Basing Basics

Sherman · Post by **Sherman** » Thu Mar 06, 2008 9:22 pm

I'm brand new to Historicals. What do you use to base these models? Like, what material? Are there any pre-fab bases out there that use the measurements for FoG? Both 15mm and 28mm scale would be nice to know about. I haven't yet decided which I prefer though I'm leaning towards 15mm...

Thanks!

BrianC · Post by **BrianC** » Thu Mar 06, 2008 10:00 pm

Hey Sherman,

Litko is a company I have dealt with before and highly recommend them. You can get bases made practically any size and I believe they have the FOG base sizes as standard as I believe they are based off the DBx standard. I recently bought some plywood bases and also the thin metal bases that I stick on the bottom for storage over a magnetic sheet, works really well.

I am making my own bases now and use 3mm hardboard. I cut out a notch using my router and I place a thin magnetic strip flush with the bottom again for easy storage and transport.

I imagine you will get all kinds of answers to this question which is always interesting. There are some really neat bases out there.

Brian

hammy · Post by **hammy** » Thu Mar 06, 2008 10:16 pm

There are a number of companies that make precut bases. In the UK you can get metal or MDF ones. My experience of commercial MDF bases is mixed, some companies are better than others in terms of accuracy. You can of course cut your own out of plastic card or artists mounting board.

Personally I use MDF but have a friend who has access to a laser cutter and that makes for super accurate MDF bases which is great.

Once the figures are stuck to the MDF I paint the base with slightly diluted PVA glue (wood glue) and then dip them in builders sand (you can use GW sand but it is about 30,000 times as expensive and does much the same job). Once the glue is dry I gently tap off the excess sand and them paint the base with diluted earth brown emulsion paint (bought from a DIY shop as a sample pot for a pick your colour from our huge range). Once this drys the base is now textured and coloured and it has cost almost nothing. A dry brush of yellow green and a very light dry brush of white followed by sticking static grass to the bases with diluted wood glue and voila. It takes a bit but IMO looks very good.

The pikemen and light foot in the how to post pictures thread are based using this method BTW.

Sherman · Post by **Sherman** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 10:35 pm

Litko looks like a very good option. What are people's opinions about base height though? Is the .8 too thin? What if I were to get that and add the magnetic sticker option? It seems like 3mm is pretty thick for models that are only 15mm themselves! The 1.3 seems like a good comprimise but Litko charges twice as much for it almost... What do most people play with? I find the whole "free-form" nature of Historicals a little intimidating honestly. I like the uniformity of games like Warmachine and Warhammer in a lot of ways. It's nice to look at a model and know exactly what it is.

Fenton · Post by **Fenton** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 11:06 pm

I have lots of Litko bases, there all 2mm, and they look fine and sturdy, I always hated thick bases, so I always go for the thinnest I can get away with, I used to use Plasticard, but couldnt be bothered trying to cut it anymore, especially with the Litko stuff being so good

hammy · Post by **hammy** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 11:25 pm

My bases are 2mm thick or less. I would think that 3mm is too much and 0.8mm may be to flimsy but it would depend on what the base is made of.

Fenton · Post by **Fenton** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 11:37 pm

All the bases I own at the minute are 60x30 by Litko and are very strong, so I suppose the reasoning follows 40x15 etc should be even stronger

Svejk1914 · Post by **Svejk1914** » Sun Mar 09, 2008 6:45 am

Personally a big fan of the Wargame Accessories metal bases. Pretty cheap- $5 for 24, sturdy since they are metal, no need to try and apply magnetic bases to each base, simply line your storage box with magnetic sheet (far less fiddly than the other way round, trust me on this one).

I buy the white fold em yerself boxes from Office Depot, they're about 9x12x3, and stick the magnetic sheet to the bottom. The troops won't shift around, but if you do manage to drop the box say around 4 feet they will come loose to some extent (don't ask how I know this).

I have Litko bases as well, they are nicely cut, very consistent, but I found putting the magnets on each base to be a pain.

BrianC · Post by **BrianC** » Sun Mar 09, 2008 6:58 am

All my bases are now rebased to 3mm. I like that I can pick up the base by the base and not the figures. And in 15mm I really don't notice the bases unless some are still unflocked : ).

Ironhand · Post by **Ironhand** » Wed Mar 12, 2008 4:37 pm

I used to use the Wargame Accessories metal bases, but lately I've gotten some that were warped, and others that weren't exactly the correct size, so I'm going with Litko now. I'm thinking 1.5MM thick for 15MM figures, and 3MM for 25/28MM.

Fenton · Post by **Fenton** » Thu Mar 13, 2008 12:29 am

A friend of mine got some of the 3mm bases from Litko and they are very good, they do seem very thick though, maybe its because I've used the thin ones for my 6mm armies that it looks too thick

madaxeman · Post by **madaxeman** » Sun Mar 16, 2008 6:50 pm

Mine are all card - the stuff that comes in "hardback" envelopes - used to send photos by post - its not that thick.

I then stick on a sheet of self adhesive magnetic basing (I buy it from Rapid Electronics in the UK) and cut out bases as needed using a sharp Stanley knife. The double thickness seems to give the right amount of strength

I then build up the base to cover the figures own metal base with wood filler

There is a guide here on my website

tim
www.madaxeman.com

magedoc · Post by **magedoc** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 2:56 pm

I have 2 ways of basing:

1) Litko bases with a added piece of rubberized steel to the bottom. Then I have a storage tray with a sheet magnet to hold them in place for transport.

2) I customed ordered bases in teh past that were thinner and had the ruberized stell already added by the manufacturer. These look great, but are a bit more expensive.

expendablecinc · Post by **expendablecinc** » Sun Mar 23, 2008 1:57 am

I used to use precut premagntised wooden bases as the ones I were making havent stood up to the test of long term gaming. I tried pasticard froma train shop and its a real effort to cut them but found a harder form of it in 2mm thickness. drawing a single line with a stanley knife is all thats required for a them to snap off cleanly every time. Where I used to spend a night cutting a single a4 sheet into heavy foot base size now its around 30 minutes. The corners dont crinkle like even the thickest card will over time and they wont swell when wet if using washes in accrylic when painting them.

Anthony

BigJim007 · Post by **BigJim007** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 9:35 pm

Evening Guys,

I apologise if this is in the wrong subject, but being the new kid on the block

, it was the nearest I could find.

Unfortunately I ordered my FOG Rule Book and Army Listing through Tesco.Com to save some money, stupid I hear you cry

My problem is this I have the Storm of Arrows Army Book, but not the Rules, so I am having trouble costing an army. I know there are a lot of Army Starter packs out there so figures are not the problem. My problems is what are the base sizes, and how many figures go on a base in the 15mm scale.

I'm sure this has been asked before, probably. Oh I will be ordering my bases from Litko.

Thanking you for any help you can give this Old Fool

hammy · Post by **hammy** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 12:08 am

BigJim007 wrote:Evening Guys,
Unfortunately I ordered my FOG Rule Book and Army Listing through Tesco.Com to save some money, stupid I hear you cry

My problem is this I have the Storm of Arrows Army Book, but not the Rules, so I am having trouble costing an army. I know there are a lot of Army Starter packs out there so figures are not the problem. My problems is what are the base sizes, and how many figures go on a base in the 15mm scale.

Cataphracts are 3 or 4 figures to a base 30 by 40
Knights and Cavalry are 3 figures to a base 30 by 40
Light horse 2 figures to a base 30 by 40
Heavy foot 4 ftab 15 by 40
Medium foot 3 or 4 ftab 20 by 40
Light foot 2 ftab 20 by 40

Commanders whatever tickles your fancy max 40 by 40 but always 40 wide.

BigJim007 · Post by **BigJim007** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 4:55 am

Hammy,

Thanks for that.

flameberge · Post by **flameberge** » Fri Apr 25, 2008 4:25 am

I really like the wargames accessories bases because they ultra thin and sturdy because they are made of galvanized steel. Since they are metal you also don't have to worry about sticking anything to the bottom of the bases. I have bought approximately 300-400 bases from them and have only revieved a couple that were either wrong size or slightly rhomboid in shape and since they are pretty cheap this doesn't bother me too much.

SRW1962 · Post by **SRW1962** » Tue May 06, 2008 10:20 am

On the subject of bases I use Marley tiles (available from B&Q or builders yards etc.) as they are very cheap (less than £1 each), durable (will withstand damp, heat etc.) and very easy to use (simply mark the sizes required, score with a sharp knife and snap along the score marks). I get 112 40mm x 20mm infantry bases or 70 40mm x 30mm cavalry bases from each tile. You can also use the cheaper self adhesive tiles which are used in exactly the same way and then you can fix magnetic paper to them if you so desire. Any sort of texture can be applied to Marley tiles and it will adhere perfectly.

Probert · Post by **Probert** » Tue May 06, 2008 11:28 am

I use Litko for all my basing needs, FoG and all other games. Great company with great service.