Ugrading some very old figures

Whilst in the figure painting mood I thought I would take a look as some very old figures that are now sold in the Peco range, formerly Model Scene and before that they were produced by Merit (I think). I believe they are older than that and are probably plastic castings taken from what were originally metal figures. Well they certainly show their age and come crudely painted, with flash and mould marks. Here are the figures as they come out of the pack. There are three items in all; one man carrying a sack, a man standing with a shovel and a two part set of scales:




What I would like to do is tidy them up and repaint them. It could be a challenge!

Figures tend to be a neglected aspect of the hobby so good on ya for highlighting what can be done.  I never liked the Merit/Model Scene stuff, quite crude as you say.

Just for fun I had a look at Monty's range:

http://www.dartcastings.co.uk/montys/MSV41.php

http://www.dartcastings.co.uk/montys/MSV40.php

John

[user=565]Brossard[/user] wrote:

Figures tend to be a neglected aspect of the hobby so good on ya for highlighting what can be done.  I never liked the Merit/Model Scene stuff, quite crude as you say.

Just for fun I had a look at Monty's range:

http://www.dartcastings.co.uk/montys/MSV41.php

http://www.dartcastings.co.uk/montys/MSV40.php

John

Certainly more detailed and better proportioned than the examples I am using, but we will see what we can do with them.

Last night I cleaned the figures up and gave them a coat of grey paint to see what I am working with - hmmm tricky!

I don't know why people waste their money on so-called 'figures' such as these.  The worst of the breed must surely be Slater's 'flat' people.  They all appear to have originated from a world where everyone has been run over by a road roller, and the only stance is legs apart and arms at an angle of 45 degrees.  Monty's Models from Dart Castings every time for me.

Terry

I fully agree that Dart Castings figures are very good, I have some myself, but sadly I enjoy seeing what I can do with these old figures, really just for the fun of it. As I mentioned before these of Modelscene figures can be spotted everywhere, many not even cleaned up or painted, but just planted straight from the packet. Maybe this will inspire people to at least give them a lick of paint?

For the next step it is necessary to file off all the mould lines and trim off excess flash. The result is a real mess, but the lines, which will show up after painting need to be removed:





The next thing that I do is bung on some base colours by roughly block painting. They may not be the final colours, but this gives a good idea of what you are working with. The guy with the shovel is not at all bad, but the sack man has anatomical issues!

Thanks for the update, gives me a few ideas for my figures. I see what you mean about the guy carrying the sack, left arm looks to be fairly long, not too sure about the left leg either? Be  interested see your ideas for this poor fella.



 

I love the white metal figures from aiden Campbell really good

[user=1188]Barneybuffer[/user] wrote:

Thanks for the update, gives me a few ideas for my figures. I see what you mean about the guy carrying the sack, left arm looks to be fairly long, not too sure about the left leg either? Be  interested see your ideas for this poor fella.



 

Yeah, I reckon those legs will have to go. His knees are near his ankles!!

Bob

Well, Novice, I think what you've done is a big improvement. 

Something I like to do is to give my figures a black wash to bring out the detail.  I like the Bachmann/Woodland Scenics prepainted figures but out of the packet they look washed out.  The black wash brings them to "life".  Not sure how well that would work with these guys since there's not a lot of detail to begin with.

http://preview.tinyurl.com/nq8cvp7


John

 

Right, the legs have gorn, replaced with a set from the Dapol porter figure. A bit more cleaning up and I will start the painting.

Those legs make a huge difference Bob. :thumbs  Maybe his previous incarnation had been carrying his sacks for too long ………….:roll::roll:

Your figure threads make excellent tutorials - they're so easy to follow and the stages so clearly shown.  Whether or not we have your skills, is a totally different matter …………:oops::oops:

One question - I seem to recall you used to give them a black base coat.  Is this a new approach ?

Just caught up with this one Bob. What a difference those new legs make. As we have come to expect with your figures, another job well done.

 

Really excellent craftmanship Bob.
I was thinking there is a huge amount of metal figures with in the military modelling field plus I think one can get a scale that suits our railways.
Maybe some skilled adaption may work on them?

regards,
Derek.

I cannot believe I started this thread a year ago :oops: For some reason these figures were set aside and I did not get around to finishing them - maybe because they are so horrible! Anyway last night I added the final touches. They will never look brilliant but I think I can plant them in some discreet corner of the layout. Here are the finished results. Unlike other figures the lack of detail on the original has forced me to paint in folds in the clothing and pockets etc:

The start point:




Finished product:





Bob

I remember this thread from a year ago Bob. Like what you've done with the coalman with the sack, looks much better.

Is the coal sack carrying geezer wearing a leather work smock. If so… You have got the colour spot on.

A Marked improvement on the original… And Yes, doesn't time fly when work gets in the way.


Stay safe in South Sudan.

Marty

First shot to last shot shows just what a huge difference you've made Bob.

They may be less than perfect mouldings but after the "doctoring", they'd be acceptable on any layout and don't look "generic" now either. :thumbs

Hi Bob

Super transformation……..like Peter I always enjoy your figure painting posts.

Marty mentioned South Sudan…….I guess I am behind the times I thought it was Liberia…..good luck wherever you are

Kind Regards

[user=434]John Dew[/user] wrote:

Hi Bob

Super transformation……..like Peter I always enjoy your figure painting posts.

Marty mentioned South Sudan…….I guess I am behind the times I thought it was Liberia…..good luck wherever you are

Kind Regards

Hi John

I am in Liberia for another 5 days, then packing up and heading for South Sudan in a new job. I will take a couple weeks off en route in the UK, so should be there just before Christmas.

Bob