Captain Hat
LightNews LightNews
banner
captainhat.bsky.social
Captain Hat
@captainhat.bsky.social
820 followers 700 following 2.3K posts
Just a weird neurodivergent lefty nerd trying to be a decent human being and make, modify & fix things. What kinda things? More or less anything. Art, models, games, cars, society. You know, things. He/him/his (mostly).
Posts Replies Media Videos
captainhat.bsky.social
Most of how I get past it these days is by not actually painting them black. I use a lot of heraldry and even on the "black" panels they look much nicer with a bit of depth to the shade.

Of course I am a bit of an odd duck when it comes to painting minis :P always doing too much
Castellan Liet Kynes of the Arrakeen Jihad; note that his "black" armour is tinted grey by the dusts of the desert, in the areas that aren't covered by some form of heraldry.
November 28, 2025 at 1:52 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
This was the first ever iteration of the Arrakeen Jihad, known to the High Marhsall as the 42nd Crusade. I made & painted these models 25 years ago.

I still remember my first game with them like it was yesterday.

I don't know if that's #OldHammer exactly but it's been a hell of a time.
A 1000pt Black Templar Space Marine army for Warhammer 40,000 (3rd Edition) comprised of two small Crusader squads with heavy weapons, a Black Templar Assault Squad with jump packs led by a Chaplain, a Dreadnought with twin lascannon and missile launcher and a Crusader Squad with close combat weapons mounted in a Rhino and led by the Emperor's Champion. This photo shows the 3rd Edition Warhammer 40,000 Space Marine Codex, Codex: Armageddon and the army list for the Black Templar force shown in the previous photo.
November 28, 2025 at 1:45 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
Introduce yourself with four MECHS

I have a lot more than four of these lol

Most of these were built to run a game I'm designing but they're good for other systems too

#WarhammerCommunity
#Battletech
#Warhammer40K
#nerdlings
#Orks
An old (3E) imperial Guard Sentinel miniature from Warhammer 40,000 customised to carry a storm bolter and chainsaw (on a custom gymbal mount made from a 6mm plastic BB) in place of its original weaponry. The Sentinel is bright red with a subtle Star of Chaos embossed across its armour plates and a small Icon of Khorne painted on an external storage bin in black. An old (3E) Warhammer 40,000 Imperial Guard Sentinel, rigged for light weight and running hard. The exhaust pipes are stained blue from heat, and the original green paint of the Sentinel is tarnished, the armour plates scarred with a mix of combat damage, battering from long use and symbols carved into its surface. There is no rust on the Sentinel which indicates that while it may be old and battered, it is well looked-after. The pilot is calm and collected behind his sunglasses, smoking a cigar and keeping his eyes peeled for potential threats. An Ork Dreadnought of the Deathskulls Clan. As is traditional for the Deathskulls, it is made almost entirely of stolen parts- this one was a Bad Moons Dreadnought that the Deathskulls "salvaged" from a battlefield before hastily patching it up with bitz nicked mostly from the Goffs and Evil Sunz. A Jade Falcon Dasher (Fire Moth) miniature painted to represent the one piloted by Mechwarrior Lan of the Falcon Guards during the Great Trial of Refusal at Tukayyid (as per the Clan Jade Falcon sourcebook from the mid-90s, though there is some debate/confusion as to the actual specifics of the Falcon Guards' TO&E because some sources conflict). Painting the Jade Falcon Clan and Falcon Guards symbols on the hips of this model are some of the most difficult bits of freehand I've done so far.
November 26, 2025 at 1:25 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
Oh, these guys are DEFINITELY the baddies.

This is the 42nd Crusade, internally known as the Arrakeen Jihad.

Yes, those are references to Adams and Herbert.
Panoramic shot of an entire Black Templar Crusade on the tabletop. This is the 42nd Crusade, also known as the Arrakeen Jihad. Close-in shot of Na'Ib (Castellan) Liet Kynes, Ancient (Standard Bearer) Gurney Halleck and Imam (Chaplain) Stilgar of the Arrakeen Jihad. Note that the native-born Arrakeen characters have bright blue eyes; the offworlder Halleck's eyes are red. Emperor's Champions Duncan Idaho (left) and Jamis (right). Marshall Leto II of the Arrakeen Jihad, with his Fedayeen honour guard behind him. I painted these guys a long time ago, before I'd figured out the eyes thing.
November 21, 2025 at 12:28 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
There are two possibilities I can suggest- either file down the Lego studs (flat file to reduce the vertical height from top & bottom) or cut two small circles from sheet styrene- you can score the circle with a wheel-lock compass & two needles or find a circular punch the right size (see pics).
Using a pair of screw-locked compasses with twin needle points to score a circle into sheet styrene- this is how I made the plates on the break room table in my Gaslands garage build (as well as the bases of the tall transmission stands). A table with a number of tools (punches, files etc) as well as a number of small circles of sheet styrene plastic- to the front are a number of smaller disks cut with a punch, and behind them are two larger disks cut using the method shown in the prior image followed by a Stanley knife and then cleaned up with a file.
November 15, 2025 at 11:56 AM
captainhat.bsky.social
Turns out I was completely wrong, at least about the IA article; there is an entry in there about the founding of a new Chapter, but it's vastly less sensible than I had thought.

I might have encountered the more sensible version somewhere else, but this is the entry, from Index Astartes (2002):
From Index Astartes (2002), a collection of articles from White Dwarf magazine about the Space Marines in Games Workshop's Warhammer 40,000 setting. From Page 6, in the "Rites of Initiation" article: Title: Founding New Chapters Text: According to their charter, each Chapter is obliged to send 5% of its genetic material to the Adeptus Mechanicus on Mars. This has two purposes. Firstly, it enables the Adeptus Mechanicus to monitor the health of each marine Chapter. Secondly, it enables the Adeptus Mechanicus to store gene-seed with a view to founding new Chapters. A new Chapter cannot be founded overnight. A single suitable gene-seed must be selected for each zygote. Zygotes are then grown in culture and implanted into human test-slaves. These test-slaves must be biologically compatible and free from mutation. Test-slaves spend their entire lives bound in static experimental capsules. Although conscious, they are completely immobile, serving as little more than mediums within which the various zygotes can develop. From the original slave come two progenoids, which are implanted in two more slaves, from which come four progenoids and so on. It takes about 55 years of constant reproduction to produce 1,000 healthy sets of organs. These must be officially sanctioned by the Master of the Adeptus Mechanicus and then by the High Lord of Terra speaking for the Emperor. Only the Emperor can give permission for the creation of a new Chapter.
November 6, 2025 at 9:38 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
Personally, the secret to my fine detail work is being extremely shortsighted.
The Invincible "Look at what they need to mimic a fraction of our power" meme with the fighter jets labelled as "magnifier glasses" and the Vitruvians labeled as "extremely shortsighted model painters." A crude pair of glasses is drawn onto Nolan (Omni-Man)'s face in black using MS Paint.
November 2, 2025 at 3:00 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
Finally, these are some atmospheric shots I just kinda like :)

Hope you found this project interesting. It kinda grabbed me by the head and ran away with me a little bit for a while there and there was a lot I wanted to show off, but I didn't want to spoil the surprise for the competition :)
Photo of the office & workshop interior with a muscle car low on the short lift, taken through the roller shutter with the lights off. Photo taken through the roof skylights; the muscle car on the lift sits partially shrouded in shadow, menacing in the gloom. A photo through the shutter focused on the back of the workshop, showing the monogrammed tool cases and the fire extinguishers in the corner.
November 1, 2025 at 4:32 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
These are just some small details that I'm especially fond of. The pillar drill is a thing I like a lot as well, but I've already shown that up close :p
Photo of the sink; note the dirty mug in the sink, and the clean one drying on the sideboard. This is the low-profile trolley jack; although I struggled to get the focus right for the photo I really like this item. This photo shows the break table from through the office window, showing the kettle, the pot of teabags, the pot of instant coffee and the bag of sugar. The "Sugar" on the bag s probably the smallest writing I've ever done with either brush or pen that is still kind of legible. The entire bag is maybe 2mm wide. If you open this image in a new window you can see that Laura has a weapons deisgn program open on her left screen, a CAD project with a car in the centre and something that looks suspiciously like Discord open on the right. You can also see the slightly-yellowed old all-in one print/fax/copy/phone thing on the reception desk that screams like hell when it's running but Laura refuses to replace it because she knows how to refill the toner cartridges herself, and in the foreground on the right of the image you can see the hand-cut gears that "operate" the roller shutter. The roller shutter cable is a cotton cord, again stiffened with cuperglue to pull it into a more realistic-looking shape.
November 1, 2025 at 4:26 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
I find it can be the small details that really make something work; The Gaslands team is sponsored by Miyazaki so that's where all their tools & tool chests are from (all labelled appropriately). I also made sure the engine hoists would sit above the lifts, and added character bits where possible.
These are the tool chests and workbenches (with integrated cupboards and tool storage). These are all made from foambaord blocks, scored across for drawers and vertically for cupboards & the gaps between chests. All of the tool storage units are monogrammed with an "M" logo for Miyazaki (the team sponsor) and the cupboard doors have "Miyazaki" written on them in full. This photo shows the wheel balancer with the workshop still partially assembled. Note the Miyazaki monogram and the digital screen on the balancer; the top of the unit has a number of trays for balancing weights, along with an applicator tool. This photo shows the sink and, most pertinently, the fridge underneath it. Apparently someone's been stealing Laura's cheese; the fridge has "Stop stealing my cheese! -L" written on it. This photo shows the hook from one of the engine hoists, pised to yank the motor out of a Hot Wheels muscle car. Note that it is centred above the lift that the car is sitting on.
November 1, 2025 at 4:15 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
The sink was something of a challenge; made from sheet styrene, cut into strips and drilled before cutting the panels and assembling the box shape. The U-bend is carved out of a thick styrene strip and the taps are made from 0.8mm brass wire with 0.5mm brass wire handles.
This is a WIP shot of the sink in assembly; I built it on the end of a strip of styrene cut from a thin sheet and assembled the sink as a box on one side of it from very small styrene panels. The sink is IIRC about 3mm deep and 5 or 6mm wide. This is the fully assembled sink with drying board, cut off the strip. To make the drying board, I glued on very thin strips of sheet styrene. This is an assembled shot of the sink from below and behind, showing the "wood" frame it stands on in the workshop (made from thin square styrene rods) and the U-bend under the sink made from a thicker styrene sheet. The brass wire taps are also visible; the unit next to it is the boiler, for the hot tap. Another shot showing the assembled sink (upper right). You can see the external stand pipe to the right of the sink & boiler assembly, with two pipes on it arranged to feed both the sink's cold tap and the boiler. Note that the stopcock on the stand pipe is open (aligned with the pipes going into the building). below the sink is the foamboard block "fridge" and to the left is the staff door for the office (also foamboard). Below the door is the manager's desk and office chair; the chair is made from sheet styrene and brass rod with a copper tube base, and the desk, screens, keyboard and mouse use the same materials with the addition of a foamboard block PC case and desk pillars. On the right of the image one of the engine hoists (mounted on the ceiling of the finished model) is just about visible; you can see the frosting of the superglue I used to stiffen the cotton cables on the hook.
November 1, 2025 at 4:00 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
I made three sets of fire extinguishers for the workshop as well; I didn't want to cut the ends off all my paintbrushes (which I'd recognised as being about the right shape) so I made a silicon form using them and cast the shapes in fast-setting epoxy putty. The rest is copper and brass.
Photo of two paintbrushes, the clicky end off a biro and a Dremel tool being used to cast shapes in silicon. This is the quick-setting epoxy filler I used to make the fire extinguishers; in the foreground you can see a set of fire extinguisher bodies setting in the silicon mould. This picture shows most of the fire extinguishers, partially basecoated because I forgot to take a WIP shot before starting. You can see the valves, handles and hoses added using copper tube and brass wire. The valves were a real pain in the balls; they're each made from a piece of copper tube that's a bit over 1mm long, which meant I couldn't clean up the cut face with a file after cutting- so I had to get them off very cleanly! This picture shows two sets of the finished fire extinguishers before gluing them in to the workshop, alongside some of the bench tools. On the left is a large bench vice, lower left is a bench grinder, upper centre is a pillar drill and to the right from back to front are two rows of powder, foam and CO2 fire extinguishers, all fully labelled.
November 1, 2025 at 3:48 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
Couple of detail bits here: Note that the spars for the engine hoists are mounted to the two strongest points on the ceiling frame, with the light rails mounted to other strong points. Also I couldn't use pre-textured material so I had to score the roller shutter panels myself.
WIP shot upwards into the ceiling, showing the ceiling frame, lift spars and lighting rails. The hoist spars are mounted to strong points in the roof- one at the most strongly supported point at the side of the building, the other along the crown where it's supported in three directions. The lighting rails are foamboard strips, mounted to the ceiling on brass wires with copper tubes used for fluorescent tubes. Note that the lights are higher up over the lifts, slightly lower above the mezzanine (to the right of the image) and lowest above the workshop area (at the rear to the right). This shot shows the construction of the guard rail and access ladder for the mezzanine more clearly. I would have used a textured sheet of styrene to make the roller shutter, but that would have been against the rules so I makred out and scored this panel instead. Scoring & rolling this sheet without accidentally cutting all the way though it was pretty tricky! I also couldn't use any premade cogs or spindles, either. These are cut from a thicker styrene sheet and cut & filed to shape. They came out a little janky, but they look fine in the assembled model.
November 1, 2025 at 3:38 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
I thought I'd add some WIP shots to show how I built everything as there's already a bit much to take in in the 4 images submitted.
The first storey of the building was constructed from about 500 individual bricks, made from 5mm foamboard cut into 3mmx8mm sections. Window and doorframes were also made from foamboard. Here is the first storey under construction. This photo shows the upper works in construction, walls sitting on the first storey with the roof not yet attached. The upper works are made from corrugated board over a foamboard frame. I used a battered old box to cut the board from, and I beat it up a little more to make it look suitably weathered. Note the construction of the guard rail on the mezzanine, all copper tube and brass wire. The tubes are all drilled so that the brass wire railings run straight through. This photo shows a number of the accessories I made for the office and workshop. On the left, the car lifts are made from foamboard. In the upper row of items, the two engine hoists are made from sheet styrene plastic with brass wire for the spindles, rivets and hooks and cotton cord for the cables. I used CA superglue to stiffen the cables attached to the actual hook, as they wouldn't otherwise hang straight. Next to them is the office staff door, followed by the sink unit, boiler, fridge and external stand pipe. The sink is made from sheet styrene with brass wire taps, and the external stand pipe is copper tube and brass wire. In the middle is the manager's desk and office chair. The bottom rows are the reception chairs, a pillar drill, a bench grinder, a large bench clamp, a wheel balancer and a number of work benches and tool chests. Everything is made from foam board, sheet styrene, copper tube and brass wire. These are some mroe of the accessories, with a Hot Wheels car for scale. On the left is the office break table with plates, mugs, cookies, a kettle, a bag of sugar, a pot of instant coffee and a pot of tea bags. I have a couple of mugs attached to pins at the bottom of the image that would end up in the sink & on the counter. In the middle is a low-profile trolley jack made from sheet styrene, brass wire and copper tube; next to it is a fax/copy/phone/printer all-in-one which I mostly carved from a single styrene block, then added the feed trays using sheet styrene. At the back are a pair of transmission stands for use with the lifts, made from styrene, copper and brass.
November 1, 2025 at 3:28 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
The Gothic kits are very pretty. I've got two Rets in my fleet- HIMS Victory and HIMS Imperial Sovereign- and I've found it's easy to make them look good :)
Retribution-class Battleship (for Battlefleet Gothic) HIMS Victory in black, yellow and gold Retribution-class Battleship (for Battlefleet Gothic) HIMS Imperial Sovereign in red and gold
October 27, 2025 at 5:08 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
Quote with your red art
#nerdlings #WarhammerCommunity #BattlefleetGothic
The Retribution-class Battleship Imperial Sovereign (miniature for Battlefleet Gothic), resplendent in red and gold.
October 27, 2025 at 5:01 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
I'm itching to share some of the multiple completely insane things I've done this month but I also don't want to give anything away or spoil the surprise.

Err, hopefully no spoilers?
Close in shot of a pile of rectangular chunks cut from black & grey foamboard A roundish cog with uneven teeth, hand-cut from sheet plastic. A thin sheet of styrene plastic, scored with multiple straight, parallel lines at regular intervals. Multiple rectangular blocks cut from foamboard sheet, each with a semi-random set of horizontal cuts across it.
October 27, 2025 at 1:39 AM
captainhat.bsky.social
Robots, you say? I have one or two! What flavour do you prefer? in stock I have a magic robot with a big hammer, a scratchbuild from when I was IIRC 14 or 15, a haunted robot piloted by the ghost of a space elf, and a scratch-built robot doggo.
Cygnar Ironclad Heavy Warjack from WarMachine, in dark metallic blue with dark bronze and dark silver highlights. Scratch-built robot Deinonychus made from balsa wood and mounted on a wood base in a running pose; the base reads "Enforcer II" in stylised text. Eldar Wraithlord miniature for Warhammer 40,000, painted in the colouors of Craftworld Iyanden (yellow and blue) and armed with two shuriken catapults, a Bright Lance and a Wraithblade. A scratch-built Cyber-Mastiff (robot dog) for Necromunda, painted red with an Enforcer badge and a carry handle.
October 3, 2025 at 1:17 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
So this happened to me years ago but I still think about it. In itself it's a small, silly thing but I use it as a way to think about bigger things, and how our limited perception affects the way we feel.

If you're in a marginalised group you probably already get it.

This post is about politics.
Partial screenshot from World of Warships showing the chat box in the "Port" screen. User "Hugh_Jaxident67" (nice user name btw), who was in a battleship (the ship class with the most hit points & thickest armour) is messaging me ("Captain_Hat") after a match in which I did a lot of damage to a lot of ships. This is the transcript: Hugh_Jaxident67: Reported Hugh_Jaxident67: Learn to target more than one ship Hugh_Jaxident67: Blacklisted Captain_Hat: Given that I did more damage to four other ships than I did to you, I'm not sure what your point is. Captain_Hat: In fact I hit two other ships for more than twice as many hit points as you. Captain_Hat: More than twice as many each, that is.
October 3, 2025 at 12:49 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
If you see this, post a picture from your device without explaining it
Queen Elizabeth-class Battleship HMS Warspite in the Indian Ocean, 1942. This machine killed fascists.
October 3, 2025 at 12:03 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
Well, I don't paint minis like this for no reason.

If believing we should try to make the world better instead of worse makes me a "terrorist" then, I mean, sure?
A pair of Gaslands miniatures, a performance car and a car. They both have "ACAB" written across them and an Anarcho-Communist symbol on the rear pillar.
September 18, 2025 at 12:18 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
Do you know, I don't think I've ever seen an Inner Sphere RIfleman sculpt I didn't like?

This is the Project Phoenix RFN-8D. Not a perfect photo, but it's a WIP so I'm not that bothered- first layer of paint on.

#Nerdlings #Battletech #MiniPainting #MiniaturePainting #MechWarrior
A Project Phoenix Rifleman RFN-8D miniature for the Battletech tabletop wargame with two Rotary AC/5s and two ER Medium Lasers, basecoated black and panelled in a flat tan colour.
September 16, 2025 at 7:56 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
Collective energy of the Royalist parts of Britain at the time:
Image of a twitter post including a screenshot from a movie of a kid talking with a mischievous look on his face with the subtitle "Do you guys wanna go see a dead body?"
September 16, 2025 at 12:36 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
I've included a transcript below with a full write-up in the alt text because I know that can be helpful for some people.
Charlie Kirk did not deserve to be assassinated. But I'm overwhelmed, seeing the flags of the United States of America at half staff, calling this nation to honor and venerate a man who was an unapologetic racist, and spent all of his life sowing seeds of division and hate into this land. (pause for applause) And hearing people with selective rage, who are mad about Charlie kirk but didn't give a damn about Melissa Hortmann and her husband when they were shot down in their home tell me I oughta have compassion for the death of a man who had no respect for my own life! I am sorry, but there's nowhere in Bible where we are taught to honor evil; and how you die does not redeem how you lived. You do not become a hero in your death, when you were a weapon of the Enemy in your life! I... I can abhor the violence that took your life, but I don't have to celebrate how you chose to live. I am... overwhelmed. -Pastor Howard-John Wesley
September 15, 2025 at 1:07 PM
captainhat.bsky.social
Full transcript in the alt text below.
Charlie Kirk did not deserve to be assassinated. But I'm overwhelmed, seeing the flags of the United States of America at half staff, calling this nation to honor and venerate a man who was an unapologetic racist, and spent all of his life sowing seeds of division and hate into this land. (pause for applause) And hearing people with selective rage, who are mad about Charlie kirk but didn't give a damn about Melissa Hortmann and her husband when they were shot down in their home tell me I oughta have compassion for the death of a man who had no respect for my own life! I am sorry, but there's nowhere in Bible where we are taught to honor evil; and how you die does not redeem how you lived. You do not become a hero in your death, when you were a weapon of the Enemy in your life! I... I can abhor the violence that took your life, but I don't have to celebrate how you chose to live. I am... overwhelmed. -Pastor Howard-John Wesley
September 15, 2025 at 1:06 PM