a new base design

[Eastern Front Studio]

Ive been painting and mounting minis for some years..and to get a base you need you either have to get a gw style base for the slotta mini or a reaper/ral partha batletech style base for a drop down mini..unless youre doing a dio/vignette and then youre doing full custom..so to my thinking we needed a new one designed that encompassed both..one side can fit drop down which means you will most likely fill in around it..and if your a gw style fan you flip it over and viola a slotta base on the other ..im thinking the base would be metal..so look for a prototype around the first of the year comments?

 

[Naukhel]

Plastic or metal could work, really.
It\'s a pretty good idea... double deep, I\'m assuming? Slot dug to about the half-way point?

Cheesy cross-section ascii...

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Here\'s hoping that looks like it does when I actually click \'post\'.

EDIT: Four tries later... close enough. You get the idea.

 

[Eastern Front Studio]

Naukhel yeah I was thinking even deeper but im not sure how thin we could go without comprimising the structure but considering we use the very tough pewter base i think even thinner then you show but you have the idea..that side hollow flip her over and insert the slotta .... i thought it was a good idea also..considering we have 2 types of minis with slotta and drop down type bases it just worked out ..now various sizes and like round or square would be good say for normal size..and say ogre size..

 

[Ebonbuddha]

Its already been done. Dark Age makes them.

Dark Age

 

[freakinacage]

errr, i dont see a picture on that dark age page..

 

[Evil Dave]

Design them as you will.

All your base are belong to us.

 

[Mick]

hi ebonbuddha it wouldnt be the same i have some dark age bases and they dont have one continous hole from side to side and the design wouldnt be flat at one end it would be where either side can be used.

 

[Mick]

I think this will clear up the idea showing the reaper drop down and the efs mini slotta..same base just flipped.this quick mock up is based on a gw base..the edges wouldnt be tapered but flat either way its set

http://photobucket.com/albums/v466/easternfrontstudios/base/

comments?

 

[freakinacage]

i thought they had to be slightly tapered in order to be cast. or am i wrong? personally i like them tapered. straight edge bases look too harsh in my eyes

 

[Mick]

freakina cage you may be right pal im not sure..i think i should ask brian the dynamics of base structure..it may collapse on itself if not..this may be why plastic and even most metal have a middle support..good call though

 

[Mick]

pretty wild someone on the team pointed out Dark Age dont make their own bases

 

[Mick]

Freakinacage well I must agree picking up some bases are a pain in the ass..so tapered like Naukhel mentioned.. would you like that?..would be easier to grip..and probably give the thing more structure

 

[freakinacage]

thing is if you taper them and you flip it, the taper will be going the \'wrong\' way

 

[Mick]

the look i figured would be outwards like a diamond like the illustration naukhel did but a new design would be cool its all up for discussion

 

[vincegamer]

I\'ve still got some old Ral Partha metal ones from the 80s.
They are hexagonal though.

 

[minimaker]

Originally posted by freakinacage
i thought they had to be slightly tapered in order to be cast. or am i wrong?

Tapering in that direction makes for a better mould release. Steels mould like used for plastics don\'t flex so plastic parts are by preference designed that way (yup, learned that at the polytech ).

Mick, are you thinking of doing this in metal or plastic? The later is going to be a major investment. Best to talk to Dice and games ltd. with if you\'re serious. They do a lot of production and deliver to the industry.
By the way, the larger \"new style\" slotted bases you see here with the cut-out slot can be used the way you say. Leave the slot in and place the figure on top, remove the slot and use the slot. The edge may not be high enough to hide a full integrated base though.

I see people call these bases dark-age bases but it\'s in fact Excalibur who first created these for their SF range (they have existed much longer than dark age). One of their former sculptors told me he designed them.

 

[Mick]

Vince yeah they were the reaper warlord darkage bases of the day..what got me thinking about a double ender actually..imagine one like that but a slotta at the bottom

 

[Mick]

Ming yeah seems we might go thru someone to have generic bases like plastic but try some metal ones like we are discussing for a trial run..see what people think of them

 

[Dedwrekka]

If you can produce them, calculate a cost for them, work something out with one of the site management, then I\'m sure you could probably start selling them as \"Universal Bases\" on the CMON shop.

All in all sounds like a good idea for people who play both types of games (slotta and non). Also if it\'s metal then it could help out gamers with magnetizing them to prevent tipage. However, several games use different shapes (Hex, Circle, and Square), which shape you would be making it in will effect it\'s universal usability.

 

[Eastern Front Studio]

Dedwrekka we thought to do several similar shapes thats out now just double ended..I like metal myself also..some plastic just dont support the mini unless they are very large like the dark age ones..i think the ass end of the slotta would be slanted and straight so if used in formations they could be sideways or straight ahead ..especially very large minis like say a gw dragon or such it will tip over ever so easily