Some very noobish questions priming and assembling related

[Axineton]

So I've decided to prime my minis with spray and want to put the pieces on cork. My question is do you drill into the pieces and if so what do you use to hold them on the cork so i can get in all the nooks and crannies?

 

Like this pic, whats the bits between the cork and the minis? Are they matchsticks?

 

[Major_Gilbear]

In that picture, the models are on wire pins.

These are glued into holes drilled into the models' heels/feet, and left long so that they can be pushed into corks for holding whilst you paint. Afterwards, you trim the pins shorter (5-10mm), drill corresponding holes in the base, and finally slot the miniature into the base via the pins with a little superglue.

Many people use paperclips for cheap pins, but I find that the steel is hard on clippers and runs the small risk of rusting after a long time. I therefore prefer using brass rod (Always Hobbies has some in different thicknesses), which is easier to cut. I normally buy thicknesses no bigger than 1mm for pinning - and a 0.8mm thickness is perfect for a 1.0mm drill bit. I also roughen the ends of the pins with a file before I glue them into the model for extra grip.

As you say you're new to all this, some more info on pinning:

I fill the underside of my bases with putty (Milliput), so that when I drill through for the pins there is more "depth" to the base to grip the pin and form a strong bond. The little extra weight also stops models tipping over on uneven surfaces too.

For models with one point of contact, I sometimes use a double pin (i.e., two side-by side to each other) which helps to strengthen the joint a *lot*.

Another thing worth mentioning; I rough up the pin with a file before I glue it into the model or the base. The texture helps to bind the pin and glue tightly into the base. For this, I use brass pins, as steel paper-clips are too hard to work in this manner (and the brass is much kinder to your clippers anyway).

Final comment on pinning; up to a point, longer pins are *always* better and stronger than short ones. For attaching a trooper model to a base, I usually allow for at least a 20mm long pin - the strength of the bond is in the surface area of the joint, and longer (textured) pins have the biggest/best surface area for the glued joint.

I use Milliput because it is significantly cheaper than GS, and because it cures much harder (so you can drill and sand it nicely). Also, as much GS as you have, you would be astonished at how fast you get through putty when you fill the undersides of bases!

For pinning Necron legs, I would use a 1.0mm drill bit (cobalt fully ground bit - avoid rolled bits like the plague!) and 0.81mm brass rod. The rod needs to be a touch smaller than the hole, so there's room for the glue. I would also find out what sizes of brass you can get *before* you buy drill bits to suit - there are fewer sizes/gauges of rod than there are bit sizes available.

Even though they are very thin, using a 1mm drill bit and a small hand-held manual pin vice it is very simple to consistently get a pin through the heel of the foot, past the ankle and well into the calf. The plastic easy to drill, and you just have to have a little patience and care to get the hole in the right place.

After drilling your holes in the feet, I recommend using a 2.5mm drill bit to bevel the edge of the hole - just roll the drill bit lightly with your fingers. What this does is is provide "room" for any glue that comes out of the hole when gluing, and which will later prevent you from getting a fully-flush contact with the base. I also recommend doing the same with the base for the same reason. This will give you the best fit between the parts, and avoid any gaps under the feet.

Once the pins are in the model, it is possible to bend them gently. This is particularly useful if you are pinning a model that's in a running pose and only has a small contact with the base. What you do here is drill along the foot at a shallow angle, then glue the pin in; once dry, bend the exposed end of the pin gently and carefully so that it's perpendicular to the contact point/base surface. Below is an example of what I mean by this:

The idea of bending the pins under the base I found later somewhere online, during the earlier days of the internet (so about 20 years ago?). At the time, I thought is was a great idea. However, after trying it a few times, I quickly realised that I don't really like doing messy jobs like puttying and sanding on models that are otherwise fully finished, and that using lots of superglue to hold the bent pins under the base risked serious fogging around the base and feet - inevitably I always seem to mange to spoil the finished paintjob. That's where I came up with the idea of filling the bases first, then pinning through; that way the models and bases are all finished and painted separately before they are joined. I also leave the pins a bit long, test-fit through the base, and trim the pins to suit before glueing them in.

With respect to using a double pin in one foot: you can use two smaller pins in one slightly bigger hole, or drill two separate holes and use slightly thinner wire. As long as at least one wire adequately supports the model, the other one can be a smaller/shorter pin if you like. The reason for using the double pin is to prevent the joint from loosening or "spinning" the model on the base.

From a post I made about this previously:

Okay, pin vice drill is what you need. Should cost like $5-7:

http://www.newmodellersshop.co.uk/images/expo_tools/750-10.jpg

Then buy ground drill bits (ebay is excellent for this) with a carbide or carborundum coating (should cost about $2-4 for a pack of ten all the same size).

[...]

1) Buy a hand pin vice drill (sometimes a pin vise drill) with a little "rest" at the end like the one I've shown above. Your hands will thank me for it! These normally come with two double-ended collets for holding different-sized drill bits. One is in the end where the bit goes (duh!), and the other is usually stored inside the handle.

2) Buy some brass rod for your pinning efforts. It's a little more ductile, won't rust, won't blunt your clippers, and can be filed without too much difficulty.

3) Buy "ground" drill bits - not "twisted" or"rolled". The cost more, but are properly-made and won't get stuck and break as easily. This is because the spiral cutting faces are machined onto the bit, rather than the bit being stamped and then twisted or rolled to get the spiral. The swarf (the stuff you drill out of the whole) gets stuck very easily in small bits, and the twisted/rolled bits aren't even enough to let it come out smoothly. Once you know what size brass rod you have, buy drill bits to suit that are 0.25-0.50mm larger to give the rod and glue some clearance in the hole. Avoid a multi-pack of bits, because you will never use at least 2/3s of the sizes!

I buy my drill bits from UK Drills on eBay here.

The most useful sizes I have are 0.7mm ground HSS and 1.0mm ground Cobalt (both here). This is because the two most common sizes for brass rod are 0.020" (0.51mm) and 0.032" (0.81mm).

Whilst I prefer to have ground Titanium-coated or Cobalt drill bits for the 0.7mm (and I have some I bought elsewhere), they are pretty delicate and wear out quite fast anyway - sometimes just using them a few times and then ditching them is a better practice for such small bits. I really only use the Titanium/Cobalt ones in this scale when drilling though metal parts (usually Warmachine, Infinity, and old Malifaux models).

I hope that's helpful, and easy enough to follow, but do feel free to ask more questions if you have them!

[Axineton]

Thanks major! That’s some top info. I was wracking my brain thinking what are these things!