Subject of my next project is a figure of Medieval Knight from MiniArt in 1:16 scale. Kit was bought at Midlands Air Museum Model Show back in July and will be built as a gift. The box contains three frames with parts, over 50 components altogether. Assembly sheet for the first glance looks great, but after second look I had some trouble identifying certain pieces as it is not a diagram usually provided with model kits but more of a painting guide showing only front/back of the knight (actually cover art picture). Box art shows the knight in rest position with war hammer & shield, in my kit I had received halberd instead (not all components provided within this kit are listed on the assembly sheet), also right arm was bent at elbow. Quick look online made me realize it was one of 3 or 4 different kits sharing number of parts with only minor differences.
The quality of casting is not great, detail is not sharp comparing to figures from other manufacturers, so is fitting. After initial dry run I've noticed many gaps requiring filling & sanding. Green stuff (both types - 2 part putty and liquid) came handy... Assembly started with torso where extensive flash removal was required, gaps were evident at waist and shoulder joints. Legs were assembled out of 4 pieces and put together with torso. Despite not entirely clear assembly instructions all components were put together for dry run, what brought up other issues. Wrist joints & gauntlets did not fit, had to cut wrist down by 1 - 2 mm. Right hand was opened up too wide to hold the weapon, small bending action was undertaken - was careful not to snap fingers, & filled small crack with super glue.
When all subassemblies were done I put everything together but kept main components unglued for painting. To keep the figure light, painting started with white undercoat. Despite my initial problems with previous figure, I used Tamiya White Primer again. It cured pretty quickly and this time did not leave much of a chalky result. When undercoat dried I removed all evident filler lines, did not manage to achieve perfectly smooth finish at all spaces though. Color scheme was to be simple with not much of the weathering, armor was to look worn but not battle scarred. First airbrushed coat was Tamiya X11, Chrome Silver, applied to all armored areas with following wash of Citadel's Nuln Oil (brushed on). The wash gave definition, matt & worn look to the armor, bringing up all details.
Tunic was airbrushed using Tamiya XF7 Flat Red with Nuln Oil applaied before, straight onto white undercoat into depressed areas as preshade. Face was also airbrushed using XF15 Flat Flesh & washed down with Citadel Seraphim Sephia. Few glazes of Elf Flesh followed onto most prominent areas with clear color applied onto the most raised areas. The eyes were painted using Citadel Bleached Bone, as white might have looked unnatural. Pupils were spot marked with soft pencil first to avoid cock-eyed impression then painted with Skavenblight Dinge. Lips were painted with mix of Citadel Elf Flesh and Machrite Red, applied mainly to the lower lip in few thin glazes.Eyebrows painted using Nuln oil wash.
All straps were painted using mix of Citadel Scorched Brown and Sneakbite Leather, then highlighted with pure Sneakbite Leather. Armor had Citadel Mithril Silver glazes applied at the edges. Sword, halberd & dagger were painted and all subassemblies put together. Also Nalecz Coat of Arms was printed on photo paper, varnished & applied to the base. Comparing Miniart's kit to others I had built or have in my stash (Games Workshop figures, Dragon, Nocturna, Scale75), is not the best in terms of fitting, casting quality or detail. Requires a lot of work, filling of gaps, cutting out overcasted plastic (what I could also have done better on second thought) but does the trick. It also is an interesting subject which can be treated as base and developed in something even more interesting, in future I plan to build a crossbowman using Miniart kits.
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