Demiel1910
Tramway Demiel 1910 en France
Only
moving closer to Riberac (about 10 miles nearer)
moving closer to Riberac (about 10 miles nearer)
Resurrecting a disused garden railway - the SCGR reborn
- Thread starter Clive Tucker
- Start date
Demiel1910
Tramway Demiel 1910 en France
I know clive wont mind me saying but he is a brilliant sculptor! i have had a few figures made by him. Will post pics but he has the best ones!!
Clive Tucker
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Lol, yes it's a story that goes back to about 10 years or more, when I first started getting into hacking figures into different poses. I was in the habit of posting innumerable progress threads on the old Continental Garden Trains forum. A couple of people on there asked if I would make figures for them, and I accepted - the price was agreed, and it was also agreed that provided they were happy with what they would be getting, the payment would go to a good cause (at the time, my son was attending a school for children with special educational needs). They were more than happy with the donations, the customer had the benefit of an absolutely unique figure (I couldn't have repeated the same thing twice even if I tried!), and I had the fun of making them - everybody won
Mikey's figures were always a challenge as I know of no other person who models a French tramway in the year 1910! But I had enormous fun making them.
Clive Tucker
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You are most kind, Mikey, thank you
A couple of pics of the various projects...
Firstly, a French well-to-do businessman and his wife, who both liked to fish:
Both of these originated from Preiser figures:
Here's a figure combo you don't see every day - a gypsy bear handler and her dancing bear:
The handler started as another Preiser passenger, whereas the bear was made from scratch.
The last pair of figures I did were another unusual combo, a mounted gendarme and a young gypsy girl selling apples:
The figure on horseback came from one of the Preiser 'German track-worker' set, while the girl started out as a 1:24 scale Preiser female passenger. The horse is the only unchanged figure (Sleiche), although the saddle, underblanket and tack were scratch built.
I am sure Mikey has some better photos of the figures in their natural environment
Wow great conversions, I do the odd one myself changing that hated LGB leaning driver to look somewhat diferent. Pic of the start of this work with him in his altered and original state. The two on the left are the figures that went into my Malet hence the reason for the pic. Matey on the right is due for surgery very soon. Perhaps inspired by your efforts.
But yours are a step further pretty much in the D and D / fantasy figure quality league.
But yours are a step further pretty much in the D and D / fantasy figure quality league.
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Demiel1910
Tramway Demiel 1910 en France
Heres a pic of Clives mounted gendarme visiting a gypsy camp. I had to download my pic from C
lives old site as i lost all my pics when a previous PC was trashed::
lives old site as i lost all my pics when a previous PC was trashed::
Clive Tucker
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Thanks Jon, I am not a big fan of that LGB figure either.
It's probably a bit of a cheat to call this technique 'sculpting' - rather, it's more akin to Frankenstein's infamous creation, with limbs, heads, and bits of body hacked off and reassembled using soft metal wire acting as the joints, to allow setting in the desired pose. The gaps are then filled with Milliput and sanded smooth, before priming and painting. No great mystery to it, it's just a case of being able to wield a craft knife and a pin-vise to drill out the holes for the wire joints to go in.
One of my much earlier examples, which I did at the request of my good friend Mr Carl Hibbs, I managed to commit the photo sequence to a You-Tube clip:
You can see pretty much all the techniques used in that one clip - all the others are, for the most part, variations on that same theme.
If you want a real laugh, here's my first ever attempt at customising a figure, using an LGB Otto driver:
He was very nearly my last, as being hollow was a lot more difficult to rearrange than any Preiser figure - which to my mind are the raw material of choice when it comes to figure hacking!
Clive Tucker
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Excellent! - And explains the cryptic comments..
However, it does nothing for my modelling inferiority complex..
No great mystery to it Phil - give it a go, it's a whole lot of fun!
Clive Tucker
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Love this photo!
With your permission Mikey, I would like to share these also, which you very kindly forwarded on to me:
My favourite is the bear and the handler in Demiel market. Just a ton of character!
Demiel1910
Tramway Demiel 1910 en France
Of cours
eLove this photo!
With your permission Mikey, I would like to share these also, which you very kindly forwarded on to me:
My favourite is the bear and the handler in Demiel market. Just a ton of character!
Demiel1910
Tramway Demiel 1910 en France
of course Clive. I had better mention that although i love g scale trains i am more into ensuring that they fit into the scenery etc to better capture the flavour of the chosen epoch! Blimey did i just say that? (Played a concert last night and didnt get in til 4, still suffering!!)
This does pretty much prove the Milliput I have here is only good for the bin.. - I can (just) make an indent with a fingernail..
So far, I can find Humbrol Model Filler, and Revell Plasto locally..
Think I might have to send off for something more suitable..
So far, I can find Humbrol Model Filler, and Revell Plasto locally..
Think I might have to send off for something more suitable..
Clive Tucker
Registered
From my own bitter experience, I have found that Milliput does have a finite shelf life, and it's definitely less than 5 years! I very recently found a stash of it in the cupboard under the kitchen sink from 5 years ago, and it too is rock solid 
Other than that, it's pretty decent stuff provided you mix it thoroughly. I favour the terra cotta colour for my activities as the colour contrasts well with the white plastic of the Preiser figures, but that's just my own preference. You could use the plastic putty type stuff, but it's a bit softer even after it's set - Milliput dries rock solid after 24 hours, you can drill holes into it if necessary.
The other material I often use is something called Green Stuff (officially called Kneadatite Duro) - mostly found at branches of Games Workshop these days. More expensive gram-for-gram, but it's very useful for making thin flappy layers for coats, jackets etc. Just keep your fingers wet when moulding and shaping it, as it sticks like crazy!
I like to imagine poses that are more natural, rather than the bog standard 'thousand yard stare'. I tend to avoid 'action' poses as they tend to look odd when the context is missing - e.g. a passenger running for a train looks a bit weird when there's no train to run after! Like anything else, it's a case of trying it, learning from where you went wrong, and seeing that the next one is better than the last. I don't believe I possess any particular unique skill or ability, it's probably more to do with having the experience of making near to 50 customised figures under my belt. It's also fair to say that Preiser do a lot of the work for me up front. The moulding quality, indeed the level of detail, is to my mind difficult to beat - especially in the faces. If I can do it, anyone can, so I'd encourage you to give it a go - it's the perfect 'cold rainy winter's evening' modelling activity!
Other than that, it's pretty decent stuff provided you mix it thoroughly. I favour the terra cotta colour for my activities as the colour contrasts well with the white plastic of the Preiser figures, but that's just my own preference. You could use the plastic putty type stuff, but it's a bit softer even after it's set - Milliput dries rock solid after 24 hours, you can drill holes into it if necessary.The other material I often use is something called Green Stuff (officially called Kneadatite Duro) - mostly found at branches of Games Workshop these days. More expensive gram-for-gram, but it's very useful for making thin flappy layers for coats, jackets etc. Just keep your fingers wet when moulding and shaping it, as it sticks like crazy!
I like to imagine poses that are more natural, rather than the bog standard 'thousand yard stare'. I tend to avoid 'action' poses as they tend to look odd when the context is missing - e.g. a passenger running for a train looks a bit weird when there's no train to run after! Like anything else, it's a case of trying it, learning from where you went wrong, and seeing that the next one is better than the last. I don't believe I possess any particular unique skill or ability, it's probably more to do with having the experience of making near to 50 customised figures under my belt. It's also fair to say that Preiser do a lot of the work for me up front. The moulding quality, indeed the level of detail, is to my mind difficult to beat - especially in the faces. If I can do it, anyone can, so I'd encourage you to give it a go - it's the perfect 'cold rainy winter's evening' modelling activity!
Clive Tucker
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That'll be the place, the description fits anywayB*gg*r!
We passed a Games Workshop in Peterboro yesterday!
Full of pimply-faced, over-weight young-ish males.. Hunched over tables with little bits on!
I always get weird looks from staff and customers when I explain that I don't want it for Warhammer or whatever it is they are playing at!
Clive Tucker
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Back on the chain gang today, after a while away doing other things. This time the long lower straight at Dewey's End was cleared of the old trackbed gravel.
Before:
After clearance:
I then made a start on laying the new, bomb-proof track bed courtesy of some edging stones liberated from my neighbour's skip a few weeks ago:
This short length of bed took me ages to excavate. The ground, as you might expect, was rock hard with so little rain over the past month or so.
Still, it's progress!
Before:
After clearance:
I then made a start on laying the new, bomb-proof track bed courtesy of some edging stones liberated from my neighbour's skip a few weeks ago:
This short length of bed took me ages to excavate. The ground, as you might expect, was rock hard with so little rain over the past month or so.
Still, it's progress!
Clive Tucker
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More excavation today, only for 4 hours as it's so hot outside now:
All done with reclaimed Celcons and edging slabs - the only downside being that I now have 4 bags of soil to lose! Probably about a couple of metres more to do and I should have this section done!
All done with reclaimed Celcons and edging slabs - the only downside being that I now have 4 bags of soil to lose! Probably about a couple of metres more to do and I should have this section done!
Sarah Winfield
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