Hatamoto Build Breakdown

This “Hatammoto” or Imperial Bodyguard was created from the two plastic kits from Games Workshop; the Space Marine Captain and the Command Squad. Both sets came fully packed with scores of spare bits and pieces that can be used to fancy up not only a single Command unit but also can be distributed amongst the rest of your models to add variety.

Not being technically a player of Warhammer 40K, I purchased these kits with a unique and yet strongly characteristic Space Marine Commander and his tight knit defense unit. The term use of the word “Hatamoto” made this particular unit marginally different from other command groups. The skeletal narrative that I invented for this particular Chapter or as I am referring to it, Regiment of Marines is that they are a combat tested unit which has been raised on and for fighting in jungle environs which justifies the drab green and simple disruptive camouflage used on their body armour.

The various characters or roles identified in this build were the simply equipped Veteran Marine with plasma rifle, the honours adorned veteran with close combat gear, a Regimental Sargent Major with hand crafted bolt gun, the gold encased Regimental Champion and the centerpiece of the squad, the Regimental Commanding Officer. I went about building and painting these miniatures with their individual roles in mind; for example the two models with camo on their armour were completed first as a sort of test run for the rest of the unit. The two warriors with hand weapons were then completed with special care taken to make them unique in their own ways. The final model for the unit to be built was the RCO who was a culmination of all of the various techniques employed on his brothers in order to tie the squad together.

This unit was a great pleasure to build and finish as the kits provided so much variety and opportunity to the end result. Hical, James

Fisher Sea Fury Part II

Pictured is the Fischer SeaFury FB11 TG 117 in the markings of the WWE (Winter Weather Establishment) at Namao (Edmonton), Alberta. This aircraft has been referred to as an F 10 by some sources. However, TG117 came from the first production batch of Sea Fury FB11's. The contract for 150 aircraft was issued on 28/8/1944 and was later reduced to 50 aircraft, of which Canada received 26. TG117 was taken on charge by Canada on May 24, 1948 and issued to 803 Squadron as BC-A. It was issued to the WWE on June 4, 1948 and was destroyed in a crash at Watson Lake, Yukon on January 30, 1951. Confusion as to the mark of this aircraft may have arisen because two Sea Fury F10's were issued to the WWE. TF901 and TF909 were from the batch of 50 Sea Fury F 10's built. TF 901 was on loan from the Royal Navy and was destroyed within a month of arrival in Canada and was replaced by TG117.

1/32 Fisher Sea Fury part I

This is the 1/32 Fischer Sea Fury finished in the markings of the "Aerobats", the demonstration team of 860 Squadron of the Royal Dutch Navy. The aircraft shown is the 46th of 47 Mk 51 Sea Furies built by Fokker. This aircraft was the reserve aircraft for the team during the 1953 demonstration season. The number 6 represents the 6th letter of the alphabet, "F", which identified the aircraft as a fighter and the 46, the airframe number. The aircraft codes are from a Dutch Decal sheet. However, I felt the orange used on the Fischer decal sheet was more accurate and used the national insignia supplied with the kit. The cowl orange was mixed to match the decals and used Polly Scale railroad Reefer orange as the base as it had a slightly brown hue. The aircraft is shown in a colour photo in the Dutch Profile, "Hawker Sea Fury History, Camouflage and Markings" and the left side escape panel and canopy had been replace, the extra dark sea grey, being considerably darker than the rest of the airframe. I didn't bother adding this detail to the kit. Hical, Allan

Allan's Fw190 Part II

This shows a model of Tamiya Fw 190D9 in 1/48 representing W.Nr.211941. This aircraft was from production batch W. Nr. 212101-170 which came from the FW plant at Marienburg. The aircraft is thought to have belonged to Stab 1 / JG 6. There is some disagreement over the finish of these aircraft as presented in Fw 190D camouflage and markings published by JaPo and Fw 190 Dora published by Eagle Editions. Both are invaluable references. Both show early aircraft from the batch to have wings painted 76/83. The Japo reference interprets the lower wings to be 76 overall (W1 pattern) while Crandell notes the lower wing to be 75 leading edge, natural metal for the remainder and 76 control surface (W3a pattern). The Kommandeur decal sheet has interpreted the lighter fuselage and darker wing colour as 75 rather than 82 and I finished the aircraft 75/83 over 76 with 75/76 upper and solid 76 lower wings in agreement with the decals. Although some early D9's did have 75/83 fuselages, I would agree that the 75/83 wings and fuselage on this aircraft may not be accurate. hical, Allan

Basing Figures II

Bases can come in various degrees of detail and intensity depending on the subject. Consider, for example this Citadel resin one piece base which is rather cluttered in the traditional Warhammer 40k style and is simply detailed with drybrushing and dry pastels to produce the wind-blown dust covered waste zone of an alien world; a rather simple environment to situate this Guardsman. A more elegant and involved yet still simple base is the Imperial Japanese Navy pilot’s deck he stands upon. Allan made this base from balsa wood strips, painted grey and yellow with a light sanding to show the wood underneath. Weathering was achieved by splatting small droplets of black on the deck to simulated spilled oil. It is interesting to note how Allan was able to create a dynamic by putting the “grain” of the balsa panels askew to the natural angles of the base itself. Simple touches like this can lead to subtle and rewarding results. Hical, James.

Basing Figures Part I

Basing figures is an important step in grounding them in a reality which you have created. When considering the base size, composition of materials density of debris/detail it is important to visualize the figure in character. That is to say, when basing a figure in a dead city, use dark pastels over rough, uneven rubble to create a sufficiently busy urban environment. Pictured here is one of my first attempts at base making from way back when.

Using a length of Tamiya tank tread and some DML Gen2 feet, I branded the base with simple details to make the surface look muddy and worn as if an armored infantry column was being rolled through. For smaller bases such as this HobbyFan one piece, I used a blend of pastel work and drybrushing to create the hot dusty road being walked by these Marines on their way to Hue City. A good way to anchor your figures in to the base is by weathering their feet/clothes with the same mixture you are using to weather the groundwork.

Hical, James

Allan's Fw190-D Part I

This angle shows the proper stance of the Fw 190. The main undercarriage legs and doors are too short, giving the aircraft a squat appearance. The legs are replaced with legs from Parts-R-Parts although I doubt if they are still available. SAC might be an option. Cowl and radiator as well as 5 piece cowl cover of the production batch of the aircraft represented as well as wheels are from Eagle Parts and prop and spinner are from the MDC Fw 190 D external upgrade. HiCal, Allan

Warhammer 40,000 Painting Set Tutorial

For those of you who have this particular set and have made use of the included painting guide this tutorial is not a replacement, merely a different way of making use of the colours provided. The set provides eight pots of different colours and three different types of paint. There are four basic Citadel colours, white, red, silver and gold. Then there is an “undercoat black” which I used for the initial coat on the figure and for heavier washes. There is a black “wash” which is a very thin ink that can be easily run into cracks and sections in order to give and impression of shadows and depth for detail. The last two pots contain a brown and a blue “foundation” colour. This relatively new product from Citadel is a great way to cover any basecoat with a solid layer quickly making it ideal for creating entire squads at a time. The set also comes with a starter brush, which I decided to leave unused in favor of my basic fine, basecoat and small drybrushing brushes. The figures provided in the 40K set are five of the easy to assemble four piece Space Marines. I was quite pleased with the molding and detail on these troopers and I could see them blending in well with any future additions of the multipart Tactical Marines. A great point to note about these figures is that in a pinch, they can be used without any adhesive! I will, however be gluing mine together with plastic cement.

The first step when painting these miniatures is freeing the individual pieces from the sprues. I recommend using a handy pair of snips and a hobby knife for clearing away any excess hunks of sprue from the parts once they are off of the frame. With the four parts liberated, I used the blade of my hobby knife in a vertical scrapping motion to clear away all traces of molding inconsistencies and excess plastic left over from the fabrication process.

The first coat was a black basecoat applied to all areas before the figure was assembled in order to ensure no areas were missed. Once this had dried, I fitted the base, pack and shoulder onto the main figure with small drops of plastic cement in the butt jointed areas. A note on assembly: I found that the connector pins on the right hand and shoulder left shoulder were too long and their reciprocal holes were too narrow so, considering that I was letting the glue do all of the work I clipped down both pins by a half and used my knife to gently clear out the holes. After the glue had dried it was time to make use of the blue colour provided. I wanted to keep the first layer of blue as thin as possible while still getting a solid coat over all relevant areas, to this end I made use of a slightly frayed small brush and lightly rubbed paint across the surfaces.

The details of the figure are well accented and raised for easy painting. To begin I base coated the golden eagles with the brown, the red of the eyes and the purity seal in white, the shoulder rims in silver, the sling in brown and the weapon bits in silver. Starting with the eagle, I simply painted it gold and once it was dried gave it a quick heavy wash of thinned down undercoat black which I let settle in the creases in order to create depth. The shoulder rims were painted gold and with small sections of the outer edge left bare silver to show wear and tear. All silver painted detail such as the vents, weapon bits and sling hooks were given a solid wash at the same time as the eagle was and retouched with silver once the wash had dried. At this point I painted the shoulder insignias white taking care to paint within the lines and finished up by adding the eyes and purity seal in red. A final touch on the basic painting of the figure was to redefine all recesses and details with an accurate wash using the black ink.

I hadn’t finished with the trooper at this point though, I decided to show how a little bit of extra work can make your basic grunts really stand out. To this end I mixed the blue with the white at a ratio of 4:1 and using a fine brush, lightly drybrushed all of the raised areas of the armor. His weapon sling, purity seal and base were all detailed in the same manner except substituting brown for blue.

Hope you enjoyed this basic tutorial on how to get the most out of your 40K starter set! Hical, James

Arrogant Victor

He stands triumphant on the field of battle, his war hammer wet with gore, his left hand raised in a gesture of insult to the retreating foe. This Warrior of the Empire from the Warhammer universe came to me several years ago as a free gift with my White Dwarf subscription. I only recently came across him while moving my work bench and sifting through spare parts. Having never seen a true picture of his intended colour scheme, I decided to go my own way. I imagined a battle worn nobleman in a “Ser Barristan Selmy” esque scheme with his burnished gold plate and stark white cloak. I typically don’t hold to drenching figures (even fantasy and sci-fi) in gore as I find it usually takes away from the “reality” I have suspended them in. that being said, I did envision this fellow having just moments ago delivered a particularly violent deathblow to his particularly ripe Orc adversary. The mire effect on his cloak and boots was intended to anchor the figure in his reality by tying him to the base with similar colours. I wanted the muck to go a good ways up his gear as he would have not only had to march to the site of the engagement but would also have been trudging through the morass of the battlefield in the melee. The main aspects of the painting that went into this figure that I want to touch upon are his scale-mail and plates. I began by building up the plate colour with an antiquated bottle of Polly-Scale Brass. A note on Polly-Scale paints, if you are fortunate to stumble across an old, dust covered rack of them somewhere; GET THEM. The bottle I am using for brass is one of Allan’s and I remember him telling me that many of his Polly-Scale bottles date back from the 1970s. Crack them open, mix in water, add a lead sinker and you’ve got a very useful paint! But continuing on with the plates, I used a mix of Citadel Snakebite Leather, Vallejo Iraqi Tan and Citadel Bleached Bone in order to provide a rich base for the metallic colours to be built upon.

I interspersed drybrushing Citadel Burnished Gold over the plates with thin washes of either Citadel Black Wash or a very diluted mix of Citadel Chaos Black and Vallejo Burnt Umber at a ratio of 1:2 respectively. The Scale-Mail was achieved by initially painting the areas with solid Citadel Boltgun Metal and applying washes of varying intensities to the areas that would need shading such as the folds in his cloak or his armpits. Blanket washes of Chaos Black and Black Wash were interspersed with highlights of BoltGun Metal and on the upper highlights, Citadel Chainmail. A good tip is to apply subtle blanket washes and then with a fine brush, produce horizontal washes to pick out random lines of the scales in order to break up the monotony of the pattern. Hical, James