Warbringer Nemesis #12 - Armor or Structure?

So yesterday I sort of intimated that that blog post would close out the upper torso.  I lied.

Because I neglected to talk about these.  See those two mechanical bits being held on by the clamps?  Behind the shoulders?

They actually went on pretty easy with JB Weld and some pinning for good measure.  If they were just superstructure through and through, we would not be talking about them much.  But these pieces are among the few-but-extant pieces in the Warbringer kit that are neither 100% superstructure nor 100% armor.  And that means I had a tough call to make about whether or not to leave them off for painting purposes.

The pieces themselves form the part of the Warbringer's hull that the Void Shield generators attach to.  On the underside they have standard issue mechanicus aesthetic gubbins.  On the top they are covered in the same kind of trimmed armor plating that makes up most of what your eye is drawn to on any Titan.  

I love being able to paint armor pieces separately on kits like this.  It makes painting the metal bits so much faster, and keeps me from cross-pollinating metal paints and not metal paints.  Which is important because the flecks in metal infect everything on my workstation.  Especially my brushes and rinse water.  

Now, the attachment points for these pieces are fine and if they were not hanging off the torso on a place I was very likely to grab I would have just left them off and glued the assembly together after painting.  But because they are pretty much the first thing I grab when handling the upper torso I opted to JB Weld them in place.  Then I pinned them for good measure. 

 

I am pretty sure that is a 1/8" pin. Drilled diagonally into the strut from the deck piece.  I covered this in green stuff afterwards, then sanded.

I would have much preferred if these were in two pieces with the armor plating separate from the mechanism.  

Actually, there are more pieces to these which I did leave off because I thought their connection was less fragile and because when glued they would make it hard to access some of the armor and trim here that will still be visible when the Titan is complete.

Those pieces.  I did glue the hoses in place.

Okay, well, that is almost the whole upper torso.  There are still the railings to talk about, but I did those much later.  So I will talk about them later.  They should be one of the last things you put together anyway because they are so fragile that once they are on the Torso you have to be careful how you handle it. 

Warbringer Nemesis #11 - Titans In This Blog Post May Be More Complete Than They Appear

So, when I did my last real post back in the beginning of April I said that the torso was pretty simple but I would talk the parts that were tricky.

Honestly, that magnets thing really nailed it.  Like, that was largely what was tricky.  The torso is kind of... boring.  But in a good way.  I have heard horror stories of people building Warhound titans having to use plasticard and green stuff just to get the stock-standard torso to fit together.

Sometimes those difficulties actually inspiring more modding and kit bashing because, hey, if you have to go through all this trouble anyway then why not doe something exciting?  Which can have cool results, but is kind of frustrating when you are talking about a kit that runs north of $500.

I actually used to appreciate that kind of "problem" in the old Tau Crisis Suits (circa 2001 - 2015).  They were decent models.  The concept of something was there.  But in their unaltered configuration they just lacked something.  They were static.  They were flat.  If you were building a commander you needed some way of distinguishing that model, and it was not going to come from the box.

There was a time during 4th and 5th edition when the Tau were just terrible on the tabletop, and one of the jokes within the Tau community was that you played Tau specifically to kitbash battlesuits.  And the community came up with some great things!

A confluence of factors changed that starting in 2013.  The release of the Riptide and the 6th edition codex upped the competitive game of the Tau, so new players were not necessarily daunted by the prospect of losing many/most games.  The release of the new crisis suits in 2015 was final nail in the coffin for the high percentage of modded crisis suits.  Mostly because the new crisis suits look good.

Sure, this decade has brought a revolution in 3D printing to the avid crisis suit modder, but that portion of the community seems to be much smaller.  There is a price and skill gate that exceeds the old "cut stuff up and see what works" methods of the last decade.  And now that the kit looks so good, it is hard to use cutting and green stuff to achieve effects that look as-good-or-better than the suits out of the box.

Anyway, that is a really roundabout way of me saying that the Warbringer is more like the new Tau suits in that respect:  it is a well designed kit that that mostly just works.  I say mostly because there are a few design choices that I think probably seemed better in concept than they work out in execution (like the dreaded handrails), but they are really the exception here.

So the last time I was talking about the build in general, and not magnets specifically, I was talking about putting together the upper part of the torso. And I was really close to finishing that honestly, so here it is:

 

Placing the shoulder sockets on the upper torso.  The slots for them are well defined and they go on pretty much without a hitch.  I glued them on one by one.  I mean, there are only two of them.  But I did not glue them on together.

As you can see above I used three clamps.  One to hold the socket cup, and the other two to pin down the structural supports that hold it to the torso.  It was a little tricky to get the clamps on those in place because they curve and taper.  Like so:

 

See how the bottom (well, top in that picture, but the piece is being held upside down) of those beams curves and angles in?  Sort of tough to get the clamps on.  But just fiddle around with it and it will work.  Oh, and I used standard JB Weld for this.  You want strength here because these pieces will hold the weight of the weapons.

You can also see two small holes in the structural supports above.  I drilled those for pinning.  I believe those are 1/8" holes.  Something in that ballpark anyway.  After I inserted brass rod I greenstuff them over.  That was a bit tricky here because the fact that the holes sit in those little gulleys made them hard to sand down afterwards.  Fortunately they are small and fairly well hidden once the Titan is fully constructed.  

I also drilled that hole through the top with a 1/4" bit.  The combination of pins angled against each other is really going to keep these sockets on the body for good.  

From there you will start building out the arms.  Take the upper arm pieces and socket them into the shoulder:

You should dry fit the joint with the arm weapon facing and angled the way you want before you commit to this.  It is just about the hardest dry fit in the world because you are talking about dry fitting a weapon that weighs more than most models into two joints that move in different ways.  SO.. sort of try it and eyeball where the elbow plate is in your desired configuration before you glue.  Than try to match that when you glue.  Err towards the weapon pointing out from the body and down.  If you get a titan that looks a little rested it will still look better than one where the gun is pointed up and toward the center of its body like it is waving or wiping sweat off its brow.

Also, you can see that I used four clamps there.  I did these pieces one at a time.  The clamps on the left side (your right) are only for balance.  I wanted to do this while the torso was on the legs so I could approximate pose.  If I only clamped the one side it would have fallen apart.

This is what the operative clamps looked like:

Tension between the clamps keeps the piece from angling too far in one direction or the other.

Also, it looks like I glued the pistons into that piece already.  I think you can figure out how to do that.  It is really very easy.

 

 Drilled a hole in the attachment point for the shoulder armor for pinning.  I did not even need to green-stuff this over because it will be covered by the plates when finished.  Rod is 1/4".

Next up the elbows:

Easy!  Watch the angles though, they look bad angled too far in either direction.  

And that completes the arms.  Although obviously not their attendant weapons.

Thank You Games Workshop! - Adeptus Titanicus Terminals Available for FREE Download

Just a short blog post today, and not on my Titan progress.  Games Workshop released all of the extant terminals for Adeptus Titanicus in downloadable .pdf form on Warhammer Community.  To see more, check out the post here.

This is a huge step forward in terms of game accessibility and gives the official stamp to fan efforts to improve the frankly wonky terminal design with magnet boards and other home-brew solutions. 

While the quality of the original terminals, which are made of nice thick card stock, is high - their actual application leaves a lot to be desired.  The cog markers just rest in recess on the card rather than pegging in.  Plus, they take up a lot of table real estate.  Not to mention the fact that before today players had to buy them for each Titan and banner of Knights they own / plan to play (not individually, they came in packs, but you still had to buy them).

All of this was fine before.  It was not the end of the world and Titanicus was still an exceptionally playable and enjoyable game.  I humbly submit that it is the best ruleset the company has produced in over a decade.  Playing with the cards did not ruin that.

But this is better.  Improving something that was not really broken but was less than optimal is a marvelous step forward.  Games Workshop should strongly consider continuing this practice and expanding it to its other products.

And lord knows it will probably help them sell more Titanicus units.  Knights in particular (especially Cerastus Knights), whose terminal cards have always been difficult to obtain, will probably get picked up by some folks who were frustrated by not being able to legitimately field them before due to stock issues.

I do not confuse this move with altruism, it is in Games Workshop's best pecuniary interests to foster the growth of this game and its community.  But the company has been slow to acknowledge that this kind of move can be beneficial, so I am glad to see it take a step in that direction.

* Adeptus Titanicus image is from Games Workshop's Warhammer Community site.  It is used without permission.  If the rights holder desires that it be taken down then it will be.

Warbringer Nemesis #10 - A Very Special Magnets Issue

One of the most common questions I see about the Warbringer in the Warhammer 30/40k community is what kind of / how many magnets do you need to build it.

Of course, you do not need any magnets to build it, but magnetizing options can give you a lot of flexibility.  Flexibility in loadout, in pose, in transportation options, etc...

When magnetizing miniatures you almost always want to use rare-earth magnets.  I understand that neodymium magnets are the most common of these.  A lot of times they also have a strength "grade" associated with them.  You want to look for some with a grade between N-42 and N-52.  I like to get N-52s when I can, but a lot of times I cannot source the sizes I want in strengths greater than N-48.

I get my magnets from Apex Magnets.  They are close to me so shipping is super fast.  I have only had a few dud magnets from them, too.  Another option is Magnet Baron.  I have met the Baron, and he is a good dude who makes a lot of useful add-ons for Games Workshop kits.  He also has options for packages of magnets that specifically correspond to some common kits.  Unfortunately, the Warbringer is not common enough to warrant one of those.

I am not a complete "magnets for everything" band-wagoneer.  Often I prefer not to use them because I do not like how they get jostled when you move models around on a table.  [Side note:  That concern was born of my introduction to magnets on Tau battlesuit weapons, which (when magnetized) do not really recess into the model at all and are easy to mis-orient or shake loose when playing.]

There are two distinct instances in which I do like to use magnets:

1. When a model comes with pre-molded slots for them, suggesting that the kit was designed with magnets in mind. (I.e., Adeptus Titanicus Warlord Titans)
2. When a kit is so expensive that I would not reasonably ever have multiples simply for the sake of having loadout options. (I.e., the Acastus Knight Porphyrion)

The Warbringer Nemesis meets both of these tests.  It comes with quite a few pre-molded magnet recesses and it is so expensive that I am not reasonably going to have more than one just to represent different loadouts.

The Warbringer is sort of an odd beast when it comes to magnetization.  A lot of components are designed to be magnetized, but some very important ones are not (or do not have adequately sized recesses).

Here is a list of all of the magnets that you need (or, at least, what I used) and what they correspond to:

• Magnets for Pre-molded Slots:

1. 12 - 8mm x 2mm - Anvillus-pattern Batteries, Quake Cannon Ammo Feeders
2. 28 - 6mm x 2mm - Anvillus-pattern Batteries, Quake Cannon Ammo Feeders, Head
3. 12 - 4mm x 2mm - Quake Cannon Ammo Feeders, Head

• Magnets which I drilled holes for:

1. 2 - 20mm x 10mm - Torso / Legs
2. 1 (per weapon) - 15mm x 5mm -  You want one for each arm weapon, so probably 2 initially.
3. 2 - 10mm x 5mm - Arm Socket

I am 99% sure that those are the correct magnets, in the correct sizes, for the correct parts.  Well, except for 4 12mm x 2mm magnets I placed in pre-molded slots on the Quake Cannon's vertical rotation axis.  Those did not work out very well, though, and I ended up gluing those pieces in place in the end to save myself trouble.

Also, slots exist for the 4mm x 2mm magnets which connect the head cables to the torso assembly and which connect the Quake Cannon's ammo feeders to the torso assembly.  They are not strictly necessary (although I did account for them in the list).  Other magnets in the neck socket and the ammo feeders do an ample job of holding those respective pieces up. 

In fact, the 4mm x 2mm molded recesses in the torso assembly for the ammo feeders are incredibly finicky to place magnets in.  Or at least, it is hard to do so in a way that preserves the right polarity.  They are so close that even if you are very careful about polarity, they can hop up and reorient before the glue sets.  I had that happen to both sides of my Warbringer's torso.  I had no choice but to remove them at that point.

You might ask yourself, "how does one remove magnets which have been superglued into place?"

Well... this is how:

 

You drill the magnets out through the back.  Which means you better hope that whatever is on the backside of those magnets is not a bit of detail that will get destroyed.  The chewed up mess of holes you see here will end up (and as of writing, have ended up) being covered by the shoulder assembly.  

The reason it is a chewed up mess, rather than a single hole, is because I was eyeballing where the bit would come out.  Also because I broke a drill bit in the resin and had to drill around that to remove it.  It was a nightmare.  I would never put those 4mm x 2mm magnets in the ammo feeders again.  I included them in the list because there are slots for them and if you get it right they do work.  

The other topic I would like to spend a minute on are the added magnets, those which ForgeWorld did not include molded recesses for (or those which I judged to be inadequate).

The torso and waist have molded recesses built in, but I honestly do not even remember what size they originally were.  At any rate, they were not going to be sufficient to keep the legs attached to the torso when lifted.

Now, the torso actually sits on the legs very well without any magnets.  

 

No magnets were installed between the torso and waist in that picture.  And I could jostle Romach Shel Raam around a bit like that too, the torso would stay on.  What I could not do is lift the whole titan by its torso or tilt it very much while carrying it by the legs.

So I decided that I wanted magnets.  Lyden Procter of the Titan Owners Club had already built his Warbringer and had demonstrated magnets that held the legs on.  I asked him what magnets he used, and he said 20mm x 10mm.  That is a pretty big magnet.

In order to mount them I had to drill some pretty big holes.  Thing is, a standard 20mm drill bit would have left a pretty big depression beneath the magnet and made it harder for the magnet to stay glued in place.  So instead I researched my options and found something called a Forstner bit.

The Forstner bit was patented by Benjamin Forstner in 1886 to drill a smooth sided hole with a flat bottom.  For big magnets, especially a 20mm diameter magnet, it is what I wanted.  I got this one off of Amazon. 

It drilled this hole:

 

Oh, yeah, you need a power drill to do that.  I used a hand drill to create a pilot hole, and probably spun the Forstner bit by hand for a little bit to make sure I had the hole in the right place, but once the hole guides were set I used a power drill.  There is a lot more resistance when drilling, really "shaving," this kind of hole, so you have to be patient.  It also throws off a ton of resin flakes and dust, so you must wear a respirator or something like that.

The 20mm magnets that go in here and in the torso are powerful.  I have not let them touch each other, because I do not think that I could separate them if I did.  That has to wait until they are firmly glued in place.

The battle titan arm weapons, which work for both Warbringer and Reaver titans, have some variety.  More than any other option currently available for the Warbringer.  So it is really appealing to magnetize them. Unfortunately, the arm weapons do not come with molded recesses.  The elbows have built in recesses where a guide peg on the weapon plugs in.  I think they are something in the ballpark of 8mm in diameter and 2mm deep.  I felt the weight of an arm weapon and decided that I was not comfortable with the pull force I would get from an 8mm x 2mm magnet.  

That meant that the elbow recess had to be expanded in order to get a strong enough magnet in there.  I opted for a 10mm x 15mm magnet and I used a 10mm Forstner bit to drill the hole.  I really needed the Forstner bit there because there was not a lot of resin behind the elbow mount.  Even with the Forstner I drilled through the shallow parts of the elbow's piston trenches on the opposite side. Fortunately, when everything was said and done, the pistons and the arm assemblies hid the spots where the bit came through.  

For the weapons themselves I used a 15mm x 5mm magnet (one for each weapon).  I have one Melta Cannon, one Gatling Blaster, and two Volcano Cannons.  I had drill the 8mm guide peg away and then drill down into the weapon's body in order to mount the magnets.  I probably could have gotten away with a normal bit here, but again I used a Forstner.  I just really love having that flat bottomed hole to drop magnets into. Much less frustrating than a normal bit.  The smaller the magnet (or the taller where height is greater than diameter) the less necessary the Forstner bit is.

Oh!  One more thing: Glue.  I set most of my magnets with Maxi-cure superglue.  For most applications it is enough.  For magnets over 10mm I use Gorilla epoxy.  Superglue can be pretty brittle, so anything where one big magnet is going to be subjected to the force of me removing and replacing parts I prefer the epoxy.  It is overkill for small magnets though.

And that is a wrap for today's very special post on magnets.  Let me know if you have any gripping magnet questions!

[Note:  Will Hayes told me that I had 6mm x 1mm magnets marked where it should have been 6mm x 2mm.  I recall making a change in recommendation to another Facebook TOC group member in early march where I said 6mm x 2mm and then altered that to 1mm based on something I saw at home.  Maybe I picked up my 6mm x 1mm magnets and thought that is what I used?  I will double check on this and get an answer tonight.  Will Hayes is definitely to be believed here though.  In which case, I apologize for steering anyone wrong.]

Apex Chelae takes Second Place in Fallout Hobbies Nuclear Winter Contest

 

Proud that Apex Chelae took 2nd place in Fallout Hobbies' Nuclear Winter poll contest!

Also congratulations to Lemandarin Workshop, Brian Liddell, and Jason Shephard for awards well won!  Everyone submitted fantastic miniatures.

Titan Owners Club - Romach Shel Raam is live!!

Hey crew!  Some exciting news today.  Romach Shel Raam is live on the Titan Owners Club blog!

In honor of this occasion, for those of you coming from all channels, I would like to share this picture of the fully built Romach Shel Raam with some of its friends from House Chesapeake (plus some errant Imperial Fists and Salamanders).

 As well as this picture of Romach Shel Raam on its own:

Cannot wait to start painting!

But first I will paint up an Adeptus Titanicus Warhound in Legio Hashmallim colors to make sure my color scheme works.

In the meantime, look forward to more build posts.

Be sure to check out T.O.C.'s events survey if you would like to come watch or command these Engines in action!

Fallout Hobbies Nuclear Winter Contest

Hey Loyal readers, Apex Chelae is currently in the running to win Fallout Hobbies' winter contest.

I humbly submit that I would like your vote for this magnificent knight!  If you are willing to cast a vote, please go here.  Apex Chelae is the 8th entry.  There are still a few hours left in this contest, so please go and vote!