Addressing the underside of the base

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**kinko6**

Wondering if anyone does anything with the undersides of bases to improve stability/gripping/staying power on irregular terrain. I am familiar with using washers/pennies to increase weight, but wanted to know if anyone has experience using any sort of treatment, such as an application of rubber mat, felt, liquid rubber, etc. A cursory search did not turn anything up so I was hoping to get input from the community. I came across resin bases by a called Anvil Industry which claims to use a heavier resin which also has gripping properties; they dubbed their proprietary material "Dark Forge" - not particularly creative nor descriptive. This got me thinking about figuring out a way to get the same results that are shown in the vids on Anvil Industries site with any base, be it standard plastic or resin from the likes of Dragon Forge. Will see what the community has to say and will likely do some testing of my own. Will post results of my findings, liquid electrical tape is at the top of my list, still bouncing other materials around in the noggin.

**J.Black**

As you mention, simply glueing a coin to the underside (the 2p piece here in England is a disturbingly good fit) is a great way to enhance the stability of your models, especially the pesky 'flying pose' one's like SoB Seraphim.

I guess a good way to get both added weight and grip would be to pack the underside with milliput/brownstuff/greenstuff and use a modelling knife/sandpaper/vinyl record to add some texture to it

**Molotovsoda**

after having a pile of hormagaunts all fall over....home depot, take a quarter, thats about the right size, find the closest sized washer, each washer is like 0.03 works amazing, even kinda makes the mini feel better in your hand too

**varl**

seems like anything with a tacky/sticky surface (e.g., clay, putty, etc.) is going to get really nasty over time from picking up loose sand, flock and dust from gaming tables, work surfaces, etc. a washer or coin will give you more weight, but won't help you much on an irregular surface.

I'd probably go with the biggest washer I could fit into the base and then stick a no-scratch pad made of rubber or neoprene to it. wish I could think of the proper name for them, but it's the kind of thing you'd stick on the bottom of box, a bit of stereo kit, vase, etc. to keep it from scratching the surface that holds it. you can find them at any hardware store and they should have a pretty good grip to them without picking up a lot of dirt along the way.

**rcguy111**

I happened to get a large amount of lead bb's through one of my buddies. Had something to do with cryogenics filters. Butt I glue them in and the irregular pattern tends to grip the surfaces of hills. The weight also helps. I have no Idea where you can find some and they are super tiny, less the 1mm.

**Xeriapt**

I find a flattened lead sinker works well for any models that like to fall over.

**SoloFalcon1138**

I have a lot of slotted bases, so quarters and washers don't work so well. I use the shot from a shotgun shell, fill the base with wood glue, then pour the shot into the base. When it dries, I add more wood glue.

**Ouze**

Never tried material or a friction based solution. I glue nickels inside my bases when they are imbalanced or otherwise topple-prone. Some suggest using washers, but check the prices on those - some washers actually average out costing more then 5 cents each, or very close to it.

**templarM**

i had a problem keeping my orks standing so i went and glued a penny on the bottom of each one works great.

**Seb**

2 options I used :
- using liquid stone (Vallejo stuff I think?) to had texture and weight to the base
- sticking a magnet - heavy enough to enhance stability, and you can use metal sheets to put in a case to transport your minis (I think someone here used that idea to turn a metal toolbox into an army transport case)

**Breotan**

For 25mm round bases, superglue a nickle into the bottom of the base. For larger bases, it usually isn't needed.

For square bases, glue rare earth magnets into the base and then put a sheet of "rubber steel" into your movement tray.

**Leech**

Be careful not to make your base too heavy or your mini may break off!

I sometimes write the date onto the bottom of a base when I finish painting a model. This has nothing to do with preventing it falling over etc but it helps to remind me where I was (painting status) when I paijnted that.

**Ouze**

Leech wrote:I sometimes write the date onto the bottom of a base when I finish painting a model. This has nothing to do with preventing it falling over etc but it helps to remind me where I was (painting status) when I paijnted that.

That's actually kind of a great idea, so you can watch yourself develop as a painter.

**Leigen_Zero**

I use 'split shot' fishing weights, because they are heavy enough to provide weight, small enough that you can adjust the model's centre of gravity (if it's front-heavy, add weights to the back). and by splitting them you have nice flat surfaces to glue to the base.

Plus they are relatively inexpensive.

Btw @J.Black
Just a little conspiracy theory here, but do you think maybe the reason that standard round slottabases are a perfect fit for 2p coins, is because in pre-slotta times (indeed, before minis were provided with standardised bases in general), it was commonplace to use 2p coins as bases, which then became the de-facto standard base width?

**bubber**

I fill some of mine with ready-mix wall filler.
This is then sanded on a flat surface & sealed with watered-down wood / PVA glue so I can then stick a weight on it (eg 2p coin).

**SagesStone**

Usually the models will be balanced enough, though I suppose I should weigh under some of the Daemonette bases; ones with banners especially due to how they like to tip like all banners seem to. Generally I have slot bases and thus can't do much to them.

**Piglett**

I have a spool of safety wire that I use for random things, pinning, etc.

I just cut up some small chunks and super glue that on each side of the slot for slotted bases. I just use a penny for normal bases, cheaper than a nickel and seems to work just as good

**martian_jo**

Pva and bb's are the best I've found for both weight and traction. I think I need to price out the bb's now and see if they end up being cheaper than a penny.

A penny a model would only be a dollar to base all my hormaguants...

**J.Black**

Leigen_Zero wrote:
Btw @J.Black
Just a little conspiracy theory here, but do you think maybe the reason that standard round slottabases are a perfect fit for 2p coins, is because in pre-slotta times (indeed, before minis were provided with standardised bases in general), it was commonplace to use 2p coins as bases, which then became the de-facto standard base width?

Possibly, but it's more plausible that's it's a cunning ploy by GW to get more money out of my pocket and onto their tables

**oadie**

I've added the odd coin underneath the base of a topple-prone model, but I've found that the hollow bottom does more for stability on rough terrain than anything else. The rim's angle and thickness (or thinness, in this case) allow it to "hook" onto protrusions in rough terrain or settle slightly into flock/static grass on hill slopes.

If I were to try and maximize stability, I'd try my damnedest to keep the base as a hollow cup, adding weight on top, as needed. Dipping the rim in tool dip (liquid textured rubber for replacing/making new grips on hand tools) might help improve the grip of the rim without losing the benefits of the shape.