Hi I have been wondering lately When basing should I cut the tab bit off the figurine and fill the gap of the base? or continue to use the tabs?

Thanks Madfrog

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The tab is designed to fit the slot on the base and it makes the join of the mini and the base really strong. If the tab is shorter than the slot, you should fill the remaining parts of the slot, for example gluing a small pebble over it, masking it with a tiny piece of tape, using green stuff, ...pretty much anything goes as long as the hole is not visible. The tab may also be slightly thinner in which case you can twist it a bit so it fits snugly, or it may be slightly thicker and needing some filing.

Of course, if you want a fancier base, like the mini standing on a rock on the base, you can cut the tab off. But that way you probably should then pin the miniature onto the base because just glue on the bottom of its boots won't necesesarily hold during a game.

-- Pasi

Thank you very much! explained everything I needed to know.

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I fill gap with toothpick piece

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I think it has not been made clear here on whether to remove or not remove the 'tab'.
When using your miniatures for gaming purposes, the tab will aid in the stability of the miniature.
I dont game and use the minatures for display purposes only and therefore I always remove the tab, unless the base I want to create would not be affected by leaving it in place, e.g. just a flat scenic base.
It all depends on what sort of scenic base you are trying create, if it is going to be raised, e.g. the miniature standing on a rock or tree trunk, then the tab has to be removed, however if this is the case, you can also cut the tab to leave 2 protruding parts beneath the feet of the miniature, then drill/cut your own holes into the piece of scenery for them to slot into.

If you do remove the entire tab, a simple small piece of Cellotape over the slot will suffice to fill the hole. This obviously will then be covered with sand, grass etc.

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Ah Thank for you for that I shall keep the tab in-case I do start gaming with them. At this stage I am more focused on painting them before starting to play.

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I have a couple models which I have removed the tab from because I wanted to change the pose of the legs and/or put them on custom bases. When I did these I did not pin the feet to the base and have had a few times that they've come off during play. No big deal as they can usually go right back on with superglue. I've learned though. For metal at least if I do this I now either ensure at least one foot is WELL secured (such as sunk slightly into the base material to give more hold and then hide this with terrain) or I try to have some part of the body touch a terrain element for another contact point. It's very hard to pin the thin legs of most models but I'm sure it can be done.

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http://TacticsInMiniature.com

Very nicely said. It is important to try and make the miniature as secure as possible, one thing I failed to mention above was that when placing the miniature onto the base without the 'tab', I always used the 'Hot Putty' technique.

If you do not know what Hot Putty is, you prepare a very small piece of Green Stuff, place on the foot/feet of the miniature, then apply Super Glue Gel (I never use just plain Super Glue), quickly use a modelling tool/toothpick or anything you can manipulate the 2 substances with and mix the together and press the miniature into place.

With regards to 'Pinning'. This sounds much more daunting than it actually is. The key is to have the right tool...
I use a Dremel, but the most common is a 'Pin Vice'

The key to both is finding suitable metal rod to use as a pin.
The cheapest and easiest to acquire is cutting a piece of metal from a paper clip.
The most important part of this, is the angle of which you drill your hole into the miniature, to ensure you do not cut through the miniature itself...

Insert the pin after coating it with Super Glue into the miniature and leave to dry/set.
Once this is done, create your scenic base and line up the miniature on the base so can assess where you need to drill a hole for the pin to fit (again, understanding the angle of the pin is essential).

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Wow thank you for the info guys that pin idea sounds fun! I ordered one of those hand drill things the other day off ebay so can't wait to give it ago!

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Once you've pinned a miniature you'll discover it's not that hard. You can also pin plastic figures too. I often use strait pins to pin my models.

Ah cool thanks Got my little handdrill thing yesterday so will have to give it ago soon!

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Be sure to use a drill bit the diameter of the pin you intend to use so it fits snugly into the hole you drill.

Ah yup thanks for the tip

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hi when i first get the bases i fill the base at the sides of the slot with ballast made from sand and pva glue then when dry glue figures with arildite for metal figs or plastic glue for the plastic figs once figs are stuck then just fill the slot ready to be given final base covering this gives figs some wieght so the dont keep tipping over helps also with pinning as there is more depth to pin into

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