Bolting a Large Mini to a Wooden Base

For the Grenadier Death Giant, I did not want the model to be permanently affixed to the wooden base I prepared, so I engineered a method of bolting it, so that it may be removed if need be.

The model itself has a hollow cavity on its cast base, so I had room to install two customized nuts. Slots were cut in with a hacksaw to give a gripping point to some wire anchors, as well as an encasement of resin that would surround them.

The placement of the nuts within the model's cast base came first, marks for the holes were then transcribed to the wooden base using a few measurements and tracing paper.

I realized that the whole figure tilted way too far back, so I started building up a rim of Green Stuff on one edge of the base to level him out.

To fit one of the nuts in properly some metal needed shaving off. A vice and a large file negotiated the deal.

A few bits of brass and some Green Stuff positioned the nuts in the hollow, and strong casting resin was poured in (foamed up a bit but was trimmed flush after curing) to permanently lock the nuts in position. Bolts feed through the bottom of the wooden base, into the nuts, and the connection is quite snug (being careful to not over-torque of course).

Fancy Footwork

Drop the Base

The Death Giant needs to know where he stands. The cast base is okay, but he will need something more substantial so I decided to have a go at hacking out a wood base. I may just paint the base as staining it will make the end-grain look awful, plus I can then adjust color to best suit how the finished model looks.

Being that I had limited access to woodworking tools, I did everything by hand.

I found a chunk of wood (this was cut off of a wooden palette) and measured out a decent little shape to fit the footprint of the model.

A few basic cuts with a hand-saw and the block is in shape. The bolts are in holes going straight through (I'm bolting the Giant, not gluing him, onto the base).

I measured out an interior edge .25" from the outermost edge to create a little bevel. I notched in a series of diagonal cuts around the edge, and started carving down to that measured edge. Hiring a beaver would have helped, but the job got done nonetheless.

A kiss of the sandpaper and it's shaping up. That inner angle is a bit crap but I can shape that up as I go.

Not exact but I don't really shoot for exact anymore, it just leads to disappointment when it's not achieved! Call it 'folk' art.

And the headless Giant stands proud on his new footing. I'll share my bolting method in the next post. Cheers and happy Spring! (which always means it's getting to be excellent weather to spray-prime outdoors again!)

Grenadier Death Giant: Arm Support

With a big model like the all metal Grenadier Death Giant of the Undead Legion, strong support is needed to hold those parts up. I had arranged a decent pin for the upright axe-wielding arm, but I felt more was necessary and so added another pin.

There was no more room in the arm cast to drill another deep hole. Half of the cast was now occupied by a failed attempt: a snapped drill bit embedded in the metal. I had enough to seat a pin comfortable, but the corresponding hole would have to be on the torso.

To do this, I had to build up an area of Green Stuff, let it cure, then drill into that.

A brass pin was seated into the arm casting,

The two pins participate nicely, one being rooted in the torso casting (old steel) and one being rooted in the arm casting (brass),

The fit works well, and the two pins being (of course) ever so slightly not parallel actually makes for a nice tight grip, even without glue.

But an unsightly gap needs some filling and detailing with more Green Stuff. I'll share the progress soon. Thanks again for tuning in to this blog!

The Un-Fun of the Dungeons & Dragons Labyrinth Game

In cleaning out some old stuff I found this:

I don't really remember where I got it from, but I do remember trying to figure out how it worked, navigation through the 'labyrinth' is built upon audio responses from the board. There are little wall pieces and two metal fighters, a dragon and some treasure.
The box art is beautiful, characteristically uncharacteristic for the early days of D&D.

I like the graphics, not only of the spectacular box art, but the board itself, a repeating tile-work of little woodcut type drawings.

"All the other kids got Vic 20s for Christmas..."

Anybody want it? Seriously, because I don't. I'll send it to you.

Grenadier Death Giant Skull-Work

Attention moved to the skull. The jaw is cast as a separate piece and needed some good adhesion to the skull. With a fine drill bit, and fine brass wire, the piece was pinned into place.

The trick of it was perfecting the final pose, so that jaw looked natural. I wanted it to be slightly open. A few shims of thin wood were placed in between the teeth, a bit of clay helped keep it in place before it was strapped with rubber bands for drilling.

Again I went straight through the two pieces from one side, making true the alignment of the pins. Green Stuff fills any offending holes. The yellow lines show where the pins are.

It's the little things, like this tiny jaw, that take a lot of time. Big things seem to take care of themselves. I considered leaving the jaw out, making him look really messed up from past battles, a little scarier perhaps... but my instinct told me to stay true to the model as it was cast.

Last part to getting the head right was to 'register' it on the top of the spine, so it would peer out in the right direction. I worked with the steel pin I installed many years ago, but the head tended to swing down to a silly pose. I created a special notch out of Green Stuff, with a corresponding notch on the skull. This makes sure that there will be no wiggle-room at all when the skull is glued into place.

I tell you it was a devil getting the 'look' right, I felt like a fashion photographer posing my subject, a push here, and move there, and perfect. Except in fashion photography the models are typically much skinnier than the relatively plump Death Giant.

Cheers. Maybe I'll actually post some smaller minis soon too.

Death Giant Patchwork: Filling Gaps

Filling gaps on the Death Giant, recreating chainmail and a little bit of the necklace that's almost invisible on the casting...

And bones, ribs...

Posting progress here keeps the project rolling, it builds discipline. What do I do if I achieve the goal (finish the model within 2012)? At this rate I may have to establish another goal...

Death Giant Left Arm: Joining Two Heavy Castings

In 2003 or so I had installed a pin to hold the left arm of the Death Giant, a corresponding hole was drilled into the shoulder of the arm casting, but on closer review I ascertained that there wasn't enough metal at that point on the arm casting to hold the arm in place with confidence.

The new goal was to increase the strength of the shoulder joint to hold the weight of the arm casting (which is quite hefty as it includes the shield as well).

I installed a new second pin, a rather thick brass post, a bit lower than the original. This creates a strong gusset to hold up the arm.

This was NOT drilled through the arm all the way, using the technique I've recently posted. I wanted enough material to rest on top of the brass post, so the arm was only drilled half-way.

It's rather ugly now and betrays its presence, but I'll come up with some Green Stuff additions, some torn fabric and detritus, to mask it on the finished model.

The important thing is that it makes the joint between two heavy castings very strong.

Next step will be to 'blend' the two parts together by creating more mail armor and a bit of necklace chain. I'll also share the connection of the ribcage.

Soon you will meet the Undead

That's my best post title so far. Fans of metal (the other kind) will instantly recognize it as a lyric from a Slayer song.

I got wind of a completed and painted Grenadier Death Giant of the Undead Legion and discovered that it is surrounded by one of the most spectacular and dynamic miniature armies I've ever seen.

The painting is consistent in detail and quality, and picks out each character as an individual (certainly an accomplishment with this volume of undead). The painter took different models from different eras and different companies and compiled them together to create one cohesive swarm - not an easy task.

I just love skeletons on the march, don't know why, just do. It's fun. Halloween-style.

Internet frequenters have probably seen this already but here it is again: An amazing undead army captured for all to see with excellent photographs.

Big thanks to the proprietor of Belched from the Depths for sharing this!

Pinning un-even parts: Death Giant continued...

The 'Death Giant' comes in many parts, perhaps the most awkward area to assemble is the front of the rib-cage to the main body: there are really no connecting points at all and pins must be installed at multiple points to hold the weight.

I made a diagram to show how I tackle this. Drilling holes on either side will not work at all, as they would never align properly when gluing. I strap the two pieces together, making perfect their alignment, then drill the necessary holes all the way through the entire piece. I can then create the pins and glue them in one by one. After the glue has cured the straps are removed and the holes and gaps are Green Stuffed. The pins are buried and never seen. In this way some very delicate points on the model were pinned, including some areas where the material was 2mm wide. I use brass pins, notched and chamfered in the way illustrated in a previous post.

The result is quite satisfactory. I pinned the Giant at the ribs but also near the shoulders, and a few other areas where there was sufficient metal on both parts.

By drilling holes at different angles, the pins team up to act as physical locks against any future separation.

Hope this is helpful and not too clinical.

Lead Rot in action

This is a little video made as steel probes gently poke at the 'Female Thief' miniature shown in the previous post. It was so afflicted with Lead Rot that it was not worth trying to save, so its further destruction is documented here.



The dust and nastiness left behind is all that remains of a nice detailed cast.

Remember: it can happen anywhere! Protect your minis!