"Least Objectionable Basing?" Topic

I am now faced with at least painting and always basing and grassing many hundred if not a thousand or more old 25mm fantasy, medieval and pike and shot figures to make them at least marginally saleable. (Trust me on this, people: don't try to sell stuff in an American wargaming flea market which "just needs a little work." Shoot for "you could put in on the table this afternoon.")

Any happy thoughts on most common base shape and dimensions? Thinking 20mm square for pike & shot with 25mm x 50mm horse, but are fantasy and medieval all round bases these days? and What do they do with cavalry?

As a buyer, I'd prefer non-based, and probably unpainted, unless the latter are very well done, if I wanted/needed them to match others in a collection.

If it is a whole, complete, army, or collection, that may be different, obviously.

Base selection and options are very personal.

I prefer unbased as well. If I was selling armies, I'd probably default to DBx basing. If I was selling them as skirmish forces, either squares or circles depending on what I had.

You know, in the abstract I agree with both of you. As a flea marketeer, I can only say it doesn't seem to work in practice. Too many people with more money than time is the only way I can figure it.

Of course, these are evidence. The previous owner popped a number of them off stands and then ran out of time before he could make them playable again.

If, as it appears, you think basing will facilitate easier sale, I suggest DBX basing as a reasonable option. However, to accommodate those who might want the figures but insist on rebasing, please glue figs down with simple white Elmers glue. Makes rebasing relatively easy and it would be a selling point in comparison with the hard work to dislodge epoxy or crazy glue alternatives. Good luck.

+1 Gray Bear. DBx basing is an excellent suggestion, and I base/rebase everything with white glue now for exactly the same reasons.

- Ix

Always difficult to second guess peoples preferences. I would go for 20mm square base for infantry but would make them up into units of 12 using movement trays. You can obviously buy the movement trays ( I will happily sell them to you!) but a cheaper way is to make your own with 1/4 inch balsa strip on 60/000 black plastic card. Once you have a template, you can knock these out very quickly. Pre spray the Balsa matt black and you dont need to finish the trays. Alternatively, spray the finished trays brown and they are good to go as well as adding value to the units.
Similar for the cavalry but work on 6's. I hope that helps, Regards, Steve

As an after thought, I have just rebased the unit on the left of the picture. They are old Foundry figures that I acquired from a friend and wanted to use them in my current perry miniatures army. I used some thicker MDF 20mm bases to give them some extra height. I also use Vallejo dark earth texture paste to stick them to the bases – no need touse glue. You could get away without painting this or at least just a quick dry brush before adding some scatter. I've chosen to 'landscape' the movement tray but that is just my preference. My gaming buddies prefer a plain brown tray. You can see the next batch for rebasing in the back ground of the picture. I hope that this helps, Regards, Steve

As a buyer of second hand miniatures I prefer them without bases. I will make the decision as to how to base my figures after I buy them. Personally I wouldn't spend the time, money or effort to base any of them, but it's up to you.

Speaking as a Brit, the idea of selling painted figures in an unbased state would be madness. You'd get junk prices.

That's been my experience, BobGrognard. A quick base and grass always pays off, and sometimes a quick shade or drybrush. But actually painting from scratch is a minimum wage job, only to be done if you enjoy it. Which is why I'll be lugging bags of unpainted castings to the same flea market table as the painted ones I'm trying to make presentable.

Mind you, I think Fitzovich, Thresher and 79PA OUGHT to be right: they just don't seem to be in practice. I suspect the lack of that 60 seconds or so of work per figure changes them from "reinforcements" to "another project," and most of us have too many projects already.

DBX basing for me too. Otherwise I'd have to rebase.
There is some flexibility there though. Pike and heavy infantry – for instance – could be 3 or 4 to a 60mm base. So long as it has 60mm frontage for 25/8mm figs and looks the business.

I paint my bases with PVA Wood Glue, then I swirl them in a mixture of colored sands. It is quick, easy, inexpensive, and it looks very decent, at arm's length. Here are some sample photo's: Female Dwarf, Gnome Army, Rottweiler War Dogs, Human Army. All figures are 28mm. Cheers!

Round bases for small numbers of figures that may chiefly interest skirmish players, DBx for larger numbers of historicals. Not sure what would make most sense for fantasy at army numbers (unless they're GW figures in which case whatever GW uses).

The tipping point may be about fifty figures, which could be a Saga warband or a DBA army.

I prefer my minis blank and unbased, but I know that many gamers do not dwell in the building & painting but just want to game. Blank minis always compete with new minis, so will never fetch real money (except for some rares).

6cm DBx with 2/3/4 minis on it will probably get best results for sales, though 2cm square or round (with unit bases) may work, too. 4*4cm is not unusual too, and offers the chance for small mini-dioramas. If minidioramas is a strength of you, 12*6 cm are used in some games like Impetus, though I am not sure how popular these are in your area. They could fetch interest just for the show value, though.

As someone stated above, I have more money than time. I'm still sitting on 5,000 mini's that need paint & basing, so most of what I buy is turn key so it can go straight to the table. Having to rebase them is a pain, but having the wrong bases won't walk me from a sale.

You're wasting your time. I'd rebase them anyhow!

I always rebase any 2nd hand figures I buy, so that they match my other figures

I would cut some magnet sheets to your appropriate base size (1" squares for me) and spray paint them green, no flock. Splorch a couple colours in random patterns if that makes you feel better.

Then get some thing steel sheets and cut them to DBWahtever size and give them the same green treatment.

So, the base size should be the appropriate fractional size of the big base. You could probably do a couple basing schemas.

This makes them "grass" based and immediately palyable as individual skirmish figures or in the appropriate groupings, but easily upgradable to match the new owner's other figures.

All that is because you don't want to hear about my favourite basing … it's fundamentally no one else's. But I do sell a few flat black based figs when I bring 'em to market.

I second singles or DBX bases with no terrain simply painted a medium green.