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WIP "Tusker"

Discussion in 'vBench (Works in Progress)' started by kagemusha, Oct 5, 2018.

  1. kagemusha A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom
    After the unfortunate demise of my last project/SBS....I was very kindly given this as a birthday gift from a very good friend at Euro...and it is of course the RP Models 'War Elephant'.
    I have to say right now...this is a hell of a lot of resin....and requires a lot of planning and trial fitting to make sure it will all go together smoothly once painted.
    Fortunately...the kit is well engineered...so no real hurdles to overcome....other than how to handle the huge piece that is the main focus...the elephant's head....but...more on that later.
    Hugo was kind enough to send me some useful reference pics....so I was able to get a good idea of most of the bits and pieces colour wise.
    Having got all the pieces prepped and primed...I started off by replacing the 'medallion' that goes on the front of the beast's collar....purely a personal choice...and I made a tassel from various bits and pieces.

    IMG_3419.JPG

    This is now primed along with the two other tassels that fit on the side of the head.

    Next I worked on the tusks...once cleaned up...I added some wear and tear to them with a wire brush....simply because...in their natural habitat they get used for all sorts...and are far from smooth...add to this that he is a 'war' elephant...and you can bet they didn't spend time polishing them.
    They were given an undercoat of white...although tusks are far from white in reality...and were then given a scrub coat of transparent brown...and this was thinned back as per my usual style.
    Next up were several different shades of transparent oils...with the final layer of W&N Fast Drying White being stippled on.

    IMG_3428.jpg IMG_3430.jpg IMG_3431.jpg

    Next I decided to work on the shield.
    This is a superb piece of sculpting and casting at it's best....with a very high level of detail that...at first glance...appears very shallow....but...is in fact perfectly captured by careful application of very thin layers of paint.
    I wanted to avoid clogging any of the detail...so instead of priming....I cleaned it with enamel thinners...then gave it a mist coat of matt sealer to give the acrylic metal a 'tooth' to grip to.
    First I applied a thin layer of Scale 75 Dwarven Gold...followed by a scrub coat of Sepia Extra mixed with Green Umber...then very slowly thinned it back to give what you see in the pics...

    IMG_3421.jpg IMG_3422.jpg IMG_3425.jpg

    Next I will start on the head itself with the airbrush for the base colours.

    to be continued.......
    Oda, Henk, Kevtk135 and 7 others like this.
  2. Landrotten Highlander Well-Known Member

    luckily my seat from your last SBS is still free, so I have taken it without any intention of giving it back.
    As this is also bookmarked for the GA, I will take notes and steal what I can - ideas, that is, of course:D
    kagemusha likes this.
  3. grasshopper A Fixture

    Country:
    Canada
    Second seat taken..theft of such knowledge is a sign of respect. Better be, because I steal a lot of ideas from Ron
    kagemusha likes this.
  4. kagemusha A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom

    Good to have you along mate....steal all you want (y)
  5. kagemusha A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom

    I find it flattering that people want to steal my ideas....we all do it to a certain degree :sneaky:....part of how we learn :p
    Oda likes this.
  6. grasshopper A Fixture

    Country:
    Canada
    Respect yes, flattery, nah! And yes, that’s how we learn..when we take an idea, then turn it a bit for our own use.
  7. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    Hi Ron

    Great to see you doing a SBS and what a subject to choose , as you say it's a lot of resin and this is one I will be following very closely indeed

    Shield looks great and I will certainly be getting the wire brush out on the tusks

    This will be on my bench once we have moved in early November

    I was thinking of using the elephant medallion as part of the base and replacing it like you

    Look forward to seeing more

    Sat next to a grasshopper and LH

    Nap
    kagemusha likes this.
  8. kagemusha A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom


    Cheers for comment mate.
    Medallion will probably appear on the plinth....shame to waste it.
    Take it easy with the wire brush....easy to overdo it!
    Still gathering info....which is not an easy task....but with your review pics....and the ones Hugo sent me...I am beginning to form a clearer picture of what it will look like.

    Ron
    Nap likes this.
  9. DEL A Fixture

    Country:
    Scotland

    Would't hang about too long before adding. A genuine limited edition of 300, Hugo destroyed the moulds after the run was cast. At least 3 other Scots got theirs at Euro.
    D
    Nap likes this.
  10. Landrotten Highlander Well-Known Member

    Order has been placed before summer, will be shipped in the coming week .... yeeeehaaaaaa!!!!
    Nap and DEL like this.
  11. Tubby-Nuts2 A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom
    This is something else. What a cracking subject to do a SBS on. That shield is fantastic.

    Now do us all a favour, and keep your fat feet, under the table.

    Mark.
    Nap and kagemusha like this.
  12. kagemusha A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom

    Thanks for that.....I think :LOL:
    Nap likes this.
  13. Helm A Fixture

    Country:
    England
    Can't wait to see this mate
    Steve
    kagemusha likes this.
  14. kagemusha A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom

    Hi mate....good to have you with me (y)
  15. Wayneb A Fixture

    Country:
    United-States
    If there wasn't much thought or planning involved; there wouldn't be any challenge. I think this is going to be a really super looking piece. (y)

    Wayne
    kagemusha likes this.
  16. kagemusha A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom

    Purely because of the physical size of the piece...the planning is crucial.
    In the next update you will see exactly what I mean by 'physical'....if it could be mounted on it's plinth it would be easier....but you need access to every angle to paint it properly....so not an option yet.
  17. Wayneb A Fixture

    Country:
    United-States
    O.K.....You don't have to yell at me...……………………………………………………..:cry:
    Nap likes this.
  18. kagemusha A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom

    Errrrrr........not sure what your on about? :confused:
  19. kagemusha A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom
    So...onto the huge lump of resin that is the elephant's head.
    This really is a challenge to be able to hold it whilst painting....until I can get it permanently mounted on it's base...I am using a small vice from the milling machine...not ideal...but works for now.
    From my research...I have discovered that some of the elephants were of the African 'Forest' variety...and these were a much 'browner' colour...which gives a little more interest to the painter than the standard flat grey tones....this is the picture I am using as a reference.

    Primary Colours.jpg

    I have put down the initial scrub coat and thinned it back....and the pictures should give you an idea of the level of detail for the painter to work with....

    IMG_3434.jpg IMG_3438.jpg IMG_3446.JPG

    Once this is dry I will begin to layer on some more colours using transparent oils for the lighter shades....and opaque's for the darkest one.

    to be continued.....
    Oda, Nap, Chezzie and 4 others like this.
  20. Hugo Pereira A Fixture

    Country:
    Portugal
    This is just AAAAMMMMMMAAAAAAZZZZIIIINNNGGGGGGGG....

    Thank you so much for this work... A little piece of Art... Of course the sculpt helps... LOL... LOL...

    Thank you.
    Regards
    Hugo
    Oda, Nap and kagemusha like this.

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