Books: Tanks, Armored Vehicles and Weapons

It was a last minute trip out to find a few quick gift ideas and a stroll through the local book shop found me wanting for a couple of random books that I hadn't seen before.  I lamented that I always tend to find these things at times when I'm not really up for buying anything for myself via text to my wife and went about picking out some fun gifts for a couple of the kiddos in the family and headed to the checkout.

Christmas rolls up soon after and to my surprise I open a box containing both books I had mentioned only in a passing text message!  Immediately my mind began swimming at the ideas of creating a new army or using these new references to augment other projects that are still in the works (Yes, Pattun's Boyz, I'm thinking of you!).

The books were only $10 each and at that price it's hard to beat full color illustrated reference material like this.  I'm not 100% certain they are still at the bookstore, but if you have a Borders around you might think to check if they're still on the shelves.

These are exactly the types of books that my hobby has been missing for so long though.  The type of easy inspiration to help forge a future for projects that are hard on inspiration and long on completion.  Being a tread head and weapons enthusiast at heart, they couldn't have been a better gift!  Hopefully this trend of book giving continues with future holidays and birthday celebrations!  It's nothing but beneficial to my hobby time!

Have a great reference book you keep flipping through these days?  Made good use of one for a past project, or maybe using one for something you're working on right now?  I'm all ears.

Friday Quick Tip: The Notebook

No, this isn't a tip about a sappy movie, but about how you need to keep a record of your painting; not just the colors you've used in the past but the techniques and other details as well.

Earlier this year I completed a Black Templars army in a short period of time and I really didn't need to write anything down because it was all fresh in my head from the beginning to the end of the army. Hey, I'm not that old yet and for the span of thirty days it was easy to remember how I painted each guy and where each batch of base texture was lurking on my painting desk. But as I was going along and when I finished, I wrote down all of my color, base, shade and highlight combinations, the order which I painted and other details.

Almost a year has gone by since I finished the army and today I am glad I did write all of the details down, because this week I decided to add a few new models to the army. (And yes, shame on me, it has been almost a year since I painted anything for this army.) I used to make notes of just the colors I used, but this time I made detailed notes, mostly because I was pretty sure I'd forget the sequence of painting and putting on the base mud/splatter/gloss medium. And I did forget, so I'm glad I wrote it down. Now the snow on my new guys perfectly matches the snow on the existing army. (And fitting because we got some snow here in central Texas today.)

Here are a few other things to make note of and keep around when you finish an army:

• Not only the colors but techniques and order of colors you used.
• Basing material so new models match up with the old.
• Extra of any custom colors you blended.
• Any ideas for the army you didn't complete.

Besides copious notes, don't forget to save those things like basing material, custom colors and iconography-- all those army specific bits. It doesn't take much time to write down everything you'll ever need, but recording it all can save you a lot of time later. I even reminded myself of a few cool hobby ideas I had for the army. And it doesn't have to be a notebook. Just about everyone has a blog or forum they regularly contribute to. Why not post your information there for others to see as well?

What organizational tips do you have for adding to your hobby collection?

Friday Quick Tip: Published Resources

Remember all of those White Dwarf Magazines you have purchased over the years? You know, the ones that are packed away in the closet that haven't seen the light of day in countless years! Now what about all of those collectors edition video games you picked up because you just couldn't bring yourself to buy 'just' the normal game. What ever did you do with those art books that came with it? All those old codex books, rule books, source books? Same place as the White Dwarf magazines, aren't they? Now, WHY AREN'T THEY ON YOUR BOOKSHELF?!

As you can see from the small cross section of material in the photo above, I never throw out ANY modeling, wargaming, or painting publication! Why would I keep so much information out and on the shelf instead of packed away? Because they're CHOCK FULL of useful info and inspiration! Not having all of this on hand for quick reference or ease of browsing would be a travesty!


There isn't a project I work on that I don't go back to reference something in this collection if not for direct painting techniques and colors then for the pure inspiration held in the myriad of publications I have accumulated over the many years I've been pouring my money into this wondrous hobby. If you're not going back to those old magazine articles and looking through, you're truly missing out. There is no better way to reconnect with why you got into the hobby than to see the old images that hooked you in the first place!

So find a spot on your bookshelf and put those books where they belong! Don't have a shelf? GO GET ONE! You won't be disappointed once you break that painters block with a short flip through a few books.

My charge to you, the community, is to go back and dig up an old publication and read through it, reminisce and find that one inspiring picture, article, or painting guide that catches your eye and share it here! That's what I'll be doing for the next couple of hours!

Edit: If you happen to have a MUST READ publication that you think everyone should check out, I, for one, would love to hear about it!