"Whirlwinds"

So, I got the launchers finished and another frame done.  Did another set of top doors.  This means that I have two Whirlwinds that are ready to do double duty as Rhinos or Razorbacks.  W00T!

I will also say this: I'm really liking the wet palette I made.  It's a little annoying how the paper in it rolls up, but it's been quite useful.  I'm glad I've got it now.

My only other thought for the moment is that I've been looking at my paints and they have been a little wanting.  No more, though.  Five drops of water and some vigorous shaking seems to do the trick for bringing them back.  Considering their age (2-3 years with 1.5 years in storage), they're turning out pretty good.  It also is a testament to the paint pots.  From what I understand the paints in black fliptops and the old school Citadel fliptops will last forever.  On the other hand, I was given a Warhammer paint set a week ago with all screwtop pots.  They were all in terrible shape.  Just tossed the entire thing.

Oh, well.  Time to call it a day for now.  If I can find some more time this weekend, I may try that Veteran Rhino.  If not, it can wait.  I'm happy with my progress at the moment...

Rhino Frame and Top Plates

Holy crap!  Does this mean that I actually applied pigment to plastic?  Why, yes it does! 

So, I got one frame about 95% painted.  All I have to do is paint some chapter symbols and do a little highlighting.  I also drybrushed a top door so I can run it as a Rhino, and painted two weapon mount panels so I can run it as a Razorback, Whirlwind, or sponsonless Predator.  I think this weekend I will paint up my Whirlwind launchers and see if I can get another frame done.  Then I think I will be cooking with gas!  That would just leave me with, what, five more to paint?  One will be easy.  I have it doled up with bits to be a Veteran Rhino/Razorback.  Since my Veteran stuff is black, all I really have to do is paint appropriate black top plates so I can switch between the two, paint details and flair, and highlight.  Heck, with luck, I might even be able to squeeze that one in, too.

That, and it felt good to just paint again.  There have been a lot of things in my life that have kept me from doing it.  Even if I had the time, I've suffered from an overabundance problem.  I have more than enough painted to play almost any size game so it is difficult for me to get myself to paint more stuff.  That's why I have three or four speeders unpainted for almost a decade.  I already have 5 painted.  How many more do I need?  When I first started out, I decided I would acquire/paint enough so that I could field whatever gonzo type of army I wanted to field.  Of course, that was three editions and twelve (?) years ago.  I'm now a little short on some things (Vindicators) and quite long on others (Tac squads, Vet squads, Assault squads).  But as long as I have stuff, I'm going to paint.  I may take year long breaks, but painting never stops.  Not as far as I'm concerned.

Vindicator and Based Vehicles

Look at all those Rhino Frames!

So, i assembled my last Vindicator tonight.  Nothing special there.  Over the last few days, I've been basecoating all the other stuff I've built over the last couple of weeks.  Not pictured here, but soon to be added to the pile, are two Rhino frames I basecoated forever ago (at least two years).  One of them is rigged up as a Veteran Rhino/Razorback, but has never been finished.  The other is meant to be a convertible Whirlwind.  I've got two Whirlwind launchers also so they'll be painted along with the others.

Most importantly, I believe that covers all my Rhino frames.  Once I paint these, I'll have no more tanks to build or paint.  So, I think, after I'm done with these, I'm going to go on to the four or five speeders I've had sitting around for more than a decade.  Jeebus willin' an' the crick don' rise, I will actually apply pigment to miniatures this weekend.

On a slightly different thought, I know that Games Workshop is coming out with new paint pots and new colors.  I have no doubt that they will have some approximation of Ultramarine Blue, but there's a little part of me that is afraid that they won't.  Stupid, I know since the boys in blue are one of the most important armies in the game, but these are the things you think about when you're me...

Predator and Two Rhino Frames

Geez!!!  I forgot how much a pain in the ass tracks are for new Rhino frames.  As a result, I only got the Predator and those two Rhinos in the background done.  I found my Razorback gun mount plates so those frames are almost ready for their double duty assignments.  Once they're painted, they'll serve as Rhinos or Razorbacks or Whirlwinds.  I thought about doing something similar so they could also be Predators, but I think I'll have enough Preds anyway...

Started today on an old-school Pred, but I'm out of superglue to assemble the metal top and sponsons.  I also found my Venerable Dred that I haven't assembled yet.  I think I'll finish up all the vehicles/armored whatnots I have extant.  Then I'll handle the bikes.  I've got eight or ten bikes in various states of construction/priming.  I also inherited a few Templar bikes and am deciding whether to repaint them or not.  I keep thinking I'll keep all the Templar stuff as an ally contingent, but I also wonder what the point would be.  Realistically, it'll be forever before I even get to them so I've got a ton of time to think about.  Besides, I'll probably be too lazy to do it, anyway.  Oh, well.  Hopefully, I can find some time to clip my new Vindicators off their sprues in preparation for assembly.  With a little luck, I can have them done before the weekend is over.  We shall see...

Yes, it's been THAT long...

Yes, it's been over a year since I have had the chance to paint, build or anything approaching 40K.  Today, that changes.  For how long, I'm not sure, but the new edition has got me a little more motivated.

If you remember, quite a while back, when my wife was away for a weekend before we had kids, I had what I termed Dreadnought Saturday, assembling and painting a bunch of Dreds.  Well, tonight is going to begin Tank Friday.

So a few days ago, a friend of my divested himself of some stuff he never assembled.  Among other things, I received a Linebreaker Squadron, bringing my total number of Vindicators to four.  I've also got two unbuilt Predators (one new, one old), a couple Whirlwinds assembled and primed, several unbuilt Rhinos (that are going to do double duty as Razorbacks), and four or five Speeders I've had since 3rd Ed. came out...  I think it's time to assemble some stuff!  So tonight and tomorrow, I'm going to assemble (and possibly paint) all this stuff.  I've got tomorrow off so I may actually get something done!

Here's to tanks and painting!

Whirlwind Launcher

Last night was kinda hectic for a number of reasons. I only really had time to build the launcher for Whirlwind #2, cut off the plate and glue together the top doors for Whirlwind #1. Not too much accomplished, right? Actually, I'm quite satisfied. This is the ultimate goal. I'm not trying to complete everything I have within a time frame. The goal is to make sure I do a little something every day. Well, this isn't much, but it's something. Besides, if I really had to, I could just paint up the launcher and then put it in the Razorback I just finished instead of the lazcannons. I could run four Whirlwinds that way without putting together another thing.

What I really need are tables. I have this big space in my current house that I could play games in if I just had tables to play them on. Unfortunately, I don't have money to go out and buy them right now. This is especially tragic because a little while back, I had the money but not the space. What I also want to do is take a page from the Realms of Battle board. I kinda like that way it's made and the entire set of boards, while a little expensive and skull-covered for my liking, is worth it for what you get, but why spend $300 on a board with 6 panels when you can buy 2'x2' sections of birch or some other hard wood for $4-8 apiece and then paint them/terrain them anyway you want? I plan (once I have tables) to buy 20 boards, paint each one of them a different color on each side (either green, tan, gray, white or black) and then I'll have eight of any one color or I can combine different colors for different surfaces (plains on the outskirts of town, desert at the edge of a paved base, etc.) and, with cheap paint, will cost less than $150. Or, maybe, I start small with six for $40ish and add a few new ones each month. That beats $300 with a stick. Of course, maybe I should get some tables first...

Whirlwind

This is Whirlwind #1 from my Suppression Force. Strangely enough, this one took quite a bit longer than I thought it would to assemble. Maybe it was some of the interruptions over the evening. Maybe it was the launcher assembly which seems quite delicate at times. Of course, the top plate and main weapon have not and will not be glued on so I can run it as a Rhino if need be. When all the Rhino frame vehicles I have are done, I'll have five that can serve double duty as either a Rhino or whatever it is supposed to be.

Oh, yes, note that the picture kinda sucks today. Usually I take the pics in the morning when the sun is coming in (natural light pics tend to be the best) or I take them inthe evening under the room lighting and then correct the color a bit (the lighting in the living room is a bit yellowish as are most incandescent bulbs). This morning it was overcast outside so I used the flash. As the wise man said, "meh". Not a fan of the flash for this, but what can you do?

I've been thinking that maybe it is time for me to try to talk to some people about doing an Apocalypse battle. The people I normally play with don't like Apoc too much and I kinda understand why. With D-strength weapons, a lot of things you can bring to the filed can and do go up in smoke very quickly. If you only have a small force, that means you can be completely wiped out or wiped out to the point that you can no longer have an effect on the battle in the blink of an eye. That's why, instead of having multiple players with smaller forces combined into a big force, I want to play an opponent with a large force against my large force. Losing 2,000 points in a turn is a big deal when you control 3,000 but not so much when you control 10,000. And I really want to put these bad boys on the field in a big battle. I've fielded a Company in 3,000 points before and that was cool, but it could be better. Maybe I should talk to BFG about it and see if anyone is willing to play me...

I don't know how much work I'll be able to get done over the next few days. The in-laws are coming into town for 4th of July shenanigans so there's house cleaning, party preparation and pie making that have to be done between now and Saturday. I'll see if I can get in a bit of time. The goal isn't to complete everything immediately. It's to keep going little by little...