Huzzah!

I finished it!  I finally finished my X-Wing.  It was a long and sometimes frustrating journey, but ultimately fulfilling.  I look at this model and I see lesson after lesson.  They say learning new things keeps the mind supple and young.  Well, my mind must have regressed to that of a teenager with the amount I learned on this project.

I just took some cell phone pictures until I get some time to take a few better ones.  I hope this thing will fit into my Foldio.  It’s going to be nip and tuck.  I may not want to take better pictures though.  This model is best enjoyed from a distance.  When you look closer, all of those “lessons” become far more apparent.

I am happy with the results of my first scale model since I was around 15.  I look forward to doing my next one, which will be the Tie Advanced.  However, I have to finish the Judicator first.

New Tools

I got a couple of new hobby tools this past week.  The F-clamps were under half price at Canadian Tire which meant they were only about $10.  I think I can use those a lot in my scale modeling.   You  may wonder how a blusher brush could be a hobby tool.  Well, I leaned in the past month or so that during a long cold winter with the furnace on all of the time, there is a lot of dust.  If you don’t clean that dust off of your models before painting, you get crud in your paint job or clear coat.  Yes, this fool let that happen.  The blusher brush is a super soft brush that I’ll use to dust my models after they have been sitting before I do any painting from now on.  At around $6 at Wal-Mart, it’s a lot cheaper than a brush produced by a hobby company.

Just so you know, I’m still working on the X-wing and I’m hoping to have a post later in the week.

Pin Wash

I have continued work on the X-Wing this week.  I’m actually very impressed with myself.  I spent many hours on Luke’s chariot in my evenings.  As part of the whole trying new things theme I have going on with this build I decided to try a method of weathering called a pin wash.  This technique involves using an oil wash to fill the recessed panel lines by pressing a small brush to them and allowing capillary action to draw the wash into the grooves.  The brush leaves a small dot of the wash on the panel line.  After the wash has dried, a cotton swab dipped in mineral spirits is rubbed over the surface reactivating the oil paint.  The paint in the dot can now be manipulated to make greasy or dirty looking streaks across the surface. 

I tried pin washing out with limited success.  Part of my problem, I believe, is that my gloss coat was not smooth enough and thus gave the wash too much “bite” so it was hard to move around or even get out.  However, the results look passable and not too bad for a first try.  I’m going to try and add a bit more weathering with some powders and see if that gets it closer to where I want it.

I’m not far from being done.  A little more weathering, a clear coat, R2-D2’s head, the display stand and then final assembly.  I’m really looking forward to putting this thing on my shelf.

Travel Kit

I'm heading out to Vancouver for a few days this weekend and then on to Vancouver Island for about a week after that.  Spring Break in our district begins this coming weekend, so I wanted to get some hobby in.  I have lots to paint and and build.  Our local group will be participating in a Journeyman League right after the break, so I need to get my stuff ready.

Unfortunately, my time in Vancouver will be spent at my union's Annual General Meeting.  The agenda states that we'll be in session from 9 am to 10 pm, so I'm not thinking I'll have a lot of time for anything but boredom until Tuesday.  The good news is that I'm heading to the in-laws on the island after that, so I'll think I can squeeze some hobby time in.  Considering that it rains all the time down there, I'll probably be spending lots of time inside.

We're driving down, so baggage limits aren't a concern.  I decided to put together a construction kit.  I've tried to take painting stuff down before and it just doesn't work.  So, I'm taking my tools (pin vice, hobby knife, green stuff, etc.).  I'm also taking my new Retribution models down to assemble for the Journeyman League.  I'm hoping I can sneak away for some hobby time.  Updates to come when I have time.

New Toys

I just got some new bits and pieces to play with.  First, I received Elven basing kits from Cool Mini or Not.  They come with various broken down statue bits to add to bases or movement trays.  Since the theme of my High Elf army was in an abandoned city of Ulthuan, I thought they would come in handy.  They look pretty cool.

The second thing I got were these small gears.  They are not actual watch gears, they are produced for scrapbooking.  My wife is a scrapbooker and she found a packet of these ones for a reasonable price at Michael's.  There are some brands that are quite large and expensive that you want to steer clear of.  I think these will be brilliant on the bases of some Warmachine minis.

Another Tick Off The List

Well, I've managed to tick another mini off the To Do list.  I sat down for a couple of evenings and did up this Vassal of Menoth.  I'm reasonably happy with the job.  It isn't fantastic, but it isn't shameful either.

Next on the list is my magnetized heavy warjack kit.  I've really enjoyed painting individual models lately.  I like that I'm not doing the same thing over and over for hours upon end.  I also like that fact that within a few sessions, I have something finished.  This doesn't bode well for my still unfinished High Elves.  I have a few units yet to finish and the thought of it at this point makes me droop a bit.  Maybe over March Break I'll be able to find the energy.

What I've been up too

I've been listening to Jim Butcher's Codex Alera series lately and it's got me into the man cave far more frequently than in months past.  In addition, the Blackhawks have been playing like rubbish lately so, I haven't been busting it to see all of the games, it just makes me grumpy.

Sometime in the fall, I purchased a couple of Malifaux crews.  The idea is that if I have two crews, once I learn how to play, I can convince others to give it a try if I already have the toys.  I decided to start my painting quest with them.  I'm pretty happy with the results so far.  Lady Justice was particularly detailed and a bit difficult.  She was a nice challenge.

Collette - my wife picked the colors

Lady Justice, I picked these colors...with a little help

The Judge

Cassandra WIP

Meanwhile, Back At The Ranch

It's been a while since I posted, but I've been pretty busy the past couple of weeks.  I know teachers are supposed to have all sorts of time in the summer and that's usually true for me too.  However, this summer I foolishly went and got myself a summer job for the month of August.  So, I've been training and working lots of hours the last couple of weeks.  I found that my house was eating all of my money and not leaving very much for my hobby and my fun, so I had to do something about it, hence the job. 

I managed to finally finish painting the Man Cave and getting the Fathead decal up on the wall.  I'm pretty stoked about how it looks.  I shampooed the carpet yesterday to try and get the previous owner's pet smell out of it.  Early indications are smelling good.  Now I have to move my table back in and get comfy.  I still have a few decorations coming in the mail and I am on the hunt for some more furniture to finish off the room, but it's moving forward at least.

In between working on the house and working at my new job, I did managed to paint up eight more spearmen.  Spearmen were the first fantasy models I ever painted.  I painted 20 of them for my army when I started two years ago in 7th edition.  That was enough back then, but now in 8th edition, I find I need a whole lot more, especially when playing larger point games.  So, I bought two boxes of the little bastards.  I have built one box and now painted half of them.  I guess that means only 16 to build and 24 to paint.  Oh, God.  I don't know why, but I hate painting these models.  It is going to be a struggle to get the little blighters done.

Since I now have a job, I felt I owed it to myself to do a little internet shopping.  I have been aggressively expanding my Warmachine Protectorate of Menoth force.  However, with work and the house, I really haven't had time to build or paint any of it.  I did start working on the Bastions the other night, so hopefully I'll have some WIP pictures for you very soon.

Hobby Room Makeover

When we moved into this house last year, there was a lot going on.  Jen was recovering from her horse riding accident, the bathroom floor needed to be ripped out and replaced down to the subfloor immediately, lots of painting, the usual unpacking and an invasion of in-laws.  With all of that going on, my man cave stayed just the way it was.  I moved in and really didn't do anything to it for the past year.  I haven't hung anything on the wall put in any new furniture. 

Well, all of that changed yesterday.  My first (of many) projects during summer vacation is to give the man cave a face lift.  I moved everything out and painted it white.  It sounds lame, but I have a vision.  I just hope I have the skill and patience to  make it happen.  I'm looking into some new furniture and some interesting fixtures to add to the cave.  I'll update as the project progresses.  Unless it looks like hell, in which case you'll never hear another word about it again.