Scratchbuilt Marine 1836

[RobH]

Ver nice Gary, lots of character in his profile shot: hair nicely done (good balance of volume and 'hair' if you know what i mean).

What scale is he?

Rob

 

[Joe Hudson]

Gary,

I have said it before and I will say it again, GREAT work and you are quite the inspiration!

Keep it up!


Joe

 

[btavis]

Just superb, Gary. Love watching this develop.

 

[John Long]

I can't really add anything that hasn't been said, but I must agree with the others. I like your multi-media approach. I've tended to shy away from plastic, but you handle it very well.

 

[garyjd]

Guys, Thanks a bunch. It seems as if the final detailing along with what's left of the anatomy brings things to a snail's pace. It's like I never do a figure exactly the same way twice. The introduction of plastic, especially when used with a sculpture mostly Sculpey can cause me to rethink the way I need to do the figure. The way a figure is planned out is almost always subject to change, for me anyway. I did manage today to come up with photos of a Model 1818 NCO sword that I need to equipment him with, so that's out of the way. It would be great to be able to proceed with the arms by the weekend, we'll see how it goes.~Gary

 

[garyjd]

Guys, Here is where I'm at on the figure. The chinscales are complete and I only need to add a buckle to the chinstrap. The pom pom on top of the shako is only a sculpey "mock-up". The sword belt plate is complete as is the waistbelt plate. there is still a bit more to go, with the arms being the bulk of the work. I thought I'd experimented with black and white photos. I prefer the color images over BW, any thoughts?~Gary

 

[garyjd]

Here are some more. The star is putty, and the raised edge is brass wire.

 

[garyjd]

Here is another view showing the addition of the cartridge box. It is made from plastic strip stock and a little putty.

 

[garyjd]

One for the road.

 

[gordy]

Looking very, very good actually the B&W gives it a more homogenous look where as the colored ones could detract... falling back on that old optical illusion where you see two grey boxes on a striped backgorund where they are exactly the same size but one looks bigger becuase of the different colored background... that's part of the reason why i went to using all putty througout a project, many times i'd get a casting back and i got tired of something that looked too small or too big.. i wish i had a camera then and could have made changes along the way using B&W..

 

[simon1969]

This is so cool!
Did we ever find out what scale he is?

 

[John Long]

It could just be the picture, but the arms and hands don't seem to be sculpted to the same standard as the rest of the figure .

Seriously, Gary it's really shaping up nicely. Your work is so clean and neat, a good reference for building a master.

 

[Richard E]

Gary,

I can't get over how clean you sculpting is, is it sculpted wet like that or do you rub down when it's cured ?

Richard

 

[Joe Hudson]

GAry,

My hat is off to you! Your work is getting better each time I see it. I love the figure and I look forward to seeing it completed. Keep up the Great work!

Joe

Simon, If I am not mistaken the figure is 120 mm.

 

[garyjd]

Guys, Thanks a million. When I get this close to finishing I try not to get too hyped up to finish by rushing through what's left. Since most of the figure is Sculpey III I try to get it as smooth as possible with the tools. The rest is done with a little fine/superfine sandpaper and a lot of very fine steel wool. This stuff is what gives my pieces such a smooth finish, the A&B sections look almost polished. If you are carefull as to how much pressure you use this will take out any stray tool marks or what have you. If you press too hard it could possibly leave "scratches" if you will on the figure's surface. It may be hard to tell but I made the feet a bit larger as they were a bit on the small side. Joe's right, the figure is 120mm. Thanks again fellas.~Gary

 

[LCoote]

Gary, the figure is looking superb. Great work Always love looking at your work.


Gordy, that's an interesting theory about using black and white pictures to check your work.

 

[Jason W.]

Gary,

VERY nice work my friend. As you have read, your work is very inspirational. This is one of the reasons I like this forum, you can post your work, along w/ your message, and get instant and honest feedback. No b.s. here, just pure modeling.

Jason

 

[garyjd]

Ther is a lot going on. The work has slowed down a bit more as the remainder of the figure is being done in A&B and plastic. The right arm started out like the left with the folds being worked in with various shaped files, a round, oval, and triangular one being used for most of the work. The weapons are still under construction but are close to being done.~Gary

 

[garyjd]

Here's another view. The right hand has just been started.

 

[garyjd]

Here's a view of the right arm.