Hello to all on PF ,

Its good to be able to share my thoughts with you all on one of the latest releases from a company who has set out to present Irish based subjects for their releases , some fact and some fiction . This thread will cover a character that is based on a film character ...the film is of course The Gangs of New York starring another Irish actor Liam Neeson who played a priest called Vallon.

So this is what I am sharing :

Title: The Priest

Reference: SM-C02

Scale: 75 mm

Material: Resin

No of pieces::8

Sculptor: Diego Fortes

Box Art: Fernando Ruiz and Oliver Kovacs



The model is packed in the distinctive green colour boxes from Shamrock with colour representations of the finished piece on the front and the back , the contents being held in a resealable plastic bag.

Prep needed before I dry tested the pieces together included removing casting plugs from all pieces in addition to some light flashing, there does as with the previous release of Brian Boru seem a lot but in fact only took me a total of 37 minutes to cut and clean off ready for priming which is not bad at all , the prep is helped by the careful positioning of the excess...nice one Shamrock.

The eight pieces consist of the main torso with legs , 2 halves of the coat, the 2 arms , the head , the cross and a textured base.

Before I go any farther I would like to comment on the very clever and well thought out way the figure is put together when fitting the coat which you can see from the pictures .......allowing the modeller to paint the insides of the coat before fitting if it is your desire.

Looking at the main piece the torso this is a fine piece of work very accurate in keeping with the film character, wearing long gaitered boots the straps of which are finely detailed , the material of the trousers is well represented , folds are natural and well formed . The torso itself is tapered towards the collar area from the waist area with the back being angled to receive the 2 halves of the coat.



The 2 halves of the coat now , these are cracking pieces the coat is blowing open at the lower edges , as with the trousers the folds are really well done , thickness is not over scaled and the fit into the torso is great , helped as I said by the careful thinking of the sculptor and casting being thought about.

The arms fit well into position (dry test this first to get the positioning right as the actual hands are cast onto the cross) , I suggest you use the box art when positioning these , the sleeves have upturned cuffs with good undercuts and folds working up both arms .

The head now ...great piece of sculpting ...without a doubt the actor has been well represented ..nice one Diego , features are tight and well cast with a lovely little moustache as per the film character...a really nice effect has also been achieved on the hair with some well done sideboards .....all of these fine details will help you enjoy the painting even more.

On now to the cross ....this is sculpted with the hands wrapped round , these are little gems of sculpting details , it really does look like the cross is being held tightly . The cross itself is a cracking bit of work and the details are accurate with the handle being also well sculpted ..when painted up this really is a focal point of the model against the black and sombre clothing of a priest.

Finally lets have a look at the base, this has been textured and is more than suitable for the figure if you choose to use it ....or how about putting our priest with a background of a stained glass window (perhaps smashed) ..lots of possibilities with this figure.

Final thoughts:

Shamrock have achieved their remit in producing distinctive Irish based pieces ,using a great sculptor and in addition to well thought out casting you are given the opportunity to test your painting skills as well with the black clothing and the starkness of his cross

Shamrock have also put a painting guide on the website ..nice touch .

Why not visit the website at www.shamrockminiatures.com lots of nice models from an up and coming company run by a PF member Daniel Batta.

Thanks for looking in ..enjoy the modelling

Nap

Hi Tom ,

Thanks Diego is a great sculptor for sure and I really like the way the figure has been engineered ...look forward to seeing yours ...off to paint today ...at last !!!!

Thanks for looking in

Nap

Cheers Martin,

Glad you enjoyed it ........more to come !!!!

Nap