Conversions

[goldrex]

Gentlemen,
I have and recently purchased some MASTERBOX, German, British and Russian figures in 1/35 scale. I merely bought these kits for their excellent and previously unseen poses but would like, if possible, turn them into U.S. WWII military. There are a variety of heads, weapons and other bits and pieces available in this scale and with sculpting putty, (a good brand name would be appreciated) this, (hopefully in my case), may be achieved. The second problem is, webbing! I'm only aware of an old VERLINDEN set which consisted of P/E but using that, would probably be beyond my capabilities anyway. Besides, I would need several sets of these to complete my project. Any help on how to create the above plus the webbing and buckles etc. would be greatly appreciated.
TIA,
P.N.

 

[Einion]

MagicSculp (MS), Apoxie Sculpt (AS), Kneadatite (greenstuff, or GS) and Milliput can all be used for the sculpting necessary for the conversion as well as adding webbing and other kit items.

My own preference would be MagicSculp for the general work but which putty suits best is very much a matter of personal taste; Apoxie Sculpt is definitely capable of exactly the same results, it's just a little softer initially and harder when set. Milliput I find horrible to use but other modellers like it and get great results.

Getting webbing to look right at a small scale like this is tricky so you'll need to work at it to get good results. Even if you go with MS for the general sculpting you might prefer to use Kneadatite for some of the finer work; many sculptors like to employ a multi-media approach, using different putties for their natural strengths, and the good adhesion of GS makes it a great choice for small, thin, applied details.

Einion

 

[goldrex]

Einion,
Thank for getting back to me. I bookmarked your informative reply and hopefully, with my talents, will get some reasonable results.
Thank's again,
Peter.

 

[Einion]

Welcome, best of luck with this. Check back with us if you have any trouble (and even if you don't!)

Einion

 

[blaster]

Have you tried Dragon figures?

Hello Peter,

I understand that you wish to conver 1/35 figures of other types into 1/35 WWII US Military. Haave you considered using Dragon figures of WWII US Military as the basis for your conversions? They are reasonably priced, highly detailed and comes in various sets.

Rgds Victor

 

[Steve]

Victor took the thought directly out of my head, mainly that there are quite a few very good WW2 GI's available from Dragon, as well as Verlinden and even Masterbox. It is one thing if your intent is to convert for the satisfaction and enjoyment of turning one subject into another; but if you really simply want to paint and build GI's, there are plenty around. The Dragon GenII stuff is pretty amazing, especially given the cost.

 

[dinovision79]

Hi Peter,

in case you'd choose to convert, for the webbing you can also try lead foil (similar to household alu foil, but 'heavier'). A big sheet for a few $ lasts for dozens of figures, you can engrave/emboss details (seams, pattern) into it with a pin, scalpel or any sculpting tool. The get the right creases, press the cut to size pieces of lead into the still soft putty, buckles can be wire or plastic.
Hope it helps
Denes

 

[goldrex]

Denes,
Seems like a grear idea! Where can I get the foil?
TIA,
P.N.

 

[goldrex]

Victor and Steve

Gentlemen,
Thank you for your reply. Apart from the figures I mentioned in my earlier post, I do have several DML and even the old TAMIYA figure sets. Some of these are German and as I said, were strictly purchased for their poses. BTW the new MINIART MP figures look great, no conversion neccessery there. Thinking of getting a set.
Regards,
P.N.

 

[AJLaFleche]

Some wine companies use a very good foil to seal their bottles. Look up Bela Serra, Georges DuBoeuf and some of the Australian brands. Not only do you get foil, but some decent wine as well.

 

[goldrex]

Thank's AJ. Will keep your idea in mind.
Cheers,
P.N.