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Review Arthurian Warlord From Mitches Military Models

Discussion in 'Reviews , Video Reviews and Open Book' started by Nap, Aug 25, 2012.

  1. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    Hi to all on PF ,

    After a harrowing couple of hours being dragged round Waitrose:eek: what better way to relax than to do a review ..and what better than one that has been released by a member of PF ...who is this ...Grod aka Mr Gordon Mitchell ..the owner of Mitches Miltary Models (MMM) .

    What have we for the review ...a full figure no less (not a bust this time eh Nap I hear you say !!!) :

    I actually got from Gordon at a show after scraping the bottom of SWMBO's purse :angelic: ..so what did I get for her hard earned shekels .....

    Subject: Arthurian Warlord

    Scale: 120mm

    Material:Resin

    No of parts: 12

    Sculptor: Pete Morton

    The model came in a strong cardboard box with the parts secured in clear zip bags all wrapped up in bubblewrap ...good start there Mr M ..no chance of damage to the model .

    On the front there was a black and white picture

    The parts are cast in a light grey resin , apart from the spear shaft which is what looks like a very hard carbon material ..no breakages .....I did try to bend it .......no chance!!:LOL:

    Parts consist of the main torso ,2 arms, 1 head enclosed in a helmet,the nasal bar (tiny!!!) the horsehair "plume", a shield, a sword , a spear shaft , the top of the spear , the shield handle, and finally a base.

    Continued in next post:

    Nap

    Attached Files:

  2. Ron Tamburrini A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom
    Dragged round Waitrose :eek: would never allow someone to inflict that amount of pain on me :D
  3. billyturnip A Fixture

    Country:
    England
    Let alone admit it. :eek:
  4. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    Lets start with the biggest of the pieces ...the main torso itself:

    This consists of the full body less arms and head , the subject is wearing a chainmail vest , over which is a thigh length garment in addition to a cloak, he has trousers on over which are decorative greaves , on his feet he has leather boots

    The chain mail is finely sculpted with a belt around his waist pulling it in around this area with the tell tale bulges seen in references .

    The cloak is sculpted well into the body , the biting winds catching it slightly , folds are well done , with good undercuts .

    The trousers he wears are also well done , natural folds especially at the bend of the knee

    The greaves are as I said decorated , the swirl pattern looks a little too heavy IMO but this is easily reduced if you wish with careful use of the wet and dry or sanding pads, there are some nice tiny faces at the top of the greaves .

    The boots are nicely done as well with soft folds ...good chance to get those leather painting techniques going !!!

    In respect of any prep required , there are casting blocks on the feet ...out comes the razor saw ....mould lines were evident on the lower area's of the cloak going down the side of the leg , the tops of the boots wht looks like a cast line on them will need some work done to remove this , although saying that it could be the style of boot .

    The pose is one of determination standing on a angled base (more later) .

    Continued in next post:

    Nap

    View attachment 102482 View attachment 102483 View attachment 102486

    Attached Files:

  5. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    Moving on to the head and horsehair piece now :

    He is wearing a great helmet with cheek pieces similar to the Coppergate one encasing his face , the helmet has a chainmail curtain which has wonderful rings attaching it to the cheekpieces , details on the helmet is really good with dragon motifs on the sides , sculpting is extremely finely done and crys out for washes and metallic effects !!!

    Be careful not to remove the small piece on the top of the helmet ..the horsehair piece fits on this ...not that I thought it a casting plug of course !!!

    The plume is nicely done also with the fit into the helmet being very tight and clean .

    Prep needed is minimal with just casting plugs neding removed from the underneath.

    The facial details are great with a beard and a flowing moustache , features are well done all of which will help painting .

    Continued in next post:

    Nap

    View attachment 102491

    Attached Files:

  6. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    Hi Guys ,

    Thanks for the comments...SWMBO was going to hide my Kolinsky!!!!!!

    onwards and upwards....

    Nap
    billyturnip likes this.
  7. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    Just a word from the idiot who spent many times crawing about the carpet ...there are tiny pieces here ..the nasal bar especially so don't forget to :

    Don't breathe

    Don't sneeze

    Enjoy the model !!!!!

    Great stuff eh

    Nap
  8. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    Onto the arms now :

    There was a casting plug to remove from the right elbow and on the end of the fingers , revealing some great folds and details, on both lower arms there are "gauntlets" with iron pieces on them which also covers the front of the hand , again sculpting is tight and very clean .

    The hands are nicely defined on both arms , the left is designed to fit into the shield , this it does with absolutely no gap ...spot on , I would fit the shield handle first to the hand .

    Continued in next post:

    Nap

    Attached Files:

  9. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    Lets look at his armoury now then ...the spear/sword and shield:

    He has a spear and a sword , the spear consists of a unbreakable (well I couldn't!!!) spear shaft , this fits very nicely into the hand ...no filling is needed and it will be safe , the spear tip and base will need careful fitting , but will result in a fearsome looking weapon .

    The sword was still in its casting frame ..great idea ..avoids damage ....carefully remove this and the flashing surrounding the sword , details are very good indeed , with a decoration on the pommel .

    The shield is a very battle worn piece , normally covered in leather ., our warlords has a star motif on it (some might have preferred a plain front so the modeller could put their own design on it) and has some fearsome looking torn area's together with a central metal boss . there is a small casting plug to remove from the edge ...dead easy .

    Shields were covered wood especially for high ranking nobles like ours , the wooden effect is very good indeed on the back.... again this shouts out for washes to bring out all the details sculpted .


    Note : in the spear picture the small resin piece on the left is for the shield handle the tiny piece is the nasal bar (rescued from the carpet monster) kev 095.jpg

    Continued in next post:

    Nap
    kev 097.jpg

    Attached Files:

  10. Helm A Fixture

    Country:
    England
    I'd just like to add here that don't do what I did and spray primer everything without thinking or you may get to play find the tiny grey nasal that you just blew on the floor with the propellant from the aerosol (it never did turn up I had to fabricate one although Grod was really helpful and did offer me another one)
  11. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    Before I finish the review lets have a little bit of information about the Coppergate helmet itself and shields:


    Found in 1982 at York at a site called Coppergate where many Viking finds were uncovered it was an outstanding find ...when found it looked like this:
    helmsitu2.jpg It was x rayed : helmxray1.jpg and work was carried out by conservationists: helmcons1.jpg after much painstaking work it now looks like this : 200px-Wikingerhelm.jpg coppergate_helmet.jpg INCREDIBLE (y)

    The mail neck curtain found inside the helmet was a crumpled mass of rings covered in dirt and corrosion. Link by link, each ring was eased apart from its neighbour and gradually the mail was opened out and could ultimately be re-attached. Each stage was photographed to record the way it had been folded. After many hours of painstaking work a total of 1,938 iron and three copper alloy rings were revealed. mail%20precons.jpg
    Truely a helmet befitting a high staus warrior .

    Shields now :

    Shields seem to have been used universally by all warriors. From the first to the tenth century round shields seem to have been the norm, being either flat or 'watchglass' shaped in cross-section. They are always shown with a boss and often have wooden or metal bands on the back to strengthen them. All the examples found have been of planked construction although there is some evidence to suggest a plyed construction would make the 'watchglass' shape easier to make. Some shields were edged with a rim of sewn thick leather or hide to strengthen them whilst others were possibly faced with leather or rawhide. However none of the shields excavated demonstrate this even though 'leather covered' is a phrase writers used from that period. The Romans had leather shield bags / covers to protect them from the elements, and were fairly elaborate with specially sewn parts in the shape of the boss, and their unit symbols on them. Perhaps a version of these was what the chroniclers meant. Late Roman shield finds, the shield from Nydam and a fragment from the Isle of Man all have paint applied directly to the wooden surface.
    Traditionally shields were made of linden (Lime) wood although other timbers may also have been used such as Alder and Poplar. These timbers are not very dense and are light in the hand. They also have a characteristic in that they are not inclined to split unlike Oak. Also, the fibres of the timber bind around blades preventing the blade from cutting any deeper unless a lot more pressure is applied. Round shields seem to have varied in size from around 45 - 120cm (18" - 48") in diameter but the smaller and more manageable 75 - 90cm (30" - 36") is by far the most common.
    thumbnail.jpg thumbnailCAMD8UTE.jpg

    Nap
  12. MCPWilk A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom
    Another cracking figure from Pete. Who knows what might be appearing in 120mm or 200mm in the not too distant future?

    Mike
  13. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    Now then lets have a look at the base :

    The base is a small one but suitable for its purpose , it has a textured surface , and would be idea to incorporate into bigger basework ....it represents the side of a hill hence the pose of the legs .....a quick wipe round with the sanding pads and away you go ...pin the model though ...don't say I didn't tell you !!!!

    continued in next post:

    Nap
    kev 187.jpg kev 186.jpg
  14. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    I think you mean Pete Morton , it was Adam Mc Master that did this ..unless I misheard Grod!!!!! ..well it could be my age

    Nap
  15. Helm A Fixture

    Country:
    England
    Nope it is one of Petes Nap I hear you on the age though :eek:
  16. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    My final thought :

    This is a nice subject the pose is a little awkward looking initially but works ok when completed , presentation is good , price is reasonable , sculpting and casting good (with the obvious casting plugs etc that I have mentioned to deal with)

    I am not a full figure modeller but might well be tempted to stray !!!!!

    Thanks to gordon for releasing this piece and I look forward to seing what is next from his stable .

    For more details on this and other figures in the range (including the great Napoleonic set "defending the colours") why not vist MMM's website at :

    www.mitchesmilitarymodels.co.uk

    or e mail Mr M at : gordonmi@hotmail.com

    or why not ring him on: 07976048558

    Nap
  17. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England

    Oh blimey ..why did I write Adams name in the box ...help me ...thanks for clearing this up ..off to amend the post ...sorry Pete and Adam.........off to go and stand in the corner :oops::X3:

    Nap
  18. bagelman1952 Well-Known Member

    Country:
    England
    Excellent review, Thank you
  19. diamond cutter Active Member

    Country:
    United-Kingdom
    Nap-I wish that I wasn't me too!
    Helm likes this.
  20. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    Hi guys :

    Well I enjoyed that !!!!!! forgot to mention a couple of good books ( there are others of course) that will make great reading and references , giving you a feel and an insight into the way these warriors dressed and fought :

    Both from Osprey publishing:

    Warrior No 5 Anglo Saxon Thegn ISBN 1 85532 349 4

    Men at Arms 154 Arthur and the Anglo Saxon Wars ISBN 0 85245 548 0

    Happy reading:)

    Nap

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