Thursday, January 19, 2012

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.

4 comments:

  1. This is like a masterclass in minis. Thanks for the illustrations!

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  2. We miniatures fans are nothing if not suckers for more detail.

    Btw, I think you mentioned not seeing this fig painted up. I guy by the name of Pil has a great one at the center of a massive undead army marching across the internets... http://frothersunite.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=35280&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

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    Replies
    1. Great example, really the first 'real world' assembled and painted one I've seen. The army is so stunning I've made a new post about it. Thanks so much for sharing that!

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