Very close to completed now!
almost 4 years ago – Wed, Jun 10, 2020 at 12:50:13 AM

Hey everyone.

Thank you all so much for your patience. We are now down to the last few pledges to get out the door. The team have done an amazing job considering we still have a skeleton crew running here to maintain social distancing, they've got almost all of them out now. Running this many moulds this many times though has meant a few need to be remade which is delaying those last few, but they'll be out the door very soon.

If you haven't recieved your pledge yet, please email in to [email protected], even if you have previously, we're running with a skeleton crew there too so it's possible your email got missed. This is also true if you've found you are missing parts or if any of your parts are damaged.

We hope those of you that have recieved your pledge are enjoying your models, and those still waiting, don't worry it won't be long now at all.

Once again, thanks for your patience, recent events certainly put the spanner in the works here!

Back to Work!
almost 4 years ago – Sat, Apr 25, 2020 at 05:06:12 PM

Hi everyone!

Just a quick one from me today. The TTCombat warehouse is open again, but operating with a much reduced staff. We're trying to maintain social distancing, which means operating a skeleton crew. Some of us (like me) are working from home, and there are a few on-site getting models out the door.

That means Kickstarter pledges too! We shipped a load of them before shut-down, but as everyone was quarantined by the UK government overnight we had very little time to ship and update!

Now we're back running (albeit not at 100%) we'll be able to get to shipping the last orders. Thanks to everyone for your patience during this time! We're working hard to get everything out, but trying to keep everyone safe is priority #1.

We've had a couple of comments about some broken parts on arrival. While the miniatures do need cleaning and some gaps filled in, anything that's not up to scratch we're happy to replace. However, the customer service team are still in quarantine, so it won't be until we're up and running 100% that we'll be able to ship those out.

In the meantime though, if you think you need some replacements, send an email with your backer number, address, and some photos of the problems (so we know which bits to send!) to [email protected] and when the warehouse is fully open again our crack team will get all those bits out to you.

Thanks again to everyone, and stay safe!

Shipping & Virus Update
about 4 years ago – Fri, Mar 20, 2020 at 03:13:37 PM

Hello everyone!

We're still in the office, although our staff are dwindling a little. Aside from the coronavirus going around we've had a few other illnesses in the warehouse. With things changing daily we've got no idea what next week will bring, or the week after or after that! It's been a difficult start to the year, and no mistake.

However, we're pushing hard now to get all of the remaining pledges out. The assembly team have assured us that the last of them should be out by the end of March, provided we're still allowed to be open! We're cracking on to get as many out as possible, as we want everyone to have their models in hand in case you're quarantined it's nice to have something to do.

Now, with the quarantine, post is running slower than usual, and in some places there are severe disruptions. At the end of next week if you haven't received your pledge, try to get in touch with your local sorting office, and if they don't have it, pop us an email to [email protected] and we'll look into it to see where your pledge is.

We're glad to see that loads of backers already have their miniatures in hand. If you've put yours together or even painted it, make sure to send us some photos! You can email them to [email protected] or tweet us @TTCombat - we'd love to see and share your work!

I've got an Automated Dreadnought on my desk waiting to get some paint on it.

You'll notice (and many of you with your models will have already noticed) that the resin comes in a few different shades. That's completely normal! We mix our batches of resin fresh each day, and sometimes there's colour variation. The mix of resin changes depending on a bunch of different conditions. Different sized parts have different mixes, and it even changes depending on the temperature outside! The resin is all the same, and will glue together and paint up identically.

Until next time, take care everyone, and I hope all your quarantined backers either already have or will get your models to make soon!

Progress!
about 4 years ago – Wed, Feb 26, 2020 at 02:07:28 PM

Hi everyone!

Sorry that it's been a while since our last update. Between crazy shipping in the warehouse and half the team being off sick (thankfully not coronavirus yet), it's been hard to get time for an update.

The good news is that all orders are now on the docket for shipping out! We've got regular size and 2-up sized everything coming out of the resin room. We've seen that lots of people are already getting their orders, which is great!

Scott managed to get his hands on some leftover master pieces for the 2-Up Voidspawn, and frankly I got jealous of seeing it on his desk, so took a bit of time to get some photos for you all.

It's a big baby, that's for sure!

How Do I Put These Together?!

We've had a few people message in asking for some advice on construction. We're working on a short guide for you all, but between our photographer being off sick and our painter being off sick, it's pretty hard to make!

So for now I've got a couple of pointers:

Wash the miniatures in warm, soapy water.

If you scrub the pieces gently with a toothbrush it'll help remove any residue from the moulds. There's very rarely need to wash our resin since we use water-based mould release agent, but it's always best to be sure, and only takes two minutes. Make sure to do it in a bowl not in the sink! You don't want stray pieces washing away.

Clean them with a sharp knife and clippers.

The miniatures come with feeds from the moulds and some flash (excess resin) that need removing. A sharp hobby knife or scalpel is ideal for this, and some side-facing clippers are great for chopping off the larger pieces (we're looking at you, 2-Ups). Be careful and always cut away from yourself. A cutting mat is a great idea unless you want to damage your desk!

Do a dry fit!

Once you've cleaned off the excess resin, dry fit the pieces together. We've made sure that each piece only fits in one place, so there shouldn't be much confusion. The only thing I can think of that's different are the tentacles on the back of the Ether Drake, which go large, large, small. Dry fitting will make sure the bits all fit or whether they need a little trimming down.

Use superglue.

Any superglue will work, but we always use Army Painter Super Glue which you can find in all good hobby stores or online (try thetrolltrader on eBay). Gorilla Glue is also good. It has to be superglue, don't use PVA or poly cement. The resin should glue together fairly easily, just be sparing with the glue and hold the piece in place for a minute at a time.

What if the pieces are a different colour?

That's not a problem! Our resin is mixed in batches for each day, and while we strive to make every batch identical, sometimes it's not! There are two parts to the resin mix and a colour agent too, and on different days the ratios change either due to the pieces we're casting or even the temperature outside - all of these mean the mix has to be slightly different. That results in varying colours, but more consistent quality. They all look the same when painted though!

Use acrylic paint.

Which brings us on to painting. I'm not going to go into the ins and outs here, but we advise using acrylic paint over a spray undercoat. All good hobby stores have spray paint, as well as most hardware stores. Acrylic works best to capture the details. Enamel should be avoided as it will gunk up your lovely models. Spray from an arm's length in short bursts until the model is one solid colour. Make sure to do it in a well ventilated area, and if you're outside, don't spray when it's raining or very cold!

There we go, a little guide. We'll hopefully get some time soon to do some pictures or videos for you with some more specific advice. In the meantime, if you have any questions, feel free to message us, email us, or write to us on Facebook. While loads of people are off at the moment we will endeavour to get back to you as soon as possible.

We'll be back soon with more progress updates. Thanks for the patience, everyone!

Yum yum yum
over 4 years ago – Fri, Jan 17, 2020 at 02:10:31 PM

Hi everyone! Just a quick one today.

Shipping is continuing, with dozens of parcels going out the door! We're getting to the end of the singles, and then it's onto the more complicated orders.

I say "complicated" but it's only picking out of 9 different models, so it's not too bad! :D

The main reason I'm posting today is that I took a stroll through the assembly section and found this delicious sight:

"We're selling gummi sweets now?!" I exclaimed, the sugar haze overtaking my brain.

"Those are Ether Drakes." I got told.

"GUMMI ETHER DRAKES?!"

"No, just clear orange ones."

Well whatever, they still look delicious!