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Dakka Swap Mods - I thought I would post this over here, never know. If for any reason you don't want it here, no hard feelings! I know this forum is mostly a community of individuals trading/selling kits and armies, (hence "Swap Shop" - and the sort of operation with feedback similar to Bartertown) so I do not mean to impose at all.




Well folks, the inevitable reality has set in. Six years and display number seven, my "furniturehammer" addiction has taken it's toll on available space. With two more displays just as large already in the works for next year, I regrettably need to offer one up for sale. This being the largest and likely most interesting to a broad audience I chose this one. They are all equally sentimental. In fact until I have little ones of my own, these are in essence my children. Their creation is each over a month of hermetic labor; painful but also enjoyable and fulfilling in a way that I can't describe in text. The type of test of dedication and perseverance that leaves one with sensory memory triggered by a song or a drink enjoyed at 5 am on a frozen spring night out in the garage, wrestling some idea into reality.




I don't really expect everyone to understand why, although there are a few I know who certainly do. I never design any with intention to sell, and I have always said I would not if I could help it. Even in my regular commission work, it has been years since I have done something "for sale" with or without a display. So, it is with extra heavy heart. However there are plenty of old cliches that apply to take solace in, so I will keep those in mind as I offer up "the egg."



The egg itself is based on an actual mid-century egg chair. The harder to find kind that is completely enclosed. It was purchased last spring and shipped freight to Indiana. Not only is it an egg chair, but it is actually a prototype model from the design process, evidenced by the lack of a cushion, a huge mold line and a rough, almost reverse golf ball sort of texture to the outside. For the average person this wasn't anything but a bit of story, and it had no cushion so it wasn't so comfortable, but being a sentimental type I love for the furniture I use to have a backstory. It stands between 5 and 6 feet. Most will stand at or slightly higher than eye to eye with the skull.




The outer shell was as much effort in figuring out "how" as it was actually creating it. It tooks months to work out a plan of how to sculpt and design the bone elements. At first my plan was to somehow sculpt it in a putty that does not cure and cast the entire chair in silicone, reproducing it in latex. Any curing putty I knew of would be incredibly heavy and crack under the weight and would not survive the trip to Chicago. I gave this the green light until I realized, having never used latex before, the stuff has a shelf life outside of a sealed environment of about 3 years in bulk. This wouldn't do as I want my stuff to last. I want to pass as many as possible on to my kids.



I spent all of my free internet time for at least a month just searching and weighing my options. I was already hundreds of dollars and publicly "in" on the project. Couldn't back out, not that I would anyway. I finally with a bit of dumb luck found a putty that was light, hard as a rock, a bit flexible, and stuck like glue. Perfect! I bought ten gallons.



After covering the whole chair in two layers of fiberglass, the process of sculpting the "bone" effect was an incredibly time consuming process. Not only did it take overnight to dry, but many areas had to be sculpted in layers to get a realistic effect. Once areas started to come to life, a wire brush among many other tools was used to give it a bone texture. An artificial skull and other random bones also served as a basis for many of the forms.



The display itself is a collection of parts, doodad's, applied model parts, and plastic stock. More time was put into "let's hold this here for ten minutes and think about it" than actual building labor! I have had a lot of people try and unsuccessfully guess what many of the parts are, and I will take that as a successful build. My main goal for the inside: create a vision that appears to the viewer before any individual recognizable part. For this reason I avoided Warhammer bits mostly, unless used for their actual scale purpose such as bombs, doors, and pistons.



The display will of course come with the fully working Galaxy Note display and interior accent lighting. The whole thing actually looks best in the sort of dim lighting in most homes as the goal is mood rather than intense light in every nook and cranny to show detail. It would be amazing in a home theater or man cave setting.



The egg is wheeled, although not obvious at first glance. It is surprisingly "light" for its size. Two grown men can pretty easily handle and lift it. If you are interested in specific dimensions please email me. I will say it *should* fit in your average front door, but I will gladly have a back and forth measuring to make sure it will.




The army itself is an Emperor's Scythes with Lamenters allies. The full background, taken from the original post:

The title "Memento In Utero" is latin for "remember, in the womb." It is a snapshot of the horrific memories the Emperor's Scythes retain of the initial attack of Hive Fleet Kraken, which almost wiped them out. At the birth of the Tyranids, was the death of the Scythes. But it is also a literal image of the few existing "Salvation Teams" - small groups of hardened veterans that have no home, but wander the galaxy fighting the Tyranids in some of the most terrible places imaginable. Kraken and the Scythes' destinies are completely entangled in every sense - time, mortality, beginning to end.

There are also other subtle themes. The birth and regret of something created which ultimately takes life. The Tyranids may have been a created weapon, something designed to kill in a controlled manner, which ultimately had a much bigger impact than the creators could imagine. They may have been an experimental weapon gone awry. An experiment aborted in every sense that takes a life of it's own and changes the destiny of man.



The army itself was written and played at Adepticon by Paul Murphy of Forge the Narrative. It is a very competitive list and features the following:


Emperor's Scythes

Kor'Sarro Khan

Iron Halo, Moonfang, Bolt Pistol, Marine Bike

Chapter Master

Thunder Hammer, Shield Eternal, Artificer Armor,Marine Bike, Auspex

5 Man Command Squad

Marine Bikes, 4 Grav Guns, Apothecary, 2 Storm Shields

Tactical Squad A

Multi Melta, Meltagun, Combi Flamer Sargent, Rhino

Tactical Squad B

Multi Melta, Meltagun, Combi Flamer Sargent, Rhino

Stalker

Stalker

Thunderfire Cannon

Lamenters Allies (Space Wolves)

Wolf Lord

Thunder Hammer, Storm Shield, Marine Bike, Fenrisian Cherubs, Artificer Armor, Wolf Tooth Necklace, Saga of the Bear

Rune Priest

Marine Bike, Artificer Armor, Runic Weapon, Melta Bomb

Grey Hunters

Flamer, Rhino



For more images, please see the original blog post here.

For the entire blog process of building this display, please look through the Adepticon Blogging tag.



And of course, for the discussion of cost - I know what I spent building it, and no idea how many hours put into it. I am not going to post a price publicly. If it is meant to be then myself and someone else out there in the world will mutually land in the same area. I see it as much going to a good home as "selling" it, therefore I am not out to get every possible penny but I also do not want to regret it. I will be happy selling it for what I consider a "fair" price.

As for shipping, if the buyer wants to come and pick it up then that is a non-issue. I will also be willing to hand deliver it, but in most cases shipped freight with the army going UPS will be the best solution. It is quite durable - to the point the actual paint on the egg is the most fragile part. There will certainly be a shortage of bubble wrap in my town if this sells!



For more information, if you have questions, or see this and are just interested in commissions, please send all emails to gmmstudios@gmail.com (Dakka forum users - I do not get notifications for PMs - email is really the best way!)


So with that, I throw this out to the world. If something sticks or it doesn't, either way see you all soon for my ideas for next year. Thanks for reading!