How I Base 28mm Napoleonics

[@granapriego]

Always interesting to see how people basing techniques differ.

[@thelastbattalion3509]

Very much so. This is one method I use across certain types of miniatures, but like others I have different techniques depending on what I am working on.

[@johnwayneeverett6263]

PERFECT WAY TO DO IT WELL DONE BUDDY

[@thelastbattalion3509]

Thank you!

[@jekylthorn8969]

If you used a static grass applicator you would get the grass actually standing up and you would see more of the beautifully painted earth coming through.

[@thelastbattalion3509]

True, but I’m not sure I want it all standing up, I don’t want it to look too thin that I can see the ground underneath it too much.

[@jekylthorn8969]

@@thelastbattalion3509 It would look awesome, honest! You only need a micro applicator, some 2mm grass to begin with then 4mm on top to layer up. Check out WWS and their range (I am a railway modeler so have used metric tonnes of the stuff!) Great looking models, by the way and the guides are extremely useful. Thank you for taking the time to produce and post them!

[@EdwardEast-x1j]

Looking fantastic! Just getting into Napoleonics, will be possibly look at starting mid French period. Just trying to think which base sizes will be best for my infantry.

[@thelastbattalion3509]

Awesome, welcome to a fascinating period!

[@leonleese4919]

I’ve just read you reply to the same question posed 2 years ago.. I used to base my 25mm Hinchliffe British army (for a 1976 Wargames competition) . The bases were half inch wide X thee quarters inch deep. But if I read. It correctly, you are mounting three figures on a 65mm. wide base. Of course in those days a battalion of figures were mounted in a single rank but in modern rules frontages don’t seem to matter any more🧐. Nice painting by the way, much better standard than my old Brits.

[@thelastbattalion3509]

Thank you, yes that's right the six-figure bases are on a 65mm frontage. I wanted them to seem nice and compact rather than having too much space around them. I agree ref the nature of frontages - these are based to a rough ground scale for Carnage & Glory II, but the difficulty as with most rules is as always depth, so unable to fudge that easily I went for aesthetic. My 18mm 1809 collection before the rebasing was based to the exact ground scale to basing requirements in Empire V, with single lines of figures as you observe.

[@Titus_Vespasianus]

kind of a dumb question and I know it depends on rules set but what frontage are you using???

[@thelastbattalion3509]

65 x 40 and 50 x 40 mm for 8 & 6 respectively.

[@joeokabayashi8669]

Excellent tutorial!

[@ernieme101]

it certainly looks good , but the flock has covered most of your work drybrushing the sand/rocks . my process has evolved from doing very similar to this , to using Vallejo Thick Mud . it's like glue , texture and base color all in one . then i give it a quick drybrush , and add flock and tufts . very quick and the result is close to yours .

[@thelastbattalion3509]

That's true, but as I describe in the video I do leave gaps which then get filled with tufts or details, and the tight nature of the base means that you will inevitably see little of the sand without leaving gaps that strike the viewer as odd. I don't shorten the process because it levels the base and the colour tone shows through at distance as well as close up because of the distribution and density of the flock. I have a wide range of AK Interactive products similar to the Vallejo that you are describing but I prefer them for other purposes. We all have different methods.

[@stevejennings2394]

Great job thanks for sharing

[@thelastbattalion3509]

Thank you, hope it was of use.

[@Grumblerminiatures]

Hi! Lovely miniatures. What are the base sizes?

[@thelastbattalion3509]

65 x 40, 50 x 40 mm

[@basicminiaturepainting]

Very cool tutorial mate looks simple

[@thelastbattalion3509]

I'm glad it comes across that way, I was concerned that it might appear to involved quite a lot of steps!

[@norm977]

thank you.

[@e-4airman124]

thank you where did you get the tray bases?

[@thelastbattalion3509]

The bases are laser cut 2mm MDF. I use 3mm for certain metal miniatures due to their weight, or for large base sizes to try and prevent warping.

[@e-4airman124]

@@thelastbattalion3509 thank you so much

[@basderue512]

Excellent! Makes me think my basing process is overly complicated 👍🏻

[@thelastbattalion3509]

Thank you. I actually think mine is a bit much, but I've settled into a comfortable routine.

[@basderue512]

@@thelastbattalion3509One of my per peeves is avoiding the ‘man on the mole hill’ effect by leveling the whole base with a layer of filler. I noticed you don’t do that, but that the little bases the figures are standing on are not really visible anyway, after applying sand and grass. Seems I’ve wasted some good hours cursing trying to get the filler round al those little legs, gun carriages, wheels and whatnot 🙈

[@thelastbattalion3509]

I agree with you and you are right that on a base this closely arranged it is far less obvious than it would be on a larger example. My French staff vignette for example, required several more layers directly around some of the bases. It is also because in the case of these plastics the bases are relatively shallow, whereas other - particularly metal castings are not, and/or do not slope as smoothly to their edges.

[@paintinghistory1475]

Thanks for the tutorial

[@jarredcope181]

What size bases are these? Look much closer to what I’ve been looking for.

[@thelastbattalion3509]

They are 65x40mm and 50x40mm. Just enough space to work with, match the frontage I want and display the figures much more closely ranked than often seen.

[@jarredcope181]

@@thelastbattalion3509 where do you get them from? That’s about the size I’ve been looking for but 40x40 or 50x50 is about all I can find

[@thelastbattalion3509]

@@jarredcope181 Initially a mixture of places including eBay and Sarissa (I think) but now I routinely go to Warbases as they have excellent service and choice.

[@Hobby_Workbench]

I'm new to basing miniatures I've some confederate infantry painted up and was wondering would putting 6 miniatures on a base be OK seen a lot of people use 4

[@thelastbattalion3509]

Well that depends on certain factors such as what scale and for what rule set. You can usually bend things to suit your own taste, or for example put a lot more smaller scale figures on a base meant for larger ones but play the same rules, all sorts.

[@giovannifusco00]

excuse me, how can PVA glue work on hard plastic? Doesn't it work only with wood, paper and similar materials?

[@thelastbattalion3509]

For very light plastic like this it seems to work fine. The only issue is that the surface is smooth and so is the mdf base sometimes so they can separate (but without damaging the model). You could use superglue to be sure or another type of glue to fix the miniature in place. Sometimes I use a little bit of superglue and some pva for metal figures as it forms an interestingly strong mix!

[@giovannifusco00]

@@thelastbattalion3509 thanks, but what about flocking? How do you glue flock to the hard plastic? I don't understand how PVA glue can do that.

[@thelastbattalion3509]

@@giovannifusco00 I don't know how to explain it, it just does, I'd never really thought about it. I water it down slightly to make it go further and easier to manipulate, seems to work just as well to any surface. The flock isn't being glued to the plastic, it's going on to the sand material that's already been fixed to the base.

[@giovannifusco00]

@@thelastbattalion3509 and how do you fix the sand?

[@jerseyowl]

Excellent work. Very inspirational. Just wondering what rules you base them for, as you have 8 figs on some bases and 6 on others.

[@thelastbattalion3509]

Thank you, very kind of you to say. I've based them for Carnage & Glory 2, which is concerned with the frontage of the units, so I divided the figures up into groups depending on the sizes of the bases (usually four).

[@CullodenPaintingStudio]

Another quality video!

[@thelastbattalion3509]

Thank you very much.

[@markbraniff4275]

Where did you get your grass from

[@thelastbattalion3509]

A mixture of places I think the most recent addition was summer and winter grass mixtures from 4Ground - if I’m remembering that right, but they’re not in business any more.

[@glenwilson8292]

I really like your videos, some excellent advice and beautifully painted troops. I was wondering what thickness of base you used for your napoleonic italians?

[@thelastbattalion3509]

Thank you, it makes it worthwhile that they’re being enjoyed. The infantry and cavalry bases are generally 2nm thick. For the Cuirassiers I used 3mm because they’re all metal and it felt sturdier. I also use 3mm for anything larger than the troop bases (guns, command etc) for stability and to prevent warping over time).

[@glenwilson8292]

@@thelastbattalion3509 Ah i see, thanks! I'm just about to start some french so I've been watching your painting guides, they have been very useful. Keep up the good work!

[@BearGrisham]

Are the bases that you use 2mm thick or 3mm? Thanks

[@thelastbattalion3509]

2mm in these examples. For metal figures I sometimes use 3mm, for example with cavalry figures, as it makes the base more sturdy to take the weight and less likely to flex.

[@BearGrisham]

@@thelastbattalion3509 thanks for your replies. Love your videos and they’re very inspiring.

[@house_miniatures]

Excellent!!! Goooooood work

[@thelastbattalion3509]

Thank you!

[@markbraniff4275]

Were to buy the bases?

[@thelastbattalion3509]

So search MDF bases on eBay, otherwise there are various companies that make them too, depending on where you live in the world. Sarissa would be a good option in the UK.

[@Stan3eme]

Lovely!

[@thelastbattalion3509]

Thank you.

[@mobileandhostile7895]

⭐️ very nice work 😎 ⭐️ 👍

[@thelastbattalion3509]

Thank you.

[@percyblok6014]

Why the sand step and base painting, dry brushing at all? All the stone highlights are lost since they're just covered with grass. Easier to just base paint, strategic rock or two then flock, couple of grass tufts...done. Save some time and ensure that French sand lasts a couple generations ;)

[@thelastbattalion3509]

It builds up the level of the base closer to the plinth the figures are on and patches of it along with the tone do show through the grass depending on the angle, I don’t put it on thickly. It also gives me some options to tuft or not to tuft bare patches.