Mithril Miniatures - Painting the Master Figure

- Designing the Master Figure.

Designing the master-figures for the Mithril series is meticulous and painstaking work. Much attention is paid to anatomical correctness and correct animation.

Once the subject has been selected the first stage in the design process is the construction of a wire armature. This armature is extremely basic and has no arms, feet or torso bars. At this early stage the armature is now animated and the figure is put into roughly the correct position. Plasticene is applied to the armature and the rough shape of the figure is filled out.

The figure is completed in plasticene in more or less its final form including Facial detail and clothing folds. Note that the arms are also completed at this stage though much care is needed as no armature is used for them. All that is lacking a this stage is the final very small details.

A silicone rubber mould is made from the first stage figure. When this has set the mould is opened with a sharp scalpel (destroying the master figure in the process!) and the cavity carefully cleaned out. From this mould a Milliput "master" figure is produced, and is left to harden.

The Milliput master is carefully cleaned, and any pitting or holes are filled in. Small details such as the eyes, hair, hands, belt buckles and patterns on clothes are added at this stage using a mixture of Milliput and Duro ribbon- epoxy. Finally, weapons are added and the figure is put on a casted metal base. This is the figure which will be put into production and from which the final metal castings will be produced.

Mithril Miniatures, Kilnamartyra, Macroom, Co. Cork, Ireland
Tel 353-26-40222, Fax 353-26-40004
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The Watcher Logo for Tolkien Enterprises. The Watcher logo, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings and the names of the characters, events, items and places therein, are trademarks of The Saul Zaentz Company d/b/a Tolkien Enterprises under license to Mithril Miniatures since 1987.