Hobby VLOG: Astral Knights Space Marines – Bonus
December 8, 2017 by johnlyons
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When I used to drill out gun barrels I used to use a sharp scalpel to indent the centre point, this way you can judge how accurate you have been before drilling, the indent the scalpel leaves acts as a guide for the pin vice.
I always find drilling straight a problem, I guess clamps would help but that’s a real faff.
To line up the drill, I take a craft knife to put an indent in the centre as I find using the drill tends to make it drift off centre slightly on the first quarter rotation. Once the drill starts to bite, it should be fine if you can keep it straight….
Yes John! I mark the centre using a ruler and pencil then make a small indent using a needle file tip as a centre pop mark. I then do a pilot hole with a smaller drill bit using the indent as my guide. Like you I just use a pin vice setting the angle as central as I can both vertically and horizontally before going to the final drill bit size and repeating the process. If I am concerned about going too deep into a miniature I line the drill bit up to the side of where I want to… Read more »
This is pretty much how I remove rivets in my job as well as when carrying out metal work and repairs 🙂
@noyjatat its even easier with spacemarines to drill centered as the mold line on the gun runs down the middle of the barrel, so i just line a blade up with the side holes, and lightly press giving you a nice drill mark, then predrill with a .5 – .7mm drill and enlarge with a 1.5 -3mm drill depending on weapon size
Nothing wrong there, in my opinion. That’s just how do it : )
I agree with @davetaylor 🙂
I never bothered with the sides tbh, black ink did just fine.
An off centre hole looks still better than no hole at all so all good 😎
can’t fire the gun if the barrel is plugged!
Hey @johnlyons I admit, I do drill out all my marine weapons. Don’t for my Eldar weapons. When I do start drilling, I use a smaller bit than you did. I also carefully find the centre by eye, guiding the the pin vice bit (or occasionally a pin) to were it is, then gently mark it by pressing down. This is almost always enough to get it right. I freely admit, I occasionally get it wrong though. Everyone does. I balls up one of my hell Blasters and sliced the wee barrel off on one as a result! D’oh! These… Read more »
I wouldn’t drill it. But hey, your army your way. Thanks for sharing :3
Dead on how I do it. Same tool and everything.
Really enjoyed the project. Great scheme well executed. Gave me lots of ideas on planning for my Primarus Dark Angels. Gun barrels. I don’t drill them out right the way down. I just try to make a well centred hole with a pin vice, but don’t feel the need to drill all the way through from the side etc. It really does improve the emersion for me though to have the impression of a muzzle, because just a flat end doesn’t really look right. The gun is one area you look at relatively regularly in 40k as you play because… Read more »
I’m assuming if you had planned on doing this from the start, you would have drilled out the holes during assembly? It’s much less daunting than doing it to a fully pained model! With regards the Dremel, I’d almost never use mine for detail work like this, especially on plastics where the hand drill works allows more control without too much effort. If you do use a Dremel though, one option is to lit it on your work bench, bracing it with your off hand, then use your “dominant” hand to push the figure onto the drill, if that makes… Read more »
@Johnlyons you are very brave to do that to finished mini’s, i would always drill before assembly if possible so you dont snap a glued joint and its much easier to center on the barrel. Dremels are useful for very few things on a mini in my opinion, vehicles and terrain on the other hand is another story all together. They are also good for sharpening drills with a sharpening hone, just dont try to sharpen a drill less than .7mm it will end in tears and bleeding and abraded fingers (i speak from experience) With regards to pin vices… Read more »
I am only going to add two comments 1. Fantastic job John and thank-you for taking us along for the ride. 2. If I was to change 1 thing it would be, I would do the bases a neutral colour. Black really puts a solid line between the model and the tabletop. I moved away from black lined bases sometime back and I have to say it really makes a difference. For these guys I would recommend a neutral brown. Again it’s easy to sit back and add criticisms, but I know you guys work very hard to create content… Read more »
First two Barrels I ever drilled out were perfect, maybe it was just my not thinking about it too much. Ever since then I’ve had some successes a few more failures,but thanks for sharing your not perfect.
Same for me. Some are just right, some aren’t. You do a great job. Do not worry.
I’m surprised there doesn’t exist a product to help line up the drill bit. It wouldn’t need to be a complex thing, just a length of pipe that fits around the barrel, with a smaller pipe inside it to guide an appropriately sized bit to the centre of the barrel.
As a veteran of building far more space marines than is healthy, I use the following method: 1 – Drill the side barrels out first. Logic behind this? If you are unlucky enough the slip or misalign and split the side of the barrel you’re only going to split the very front portion. 2 – As others have said above, mark the centre of the barrel with the tip of a scalpel / modelling knife and use that as your guide point. 3 – Use a 1.5mm bit in a pin vice and drill out the front, being gentle as… Read more »
An airbrush reamer or the tool on a swiss army knife for getting stones out of horses hoofs works very well for tidy up as well
a step too far… Was good, was great, was Brill before John,
Brill wonderful all the way through.
Another ONE for JOHN…
@johnlyons, It is pretty awesome that you came back and drilled out the barrels. I completely understand your hesitation and would have not been disappointed in the slightest if you decided not to do this. This whole series has been exciting to follow, and I think the results are fantastic! I hope you had as much fun growing through this process as we have had following along for the ride. You could use a pin or pointed blade to mark the approximate center point of the barrel end, then use a smaller drill bit to make a pilot hole, then… Read more »
Make sure the bits are SHARP! Pilot hole with scalpel [a pilot knick really] then drill.
@johnlyons I applaud your biting the bullet to do this, as I think drilled out gun barrels always make the miniature look more finished and refined. My own step by step process is as follows: 1. Use a pin/needle or sharp sculpting tool/hobby knife to make a tiny centre hole. This helps keep the drill centered. 2. Use a drill bit half the size of the final bit, and make a pilot hole, using the centre dimple as a guide. The smaller bit will go in more easily, and make for easier drilling with the final size. 3. Use the… Read more »