bending metal mini's (Seraph)

[Burninated]

So I have a Seraph that I haven't put the wings on yet because they stick out so far if you just attach them straight. I'm thinking of bending them either up or down, which should help the model fit it's base volume better, and I'm hoping make it look more dynamic, like it's taking off.

Does anybody have any experience bending large parts like Seraph wings? I was thinking about trying to dunk them in boiling water for a couple of seconds, but I don't know if that would accomplish anything like it might for a plastic part. Thoughts?

[althai]

I bent the wings on mine. It works quite well. I suggest clipping the front and back wings apart from each other where they attach, and then you can bend them differently.

I didn't heat up the metal, just applied force when I did it. My guess is that heating up the metal would make it slightly easier to bend, so I guess there's no reason not to, just be careful not to burn yourself if you use actual boiling water (and not just hot tap water).

The one thing you want to be careful not to do is bend the wings back and forth. This will fatigue the metal, potentially making the wings weak enough to snap off. So don't go back and forth playing with different poses - just decide on the pose you want, bend the wings once, and you're done.

[diehard]

I bent the wings upward on mine and have since then bought a second one to model with the wings down, as up they get in the way all the time. But 'll have to wait until I finish all the stuff I don't even have one of painted. as a secondary project that'll have to wait until I get all the stuff I don't even have one of painted up. (not big on running multiples of the same model with such a cool selection for army lists.) So I'd definitely endorse down.

[Hai-pe-neki]

Bent mine downwards! just clip the point where bigger and smaller wings connect and the carefully bend them, i have used a pair of pliers (hope is the right term ^^)

[Gdufner]

I've bent the wings on several models, Terminus, Seraph, Scavengers....The thing I found that helps the most, is score along the bend. I use a triangular file to make a longer score, this gives the metal some where to go, and helps prevent splitting on the top of the wing...

Here's Terminus's wings:

http://i69.photobucket.com/albums/i73/gdufner/TermRear.jpg

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

Sounds like a good idea... Most wings on miniatures are forced to be sculpted in a way that is a bit flatter than they would be in real life due to casting concerns. A bit of bending can make for a more real and dynamic look. Heating up the metal will not help with bending what so ever-trust me. Heat can be used to bend plastic and resin though. You should have no trouble bending metal wings them with a little elbow grease :) Like Althai said the only thing you need to worry about is distressing the metal by bending back and forth over and over again. Additionally if you are putting the wings in a vise or clamp to get more leverage be sure to wrap them in some blister foam to avoid damaging the details.

Good Luck!

[Burninated]

Thanks for the advice everyone. I will give it a shot.

I've been looking at slow motion shots of birds taking off to get an idea of how their wings pose. It seem that they go from a position where they are pointed almost straight up in the sky at the shoulder when they are about to start a down beat, to a different sort of curvy position at the bottom of the stroke. At the bottom of the beat they sort of bring them in towards the body and they bend some at a joint that is about 1/3 of the way from the shoulder to the tip. It's actually pretty interesting to watch the range of motion they go through.

There's plenty of videos to check out on Youtube. I found some good ones with eagles attacking fish.

[Gdufner]

Thanks for the advice everyone. I will give it a shot.

I've been looking at slow motion shots of birds taking off to get an idea of how their wings pose. It seem that they go from a position where they are pointed almost straight up in the sky at the shoulder when they are about to start a down beat, to a different sort of curvy position at the bottom of the stroke. At the bottom of the beat they sort of bring them in towards the body and they bend some at a joint that is about 1/3 of the way from the shoulder to the tip. It's actually pretty interesting to watch the range of motion they go through.


If you want see some really trippy flight look for insect flight video's....VERY cool stuff.

[EpicAstinos]

Matt is ten gazillion percent right about NOT HEATING THE METAL.

We tested this one day at my FLGS (long long ago when I had one) using a bit if sprue. The heat of just a lit match caused the sprue to melt. Immediately. Like, no time to even realize just what we had seen. The melting point of white metal is horrifically, staggeringly low.

DON'T DO IT TO A MODEL YOU LIKE!

[sasori]

Yup, they bend easily with just a little pressure. As mentioned, if you separate the front and back wings, they'll position easier. I bent the front wings up and the back wings down a little and it worked really well.