The first stage was to do a rough test fit to see is the idea was even possible. For this I held the parts together with Blutack. From my test fitting it seemed clear that the concept would work and the parts were, with some serious trimming, compatible.
I removed the mould lines with a combination of scraping and sanding. It’s a fiddly job, but it’s essential to take the time and effort to get it done right. The discovery of a missed mould line once you’ve started painting will result in a world of pain!
With the parts cleaned up, it was then time to trim them to fit together. In this case that involved carving away a quantity of plastic from the inside of the Farseer’s outer robe and the Solitaire’s backside. It’s best to go slowly and carefully with this sort of work. Gradually shave away the plastic a little at a time while making frequent ‘test’ fittings. You want to avoid removing too much plastic. Once I was happy with the way the parts fitted together, I sanded the carved surfaces to a smooth finish. This was especially important on the inside of the long robe, as this previously concealed area will now be visible.
The parts were glued together using Humbrol’s plastic glue. I allowed plenty of time for the joins to set after I attached each part. Once all the parts were together, I let the glue fully harden overnight. This is an important process as you want a strong bond between the various parts. They will need to hold up during the next stage, which is gap filling and more sanding.
In the case of this conversion there weren’t too many gaps to deal with. However the waistline, where the parts from the two minis join, needed some attention.
I always take my time on the preparation of a mini. I find it tedious because I want to get on with the painting. But good prep work will enhance the finished mini just as bad prep will spoil it.
In order to achieve a levitating effect I needed to find a way of supporting the mini above the base. As GW have developed their plastic minis they have become increasingly bold with the poses and many of then, like the Solitaire, have a leaping aspect with a cunningly contrived point of attachment that leaves the feet free from the base. I needed to achieve something similar.
