Am I just ham-handed (metal/resin multi-part newb)?

[Dustcrusher]

Sorry, no actual ham here. This is more of a "new to multi-part metal and resin minis" post. I've been collecting miniatures off and on since Partha's AD&D line and Blood Bowl, but most of that was single-part or maybe gluing on a sword.

For the most part assembling the multi-part minis have not been bad- it's a bit irritating but the trade-off is much more interesting and dynamic figures. I'll manage.

I got my nice Winter Shale bases from Micro Arts Studio via FRPGames recently and based up my Rasputina crew. All things considered, it went fairly well since it was my first major pinning operation.

My old method was lots of JB Weld and hope, which didn't work quite as badly as one would imagine (I have a poor Huma's Silver Dragon mini somewhere that would argue otherwise, but I digress).

Rasputina, the Storm half of Snow Storm, two of the three Gamin, and the Ice Golem went without a hitch. The Silent One's arm fit perfectly into its socket, and I somehow managed to get a small pin into one of her feet. Since she's in a three-point stance I figure that will work (not sure what to do with the ice crystals though).

Snow's hands- one fit nicely, the other not so much. They are on for now but I can see myself having to attempt to pin them later (with what, I have no idea- bent staples?). At least de-tabbing her was simple enough- I'm going to magnetize her so that I can opt to use her as a second Silent One as necessary (thanks to whomever suggested that idea- I'm still very much in-the-box when it comes to working with minis).

Storm's horns were tricky, but some filing seems to have helped.

Miss Demeanor's been giving me trouble. One arm fit great, the other not so much. A little filing seems to have helped, but I am not convinced it's going to last. At least pinning her to the fencepost insert from the Graveyard set went well (other than a prick from the pin vise).

I'm loving the bases (both Micro Arts and Wyrd's inserts), and it's amazing how much cooler the figures look on them. I am sold on good basing now, whether bought or customized.

Then we get to 3rd Gamin. The one I nickname the Groovin' Gamin because he looks like he's dancing a jig (as opposed to the Ready Gamin and the Knuckle-Dragging Gamin). While I was sawing off his tab (note to self- might need a good non-vacuum vise), his right leg broke off at the knee. Since that's his support, I'm at an impasse. I was able to put a pin in the other leg but now I have a gimp Gamin.

Am I the only heavy-handed fool that's done this?

Here are my options as I see them:

1. Just glue it back. Been there, done that, doesn't seem to be working.
   
2. Pin the leg back. I have maybe one bit small enough to not completely destroy the thigh, and even then I don't know if I can find anything that will both pin it and actually hold up.
   
3. I could try my hand at sculpting a replacement leg, but again, no idea what gauge wire to use as an armature. I'd probably have to cut the leg off as close to the body as possible.
   

Any advice on how to fix our little icy buddy? I am glad I didn't start with Ramos or Hoffman- I think the constructs would've put me in a straitjacket.

[Mako]

Use a very small drill bit and some thin wire, and pin the original leg back on. Might be easier to file the edges of hte break flat so you can get the drill bit to stay in the right place, then sculpt a new knee on. Much easier than resculpting a whole leg!

I've had to use 0.5mm drills before to pin things, and I recently pinned one of my coryphee through the foot all the way up to the thigh using a 1mm bit that wasn't much narrower than her ankle. It's all a matter of lining it up carefully and being as gentle as you can while still actually making a hole. Having a Dremel helps though...

[Guild Monkee]

I had similar issues with the dancing gamin, although thankfully mine only bent rather than snapping. With a lot of Rasputina's stuff (mainly gamin, silent one and wendigo) I've found it easier to leave a small section of the tab rather than cutting the whole thing away. Leaving a small section under the foot and filing it round to make a pin puts a lot less strain on the weak joints and you're not worrying about pinning thin components too.

[dsmiles]

I've broken more than one mini in my day. Gorilla Glue and a sharp Xacto are my tools of choice for repair work.

[letsallchant]

i have a 0.3 mm drill bit and soem wire used to hang pictures that is thinner than any miniature ive ever seen...

[Omenbringer]

For particularly delicate models I generally try to include base elements to protect the troublesome joins (the street lamps are wonderful for this).