Friday 22 May 2020

Stricken Saucer...

... and a thank you.
One of the many joys of working with someone like James is his mischievous sense of humour.  If truth be told we probably share the same trait, which is why when a seemingly preposterous idea is floated it, more often than not, is given serious thought and consideration.  This is how a fully equipped, weird science, laboratory found its way into Schloss Itter's dungeons.  James' April 1st post, detailing the vile evildoings of 'Dachs Werks', was an absolute joy and I loved painting Bob Murch's 'Pulp Miniatures' that he had sourced to be part of it.
With Dachs Werks now a 'thing', my mind was pricked by a memory from the dim and distant past.  Didn't I have a crashed Martian Space Saucer?  Of course I did, part of the long forgotten, Mars Attacks project now hidden in the loft.  After much searching, rummaging and the occasional cross word, I stumbled across my quarry, a large lump of resin representing a stricken saucer!  James, quick to endorse the foolishness of the idea, supplied a base that was the exact same size as that of the crashed Storch, the idea being that we could swap out one for the other when photographing the model or just to simply amuse everyone at 'Salute'.
Once safely attached to its new oval base, I had hoped that this was going to be an easy win, but the sudden realisation that I had left my trusty airbrush at school was a cruel blow, I was going to have to do this by hand!  Mixing some Vallejo Matt Medium with Oily Steel, I carefully covered the bulk of the saucer.  I am not sure that I fully understand the science behind Matt Medium, but have often used it when painting large surface areas with metallic paints.  Not only does it dull the surface sheen allowing washes and glazes to take hold, but also seems to ease the application of the paint, reducing visible brushstrokes.   Slowly but surely the downed disk started to take shape.
This was one of those models that kept wanting more and more attention and my initial thoughts that this was going to be a quick job soon evaporated as I started to find myself keen to try out all sorts of ideas.  Blue became a recurring colour theme and was used for what could be described as the energy cells and running lights, even trying a touch of Object Source Lighting.  On reflection this probably could have gone better and in the case of the running lights not necessary at all given that it had actually crashed, but nonetheless proved an interesting exercise.
Finishing touches included some German crosses, purloined from another plastic kit, and some gloss varnish for the cracked canopy and lights.  I have to say that I am rather pleased with how it turned out.  Total nonsense, but can't wait to see it placed on the lower paddock.  The addition of the little grey men is another tale all together and came about with a chance email exchange with Mark Dixon of 'CP Models'.
Mark had spotted some pictures of Weird West miniatures that I had painted and with 'CP Models' now holding the range, asked if he could use them on his website.  I was flattered to be asked, but as a thank you, Mark asked if there were something from his range that I might find a use for?  The truth of the matter is that there were any number of miniatures that caught my eye, but given the project that was currently on the table I asked if I might have some Grey Aliens, to act as a suitable crew.  The little grey men were duly dispatched and I am thrilled to share them here, thank you Mark.

With the uncertainty of what will happen with regards to work, particularly from the start of June, I am keen to get as much finished as I can whilst at home.  That said it is evident that there is a degree of mission creep starting to pervade my best laid plans, something which I intend to embrace wholeheartedly. 




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78 comments:

  1. Lovely work Michael.......I am in danger like all of us wandering as I have some German zombies that I have been plann8ng to do for ages. Mind you I wish I had a flying saucer in the loft 😢

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    1. Thank you Matt and you must dig out those zombies, if not now then when?

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  2. Wonderful Michael, & who to say that it didn't really happen & that the government just covered it up :)

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  3. Complete madness! but I love it!

    Cheers Roger.

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  4. Another brilliant project.
    Just don't go looking at the warlord games weird war tank upgrades, as that'll be dangerous for your (wallet's) health.

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    1. Thank you Mike and you know that I am going to do that very thing now. 🤣

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  5. Stunning piece, Michael, absolutely stunning. Love it :-)

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  6. Very interesting addition to an already impressively looking project! :)

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    1. Thank you Mr. Nimrod, some more bits and pieces to come.

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  7. Very, very cool saucer/terrain piece, Michael! The gaming possibilities are limitless.

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    1. Thank you Dean, the worry now is that we keep adding to it.

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  8. Utterly barking, but delightfully done!

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    1. Exactly the response I was looking for, thank you A.J.

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  9. Wonderfully bonkers. I love you just went with this . These kind of off shoots are always the best! Enjoy

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    1. Thank you Dave, we certainly had a giggle with this particular diversion.

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  10. O yes, that's a fantastic cheeky little scenic piece! Would fit in really well on a Konflict'47 table for sure (Weird War 2 offshoot of Bolt Action by Warlord Games).

    Painting's fab as always Mike and very deserved of CP Models to highlight your very well painted minis!

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    1. Thank you so much Dai, as the project went on we started to include little pieces that were pure flights of fancy, this being one of them. Did I mention the dinosaur?

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  11. Fantastic! I am always pondering the fun of Pulp themed Wierd War stuff with secret experiments & contraptions. Throw in some Lovecratian lore & it makes for some wonderful plot ideas. Thanks for kicking my overactive imagination itno high gear Micheal!

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    1. Thank you Terry and you are more than welcome. Would love to see where this led you!

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  12. Fantastic stuff; what a lot of fun!

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    1. Thank you Barks, really enjoyed this one.

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  13. Outstanding work, Michael! I may have to do something similar for my pulp games.

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    1. Thank you Bill would love to see what you came up with, I am sure it would be brilliant.

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  14. Ha! Brilliant work on a fun option for your boards and pics.

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    1. Thank you so much, looking forward to seeing it on the boards.

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  15. "you broke the bloody ship!" Which film is that from?
    It looks great. The "Mad Prof" fig..you could call him Ross Whell (?)

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    1. The amazing Galaxy Quest, I must see that again. Love the name, that might have to stick.

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  16. Brilliant work on both the saucer and the greys!

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  17. Super looking saucer! Who wouldn't want one of those in the loft! Lovely finish!
    Best Iain

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    1. Thank you Iain, so much hidden up there that it was good to say, "look, I told you it would come in handy".

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  18. This flying saucer (and base .. and figures ) is a beautiful work !... I like it a lot !

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  19. End results clearly reflect this as a model that "kept wanting more and more attention" of your attention. Looks great Michael.

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    1. Thank you, it really was fun to keep tinkering away with.

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  20. You can't beat a good Saucer - flying or not! I'd have thought Daleks would have looked equally at home dazedly emerging from the wreckage given the craft's insignia!

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    1. Ooh, Daleks. Now there is an idea, thank you.

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  21. A flight (then crash) of fancy. With such a large project as Schloss Itter, there are going to be days where you just go off on a slight tangent, but when it produces such gems as this who are we to complain? Lovely work, Michael.

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    1. Thank you Jez, it is starting to get to the point where I am forgetting just what we have done. Can't wait to bring it all together.

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  22. Great job Michael.
    You can't beat a little bit of Sci-fi to spice up some WW2 games :-)
    Cheers
    Stu

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    1. Thank you Stuart and I couldn't agree more.

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  23. Another wonderful piece, I love it! However, I am minded that we must get together soon for a (socially-distanced) natter, as I fear my output is becoming a little dry in comparison. My motivation would benefit from a bonkers discussion or two about an insane scheme.
    Which reminds me, Is it too early to consider the 2020 Christmas card? :)

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    1. Thank you James and yes we must. I think a stock take might be in order too! Sure never too early to think of Christmas? 🤣

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  24. Fantastic piece Michael, looks very much like the reported blueprints recovered from Germany after the war

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    1. Thank you Dave, so many possibilities to explore.

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  25. wow, that looks fab Sir! Splendid job!

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  26. You never fail to amaze and astound me, not just your expert brush skills, but your imaginative use of just about anything and everthing to fit with whatever it is you're currently working on.

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    1. Thank you so much Joe, what a lovely thing to say. Jus wait to you see loot markers I am working on. So pleased with how they are turning out.

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  27. That looks great, You've just added a crashed UFO to my list of things to make!

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    1. Brilliant, that's made my day. Can't wait to see it.

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  28. I love it. I have a soft spot for both weird war and kitbashing, so it's not surprising, I suppose ;)

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    1. Thank you, loved doing this and always enjoy a cross over.

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  29. Would you be so kind as to use the link in my profile at Devos IV and pm me ?

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  30. Lovely piece. I have a Mars Attacks saucer that I might try to do something similar, but less good, with.

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    1. Thank you Kieron, and I have no doubt that yours will be wonderful.

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  31. Inspired lunacy! What a lovely bit of work.

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  32. Lovely work on the Pulp Miniatures - I particularly like the Nazi secretary....one day, I MUST get the Ilsa She Wolf of the SS figures from his range!

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  33. I already saw the model on Instagram, but here there are even more angles to gawk at.
    Lovely work on all the models here but your crashed saucer definitely steals the show.

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