Hazmat Team Beta cautiously makes its way through a zombie-infested area in search of survivors. So far there's no sign of Team VHS.
Having a group of survivors/soldiers in hazmat gear is something I've wanted for ages. Unfortunately I didn't realise that "ages" would be extended by the six-week wait for these to arrive from Hasslefree. Still, as usual they're great scuplts marred only by the end of the flamethrower being bent 180 degrees and breaking off when I tried to straighten it.
Hasslefree also does a Hazmat Team Alpha, but all four figures in that one are armed with G36 rifles. I got Team Beta just to have a guy with a flamethrower.
After googling "hazmat suit" it appears that they come in four basic flavours: bright green, white, yellow and orange. As I like orange I decided to go that route. The suits were given a basecoat of Heavy Orange and a topcoat of Wild Rider Red, highlighted with Rust as it was easier than mixing my own shade. The highlights are there, honest; you can barely see them in my as-per-usual crappily lit photos.
I wanted to keep the paint scheme simple so just did all the non-orange bits Black Grey and highlighted them with Neutral Grey. The final touch was painting their facemasks Deep Sky Blue with a bit of Sky Blue.
They were straightforward enough to paint, although the process wasn't helped by having to touch up where orange got on the grey and vice-versa. Another issue I had is one that crops up a lot: for some reason, Vallejo Black Grey (along with Black) tends to rub off incredibly easily, even after being given a coat of matte varnish. You can see in the top pic where it's come off the gun barrel on the left. I really wish I knew why this was, although it could be that I just got a dodgy pot.
Very effective looking suits Matt, do like the orange colour scheme you've gone for, and the visors look great.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Dave! I toyed with doing them lime green for a bit, but my preference for orange overcame that :-)
DeleteOutstanding suits, Matt. They look excellent, and I love the orange colour you have created. Once again your shanty building really helps to contrast with the palette of your figures too. I haven`t bought anything from Hasslefree in an age, and was disappointed not to see them at the last Salute, but will keep any eye out for these Hazmat figures when I do next visit their stall.
ReplyDeleteCheers, Simon! They look really good in a post-apoc setting and despite being bright orange they somehow fit in to that scenario. They're good sculpts and are well worth the effort.
DeleteI can see the highlights - nice and subtle. Good looking group of faceless folk. Those blue face masks are a perfect contrast too
ReplyDeleteYay, glad at least one other person can see the highlights lol. The facemasks were going to be black, but I decided on the blue at the last minute and they worked.
DeleteThese are great for any kind of post-apocalyptical gaming you might want to do. I like the red color choice as it makes these four stand out. It also makes them look a little dodgy to me. I certainly wouldn't want to be anywhere near them apocalypse or no! :)
ReplyDeleteI've always found the white ones to be the most menacing because they're so featureless, but the orange ones do make you wonder if these guys are some kind of off-the-books special force with dodgy orders.
DeleteLovely bit of painting there sir! The orange works really well and makes a change from the yellow most people paint this sort of stuff.
ReplyDeleteCheers Roger.
Cheers, Roger! I like how they look different to the normal hazmat suits you see.
DeleteI too have the Hasslefree hazmat teams and fount their weapon extremities quite brittle. WHilst mine are in a gaudy yellow I think I prefer your slightly subdued orange !
ReplyDeleteGreat job on these.
Thanks, Joe! Yellow was in the running for their suits until I discovered the orange ones. They're great sculpts but it's a shame the gun barrels are so fragile.
Delete