Extreme Makeover – Battletech Edition
Sometimes the Classic Battletech forums can run you into some curious situations. Case and point, I opened my big mouth a few months ago while discussing Iron Wind Metal’s recent price increase.
If you’ve been around the CBT block a few times you already know how IWM went a little overboard when they had the Project Phoenix ‘Mechs sculpted. I’ve put together a Marauder and can attest to how crazy they are. Even the new Archer is a pain when you have to go back to the TRO to decide just where the extra bit you have left over goes.
So anyways, Quigs chimed in on the topic which made me think.
Which will make the guys like me, who think assembly is the worst part of a mini, less likely to buy the new product. I’ve bought a few designs which I absolutely loved, got home, and opened the package to realize how long and arduous a process it would be simply to get to the painting part. My bits box is heavier then my fishing sinkers box because of that nonsense.
The plain and simple fact of the matter is that the people willing to go that extra mile to customize a miniature, still can if the mini is a single piece, it just takes them a bit more work. More work that the people who don’t feel the pressing need to meddle with everything they purchase don’t have to put up with by hopelessly fiddling with joints that don’t make a lick of sense.
So I just HAVE to say something back.
Give me all of your ‘Mechs and a case of beer [Quigs], and I’ll assemble and paint the lot of them.
To me, miniature painting is an art and I don’t see it as manual labor in any way. In either case, it’s awesome that CBT does not require minis to play anyways. But if it was not an option, I would not like the game half as much.
Well, a few weeks ago before the holidays Quigs delivers the case of beer and a heap of miniatures to my door.
That’s A Lot of Pewter!
So here I am, with over a battalion of miniatures ready to be stripped, built, primed and painted. I’m honestly excited about this opportunity to practice. Like I said earlier, miniatures are not required to play the game but if they were not an option, I wouldn’t like Battletech half as much.
So over the next few months I will be (hopefully) making progress on these miniatures. I will post whenever I get a mini done. Looking at it all, I think I may have underbid with that single case of beer. Live and learn.
Tip of the Day
Pinesol. Pinesol is amazing at eating through old paint. I’m going to have to buy another bottle myself. The first soak did not succeed nearly as well as I had hoped.
Posted under Articles, Minis
I also like the multi-part minis that allow me to pose them the way I want them, but some people want (or need) something that is easier to work with. I actually like to chop up one-piece minis so I can repose them and create something unique. (Which reminds me, I really ought to post some more of those)
Pinesol does a great job removing acrylic paint, but enamel paint require multiple soaks and a lot of scrubbing to remove the “goo”. For the tough jobs I alternate between a long soak in Pinesol and a short treatment with Citristrip.
I’ve never heard of Citristrip before, thanks for the tip! I do think that I’ve run into a few that have enamel paint on them. I get what you mean by goo… Yuck!
I told you once before hotshot, I’d cough up some more beer/cash/your mom.
Hey Quigs! Wanna give me some minis? lol :P. Seriously – that is one hefty collection you got there. I totally agree about the importance of good minis. Some ppl i know say they are a waste money and no more than glorified counter – but to wargaming is as much as a visual treat as it is a mental one.
And regarding IWM – The madcat resculpt is a pain in the arse to sculpt!!!
Always a feisty one that Quigs…
So I’ve found that Pinesol doesn’t really remove/disolve the paint, but softens it so that you can brush it off. I left a batch of minis I bought on ebay in the stuff for 5 days. Some of the paint was so thick that it did turn to goo and as I was brushing, it clung to the toothbrush and I basically put a thin coat of that paint back on the mini. However, I also had Testor’s ELO (Easy Lift Off) which does remove paint and clean the brush so I scrubbed some with that. Results: 1/3 of the mechs ready to base coat, 1/3 maybes with some paint I just couldn’t get at in deep crevases, 1/3 of the mechs still have plenty of thick spots that need softening/removal, 1/c the protos ready, and the other half could use some more removal. I did pickup a spray can of the Citristrip stuff earlier (the lady at Home Depot was the one that told me about it so that makes 2 recommendations). However, I was hesitant to use it yet because you should “be observant of torn gloves or other accidental skin contact since no burning or stinging sensation is immediately experienced.”