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For some time now I’ve been bouncing arround the idea of a building a titan for Apocalypse (Haven’t we all!), but have not had the courage to start.

I have a busy old life (2 kids, wife, full time job, other hobbies) so free time is limited, but I do have certain advantages.

Firstly I’m a professional engineer, so working out the arrangement of joints and such is the sort of thing I do in the back of my mind while driving (and I do a fair amount of driving!)

Secondly the wife is ALSO a gamer (and is well studied in the arts) so not only does she understand, she is able to assist with informed criticism! She always helps my sculpting projects, as she has an excellent eye!

Thirdly I have a dedicated workshop I can work in plus a dedicated gaming log cabin with a painting and modelling area, so I have somewhere I can work and leave things part done without needing to worry about the cats knocking anything over!

The recent rash of titans springing up all over the place, and the near completion of my wife’s Witch Hunters stormtroopers does give me some slack and encouragement to begin….. just so long as the other projects I’m working on don’t take too much of a back seat!

I’m not planning on rushing anything, this is a “for the love of it” project rather then for any other reason, but I think a Blog will encourage me to keep going and to see how far I’ve come…. So here goes with the initial ideas…. Lets see what people think!

I saw the Grey Knight titan done by the Tanks and Trolls guys (Incidentally I know the guys at Forgeworld were also very impressed, cudos guys!) which got me thinking. I’m an old school gamer and still have some epic knights floating around and have always believed they make more sense on the 40k table then a full titan, so have wanted to make one for a while… driving to the office this morning it hit me…

Knight… Grey Knight…. Hmmm why not an Ordo Malleus Knight Titan! Single man vehicle so fits the elite nature of the order, and gives them something to face off against the Deamon engines which seam to be cropping up all over the place (*Cough* Forgeworld *Cough*)….. so here goes, Druidic’s Grey Knight Titan Blog!

Initially I don’t want to make a Card Stock titan, I really like Blackadders Lucius Pattern Warhound Titan, with moveable joints and full detailing, so I’m planning something similar.

My artistic talents are very limited, but I’ve been sketching some ideas for joints and limbs and such, but the basic premise will be based off a human skeletal structure for what joints go where (Ball joint hip, hinge knee, rotational wrist, etc) but with a few twists, such as more then 1 knee (considering 3) and main gun weapon instead of right forearm and hand, but with left arm having a power fist, possibly “supporting” the main gun while firing. I also like the idea of weapons on the back of the fist ala Grey Knights, so a twin linked Psycannon from forge world may be in order there!

I’m not looking for advice, but will not turn any away either! I’m not asking questions, but suggestions are always well received. This is for me, I just happen to be sharing…

Oh, and the Salamanders are still a goer…. So the sculpting projects have not stopped either!

I'll note up and scan some of my scetches and post them over the comming days to see what people think of them as well!

Blessed be
Druidic

Ok, so I've been doing some sketching and thinking (see attahced TIFF doc)

and some playing with joints (see pictures)

So far got the visual in my head of an Armoured Knight type of frame, maybe armed with a big gun, over which is a shield, with a power fist on the other arm armed with physcannon, and possibly a sword or halbard. Afterall its to fight large abominations who usually have axes, whips, etc, he needs equivalent large weapons, but also the mobility to fight with them.....

Not going to make anything more then "test pieces" untill I have a pretty much finalised image, but the wife likes the idea so Bonus!

Got any Knights you're using for inspiration we could see for comparison? The Grey Knight's are my second favorite marines, I like the idea of their own titan.

Knight… Grey Knight…. Hmmm why not an Ordo Malleus Knight Titan! Single man vehicle so fits the elite nature of the order, and gives them something to face off against the Deamon engines which seam to be cropping up all over the place (*Cough* Forgeworld *Cough*)….. so here goes, Druidic’s Grey Knight Titan Blog!

Looking forward to this. I'm a knight fan myself and I'm curious to see how an engineer will approach this model!

Unfortunately the "knights" I have from my old epic days are all Eldar! But never mind as I'm sort of going for my own look anyway.

The recent discussions and sketches have gone further down the "Knight of Old" style look (probably assisted by my having started the "re-enactment season" so having just started getting back into armour again), so the design root I'm taking is Articulated Skeleton with Armour Over.

I've been sourcing thick plasticard, and a local hobby shop has what I'm looking for, but I also have some thick plastic signs which I acquired for making scenery from, which could also come in useful.

I think I may need to curb my engineering tendencies and rather then go for a fully "functional" set of joints some of them may need to be more aesthetic to be sensible certainly the ball joints at least!

Fully functioning joints seems like a bit much. For the same reason I glue all my land raider hatches shut. It's not like I'm going to open the doors each time I deploy, it is just a waste of game time. My titan pivots at the hips, and I'm thinking about just gluing it solid.

Probably being nutso but my plan is to make joints which work, then set the pose and ffix most of them solid. That way I ensure it COULD work so it LOOKS right!

Afterall the forgeworld stuff works in the same vein I believe....

None of the FW joints work. At least not on a Warhound or Reaver Titan.

As best i can see it, the way to have movable joints is to go ahead and actually mechanize it of have pinned together joints, put in the right stances to be able to best carry the load

Which is sort of the plan.

I may well glue MOST of the joints solid, but if I can move them upto the point I glue them, I can adjust the pose, and make sure I'm happyy with everything before "Fixing" things

Druidic wrote:Probably being nutso but my plan is to make joints which work, then set the pose and ffix most of them solid. That way I ensure it COULD work so it LOOKS right!

Afterall the forgeworld stuff works in the same vein I believe....

I am not sure if this is "nutso" or not. If it is then I have a big problem as I am scratchbuilding a fully articulated reaver. I am up to the hips so I think the worst of the jointing is behind me. there has only been one joint that has been difficult, the ball joint in the ankle. I looked around for something that I could just glue in and came up short. I eventually scratch built that joint using PVC, Nylon fasteners and a spring. Anyway, most of my reaver legs are built of PVC pipe and Styrene tube. I have been planning to start a thread on this project but it is so big it is hard to take time to upload photos when I am trying to keep it moving forward.

I am thinking the same thing is that I will keep it articulated until I get it built and then pose it and glue it in place. It works so nicely I really want to find a way to keep it articulated... just not sure how to paint the moving parts.

Anyway, small joints I have are styrene rod pinned with brass rod. the knee joints are sections of pvc pipe. I will see if I can get some photos posted later. I also have some sketchup models that I have been using.

My big issue now is deciding whether I want to do a fully detailed interior... how could I resist?

Wow! Sweet I'd love to know more about how you approached the ankle, thats an area I'm also have trouble with!

I was considering this http://www.igus.co.uk/wpck/default.aspx?Pagename=igubal_Axialgelenk_AGRM&CL=gb-en

The thread is 8mm, and plastic, Ok, so two for the ankles, two for the hip, going to cost me about 10 quid.... but WELL worth it!

I'm an Engineer, I go for Engineering Solutions!

If you're glueing things solid, then they're aren't articulated. And if you're going to glue it anyway, it makes little sense to go through all the work to make them functional just to make it solid. Use some putty, figure out a pose, and make it-you'll save a lot of time and headache.

Erm... If I wanted to save a lot of time and effort, I'd not even start the thing! But I get your point, which is valid and sensible!

I like to make sure things WOULD work if possible, its a personality flaw

looks good so far keep going. and i hav the same flaw like everything to work

Druidic wrote:Wow! Sweet I'd love to know more about how you approached the ankle, thats an area I'm also have trouble with!

I was considering this http://www.igus.co.uk/wpck/default.aspx?Pagename=igubal_Axialgelenk_AGRM&CL=gb-en

The thread is 8mm, and plastic, Ok, so two for the ankles, two for the hip, going to cost me about 10 quid.... but WELL worth it!

I'm an Engineer, I go for Engineering Solutions!

Yeah I am an engineer too. I am doing mine as a long term project for fun, basically to see what I can do, so I say go nuts with making it as complicated as possible unless you are in a rush to get it into a game of apocalypse soon.

The Axial joint on the website looks perfect, good find. You should request some samples. If you have a thread tap you are set, if not you can get the correct size nut and bond it into either end. The only thing I am not sure about is will there be enough tension/friction to support the weight of you model. If not you could probably use some thin plastic card to tighten the joint a bit. The good thing about the design I custom built was that I was able to put an adjustable tensioning nut in so I could tighten it in case I have more load. Mine has relatively limited travel which is good since it may have to support a significant amount of weight. I will see what I can post later tonight.

My design are a good deal lighter (smaller for a start off!) but I had planned that depending on the resistance I could add shims to tighten things up, notthing like a nice tight fit (ooh er!).

I particularily liked the fact its plastic, easier to adjust and lighter, I had considered ordering samples, but throught that would be a little cheaky considering I'm only ordering 4

The "nut" socket side of the joint works quite well for me as well as it makes a nice octagonal frame work upon which I can hang the leg armour.... and used at the waist shortened and jointed together they make a perfect groin!

I may have to speak with our procurement department and see if I can find a use for them in the company, then I can "Aquire" some from stores

Oooh, they do an Angle Bearing as well....

http://www.igus.co.uk/wpck/default.aspx?Pagename=igubal_WGRM&CL=gb-en

Total for all 4 joints in 8mm, £17.23 inc postage and vat.... Hmm, bit steap, will look arround and see what else I can find before ordering.... unless I can blag them

This is amusing cause I was looking for these http://www.timesert.com/ for another post earlier and they are from the same company.
Don't forget the leg pistons.

If you want functional joints, it might be prudent to check out the toy isle, I'm sure there are robot figures out there you could loot joints from.

I've been doing that actually, but I can't seam to find anything I like, everything is far too Manga, and I loath to buy a toy literally just for its joints.... but I suppose its a valid option if I can find something cheap and nasty enough!

Well I am not ready to reveal my scratchbuilding work just yet but I did finish up a Sketchup model of the ankle.

Here is the overall foot with the drive hydraulics and in the center the tensioning hardware. The orange hemisphere and the top of the pistons attach to the lower leg cylinder.



Here is the cutaway view... so the orange bearing surface slides on the pedestal. Both parts of PVC.



Closeup of the Nylon hardware. It is a 2-3 inch hex head screw. A spring is sandwiched between two washers and the nut changes the tension as necessary. I imagine I will need some sort of threadlocking compound once I figure out the correct tension on the spring.



So that is how it works. I am not sure how much travel there is 15-25 degrees I imagine. I could modify it a bit for more travel but it isn't like it is a gymnast.

Good luck, the design seems overly complicated (a true sign of an engineer).

Wow! Seriously complex build! Cudos!

The wife, being over so sensible in comparison to myself came up with a suggestion.... I initially scoffed.... but upon investigation think the idea has legs (if you excuse the pun).....

Action Man!

My lad has several which have seen better days, they already have functional knee, ankle and hip joints, and while at first I thought "But thats silly, they don't look like robots" she pointed out that I'm going for a "knight" look anyway, so with some modification to the back of the leg to "expose piping and cables" the muscular front then looks liked shapped armour instead. They are just about the right scale (About 10 inch total) and so long as I dramatically re=model the arms and head there is something to work with there!

Currently in negotiation with the 11 year old, whihc could end up in me making two, but I am confident of having a starting point!

Definitely overly complicated, but for me that was kind of the goal.

FOr a Knight you could conceivably scale down to 1/2 and maybe 3/4" PVC or possibly some large diameter PVC. The foot mechanism would be completely different so all of those pistons would go away.

Ah and now for the good news. I have already finished building these. I was thinking of doing a tutorial but I haven't put all of the photos together yet. The photos will come eventually.

Wow, that I DO want to see!

I’ve been doing some more sketching and working up designs for the Knight.

The first sketch represents some work on a leg arrangement I was working on, which has been shelved by the Action Man idea.

The second sketch is getting closer to the look I’m working for.

You can make out the remains of the Action Man frame quite clearly. Major initial works would consist of ripping off the head (which my son wants back… no idea why, and don’t want to ask!) cutting the backs out of the thigh and calf, replacing with a flat section of plasticard trimmed to match, and insert visible cabling and maybe pistons or something.

The main body and legs will also need some modification to make them look more mechanical, I think a seam down the original plastic joint with small rivets would do nicely. I also want to add Shoulder Armour Plates much like the Reaver to hang the main weapons off and large greaves covering the lower leg and protecting the knee, which form a nice area for painting and tie them in with a marine style look.

The helmet will be artificially sunk into the neck, again demonstrating the “Mechanical” rather then “Man in Armour” nature off the machine, with an Engine block added to the back. Considered the Landraider, but its too big, so may go with a more Dreadnought style engine. Then the remains of the dread can go on the base as scenic stuff, plus the spare weapons become just that…. Spare weapons!

The main armament will be a long barrelled weapon of some type, not sure what yet, open to suggestion! The left hand then likely to be a Power Fist, which may end up being scratch built….

I‘m still bouncing weaponry ideas around as the wife suggested Sword and Shield idea’s which do tempt me, but just not sure how to make that work how I want yet, but I’m also considering some form of torso weapon, twin linked Psycannons or something as well.

So Weapon Load Out currently stands at either…

1 – Left arm shield with ranged weapon behind, right arm Power sword
2 – Right Arm Main long barrel weapon, left arm Power Fist.
3 – Right Arm Main weapon with a shield which moves on a track into place, left arm sword.
4 – Sword and Shield Combo, Main Weapon on back which pops up over shoulder… Bit Predator, bit Manga, not very 40K or Grey Knight… but has possibilities….

Thoughts and suggestions as always most welcomed!

I got my Igus ball joint samples today. They are pretty awesome. I think they would be a little small for a Reaver but they should be pretty much perfect for a Knight.

I was at the hobby store today and was looking at those lego Bionicles? they have a bunch of different joints which might work.