Lead Adventure Forum
Miniatures Adventure => Old West => Topic started by: Paul @ Empress Miniatures on April 10, 2023, 03:13:48 PM
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I have been working on my western gunfight buildings over the last few months. I have a few Mexican type buildings and thought it time to get into the more traditional types.
First one is a simple building from Warbases with a scratch built brick jail built on.
Figures from the Empress Miniatures 28mm range.
https://www.empressminiatures.com/the-wild-bunch-130-c.asp
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Looking good Paul!
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Looking good Paul!
Cheers Digits. ;)
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Bril! :-* :-*
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Love it. It's just waiting for an attempted breakout.... :D
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Looking good! 👍
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Love it. It's just waiting for an attempted breakout.... :D
Cues up the AC/DC track. :)
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Thanks guys much appreciated. This is a personal project so not really Empress linked although most of the figures will be.
Little Bill Daggett stands outside his new house surveying his handy work.
Building form Warbases although I have added extra walls and bits.
28mm Figure from Empress Miniatures Wild Bunch range.
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Nice work on the office and jail. Also on Little Bill's place - but has he not worked on it for many years or is he building it with really old wood?! :D. The coloring on the wood for Bill's is very great for very aged wood.
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Nice work on the office and jail. Also on Little Bill's place - but has he not worked on it for many years or is he building it with really old wood?! :D. The coloring on the wood for Bill's is very great for very aged wood.
Its taken him years to get this far. He cannot get things right. ;)
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Its taken him years to get this far. He cannot get things right. ;)
Bill’s wife is always asking him when the house will be ready … they’ve been living out of a chuck wagon for the last six years … Bill’s response is always the same … “perfection takes time”
:D
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Bill’s wife is always asking him when the house will be ready … they’ve been living out of a chuck wagon for the last six years … Bill’s response is always the same … “perfection takes time”
:D
lol lol
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Some 28mm figures from Empress Miniatures Western Gunfight range having a look around their latest building from WARBASES range of MDF buildings.
Also some of the naughty boys playing in the garden on washing day. The garden is scratch built.
https://www.empressminiatures.com/the-wild-bunch-130-c.asp
Cheers, Paul
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Nice saloon - and without the Hollywood swinging doors.
Really like that you are not going down the "technicolor" town route. While all A bit ramshackle, it is so much more realistic. I guess it could be said you are building a boomtown already beyond its "bust" and soon to be more derelict than a going concern. Now that is historical in so many ways!
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Nice saloon - and without the Hollywood swinging doors.
Really like that you are not going down the "technicolor" town route. While all A bit ramshackle, it is so much more realistic. I guess it could be said you are building a boomtown already beyond its "bust" and soon to be more derelict than a going concern. Now that is historical in so many ways!
Thanks for that.
TBH the plan for the town buildings has taken me a long time to work out in my mind. The basic theory behind the town is actually Hollywood to go with the figures as I felt that my interest in the period was more Hollywood based than historic. Having said that I wanted the 'better' end of the market and decided not to have a specific name to the planned town but as per Hollywood who reuse buildings and sets for what ever scenario I wanted. Therefore films such as Unforgiven, Open Range, Paint your wagon, Deadwood and many others were inspiration.
Therefore have chosen some buildings slightly based upon those from film and television and others to simply represent types of buildings. Having read how Clint Eastwood put so much effort into creating the town in Unforgiven it gave me the idea to make it all look pretty grundgy and decaying. However there will be a small number of 'coloured' buildings to add to the basic wooden ones to show some colour but they will be pretty grundgy as well.
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Its taken him years to get this far. He cannot get things right. ;)
Maybe it is like the old Petrocelli TV series. Terry Wogan wanted to know who kept
stealing his bricks. Always working on it, & never got above the 4th layer of bricks.
lol lol lol
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Maybe it is like the old Petrocelli TV series. Terry Wogan wanted to know who kept
stealing his bricks. Always working on it, & never got above the 4th layer of bricks.
lol lol lol
WOW that is a blast from the past. lol
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WOW that is a blast from the past. lol
The TV series, Terry Wogan or me ? ???? :D
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All.
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All.
lol lol lol
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The Eurovision commentary hasn't been the same without you. :D
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The Eurovision commentary hasn't been the same without you. :D
Graham Norton does a good job I think. ;)
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My latest build is a Warbases MDF building with some extra work. No town is complete without a Moustachery.
Figures from Empress Miniatures.
https://www.empressminiatures.com/the-wild-bunch-130-c.asp
Time to sing along.....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARTwLLhQZHw
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Loving the details on that. Did you use sandpaper for the tar paper roof? It looks great.
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Yes its an easy way to create authentic looking roofs. Covers a multitude of sins.
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That Moustachery looks great. So does that chap's moustache! He must have just come from inside!
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He's the owner.
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He's the owner.
:D
Great progress on the town Paul 8)
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:D
Great progress on the town Paul 8)
Getting ready for our next show down ;)
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Getting ready for our next show down ;)
Have a care Paul, Lance's Tash is real! lol
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This building is resin and from Empress Miniatures. It has had some brick card sheet used to change its look and give it a more North American look. Also make a really good solid defensive position for that kind of scenario.
Figures from the Empress Miniatures western gunfight range.
https://www.empressminiatures.com/builders-yard-89-c.asp
https://www.empressminiatures.com/the-wild-bunch-130-c.asp
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Sniff... sniff... What's that smell? Damned sheep herder!
Excellent looking figures! I can see getting a lot of scenario milage from them!
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Nice modeling. But a brick/stone smithy in the Old West? Hmmm. I guess, why not? Hollywood might disapprove though.
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Adobe is a type of brick. Lots of Adobe buildings west of the Mississippi,
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Nice modeling. But a brick/stone smithy in the Old West? Hmmm. I guess, why not? Hollywood might disapprove though.
Yeah you get them in original pictures and Hollywood. For example in Fort Worth has brick buildings.
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I guess it kind of depends on timing of the building, a great deal - vast majority - of first generation buildings out west were made of wood, a lot cheaper and a lot faster to construct. Generally, after a town burned down once or more, then they started building with brick/stone/adobe. Of course, in the desert southwest, adobe was often a first choice and on the treeless prairies sod was often a first choice, at least for houses. Trees nearby, wooden construction, no trees, other materials or great expense for wood. And once the railroad was nearby, that would affect material availability and cost.
This does get me thinking to explore early western construction more. Here in Sacramento, our Old Town area does have a lot of brick work but, naturally, brick construction required a brick yard creating the bricks. Sutter's Fort (mostly a recreation, very little of the original left - use to volunteer there), the first really substantial building in the area was made of adobe. I think flooding made a greater impact here than fire, though fire certainly had its impact.
A fun point is that both San Francisco (less so the earlier Yerba Buena) and Sacramento really got their start with sail cloth tents. So many gold rushers (49ers) arrived and stripped the sail cloth off their ships that there was a forest of abandoned ships that couldn't go anywhere because they no longer had any sails. Here is bit of official city history:
"At the time of the gold rush, Sacramento primarily consisted of hastily built wooden structures, often covered with canvas. A series of devastating fires prompted a group of citizens to establish the first volunteer fire department in the western United States. On February 5, 1850, the beginnings of the Sacramento Fire Department began to take shape with the formation of Mutual Hook and Ladder No. 1.
The City’s waterfront location made it extremely vulnerable to flooding. After two seasons of severe flooding, an ambitious project to raise the entire downtown was proposed. A third devastating flood made this proposal a reality, and thousands of cubic yards of dirt were brought in by wagon to raise the entire city one story. The original street level can still be seen throughout Old Sacramento under boardwalks and in some basements."
And San Francisco, 1851 fire:
"During the height of the California Gold Rush, between December 1849 and June 1851, San Francisco endured a sequence of seven severe fires, of which this was the sixth and by far the most damaging.[1][2] In terms of property value, it did three times as much damage as the next most destructive of the seven fires."
Location and timing. So, I guess a substantial town is under way here. :)
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Many thanks for that. Some interesting detail in your words. ;)
Its going to be a developing town with a railroad set from the mid 1870's until about 1910. The aim being to mix and match buildings depending on the scenario. Therefore one brick substantial building for the late 1880's add to that period. I had planned on a couple of tented roofed houses to show early development as well as some tents, which are already done.
Adobe based buildings are all complete and so I can go south to Mexico or simply add it to the US based stuff to make a border town. Always had an interest in the US invasion of Mexico under Pershing so at some point I will wander into that I suspect. lol
The one important thing is that it is not designed as a specific town as that's a bit boring but an imaginary town so that it can be shuffled around to keep it interesting.
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The one important thing is that it is not designed as a specific town as that's a bit boring but an imaginary town so that it can be shuffled around to keep it interesting.
That's the tack I take with all my terrain. It's proven to be a very versatile approach for me...
The smithy looks great, by the way. I am wondering, though - what is that smith going to do with that lamb? He hasn't named it, has he? If he has, his kids will never let him butcher it... :D
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BBQ time :o
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I'd say watch out for the dude with the mustache! :D
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Stumpy from the Empress Miniatures western gunfight range scales the heights despite the dodgy leg.
https://www.empressminiatures.com/the-wild-bunch-130-c.asp
Wind pump from 4Ground. It comes pre painted but I am not a fan of that so painted over the top. The top section has a magnet so can be turned round which is a good idea when wanting to position figures.
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Nice addition and can explain where the town/ranch gets its water from. Not sure how the model comes but that standpipe in the center makes it look authentic.
Are you going to add a ground level - or even a railroad style - water tank to store the pumped water? Ground level could be open to the elements and, technically, so could an elevated tank.
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Great stuff!
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Great stuff!
Thanks ;)
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Nice addition and can explain where the town/ranch gets its water from. Not sure how the model comes but that standpipe in the center makes it look authentic.
Are you going to add a ground level - or even a railroad style - water tank to store the pumped water? Ground level could be open to the elements and, technically, so could an elevated tank.
Water tank is on the to do list. ;)
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Nice windmill there, Paul. And I can speak from personal game experience that it makes for a perfectly lovely firing platform - just ask my Indian and his Winchester '73... 8)
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Best thing is you can take that same Windmill and transplant it to Australia or even (with a bit of squinting and some artistic licence)...... Vietnam.
https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C273656
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Thanks chaps.
Great idea Carlos. ;)
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Next building is a must. A bank to rob.
Suitably painted in Dollar Bill green to add a splash of colour.
The building is from Warbases.
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Lovely! I love the color!
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Next building is a must. A bank to rob.
Suitably painted in Dollar Bill green to add a splash of colour.
The building is from Warbases.
I love that great color
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Cheers guys. I wasn't sure about the colour but wanted to add something different to the overall set up with a splash of something ;)
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Looks good. Certainly good enough to rob! ;)
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Looks good. Certainly good enough to rob! ;)
Don't bank on it! :D Paul's money is in there & he WILL protect it. lol
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Another saloon to get some rivalry in the township. >:D
This one is from Blotz https://blotz.co.uk/
Nice building TBH with a great level of detail.
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That should do the trick.
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Lovely! Hope the liquor licence comes through in time. :)
Dunno whether it's was a sly dig at the cuzzins but back in the day, the saloon bar here was usually known as 'the ladies lounge'. The blokes all drank in the 'public bar'. Thankfully all changed now but Empress saloon has a certain historical ring to it.
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Lovely! Hope the liquor licence comes through in time. :)
Dunno whether it's was a sly dig at the cuzzins but back in the day, the saloon bar here was usually known as 'the ladies lounge'. The blokes all drank in the 'public bar'. Thankfully all changed now but Empress saloon has a certain historical ring to it.
Well its run by a British landlord so his loyalty runs deep. lol
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Another building finished. This one is a school/ meeting house from Warbases. I added the shingle roof.
Nice simple design with some Empress Miniatures character figures having a look round.
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Great looking buildings here.
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Very tidy looking build.
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You're making a nice job of the buildings, I like that you've hidden the finger joints on the mdf.
I pretty much only have Black Scorpion figures in my town, how do the Empress ones scale to them. You've shown some nice hats on your chaps and chapesses that would look good in Littly Whiskey.
Cheers
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You're making a nice job of the buildings, I like that you've hidden the finger joints on the mdf.
I pretty much only have Black Scorpion figures in my town, how do the Empress ones scale to them. You've shown some nice hats on your chaps and chapesses that would look good in Littly Whiskey.
Cheers
Cheers for that. Size wise the Empress figures are slightly on the taller side although they are scaled to the size of the actor so of course vary. Having said that most western gunmen seem to be well over 6' tall in real life. I may do an Alan Ladd just to see the size difference lol
Not sure about Black Scorpion although I thing they are also big and I am sure will work quite well. They also work with Galloping Majors figures that are pretty much the same height as Empress.
If you look on the Empress site there is a bit of a size comparison. https://www.empressminiatures.com/the-wild-bunch-130-c.asp
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Town is coming along nicely!
As for figure scales…..I used to play a lot of Wild West and we found as it’s more a skirmish game, it didn’t seem to matter so much as to height differences. Unlike games where figures are ranked up alongside each other and it is more obvious, in real life, people do differ in height and build.
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Any 'decent' town needs a school house. But where is the school marm? Will she be homely or lovely? If the latter, how many local characters are pining for her?
Like how you did the two horses hitched to a rail shown by the bank - on a separate base. Gives me ideas.
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Like that school/meeting house. Well done!
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Cheers guys. Much appreciated. ;)
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Next two western gunfight buildings with some Empress figures standing around.
Both buildings from Warbases and slightly pimped by moi.
Naughty cactus from Empress Miniatures.
https://www.empressminiatures.com/the-wild-bunch-130-c.asp
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You have quite the collection of buildings now. Need the Doc's house and his sister and him as sculpts - and a buggy (?)(Open Range). And that general store is begging for a good supply of scatter terrain (goods for sale). Any plans for a lumber yard or a brewery? And I'm sure there will be, at some point a livery stable and corral. Train station? Or beyond the rails? Either is historical and Hollywood.
Very nice saguaro cactus.
Something only rarely included is houses for people. Or at least a nice boarding house (The Shootist).
I have a goal to get my Old West table ready this year which means getting to work on my own buildings - many scratch built but a number of commercial products, too. (Peter Pig, Old Glory/Blue Moon, and Freikorp via QRF - I think the last discontinued). Your thread is helping to maintain the enthusiasm to get there.
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Cheers for that. Size wise the Empress figures are slightly on the taller side although they are scaled to the size of the actor so of course vary. Having said that most western gunmen seem to be well over 6' tall in real life. I may do an Alan Ladd just to see the size difference lol
Not sure about Black Scorpion although I thing they are also big and I am sure will work quite well. They also work with Galloping Majors figures that are pretty much the same height as Empress.
If you look on the Empress site there is a bit of a size comparison. https://www.empressminiatures.com/the-wild-bunch-130-c.asp
Thanks for the info, it looks like they might work.
Cheers
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A couple more nice additions to your town, Paul. Looking forward to seeing it all together....
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Brilliant work :-*
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Cheers guys. ;)
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Wait an hour or more for a stage coach and then two of the buggers turn up. :D
Nicely done. I too am looking forward to seeing the whole town layout.