Zoxe 101: Holding Figures

Figure holders were an odd mystery when I first got started.  My earliest Brimstone figures were painted with some of the sprue left attached to the feet so I had a handle.  I thought this was really clever, until I realized it worked really terribly - simple handling snapped the gate (sprue attachment point) and I was left with nothing to hold onto.

Here are three methods that I use today.  All of them are cheap. 



1.  Pill Bottles.
If you're on maintenance meds, keep some of those bottles.  Blue-tac directly to the lid, and voila.  Simple and nearly free.  I've heard that some people fill theirs with clean sand for weight and balance.  Some of mine have a stack of coins in them for a little more weight, but most are empty.

For bonus points, wrap the bottle in duct tape (the sillier the better) for style and comfort. 

Pill bottles w/ duct tape.  Super simple and nearly free.

2. Wine Corks.
You can collect your own corks, of course, but I bought a big bag from Amazon for a few bucks.  More than I'll use in this lifetime.

Straighten a paperclip, snip it to length, and use your pin drill to drill a hole into the model.  If your model has tiny feet, make a small divot (if you can) or glue directly to the foot.  If you plan to pin the model to the base, let the glue cure naturally.  If you will need to remove the paperclip later, shoot it with some insta-set which makes the glue brittle.  You'll be able to twist the paperclip loose later with pliers. 

I use my "patented" cork holder - a 2x4 with some holes drilled in it - to keep the minis upright.  The first one I made had the holes all the way through, which was easiest to do in the shop but makes moving all the figures a chore (I leave it sitting on a steno pad and lift the tray steno and all; someday I'll glue some scrap cardboard to the bottom).  The second one I made had the holes about 2/3 the way through so I can pick up and move easily. 

This is perhaps the most time consuming method I use, but is honestly the one I tend to use most.

Smaller 2x4 holder; the steno pad is part of the set because I drilled all the way through.

Second generation 2x4 cork holder (top) compared to the original.  I still use both.

Partially painted DFC UCM Corvette on a cork.  For the ships, I drilled into the hole where the clear mounting peg adapter will be installed later; when finished, the paper clip hole is hidden.  For humanoid figures, drill into the feet.

3. Scrap Wood.
For larger figures, I like using a scrap piece of pine.  These figures don't do well on pill bottles (height) and I want something with some heft to keep the figure from falling over.  I use a scrap piece of pine deck board that I scavenged from the garage. 

Scrap pine for the KDM Phoenix.

The same block of wood being used about a year later for the SoB Sand Kraken.