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Karpav's Painting Blog (renamed)

#11
(09-22-2017, 06:49 PM)Karelian Suomi Wrote: OK. So I nearly break my damn leg and am forced to take my eyes off of this forum, and Callsign: Karpav has bombed the place with beautiful minis professionally photographed, great tips on modeling and basing, and even a handy idea for getting the most out of the itty bitty torpedo markers?

I mean, REALLY! I can't leave you kids alone for five minutes, can I?!!  Big Grin Big Grin Big Grin

Smile Ha.  No, I guess you can't bud- but with the reality being that you have been leading this community through the years tirelessly, you've earned a break even if you had to nearly break a leg to get it!! Tongue

Kidding aside, a huge thank you for all your efforts in sharing your hobby with us fellow spess nerds. Your continued dedication in being The standard bearer for this Band of Brothers of Silent Death junkies, along with Sheldon & others creative contributions behind the scenes whom I don't even know to credit is what keeps this hobbyist interested and entertained. I hope your recovery to date has been swift and wishing you the best while you continue to recover.

This time last year I remember checking about weekly to see if the site was back up. Then comes December and I was glad to see this place spark to life. I found your photo catalog work for the shop, Yamoto 2199 models, and escort scratchbuilds inspiring. I spent the first half of the year DMing a 5e D&D game, and when I checked in in late May/Early June I kicked myself for missing the spring sale but saw a lot of interesting input from fellow Silent Death gamers, so I got determined to shed the skin of a lurker and become active in promoting this universe we call home. I'm just in the early stages yet, but the time to start demoing the game in my local stores is at hand & hopefully will result in some new friendships and some regular games on the grid.

Today's hobby time is just cutting sheets of craft foam to line the bottom of each factions tackle box. My mid-term goal is completing all of the ships I have on hand in time for a fall or winter sale where I pick up Kashmere & QVP house ships & start getting Operation Drydock II designs, as well as following Tom McCarthy's excellent lead in making some good battle report write-ups. One thing at a time. The onion is real.
 
Thanks much for the feedback so far, and keep checking in when you get the opportunity for my s-l-o-w but steady contributions in showcasing The Twelve's conflicts in my sector of Terran space.
"Make the spaceships rounder but more square!"

I can't change this sig. until I paint a longboat & post pics.
Mission Accomplished: 1/3/23

  Reply

#12
Alright everyone,

I thought it was about time to share another update from my base in Unkulunkulu. My project of late: Hatchling Ink AOE Markers[Image: 7RBy2ll.jpg]
cut from 1/8" plex, mini-drum sanded, wet sanded (messy), primed, sprayed black, painted with watery white, then purple, then with a dark, low-key, glitter-emulsified nail polish called 'RespecK' from Pure Ice  that I picked up that day from the big box retailer as well as the Folk Art "NEON" purple paint in the crafts section. Painted the grid in grey, then snapped the pic. They have a coat of gloss enamel on them hanging out in a low dust closet for a few days curing up.  As per usual, the pictures capture a fraction of the effect, and the worst parts at that- the slight brush marks of the polish that will hopefully even out some with the clear taco.

The idea for the smokey effect came from nail art tutorials: (youtube link) (I had tried painting these on the bottom with shimmery purple & black nail polishes awhile back and the result was so hideous I had to clean the plates off with nail-polish remover this was Trial 2.0)

I originally got looking at nail art videos because I've been looking to try a holo-powder on the smooth dome top of some ASP ships like the Nebula, -looks really cool- but haven't ordered any yet. The supplier around here has a $35 variety- no thanks. [Image: fuZ8JAhzR6eI._UX300_TTW_.jpg]

I've found some under $10  and will either order that or an alternate liquid or foil and post the results. The rest of my time has been metal prep work on a new batch of ships.

That's about all, Peace Out...
~SquidgeHexenInker666
"Make the spaceships rounder but more square!"

I can't change this sig. until I paint a longboat & post pics.
Mission Accomplished: 1/3/23

  Reply

#13
(10-03-2017, 10:23 PM)Karpav1 Wrote: Alright everyone,

I thought it was about time to share another update from my base in Unkulunkulu. My project of late: Hatchling Ink AOE Markers[Image: 7RBy2ll.jpg]
cut from 1/8" plex, mini-drum sanded, wet sanded (messy), primed, sprayed black, painted with watery white, then purple, then with a dark, low-key, glitter-emulsified nail polish called 'RespecK' from Pure Ice  that I picked up that day from the big box retailer as well as the Folk Art "NEON" purple paint in the crafts section. Painted the grid in grey, then snapped the pic. They have a coat of gloss enamel on them hanging out in a low dust closet for a few days curing up.  As per usual, the pictures capture a fraction of the effect, and the worst parts at that- the slight brush marks of the polish that will hopefully even out some with the clear taco.

The idea for the smokey effect came from nail art tutorials: (youtube link) (I had tried painting these on the bottom with shimmery purple & black nail polishes awhile back and the result was so hideous I had to clean the plates off with nail-polish remover this was Trial 2.0)

I originally got looking at nail art videos because I've been looking to try a holo-powder on the smooth dome top of some ASP ships like the Nebula, -looks really cool- but haven't ordered any yet. The supplier around here has a $35 variety- no thanks. [Image: fuZ8JAhzR6eI._UX300_TTW_.jpg]

I've found some under $10  and will either order that or an alternate liquid or foil and post the results. The rest of my time has been metal prep work on a new batch of ships.

That's about all, Peace Out...
~SquidgeHexenInker666

I LOVE thus! 

SaveSave
"Pathetic earthlings. Hurling your bodies out into the void, without the slightest inkling of who or what is out here..."

- Ming the Merciless
  Reply

#14
Kitchen Colosian Body Shop

An overdue update. Of the four Dracula fighters I ordered, a pair of them looked as if they didn't fill completely on the front-left wing and looked a bit malformed:
[Image: BcdErPD.jpg]

I'd seen some tutorials on simple hot-glue molds, and I figured I'd test it out. I first placed one of the good Dracula's on some poster putty to act as a backing, and looked around for a mold release...  a bottle of olive oil on the counter caught my eye, so I applied some with a cotton swab...
[Image: 1JytNwH.jpg]
...then flowed on a generous dab of hot glue...
[Image: NiZXCmc.jpg]
...waited for it to cool thoroughly, and removed the glue blob mold:
[Image: iIOqss1.jpg]
I was happy with the impression I got this time (I tried a glue-blob & water press method a few times before flowing it on with poor results). Mixed up a tiny dab of kneadtite type epoxy putty, and pressed in the negative...
[Image: 4fw5Dg1.jpg]Then after about 10 minutes, carefully removed the putty and dropped it in boiling water I'd nuked in a small Pyrex dish to speed the cure time since I was impatient. Don't put the glue mold in the hot water obviously, or it'll melt. Did this a couple times, trimmed the cured putty pieces with a hobby knife, cut the wing flush and glued on the replacement tips:
[Image: 6X2GOrE.jpg]Not perfect, they are a hair too long, but most of that is an optical illusion due to the color difference- once primed, they blend in fine. I'll feature them more in a later write up once they get painted.

Missile Marker Madness

I see these craft clips about everywhere I go and had the idea to make missile markers that clip to my modified metal flight stands. You should be able to find them pre-painted in black around this time of year, but given the choice, I'd rather make a mess at home with India ink!
[Image: TlZortN.jpg]Mmmm! Just like mom used to make... I used a bit of water to dilute the ink and tossed them in the Mosh Pit of DOOM™ lunchmeat tub (tip: open them up and brush on some ink where the jaws touch first or it'll likely not get painted- ask me how I know). [Important note: I tried these out on a standard plastic base stems, and the clamp holes are a bit too small, so widening up the hole with a tapered rotary bit before staining/painting would be necessary if possible without weakening them too much].
[Image: 9Hw0FKB.jpg]
Next lay them out on some scrap foil or plastic to dry (I didn't want cardboard to soak up the ink while they dried). Once dry, paint one side white/silver/whatever for a 5-spread, and both ends for a 10-spread.
[Image: QFOD3oH.jpg]Here are the missile markers clipped to a dowel rod for transport. I'll probably paint the tips red for standard missiles, and green to denote hammerhead missiles.

The rest of my hobby time lately has been cutting nails for magnetic base stems, priming, painting, labeling, and gloss coating clear flight stands to see how well they hold up to handling and finally, grinding off any mold lines & the undersides flat on house-specific ships for stable magnet gluing... then priming the lot. Not too glorious, but some nice leeway for Colos, Sigurd, Yoka-Shan, and Asp faction's fleets:
[Image: RTgUmTG.jpg]
More as it gets completed...
"Make the spaceships rounder but more square!"

I can't change this sig. until I paint a longboat & post pics.
Mission Accomplished: 1/3/23

  Reply

#15
I must confess that I am really, really, really appreciative of you sharing this repair technique with us space possums! It is one thing to have it written out, and quite another to see in pictures the process step by step. 

Oh, and your shot of your primer tray got me a-movin' now that I've recovered enough to pick up my tools again... Mwahahahaaaa!!! Big Grin
SaveSave
"Pathetic earthlings. Hurling your bodies out into the void, without the slightest inkling of who or what is out here..."

- Ming the Merciless
  Reply

#16
Nice job on the repair. I had to drill out a Javelin when I was painting ships for Jim, but went crooked and drilled thru the side of the ship. Uhoh! So I finished the paint job, burned it with a lighter and added some melted pewter. War damaged ship. Wish I had a pic to share.
Stogie
  Reply

#17
(10-31-2017, 10:36 PM)Karelian Suomi Wrote: I must confess that I am really, really, really appreciative of you sharing this repair technique with us space possums! It is one thing to have it written out, and quite another to see in pictures the process step by step. 

Oh, and your shot of your primer tray got me a-movin' now that I've recovered enough to pick up my tools again... Mwahahahaaaa!!! Big Grin
SaveSav
Thanks! A picture says a thousand words and makes reading my loquacious ramblings mostly optional.
 
Have fun with your project --can't wait to see what you produce next... let those creative embers inspire and start new fires feeding our table-top desires!
Speaking of inspiring fire starters: whatever happened to the fella that had painted those Luches ships- a Delta, Dominator, and maybe Cossack? They were photographed against a blue gradient if I remember. Hot paint jobs. I didn't save the images before the site went away. Would love to see him return. Did you kidnap him, put him in a pit in the basement and force him to paint ships --lowering supplies down by basket? If so, you have my approval and admiration.
[Image: bFeqyQn.jpg]
Big Grin
 
(11-01-2017, 12:36 AM)Stogie Wrote: Nice job on the repair. I had to drill out a Javelin when I was painting ships for Jim, but went crooked and drilled thru the side of the ship. Uhoh! So I finished the paint job, burned it with a lighter and added some melted pewter. War damaged ship. Wish I had a pic to share.
Thanks again, and pertaining to just rolling with the drilling mishap and making it battle damage- that's the kind of "Happy Accidents" Bob-Ross-channeling awesomeness that makes what could have been a disaster into some of the most original pieces in your collection right there! Lemonade from lemons modeling is so awesome because you would have never taken the chance most of the time otherwise.

I've been dabbling with casting for modeling for a bit, and while I find the process to be a messy, smelly, risky endeavor not worth the hassle most of the time, there are those times when it is the only option available when you get an idea stuck in your head that you feel compelled to do. As an example that comes to mind, I had a Lizardmen army general that looked like this:
[Image: nZJdqGC.jpg]
Nice and stoic, but there is a plethora of artwork depicting them in more animated poses casting their magic and such- (If you consider raised arms more animated)
[Image: x3D71ek.png]
So when I noticed the arms on a Marvel die cast Mojo toy the kids had lost interest in (honest -wink)...
[Image: bEbZUHG.jpg]
...the gears revved up to 'Must do at all costs' RPM. The problem- the kit cost $50 at the time, and I wasn't that enthusiastic about it, and complicating the matter the pewter, while not impossible to work with- is still a pain in the butt to grind down the areas of the arms/hands that would no longer be needed. Casting in epoxy solves all of that. I have a bottle of some green mold release agent I bought years ago from a casting mold material supplier, so I coated the frog wizard with it, let dry and encased the entire thing in about 1/2" of silicone caulking- maybe in a few layers to expedite cure time. Once dry I jigsaw cut it free with a sharp new blade and filled it with my cheap-o epoxy of choice for one shot castings like this- just an off the shelf 5-minute epoxy that you find in the double syringe. Mix it up, no time to de-gas, just pour into a second disposable syringe and inject it into your one-piece. Expect some bubbles. Who cares. It's quick & cheaper than dropping $50 for the hard to work with metal body casting for an experimental custom mod.
[Image: plbJeWS.jpg] 
   When the casting came out the next day, I primed it to see what was going on since it comes out clear and a bit hard to see. Ground off the arms stuck to the lower belly area, there was a bubble on his lower lip, so just like Stogie did, I used its flaws to decide which direction to work with it- sanded the whole lower jaw off with the rotary tool for putty-jaw reconstructive modeling. More expressive! But would have never happened without that bubble flaw in the first place. The Death Mask was just more of the same "Hide my mistakes" effort once the open mouth trick looked a little off with the original figures eyes. The end result, while drifting from the stoic character of the original considerably, is a crazed-looking fun and unique alternative model that I almost exclusively take into battle now over the stock metal toad He's gone a bit mad stuck meditating inside damp ziggurats for centuries you see... (a bit autobiographical, that)

What does this have to do with spessships Karpav?

Simple- I think this silicone/epoxy method will allow me to cast and then break/battle distress Megafortress, Stingray, Narwhal, and other escort hulls mixed in with smaller (sculpted to-scale to the warhounds) -fighter hulls & Brood corpses & assorted junk/debris to recreate blocking terrain of graveyards that still haunt the Imperial core- relics of the fall. The lightweight quality the cast hulls means I can experiment on the cheap and mount them floating in dead space on bits of wire. It's the only practical way to recreate it. I have a lot on the slate before I get to that though, so if the idea inspires- beat me to the punch and make it and post! Otherwise, I hope to get it done about 6 months from now.

Once I have the silicone impressions made I'll be mounting the completed escort class ships on these custom acrylic bases that the team over at Litko made for me:
[Image: gfJZADC.jpg]
I need added stability to keep my magnetic mounting system from collapsing when I move the warhounds around, and after seeing these gems I think I would mount them this way regardless. If you are interested in getting some of these just go to their BaseMaker tab on the front page and use the 'contact us' link and ask for 1.5-inch double-bases in the material of your choice and attach this pic too if ya want. They sent me a quote the next day. Maybe with enough interest, they might add this entry to the store proper (as of now only double-bases in wood appear in the store or BaseMaker form). For those wondering on the price, in the month of this posting I was quoted $28 for a quantity of 25 pieces of 3mm clear acrylic (shipping extra). That should give a rough estimate. As for gluing, I superglued a pair of 5/32" x 7/8" fender washers together and secured it to the acrylic with the green putty to avoid the hazing common with cyanoacrylates. Of course using an adhesive made for gluing acrylic would be the smart move, but I rarely do everything by the book. Silicone or Goop adhesive would probably be good choices too. I used another ball of putty to attach the base stud to the washer (had to grind the underside base stud slightly to seat the edges of the base flush once attached).

[Image: BKSCoTF.png]
I liked photographing against black craft foam so much a few weeks ago, I went and got another sheet just for today. No glare for .20 cents.

I'll sign off with these Battle Satellites I painted up yesterday:
[Image: mzXgBLk.jpg]
Happy hobbies space possums (perhaps the gang down under would prefer a marsupial moniker alliteration closer to home?  -Perihelion Platypuses? -or platypi  for you pseudo-Latin aficionados or platypodes for the Evil Genius types...)
"Make the spaceships rounder but more square!"

I can't change this sig. until I paint a longboat & post pics.
Mission Accomplished: 1/3/23

  Reply

#18
(11-02-2017, 01:51 AM)Karpav1 Wrote:
(10-31-2017, 10:36 PM)Karelian Suomi Wrote: I must confess that I am really, really, really appreciative of you sharing this repair technique with us space possums! It is one thing to have it written out, and quite another to see in pictures the process step by step. 

Oh, and your shot of your primer tray got me a-movin' now that I've recovered enough to pick up my tools again... Mwahahahaaaa!!! Big Grin
SaveSav
Thanks! A picture says a thousand words and makes reading my loquacious ramblings mostly optional.
 
Have fun with your project --can't wait to see what you produce next... let those creative embers inspire and start new fires feeding our table-top desires!
Speaking of inspiring fire starters: whatever happened to the fella that had painted those Luches ships- a Delta, Dominator, and maybe Cossack? They were photographed against a blue gradient if I remember. Hot paint jobs. I didn't save the images before the site went away. Would love to see him return. Did you kidnap him, put him in a pit in the basement and force him to paint ships --lowering supplies down by basket? If so, you have my approval and admiration.
[Image: bFeqyQn.jpg]
Big Grin
 
(11-01-2017, 12:36 AM)Stogie Wrote: Nice job on the repair. I had to drill out a Javelin when I was painting ships for Jim, but went crooked and drilled thru the side of the ship. Uhoh! So I finished the paint job, burned it with a lighter and added some melted pewter. War damaged ship. Wish I had a pic to share.
Thanks again, and pertaining to just rolling with the drilling mishap and making it battle damage- that's the kind of "Happy Accidents" Bob-Ross-channeling awesomeness that makes what could have been a disaster into some of the most original pieces in your collection right there! Lemonade from lemons modeling is so awesome because you would have never taken the chance most of the time otherwise.

I've been dabbling with casting for modeling for a bit, and while I find the process to be a messy, smelly, risky endeavor not worth the hassle most of the time, there are those times when it is the only option available when you get an idea stuck in your head that you feel compelled to do. As an example that comes to mind, I had a Lizardmen army general that looked like this:
[Image: nZJdqGC.jpg]
Nice and stoic, but there is a plethora of artwork depicting them in more animated poses casting their magic and such- (If you consider raised arms more animated)
[Image: x3D71ek.png]
So when I noticed the arms on a Marvel die cast Mojo toy the kids had lost interest in (honest -wink)...
[Image: bEbZUHG.jpg]
...the gears revved up to 'Must do at all costs' RPM. The problem- the kit cost $50 at the time, and I wasn't that enthusiastic about it, and complicating the matter the pewter, while not impossible to work with- is still a pain in the butt to grind down the areas of the arms/hands that would no longer be needed. Casting in epoxy solves all of that. I have a bottle of some green mold release agent I bought years ago from a casting mold material supplier, so I coated the frog wizard with it, let dry and encased the entire thing in about 1/2" of silicone caulking- maybe in a few layers to expedite cure time. Once dry I jigsaw cut it free with a sharp new blade and filled it with my cheap-o epoxy of choice for one shot castings like this- just an off the shelf 5-minute epoxy that you find in the double syringe. Mix it up, no time to de-gas, just pour into a second disposable syringe and inject it into your one-piece. Expect some bubbles. Who cares. It's quick & cheaper than dropping $50 for the hard to work with metal body casting for an experimental custom mod.
[Image: plbJeWS.jpg] 
   When the casting came out the next day, I primed it to see what was going on since it comes out clear and a bit hard to see. Ground off the arms stuck to the lower belly area, there was a bubble on his lower lip, so just like Stogie did, I used its flaws to decide which direction to work with it- sanded the whole lower jaw off with the rotary tool for putty-jaw reconstructive modeling. More expressive! But would have never happened without that bubble flaw in the first place. The Death Mask was just more of the same "Hide my mistakes" effort once the open mouth trick looked a little off with the original figures eyes. The end result, while drifting from the stoic character of the original considerably, is a crazed-looking fun and unique alternative model that I almost exclusively take into battle now over the stock metal toad He's gone a bit mad stuck meditating inside damp ziggurats for centuries you see... (a bit autobiographical, that)

What does this have to do with spessships Karpav?

Simple- I think this silicone/epoxy method will allow me to cast and then break/battle distress Megafortress, Stingray, Narwhal, and other escort hulls mixed in with smaller (sculpted to-scale to the warhounds) -fighter hulls & Brood corpses & assorted junk/debris to recreate blocking terrain of graveyards that still haunt the Imperial core- relics of the fall. The lightweight quality the cast hulls means I can experiment on the cheap and mount them floating in dead space on bits of wire. It's the only practical way to recreate it. I have a lot on the slate before I get to that though, so if the idea inspires- beat me to the punch and make it and post! Otherwise, I hope to get it done about 6 months from now.

Once I have the silicone impressions made I'll be mounting the completed escort class ships on these custom acrylic bases that the team over at Litko made for me:
[Image: gfJZADC.jpg]
I need added stability to keep my magnetic mounting system from collapsing when I move the warhounds around, and after seeing these gems I think I would mount them this way regardless. If you are interested in getting some of these just go to their BaseMaker tab on the front page and use the 'contact us' link and ask for 1.5-inch double-bases in the material of your choice and attach this pic too if ya want. They sent me a quote the next day. Maybe with enough interest, they might add this entry to the store proper (as of now only double-bases in wood appear in the store or BaseMaker form). For those wondering on the price, in the month of this posting I was quoted $28 for a quantity of 25 pieces of 3mm clear acrylic (shipping extra). That should give a rough estimate. As for gluing, I superglued a pair of 5/32" x 7/8" fender washers together and secured it to the acrylic with the green putty to avoid the hazing common with cyanoacrylates. Of course using an adhesive made for gluing acrylic would be the smart move, but I rarely do everything by the book. Silicone or Goop adhesive would probably be good choices too. I used another ball of putty to attach the base stud to the washer (had to grind the underside base stud slightly to seat the edges of the base flush once attached).

[Image: BKSCoTF.png]
I liked photographing against black craft foam so much a few weeks ago, I went and got another sheet just for today. No glare for .20 cents.

I'll sign off with these Battle Satellites I painted up yesterday:
[Image: mzXgBLk.jpg]
Happy hobbies space possums (perhaps the gang down under would prefer a marsupial moniker alliteration closer to home?  -Perihelion Platypuses? -or platypi  for you pseudo-Latin aficionados or platypodes for the Evil Genius types...)


A quick request, could you take a photo of a single satellite we could use for the online store? Yours are so much more photogenic than my poor rendering, that it'd be really nice to show others what can be done with these handy lil' minis... Cool
"Pathetic earthlings. Hurling your bodies out into the void, without the slightest inkling of who or what is out here..."

- Ming the Merciless
  Reply

#19
I'll see if I can get you a belated pic of the satellites by month's end. I'm about to come out of painting retirement after nearly a year off. I didn't expect to take so much time off, but here I am. I'll be picking up where I left off- nothing was worked on in the meantime, besides picking up my entire collection off the floor. Plastic torp counters in carpet all colors mixed in. Fun. My "helper" is a locked doorknob checking machine and through unceasing determination has foiled my lax efforts to thwart a hobby pile dump twice this summer season. Painted ships are thus unscathed (knock-knock-knock), and the flotilla will be having another go in the painting shipyards in a few weeks time.

Looking forward to posting up some more battle reports played on my digital board (I can take better notes on those games), and some played with mini's too (I was too busy running the game the first couple times to take pics, but I should be able to get some next time). 

In the meantime, I've been playing Endless Space 2 in my free time and naming all the planets and ships on SD lore. Actual painting has been restricted to a friend's Shadows of Brimstone miniatures line (and we've been playing it 2x a week for a couple months now at least- I lost track). No pics of those games, so I found one of our submarine game (all miniatures built/painted to great detail by my friend who graciously hosts our local gaming cohort)

[Image: iljjdKV.jpg]
"Make the spaceships rounder but more square!"

I can't change this sig. until I paint a longboat & post pics.
Mission Accomplished: 1/3/23

  Reply

#20
(08-06-2018, 10:40 PM)Karpav1 Wrote: I'll see if I can get you a belated pic of the satellites by month's end. I'm about to come out of painting retirement after nearly a year off. 

WELCOME BACK!!!  Smile
"Pathetic earthlings. Hurling your bodies out into the void, without the slightest inkling of who or what is out here..."

- Ming the Merciless
  Reply



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