It's been a bit nippy in the Hinton Hut this week but I've still managed to make progress with animating my PN5 Prussians. This has been a lot of work (but then I knew it would be) and is certainly a lot more time consuming than preparing normal castings.
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| This is how the casting was originally supplied with the arms lightly attached at the hips. The bases of the figures had already be filed and there was very little flash on them. |
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| First step is to cut the arms free and gently bend them into position. The musket is then Super Glued in place. Trying to get all 20 musketeers in exactly the same position proved impossible but I'm hoping this won't be too noticeable when the unit is finished. |
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| Step two is to add in the hands (I use Magic Sculpt). My sculpting skills are very basic and I noticed a tendancy to make the hands too big but this should not be so obvious once the figure is painted. |
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| This is the last batch and includes the standard bearer completed in the same way. |
I have the whole unit ready and primed so now it's time to get painting.
Nice work. What regiment are they going to be?
ReplyDeleteThanks Rob, they’re going to be a Pomeranian regiment.
DeleteFascinating insight, they look grand and looking forward to seeing them painted up.
ReplyDeleteThanks Donnie.
DeleteShaping up nicely! I was looking at the figure prior to having his limbs detached from his hips. It looks like his right hand is cupped? Do you think it's possible to attach his firearm to his right hand with the butt grounded by his feet to take on an "at ease" or "in reserve" pose?
ReplyDeleteThanks Bob, I did consider an at-ease pose and might try this with another unit. The hands on the figures are small more like plugs so I think the original idea would have been to solder the guns to them which is way beyond me! In order to glue on the muskets I had to remove the hands and then remodel them.
DeleteI agree with Bob, definitely shaping up nicely (and the result is a rather determined looking advancing figure).
ReplyDeleteThanks Matt, I agree they look as if they mean business!
DeleteI was taking another look, the hands seem to get better with practise, assuming that's the first figure on the left (as you look at it) of the group photo. The figure on the right looks really nice, I think his musket might be slightly less raised and it makes him look more dynamic. When I do this sort of mod, I have one figure as the pattern, and then stand each next to it, while still working on them, to see how well they match - getting the bayonet points at the same height seems to soothe my OCD.
ReplyDeleteThanks Rob, I did try to match each figure to the original but even so it’s hard to get a perfect match. The hands did get better as I went on!
DeleteA fiddly but rewarding project. I quite like the position of the muskets being slightly different.....and must get hold of some of that Magic Sculpt.
ReplyDeleteThanks Simon, magic sculpt is similar to green stuff but for some reason I find it easier to work with.
DeleteThese are going to be very posh Pomeranians, Ian!
ReplyDeleteThanks WM.
DeleteLooks good. I wouldn't worry about getting poses exactly the same... doesn't happen in real life!
ReplyDeleteGood point Rob!
DeleteThis project shows the true dedication of a craftsman-artist. Totally next level stuff. I tried it with some Bavarians in march pose and feel your pain. Not an easy project to bring to fruition! At least mine did not require sculpting news hands - 24x10 fingers is a lot of fingers!
ReplyDeleteThanks David, thankfully I didn’t have to do the feet!
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