"15mm Kestrel gunship VTOL sci-fi sculpt" Topic

I work as a sculptor, and most of what I do is freelance stuff; but I'm (very slowly) working on my own stuff too – 15mm sci-fi. This is a very slow moving project, as I have to grab the odd hour here and there at the end of the day.
Anyway, I've finally finished my first model for the range! I've provisionally called it the Kestrel Gunship, and you can see pics of it here:

picture

There's a pic of it at the bottom next to some Critical Mass Games infantry to give an idea of the size.

Still a little bit of sanding and finishing to do, but it's pretty much there. 4-wheel drive vehicle next, then onto infantry, tanks and a big fat dropship….

Cheers,
Michael Lovejoy

I do like that, very much. All except the running board/stub wings. i would want to remove them, so i'd buy depending on how easy they looked to remove.

Very nice. Sexy, even. Well done!

nice work brother, keep it up!
CW

That's a very nice looking craft.

Thanks for sharing your pics.

Well this might be the place for a buyer.

Very cool

Very nice design there.

I like that – sci fi looking but not cartoony. Good job!

Love it. Especially after playing a bunch of Halo. It definitely has that feel to it.

Warthog please. :)

That is excellent Michael – I'll have three when they are ready for sale.

Cheers
Mark

link

That is a very cool looking flyer! Great job on that.

Very nice indeed.

I could also see this as having some use as a security/police patrol VTOL for cyberpunk style games.

Love it, my only criticism would be that the missle pod on top looks a bit funny. Maybe sculpt it into the hull line further?

Very Nice

I really like the fact sculptors are now making aircraft with landing gear. It reminds me alot of the Loach helicopter. When do you think they will be ready for sale?

Thanks for all the comments everyone, much appreciated! I'll answer the questions as best as I can.

commanderroj wrote:

All except the running board/stub wings. i would want to remove them, so i'd buy depending on how easy they looked to remove.

The running board/stub wings bit is a separate piece, so you wouldn't have to fit it if you didn't want to. But you'd have to figure out another way of landing…. :)

MiniatureReview wrote:

Warthog please. :)

Next on the list! :)

McWong73 wrote:

My only criticism would be that the missle pod on top looks a bit funny.

I agree with you – I've altered to missile pod now, it's longer and blends in to the hull shape better.

Dragon Gunner wrote:

When do you think they will be ready for sale?

Not too sure on this one – I've got to decide whether to finish the full range and release all at once, or to make them available a bit at a time….

Cheers,
Michael

My first impression is "not bad at all"! The only improvement I would even suggest is making it slightly bigger to possible carry troops to insert into a battlefield (even if its only a half squad). Just this old farts 2 cents!

I like this a lot! Not my scale, but it's an excellent piece of work – Functional with some radical design concepts, especially that missile pod on the roof, which has turned up on many other designs but with valid reasons in all cases. Superb work – I am sure someone ( Khurasan Miniatures? :) ) will consider this for their range….

Very nice! Roll on the big fat dropship… :)

Excellent design. Although I'm not too fond of the running board either. Landing gear or struts that gave the impression of insect legs would look really cool.

Looks VERY nice- 'cute' but definitely cool. I hope to see it in production!

-Will

That's great Michael. Another great sculpt coming from your hands.

-B6

I like it!

i would say release 'em as you finish 'em. a bit of extra income can't hurt the project, and will probably help it along. just be sure to post what is in the pipeline.

and besides, i doubt we all want to wait for it, now that you have showed it off! it is such a neat model!

Was this project ever done? How could I get one or two?

I'd certainly be interested in one or two as well – did they ever make it to production?

Sorry, but no, they've never been made – I've just had too much commission work on to get round to finishing any personal projects. So this model's still sitting on my workbench somewhere….

Maybe a deal could be worked out with an existing company to bring this to market?

"That is excellent Michael – I'll have three when they are ready for sale."

This^

Except only two, maybe four total in the future. I like my gunships in pairs. :)

"Not too sure on this one – I've got to decide whether to finish the full range and release all at once, or to make them available a bit at a time…"

Honestly, I'd vote for release it piecemeal. Get people hooked on the first few pieces….so then we can't wait to see what you'll come up with next. :)

I can't help but feel that this model would look good with Khurasan's Federal army range.

Maybe a deal could be worked out with an existing company to bring this to market?

One was.

Woo! Good news!

Jon, you have a good eye for bringing things to market.
Now if they were only all out and available for purchase ;)

@Jon – you are a rockstar!!!

Really like this, i would deffinitly be in for this if as was mentioned above the landing rig was amended to be inset like landing pads or wheeels. Would like to use this as a little-bird option for landing SEAL or Delta's squads, with a dropship to back it up.

For some strange reason this news does not surprise me in the slightest.

Looking forward to it!