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If there's one thing I can't stand about 28mm models, whether they be in the Games Workshop, Privateer Press, Mantic, etc. ranges, it's the hollow, black plastic bases that they all come with. Not only does it feel rather cheep in comparison to the rest of the model, but they're flimsy and don't do much to weigh down the models. Now, I will ask you, my kind Dakkanauts, what do you think the best way to fill in the hollowed bottoms of the bases would be?

Note, I want this to be something solid, so led shot, pennies, coins, and anything like that is out of the question. What I want is something like a clay or putty that could be used to fill up the bottom of the base. Something that would be cost-effective, durable, drill-able (so as to more effectively pin models to their bases) as well as having a bit of weight to it. Has anyone tried anything like this to good effect? Anyone have any suggestions? I thought about Green Stuff or Milliput, but even buying outside of buying them from GW, those alternatives seem expensive.

Put something heavy in, like a penny, then fill the rest with milliput? It will add enough weight, and create the "solid" effect you want. Or just fill it with milliput if you don't care about weight.

I use lead shot, and back fill the base with Plastic Padding (polystyrene resin). Lead shot is not only heavy, it can also easily fill the kind of base that has lots of little round thingies in it -- 40mm and 60mm bases, I mean -- and slotta bases of course.

The Plastic Padding finishes it off nicely and can be easily sanded for a nice finish.

The only issue I have with the led shot idea is that it's somewhat difficult to drill through it. The main issue I wanted to solve with this was pinning models to the bases. I have a lot of models which have rather small points of contact to their bases and/or are very top heavy. This makes them very prone to snapping off their base. The solution I came up with was to pin them, but the thin, hollow nature of the bases makes the pinning, in my personal experience, less effective because the pin isn't being held in by much more than a thin layer of plastic. If I could make the base solid all the way through so that the pin could have a more firm grip in the base, the pinning of the models would be much more effective. For the purpose of weighing down the models, both of your suggestions would work excellently and effectively, but they aren't applicable as far as I can see to my situation because you can't (without an incredible amount of effort) drill through them to affix a pin.

Sorry I didn't make this more clear in my first post.

Ready made filler from a diy store ? the kind used to fill cracks in plaster ?

I had a similar problem recently with some "running" legs for my wip Kill Team. What I did was drill the boot and the base, pin it with a length of paperclip leaving a short section sticking into the "hollow", then covered the end with green stuff (anchoring it at the same time). Seems to have held the model but it doesn't fill the base. Hope this helps.

The problem with filling in the bases is that then the models don't stand as well on any surface that isn't flat...

Not sure I follow you Insaniak. ?

My solution for this problem, when necessary is to fill the hollow under the base with JB Kwik. It's a metal two part epoxy that I use for glueing all metal to metal joints. It sets quickly, has some heft and is stronger than the materials the models are made of.

Candle_man wrote:
Ready made filler from a diy store ? the kind used to fill cracks in plaster ?

I actually have some in my toolbox, I think. I'll give it a try, thanks!

 Mr P's Space-Mini's wrote:
I had a similar problem recently with some "running" legs for my wip Kill Team. What I did was drill the boot and the base, pin it with a length of paperclip leaving a short section sticking into the "hollow", then covered the end with green stuff (anchoring it at the same time). Seems to have held the model but it doesn't fill the base. Hope this helps.

Hmmm. This seems like a solid solution, but the only problem is that GS tends to be very expensive and me, being a poor college student, can't afford it. Thanks for the suggestion, though.

 insaniak wrote:
The problem with filling in the bases is that then the models don't stand as well on any surface that isn't flat...

Yeah, it's a trade-off unfortunately. I've run into similar problems with a few of my models that I have that are on resin bases, which do not have the issue of having hollow bottoms. Though, to be fair, I'm more into the modelling and painting aspect of the hobby than actual gaming. However, I'm somewhat of a klutz and would rather not have models that have the potential of constantly breaking if I handle them wrong or drop them from the smallest of distances. If this comes at the cost of their ability to stand on flat surfaces, then so be it. I guess you can't win 'em all.

 Todosi wrote:
Not sure I follow you Insaniak. ?

I believe he's referring to the fact that the hollow bases allow for better traction on the surface of gaming tables that aren't always perfectly flat. The edges of the base are able to more easily catch on portions of the table so that they stand up more easily than if the entire bottom was smooth and filled in.

 Todosi wrote:

My solution for this problem, when necessary is to fill the hollow under the base with JB Kwik. It's a metal two part epoxy that I use for glueing all metal to metal joints. It sets quickly, has some heft and is stronger than the materials the models are made of.

That sounds like a good solution as well. I have a ton of different bases so trying different options is definitely something I'm going to try.

I glue magnetic sheeting to all my models bases. It gives them a 'closed' bottom. You can buy a 12"x24" sheet from craft shops for 9.99$ here. I then get the 'brush-on' superglue, paint the bottom edge of the base and stick them on the sheet. When dry, razorblade the edge and BAM, a solid base.

I had tried using resin for a while, but it is very hard to get them filled perfectly. So either it is too shallow, or too much and then you need to bandsaw the bottoms. (which is tedious and risky due to the fine powder)

I never really had a problem with flat-bottombases not being able to stand easily.

 Todosi wrote:
Not sure I follow you Insaniak. ?

The hollow underside allows the base to stand relatively solidly on uneven surfaces, as the only contact point is the rim. If you have an uneven surface, any protrusions under the model can sit inside the hollow. With a filled-in base, those protrusions stop the model from sitting flat, and they are more likely to wobble about or fall over if the table is knocked.

I'd stick with the JB Quick.

Personally, I've used the Plastic bonding compound (occasionally in place of greenstuff. Not for any fine-tooth work of course, but still).

Only other options would be to get some resin (check the automotive shop for cheap resin), and fill them in. Drill-able for your "pinning" purposes, increases the heft a bit (not a hell of a lot, but it is something), and of course you can always use some brush-on rubber coating on the flat bottom to increase traction for those uneven surfaces

Easier, cleaner, faster, slightly less smelly option would be Bondo! (also at the automotive shop. Ask for "Body Filler.") Paste, typically white. Follow directions, sets in 20-30 min,, machinable, wonderful stuff...
EDIT: Bondo (Automotive Body Filler) is VERY resilient.

I have used spackle for this purpose....it's not perfect because it weighs almost nothing, but it does the job well enough to be worthwhile on poorly balanced models. Non slotted bases are preferable though because you can throw a penny in there to weigh it down a bit more. Slotted bases will work, but you won't be able to add a ton of weight if all you use is the spackle

I use lead sinkers. Cheaper and more readily available than lead shot. Split them in half, crush them with a pair of pliers, and glue them to the inside of the base. Less chance of a mess than there is with lead shot, too. Personally, as long as the model is bottom-weighted, I don't really care whether the bottom of the base is flat. (In point of fact, I think that Insaniak has a really good point on that score.) Still, you could always fill the base in with green stuff, putty, or you could cut a piece of plasticard and glue it over the bottom.

see if you can get someone to get you a sample of dental plaster. Many places will send you one, and that should be more than enough to fill a few bases. It's heavy, drillable, and easy to use. Excalibur is the one I like most for casting, but any with a very high strength should be heavy enough. You can do quite a few things with it though, so even if you can't get a free sample, a 25 lb box (enough to last you longer than you will need for sure) is usually 25-30 bucks. You can buy them at dental supply places, be sure to tell them it is a cash purchace under $100 if they tell you that you have to be a doctor / dentist.

As for the pinning I use a paper lip and then drill a hole cut a length of the clip and bend it into a you shape that runs long the bottom leaving a bit sticking through the base for the model to be fitted to, works pretty good so far...

The 25mm bases are the perfect size to use a plain old nickel to weight the base. 40 for $2....just put a blob of super glue in the base and drop the nickel in. Wait until it's set and you'll be ready to go.

Yep, filler as candle man said

James811

I use ready-mix plaster - you can get it in small tubs for covering small cracks.
You just need something like an artist's pallet knife & once dry a sheet of sand paper to clean up the result.

One thing about the 'stability on uneven terrain' issue with filled or weighted base is that if a model is top-heavy enough to need to be weighted down, then it's going to fall over on uneven terrain whether its weighted/filled or not.

I use magnetic tape bought from craft stores, it's super easy to cut with scissors and glue into the bottom of any base. It also adds a good amount of weight. Another thing I do is use actual rocks on the base for weight as well.

If your going with round lipped bases PP and a few others sell them in white metal. Should give plenty of weight but I'm guessing they arnt all that cheap.