Saturday 31 August 2013

Come on in...

...the water's fine.



As the warm summer's sun of August comes to an end there is just about enough time to squeeze in one final update regarding my 'coffee table' board project.  Those that have followed the progress from the start will remember the catastrophe that befell my beloved creation as I poured a molten hot water effect over the board only to watch it dissolve before my very eyes.*

The level of support for my predicament was tremendous and I would just like to say thank you again to all of you that suggested possible solutions; they were all very gratefully received.




In the end I went for a combination of ideas starting by sealing the affected area with a quick drying satin varnish.  To this I added 'Vallejo Water Effects', a cold, supposedly clear drying paste.  On reflection I probably applied this too thickly as it seemed to take an inordinate amount of time to cure.  As a result many of the newly applied weeds are still masked by it!

Impatience got the better of me and onto this still drying substance was layered 'Vallejo Still Water'.  I was relatively happy using this product as it had proved just the job for the muddle puddles along the path.  Each new layer was given a dash of coloured ink or wash to build up the colour; each time exposing more holes in my blu-tack shuttering that needed to be plugged! 


Finally, however, it reached a level that I was happy with and although not the prettiest solution, when seen in its timber frame and from the right angle the effect is pleasing enough.  The addition of life belt on the jetty making sure that the piece meets strict health and safety requirements.

(This can be removed for games set in era where the rules on personal safety are less stringent.)


The jetty legs and the sunken rowing boat were both from 'Archeotech.co.uk', which is run by Andy Slater who in turn runs TerraGenesis, a truly fabulous site chocked full of ideas for terrain.

(This is where I found the idea for the Birch Trees seen in 'The Wood from the Trees' and a link to the site can be found in my 'Links of Interest' list to the right of this pane.)

Both these pieces were just what I was looking for to lift this section of the board and I was really pleased with how they finally came together.  I should also mention the quality customer service provided by Andy too, his site is definitely worth a visit, it might just have what you ere looking for too!


So all that remains is to Varnish the sides of the timber frame to give it a bit more of a finish, but to all extents and purposes the board is finished and of course has already been Christened when the Romans and Celts ran amok over it while play testing 'The Dark Templar's' new rules, 'The Dark Crucible'.


So finally then a playing surface to bring to life some of my miniatures, particularly those girls from St. Trinians as they see off the hordes of shambling undead, but wait, what is that?  Just beyond the jetty, could it be?  Is that...


... oh yes, everything is definitely more fun with dinosaurs!

68 comments:

  1. Fantastic! Wonderful work, and love the shot with "Nessie" coming up to join the party! Best, Dean

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    1. Thank you Dean, 'Nessie' has been itching to get into a shot for a while now.

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  2. Excellent work. I am very pleased for you that it came out so well. Congratulations. (Better finish mine now!)

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    1. Thank you Clint and yes, I'm dying o see how the waterfall has turned out!

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  3. I'm very glad it turned out alright after your earlier problems. It looks magnificent!

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  4. Nice recovery Michael.

    A pity you didn't take up the suggestions of various things lurking in the depths though :( ;)

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    1. Thank you Tamsin and it was a close run thing, green fluorescent paint had been purchased!

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  5. Your fix worked out fantastic!

    Christopher

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    1. Thank you Christopher, I was relieved to get it done.

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  6. I knew you would do something beautiful! Great work, and very nice end, I love the final pic!

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    1. Thank you so much Phil, that is very kind of you to say so.

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  7. Great modeling and photos! The three amigos would love to discover this magical place!

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    1. Thank you Jay and I would love to see the three Amigos on one of my boards, who knows maybe one day.

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  8. Excellent work Michael, I really think you did more than pull it out of the bag
    Ian

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    1. That is really kind of you to say so Ian, thank you.

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  9. What a lovely table! I hope your Romans and Celts knew what to do with the life-saver :-)

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    1. That would certainly be a wonderful moment, a fanatic Celt throwing a life belt to a Roman Legionnaire! ;)

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  10. Great bit of recovery work there Michael!

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  11. Agree with the others: excellent result!
    I would like to try to do water ........ but I'm not sure that it will work, so I don't !

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    1. Thank you SAm, I think it is just a question of finding which product matches your needs - or not in my case!

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  12. Cracking result. I thought for a second or two that it might have been, "Nessie" in the last shot!

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  13. Well done at least you rescued it and Nessie is a fun addition :D

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    1. Thank you Simon, there has been a lot of stamping of feet to get it to this point though!

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  14. It turned out very well I think. You've given it such charm and character with the little boat and the life jacket as well.

    Everything is better with dinos! I cherish mine and need to find a way to fit them into my blog.

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    1. Thank you so much Anne, I was really pleased with the little extras that I had been planning all along, as for the Dinos, go on let them have a rampage - you know you want to!

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  15. Incredible the trees and water are very realistic looking. The dinosaur shocked me.

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    1. Thank you so much, I was really pleased with the final result and I'm looking forward to getting some games played on it.

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  16. Very good fix on the water.

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    1. Thank you Sean, but it was a long time coming.

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  17. It seems the secret is to stumble first and then turn in a brilliant fix. I can do the first part but the 2nd part...

    Love the last shot! I can hear Synchronicity II!

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    1. Thank you so much Monty, that is really kind of you and a great shout with Synchronicity II!

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  18. Ah, we'll rescued! The life ring and little row boat are great touches. Is the dinosaur a hint at a future project, on did he just sneak into a photo, as they are wont to do?

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    1. Thank you, as for the photo bombing plesiosaur there was a possible water based episode for the 'secret project', but that seems to have been put on hold for the time being!

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    2. On the subject of photo bombing, on my wedding day I was photo bombed by a mystery hand holding a child's toy monkey. It is my favourite photo of the day so far.

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  19. Outstanding, looking forward to seeing it in action.

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  20. That looks spectacular Michael, a job very well done.

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    1. Thank you Mr. Smillie, really pleased to have got it finished though!

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  21. Stunning work!

    Love the pictyre with Dino in the background:)

    Best regards Michael

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  22. Excellent work, Michael my friend!

    The mark of a good craftsman is not how one creates something from an ideal set of materials and tools, but how one deals with the unforeseen and inconvenient hiccups.

    I salute you - a lovely piece of work. And you are correct, of course - dinosaurs make everything better!

    Col. O'Truth

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    1. Thank you so much Colonel, a painful lesson had to be learnt, but we are all the wiser for it!

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  23. My faith in your abilities remains undiminished; I said you would pull this one out of the fire, and lo, it came to pass!

    You've done a great job saving this project. Well fielded Sir!

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    1. Thank you so much my good man, it helped having so much support and a hat full of solutions from the likes of your good self.

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  24. Superb. So glad you were able to save the board.

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  25. A fine save indeed.

    That can't be Nessie. The picture's in focus.

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    1. Damn, you're right of course! I should have thought of that.

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  26. Looks great, I'm glad you were able to save such a lovely board.

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    1. Thank you Brian, it was touch and go for a while though!

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  27. Never doubted you'd save this from the molten foam depths of despair mate. Well done indeed!

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  28. Absolutely fabulous, Michael. That's top notch craftsmanship !
    I'm looking forward to see a game going on there.

    Cheers
    Stefan

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  29. The end product turned out wonderful Michael even if you had a few challenges on way.
    Cheers,
    Pat.

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  30. Hola
    Como mola,siempre me gusta los terrenos con agua,nieve etc
    un saludo

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  31. That is stunning work there Michael and I have to say I think it has come out better than the original would of. Top work there

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  32. All's well in the world again. A great rescue job, it's as if it never happened.

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  33. Great recovery resulting in a beautiful piece of terrain. Bravo!

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  34. Great recovery resulting in a beautiful piece of terrain. Bravo!

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  35. I quess you fixed that water problem...nice work Michael

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  36. Michael

    I am very much impressed! Your work here is inspirational.

    Jan

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  37. Brilliant, simply brilliant Michael! :)

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