WIP Critique Heavy Metal

[Briggsy]

I have started work on the Trooper, but I'm having a hard time with my eyes. The doctor didn't think I needed an injection in my eye last time I visited. Consequently there is a central blur in my right eye and just using that eye everything is darker. The worst part is my depth perception is knackered. Not too happy about this but I have more appointments next week and the week after, so hope to get it fixed.

Anyway you didn't come here to hear me whinging. Not happy with the face but can't really do much about that till the eye is fixed. His boots and riding breeches are well underway and some blocking in has been done on other parts. Also got cracking on the saddle.



I am quite amazed that I haven't snapped his sword yet but it is early days so no doubt I'll end up replacing it with a hammered out brass one like the General got.

I have also been playing with a few other figures as sculpting is easier at the mo than painting.



They are from L to R a Trooper 3rd Dragoon Guards, an officer of the Vistula Legion and Lt Col Girdar Singh Bahadur OBI, the commandant of the Bharatpur Infantry. Bharatpur being one of the independent Indian states during the Colonial era.

Now I'm going to have a nice vindaloo from the local curry house, nice.

Simon

 

[Merryweather]

Blimey sorry to hear about your eye Simon. Keeping my fingers crossed for you. Love the new stuff!

 

[Malkie]

I'm sorry to hear about the eye Simon, but on the plus side I do like your new sculpts especially the Vistula Legion Officer he just has that hint of arrogance about him.

Malkie

 

[Briggsy]

Blimey sorry to hear about your eye Simon. Keeping my fingers crossed for you. Love the new stuff!

Cheers Neil, I'm sure it will get sorted, just very frustrating at the moment.

I'm sorry to hear about the eye Simon, but on the plus side I do like your new sculpts especially the Vistula Legion Officer he just has that hint of arrogance about him.

Malkie

Thanks Malkie, can't complain, just got to look at Roger Saunders Hornet heads and he only has one good eye!

Simon

 

[BRAN]

I hope your eye will heal quickly and that you will regain good vision. My mother-in-law also had injections in her eye but she suffered from AMD (I don't know what it's called in English), I hope your problem is less serious.
To return to a lighter subject, I admire the results you obtain on such small figurines. Bravo Simon !!

 

[Briggsy]

I hope your eye will heal quickly and that you will regain good vision. My mother-in-law also had injections in her eye but she suffered from AMD (I don't know what it's called in English), I hope your problem is less serious.
To return to a lighter subject, I admire the results you obtain on such small figurines. Bravo Simon !!

Cheers Bran, mine is a leak due to high blood pressure and the injections stabilise it. Your mother in law has I believe Age Related Macula Degeneration, my wife has that in her right eye. Left untreated I would still loose the sight in that eye, but on the bright side I have another!

I used to do these conversions with 1/35th scale figures, Historex being that much larger are easier. To be fair though I don't like larger figures.

Simon

 

[PaulW]

I have been tinkering with this for about a month now, I am still not comfortable doing mounted figures, the figure is fine the horse is another story.

So rather than keeping the builds to myself I will blog this build, though it will be a longer, slower project than most that can run alongside whatever else I am doing.

View attachment 503521

The vignette will be three Cuirassiers, a General, a Trooper and a Trumpeter all in the charge. The horses are all balanced on one leg so I have had to implant a heavy weight metal support in each.

View attachment 503519 View attachment 503520

Each horse has also been widened somewhat as Historex horses can lack girth especially for heavy cavalry mounts. This had lead to the saddles needing to be adjusted to fit, the molded on head tack on each horse was removed and replaced with new stuff made from wine bottle foil.

All these adjustments have necessitated some rebuilding, especially the strengthened legs also where the neck meets the body and around the face where the detail was removed.

Each horse has had its mane and tail built from various materials like wire, paper & Magicsculpt before coating them with liquid plastic gloup and the having detail added with a pyrogravure.

So this is where I am now;

View attachment 503515 View attachment 503516 View attachment 503517

The base is already put together, well I needed to know if they would all fit!

View attachment 503522

Now all I have to do is make three figures.

Cheers Simon

Hi Simon

This is going to be a super scene. There's plenty of animation in the horses.
On the subject of posing the cavalry themselves. Many moons ago I had the pleasure of talking to Ray Lamb on the subject of his sculptures. I at the time was interested in building a diorama of a Confederate cavalry charge. I diorama I sadly never started.
He pointed out the following:

If the horse is walking or trotting, the mounted figure should be straight backed.

If the horse is cantering or low speed gallop, the mounted figure should have a slightly bent forward. Or, for the low gallop the mounted figure should be slightly stiffer in the back but forward still. An officer always looks best with the back leaning back and their body twisting towards the sword arm which is raised calling for the bugler to sound the charge.

Horse at full gallop/charge. The mounted figure should be more forward, more or less over the horses front shoulders or extreme posture would br over the neck.

If posing a falling or wounded horse have the mounted figure lean the opposite way the motion of the horse. If it's going down head first the rider need to leaning back to counterbalance the angle of the horse back.

He did give me a load more information, but age has stored it away.

I hope this helps.

Cheers

Paul

 

[MalcC]

Hi Simon, sorry to hear about your eye issues, lets hope this can be sorted asap.
As for the progress, outstanding.

Malc