Standard base shape and size.

Started by Paper, 09 April 2019, 04:45:38 AM

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Paper

After spending quite a lot of time sculpting tiny bases  I'm asking for pendraken to please take mercy on me and have a standard base shape and size pose permitting for their new lines at least.

Maybe 7mm round?

Maybe start with the pirates.

Ithoriel

Since I base all of my 10mm stuff on multiple-figure bases I'd prefer them to have as small a base as feasible. I fear standard basing is going to leave me snipping bits of base to get things to fit.
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fred.

I'm not a fan of this - it sounds very large. I like the approximately oval cast on bases that are on the majority of the Pendraken range, these keep the figures upright while working on them, and allow a decent density on a base.

The only ones that are a problem are some of the LoA infantry where the oval base is very small, not much more than the area covered by the figures feet, these could do to be a few mm bigger to give a bit more stability to the figures.
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Techno

I would have guessed that most folk are going to use multiple figures on a base, the same as Mike (Ithoriel).

Not sure a standard round base would be very popular.  :-\......and it would make the wee men a little more expensive to produce, because of the weight of the extra metal.
I know it wouldn't be a great deal, as far as each individual figure would be concerned, but take that over hundreds or thousands of figures and it would start adding up.

Is there a slim (low value) coin that would fit the bill ?
Minibits would probably be able to produce a 7mm MDF base, perhaps ? Then you could have a standard size, and not have to worry about sculpting your own, Paper ?

Cheers - Phil





steve_holmes_11

It seems a little small for MDF cutting.
Something like this (2000 at a penny each) might prove useful: https://www.accu.co.uk/en/flat-washers/415494-HPW-M3-V1-A4

I tend to multi-base anything below 15mm.


I have found tiny bases are a problem with some 15mm figures.
Essex, for example have some figures where the base is no more than a fine strip connecting the figure's feet.
Managable where the figure in sculpted in a wide "power stance", a complete Pfaff where both feet are close together (Stood to attention of some "running" poses).
It becomes a real challenge to keep the figure upright on an MDF base while the glue dries.

I've not experienced this issue with 10mms.







Paper

Currently I'm basing on 10mm washers that have a 4mm hole in them.
In order to finish the base I have to sculpt green stuff around each one and a little over the integrated base but not too much.

For multi figure bases have seen plenty of games use bases with little holes in them that figures just plug into thanks to their standard integral bases.

Techno

Nice find, Steve.  :)

Hadn't considered that MDF would be difficult to cut to that size.

Cheers - Phil







Ithoriel

Quote from: Paper on 09 April 2019, 08:57:14 AM
Currently I'm basing on 10mm washers that have a 4mm hole in them.
In order to finish the base I have to sculpt green stuff around each one and a little over the integrated base but not too much.

For multi figure bases have seen plenty of games use bases with little holes in them that figures just plug into thanks to their standard integral bases.

My problem with that last is that every base becomes the same. That might be fine for regular troops in close order but I prefer to position my open order figures with a bit of variety.

Also, how many of us use standard base sizes? Even for the same rule set!!
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Lord Kermit of Birkenhead

Prefer the figure base to be as small as allows the figure to stand (or lie down if prone) well

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Westmarcher

So far, your suggestion is not a popular choice, Paper, and unfortunately, I must concur. As far as my current 10mm collection is concerned, a 7mm round base would not have suited me. In fact, I'm surprised to read about individual basing for foot figures in this scale (having said that, I have cavalry figures of my own based on 20mm round bases serving brigadier command figures, etc.) - isn't this very fiddly? My own basing involves 8 foot figures (infantry, not giants) in 2 lines of 4 on a 25mm square base and so, like Ithoriel, a 7mm wide base would either have involved an awful lot of snipping or having had to consider 30mm square bases instead. As your request arises from your decision to use washers with a 4mm hole in the middle, I can only think that you'll have to put up with continuing with the green stuff or consider an alternative basing solution.

p.s. Btw, I still use Milliput - a kind of 'equivalent' for green stuff (I probably don't have to and it's just habit on my part but it helps to smooth off the overall surface and adds some extra support to the figures, imo). 
I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be.

fsn

I base single figures for exceptional figures - like commanders or heroes. I use the smallest MiniBits bases.

I also single based the Spanish-American War, but this is for grand skirmish and is only 50 figures per side. I used the various shapes of base to help differentiate different sections; no 1 section on round, no 2 on square and no 3 on hex.

The only other time I've done it is with the other grand skirmish; the Medievals. Here I based everything on squares and use a sabot to keep 'em together until everything goes pear shaped.


To answer Paper's original question; since everything gets based on a base, I'm not particularly bothered by the size of the base on the figure. I prefer them thin. Where a 7mm base would be a problem to me would be in trying to get them to cluster nicely around a cannon. 

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Paper


Ithoriel

Quote from: Paper on 09 April 2019, 11:01:58 AM
Shrug guess I'm the weirdo!

Nothing wrong with marching to the beat of one's own drum!

Besides, if you are a weirdo you'll fit in well here :)
There are 100 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who can work from incomplete data

FierceKitty

I should start an export business in 25 satang coins. Useful size, and they're certainly not worth the metal they're made of.   

I remember in SA we all eventually used 1 cent coins as washers to bang nails through - they worked out about 20% of the price of bought ones, and they didn't rust either.   
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Zippee

I too would prefer to keep the bases small and proportional - but large enough, unlike some well known 15mm manufacturers  :P

I have based lots of non-10mm on washers with holes in them, I simply stuck a square of paper/card over the hole, glued and textured the fig in place and voila! No need to infill the hole. if that works with 25mm washers I'm sure it'll work with dinky 7mm ones.

I find 15mm D. bases to about the minimum that's stable enough to be used but almost invariably end up using 20mm D. as the default.