Operation Cleansweep - the Next Level!

My prepping station has been cluttering up again, lately, and I think my 3D printing is now offering me a solution: I found files for printing parts to turn empty filament spools into a drawer storage organizing box, and it struck me that without the drawers, it becomes a stacked series of turning shelves instead.

So when I had two identical empty spools, I printed the base, one spacer and two center pieces, as well as one cover for the top (I Think I shall source some other files for drawers when I want to make an actual storage box).

After assembling it, I started organizing some of the clutter, and I already have much more workspace on the prepping station - and when I add a third spool, I think that I can actually get the cutting mat and the newspaper off the surface and get it cleaned properly, for once!

I may ad magnetic sheeting to the shelves to keep washer-based minis firmly in place, but for now, I am more than happy to just get the prepping station tidied up (as it has not been for about half a decade)!

Strange Aeons: FFG Grey Sleeves Sized Card Holder for Solo Play Deck

This Card Shoe/Deck Holder is sized to hold cards in FFG Grey sleeves, and accommodates the Strange Aeons Solo Play Deck as shown in the photos.

This build uses glue and cardboard tabs to keep it together, and is completely devoid of the scotch tape I used to assemble my first Card Shoe for the Star Wars Armada Damage Deck (FFG Yellow Sleeves).

I think I can make a template for a one-piece build, and I expect to do that for my next Deck Holder.

I do not think that I shall find the time to build more of these this side of New Year's Eve, though, but I still may have a few things to post the next couple of days...

Star Wars Armada: DIY Card Shoe

I took the holidays as an opportunity to start playing around with making some card shoes for some of my games using cards for several purposes.

I like putting sleeves on my gaming cards to protect them from wear and tear, and that makes the decks rather tall and unstable, and the sleeves add thickness to each card, and the sleeves are somewhat more smooth/slippery than the card themselves, so the stack/deck topples over easily when handled.

My solutiuon for this: Card 'shoes'.!

I had been playing with the idea of getting some pre-made kits for this, but as it were, they do not seem to be commercially available in all those different sizes I would need, so I decided to make some from cardboard - an almost free solution, as I have plenty of sturdy cardboard in store, I just need to add some glue/scotch tape and elbow grease ✌

This, my first 'proto type' was made exclusively from cardboard and scotch tape. It is for Star Wars Armada Damage Cards, and I made it taller than necessary to accommodate a double deck, if I decide to incorporate both Damage Decks form the two starter sets I have.

I applied good old Pythagoras to find the necessary depth of the shoe, and as it turns out, I need to add a little depth to give a few more degrees of dimensional tolerance to the build, but - hey - that is what proto types are for, right? 😎

My next build is for the Strange Aeons Solo Play Deck, as I intend to start delving into that mind of madness very soon (just have to make a nice 2x3 playing mat out of painter's felt, of which I have an abundance from when we  moved to out current home.

Expect to see more of this kind over the next couple of days (plus updates about Christmas Wars and God of Battles - things have been brewing lately, and I should have more to show very soon)!

DIY Paint Storage

I have been contemplating getting some mdf racks for storing paints, but my current financial situation, after paying a large mechanic bill, means that I have to prioritize the use of my funds,

Thus, I have opted for making another couple of boxes for this purpose out of print paper boxes (that I get for free from my wife's workplace) and rigid cardboard, of which I have an abundance.

Over the last week, I have finished the first insert, and below you can see how it is going to work when placed in a box.

The plan is to make two such boxes, and then, after sorting paints into them, see if I need to make yet another one (which will then have to wait until after Christmas Eve).

This is a very time-consuming solution, but otherwise completely free - and free is always good for the hobbyist!

I hope to finish the second insert over the next couple of days, and then it is time to cut down and glue the boxes...

Dragon Rampant: Warband Boxes Fixed

After preparing the attic for Sunday, I cut down a couple of printer paper cardboard boxes, one for each of the warbands. This makes storage and transportation a lot easier, and I needed that for, if I am going to bring the warbands for Åcon.

I have not placed magnetic sheets in them, as I have not had time for rebasing the miniatures onto washers.

I still need to glue the lance back in place on the griffon rider, I shall see to that tomorrow!

'Balins's Tomb': One is Missing!!

I finished redoing the bases on these yesterday evening (they had iron added beneath the base as well).

One of the little buggers had scuttled away to safety behind my brush-holder so is missing from the first pic.

None of these were actually painted by me, but were part of 2 separate second-hand buys, and a couple of them were given a Devlan Mud wash, notably the metal 'Leader' figure.

Here they are. all of them, in the new Moria Goblin Army Box (the AWOL goblin is the one far right in the back row).

Cruel and the Gang..

Mead - The Next Level!

I have been acquiring a few glass fermentation containers over the summer, and now the time has come for using the first of them.

Ideally, mead should be stored for at least a year before bottling, to let the brew settle, and the taste get richer.

Up until now I haven't done this, as I didn't have the proper means of storage - plastic containers let the brew 'breathe', which can ruin the result, and thus I needed to get some good old-fashioned glass containers.

Note the stainless chain in there; a good method for cleaning the inside of a glass container is to slide a chain around the inside; it rubs off most dirt that may stick to the surface.

The next brew that finishes fermenting (can happen any day soon) is going in this container, which will be sealed with some plastic for starters (allowing carbondioxide to escape, should the fermenting process have not stopped completely), later with a rubber cap of some sorts.

From now on, I shall store every second brew this way (until all four containers I've got are in use), hopefully giving me some nice results.

Mead Rack

Finally got my wine rack for storing mead bottles assembled. Had to pre-measure and drill some holes in the racks, as there was nothing to show, where to put the screws.

But now I have storage space for the next couple of batches.

As you can see, my second batch is happily bubbling away to the right, and I have started up the yeast culture for the third, for which I'll boil the first half tomorrow.

Soon I'll order another couple of fermentation containers, and then start up the next brew.

I should be able to keep up a steady supply for school reunions, Attic Attack, and overall consumption, when I have 5 or 6 containers, starting up a new brew every 2-3 months. The biggest problem will be to procure enough used bottles, but if everything else fails, I can always buy some.

Happy Birthday to Me...

This cake, as decorated by my eldest daughter, tells its own tale of ageing...

Fortunately, I have plenty of homebrewed mead to make the day bearable ;o)

My daughters also baked chocolate muffins for coffee, so we had plenty of stuff to eat when I returned from 8 hours of work.

My youngest daughter had sewn me a felt spectacle case for my reading (or painting) glasses, while the eldest had bought me another assortment box for my X-Wing and Attack Wing stuff.

My wife gave me 3 t-shirts, and this assortment of SAGA minis.

• Brodir of Man
• Ragnar Lothbrok
• Maredudd ab Owain (shouldn't that be 'ap'??)
• Harald Hardrada
• Hereward the Wake
• Alfred the Great
• Anglo-Danish Huscarls (axes)

My in-laws gave me this, to store these



















When it has been assembled like this:

This coming weekend I'll be brewing the second half of my 2nd batch of mead, and visiting an exhibition at Nyborg Castle showing one of the world's largest private collections of LotR Trilogy movie paraphernalia with the kids, so I won't have much time for assembly, but there'll be other occations for that!

Slow Weekend.

Yesterday, I spent some time painting and almost finishing 2 zeds, but the entire afternoon I was in Odense with my youngest daughter, buying a lot of stuff I need for both hobby- and other purposes.

I got a can of spray varnish for when I start paointing my first DreadBall team (soon, I hope), and a can of Army Painter brown spray primer for my Mantic zeds + some deck boxes for my Star Trek: Attack Wing cards, and my Pulp Alley cards (the PA cards come in a clear acrylic box, but I want to put the cards in card sleeves, and they don't fit in there).

I also got a vice for my workshop in the garage, and some pieces for putting up light in the garage attic I didn't get last time - and some stuff not interesting in this context.

Today, I spent the morning in the garden with my eldest daughter, moving a lot of wood to the 'driveway' in front of the shed, where I cut up firewood.

This afternoon I had to make another trip to Odense, as yesterday I forgot a bag with a shining new pajama in a store. I also tried to get some machine screws for attaching my new vice to the workshop desk, but it proved impossible to get some in the right thickness that are the right length. Instead I bought a 1 m. threaded rod the right thickness, and some washers and nuts - I then have to saw appropriate pieces from the rod, and use those instead of screws.

The rest of the afternoon was spent on preparations for bottling my first batch of home-brewed mead.

I removed front and back labels from 37 wine bottles, and a single Bailey's bottle:

During the coming week I'll remove the tin foils from the bottlenecks, and though I probably have enough bottles for 25 liters of mead (36 bottles containing .70 liter should do the trick), I have another batch of bottles to prepare:

The weather forecast talks about lots of blowing snow tomorrow, so this evening I'll have to cover my stuff in the garage attic with the tarpaulins I bought some weeks ago.

The handball European Championship ended with an embarassing defeat against France in the finals, so I should have more time for getting some painting done, and updating this little blog from tomorrow on...

Little Boxes, on the Hillside....

I received  2 of these for Christmas from my wife, and as you can see, I immediately started putting them to use (the other one was used for Star Trek: Attack Wing):

Today, after receiving a long awaited shipment of expansion fighters and card sleeves (the vendor had to collect the ships from various sources, I guess),  I purchased another set of these boxes, and got all my Star Wars: X-Wing stuff sorted (apart from the 2 big ships I have; I'll have to find another size of box for those...).

 The cards are stored in the starter box, after being sorted and put in sleeves.

I'm really looking forward to try out the Tie Advanced with Darth Vader at the steering stick (or whatever they are using), flanked by two aces in Tie Fighters (of which I now have a total of 5, plus a Tie Bomber; I only miss the Tie Interceptor to have the full series).

I have started to get all my Star Trek stuff unpacked and sorted today, but it takes time, and I've run out of card sleeves, just short of 2 ships...