15mm figures. - and a Question of Composition

> At 01:35 PM 27/07/98 -0700, Brian Burger wrote:

Hey there Tom, I have a 25mm piper if you want. He's a medieval piper, but one
all the same. You could stick on a sciFi assault gun (again I just happen to
have one in 25mm)on this figure if you wanted. You could say that he wears
traditional Scottish appearal in his role. I will get him to you next time I
see you.

I found the Quality of the GZG 25mm figures very high (the OU I got from Nic
and the Mercs and UNSCM from Jon). I'm most impressed. If they can duplicate
these moulds in 15mm, then we'll get excellent figures. I assume the NAC and
ESU 15mm are strikes off the main 25mm line and therefore should be good figs.

I do have one question: Does Eureka use different compounds of metal than GZG
UK? I ask because my OU seem to have a flat finish to them (looks like a dull
grey) and my Mercs and UNSCM have a reflective silvery finish (I assume more
pewter in the mix?). Is this intentional? Or a byproduct of available metals?
Or am I smokin' somthing?

Tom.
/************************************************
Thomas Barclay Software Specialist Police Communications Systems Software
Kinetics Ltd. 66 Iber Road, Stittsville Ontario, Canada, K2S 1E7
Reception: (613) 831-0888
PBX: (613) 831-2018
My Extension: 4009
Fax: (613) 831-8255
Software Kinetics' Web Page:
     http://www.sofkin.ca
SKL Daemons Softball Web Page:
     http://fox.nstn.ca/~kaladorn/softhp.htm
**************************************************/

> I found the Quality of the GZG 25mm figures very high (the OU I got

In the UK we use a very low-lead (and high-tin) mix - less than 5% lead.
This gives a hard, shiny casting, though still with enough malleability to
work with. Eureka use a much higher lead alloy, hence the matt finish. The
metal we use is relatively expensive, but good to cast and work with
and looks nice - we could drop to the much cheaper high-lead grades and
actually save ourselves on cost, but we like the present results and think the
customers do to.

Jon (GZG)

> Tom.

Ground spake thusly upon matters weighty:

> In the UK we use a very low-lead (and high-tin) mix - less than 5%

Hmm, I assume that wasn't a backhand at Nic since I'm thinking the Eureka figs
use a higher lead grade? From what I observed, the detail on the OU guys was
really good too, and the material (unprimed) seems
to take paint better than an unprimed guy done with your high-tin
mix. Mind you, you shouldn't be painting them unprimed. But I did notice that
Nic's shipment had some bent rifle barrells, and my Whalers were bent, but
they straightened very well without breaking perhaps because they were so
malleable (Nic told me they tended to be able to bend and straighten three or
four times without breaking). In contrast, my kneeling merc lost a tip of his
assault shotgun perhaps because the harder compound doesn't recover as well
from
bending. (Or maybe it was just luck, thats more than possible - or
I'm ham fisted). It's just interesting to note the difference. When primed,
with all little bits straightened without breaking, both paint up well and
provide an excellent level of detail. I'm most impressed by how much detail,
and how little flash your figures seem to have and how little cleanup is
necessary. That speaks well of both the sculptors, the process used, and your
quality control.

Now if only I can persuade you the NAC needs a Piper figure (good for morale,
bad for enemy morale) and some modern Scots with Advanced ARs and Kilts....

Aut Augere Au Mori! (Variously rendered, but Victory or Death seems a popular
interpretation). (My Clan Motto).

Thomas.
/************************************************
Thomas Barclay Software Specialist Police Communications Systems Software
Kinetics Ltd. 66 Iber Road, Stittsville Ontario, Canada, K2S 1E7
Reception: (613) 831-0888
PBX: (613) 831-2018
My Extension: 4009
Fax: (613) 831-8255
Software Kinetics' Web Page:
     http://www.sofkin.ca
SKL Daemons Softball Web Page:
     http://fox.nstn.ca/~kaladorn/softhp.htm
**************************************************/

Ground spake thusly upon matters weighty:

> In the UK we use a very low-lead (and high-tin) mix - less than 5%

Hmm, I assume that wasn't a backhand at Nic since I'm thinking the Eureka figs
use a higher lead grade? From what I observed, the detail on the OU guys was
really good too, and the material (unprimed) seems
to take paint better than an unprimed guy done with your high-tin
mix. Mind you, you shouldn't be painting them unprimed. But I did notice that
Nic's shipment had some bent rifle barrells, and my Whalers were bent, but
they straightened very well without breaking perhaps because they were so
malleable (Nic told me they tended to be able to bend and straighten three or
four times without breaking). In contrast, my kneeling merc lost a tip of his
assault shotgun perhaps because the harder compound doesn't recover as well
from
bending. (Or maybe it was just luck, thats more than possible - or
I'm ham fisted). It's just interesting to note the difference. When primed,
with all little bits straightened without breaking, both paint up well and
provide an excellent level of detail. I'm most impressed by how much detail,
and how little flash your figures seem to have and how little cleanup is
necessary. That speaks well of both the sculptors, the process used, and your
quality control.

Now if only I can persuade you the NAC needs a Piper figure (good for morale,
bad for enemy morale) and some modern Scots with Advanced ARs and Kilts....

Aut Augere Au Mori! (Variously rendered, but Victory or Death seems a popular
interpretation). (My Clan Motto).

Thomas.
/************************************************
Thomas Barclay Software Specialist Police Communications Systems Software
Kinetics Ltd. 66 Iber Road, Stittsville Ontario, Canada, K2S 1E7
Reception: (613) 831-0888
PBX: (613) 831-2018
My Extension: 4009
Fax: (613) 831-8255
Software Kinetics' Web Page:
     http://www.sofkin.ca
SKL Daemons Softball Web Page:
     http://fox.nstn.ca/~kaladorn/softhp.htm
**************************************************/

> Thomas wrote:

You might want to check out ancient lines - Napoleonic or something -
for
pipers - I've thought of this a couple of times, but never gotten around
to buying a piper or two - or writing up bagpipe rules...

SF Scots would be cool...

Brian spake thusly upon matters weighty:

> Thomas wrote:

Yeah, but I want him wearing a tam or a glen, piping on his bag pipes, wearing
some partial combat armour with an AR on his back.
(Yon braw laddie might hae tae fight thae heathen bug-spawn, fer thae
guid o' man, ye ken?).

> SF Scots would be cool...

:) *Just like real ones!* (Well, most of them anyway...)

/************************************************
Thomas Barclay Software Specialist Police Communications Systems Software
Kinetics Ltd. 66 Iber Road, Stittsville Ontario, Canada, K2S 1E7
Reception: (613) 831-0888
PBX: (613) 831-2018
My Extension: 4009
Fax: (613) 831-8255
Software Kinetics' Web Page:
     http://www.sofkin.ca
SKL Daemons Softball Web Page:
     http://fox.nstn.ca/~kaladorn/softhp.htm
**************************************************/

> Ground spake thusly upon matters weighty:

No, it wasn't intended as any kind of criticism of Nic or the Eureka ranges
(which are excellent), but yes, they do use a higher-lead grade, as do
many other manufacturers in all countries; and yes, this is a (considerably)
cheaper but more malleable metal. We've tried many grades, but always come
back to the C90 that we use - though expensive per kilo it is actually
lighter (ie less dense) than a high-lead alloy, and we get very few
rejects
or miscasts, so it makes casting more efficient -overall it all balances
out. GeoHex, on the other hand, use a completely lead-free pewter, and
get good results with it, but we've always found that stuff to be a bit of a
pig to work with. Guess it all boils down to what the individual caster is
happiest with!