More Fixes, New Models

Yesterday heralded the arrival of some more models to my preparation table - Arwen (foot and mounted), a Mumak Mahud, Bilbo with Sting, Gollum with Fish, Shelob, and the Nazgul.

I was very surprised to see that Shelob, Arwen, and the Mahud were still in metal - I thought that the last of the metals had been phased out about a year ago. They were however in white packaging, which I believe means they won't be around for much longer. Perhaps not surprising because they're older models that presumable don't sell well, but I noted that Gollum and Bilbo (both post-AUJ models) were also in plain white.

Finecast being finecast, and finecast not working so well in older metal molds, I checked the Nazgul first. Shock of all shocks was the anticlimax when eight out of the nine were miscasts. Problems included holes in the back of hoods; bubbles in armoured hands/feet, bubbles along arms; missing swords, sword hilts, and parts of blades.

I took photos and have since contacted and heard back from GW customer services. They're going to send me a box that will be checked before posting, and have also given me a gift voucher of $150 (the Nazgul set was $146). I love GW CS, they're really good about dealing with issues like this. It's the second time I've had miscasts, the first being an Amdur nearly two years ago.

The one good Nazgul:

So with a fix up of the Nazgul being almost entirely out of the question (it might be that I could cover them in flames and send them running from Amon Sul), I've since been working on other fixes and assemblies.

First up was Shelob. I could have complained about that model too as it came with two rear-right legs, but I decided I could fix it. To do so, I cut the offending appendage into 4 sections, and pinned it back together in a way that looked more like a left leg.

After Shelob, seeing as I had the putty out, I fixed up Boromir from a few days ago. I think he turned out pretty OK, given that it was done with the end of a compass (the best tool I have).

I also did a bit of work on Gollum, because I noticed that he was supposed to join to his coracle by a tiny surface area, so I decided to pin him into it, even though the pin will be visible at the end. It shouldn't be noticeable though.

Paints and Sauron should be arriving within the week. I'm a little concerned that the Nazgul will herald their master in the matter of casting, but that can be sorted if necessary.

Until next time, may the wind beneath your wings bear you to where the sun sails and the moon walks.