With 2018 spending already way overt budget, I tried to resist the great many Holiday sales from a wide variety of wargames manufacturers last month.
The deal from Litko Aerosystems was particularly good, and I realized that the huge number of infantry units painted in the past year (Spanish, Highlanders, Tirolese, and more) had severely depleted my stores of my standard infantry bases for Napoleonics. With lead for several hundred more French and Austrians each already on hand (plus a few Russians and British as well), it seemed reasonable to take advantage of the sale to replenish my stocks, to the tune of 200 bases.
Some more WRG style bases will also be needed if I make progress on my Macedonian and ECW lead, too.
Some more "vignette" bases for leaders were needed as well; unfortunately I managed to click the thin 1.5 mm thickness bases instead of the 3 mm thick ones I usually utilize. Oh well, it will be a good excuse to use filler to hide the stands of the individual figures!
And then there are 50 of these 60 x 150 mm bases... I wonder what I'll do with them???
Wonderful products from Litko. I use them myself. Professionally cut bases really add to the overall presentation of one's painted figures. The 60x150mm bases might be useful for artillery horse teams and limbers and/or supply wagons. Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteBest Regards,
Stokes
Yes, 2 thumbs up for Litko; IIRC, time from order to delivery was about 1 week.
DeleteI wager many of us yield to these same "base" instincts. I know I do! Great product and now that lead times have shrunk and shipping is charged at a reasonable rate, Litko is a first rate operation.
ReplyDeleteOverspending your budget in 2018 simply means the 2018 budget was unrealistic. Your 2019 budget should see a good boost to realign with reality!
As for your 60mm x 150mm bases, I wonder if you are planning a "Renaissance" in reorganization and refitting? Hmm...
Ah, the permissive approach to budgeting; if I went over, it was due to unrealistic budgeting. We will confront that issue shortly with the year end stats!
DeleteUnlike some gamers I know (*cough*), I view re-basing as the Devil's own work; not to be done for any reason other than dire necessity! I will admit that the impetus style bases (and Simon's Bat bases), look great, but I prefer the flexibility and consistency of WRG element basing which I have used for Ancient/Medieval/Renaissance troops since the late 1970's.
DeleteNot a fan of rebasing either, though I do have a few singly based skirmishers soaking in water (loosens up the MDF and PVA) ready to be rebased to three to a base. I agree with Jonathan's point about budgeting! :)
DeleteLimited re-basing is one thing, although still to be avoided whenever possible! :-)
DeleteConsidering the exponential growth of your armies, your position on the budget question is duly noted...
Litko is my go to for bases/trays and plastic tokens. I find their prices and shipping times very good.
ReplyDeleteI agree Dean; at one time, delivery times could be a month or a bit more, but that is no longer true.
DeleteFor some reason, I've never had that issue, but one of my local gamer buddies has experienced slow delivery in the past. In fact, once when I got the wrong sized bases, I got the corrected one in a matter of days.
DeleteYears ago, I definitely had some orders take a month, but it wasn't really an issue to me. If I order the wrong item, that's my problem, but it's good to hear that they have been swift to correct an error on their part! Litko has never made na error on one of my orders to date.
DeleteYou can't beat Litko! I use them for all my bases. Great stuff, and fast delivery.
ReplyDeleteAgreed. I think it was Peter Celella of the HAHGS group who first alerted me to Litko back circa 2007; I have used them exclusively for bases since then.
DeleteI love them too. I never understand why some guys spend hundreds of dollars and hours of their armies and then base them on cereal boxes.
ReplyDeleteI remember using poster board in the 1960's, then sheet metal cut with tin snips and/or Masonite cut using my Dad's Table saw in the early 1970's, then balsa wood in the late 1970's, and then artist'
Deletes board from about 1980 on until the Litko era. Using Litko, is easier, less expensive, and looks better too!
And has save me from many a self-inflicted wound from an Xacto knife.
DeleteIndeed, had enough of those back in the day! I fortunately avoided serious injury from the table saw, though!
DeleteI use a local supplier but 200+ 3mm MDF bases at a time has become the standard for me. 50x150mm is surely for limbers, or at least that's exactly what mine are on! :)
ReplyDeleteOutside of the US. shipping makes Litko products unattractive, just as it does UK, etc basing materials shipped to the US.
DeleteWe are keeping track of the votes as to the use odf the large bases...
I managed to resist the Litko discount, and wish no I hadn’t as I always seem to find something I’m running short of. The postage to Australia really is becoming prohibitive though, and is around two thirds of the actual product cost. Strange that postage from the UK always seems much cheaper, and often free if one is prepared to spend over a certain amount.
ReplyDeleteShipi9ng within the US is generally inexpensive;to and from is... not!
DeleteYour experience is p[art of why I placed the order; the last time I passed up a Litko sale, I winded up placing an order barely a month later. Ouch!
It's surely sensible to take advantage of a sale when it's a staple that you know you will use? Not excessive at all,no figure purchases for me since April but I have bought stuff that means I can finish the figures I have, paint,primer and bases,you did get some bargains this year too!
ReplyDeleteBest Iain
Well, yes, that was more or less my thinking; I KNOW I am going to need some of these items by mid year at least, so get them now with the deal, rather than waiting and buying them without. :-)
DeleteMDF the best invention since the wheel :-)
ReplyDeleteFor miniatures bases, for sure, and increasingly various other items we can use, too!
Delete