Double Axe - where?

[slorak]

One thing I noticed - and this might make things easier for you and look a little better.

If you put the axe heads on the staff as is - it is a bit too long and also looks unbalanced (on the figure that is) with only part of the axe showing on one side and a long piece of the handle and the axe blade on the other side.

Here is what I propose which if done carefully would probably be easier to do and look better. Carefully remove the staff completely. Drill a hole through the hand holding the staff so that you can insert the brass rod through. Cut off the hand and rotate it so that you can have the axe completely free from the body and then balance it. That way you can make the shaft shorter. If you are careful you will probably only need minor green stuff work to fix the gaps in the robe.

A trick with smoothing the greenstuff is get it wet when applied and then using a wet finger smooth this out. This way it should't leave fingerprint marks and if it does you can always sand them down. Make sure to pin the hand rather than just glue it for added strength. The diameter should be thicker than the staff is and easier to drill. You really don't need to drill too deep just enough to get a bit of the rod in for added strength.

Hope this helps more.

cheers,

-Mike

 

[Jon Potter]

If you put the axe heads on the staff as is - it is a bit too long and also looks unbalanced (on the figure that is) with only part of the axe showing on one side and a long piece of the handle and the axe blade on the other side.

I agree. And I intend to adjust the length of the staff once I see the actual mini. Accoding to the product page on the GW site, the staff is a separate part attached only to his left arm, In fact, both arms are separate from the main torso as shown here .

So I wonder if it might not be even easier to accomplish what you're suggesting given that situation.

 

[slorak]

Yeah this will be a piece of cake for you. Just cut the hand and re-position it the direction you want (I personally wouldn't have the axe go behind his back - looks awkward), cut off the staff, and do what I suggested above. Much easier. I love multipart figures!

Cheers,

-Mike

 

[Drachenherz]

An Idea

Rather than lopping off the entire staff, why not just lop off the ends, size-match a drill bit to the shaft, then drill holes with that bit in the undersides of the axe-heads? I've done this before, and it works quite well. I would have gone through a local hobby store or hardware store for the toold though. GW brand tools are obscenely expensive, and you can get good tools for far lower prices at hardware/hobby stores. The same goes for the flocking, the glue, etc...

Another question: how do you plan to paint the figure? If the figure is supposed to be darker, black primer may work better. However, if you want medium-light/bright colors, go with a white primer. If you insist on black, at least get some Reaper brush-on white primer. That way you can go over the skin/hair/clothes/etc... with the white, then follow the normal steps of painting and shading w/o the colors being too dark. Just a hint for you. Happy holidays!

 

[slorak]

In my most humble opinion I think getting rid of the pewter staff and replacing it with a brass rod would be easier to do as well as stronger. The staff that is with the figure is probably slightly larger than a brass rod making you drill a larger hole in the axe head to have it fit - brass rod is definitely the way to go.

I found that Using white primer is good if you then go over it with some watered down black ink. The black ink gets into the recessess basically creating your darklines for you (if you are careful during painting) and on the surface it darkens it enough to not show the white. Personally nothing irritates me more than painting a white primed figure and finding dots of white where the primer didn't get convered! That is definitely the luxury of black primer. If you need an area bright you can always go back over that area with white paint first then your colors. Light colors such as yellow don't cover very well over black.

I also posted on another forum about primer and an alternative would be Folk Art Glass and tile medium mixed 50/50 with water (learned that it is best to not pre-mix it but rather mix it as you use it) and add a drop of black ink. It dries tight to the figure and has great bite for a primer.

Cheers,

-Mike

 

[Drachenherz]

Slorak

True, true... I just figured that using the existing metal would be somewhat easier for the novice converter to do, as opposed to a complete rework. When I teach, I tend to save the more severe conversions for the advanced lessons.

 

[slorak]

True, true... I just figured that using the existing metal would be somewhat easier for the novice converter to do, as opposed to a complete rework. When I teach, I tend to save the more severe conversions for the advanced lessons.

Since it is a multi-part figure there really isn't any additional difficulty in using the brass. I would agree with you to an extent if it was sculpted onto the figure as a whole but judging from the link posted for this figure I still think the brass rod is the way to go. That way you can control its length, it will be much sturdier than the pewter, and it is easier to drill a smaller hole into the axe blades than a larger one.

Cheers,

-Mike

 

[Drachenherz]

Very true... wait til he gets into the deep conversions... drilling the holes for the tiny wires is a pain in the butt...

 

[Jon Potter]

Very true... wait til he gets into the deep conversions... drilling the holes for the tiny wires is a pain in the butt...

What? Are you trying to scare me here?

As I said before, whether or not I do more conversions depends on how this one turns out. I'm still debating whether to go the brass rod method or not.

 

[slorak]

What? Are you trying to scare me here?

As I said before, whether or not I do more conversions depends on how this one turns out. I'm still debating whether to go the brass rod method or not.

I wouldn't worry about this. The whole issue with drilling holes is the bigger the hole the less metal that is left behind. This can cause splitting that would possibly need repairing with greenstuff, etc. if you didn't drill straight. So actually it should be easier to drill a smaller hole than a larger one - just drill straight.

As long as you can hold the piece relatively firm wether with one hand while you drill with the other or with a vise you should be just fine. The hand drills work just fine just takes more manpower.

Drachenherz - I am not sure why you are suggesting that this is a difficult thing to do when we both know that it is not. Unless by difficult you mean that it will take more muscle doing it by hand. However that is the case with any tool. With a hand tool you can get the job done and do it well but it will cost you stamina and time while a power tool will get the job done easier and faster but at a cost of more money for the tool.

Jon - the conversion you want to do with the parts you have selected are some of the easiest to do. It is basically a weapon swap. Go for it and have fun.

Cheers,

-Mike