WIP Mike's WW1 NZRB Lewis Gunner Bust in 1\6th

[tonydawe]

Mike, not sure if you'd want to obscure all that lovely extra detail you've added to the Lewis gun, but I'd be inclined to tie a length of oil skin cloth over the magazine. My understanding was that this was a common battlefield practice by Lewis gunners and their Number 2 used to keep moisture, dirt and mud from clogging up the magazine (which had a nasty habit of misfiring and causing stoppages when dirty, wet or frozen) and could also be used to wipe down the woodwork.

If you recall Phil Walden's excellent Masters In Miniature figure of the ANZAC Lewis Gunner, you will see he has covered the Lewis Gun magazine with oil cloth and tied in on with twine. Given your meticulous level of detail and your insistence of getting things perfect I couldn't help but offer the suggestion. My apologies in advance for any extra headaches and delays in this truly epic bust build.

 

[Wayneb]

Agree Tony,...but the figure has gone through massive surgery;from a modelers stand point...Let the guy ease into it.....Wayne.............Great info and sure will be much appreciated.........Sorry....Just trying to help......

 

[Mike - The Kiwi]

Your persistence is paying off Mike, a big slap on the back to you !
Joe

Looks very "Good" to me. Your persistence has paid off Mike, and hopefully with no calls to the "Modeller's Distress Line?"
Colin

Good on ya both Colin & Joe!
I'm tenacious if nothing else, gotta admit this experience has taken it outta me & I'm working hard to get back in the swing on Charlie. Maybe a call to the Counselling service is in order ;-) or perhaps just get back on the brushes will sort it!

Let's see...

 

[Mike - The Kiwi]

Hello Mike,
I think the adjustment you made looks very good.I Think once you position the gun and paint up some of the uni and details all will be well and forgotten and all blend in perfectly.Those kind of things can make a man lose sleep but persistence shall prevail.".............Wayne

Agree Tony,...but the figure has gone through massive surgery;from a modelers stand point...Let the guy ease into it.....Wayne.............Great info and sure will be much appreciated.........Sorry....Just trying to help......

Always good to get some positive support like this Wayne!
It's nudged me back to the bench & warming up paints for Charlie's neck right now

 

[Mike - The Kiwi]

Mike, not sure if you'd want to obscure all that lovely extra detail you've added to the Lewis gun, but I'd be inclined to tie a length of oil skin cloth over the magazine. My understanding was that this was a common battlefield practice by Lewis gunners and their Number 2 used to keep moisture, dirt and mud from clogging up the magazine (which had a nasty habit of misfiring and causing stoppages when dirty, wet or frozen) and could also be used to wipe down the woodwork.

If you recall Phil Walden's excellent Masters In Miniature figure of the ANZAC Lewis Gunner, you will see he has covered the Lewis Gun magazine with oil cloth and tied in on with twine. Given your meticulous level of detail and your insistence of getting things perfect I couldn't help but offer the suggestion. My apologies in advance for any extra headaches and delays in this truly epic bust build.

Hi Tony

Good recommendation mate & have Phil's classic in my stash of 1/2 dozen Lewis gunners to be done

Familiar with unreliability of Lewis when dirty, However lots of good shots of it in use or at Stand To without covers. Plan to have a bit of gunge on MG as Charlie has just come out of line & Time for a quick fag before he heads back in. For now no cover is planned, trust I'll get away with this.

Found another shot of his unit in action later in war which provides a useful guide for this project too.

Stay safe
Mike

 

[Steve Ski]

Hi Mike,

I recon I missed this one from the start, but WOW, incredible work. You must have been sweating the scalpel work for a bit. Someone passed the original pic on another site and I was taken back quite a bit. You really have perfected the art of face painting to another level. I have this bookmarked for learning purposes. That beard technique is killer and worth learning myself.

Kaz turned me on to the color recipe book, great stuff, but I refuse to cross over to the dark side of acrylics. Too old to learn a new medium actually, more like stubborn. I think I can pull this off with oils, still messing with the blends. It's a tough gig, let me tell ya. Where there's a will there's a way.

At any rate, you have inspired me to get off me ars and get er done. I'll be investing in an optivisor soon, too much detail to leave it to 3.0 reading glasses, lol.

Great work buddy, love it incredibly. Standing by for more, no doubt.

Cheers, Ski.

 

[Mike - The Kiwi]

Hi Mike,
I recon I missed this one from the start, but WOW, incredible work. You must have been sweating the scalpel work for a bit. Someone passed the original pic on another site and I was taken back quite a bit. You really have perfected the art of face painting to another level. I have this bookmarked for learning purposes. That beard technique is killer and worth learning myself.
Kaz turned me on to the color recipe book, great stuff, but I refuse to cross over to the dark side of acrylics. Too old to learn a new medium actually, more like stubborn. I think I can pull this off with oils, still messing with the blends. It's a tough gig, let me tell ya. Where there's a will there's a way.
At any rate, you have inspired me to get off me ars and get er done. I'll be investing in an optivisor soon, too much detail to leave it to 3.0 reading glasses, lol.
Great work buddy, love it incredibly. Standing by for more, no doubt.
Cheers, Ski.

Thanks Steve for kind compliments & detail observations from your experiments.
what site was photo posted on? I do have my portfolio on Facebook too with some photos, maybe there? http://www.facebook.com/michaeljbutlerNZ

Am sure with persistence can achieve effect with oils too.
In my experience it's All about thin layering which I do when working in oils on leather.
Will be doing this for his holster.

I've just finished his head & redone neck today, just starting on his right hand.
Left wrist will be sporting a wound & bandaged up, with some seeping blood to reinforce the scuffle he's just been in.

Not expecting to do any more photos until next week at earliest while I focus on painting.

However in meantime will share some shots showing most of the mods I've done to change from Kiwi to Aussie.

Trust these are of interest to you & others.

Mike

PS by the way I wear 3.0x plus Optivisor
So I know what you mean...

 

[Mike - The Kiwi]

From original Aussie changes were:

1. Rework Aussie boring nose ;-)

Remove:
2. Aussie high collar
3. AIF Sun burst
4. "Australia" shoulder titles
5. AIF Unit badge

Fill & Rework
6. Open Button tops
7. Cuffs
8. Sleeve tear
9. Jacket exposed hem stitching
10.Separate lower coat pocket

 

[Mike - The Kiwi]

Becoming a Rifle Brigade "Dink"


1. Soft hessian helmet cover, will have pencilled NZRB graffiti on it
2. Decent Kiwi bruiser nose - loosely based on my Great Uncle's portrait

Add
3. Kiwi stepped collar
4. Collar button
5. NZRB Brass shoulder titles - to come from Scale Link etched lettering
6. Front jacket padding
7. Closed cuff
8. Rounded brass button tops - these will be blackened
9. Lower pockets integral to jacket
10.NZRB 4th Battalion shoulder flash
11.Jacket back padded seam
12.Shoulder seams & damaged left cuff with exposed internal hem

Additions since original notes:

- added shirt collar around repositioned head
- created an enamel mug from a Chapstick lid & epoxy

 

[Mike - The Kiwi]

Another chapter begins in this project.
Painting Charlie's khaki drab, muddied uniform.
This scary photo is a "Live Action" shot first stages of this.
Again eagled eyed painters will spot some detail here that may help you get into my experimenting mind

I am working with 3 brushes at a time to blend & work up texture in the acrylics - Jo Sonja & Vallejo, over a matt black base.

Questions? Confusion? Interesting?

Mike

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[Wayneb]

Still here Mike,glad you are too........Wayne

 

[Mike - The Kiwi]

Still here Mike,glad you are too........Wayne

Sure am Wayne, got a long slog through Charlie's uniform.
Lots of stippling & blending which can be tedious but hope results are worth it.

More updates in anther week or two perhaps

Mike

 

[Mike - The Kiwi]

This has become a 'dirty little secret' SBS with my neck disaster, so thought may as well continue to try & unveil a little more about how I paint.

In first shot you'll see Charlie's muddied tunic taking shape (sort of ;-).
Wanted to give you a feel for base colour, below belt line - Vallejo English Uniform, heavily thinned with Blending Medium & Tamiya Flat Base.
This is workable for an hour or two & you'll see the blotchy effect I'm after starting to form.
This is added with the largest of the two flat brushes above.

Up higher you'll see closer to finished effect, albeit with spots of Tamiya Flat base showing through as white spots.
These can be easily toned out with base mix which includes Jo Sonya Naples Yellow, Raw Umber & Carbon Black.
I use the smaller flat brush which has a angle on its bristles & is heavily worn so adds a variety to the effect.
Takes quite awhile but I like the messy, muddy, grainy effect of filthy battledress blouse.
Let's see how it goes.

Also another shot of my afternoon project.
Was originally going to leave off Rifle Brigade collar badges off, however have found one of my Great Great Uncles was charged for losing one so got the feeling the guys were 'encouraged' to hang onto them ;-)
So have attempted to sculpt some small representations from MagiSculpt based on a real one I have.
Not quite there but should do the trick

Onward we continue, like I said not holding anything back here now
So stay tuned for those that are interested...

 

[Helm]

Really interesting Mike nice one
Steve

 

[Mike - The Kiwi]

Really interesting Mike nice one
Steve

Neat to hear you're getting value from this Steve.
It's a long experiment in terms of painting & sharing process here.
Though I used similar techniques on my Maori Sergeant it is still not something that comes naturally.
This scale tests your perception of what can be done, so you can just keep pushing on to see what can be done.

Not at sure how it will all end but let's continue on the trip together

Mike

 

[housecarl]

Excellent progress Mike.
If the battledress ends up like the Maori's it will be a stunner.

 

[tonydawe]

Is Vegemite part of your stipling secret recipe Mike?

 

[Mike - The Kiwi]

Excellent progress Mike.
If the battledress ends up like the Maori's it will be a stunner.

Hi Carl,
Just finished watching "The Wipers Times" http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01d0zrj
Highly recommended!

And has me considering how I best depict the effects of days in battle.
Charlie won his Military Medal after a wet & epic 3 day fight.

Will press on & thanks for your support.

Stay safe
Mike

 

[Mike - The Kiwi]

Is Vegemite part of your stipling secret recipe Mike?

Was wondering when you going to spot that one Tony ;-)

Missus is addicted to the stuff after Christchurch earthquakes resulted in Marmi-geddon!
Marmite was out of stock for 18 months.
Jar was handy holding place for Charlie & his now famous pin vice, which he refuses to be separated from

Keep em smilin' eh!

Mike

 

[Mike - The Kiwi]

Nothing special here, just wanted to reassure you that the project is moving along, albeit slowly...

Tunic detail continues, begun outlining webbing & equipment with Jo Sonja Carbon Black & Raw Umber.

Oh and I had another small hiccup
Lewis Gunner badge on upper right sleeve had to be scraped off, one of reason sleeves not painted up still.
It was in wrong position for Kiwis, advice from mate Malcolm Thomas who knows a fair bit about this kinda stuff