Customer: Cameron Morse

Project Outline: A Forgeworld Sicaran Battle Tank (oh yeah!) and a couple of Thunderfire Cannons, done up in Raven Guard colors. There will also be a few Ork models in here as well.

I'm starting off with the Ork models for this one.

The first up is a Warboss, sent to me partially painted and in multiple pieces. I pinned him back together and added a few goodies. I'll be touching up the paint and matching the scheme to some of the Orks in a previous commission.

Up next is a Dreadnought with multiple close combat arms.

This guy was in a similar state to the Warboss, in multiple pieces and in need of some TLC. I pinned him back together in a 'stompy' stance and will be painting him to match previous commissions as well.

Here's the Dread from the back.

I'm also adding some of the new plastic Killa Kanz to the mix. They've got the 'stompy' stance happening as well.

I had to add some tread plates to the bottom of the feet for looks. The stock feet are fine when they're glued down to a base, but they show large holes when raised.

Here they all are. Ready for paint.

Here's the Warboss all painted up and ready to roll

Here he is from the back. I added some danger stripes to the Big Choppa. The customer will be fielding it as 'Eadwhoppa's Kill Choppa, so I figured some embellishment would help it look the part.

Here's the Deff Dread...

... The Killa Kanz...

... and a group shot of all the Ork models together.

Up next will be some Raven Guard.

All Forgeworld models start out the same way...

... a big pile of resin bits that need to be washed to get rid of the mold release. The Sicaran Battle Tank is no exception.

Resin is a tricky material. The molds used to cast it are flexible, so they can be used to cast very detailed pieces. However the combination of flexible molds and the elasticity of the resin itself while curing means that pieces are prone to warpage, as you can see by this bent barrel on the autocannon.

This will require some bending under hot water to make straight again.

Here's the model all built up an ready to go. I've managed to straighten the autocannon barrels.

I've also magnetized the Lascannon sponsons. The design of the model allows the sponsons to both elevate and traverse, by glueing some pieces but not others.

Yeah right...

If you ever tried to glue resin, you know that only crazy glue will work, and that has a tendency to seep everywhere. The sponsons on this model are so fiddly that they are impossible to glue in place and still have it rotate. The guns will not traverse, but they will still elevate nicely with magnets.

Remember that warpage issue I was talking about?

Well, it doesn't just affect thin pieces like gun barrels. Large pieces are also prone to it. Unfortunately, the bigg pieces are much harder to straighten.

As you can see under the hull mounted Heavy Bolter, there is a gap between a couple of warped pieces of the main hull assembly.

How to fix it?

Greenstuff.

Good for sculpting all kinds of goddies, and a lifesaver for filling gaps.

I'll be talking to the customer and seeing if he would like any more 'bling' added to the model (purity seals and the like).

To be painted alongside the Sicaran are a couple of Finecast Thunderfire Cannons with their accompanying Techamarine Gunners.

First up are the Thunderfire Cannons with their accompanying Techmarine Gunners.

From the front...

... and the back.

They've been painted in a similar scheme to other Raven Guard Techmarines from previous commissions.

And here's the Sicarian Battle Tank. This thing may have had a couple of issues during assembly, but it was an absolute joy to paint.

The lines are clean for edge highlighting, and the various recessed panels are great for picking out chapter colors and iconography.

There are also plenty of flat panels and areas to put purity seals and banners to really make the thing stand out.

I have GOT to get me one of these :)

And here they all are, ready for shipping.