WarFrog's Hobby Blog

Monday, June 4, 2012

Project Compendium Hive Tyrant Wings

Hive Tyrant wings with scything talons.

This project is now dead with the release of a plastic GW flying tyrant kit.

First is a reference photo of the large scything talon from the Trygon kit.

Top view ready for first layer of thin sheet polystyrene to build the wing webbing.

Next a top down view, dry fit onto a hive tyrant.

Top down view comparison against a Balrog wing conversion.

Frontal comparison.

Frontal comparison 2.

First layer of Green Stuff has been applied to the top of the wing, I used heavy paper to make the base of the webbing then soaked it with super glue to add strength. The GS has been textured using wet sand-able sand paper being pressed into the GS to leave a rough even texture.

Paper membrane ready for Green Stuff

I realized that this is the largest GS project I have ever done. I have used GS often to fill gaps and reconstruct small missing details, but nothing of this scope.

On this side I still need to re-work the talon on the elbow, the inner arm webbing, and the attaching tendons to the finger bones.

More green stuff added, wings have been smoothed to remove previous texture.

Bottom side, starting to apply green stuff.

The steps between green stuff take a lot of time to dry, so I have started a second project.

Comparisons with Forgeworld warrior wings

After checking out the FW wings I have decided to match the style, the armor plates at the joints and elbow, the armored section around the hand structure, and the way the membrane joins up to the skeletal/chitinous structure

Project Compendium Tyranid Swarmlord

This is a compilation of the WiP posts for the Tyranid Swarmlord

I have been running two conversion projects at once, to fill the down time while waiting on green stuff to cure.

Starting Bitz;

I am going to be using a Trygon torso and 2 Trygon head plates (not pictured), plus a set of Carnifex legs and tail, standard Carnifex head and standard Carnifex armored plate (not pictured either).

Torso modifications:

I removed the 2nd and 3rd ridges from the armored plate, I would later go on to remove the first two back vents as well.

Torso modifications step 2:

Here you can see the Carnifex armored plated and additional green stuff vent that has been added to the torso. The Carnifex tail section has been lengthened so that the torso and tail/waist will fit correctly. The tops of the Carnifex legs have been widened and Trygon head crests have been cut into armor plating for the thighs.

Leg conversion process

Thighs removed from legs

Thighs cut in half

The Carnifex thighs were removed with a jewelers saw, the cut in half with a standard hobby razor saw. The thighs were then widened by gluing the halves to a 1/8 inch thick piece of plastic card and sculpting/sanding it down to match the original contour. Your can see the white plastic card in a photo above this.

Trygon torso:
Beginning to blend the Carnifex armor plate into the torso and have added the first 2 green stuff vents.

Waist & Tail extended and armor plate added

Torso & Tail dry fit

The last two pairs of vents still need to be extended with GS.

Current edition Hive Tyrant tail

I need 2 of these and I don't want to pay for them as bitz on eBay.

Press Mold

I used Instant Mold to make a quick press mold.

I took a piece of brass rod and bent it to shape to be structural support of the tail.

Beginning to pack the mold with ProCreate at a 60/40 mix.

Two short tail sections molded up with brass rod inserts ready for use.

Legs about %85 complete

I need to fatten up the thighs a little bit, going for that softball player look.

Making the primary horn

Still need the extended goatee and talon thingies on the sides of the mouth

Tail section

Built up with brass rod and first layer of green stuff.

Update 4

Head

Moar Head

Those wonderful mouth claw thingies

I still need to finish out the neck muscles.

Thickened thighs

Ready to be cast in resin.

Update 5

Resin Leg casts are finished........ Wooo

Size comparisons

So it looks like Swarmy is gonna be shorter than a Trygon / Mawloc and taller than a current Tyrant. That is an original hive tyrant up front, I now use them as either tyranid primes or tyrant guard.

Face off

The torso still needs 4 more spore vents and the small chest plate claws.

Top down

Side view

Leg comparison

Current hive tyrant, custom leg set, carnifex.

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

I am not dead, but I might have taken an arrow to the knee.

Gotta have a little Monty Python humor to start the year off.

Wow, long time no update. Well I blame the following.

Skyrim, that game owes my wife & I way too many hours of our lives back. Over 200 hours logged between the two of us so far.

Thanksgiving and Christmas and New Years seem to eat up way more time than should be allowed, considering that most of our family that under normal conditions tries not to be around each other.

Plus I have changed careers in the last 60 days going from 11 years in communications to learning a new industry in security services.

Oddly it seems that I have had little time to devote to wargames.

Alas I hope to get a game in this Saturday at my local Hobbytown, and I have a few little changes in mind for my swarmlord, that I would like to have ready for final assembly by the end of January

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Resin Casting Tutorial

Now that a mold is finished we need to pour some resin.

Lets make these.

Smooth-Cast 305

Once again this product is mixed at a 1:1 ratio by volume and has little or no odor.

It has a 7 minute pot life and a 30 minute demold time.

I recommend getting some squeeze bottles like restaurants use for condiments to make it easier to pour.

I use Alumilite's Black dye to get a gray resin. 305 is usually bright white. A few drops in the A side jug and shake till blended. Go slow with this and test until you get a shade you are happy with.

Tools and work area

I use a marble cutting board for any of my messy work. Hot metal, super glue and resins scrape right off with the razor scraper.

Syringe for injecting resin into the mold, or pulling resin through a vent gate.
Graduated mixing cups, labeled in CC
Mixing Stix
Rubber bands to keep molds together
Clamp(s) for molds
Hard board or plastic card used when clamping the molds.

Clamped Molds

Using a hardboard or thicker plastic card line up the halves and hold them together. Use rubber bands or clamps. You have to figure out the right amount of pressure for your mold. Too little and the resin will seep out of the bottom, too much and you will warp and deform the cast.

Mixing and pouring tips

Shake both sides of the product to ensure they are fully mixed, especially is you are using a resin dye.
Stir the A&B sides well, make sure it is completely mixed.
With this mold I was able to pour directly into the main gate, I used the syringe slowly pull resin & air pockets up through the vent channel.
Rotate and shake the mold to help free any trapped air pockets.
Wear gloves you don't want mixed resin on your hands.

First Cast from these molds

On this pull (that's what a casting is called) you can see the middle claw did not form because there was a small amount of silicon that needed to be removed from the vent. A few small air bubbles but over all a very nice first pull, means this should be a very good mold.

On this pull we see a few air bubbles and the toe had a trapped air bubble. Still better than most packaged and sold Finecast. The toe bubble was solved in future pulls by rotating the mold while the resin was liquid, to allow the air to escape.

The vents on this mold did work right the first time.

With a little work these legs will be usable, a small amount of green stuff and less time than I have spent on most ForgeWorld I have gets a very good set of bug legs.