very good casts at all. Anyway, I managed to get a half decent backpack today. It needs some tidying up, but at least it's usable.

 

 

At this rate I starting to wonder if it would be more cost effective to just convert each and every sister from dark eldar pieces? The problem is you only get 4 female torsos per warrior box. I've got some more rubber on its way so I'll give it a couple more tries before I give up and just convert :p

 

As always, your feedback is appreciated!

[Aqui]

If you're having difficulty, perhaps a look at Subtle Discord's topic might help, or a PM his way? I'm sure he'd help with questions etc

[Studio Silvernale]

I've found that recasting bits seems almost impossible without a vacuum chamber...

[Hemal]

Maybe try using dental plaster rather than resin? Also do you have enough ages points for air coming out of the mould?

[Smurfben]

@ Aquilanus: wow, I checked that thread out and damn that man can cast! Mikhail has been very helpful so far in helping me out with mold making. I think my molds are ok now, I just need to wait for new rubber as I used it all up practicing/making mistakes!

 

@Togusa-san: you could very well be right. If I don't get good molds from the next lot of rubber, I'll give up and just convert each piece.

 

@Hemal: I'd not thought of dental plaster. Interestingly my mum is a dentist, maybe she could pilfer me some :p

 

Thank you all for your suggestions. Fingers crossed I am able to make it work

[Studio Silvernale]

If you decide to go the vacuum chamber route I can help you, as I just went through a couple months of fiddling around getting one going myself.

[Smurfben]

The Umbra pattern bolters arrived yesterday (or rather I waited in a queue at the post office for 30mins before being handed my package) so I thought I'd stick one of my sisters together and see how they look. What do you think?

I'm pretty happy with the scale of the bolter so a big thanks to you guys for making me aware of them Seriously, good times! I also quite like the statuesque heads. I'm keen to get away from the traditional bob hairdo and try out a few alternative styles. I quite like the idea of having mainly 50's style cuts to get a weird 'fallout' esque vibe. I'll try it out and see if I like it.

One other point to mention is that the robes will be sculpted out of the shoulders on the finished models, these have just been tacked together with blue-tac.

As requested I also took a couple of snaps with a guardsman for reference. They're a bit fuzzy, sorry about that, but they should serve as a good point of comparison.

Let me know how you feel about them folks, I truly appreciate the advice

[chaplainmikey]

Fantastic conversion work! An entire army of Sisters built to this standard will be a thing of beauty. :)

 

Best of luck with your next batch of casts.

[ElDuderino]

Looking great! It looks like a modern take on the classic sisters, instantly recognizable. Loving the detailing on hte greaves too!

[Smurfben]

Hello all!

So a medium update with regards to the sisters progress After several attempts, I have decided to abandon the casting element of this project. In all honesty, it cost me a small fortune in materials and my results were less than decent! The only part I was able to cast with some reasonable degree of success was the back pack, which is essential as I haven't been able to fin a replacement. From now on I will be converting each and every peice from scratch, which will probably take about the same amount of time anyway!! So without furtherado, on to the pictures

Sister of battle with bolter:

She's pretty much done! All I need to do is go over the model with some green stuff filling in any gaps I find and add a few purity seals here and there for flavour. Importantly, I'm really happy with the robe sleeves. I think they add a great dynamic to the finished pose and they give me an oportunity to create movement and direction.

I also managed to pop down to warhammer world last night with some friends and I picked up a pack each of the legion heavy flamers and heavy bolters. Yes I intend to field a unit of Retributors armed with heavy bolters *gasp*! I just think they look cool, and 2 Exorcists is still good right??

Anywho, here's how the flamers look on a sister..........

Ahh man I'm so pleased! The legion weapons are a brilliant size and fit for my sisters models. I'm so glad you guys pointed out the bolters to me....look where it's led

So....I hope you guys like them so far, I know I'm pretty chuffed I had a question about backpacks though. Does anyone know of a decent alternative to the current sisters pack? I bought some maxmini gothic backpacks (which look really cool) but they're absolutely massive! I can cast backpacks of my own but they come out pretty bad half the time? If anyone has any suggestions I'm all ears, a little more help from you would be greatly appreciated