[Don_Keyballs]

Hello All,

I'm new to this whole conversion / modelling side of the hobby, and I've had this hankering to try sculpting a Tyranid Swarmlord but one that looks like a giant Genestealer.

I know this is a hefty project to throw myself into, but hey, go big or go home.

My question to you professionals is what kind of clay / tools / framing should I use to do this project of mine? I know green stuff alone won't be good enough to do a big model out of, but I can use for detailing. I was also thinking about constructing a body frame for the model with thin metal rods or something, just to give it a base to build off of.

Again, I'm completely new to this, so any advice would be appriciated .

 

[sybarite]

most of the conversion l have done has been small the only major on was my DP but l use alot of different parts the body was a great unclean one the wings were from a balrog and the claws are from an old HT the only green stuff l used was for the face and to joint the odd bits together.

with that being said l have heard of people making a whole green stuff model but l cant help you with that

 

[Whizzwang]

go big or go home.

Damn fine attitude there spanky. I approve.

Pretty much any work can be done in grren stuff. I've been pratting about with it for about a year now with some degree od success, Have yet to take the plunge and fully scuplt something from scratch though.

Grab yourself a set of wax carvers from ebay. You can get a 12 piece double ended set giving you 24 tools for less than the price of 1 GW tool

I got these ones: click me

A fantastic guide for the novice scuplter: click me too

 

[GreenFaceMonkey]

Try these

Milliput, comes in all sorts of forms. I use the standard grey one to do the bulk of a model and then use greenstuff to do details. Both of these are found best on ebay, milliput for £2 and green stuff (search kneadatite) 36" for £8.
If they turn out to be wrong for you maybe try super sculpy? never tried myself but its highly rated Dont know where to find it though. immagine ebay will have it again.

 

[sethgabriel1990]

i use milliput usually for bulk, and green stuff for detail. 1 rule, ALWAYS wet your tools and fingers before using puttys so they dont stick 2 you.

 

[Bubblematrix]

A few others to try are procreate (a grey material) I found this a bit sticky, but it sets much harder than green stuff and can be sanded/filed after its set unlike green stuff.

Brown stuff (same manufacturer as green stuff) is also useful as it sets much harder, even than procreate. This is useful for any thin and delicate parts as it's less likely to break. It is however much more expensive.

Another option is using plastelene (a high wax content sculpting clay like plastecine) this does not set so you can re-shape anything you arent happy with. For sharp details use a freezer spray to temporarily harden it up. Once you are done cool the master model and make castings using casting resin, if using this technique then you will need to build up details in stages as your model will have little strength.

Wire armatures (model frames) are common, just use suitable thickness wire and build up a model on the surface.

My suggestion would be to use a cheap medium like milliput to get the basic shape building it up over the armature, then build up details using the other putties, procreate is a good overall medium, then green stuff for details and brown stuff for any sharp edges or thin sections.
Then cast a copy and do the final details using plastelene.

This would be the technique I would use if I ever get round to doing my own sculpts and is built up by reading a good few tips and talking to the sculptors at FW open day.

The other option of course is to use bits of tyranid kits then just knit it together and detail it using putties - this would save a lot of time but if you are wanting to sculpt then I don't imagine you would get as much of a kick out of this.

Edit: sylmasta.com is a good stockist of putties, but tbh once you know what you are after a google or ebay search will find you a supplied

 

[Don_Keyballs]

Thanks for the tips everyone. Really useful . I'll try to start a log as I actually start making progress with it. Here's hoping at least .

 

[sethgabriel1990]

sounds good! Keep us posted

 

[Chaosftw]

My question to you professionals is what kind of clay / tools / framing should I use to do this project of mine? I know green stuff alone won't be good enough to do a big model out of, but I can use for detailing. I was also thinking about constructing a body frame for the model with thin metal rods or something, just to give it a base to build off of.

I am by no means a professional but I have worked on conversions and with green stuff for quite some time and through research. I think I may be able to give you a little insight.

First You need to have an idea of what you would like the model to look like in the end which would help justify the tools needed.

Things to use:

1. Bits. They are great because well... they add flavour to models and with all the amazing bits out there you can truly make a unique model.

2. Thin Copper Wire. To my understanding you are making this from scratch so building a skeleton may not be a bad choice.

3. Mighty Putty / Green Stuff. I mention both of these because Mighty Putty is stronger but harder to work with as far as sculpting and cheaper. So for bulking up the model perhaps that may be a good choice. Then for the more detailed parts thats where the GS would come in.

4. Sculpting tools. These are important, You can pick up some great ones from any hobby supply store.

Hope that may help a tad!

Best of luck!

Chaosftw