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Author Topic: Basing sky galleon crew figures  (Read 5149 times)

Offline Dochejed

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Basing sky galleon crew figures
« on: March 07, 2018, 08:01:48 PM »
I’m painting some RAFM Space 1889 figures to use as crew on Crossover’s fantastic flyers.  At some point I would also like to use them in some ground combat games.  So here are my options:

1) Do my traditional basing of sand and grass tufts on a metal washer.  It’s easy, and they’d look fine on the battlefield, but they’d be dragging a pile of sand and grass around with them on the flyer.

2) Grind the metal bases off the figures and pin them to some resin wooden planking bases.  They would look great on the flyers but it’s more work and they would be tramping around the battlefield on wooden boards.

Just formulating the question makes me realize I prefer 2, but what do others think?  Or is there an option I haven’t considered?

Offline Citizen Sade

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Re: Basing sky galleon crew figures
« Reply #1 on: March 07, 2018, 08:14:47 PM »
Clear acrylic bases? They seem de rigeur at the moment and would mean that your figures look ok on both the flyers and the ground.

Offline Dochejed

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Re: Basing sky galleon crew figures
« Reply #2 on: March 07, 2018, 08:44:54 PM »
Ahh, that’s a good one, hadn’t considered clear acrylic.  Can’t say I ever liked the look but in this case it may be the best look.

Offline mysteriousbill

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Re: Basing sky galleon crew figures
« Reply #3 on: March 07, 2018, 09:56:20 PM »
What I am concerned with is not the bases, but how to keep the figures from moving when the ship is moved.

Offline Dochejed

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Re: Basing sky galleon crew figures
« Reply #4 on: March 07, 2018, 10:32:59 PM »
Hmmm, I hadn’t considered slippage either.  I think metal figures on a metal washer wouldn’t slip around that much.  If I used resin bases a circle of felt on the bottom might keep them from slipping.  But I’d worry about clear acrylic bases slipping.  In the end it might depend on how smoothly the flyers move on the table.  They’re on acrylic bases so they may move smoothly but now I’m going to have to test that out.

Online OSHIROmodels

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Re: Basing sky galleon crew figures
« Reply #5 on: March 07, 2018, 10:37:20 PM »
How about just sand that's a colour between the board and deck?
cheers

James

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Offline Dochejed

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Re: Basing sky galleon crew figures
« Reply #6 on: March 08, 2018, 03:17:26 AM »
Yes plain sand is a good idea too, it would look unobtrusive in both settings. 

Offline digid

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Re: Basing sky galleon crew figures
« Reply #7 on: March 08, 2018, 03:28:32 AM »
I have been mounting all my pulp figures on clear bases. It really is not that hard, cut the old base off, a few seconds on the disk sander and touch up with a file. I pin 1 foot with a piece of brass to support the figure in a wine cork while painting. Cut it short drill a hole in the clear base and glue figure down. All in all it does not take me much more time than gluing on a regular base, and adding sand etc.

The one thing I did not like about the clear bases is the light magnification effect of the edge of clear acrylic on the edge. or the none perfect edge on the bases that I have. I found that if I use a fine to clean up the edge of the clear base if leaves a frosted look on the edge and I do not get the light magnification effect on the base. They still blend just fine with everything, and my figures look at home on grass or in terrain.

Dale

Offline Dochejed

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Re: Basing sky galleon crew figures
« Reply #8 on: March 08, 2018, 06:02:20 PM »
Dale, do you have any photos of your figures on clear bases?

Offline The_Beast

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Re: Basing sky galleon crew figures
« Reply #9 on: March 09, 2018, 03:34:49 AM »
How are you (Are you) painting the flyers?

Would matte on the deck make slippage less likely?

Doug

Offline Dochejed

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Re: Basing sky galleon crew figures
« Reply #10 on: March 09, 2018, 03:49:19 AM »
The deck will be painted but I'm not sure about a matte coating yet, I'll have to test that out on some scraps.  But for the rules I'm using, based on Blood and Plunder, the deck is divided into areas and the exact placement of the figure in the area doesn't matter.  So slippage shouldn't be that much if a problem.

Offline Dochejed

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Re: Basing sky galleon crew figures
« Reply #11 on: March 09, 2018, 04:00:22 AM »
I've been doing a bit of online research on clear bases and much to my surprise my opinion of them is improving.  I realized the main thing I don't like is the shineyness and on the Sally 4th website they say you can use matte spray to cut the shineyness.  But it seems like that would make them foggy.  Has anyone tried matte spray on clear acrylic?

Offline digid

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Re: Basing sky galleon crew figures
« Reply #12 on: March 10, 2018, 04:40:48 AM »
Thats something I never get around to :-(
Nothing special on the paint jobs on these, they were a quick paint for a game, but do show the bases.

The edges of the bases frosted with a flat to smooth out and I leave them frosted.
The bases are Litco 1.5mm 25mm bases.




Dale

Offline Dochejed

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Re: Basing sky galleon crew figures
« Reply #13 on: March 11, 2018, 07:10:20 AM »
Thanks fir the photos.  The figures look great.  And filing the edges definitely cuts down the shineyness of the bases.  I like it.  Have you tried a matte spray on the tops of the bases as Sally 4th suggests?

Offline digid

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Re: Basing sky galleon crew figures
« Reply #14 on: March 12, 2018, 03:26:54 AM »
NO I have not tried that, I have not really noticed the shinny tops of the bases being that noticeable during game play, only really notice it in the photos.

Dale