One step closer

The torso is done! You can't see it, but I'm doing a happy dance. I'm entering the home stretch on this conversion.

I'm going back today to fill in some gaps around the beard and to begin bulking up the right wrist. Then it will be time to get those arms on and blended in.

Look at that body... BooBaDooBoop

I work out!

Couple of pics of the beer belly. The main difficulty is to provides sufficient droop to fat rather than a pregnant-like bulge.

Love Me Some Handles

Well, it has to be said. Rök is fat. There, I said it!

So the main issue of the love handles here is to transition in the new stomach and chest he's going to have. Rök enjoys that ale a little too much, so he has more of a belly than your average dire troll. The art as compared to the new plastic kit even shows he's heavier. Also, having the belly button half way across the body was kind of annoying. 

I will admit, the thought of giving him "Plumber's Syndrome" has occurred more than once. While I does illicit a chuckle, I think I'm better off letting it go. 

Once I get the beer belly on, I've got to double check what I plan to do to the chest as well as work some more on the left side love handles. Then a touch up on the beard to smooth it in. Then its time for arms, which means I need to bulk up that right wrist at some point soon.

Sigh.... I promise, there will be bare metal showing when I get done. Not everything will be under a layer of greenstuff. And remember this is just a lead up to the insanely ambitious Mulg conversion...

Closing the Gap

Been a bit, but I have been working.

Rök proceeds slowly. I am always very cautious about sculpting large piece of organics (Arms, legs, stomachs, etc.) Rök has the big problem that I have to blend his chest into... well, nothing. that gap stands between where the old stomach is and what will have to go over it.

The art we have shows all that ale has gone to his belly, giving him love handles and an obese abdomen (his belly button is a butt crack).

So first things first, I have to fill the gap to better sized up the next step. 

The gaps are filled, the back is set up a bit more though. Let it cure and next step soon. But while I had the Green Stuff out. Impaler!

Sins of Conversion

One of the first things I learned when I was taught basic conversion stuff by my friend Ben, was that you will "F*** Up". As you get better, the less you will mess up; but more often than not you will be also save or fix the problem.

Such it is with Rök.

I had made some pre-drilled holes while waiting for the wreck marker, in order to better speed up the next couple of steps. I measured, I dry fit, but I f***ed up. The holes were in the wrong places and at the wrong angles. So when I started actually getting everything on.... it looked way off and the stomach gap was massive.

I sat for about an hour looking at it, before tearing out the pins and starting over. After another dry fit at the correct angle, I concluded that Rök's "spine" pin was the correct call and replaced it. I also realized that the model needed more internal support.

So I drilled another pin near the "spine" and positioned both to support the upper torso. One holding the front, the other the rear. Glued in, it worked perfectly. I'll be green stuffing the torso contact points today to lock the pins in, then I'll give it the better part of the day before I begin the base work for filling the gap. Also I have to re-charge my camera battery.

Still Rök has his wounds that will soon be filled with epoxy. Greenstuff, Primer, and Paint: all hide the sins of conversion. It's always about the final product.

All your base belong to me now!

Got the wreck marker on Thursday. A big thank you to my local Press Ganger for the assist, David couldn't have done this without you. Especially true, because he also traded me the Mauler I am using in the conversion!

As soon as I popped open the package, I knew I had a problem. The wreck marker wasn't solid as I had hoped, but instead was concave and hollow on the bottom to save on the metal. So there was going to be a sure lack of weight... what to do?

Break out the fishing weights. Once weighed out, the weights were put aside as I needed to trim the wreck. It easily fits on the 50mm base, but left no room for the one foot of the model. So once trimmed, cut, and hacked it was ready. Marked for pinning, I took the fishing weights, some Zap-A-Gap (my super glue of choice), and some greenstuff; filling the concave wreck. I let it cure then glued the wreck to the base, before going around and green stuffing the gaps. 

Once firmly cured and on the base, the 14 oz marker was ready for a positioning. I found where the leg pins should go and began the disguise work on the actual base itself. Using some Citadel Texture Paint (Stirland Mud), I glopped the stuff on thick to emphasize the wreck being pounded deep into the ground. 

After letting the paint dry, I broke out the glue and got the legs set. 

Once I get the pins in place and get the torso on and locked in, then it will be the sculpting...