Metal Modeles Chausseur trumpeter

[Chrisr]

Here you Chris (and anyone else taking an interest)

I make reins using a standard white paper/thin card (it's about 80gsm) I pre-colour with paint in a block as shown. Ordinary acrylics are fine for this or you can use a Sharpie for black. Then I cut a lot of strips using a scalpel (new blade please) and a straight edge. Most of these won't be used, but it's handy to have a selection of very slightly different widths I've found and these are glued into place using PVA. Once in place and the glue has dried I'll paint/highlight and touch up as required. I've also found with the French Napoleonic bridles and reins that it's much easier to do a couple at a time because it makes painting easier.

Many thanks Paul. Greatly appreciated. I was thinking of using silver foil from the lids of wine bottles, but I think your approach is more practical. The model is coming along very nicely indeed. Look forward to more postings of your progress.

Stay safe over there
Warm regards
Chris

 

[misfit151]

Exceptional work Paul.....keep it going...... Mike

 

[DaddyO]

Thanks Chris glad you like it
I used wine bottle foil or some lead fishing tie strip on a couple of occasions; both worked well, but I found it difficult to get rid of the slightly shiny metallic finish that came through the paint. Not a major problem, but had me looking for other ways of doing them . . .
Hopefully get back to this one soon

Exceptional work Paul.....keep it going...... Mike
Thanks Mike

Stay safe everybody
Paul

 

[DaddyO]

Okay after a brief dalliance with a bust or two it's back to some 'proper' figures

Been working on the base for this fella over the last few days. First off a nice mahogany plinth from Oakwood Studios - top fella and very nice quality bases. I mask off with tape whilst working on the base after drilling holes for the wire pegs fitted to the figure.
Basic groundwork is built up using DAS. I like using this because you can build it up quite thickly without cracking and it easily washes off.

Once the DAS has dried it's painted in earthy shades and then I sprinkle on road-dust glued with PVA and let this dry. Once I've got this ready I can start to add on the other bits.
On this base (which is quite small) I didn't want anything too complex and I wanted the colours of the base to echo the uniform. It's a mixture of static grasses (3 different) some foamy bits (2 colours) and field grass. The 'bramble' is some dried roots, wadding, grass stems, ivy stems and foam. Once everything has dried in place I added some acrylic colour to tone everything down and blend it all together - may need a tweak or two once the figure is in place (I've already darkened the area below the horse as a slight shadow)

Cheers
Paul

 

[Tonton]

Great tips re bases, Paul. Looking good.

Jeff

 

[MattMcK.]

Beautiful work!

 

[Chris Oldfield]

Beautiful horse & great base, Paul & thanks for the tips on using paper for harness etc. The ones on your horse look extremely realistic.

 

[clrsgt]

Great groundwork and lovely horse. The yellow of the dolman is quite vibrant and goes well with green lace. Did you do it in oils or acrylics; the shading looks very smooth.

 

[DaddyO]

Thanks you gents.
All painted in acrylics cirgist (lots of layers though)

Cheers
Paul

 

[Chrisr]

Hi Paul,

What are you using for the grass ground work - very realistic? For a couple of models I made for a friend years ago I used old hemp binder twine used for hay baling, but alas it is all plastic now.

Stay safe

Cheers
Chris

 

[DaddyO]

Hi Paul,

What are you using for the grass ground work - very realistic? For a couple of models I made for a friend years ago I used old hemp binder twine used for hay baling, but alas it is all plastic now.

Stay safe

Cheers
Chris

Hi Chris

I use a mixture of stuff - the usual static grass (Noch I think) in a couple of lengths. I put thinned white glue down and then use a puffer bottle with 2 mm grass in (I mix different colours together) Before the glue has dried I then use some longer static grass in patches (4-6 mm) Then I add some tufts of 'field grass by picking up a small bunch and trimming the ends; this end is then dipped in PVA and the bunch popped in place for trimming and 'bushing out' later. Finally I'll add a few bits of Sea grass and some odd bits of hairs I've got for longer stems. Once everything has dried I'll go in with a pair of tweezers to pull a few odd ones out and re-adjust things and perhaps add some bits of 'ground cover' foam to form seed heads. I'll also add some light touches of acrylic cover to blend stuff in with the figure.

I've usually got a photo of the sort of ground I'm after nearby as reference and have found that when you look closely it's only tended lawns which are all 'grass'. Not sure I'm quite getting what I want yet, but it's getting nearer to what I'm trying to achieve . . .
Anyway hop that helps
Paul

 

[Chrisr]

Many thanks Paul.

Regards
Chris

 

[DaddyO]

Many thanks Paul.

Regards
Chris

No worries Chris - I'll take a pic of the bits used later and add it to the thread

 

[DaddyO]

Here you go Chris (and anyone else who's interested)

This is a selection of the bits used in the groundwork. Left to right and top to bottom we have -
Dried Sea grass
Dried roots from the garden
Road dust (collected from the edge of the road near the kerb)
Coffee Grounds
Mixture (I think it's called forest scatter)
Not sure what this is called - it is like ground up pieces of foam
Dyed sawdust
Field grass
Static grass (I use about 5 different colours and lengths)

Hope that's of interest. The figure is now completed so I'll post some pics on the completed picture thread, but here's a sneaky preview for those following this thread
Cheers for now
Paul

 

[Chrisr]

Again many thanks for sharing your tips and ingredients Paul. Greatly appreciated and I have ordered some packets of static grass.

The finished product looks superb.

Stay safe
Warm Regards
Chris

 

[Viking Bob]

Superb! Look forward to seeing more of your work in photo's

 

[Blind Pew]

Excellent, you know this is shaping up to be your best piece to date.

 

[Cannonball]

Lovely piece Paul. Great colour combinations and super tips re your take on groundwork.

Neal

 

[Banjer]

Superb! Lovely subtle painting and groundwork. Nice to see a piece of Napoleonic and in 54mm, so much fantasy around these days.

Bill

 

[KenBoyle]

Great work Paul! Realistic groundwork can be a challenge and your approach of many different elements mixed together is also my choice. Well done!

Cheers,
Ken