I base all my minis with magnetic base bottoms. Why? Well, there are a few reasons. Number one is transport and storage. When a model is transported in a box lined with sheet steel, or indeed in a metal biscuit tin that model is going nowhere. For frail models like Man O'War, with those masts, or many of the more recent GW minis, this is paramount.
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| Some of Hobbymad's range of magnetic base bottoms. |
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| Peel off the paper... |
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| Look at that. LOVELY. |
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| No sliding off the dead tray for these guys. Plus you are sorted for those battling down the fridge games. |
This again is super useful if you use movement trays. Line the tray with sheet steel and base the models with magnetic bottoms. Once in the tray, those lads are on there good. No more standard bearers toppling over or half the unit falling out on a hill, or, Gods forbid losing a few lads when lifting the unit. I used to transport my army in a large box with the units already sitting in the army trays, ready to deploy. The magnets kept everyone safe and sound.
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| The sheet steel in the tray keeps these doggies in line. Sit! Stay! |
Another reason I use them is the finish off the miniature nicely. No untidy under-base, just a nice flat black base. A little obsessive? Yep.
I used to get my base bottoms from Litko. This was fine, but shipping has skyrocketed from the States, and so that was the end of that. I experimented with cutting my own, that proved to be a huge pain in the arse. Cue Rob from Hobbymad and his new groovy router. Now I have access to very well-priced magnetic base bottoms from Ireland with free shipping over €10. He can also cut and etch a bewildering array of materials with it, so tokens, custom shapes, paint racks etc are all now on the cards, including custom orders. I may have cried a little. If you're like me, you love all the paraphernalia of gaming aside from the minis themselves, so access to custom tokens, counters, rulers and so on from a local supplier is a gift from the heavens.
I do have to say, in addition to this new machine of wonder, Hobbymad carry a truly massive range of paints from Vallejo to the glorious effects paints from AK Interactive. Tools, scenery, putties, dice bags, gaming mats, model kits, basing materials, books, magazines, glues and a teetering pile of other stuff, much of it often hard to reach but incredibly useful products you chase over half the web for normally.
So, certainly for Irish, but really for anyone in reasonable shipping distance (those base bottoms are otherwise only available in the US as far as I can see) do give Hobbymad a look.