"Base thickness" Topic

I have been looking as some beautiful figures (not a painter me) but was put off considerablely as some of the bases looked way to thick to me, made worse by them having very thick verticle edges, horrid in my personal oppinion. Is there a reson for this or is it just an uncareing approach to the issue? Artisticaly to me it is as bad or worse than having glaring markers on the table. My own approach to baseing is that the it should be as thin as possible and slope to leave as little edge as possible to minimise visual impact.

For my own "true scale" 1/144 figures (minimum detail to prevent massive overscale detail and over chunky figures) I use 0.6mm base thickness or 86mnm in the real world. Its over 3" but its the best my printer can do really and be tough enough for regular use. I have seen 1/144 figures with 3mm bases thats 432mm (17" tall) Ridiculose in my opinion. They look absurd next to most vehicles. I never base vehicles as that justs adds to the absurdaty to me.

Supprisingly to me larger figures aimed more at the model side supprisingly still follow with the absurdaty, with some I estimeate with 5mm bases 360mm tall (slight ly over 14")in the real wold almost as bad as the worst 1/144 base.

So what logic appplies to your figure basing?

I use 3mm mdf for most of my stuff because it is easier for me to pick up by the base and 3mm mdf is what I can get here. I don't think they look too bad.

It is all personal taste. I use thick bases – they serve to frame the figures, and from a practical standpoint they allow users to grasp the bases and not the figures.

I personally dislike metal stands/thin stands. I also very much dislike single mounted figures on round bases.

So, we appear to be on opposite ends of the spectrum!

Its tricky getting it right. But there is an ideal middle ground between too thin to handle conveniently and so thick they look like they are on mountains. Also if using magnetic sabot bases, go thinner on the figure bases.

So what logic appplies to your figure basing?

None. I like what I like, no matter how absurdaty it looks.

I have opted for steel. It is thin, tough, dirt cheap and doesn't warp.

Since I travel to all my games magnet lined boxes keep troops in place if I hit a pot hole or take a sharp turn. Much cheaper, easier, and more space efficient than foam.

I often hear the "pick up the base not the figure" argument but find that mostly seems to apply when small tables and low unit density are involved. On a 6x8 table with thousands of troops you grab the figures. No other way to do it.

Lastly, steel allows me to cut magnet movement trays for different rule sets. Sheet magnet can be cut to size in seconds with a utility knife, and then spray painted. Heck, if you cut accurately you don't even need to spray paint it.

I prefer both. For skirmish based figures (28mm) I go for thin,flat bases made of sheet styrene plastic. This allows a stable base which allows the figure to fit in well with buildings and vehicles.

For smaller scaled group bases, I use thicker materials to protect the smaller figures from getting damaged during use. Since group based figures are an abstraction on a lot of levels, the base size doesn't bother my sense of aesthetics.
You can also add unit I.D. labels or other information.

All my latest figures are on 2mm MDF or basswood. Easier to handle than the older figures, based on cardboard or 0.5mm plywood. These are all 25mm figures, so the step would "only" be a scaled 6 inches except that I build the base up to the level of the figures' metal bases, so closer to 9", perhaps. All I need to do now is rebase all the old ones …

I used thin plasti-card, for bases, 20+ years ago. It was patterned with grids (it was smooth on the opposite side, so I put the grid patterns on the bottom), making it super easy to snap off in 1-inch squares. It tended to be expensive, but that was its major drawback. Back then, I just painted it green, and I was done. I'm not sure if it would warp from being painted with Wood Glue, and swirled in sand, like I do now, for basing.

I used inexpensive, peel-n-stick vinyl floor tile squares, for several years. It is very inexpensive ($0.59/square foot!), gluing two pieces together using their own glue, cut to size, by hand (very laborious!). They began to warp after 3-6 months, from the Wood Glue painted onto them, prior to swirling them in a mixture of 2-3 different colored sand mixtures, for 'grass'. They would be flat for the first few months, then, as the glue pulled on the vinyl, they would curl up, towards the center.

I switched to 3mm thick, MDF bases, due to the fact that my vinyl floor tiles warped. The MDF is inexpensive, it won't warp, and it comes precisely cut to the sizes I need, if I order them from e-Bay suppliers who laser cut them. My cuttings of the vinyl floor tiles, were never very precise, either.

The thicker bases help in picking up the stands, but I still typically grip the mini's, not the bases (easier, less clumsy, and much faster, too).

With the thin, plasti-card bases, I would edge them with a black Sharpie. When placed on a green table covering, the edges would disappear -- neat little optical illusion. On thicker bases, the Sharpies edging is a complete failure -- it only works on very thin edges.

Life is all about compromises. I pick my battles carefully. The 3mm-thick MDF works for me, and for my gaming buddies. I've tried different basing options, including clear plastic. They all have their unique problems. MDF seems to be the best compromise for me, currently. I may change my attitude in a few years, but I doubt it. YMMV. Cheers!

I'm with Mark (Extra Crispy) on steel bases. For me at least, steel bases and magnetic transport works very well.

I also prefer steel bases-generally fender washers-for individually based ~25mm figures. In addition to magnetic transport, the weight of the base also lowers the center of gravity/thrust line, making the figure less likely to fall over-I find this is particularly the case with individually based plastic 25mm figures.

3mm thick for me. Helps keep fingers on the base not the figures.

Extra Crispy, how do you cut your steel? I just recently tried making some bases with galvanized steel sheet and tin snips but the snips bent the steel to high hell and I can't flatten it again. I tried cutting it with a utility knife and that didn't work very well either.

I used to use the plasti-card, for the very reason Sgt Slag mentioned…I could buy in in 1/4" tiled squares and run a quick exacto cut for the size I needed (typically 1" by 3/4" for Fire and Fury) and break it off. Never warped. Still have a bunch of Heritage/Empire 15mm figs mounted on them.

For skirmish gaming, I use round bases, typically 1.5mm in thickness. One can still grab the base that way.

Recently, for a new Volley and Bayonet project, I did go with 3mm bases, simply because I wanted the stability with a large number of figures on a single base. Will be super easy to pick up the stand by the base.

When I need steel bases, I have always ended up with the ones made by Wargame Accessories. I have only ordered direct from them once; most of the time I've gotten them from an FLGS or (these days) by online stores like Monday Knight Productions or Scale Creep.

- Ix

It's really a personal preference. I for one like thicker bases because I like to label my units. I use a 45 degree angle on the back of stands so I can stand above the battlefield and read the unit label. Without the angle you have to crouch down to read the stand. I do this for my 15mm and 28mm bases. I personally like this method, but it may not work for everyone. To each his own. As long as the figures are not unpainted plastic I am fine with how you base your troops on the tabletop.

Here is an example of a 15mm base: 1st Battalion of the 79th Highlanders –

And here is a unit of 28mm Union ACW: 5th Maine Regiment, 2nd Brigade of 1st Division VI Corps –

For any situation I can get away with it, I prefer the base to blend into table as much as possible, or just not to have any base at all. I consider bases a visual distraction from the aesthetics of miniatures gaming.

For certain applications I prefer thick bases:

Earlier periods up through the end of the horse & musket era. For ancients, Medievals, black powder, etc. I am invariably playing with large units composed of multiple stands which must be organized into formations and moved together. It really helps align the bases to each other if they have some thickness. Thin bases are too easy to accidentally overlap, and there's no way to push them as a group with a ruler or something.

Microarmor. 6mm tanks and trucks don't need thick bases, but infantry and crewed guns really do, because there just isn't anything else to grab when they have to be manipulated. A 1/8" thick base also gives a nice strip of material on which to print minimal unit information in a semi-hidden fashion.

I'm about to try using blister packs to make clear bases. I'll post my results (probably in What I Did This Week).

I'm doing 25 and 28 mm science fiction miniatures, individually based.

Oberlindes Sol LIC, the plastic will reflect light, quite a bit, unless you dull it with a clear matte coat. This is one of the reasons why I gave up on clear bases; they are also unforgiving. I did not have a good, accurate, method of cutting them, which really made many of them look hideous. A 40 Watt Laser, from China, would do miracles in making them perfectly cut, and sized…

With a matte clear coat, the base will have a fogged appearance, when it is not resting on your textured tabletop. On the textured table surface, it will show the texture through the plastic, rather well.

I found that the molded bases on the figures, surrounding their feet, looked better (IMO), if I painted them black, to represent the figure's shadow (YMMV). Make sure you are completely finished painting the figures, before you mount them on a clear base -- except for applying a clear matte finish, of course. Be careful of excessive glue, as well, as there will be nothing to hide it, on a clear base…

Don't be afraid to experiment with them. What works for you, may be totally different from what I suggested. Looking forward to seeing your postings on this topic. Cheers!

I use 3mm for all my multiple figure bases in my historical armies. For my skirmish, pulp or rpg figures I use bases ranging from 30mm round scenic bases to clear flat bases. I tend to use the same base type for each genre but there is some differences there as well.

I agree with the above, so thin, sheet steel for me. That is especially important for smaller minis.

They can be a bit challenging to pick up, but worth the effort.

Keep a ruler or yardstick handy to rap the knuckles of those picking stands up by the figs. Steel-edged is best. ;-)

I also agree that vehicles should not be based. They just look silly like that.

The other issue I have is if you must use a thicker base, then why not paint the edges to match the top, and the terrain mat?

Nothing worse than having vertical or slanted edges with a completely different color to the top of the bases.

Id is an experiment with 12mm figures and clear bases. I found that buble pack which is thin (0.5 to 1 mm) worked well and under house light did not reflect much. Even with 3D prints it needs some area arond the feet. I tried three options.

1) Actual base material
2) Black
3) Grey

Option 1 looked great on the baseic material but worse on other coloures as it was a man walking on grass on a road.

Option 2 had some merit but too me on my material (Standard Covered Hexon II tiles it showed up too much.

Option 3 worked best it did not stand out on any of the base colours so was an excelent compromise.

Thick clear based failed miserably, the edge effects wiped out any of the gains and looked just as bad as thick solid bases.

I use magnetised 2mm MDF on everything from 2mm to 28mm and only the singly based 28mm (of which I have small numbers) end up getting picked up by the figure, the rest by their base.

I also use markers of various sorts and sizes to indicate a unit's status – unobtrusive where possible. Labels are often integral to bases (not all, but it makes a useful quick ID when there are a significant number of possible troop types).

Even with all this I still see the figures on the table and their tactical situation – the markers are only really seen when they are needed. It still looks and feels 'right' as I just filter out the dross.

UshCha, thanks for sharing. I never thought of using gray. I, too, disliked the effect of green grass beneath the figure's feet, when they stood on top of castle walls, and towers, and Siege Towers, as well. In the end, I tossed up my hands, and I made some colored, textured bases, with greenery. I really liked the way the decorated bases dressed up the mini's, even when the mini's had a basic paint job. That is one of the reasons I went with thick, decorated, bases.

I like the thicker bases for the weight they add to the figures. With the thicker bases, they are far less likely to fall over.

I began gaming with plastic Army Men figures, back in 1998. I painted them for the first 10 years, but I found that that was about how long the paint would last, before flaking off. I quit painting them, for that reason, as well as the fact that I had 1,000+ figures in need of painting…

I began, around five years ago, mounting them on 2-inch squares of MDF. I then added different mixtures of colored sands, to decorate the bases: Link. That took them up a notch, even though they're not painted. They do not fall over as quickly, easily, nor as often, as they do without a base; they're more stable, and less likely to get blown around; and they look sooo much better. They're also easier to move around the table, during the game. It makes them feel more like gaming mini's, rather than a child's toy. It's all in the eye of the beholding Gamer. ;-)

It's about compromises: pick your path of least resistance, and game on! Cheers!

Depends on whether you are more interested in modeling or gaming. I think a thinner base which blends with the terrain looks better. But I'm more of a gamer so I based my 15mm ancients on thick bases which are easy to handle. I also based them on bases sized for 25mm figures so when bases came in contact with each other, spears and pikes would not touch. No part of the figure would extend over the edge of the base. Like I said, I'm more of a gamer than a modeler.

I use both 1.5mm and 3mm depending on preference. Most of my 6mm and 10mm armies are based on 3mm, my modern 15mm and my naval ships on 1.5mm. My smaller scale collections are on large element/unit bases and I find people push the thicker base as opposed to picking it up. I also like to black edge my bases for a matter of personal aesthetic. Honestly I don't want my games to look like a diorama, I want them to look like a game. To each thier own.

@Sgt Slag:

Thanks for the ideas and advice!

@UshCha:

Thick clear based failed miserably, the edge effects wiped out any of the gains and looked just as bad as thick solid bases.

That has been my experience as well.

@Slow Oats:

I sell steel bases:

link

I like the thin clear bases with the base painted gray idea.

I may have to try that.

Thanks for the tip(s) everyone.

I use 3mm because they're easy to pick up.