"Ghilli Suit modelling help" Topic

I've got some sniper models and was wanting to give them some ghilli suits but I'm lost as to how I might go about this, any help/tutorials would be useful. The figures are 30mm

Thanks
Sgt Lee

Not that it will help much but an interesting thread on arrse about making and the use of ghilli suits,

Tally Ho!

Model them as a bush?

Seriously, you might be able to do something with cuttings of rough twine but it is going to be a pig of a modelling job.

I've got a ghillie cape & hood but not a full suit.

I'm thinking the only way to do it well will be with loose fibers glued on, and as Martin says, it's going to be a HUGE pain in the butt.

Doug

Fine gauze teased out a little. Use white glue, etc to wrap and mold it around the mini. Paint as required.

Remember that REAL ghillie suits do not entirely wrap the model- the chest/abdomen area tends to be a smooth yet tough fabric that aids the sniper when he low crawls into position.

These partial ghillie picture picture are much closer to the ones I made in the US Marine Corps. This one is even closer picture picture picture but we would sew in heavy raingear material in the front sections. You see this style picture the mossman, but it is not traditional…you still need to be able to move through the brush…if there is too much on the front and lower portions then you will get snagged and worse you will leave a trail of bits and pieces.

A fine gauze super glued on the top of the head, back of the neck, and the back…let dry…pick out the lower threads…glue in place as they fall to make your pattern hold.

or

Apply super glue to a painted miniature on the same points mentioned…top of head, neck, shoulders, back, etc. then sprinkle on mixed color flock or homemade fine bits of dried fibers (rub dry grass in your hands and the dust will be useful).

In this case less is more…use paint and camo to add the rest. Standing next to a miniature without the treatment will be night and day.

Good luck

A thought occurs to me (happens once in a blue moon) – could you maybe use poly-fill fiber and flock to simulate this, the way tree foliage is often simulated on model RRs? Or going a step simpler still – perhaps just spray painted cotton ball material stretched appropriately over the mini?

Doug

Why not put on some greenstuff and sculpt it with rapid cutting motions so that you get a thatch like effect.

Once dry paint and drybrush.

Mick

I've done ghillie suits on 15mm figures by smearing on a layer of putty, then scoring a series of lines with a knife to represent the strips. I wish I had some photos handy, but it's super easy, very fast, and looks surprisingly good.

My lasy attempt (in 28mm) was to spray-paint some surgical gauze with olive drab, then cut it into shreds, glue it on and then drybrush over it – looked OK, but was a lot of work – I like the green stuff idea better

I like Martin's idea. Maybe with the gun barrel sticking out from the bush. You wouldn't use it for an urban sniper, of course, but it certainly fits very well in a natural setting.

If you have minis that you want to use, just flock them like they're terrain.

Her majesty's government produced an instructional film on this that might illustrate my point: YouTube link

Very informational video thanks for that

I used gauze, painted in three colors, then shredded to make these:

picture

picture

I think the effect would have been better with 28mm. For 15mm I should have made the pieces shorter and tried to better align them.

Jake

Jake, very nice indeed.

Hmmm I wonder if your choice to Khurasan for the pick your alien contest will need a ghillie suit or will they have natural camouflage?

:)

I do mine out of cheese cloth--painted a splotched brown and olive, soaked in PVC, then draped appropriately on the figure. After it dries, apply spots of PVC and sprinkle flock on it. I like the way it looks. It looks best on prone figures, though.

Rob

Lead foil, taken from champagne bottles or aluminium foil, cut into very thin strips then glued and layered onto the figure.

i use that cheese cloth like bantage material soaked in pva, it is great, easy to stick bits on and in to and looks spot on. The lead foil/tomato pure tube material strips sount like they would make for a good addition, might have to give that a go.

cheers guys :) got a sample on the go with Green Stuff…just wondering where is the best place to get cheese cloth in the UK???

Sgt Lee

Restaurant supply house or just use bandage material picture from a first aid kit…cheap cheap and free if you work at a large company :)

Depending on whether the ghillie suit is based on the uniform the figure is wearing – glue and the contents of an unused teabag- some of the teas have larger leaves than others if in doubt loose tea. then paint with pva glue to seal leaves.remember realism and ethetics don't always go hand in hand.