Many thanks for your comments, Tonton.
No, I don't think "fraternity" has any sexist connotations at all. It has a male aspect for colleges in the USA, but not in wider use of the word.
Thanks again for your comments - I am still finding my feet in writing WIPs/SBS so any feedback to help me improve them - as well as my modelling skills - is very much appreciated,
Cheers,
Pat

Great start ,looks good

Mobo

Yawn.

Jeff

Ouch

A stunning SBS on a piece in a scale much too large for me.

Cheers

Huw

Pat your SBS is an excellent detailed account of your re-entry to the hobby, going by what I can see it wont be too long until your bashing out some nice stuff, happy retirement.
TERRY

Hi gents,
The base casting had been separated from the rest of the kit and I had lost track of it. I have now found it and it clearly says Le Cimier and has "ND" letters cast into it - so you guys are spot on!

Thanks,
Pat

Huw, Terry - very many thanks for your comments on the SBS - they are much appreciated,
Cheers,
Pat

Very impressive and a great inspiration to a fellow returner. Did you use the groundwork accessories you linked to?
If so can you review it please.

Bill

Hi Bill,
I ordered the groundwork items yesterday evening and was told by the supplier that they are in today's post - excellent service. I'll be sure to make a review.
Cheers,
Pat

The Darkstar paints arrived today, so have been having a play with them. First impressions are really good. I'll post a progress update in a day or two.

Time for another progress update......

The good news was that my order of Darkstar metallic paints arrived on the 8th. The on-line shop (not Darkstar themselves) seem a tardy bunch and I have still yet to receive the remainder of my order for Scale75 paints.So after a quick play, I painted the Dolman and Pelisse buttons with a couple of coats of Renaissance Gold (which to me gives a good representation of polished pewter) with a catch light of Bright Steel here and there. I really like these paints.
I then went on to paint the brass fittings to the shoulder belts. I started with burnt umber and then added yellow ochre to this for the lighter areas. Darkstar Brass was used for the highlights with Bright Steel again for catch lights in one or two prominent places.
The toggle for the pelisse was shaded with Citadel Flayed One Flesh and highlighted with Model Color Bone White.

The musketoon had wood grain drawn on using a sharpened brown pencil. Then some broader stripes of red-brown (cadmium red + burnt umber + varnish (as a glaze medium - I really must buy some of the proper stuff!) + acrylic paint flow improver) were applied as a glaze. The overly strong contrast between these and the base colour reduced a lot once the wood was given a transparent glaze of burnt sienna + burnt umber + Liquin Fine Detail. Any glaze that flowed onto metal areas of the musketoon were removed with white spirit to make sure a good surface was kept for when these later came to be painted with acrylics.



Steel parts were blocked in with Vallejo Oily Steel. Darkstar Tarnished Steel was applied over this, leaving the Oily Steel still visible in shaded areas. Highlights were with Darkstar Bright Steel.
Brass parts were painted in a range of tones mixed from burnt umber and yellow ochre, with Darkstar Brass added. Neat Brass was used for highlights, with Bright Steel used for catch lights.
Some touch-ups are needed - particularly where the barrel and stock meet - before the musketoon will be ready to attach to the figure.




The sabre was given similar treatment once the scabbard had been airbrushed with Darkstar Tarnished Steel thinned with their thinner. This was my first try at airbrushing the paint, and the results were not that brilliant. However, I need to some further trials before drawing any conclusions about airbrushing the paint. The handle was blocked in with Humbrol Grey 32 before being given a glaze of Paynes Grey oil paint in Liquin Fine Detail medium.



The metal rings on the scabbard were cut and repositioned to line up with the leather straps.
The shako and sabretache have been adorned with regimental numbers taken from a photoetch fret that has been waiting for this moment for three or four decades!



The boots were given a number of coats of paint until I got the undercoat tone I wanted. Humbrol grey 32 did the trick. The boots were shaded with a mix of black, burnt umber and ultramarine blue. A lighter shade was used to highlight. I was pleased with how these were progressing, all that would be needed would be a light glaze to help unify everything. Unfortunately, my glaze mix was a too heavy and dark, so I was not so pleased with the final outcome (RH picture below).


The yellow braid was given a wash of raw sienna + Sansodor. Detail shading was then done with oils once the wash had dried: Rowney yellow ochre, Rowney gold ochre, Rowney yellow ochre + ultramarine blue, Rowney gold ochre + ultramarine blue, Rembrandt gold ochre in order of lightest to deepest shade.

The sword belts were shaded with an acrylic mix of white + burnt umber + ultramarine blue. Detailed shading will be done (probably with oils) once the belts are in position. The belt buckles have been blocked in using Model Color 70865 Oily Steel and will be detailed with Darkstar steel colours after final assembly.


Base.
The kit comes with a (small, given the size of the figure) resin base. I intend to put the finished model into a bell jar display eventually, so I made provision for this by drilling and tapping a pair of M4 threads through the base: the sockets for the feet being selected so the holes will not be visible after assembly.
The terrain depicted on the base is of stones and soil, so may not be the most appropriate for a hussar wearing full dress. The base made by Gongoozler for his excellent build of this very same kit https://www.planetfigure.com/threads/hussar-7th-regiment-circa-1809.82473/ is certainly better suited. Nevertheless, I will stick to what I have.


The soil areas have been sprayed Revell 17 Sand, with a darker shade of Humbrol 110 Wood in the centres of each. The stones were sprayed Humbrol 121 Pale Stone with splodges of WEM RN14 G45 grey, but this was a bit hit or miss as I had problems with the paint blocking my airbrush. I actually have a few pet rocks that I keep for colour and texture reference (yes, I know it is sad!). Brush painting commenced with shades mixed from yellow ochre, burnt umber, Lifecolor Tan 2, ultramarine blue and white: a darker shade used to border each stone and a lighter tone to highlight. I then added further colour mixes, using my pet rocks for guidance, using a sponge. My first time of trying this and I was was very happy with the outcome. I found a light touch to be best, otherwise the colours just get squidged into blobs. A dark wash followed (but really was not necessary) and small stones (using the small zeolite desiccant and activated carbon balls found in the top of a medicine container) along with pigment were added, held in place using Decal Set as a carrier & adhesive.


The addition of grass and flowers will be done later. The 12mm grass and flowers were delivered remarkably fast: ordered Thursday evening and arriving Saturday morning. The product looks really neat and is well packaged. I should get around to sticking them on in a day or two, and will post a photo or two of the result.

I also received a white metal hamster in the consignment as a gift. The 7th Regiment of Hussars were deployed in the Bayern area during 1809 (the date for this figure). I suspect hamsters are not native there, so will need to adapt him if he is to form part of my groundwork. I toyed with the idea of converting him to a squirrel for the display, but he would be undersized. Maybe a mouse. I don’t think a rat would be such a good idea.

Assembly of the figure is now in progress. I’ll report on that later.
As always - any comments or questions then please let me know,

Cheers,
Pat

Coming along really well, keep at it..

Thank you, Warren.
I really am enjoying myself doing this - so that is the main thing, I guess,
Cheers,
Pat

Hi all.

Build of this figurine is nearing completion, and I am really enjoying doing it.

A suitably sized glass display dome was found on Amazon and arrived quickly. The base of the display was drilled to take the M4 screws I had previously put in the figure’s base and everything assembled together, sandwiching a circle of paper in place to protect the display base from groundwork material during final construction.

The sabre was epoxied into the hussar’s left hand. With the handle pushed in as far as it would go, it did leave a small gap at the bottom between the scabbard and base, but this was dealt with later using Magic Sculp to fill the gap and provide support.

The Sabretache had some wear and tear added using Lifecolor Tan-2 and Vallejo Bone White, along with black for shading. It was then given a coat of Liquin Fine Detail applied very sparingly, followed by black oil paint worked in around the brasswork and places of shade.



The straps for the scabbard and sabretache were added one by one, checking positioning and leaving each to set before continuing to the next. A set square was used to check the straps hung vertically and the sabretache to make sure the connections lined up. I was able to put to good use a hand made magnetic support clamp that was generously gifted to me by a very kind modeller at my local model club when I worked in France some years ago. It uses crocodile clips for gripping the parts (although I use a lightly sprung hairclip which does not have such a severe bite) or for gripping beads attached to wire arms. There are a couple of crocodile clips attached to magnetic bases (with “keepers” over the magnets when not in use).



The centre belt for the sabretache was cast too short, so was fitted after the sabretache had been fixed to the two end belts. A strip of brass shim was cut, folded and glued to the middle loop of the sabretache. The cast strap was then filed back to the requisite length before gluing in place.



The musketoon took some head scratching to decide how best to install it. I found that it would be possible to fit the strap around the butt to the swivel slide if it was substantially reshaped. This was done, although most of the paint came off in the process! I found a suitable place to pin the musketoon to the figures leg and assembled everything dry before committing to superglue. Very fiddly, but the outcome was successful.



The head was also epoxied into place.

The Shako straps - which had already been painted as mentioned earlier - benefited enormously from a dark pin wash of Rembrandt Gold Ochre + ultramarine blue in Sansodor. Some "creative?" effects were added to the band circling around the top of the shako.



The plume had been undercoated earlier with Humbrol 32 grey. Shade was added using acrylic black, noting that light would fall preferentially to one side and above. This was followed by a wash of black oil paint in Sansodor. The pompom was painted in the regimental blue colour using acrylics, followed by a darker oil wash to pick out the detail.

The model just needs touching in here and there, and the groundwork added. However, this has been delayed slightly because the white metal sword knot fell off. This had been difficult to attach and this must have led to a weak connection. The joint surfaces were cleaned up and the item re-attached - using a cunning arrangement of rubber strips to clamp the part in position whilst the glue sets.

Thanks for stopping by. I expect the next update will be for the completed figure - hopefully within the next couple of days.
That’s it for now - I would be pleased to hear any comments or ideas from you,
Cheers,

Pat

Excellent SBS in every respect, thanks for sharing your techniques.

Nap, Richard, Landrotten Highlander,
Many thanks for your kind words and encouragement - it is greatly appreciated,

All the best,
Pat

Some final touches were made to the figure and the groundwork completed. I used some scenic modelling flock in addition to the grass and plants from https://badsquiddogames.com/shop

Although the grass and plants have self adhesive pads, I found whether they actually stuck to the base or not a bit hit or miss, so Gator Grip was used just to be sure. I also used this for the flock: applying it with a microbrush and then piling on the flock with a small spatula and tamping it into place. Residues were blown away after the glue had set. Some tidying up then followed using scissors and tweezers.



The figure is now completed and I am very happy with the experience and it looks rather impressive within its glass bell jar display on the display cabinet! I'll post some photos tomorrow.

The next subject will be another rescued from the shelf of doom - and I am looking forward to starting that one next week. I suspect Nap will approve of the choice ! - so “stay tuned” to vbench !!

Absolutely first class.

Mike