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[reserve] [images]Guide to Converting Metal Space Marines

Submitted By: Date: November 5, 2005, 12:14:18 PM Views: 6228
Summary: I've currently been spending a lot of time stripping the paint off my old Space Wolves army and re-doing them. The vast majority of models back then were metal and while they have better detailing than plastic models (and still do!) a lot of the poses were boring i.e. they were not dynamic enough.

I have therefore spent some time altering the leg positions to make them run, jump, look menacing etc and I thought I'd share the details with you all. Even though all these models are metal, there is no reason why you cannot use these techniques on plastics too.


Most metal miniatures were supplied with plastic arms, which are much easier to convert so I will be concentrating on legs here…






1. The first thing to do is look at the model you want to alter and try to visualise how you can make it look more dynamic. In the example below, because one leg is bent and the other straight, I can quite easily cut one of the legs and reposition it to make it look like he is running.



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2. Once you have a good idea you will need to look at how and where you want to cut without ruining the detail of the model too much. With this model I want to cut into his left hip region. There are some details (a grenade and pouch) in the way so I will need to be careful with my cutting.



I decided to cut approaching from the groin region using a small hack-saw. It is definately preferable to cut between the armour plates on space marines to save you having to model new armour with putty later. I stopped cutting between the armour plates so that the cut did not reach the details. Again to make sure the details were not ruined too much, I took a hobby knife (which cut much finer than hack saws!) and gently cut under the grenade and pouch in line with the armour. This left a small slither of metal which rather than cutting is actually better removed by gently bending to and fro until the leg separates from the body (see pic below).



Separating the leg from the body of a model with details like this and trying not to damage the details can be quite tricky and take some practice. I find the method above to be the best I have found and works equally well with more detailed models and bulkier models like Terminators.



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3. Once the leg and body are apart, you may find that it is easier to access certain areas with your modeling tools. The model I have used here is actually a Blood Angels model. Seeing as I want him to look like a Space Wolf I will need to take away the Blood Angels details from his groin region which I can now access better with a hobby knife. By gently cutting away I came to the stage below. I will be adding Space Wolf details later.




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4. To make the pose in your head work, it is best to spend some time testing how the leg will re-fit onto the torso by literally holding the two pieces together. From here you can see if you need to shave off any metal on either piece to make them fit together properly. Keep retesting each time you remove some metal.



5. Once you are happy they will fit together well, you will need to pin the pieces together to make sure they don't fall apart when you play your next game. You can probably get away with not pinning if you are working on a plastic model but it would be best. Use a pin that is the same diameter as the drill bit to give a strong fit. I use a variety of sizes of paper clips for pins (cheap but effective).



To pin it is best if you drill a hole into the leg first. Once you have done this put the pieces together and look to see where you should be drilling the hole on the torso. Some people find it helps to use a dab of paint on one piece so that when they are put together the paint will mark where you will cut on the other piece too.



It is important that when you start drilling on the torso check back with the other pieces every few millimetres to make sure you are drilling in the right place AND at the right angle. Remember the deeper the holes, the longer the pin and so the stronger the join will be.



Before gluing the pin in place, test the pin to see if it fits properly. If you havn't got it right at this stage you will probably need to use the drill bit and/or hobby knife to alter the hole/s to make it work. Bear in mind that enlarging the hole makes the join weaker.



Once you are happy fill each hole with super glue before placing the pin and joining the two pieces together. If you have excess glue at this stage you can wipe it off onto some paper or tissue. Just try not to stick the tissue to the model though!



The following pictures show the pinning process I went through on my model..



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6. Once the leg is glued in place you will need to use some putty to fill in the gaps between the armour or to make up for damaged details. If you want you can always hide damaged bits under some pouches, grenades etc that you can find on some plastic space marine sprues.



For Space Wolves models like mine an easy way to hide damaged details is to give the model some wolf skins using putty (not that mine had anything to hide underneath!)



7. Once done with the putty and adding details, it is time to base the model. Again test and retest the positioning of the model on the base before gluing it on. For metal models it is a good idea to pin the model to the base, especially if you have got rid of the metal strip under the model's feet at the beginning like I did.



Positioning of the model on the base properly is important for getting the right pose. As an example, many people forget that when you run you actually have to lean forward slightly. If you are unsure just look at how other people are moving about around you...



This is how my model finished off – before adding arms and completed.



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8. Altering the positioning of the knee.


I felt the model above did not need much altering to make him look a bit more dynamic. Other models will need to be cut in several places to give the pose you want. I have dealt with cutting at the hip above so now I will move onto the knee.


To bend at the knee of a space marine simply cut above the knee pad and between the armour plates behind the knee to leave a small slither of metal between the cuts like in the left picture below.



At this point you can simply bend the knee joint up or down to straighten or bend the leg more. If you need to straighten or bend the joint further, simply make a wider cut above the knee pad or behind the knee respectively. On the leg below I only wanted a small bend of the knee and so cut quite shallowly behind the knee to end up with the picture on the right.



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Depending on how well the cutting went, you may want to completely separate the upper and lower leg so that you can pin the pieces together instead. Doing my method however generally ensures the leg will end up in the right dimensions.



Obviously you will need to fill in the gaps left above or below the knee with putty.



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10. Bending at the ankle.



This is tricky and so is for the experienced only. I have not worked out a better way of doing this other than finding another model with the correct ankle position I want of course!



In order to move the foot relative to the lower leg you will obviously need to cut the metal between the armour plates of the two. This is impossible from the front of the foot without ruining the detail of the model so all the cutting needs to be done from below or behind.



First start by using a drill to remove metal from beneath the arch of the lower leg armour (see picture below). As you drill you should be pointing it towards the gap between the armour of the front of the lower leg and the armour on the top of the foot. The trick is to drill several holes from behind like this so that a thin slither of metal is left between the two armour plates of the lower leg and foot. By gently bending this slither of metal to and fro you will eventually be able to separate the foot and lower leg without damaging the detailing of the front of the foot or of the lower leg.



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To make it easier to separate it is useful to use a craft knife to cut gently at the sides of the ankle, from below and upwards between the armour plates (see picture below).




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From this position you should be able to bend the small slither of metal to and fro until the foot and lower leg separate:



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If done correctly the only bit of damage done is to the upper heel of the foot. After repositioning the foot, this hole can obviously and easily be filled with putty. Again pinning the foot will give a stronger join.



This model ended up as my Jump Pack Sgt in the middle of the picture below:




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And here they are finished:



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More examples of my converted troops are in the space marine gallery. I have pictures of most of them before being painted if anyone wants to see how they were converted.



Happy converting!


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