Varnish Help

Now I may have got this wrong but....

At the club a while back we were talking about varnish and how to achieve a good matte finish. Most of those using a matte finish rated the Humbrol varnish.
Saturday morning saw me in my local Hobby Store (D Hewins - East St. Marys Gate in Grimsby) and I noticed that he had several jars of Humbrol clear Cote matte finish. Ahah! I thought just the ticket.

Well I'm not happy with the finish. Yes it is certainly clear - crystal clear and smooth. But it isn't matte but more of a satin look. Better than the large tins used for DIY purposes that I've used in the past (although being oil based it does need the use of white spirit which is a downside for me because I dislike using such materials).

Perhaps it was me I thought. So I tried again, vigorously shaking the jar and then stirring the contents and then stirring them some more - there is a definite reluctance in the gloop to mix and stir well.
But the results are the same.

So - have I got the wrong varnish? Or am I doing something wrong?

The first outing for the French with the Gendarmes in their new coats. This time the forces of Louis faced those of Tecklenberg distinguished by rather natty yellow uniform.

The French had seven line battalions with a supporting guard battalion. Two line horse regiments aided the massed companies of the Gendarmes.

The Tecklenbergers had a similar number of battalions, all larger in number and eight large squadrons of horse.
My plan was simple. Advance the right and use the Gendarmes to break through the enemy line and divide the foot into two parts. As the horse broke through the right would be held by a single battalion and the enemy center attacked by the central four French battalions.
The Gendarmes duly set of and were forced to angle slightly towards the enemy center to locate the opposing horse. Once the two forces clashed the Gendarmes rode over and through the enemy.
The two centers then came into musketry range and a fierce fire fight ensued with neither side gaining an apparent advantage.
On the French left the Tecklenberg lines poured fire into the French and only the stubbornness of the infantry held them at bay.
Meanwhile the French guard advance and in a single volley swept away the enemy infantry. This was a bright spot on the French right since theses same enemy had just routed the French horse which were meant to be supporting the Gendarmes but instead tried and failed to take on the enemy foot.
The battle came to a swift end as the Gendarmes rallied and then turned to attack the rear of the enemy center.
Attacking the first battalion they swept them away and then as the enemy lines crumpled and the Gendarmes were given free rein to attack the remaining troops, the Margrave realised that it was lost and withdrew from the field.
This game definitely belongs to the Gendarmes. For the loss of less then a quarter of their strength they removed six squadrons of horse and two battalions of foot. A battle honour indeed.
In fact if you wore a red coat and were fighting for the French then you had a good day. The Swiss guard only fired one volley but that destroyed a quarter of the enemy battalion and routed them from the table.

My thanks to Mike for the game and his imagi-nation of Tecklenberg. Mike has followed the route of so many and created a fictional army for an historical state that allows him to field many of his favourite regiments from the age of reason.

Triples

The first year in the new (permanent?) venue and a vast improvement over the Octagon. Gone are the dark and dingy areas, the maze like corridors and sprawling show. In its place is a bright and clean venue with plenty of space and access to all the traders and games.
The show is in two rooms with both having plenty of space to spread out and show their wares off. Good lighting and air movement means that the headache inducing claustrophobia of previous years is a memory.
AS a result I was able to spend more time looking at the traders wares and feeling the need to put hand in pocket far more often than last year. There were some notable gaps in the ranks of the traders (can't all be down to clouds of volcanic ash can it?) and amongst them,disappointingly, were Newline who I'd lined up for a spending spree.
Still there were enough traders to take money off me and I came home with several books, movement trays and bases. Add in some pirates, plastic ECW and Irish from a number of different traders and I was pleased to have been there.

On the downside the games on show were universally disappointing. There was nothing to cause me to take the camera out and little in the way of innovation and spectacle. Again there were a lot of empty tables that had been allocated but the occupants absent.

Talking to several traders none of us could determine whether the show was better attended or, because of the space whether the numbers were down. All of the guys I spoke to had better takings so were happy.

For the first time I entered a painting competition - a speed painting challenge sponsored by Old Glory. Thirty minutes to paint a 40mm figure already black undercoated. The competition had four rounds each with upto six participants. I won my round and then ultimately won the grand final where the winners of each round were put against each other. A very pleasing result and a fun challenge.
As a nice touch each participant was allowed to keep their figure and the paint brushes and all this for free.
So my thanks to Old Glory for putting the money up and for the Sheffield Irregulars for hosting the event.

Gendarmes Part 4

The remaining three squadrons have been completed & the entire corps now ready to take to the tabletop.

As in previous posts the squadrons follow the company designation (almost).

The third squadron is Bourguinons distinguished by the green cross belt. It should be a dark green but the GW Snot Green looks quite bright over a white undercoat.

The fourth squadron is Du Flandre with the leaf brown belt - in this case GW Vermin Brown.
Finally the fifth squadron is Du Dauphin with the Blue belt - GW Enchanted Blue.

To finish then two shots of the entire corps - forty figures ready to go.

So what's next?

Well this revamp of old figures has got me thinking about some of the other collections that sit in boxes on the shelves in the study. Amongst them are the very first horse and musket figures I purchased and are older then even the Gendarmes above. So I'm very tempted to go back and revisit those, repaint /touchup the figures, rebase them and then get them back onto the table for the first time in over ten years.

What are they?

As a very strong hint all I'll yell is "Claymore!"

Paschendaele

Not sure if this ever made it to the big screen and if not I can understand why. With no household names (unless you count Paul Gross from "Eastwick" & "Due South") in any of the leading roles and little in the way of large scale combat despite the title it has little that would make it stand out on a seventy foot screen rather than a large tv.
The film centers on a decorated war hero, Micheal Dunn, returned home suffering from PTSS in modern parlance. Here he encounters bigotry and insensitivity from the locals apart from others being intimidated and made outcast. The story meanders along until Dunn is returned to the western front and the battle of Paschendaele.
The battle is seen in only small sections but manages to covey the immensity of the courage and bravery of the men who fought in the mud and blood. The effects are very good and give a real sense of the horrible effect modern weapons have.
The film is obviously written as an anti-war statement and is none the worse for that.

I have this on blueray and glad I do.