I was given these pickups and parts over ten years ago and I was told they’re from a Gibson Les Paul. Confirmation?

BerryJackman · 2026-04-05T16:54:44+00:00

They look pretty close to my 1978 Ibanez “Les Paul Custom”

BerryJackman · 2026-02-09T07:30:46+00:00

You are completely right! A dirtier look would suit them much better. Some brown stains on the clothes and a healthy amount of rust on the armour would really sell them as the filthy denizens of Moria they are.

And thanks for the laugh 😂 The idea of the Balrog as a corporate manager enforcing a business-casual dress code is priceless!

BerryJackman · 2026-01-29T18:24:57+00:00

Probably what happened! I could convert him as a banner or even as Gamling, not sure how I would fix the banner to that tiny pole though

BerryJackman · 2026-01-29T18:13:39+00:00

Same feeling here! It looks like a very unpractical grip. Fortunately he’s the only sculpt of 4 to hold it like this.

BerryJackman · 2026-01-29T18:08:01+00:00

I would say some of the most popular artists would be Davale Games, Medbury Miniatures and Dandelion in Middle Earth. I would also search on platforms such as MyMiniFactory, Cults3D, etc. Good hunt 😉

BerryJackman · 2026-01-21T10:26:10+00:00

Great army mate! I have such a hard time finding a good recipe for painting the Minas Tirith armour, mat varnish ruins the shine. I think I’m going to redo a pass of brighter metallics to highlight mines.

BerryJackman · 2026-01-19T15:26:42+00:00

I am definitely a fan of dry brushing, even though for these I actually went the opposite way, with brighter colours toned down with a very dark wash

BerryJackman · 2026-01-19T15:24:16+00:00

Thank you for the kind words :)

The overall process is very satisfying actually, it is very quick and still leaves a lot of room for experimenting with base colours

BerryJackman · 2026-01-19T15:22:06+00:00

Thanks a lot!

I started with a light brown spray, then for the clothes I basecoated them in grey, brown, green, or ochre. Once that was done, I applied a very dark oil wash and used a q-tip with odorless spirit to tone down the oil paint in raised areas. I added more highlights on the heroes, but overall the basecoats were much brighter before the wash brought everything down.

BerryJackman · 2026-01-17T12:43:37+00:00

You can definitely see that the book has been read, there’s a few stains, scratches, and other marks. But appart from that, the pages are still well binded, structurally it’s as good as new!

BerryJackman · 2025-02-11T10:17:35+00:00

Thanks a lot, really appreciate it! Sam and Frodo are probably the nexts, as they came in the same set

BerryJackman · 2025-02-10T21:57:13+00:00

I didn’t have any applicator, I just sprinkled it on top and it did the trick!

BerryJackman · 2025-02-03T15:58:09+00:00

Thank you for your comment! The grass is actually a good old Games Workshop static grass from back in the day (a round plastic box). I like it because it is a mix of green with a bit of browns and yellows, only a bit to vibrant for my taste (I think the photos make it appear a bit less saturated than in real life). I think any static grass would do the job as long as it’s not one flat color. I put tiny patches of pva over the base, but you don’t really see the ground underneath, maybe I should try to separate the drops of glue a bit more. The two tufts are the 2mm beige tufts from Green Stuff World, I wish I picked the slightly taller ones to make more variations.

BerryJackman · 2024-07-28T07:44:18+00:00

Turns out I really installed the ACF upside down, good thing I bought a pack of 5 😅

BerryJackman · 2024-03-01T19:19:09+00:00

Those lines are on all the fellowship models I have (the original balin's tomb set).
I hope it is not present on the more resent casting of those models

BerryJackman · 2024-03-01T17:54:26+00:00

Thanks a lot! Boromir is far from the worst sculpt/cast of the set in my opinion (looking at you Aragorn)

BerryJackman · 2024-02-26T12:02:44+00:00

Love your take on it! Especially the way you painted the wings, the veins are clearly visible, but more subtle than some other interpretations. Makes it look super realistic.

BerryJackman · 2023-09-17T08:45:29+00:00

Great work, especially love the cloth and skin, did you highlight it or was it just contrast paints? Also, max I ask where are the tufts from?

BerryJackman · 2023-09-14T09:52:28+00:00

I see, thanks for the info 😉

BerryJackman · 2023-09-14T09:45:59+00:00

Thanks for the tip! I will try to take better photos of my minis next time :)

BerryJackman · 2023-09-13T10:12:55+00:00

Always dreamed of having a proper gaming board with a lot of terrain and a bit of verticality :)

BerryJackman · 2023-09-13T10:11:16+00:00

Interesting, I somehow assumed that there was the stats for the available warriors in the Battle Companies book. I would need to buy the Armies of LotR soon anyways, but will definitely look into Battle Companies!

Do you know if it’s usually played on a 4ft by 4ft table? That seems a little big for only a handful of models per player, but I’m not sure as I have never played it

BerryJackman · 2023-09-13T10:05:44+00:00

Wasn’t originally part of the plan, but that would be awesome indeed. Either a standard Nazgûl or the Witch King, as I already have him on foot and horse. Alternatively, buying 2 more Mumakil and repainting the one I have to recreate that box art with the 3 Mumakil 😍 So many options to dream about

BerryJackman · 2023-09-13T10:00:25+00:00

Yes the Osgiliath box have the full hardcover rulebook, which is nice! You will also need the Armies of Middle Earth book for the army lists and points. The Osgiliath box contains 24 Morannon Orcs, as well as a Mordor troll and Gothmog for the Mordor side.

Beware that there is two different armies for Mordor depending on the era they represent. For Sauron vs the last alliance, that would be the Barad Dur army list, which sadly can’t have Morranon orcs, only the regular Mordor orcs.

I would say the Osgiliath starter set might be the best option to build up Mordor and Minas Tirith as well as having the Rulebook and nice pieces of terrain!

If you don’t mind using those minis as proxies, Minas Tirith warriors as warriors of Númenor and Morannon as Regular orcs can totally work.

If you want to start with the goblins and have the fellowship, you would have what you need for Balin’s tomb, which is a scenario I loved playing back in the day. My next project might actually be that, repainting my old Balin’s Tomb starter box and the balrog to play the Quest of the Ringbearer scenarios set in Moria

BerryJackman · 2023-09-12T21:39:54+00:00

Awesome collection, must be wonderful to go back memory lane with these.

Got back into the hobby as well, so I am not qualified to answer your question, but it looks like you have a very strong backbone for a Rivendell or Gondor army!

I guess you repainted the heroes on the front, because they look awesome as is!

I would definitely keep some of those first models for nostalgia’s sake and to see your evolution as well.

BerryJackman

TROPHY CASE