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'nother Imperial Knight


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Greetings and salutations fine folk of Britmodellerland. A very Happy New year to one and all.

 

With the arrival of 2018 I'm trying to re-kindle a bit of modelling mojo. I've braved the chill cold of the model room/mancave and managed to have a bit of a play.

 

The victim of this renewed vigour is the plastic Imperial Knight kit from Games Workshop. I've already cut my teeth on one of these in the dim and distant past and thoroughly enjoyed it. The previous iteration was built largely from the box and a lovely model it was too (the kit I mean, not my particular rendition..).

 

This time I'm aiming to have a bit of fun by tweaking one or two things along the way. Some of you may have built this one and if so, you'll know that the legs are fixed in a purposeful stance. I think these could be altered but for this model I opted to simply give a bit more life to the toes by cutting and re-positioning the joints a smidge then using "green stuff" to fill in the resultant gaps.

 

The sculptors at Games Workshop have stuck hoses around the various pistons but I've plumped for adding even more. I wanted to give a similar look to the hydraulics on plant and machinery where flexible hoses are supplemented by hard lines and connectors. 

I shall also be adding chains from the various tow hooks and eyes that festoon the model since they are begging to be decorated in that manner. 

 

Finally before I bombard you with images let me explain that I've chosen to give these components quite a beaten up appearance. This may be contentious but it fits in with how I imagine these ancient machines fought. Stomping through the enemy, kicking and smashing man and machine alike. If that is the case then the paintwork would certainly have lost some of it's lustre would it not?

 

Well, that's the way I see it and the beauty of this type of modelling is that no-one can tell you it's not correct! Lol

Anyhoo, on to some pics.  

 

tn_IMG_4722.jpg

 

tn_IMG_4723.jpg

 

tn_IMG_4724.jpg

 

tn_IMG_4718.jpg

 

The plastic was primed first with GW whizz can primer before I used some rust coloured enamel paints splodged on in a random pattern. These were given a nice coat of hairspray once they'd cured with some salt thrown in for good measure. 

The next layer was an acrylic turquoise blue from Citadel which in my mind was the primer of the beast. Another coat of hairspray and salt before the final topcoat of white.

In my mind these components make up the chassis of the walker and as such are constructed from cheaper, more readily available materials which is why they are rusty. The armour plates that adorn the Knight will be given a different finish to represent a tougher and probably much more rare, exotic metal or alloy.

 

Here's a closer look at how the weathering is turning out.

 

tn_IMG_4726.jpg

 

tn_IMG_4727.jpg

 

tn_IMG_4728.jpg

 

The way I achieved this effect was by removing the salt and gently attacking the painted surface with a few rudimentary tools. An old toothbrush, toothpick and the back of a scalpel blade were all pressed into service. Stippling, scraping and rubbing gives a varied result in different areas. 

Since the feet were what ought to take the hardest bashing I concentrated my efforts there leaving very little paint on the metalwork. I also used a blade to scuff up and scar the surfaces as if the Knight had been wading through jagged remnants of the broken and smashed enemy. 

Further up the legs I was more judicious with the chipping and scraping. Large areas at the front of the limbs will be covered by armour plates so these would be less damaged in theory. The uppermost portion of the leg where it attaches at the hip might get quite a bit of chipping since it is exposed but at that height it should be less severe than on the foot. Hopefully the weathering suggests that?

 

tn_IMG_4731.jpg

 

tn_IMG_4717.jpg

 

The final treatment was some staining which was applied once the paintwork had been sealed using a coat of future. I used artist's oil paints predominantly as these are easier to work for streaking 

 

As it turns out, much of the flexible hosing at the front of the leg is hidden by the largest armour plate but hey ho, it was fun anyway.

I've commenced some work on the armour plates so more of that next time round. Hope you enjoy the pics. If you feel like commenting then please go ahead. Good or bad it would be great to hear any feedback and if anyone has any questions relating to what I'm doing here I'll certainly do my best to answer them.

 

cheers.

 

Edited by geedubelyer
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8 hours ago, Gimme Shelter said:

 are those some silver birch bobkins seed pods I see there ??

Hi Gimme Shelter, indeed they are. Good eyes. In fact all of the flora is seed pods of some description or other. Lots of plant seeds look weird when viewed close to. Quite neat for alien vegetation.

The rock is slate, painted brown and sand coloured. Towards the end of the build I am contemplating trying a snow effect. Not deep, heavy snow though, more a wind blown scattering. I've experimented with a couple of smaller bits of slate and got fair results so I'm hopeful. If anyone has any tips or tricks I'd be interested. 

Baking powder or icing sugar are my weapons of choice, held in place with good old hairspray again. Time will tell how that one works out.

 

Hi Blastvader, thanks for the kind words. I've eyed up a couple of the FW resin versions and watched some YouTube vids on un-boxings and builds. They look very cool when built. Which ones did you plump for?

I quite like the look of the Questoris Knight Magaera but as an alternative, the Leviathan Dreadnoughts look hefty without breaking the bank. Of course, money no object and I'd go for the Warlord Titan. There was one at Telford and it was ernormous!

 

Hi Will, good to see you, thanks for the positive waves. Hope to keep you entertained.

 

Cheers all :)

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21 minutes ago, geedubelyer said:

 

Hi Blastvader, thanks for the kind words. I've eyed up a couple of the FW resin versions and watched some YouTube vids on un-boxings and builds. They look very cool when built. Which ones did you plump for?

I quite like the look of the Questoris Knight Magaera but as an alternative, the Leviathan Dreadnoughts look hefty without breaking the bank. Of course, money no object and I'd go for the Warlord Titan. There was one at Telford and it was ernormous!

 

 

I have the Castigaror and the Acheron. Yes they are a fair bit taller than the 'standard' knights.

 

I've built neither and both are currently insulating the loft. I fancied one of the Adeptus Mechanicus knights, but pretty much all the AM stuff has been removed from the FW website despite the fact that that model only came out in 2017.

 

I've never been a fan of the Warlord Titan. The beetleback version from AT that they based it on has always looked naff to my eyes, and theirs too it would seem as they replaced it with the below far superior version in 1993:

 

Epic-Warlord-Titan.jpg

 

Also, I know 40k has never been a 'to-scale' game, but a 'proper' Warlord would be about 6ft tall.

 

EDIT: Found it, its the Knight Porphyrion. But for some reason can only be found by using the search bar as it doesn't come up in the normal menus.

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3 hours ago, Blastvader said:

 

I have the Castigaror and the Acheron. Yes they are a fair bit taller than the 'standard' knights. They make a great looking models, good choices :thumbsup2:

{~snip~}

 

EDIT: Found it, its the Knight Porphyrion. But for some reason can only be found by using the search bar as it doesn't come up in the normal menus.

Ah yes, the Porphyrion. That looks to be a beautiful model but a tad rich for my blood at over £300. It definitely has that chunky, purposeful look that I like and the surface detail is lovely. My mouth fairly waters at the prospect of picking out that gorgeous detail in paint. Sort of "poor man's" Warlord Titan.

 

I have toyed with the idea of purchasing just the head of the Titan and having it as part of a diorama base but it's just an idea percolating in the back of my brain for now. The thing is, one could spend a small fortune on FW stuff as alot of it is beautifully crafted.

 

I've been working on the armour plates for the legs this evening. I've (rather crudely) added some relief detail onto the plates to give a bit of depth. On my last Knight I used decals which worked beautifully but for this one I wanted to suggest a more intricate, artisan made item. My imagination umm,.....imagined that the panels would have been sculpted back in the dim and distant past.

One thing that this escapade taught me was a much greater appreciation of just how skilled anyone who sculpts for a living is. I naively thought "how hard can it be"? Only to discover, harder than I thought! 

To disguise my ineptitude I've taken a Stanley knife to the surface detail in an attempt to create a battle scarred appearance. This has been primed using GW gold spray and they've had a coat of MrMetalColor Bronze. In actuality the bronze is predominantly green but has the faintest hint of dark gold on raised edges when buffed. 

On top of that I've turned to the hairspray/salt trick once more before I spray colour tomorrow. Going back to my over active imagination for a minute, I picture something that was intitially painted back when it was new but has now become heavily worn through years and years of battle.

 

I'll get some pics up as soon as I have anything significant to show. 

 

Cheers. :)

 

Edit* Oh yes, nearly forgot......

After seeing the photos on screen I have applied a very subtle dry brush of gunmetal along some edges of the feet and toes to add a bit of life and contrast. In the pictures the rust all looked quite "samey" to me so this technique is intended to lift a few small areas. I've kept this to the leading edges and front of the beast where the kicking of stuff would be concentrated ;)

 

Edited by geedubelyer
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Hi all,

If I may, I'd like to share a couple of images of how the armour plates on the legs have turned out.

Nothing is glued into position as yet so I can still swap them from side to side if I want the coloured sections to match.

 

tn_IMG_4738.jpg

 

As a comparison, here's what the OOTB kit leg looks like.

 

tn_Imp_Knight_011.jpg

 

The new one has alot more depth and appears sort of "heavier" for want of a better expression.

tn_IMG_4741.jpg

 

tn_IMG_4743.jpg

 

I found It quite a challenge to mirror the two lower leg/shin plates as the relief on those was sculpted from scratch. The knee plates were consciously different and the thigh plates used a couple of the plastic parts cut in half which worked out much easier.

To finish these off I think a few streaks of grime might work, particularly low down.

Next up will be the crotch plate/codpiece. I'm in two minds as to whether to sculpt some relief again or simply apply a decal to this piece. On the previous Knight I achieved a sort of enamel like look, more by accident than design I admit, which I quite like. Not sure whether to replicate that or work something up similar to the leg plates. Let me know what you guys think.

The last piece of the puzzle for the lower limbs is the banner that attaches under the hips. 

The kit part is beautifully moulded in plastic and can look great when painted up. Of course, my plan is to do away with it this time around and fashion one from metal foil and real chain. :rolleyes:

 

I'll post pics when I've done it.

 

See you all soon.

 

Cheers.

 

Edited by geedubelyer
Addition of images
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*Sniff* Back in the ol’ days (late eighties, Rogue Trader FTW!) we had to knock this sort of thing up out of yoghurt pots.

 

You’re doing an outstanding job mate.:thumbsup2:

GW certainly has some lovely toys these days, and I’m tempted (like a Slaaneshi cultist in Tescos’ meat aisle) to pick one up myself. It’s been a long time since I’ve picked up anything GW, and I’ve had a long love/hate relationship with them, but seeing builds and paint jobs like this make me want to start up again.

 

Mart

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Thanks for the words of encouragement Mart, much appreciated.

I'm guessing GW and Forgeworld have come a long way since those days huh? 

 

Global brands now.

 

I'm probably more likely to go with Forgeworld stuff for the most part as I don't game but prefer instead to paint stand alone models. They might represent armies or factions but won't necessarily adhere to the strict Codexes. 

 

I hope you do indeed pick this aspect of the hobby back up and enjoy it again. If you do, perhaps you'll also start a thread or two?

 

Cheers,

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2 hours ago, geedubelyer said:

I'm guessing GW and Forgeworld have come a long way since those days huh? 

Painted circa 1988 in Humbrol enamel. Speed of painting, and getting them into battle took priority over quality back then.

RKdOT3c.jpgYScwycO.jpg

:D

 

Mart

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Hello Hunter Rose, nice to see you again. Very grateful for your support and kind words, thanks.

 

Nice work Mart. I smile when I think of you rushing to get your new army to the gaming table but having to wait for the enamels to dry. Thank goodness for modern acrylics even if they are less durable.😊

 

Cheers

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Hello folks,

 

Here's the latest from the Imperial Knight stables.

 

In order to push the lower limbs closer to the finish line I needed to add the codpiece armour and the banner that dangles between the Knight's legs.

As usual I felt the need to dabble.

 

For the codpiece I considered adding some relief again but decided not to on this occasion. Instead I scratched a few marks into the lower armour plate in an attempt to create a kind of engraved effect. This was left as a bare bronze colour.

The uppermost plate was painted orange then some fading was applied. 

In my mind my inspiration is the faded dayglo orange seen on many aircraft. This colour seems to be particularly susceptible to the sun's rays and fades alot.

 

tn_IMG_4746.jpg

 

A small amount of damage by way of surface scratching was added but this was kept light since this armour plate is rather shielded.

The chain used to suspend the banner is a replacement. The plastic chain links are quite thick and solid looking as can be seen in the image below of an ootb build.

 

tn_Imp_Knight_061.jpg

 

This time I used real jewellery chain which I've painted in a slightly rusted tint. I also replaced the thick plastic banner with one made from metal foil. This was painted with a design before being weathered.

 

tn_IMG_4750.jpg

 

Seeing these pics has reminded me that I still need to paint the mounting brackets so that goes on the "to do" list.

 

The next step in the build process begins work on the torso. This is quite an involved component with alot of detail that I'd like to "finesse". 

More on that in due course......

 

Cheers.

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  • 1 year later...
  • 4 months later...
On 14/05/2019 at 21:43, DalekCheese said:

Finished him?

Hi DalekCheese, apologies for the late reply. I've only just seen your question.

Unfortunately this build is stalled at the moment so no further progress at this point. I seem to be suffering from catastrophic mojo deficit.

 

Thanks for the interest though. I'm sure I'll get back to it one day......

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