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Pissed the Day Away

Just so ya don't think the Blackadder pissed the day away posting on the various forums I subscribe I did do some experimentation on the cockpit lighting. It looks as though I may need a light diffuser to obtain the particular form of malevolence I am reaching for. But for a first try very gratifying............

http://i.imgur.com/DL7JIQb.jpg

Looks pretty ominous as it is, but knowing your work I'm sure it's going to get even better...

Those shots of Luteus are amazing, makes Lucie the Warhound look kinda cute really

 The_Blackadder wrote:
Titan Hunter Formation

The first time Luteus Vexant has stood in full stride without careful balancing (I still need to pack half a kilo of lead in the back for optimum stability) but the hip joints are solid and capable of supporting Luteus' 7 kilo bulk.

Here he is with a third of my Superheavy company in vanguard support. Sorry no infantry as yet.

http://i.imgur.com/hrg4Zev.jpg


This image has been a long time coming...............

The Blackadder is pleased.

This might just be the most amazing thing I've ever seen. I can't wait to see this painted.

Inner Workings Update

Hi Blackadder here; I took a few day off to plan where I was going on this and decided to work a bit on the interior as I have run out of ideas on the exterior.

Fortunately this model is so big and complex that I can jump from one area to another and still keep fresh on inspiration resolving detail.

I went back to my CoD scrap and found vents and conduit, push buttons and panel and fantastic ducting that lend itself to the ultimate consummation of this model.

Serendipity reared its ugly head in the for of the chimneys of the Manufactorum model gave me ducting to the condensers of the reactor coolant; a fortuitous accident that worked better than if I planned it.

http://i.imgur.com/6HAP4pd.jpg


http://i.imgur.com/jrhTdSX.jpg

What a difference some gray makes

To paraphrase an old song.................

I started priming the interior and under the carapace and it really breaths some life into this construct; gray being a much more contrast bearing colour than white.......

We'll start with the interior construction of the reactor chamber (with the reactor removed for clarity you can see to the other side wall the various controls on the mezzanine level and the major ducting for the condenser grid that cools the radioactive coolant.

http://i.imgur.com/TF5XYQ9.jpg


http://i.imgur.com/597AsUi.jpg


In the image below I displayed the left side interior for clarity

http://i.imgur.com/m9ZNDnF.jpg


And the left side exterior so the following images make sense

http://i.imgur.com/9yRxZ23.jpg

Wow. Primed these look exactly like machined parts, and that just shows the great level of detail.

Edit: wow, got home and looked again this time on the iPad and not my dumb phone, bigger pictures really help , before this was n amazing project, now this is EPIC. Those words just don't justify how cool this is. Shutting up now as I'm dumbfounded.

Under the carapace

In continuation of the above post showing the right side exterior wall in place the interior ducting powered blower ducts air to the condenser grid much as the radiator works in your car. This cools the reactor coolant. A bit of license is taken as the duct doesn't actually connect to the radiator as the side panel is on a hinge that swings open for interior viewing because if this can't be seen all this work is wasted.


http://i.imgur.com/HWlYvg2.jpg


The rest is just the same albeit with a coat of primer. The rear backpack now has a purpose; it is now the heat exchanger that transfers the superheated primary (and radioactive coolant energy to the secondary steam jacket which in turn drives the turbines (which will be in the top deck i.e. above the command deck )

http://i.imgur.com/eYnNOGB.jpg


The backpack panel right now is just held in place by friction but ultimately will be secured with hidden screws..............

http://i.imgur.com/e81YIWR.jpg

Your attention to detail on this project is beyond rediculous.
All I can say is "wow".

The finished project is going to be impressive if you paint anywhere near as good as you build.

Gotta be said, the grey primer brings a whole new dimension to the beast, really keys the insane level of detail in. And who said grey is dull?

 Ruglud wrote:
Gotta be said, the grey primer brings a whole new dimension to the beast, really keys the insane level of detail in. And who said grey is dull?

Not me, paint my grey plastic guys grey.

Scrap Heap!

I was working on this last night and I happened to look at the edge of my desk and there were all the parts helter skelter in what looks to be a scrap pile.....

http://i.imgur.com/MTyoE4w.jpg


And I thought to myself, ''A fine way to treat all that work!''

Now you just Need some guys to put inside

It needs a mr coffee and a mr radar.

Yeah well I took your advice and examined my Mr Coffee for usable bitz but there was nothing on it worth destroying a useful kitchen appliance..............

CoD Bitz


Once again after a bout with a computer virus, lawn mower, installing a door in my kitchen and adjacent mouldings I have taken up the cudgel of building Luteus Vexant........... strange how menial trivialities take precedence over that which is of true import.

I resume the task by supplementing my dwindling supply of prefabricated bitz to detail the areas of the carapace that seem too sparsely decorated.

The CoD kits I have been cannibalizing are still providing ample fodder for my demands because I prudently have conserved both front and back of each floor and wall panels by by splitting them in half through the thickness axis with a razor saw instead of just sanding off the reverse face of the panel thereby doubling my inventory of parts and saving myself thirty bucks for another Manufactorum.

http://i.imgur.com/l3Q1Pj9.jpg




Automatically Appended Next Post:
Catching a Mold Relief

I am trying a new method of casting

I intend to make a gantry for the Warlord diorama showing it parked alongside for service/repairs. This will make a huge model display stand.

I'm using 'Sculpey' mold material to make a few more Adeptus Mechanicus skulls for the aft end of the main guns.

Since 'Sculpey' is heat hardened I am trying to cold mold 5 minute epoxy directly on the soft uncured clay relying on it's heat resistant properties to not lose detail as the resin heats and cures

Below you see the mold that only required seconds to make:



Catching a Mold Relief 2

At the risk of redundancy I include the mixing and applying the 5 minute epoxy to the soft clay. I refrigerated the clay to accelerate the cooling before drizzling the resin mixture into the mold.

the slow application of resin allows the air to be evacuated from the recesses as the resin slowly flows through the mold thereby eliminating air bubbles............... I hope:


http://i.imgur.com/wJNbsuh.jpg

Dammit, Dakka, why do you only let me exalt individual posts once!?!

Irons in the Fire

Granted I have 'way too many irons in the fires what with the Warlord, T'hawk, refurbishing my Superheavy Armour and now a display stand for Lucie but a full plate keeps you young to mix my metaphors.

The basic display stand for Lucie and the forward cowl for Luteus basic primed

http://i.imgur.com/i2Q7DMl.jpg


http://i.imgur.com/snEfMnu.jpg


What's with all the L's Blackadder?

Moulded Skulls

Well the moulded skulls can out not too shoddy good enough for the relatively hidden area under the carapace at the rear of the cannons. I sanded the left one a bit much but once painted I think it will pass. The Skulpey clay did a good job and will work fine for the terrain that I plan for the Warhound. I just wanted to see how well it would work for casting.

http://i.imgur.com/gwMF5pd.jpg

Looking amazing, as usual!

Main Weapon Detail

I keep adding detail to these guns and the more I add the more empty space I find to clutter up so after these photos I'm applying a coat of primer and see where I stand.

http://i.imgur.com/IMaaEY3.jpg


http://i.imgur.com/MFyFotd.jpg


http://i.imgur.com/nDiHNbG.jpg



BTW I have added much more detail than the original so the camouflage does do something; it increases the illusion of detail.

The Relativity of Bland

Well paint doesn't seem to help much everything looks so so bland. It seems there should be more patches and panels, definitely more skulls and aquila perhaps a few banners and those badges with ribbons dangling from them 'What are they called the name escapes me.

Ah! 'Purity Seals' never mind..............

Anyway the secondary weapons are masked for priming and I'm pretty satisfied with them.

http://i.imgur.com/sZqUY2c.jpg

Ahh, but the so called bland greyness makes it look all the more awesome as far as I can see...

Doesn' t look bland to me, it' s just a very different scale. As soon as you highlight and add some kind if camo/dazzle paint scheme, it'll all fall into place.

I think

The_Blackadder wrote:The Relativity of Bland

Well paint doesn't seem to help much everything looks so so bland. It seems there should be more patches and panels, definitely more skulls and aquila perhaps a few banners and those badges with ribbons dangling from them 'What are they called the name escapes me.

Ah! 'Purity Seals' never mind..............

Anyway the secondary weapons are masked for priming and I'm pretty satisfied with them.

I would posit that the 'bland' grey priming isn't boring in so much that it makes it look like cast plastic, awating paint! Which goes a long way to saying how good your scratching skills are : D

This is stunningly captivating and utterly inspiring. And never stops surprising me when I visit the thread. Cannot wait to eventually see the beast painted.

That thing is freakin' unbelievable!!! It looks great and I really admire your work, its fantastic!

Yet another request of my source of styrene on another forum so I am going to be up front and reveal my larder.

Over the course of a few years I have accumulated quite an inventory of styrene strips and sheets mainly by investing about twenty bucks a month into increasing my reservoir of material.

I won't lie to you on the face of it it is a tremendous outlay of cash for an inventory of this size and Evergreen

http://www.evergreenscalemodels.com/

won't spring for a display carousel for a noncommercial site even though I regularly extol their product.

In addition I have researched wholesale distributors of styrene sheets which is by far the biggest single outlay of cash for material. I found a local one in an Industrial park that supplies my requirements.

Now that I have all the styrene I need I routinely spend about 20 bucks a month to keep my supply sufficiently abundant.

http://i.imgur.com/EQ6hqeb.jpg


http://i.imgur.com/AncsaYm.jpg

lmao looks like my collection of styrene.

A Mélange of Decor, Dispair, Decadence and Decay

Unfortunately using a flash washes out a good bit of detail especially the 0.010 inch/ 0.25 MM layered armour which hopefully washes will bring to the fore.

The new bitz is what I am debuting with this post and I am hoping that I have achieved the right degree of decoration, decadence and decay which permeates the desperate 40K future world much as western culture seems hellbent on the road to in the early 21st century.

In this first image I show the new side detail of the carapace which is a melange of DS's bitz work and my interpretation thereof which is somewhat less busy and I hope makes more sense from an (totally bogus) engineering standpoint

Most prominent are the numerous vents and exhaust fans that I deem necessary to cool the vast heat producing engines necessary to animate this behemoth:
http://i.imgur.com/yPDioBi.jpg


This image shows the top of the carapace showing the four adjunct shield relays and the two shoulder field regulator receivers one on either side of the carapace munitions exhaust fan:
http://i.imgur.com/JpvrJ8r.jpg


Top rear view showing the four rear shield relays and the four make up air inlets for cooling the carapace and sweeping stray radiation from the ammo magazines:
http://i.imgur.com/U3Fm1Ty.jpg


And an image sans flash to better show the new detail:
http://i.imgur.com/2X9UJET.jpg


Demonstrating that the Blackadder clearly needs to get a life or at the very least a better grip on reality...............

Amazing... Reality doens't need you, btw; Dakka does

I for one am willing to live my life vicariously enough for both of us as long as you keep making models like this. I can't say anything more than what has already been said by myself and others, except o reiterate how awesome his is .