Category: workbench

Arvus Lighter

One of the reveals at the World Championships Preview back in November was a plastic Arvus Lighter for The Horus Heresy. I ordered one from my FLGS.

I really like this model, though released for The Horus Heresy, I suspect it would make a great model for, not just Warhammer 40K, but also Necromunda.

The Arvus Lighter is a small, general purpose cargo shuttle that is widely used by the Imperium of Man for many tasks, both in space and on the surface of planets. The Arvus is commonly used by both Imperial Navy warships and Imperial merchant vessels, including Rogue Traders. The Arvus is just one of many types of small, void-capable shuttles used by the Imperium. The Arvus is piloted by a single pilot, and is not equipped with any weapon systems, in fact, the Arvus possesses only the most basic navigation equipment, external sensors, and proximity alarms. The Arvus has a powerful engine that allows it to carry heavy cargo to and from a planet’s surface

Painting the Militia Pickup Trucks

After thinking about it for a while I have ordered the Battlefront Militia Group and Pickup Trucks for Team Yankee. I like the concept of armed militia and pick up trucks with HMGs on board, they had been on my wants list for a while. They could also be used for games in Wessex: The Second English Civil War for insurgent and militia forces.

After temporarily basing the figures, I gave them and the trucks a white undercoat.

The pickup truck bed gunners I used a variety of Citadel contrast paints as a base for the models.

I also have a spare militia from that blister which I am going to add to one of the pick up trucks.

I gave one of the pick up trucks a wash of a grey shade.

This needs more work.

The other I sprayed. Army Painter Desert Yellow Spray. The wheels were then painted dark grey.

I then gave the model a wash using a shade.

More work to do.

Legions Imperialis Arvus Lighters

I’ve always liked the Arvus Lighter. I did think about getting some resin versions for Aeronautica Imperialis. I was pleased to see the plastic versions for Legions Imperialis and they did go on that awfully long wants list. Visiting Jadlam Toys and Models in Glastonbury I was browsing and saw they had a box of the Legions Imperialis Arvus Lighters on sale at 33% off. Bargain, so I bought the box.

The Arvus Lighter is a solid and reliable workhorse shuttle, affectionately referred to as ‘Little Pig’ among air crews. The Solar Auxilia employ these durable craft as unarmed combat transports, to insert officers and specialists into a war zone with pinpoint accuracy.

In the box you get eight aircraft, across two sprues. 

Alongside with flying bases and a transfer sheet. With appropriate bases they can also be used in Aeronautica Imperialis.

I am planning to paint four of them using the same painting method as I did with my Valkyrie transports.

The other four will be in a different Imperial scheme.

I have put the forthcoming 28mm version on that wants list.

Basing the militia

After thinking about it for a while I have ordered the Battlefront Militia Group and Pickup Trucks for Team Yankee. Back in 2022 I  was intrigued and pleased to see the announcement of the release of Team Yankee: Red Dawn.

I like the concept of armed militia and pick up trucks with HMGs on board, they had been on my wants list for a while. They could also be used for games in Wessex: The Second English Civil War for insurgent and militia forces. You get four pickup trucks, each armed with an HMG. Having constructed and undercoated the trucks I made a start on the militia group.

In the militia group, you get twenty six miniatures. It contains:

5x Assault Rifle Teams
2x RPG-7 Anti-tank Teams
1x M224 60mm Mortar Team

These are the battlefront images.

The models come in a blister pack.

Rather than paint the models on a stick, I cleaned the models and stuck them to the included brown bases.

I then used the Woodland Scenics turf for the bases. For larger scale models I would use Citadel Sand, but the scale of these models are too small for the sand.

The next step was a white undercoat.

I have a spare model which I am going to use as a testbed for painting, and then will use it in one of the pick up trucks.

Napoleonic British Line Infantry – South Essex

On the cover of an issue of Wargames Illustrated was a free sprue of Napoleonic British Line Infantry from Warlord Games. You get five models on the sprue. I think these will supplement my 95th Rifles models as soldiers of the South Essex.

Having started on some French Infantry, I constructed the five models. These were very easy to put together, the body was a single piece, needing to only glue the head to the torso and the backpack to the back of the soldier. I based them on two pence pieces.

Well I based four of them, as I then ran out of two pence coins. I had to wait until I had some more before I could base the fifth soldier.

I then added Citadel Sand to the bases using PVA white glue.

Next stage was a white undercoat.

My first experience of wargaming was Napoleonics with plastic Airfix soldiers and metal Minifigs.

I really enjoyed both watching the Sharpe TV series and then reading the Sharpe books by Bernard Cornwell.

Napoleonic Workbench.

Basecoating the Maus Super Heavy Tanks

The Maus was a German World War Two super heavy tank that was completed in late 1944. Five were ordered, but only two hulls and one turret were completed before the testing grounds were captured by advancing Soviet forces It is the heaviest fully enclosed armoured fighting vehicle ever built at 188 metric tons. It was armed with a 128mm gun and a coaxial 75mm gun. The Maus was intended to punch holes through enemy defences in the manner of an immense “breakthrough tank”, whilst taking almost no damage to any components.

I have been constructing two 15mm models of the Maus Super Heavy Tank. One from Zvezda and the other from Clash of Steel. Having given both models a white undercoat I gave them a base coat of Army Painter Desert Yellow Spray.

This is the Zvezda model.

This is the Clash of Steel model.

I sprayed the tracks with Mechanicus Standard Grey Spray, though I think they will be painted a dark brown colour eventually.

The next stage will be painting the tracks and the camouflage. I am going to go for the similar pattern as on the GF9 Clash of Steel model.

Though as I don’t have an airbrush I am going to have to do this by hand with a paintbrush.

Basecoating the Legions Imperialis Rhino Transport Detachment

I got the Legions Imperialis: Rhino Transport boxed set as a present last Christmas.

The Rhino is the most widely used armoured personnel carrier in the Imperium. Based upon ancient STC technology, the fundamental design is robust, reliable, and easy to maintain, with an adaptive power plant that can run off a wide variety of fuels. Within the Space Marine Legions, the Deimos pattern was the most widespread, serving as the basic armoured transport available to the Legiones Astartes and the foundation on which a number of other war machines were based.

In the box you get two sprues that can be used to construct ten models. I made up five of the models and gave them a white undercoat.

I then gave the models a spray of Army Painter Demonic Yellow.

The next stage will be painting the tracks and other details on the models.

 

Constructing the Space Hobbits

On the cover of a recent Miniature Wargames magazine was a free sprue of SneakFeet from Wargames Atlantic. Of course in any other place these would be space hobbits or halflings. Another place calls them Ratlings.

I borrowed some spare round bases I had and constructed the four models.

They were a little challenging to put together for me. You certainly get a wide choice of arms and heads, I wasn’t always sure about the best arms to use. However quite pleased with the end result.

Another Maus

The Maus was a German World War Two super heavy tank that was completed in late 1944. Five were ordered, but only two hulls and one turret were completed before the testing grounds were captured by advancing Soviet forces It is the heaviest fully enclosed armoured fighting vehicle ever built at 188 metric tons. It was armed with a 128mm gun and a coaxial 75mm gun. The Maus was intended to punch holes through enemy defences in the manner of an immense “breakthrough tank”, whilst taking almost no damage to any components.

This Maus came in the Operation Unthinkable starter set for Clash of Steel. One of seventeen tanks in the box.

This is the sprue.

The model was a relatively simple build.

I kept the tracks off the model to paint separately.

Having recently  constructed the Zvezda Maus, it’s interesting to compare the two models.

They are pretty much identical.

However from a modelling perspective, the Clash of Steel version is much easier to put together.

I then gave the Maus a white undercoat.

The yellow of the plastic can still be seen, but I wasn’t trying to do a thicker base coat, this was about setting a primer for the sand base coat later.

Next step will be painting the model a sand colour.