Side side side Project.. in conjunction with a few contest perhaps..

Dunno why I continue to do crazy things like start new projects always, while I have so many others that are still on the go, but here you go...

Massive Voodoo boys, Roman and Raffa, are doing up another contest. Which is crazy cause the Banalicious contest just finished not too long ago as it were!

But they are at it again cause they like to be busy, and cause I think Roman in particular is kinda obsessed with the new contest theme... Mad Max!

This is the second time they are doing this, as they have already successfully done this long ago, with great results! Though the rules for it were a bit more specific and strict I would say..

Not so in this one! In the reincarnation of this contest you can see that it is a lot more open to interpretation and can allow pieces and things that have been out and about for a while be included! And figures can be included even if they are not what is going to be used to be judged on! Fair enough..

So where does this bring me, or effect me than? Well I have had a few ideas for a mad max themed diorama for a while... and I began it as soon as the contest was announced and officially up and running!

The idea was that it would be a Vin Diesel model, along with a chick, both loaded with guns, standing near a mucked about, modded, and basically damaged Ferrari model. Thought was that it would be on some sort of roadside dirt area with some bigger rocks/boulders nearby.

Quite elaborate, and large considering that the models all were in 1/24 scale :) Go big or go home..

So I went home in the end.. only cause I think that the scene is too large for what I want to do at the moment, and it is not coming together as much as I had hoped. Plus I don't think that the car fits Vin Diesel so much, but probably would be ok with the Zombie Hunting chickie there in Bikini top.. so back to the shelf of shame for it at the moment.. along with the title of "The Fast and the Fury Road".. which I thought was kinda clever..

Meanwhile I have been working on my blogger painting competition. Which is basically painting as much table top pieces as quickly as one can over a span of 3 months or so. The start of which I have done fairly well considering that I finished a Bolt Action army, and a few others yet to be released.

But I began to work on a side project when starting in on one of the challenges.. and it was a British MP Motorcycle from Tamiya. And the more I stared at the piece, the more I was thinking this could be my Mad Max replacement piece ( and probably work in other areas and contests as well )... So table top painting aside for now, and working on this over the past week.

To get into the mood I had to see how crafty my table could get, while still being cleaned up a bit.. more clean up is really required here.. but this is a start I guess..

Reference materials were pulled together.. that being the Art Book of Mad Max, and some how to books for military vehicles and diorama building. Both of the latter 2 being ones I barely cracked open in the end, and just went straight to Mad Max over and over again...

After a few hours this is what I came up with.. the base is a combination of 2 sockets put on top of each other, some barrels ( probably leaking something bad ), and a lot of graval, sand, dirt, and wood bark.

Oh and the bike being assembled, almost out of the box ( not the best at customization are we? ) but with a heck of a lot of things added to it in the end. But hopefully the story that I am building will work? Also after all the tank building and throwing on stowage to them, it gave me lots of string experience.. so that would come into play.. which was right before Massive Voodoo put up a tutorial on how to include string into your dioramas!!!!  Some of the point in that article might have been of use for me, and will be in the future as well.. but for now I have done what I have done...

Once all the rocks etc were laid down, and glued together ( so much glueeeeee ).. I then began to water down ash from my fireplace to create a more muddy, aged looking ground structure. I only have begun to use this stuff, and still trying to find the best way to use it ( and not breath in so much of it while working with it.. terrible for your lungs.. like smoking perhaps.. ) but the end result is pretty cool. Though you do have to brush off a lot of the excess before painting else you will get clumps of the ground coming loose after primer and such.. again bad for your lungs..

The bike was very fiddly for me to work with though.. not used to working on such small detailed vehicles.. so it was quite a lesson for me to play around with it there.. Especially knowing that I had to paint it up still!

I did try to make the piece have a bit of worn and weary look to it, by adding a lot of stowage again, but also things like seat covers, extra luggage, the string came into play heavily here, and also a cover for the tank.. like maybe it is a blanket, or something, but having a gun on it for weight on it helps also I think..

Painting I tried to keep it bleak and dark and dreary as much as possible. A dark grey colored bike, with some military green added to the chassis and fenders was fun. Some pieces were made via greenstuff that was flattened, left to dry over night, and then cut up into section. A lot of brass etchings was included for buckles and belts.


The oversized jerry can added, same scale, but large enough to help them last longer in the desert..

At this point I still did not have a story ( and honestly I am making it up as I go along ) but I knew that the biker had to be someone that was checking out the landscape and understanding what might be coming..

I had pulled the gun arm from a kit I bought a while ago from MDP that was made from a company called Live Resin. It is quite modern equipped and ready, but I think being a scavenger he could have found pieces of it and put them together. Though the pose on the bike I am not liking as much so have gone about to remedy that some.

I also then began to see a bit more of a story happening here.. and I thought since the bike can handle 2 persons, maybe a second person on the scene will make it more interesting as well? Rummaging through a 1/24 scale tank I have, I found another good pose that could work here. Maybe he is picking something up.. maybe he is checking tracks.. maybe he is getting ready to do a number 2??? Who knows! Will figure it out as I get to that part of the scene then :D

But the bike and scene are looking better together, but still a bit off in terms of colors etc. Which is ok at this point as I have not added any pigments to weather them both down some.. I think that will help to tie the models and base together.. but also means I need to finish off the models first and see where they will sit!

But the main model on the bike looked too British.. which is not surprised considering that it is part of a British MP Bike set :) So back to the Mad Max Art Book for inspiration on clothing types here :)

And for the first time in a LOOOOOOoooonnnngggg time that I have begun to sculpt something.. and of course I got a bit bigger than I probably should have.. but am having a bit of fun with it all the same..

So far the chaps, the extra belly fat, and some belts have been added. Leg and knee pads gone on, and some studds added.. cause he is one.. amiright.. amiright??? Lots to go still.. including paint, and converting the second model counching near the bottom.. oh and some rubbish and scatter terrain for the lower sections of the base as well.. Curious how it will all go.. but for now.. let us get through today, and then enjoy the weekend!!!!