Guide to Assembling Models
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It's always been hard to teach people how to assemble their little plastic men via 4chan thread. Good guides eventually auto-sage into Archive obscurity. Copy-pastas better, but not enough. Freshly-minted fa/tg/uys have always had to go elsewhere to find teachers for how to make models. BUT NOW, those days are over! Introducing the...
Now you too can learn how assemble any models you buy, for any game system! Impress your gaming friends, the people at your local FLGS, and maybe even your parents by assembling crisp and clean models! Make mind-boggling customs that will make people online swear blind that you bought a professional commission! Or maybe you just want to learn how to make your models look like they aren't melting and crystallizing at the same time. Luckily, our guide can teach you all of this, and more!
This Guide is the result of aggregating resources from all over the Net: personal blogs, manufacturers' websites, and many many WIP threads. The Guide is roughly ordered based on the order of operations that one goes through when assembling kit models. The Customization section is even more roughly ordered than the rest of the guide.
Preparing Parts
Due to the importance of removing Sprue, Flash, and Mould Lines, very few (if any) models should be painted while still on their sprues.
Removing Sprue
Most plastic kit models made today (and many from yesteryear) come on flat Sprues. Sprue is a term for any large chunks of material which are attached to the model when you first get it, but which are not intended to be a part of the model.
Plastic sprues are roughly flat plastic scaffolds, which contain many model parts suspended within them. Sprues primarily exist due to how moulding plastic models works, but also help in shipping model kits safely to shops. They are an old invention, and have been serving modeling communities of all stripes well for over half a century. Metal and resin models also have sprues, though they look different. Metal sprues are generally small, flat tabs of metal which jut off of the model, but are not always connected to each other. Metal sprue will generally all share one or two geometric planes. Resin sprue generally looks like a large wedge-shaped block. It may have some words raised or embossed onto it, either the manufacturing name of the model or the name of the manufacturer.
Removing parts from the sprue they came in is a simple task, most of the time. For plastic sprue, use a pair of generic hobby clippers to snip the connections between the bulk of the sprue and the model. While this may seem simple, there are two complications: damaging your model's surface, and excessively detailed parts. The first issue is created by taking your clippers, bringing the flat edge right up to the model, and clipping off the sprue right where it connects to the model. This may create pits in the surface of your model, which you will not be able to file away (without further harming surrounding details on the model's surface). To avoid damaging the model's surface, clip the sprue off such that a small bit of sprue remains on the model (only 1mm or less). You should use a hobby file to carefully sand down the small bump of sprue until it is contiguous with the rest of the model's surface details. This can also be done by whittling away the sprue with a hobby knife.
Removing Flash
While this artifact of the casting process is less common nowadays, it's still valuable to know how to clean it off your models. Flash is the result of the material used to make a model oozing into the space between the two halves of its mould during casting. It looks like a paper-thin membrane that juts out of the model. Flash often merges with mould lines, since flash is modeling material breaching its way through the seam in the two mould halves. Speaking of mould lines...
Removing Mould Lines
Mould Lines are small, thin, raised lines which run across the surface of a model. They can be clearly identified by looking for a continuous running line which does not match up with other model details. They occur when the two halves of the mould aren't perfectly aligned before casting. Mold lines are to be removed via scraping with a hobby knife, sandpaper, or files. All three are viable options, and your choice of tool come down to preference. What your desired result should be is anything you do not want on the final model not being present, as the painting process will make mould lines very visible, ruining otherwise perfect work.
Cleaning
Assembly
Instructions
Follow them. It's possible (even likely) that your model has parts that will not fit if they aren't applied before other parts.
Pinning
If your model is metal and has large parts, you'll want a stronger bond than mere glue. Pinning a join requires drilling two holes, one in each of the opposing faces of the join, and inserting a metal rod (such as a length of paperclip) into both holes to bridge the two parts. This rod, called a pin reinforces the join. Inserting a small amount of superglue into both holes is encouraged, to secure the pin. It will support the weight of any parts that might scoff at mere glue and think about breaking apart the rest of the finished model.
Pins can also be useful for making tiny or fragile plastic parts much more durable, a common issue with dynamically-posed GW showpiece models. If one carefully drills a hole through a frail plastic element (such as the ankle of an outstretched leg), inserts a pin slightly too short to fill the hole, and smooths over the hole opening with green stuff, a part which is liable to break in the future may become the strongest point on your model.
Gluing
Unless your model is snap-fit or push-fit (and even then, it's probably a good idea), you're probably going to need some sort of adhesive to stick the parts together. Regular old white school glue won't cut it here, so you'll need something beefier. There are glues engineered for adhering plastic, metal, and resin, so you'll need one that works for your kit. Remember to consider both of the materials you are gluing together, when choosing a glue to use.
You may need multiple variants of the same type of glue, over the course of your modeling career. Some glues are more viscous than others. Runny glues are useful for flowing into cracks and joining smooth surfaces. Thicker "gel" glues are useful for joining parts when you need the glue to disobey gravity for a few moments before you press the parts together.
Different Materials
Some models have parts made of different materials, typically these are plastic, metal, and resin. Most glues only work well with one material, so you'll need a multi-purpose glue for joining different materials. Generic "super glue" is good for fixing metal or resin parts to most any other parts. Plastic glue is only good for affixing (some kinds of) plastic parts to other plastic parts.
Pinning is also recommended, especially for larger parts; as a bond between two different materials with multi-purpose glue tends to be more fragile than same material joined with a material-specific glue.
Customization
Many experienced model-makers (not just tabletop wargamers) find building a generic model - exactly as it comes in the kit - rather unsatisfying. If you feel the urge to spice up your models, make them stand out from the competition on the tabletop, or participate in the time-honored tradition of crafting Your Dudes: read on!
Kit-Bashing
Kit-bashing is simple, you use parts from a separate model kit to change the look of a model kit. can be done through one model manufacturer for example using parts from different GW kits to change one (using stormcast eternal bodies to give a knightly look to space marines) or separate manufactures like Wargames Atlantic or warlord games (e.g making your imperial guard force not entirely Cadian re-colours)
Modifying Existing Parts
3rd Party Parts
Nobody in this hobby can be expected to be an expert sculptor, or a genius with the hobby knife. If you want a model, or better yet every model, in your army to have stand-out wargear, than you should consider buying bits from 3rd party model makers! Many businesses specialize in making body parts, weapons, and armor which are compatible with existing lines of wargaming models. These products provide a different look for your models, one which may fit better with your army concept or a e s t h e t i c. And these parts can often be bought in bulk, which means that you don't have to spend hours and hours sculpting the same part onto 20 different models!
This aspect of customization only requires slightly more skill than assembling models. Why might swapping in 3rd party parts be a bit tougher than basic assembly? Well... let's just say that not every alternate parts shop will have that patent-pending "Games Workshop Quality". In fact, none of them will. Most of these companies can only produce parts with "less-than-modern" QA standards, or worse. They often cast parts in resin or pewter, which will carry fine details better but make such parts tougher to work with than, say, the modern lines of all-plastic Games Workshop models. Expect to deal with flash, erratic sprue, and severe mould lines. If you have experience making Forge World models, play games from Privateer Press, or are a greybeard who made models for 4th Edition 40k or earlier, you can readily deal with the hiccups of 3rd party models just fine.
Green Stuff
An ascended slang term for a specific kind of two-part modeling putty, Green Stuff is a staple medium for the model-making hobby and industry. Many a modeling noob have shied away from using the Stuff, possibly because of its free-form nature as a building material. After all, how can you possibly make an entire model component that looks as good as Games Workshop's Finecast and sculpts!?
Worry no more! Using Green Stuff may appear intimidating if you only look at glamor shots of exceptional WIPs on forums or social media. In reality, working with Green Stuff is accessible and enjoyable. It's sort of like playing with Play-Doh, which is an activity that most 4chan users can do unsupervised.
The Green Stuff page itself contains a more comprehensive use guide, but below is a brief explanation of the process by which one creates an object out of Green Stuff:
- Acquire some Green Stuff. This guide assumes you have your hands on a bifurcated strip of Green Stuff, sandwiched between two plastic films, such as what Games Workshop sells in their stores. Also get some sculpting tools, since fingers are big meaty things that leave fingerprints.
- Cut off an equal portion of both halves of the strip. Cut perpendicularly to the meeting line formed by the two putties (this may leave you with slightly less blue portion, that's OK). Leave behind the area where the two putties touch (it will be somewhat harder/firmer than either half). That portion has already activated, and will not activate or sculpt well.
- Wet your hands slightly, and knead the two halves together. When properly mixed together, they become a single consistent mass of dark green sticky clay. You do not want streaks of blue or lighter green, or any noticeable "chunks". The water on your hands will keep the activated clay from sticking to your hands, and will slow the hardening process.
- Portion the Green Stuff into the rough size and shape you want. Over time you will get a feel for how much Green Stuff you need to make certain parts of a certain size or volume. Aire on the side of "More is Better", since you can often remove excess before applying the clay to the model. That said, you can add more Green Stuff on later, to create additional details.
- Shape the Green Stuff off of the model. Make the rough size and shape of your Green Stuff object at this stage. This process takes many forms, here are some examples:
- Rolling a chunk of Green Stuff between your palms to create a round cylindrical shape (Becomes: curved pipe, tentacles, sinew, wire, twine).
- Flattening a chunk of Green Stuff into a sheet against a flat work surface (hopefully on some wax paper) using a small cylinder; then cut shapes out of the sheet using a hobby knife (Becomes: cape, loincloth, robes, tarp, banner).
- Repeatedly squashing a chunk of Green Stuff against a flat work surface at 90-degree angles, until the chunk becomes a rectangular prism (Becomes: brick, concrete chunk, machine case, cubes).
- Creating a section of Green Stuff, waiting a few minutes for the stuff to partially dry, and then using a hobby knife to slice a flat puck out of the section (Becomes: medallion, coin, applique armor, nameplate).
- Rolling a flat sheet of green stuff, then cutting it into long strips (Becomes: straps, belts, scarves, decorative wall moulding).
- Shape the Green Stuff on the model. With your undetailed green stuff now on the model, you can finally work out those details. Press the Green Stuff firmly to the model, taking care not to make too much of an impression on the surface while still getting as much Stuff-to-Model contact as you can manage. Then pose fluttering capes, wrap belts around bulging bodies, tuck fabric into crevices, and coil tentacles to your heart's content. You will find the model offers some very useful constraints, such as a direct surface to sculpt against and exact dimensions for you to work with. Many people sculpt freeform organic shapes (horns, claws, muscles) mostly on the model: taking just a ball of Green Stuff, squashing that in the roughly correct area, and sculpting directly onto the model.
- Wait for the Green Stuff to dry.
- Return to observe your handiwork. If you want to add more detail, knead up another (usually smaller) chunk of Green Stuff and begin crafting the finer details on top of your previous, now-hardened work.
Plasticard
Other Resources
- Reaper Miniatures has a helpful Craft blog, with notable sections for conversion and sculpting.
| Model Making | |
|---|---|
| Modeling: | Guide to Assembling Models - Green Stuff - Model Alternatives - Casting - Photo-Etched Brass |
| Painting: | Guide to Painting Models - Paint - THIN YOUR PAINTS - Duncan Rhodes - 'Eavy Metal |
| Scenery and Technical: | Forthcoming... |
| Related: | WIP |