REVIEW and ADVICE: TESTING A BASIC AIRBRUSH and Future Goals and Recommendations - Harder and Steenbeck, The AIrbrush Company

OK, so we were lucky enough to get some good advice about airbrushes from not only Harder and Steenbeck but also from Lisa, at the Airbrush Company in the UK. 

Now whilst we are going to have to look at a more advanced kit for ourselves, we started with a very basic, extremely cheap one (as you can see left) so that we wouldn't be too much out of pocket if we didn't like it.  

Now whilst the one we used is OK and gave us a good taste (with the advice followed about how you water down your paints to help them through the needle), what we found was that the battery power didn't last too long, so much so that we had to have it plugged in for most of the time we used it as it was just easier to keep it going.  Now it was easy to strip and clean, it was easy to have on hand to do spraying, however the key problem was that it sprayed a little higher than expected and with the miniature size, I found that I had to have it on a lower setting allowed you to dial it in a bit better.  The other key problem and that for me, a 40mm nozzle was a bit too big for what I wanted and whilst it would be ideal for bigger mini's like vehicles or bigger miniatures like 75mm, I was wanting something smaller, like a 20mm nozzle that would have allowed me the smaller spray area for finer detail to make sure the paint went exactly where I wanted.

Sparmax ARISM Compressor with automatic on/off switch capable of providing 25 – 35 psi (includes a hose)

Sparmax MAX-4 Airbrush with 0.4mm nozzle and needle combination

Sparmax Silver Bullet Moisture Trap designed to remove water before it reaches your airbrush – and includes a bleed valve for you to adjust the pressure by bleeding out the air

Sparmax Cleaning Pot with built in airbrush holder

Which works out to: £295 inc.VAT

Although if you want a better compressor the recommended one is the Sparmax 610H Compressor. 

At the end of the day, it sadly is a case of you get what you pay for and if you are going to be using an airbrush for a lot of your hobby needs over a brush (just makes it a lot quicker) then this is something you might want to look into.  

We hope that this helps,

Thundermouser.

KICKSTARTER: Death X Tiles: Spaceship - CastnPlay

Here at Totally Pawsome we are majorly in love with not just mini's but scenery.  Whilst we love a lot of the new games, we also love to revisit some of the older one that we had a ton of fun with, and thought that this latest kickstarter from our friends at CastnPlay, would be ideal for anyone wanting to make a 3d Space Hulk board or even a spaceship for some futuristic TTRPG's.

If you act now you can get on the Early Bird offering (the whole set is only $7 this week) and we can't wait to see what people come up with.

As usual these are STL files so you will need a 3d Printer to create them or have a friend who can print them for you.  These files are FDM as well as Resin friendly.  To get these kickstarter files, sign up here:
Death X Tiles: Starship Mini Set

Here is the latest trailer:

If you do get them, please tag us with your creations, we'd love to see what you create.

ThunderMouser.

AIRBRUSHING: Getting started basics - Harder and Steenbeck

Hi Followers of Calloused Fingers and miniature fans,

There are times when you know that you want to up your game with mini painting to help work smarter and not harder so whilst you will always be learning brush techniques and concepts for things like paint thinning, we see a lot of those on YT using an Airbrush and are a bit at a loss for where to start, what to purchase and of course what extra bits you will need that no one told you about.

I've been doing a lot of research into this recently and found this video and whilst it is for a company that make Airbrushes, they do explain it all in an easy to follow format and also include accessories that you need for when you begin so that you're ready to roll straight out of the gate.  No, I am not affiliated or sponsored by them in any way, no I do not own an airbrush or compressor by this company, this is purely a get to know the basics video link by them that makes a lot of sense to me.  

After all I have seen video's mentioning other bits such as moisture traps before now and I'm still clueless about what you need with what in regard to them.

We hope this helps you to understand what's what and to get a firm grip on what you need before you spend a single penny.

All the best,

Thundermouser

MINIATURE NEWS: Passing of Lady Sabelle: Mistress of Miniscule - Dwarven Forge

We sadly heard yesterday of the passing of Michelle McGriff, better known to a lot of miniature enthusiasts as Lady Sabelle, Mistress of Miniscule, she has worked as an independent sculptor with not only her own range, but with Dwarven Forge (who let us know about her passing.)    

Today, (Wednesday 4th Feb 2026) Dwarven Forge's Twitch Stream, On the Anvil, will be a tribute to her work where they will share stories, build some of the pieces she made and celebrate her life.)

Please join them from 7PM Eastern Time,

ThunderMouser

KICKSTARTER NEWS: Dungeon of Despair: Chamber of the Mad Mage - Crippled God Foundry

Our friends at Crippled God Foundry, have just launched their new kickstarter for STL's for their adventure Dungeon of Despair: Chamber of the Mad Mage which is written for D&D 5e.  

With over 300 STL files within, their pack also comes with:

Modular 3D printable dungeon tiles

Themed accessories & props

Monsters, NPCs, and bosses

A full dungeon-crawl adventure (PDF)

 

What makes this so epic is that this set is designed and built by people who love to play at the table, they wanted a whole set that wouldn't just be able to use once, for just the one dungeon, but one that could be used for years and years, adapted and of course give you so many options that you are pretty much equiped for anything that your mind can dream up.

You want a Deep Dungeon, yep, there's a whole set dedicated to that, you want Dwarven themes and mines, yep, more than covered.  I mean look at all the thought thats gone into just this one pack.  Theres Mine Tiles, Mine Rails, Mine Elevator and of course all the accessories and terrain that you could desire when building alongside a whole host of characters alongside monsters to add to the scenario.

And to think that not only is it just this one pack set, but you also have the same time and loving energy put in to each and every set, so much so that picking which ones you want are going to be hard.

As such, you don't have to choose, each tier you can subscribe to brings you a whole host of choice.  

The pledge tiers are as follows:
The Mines of Despair:  Early Bird: $64, Kickstarter $76

Dwarven Mine Pack

Fast Build System Tiles

Dungeons of Despair: Chamber of the Mad Mage PDF

All unlocked stretch goals

The Deep Descent:  EB: $64   KS: $76

Deep Dungeon Pack

Fast Build System Tiles

Dungeons of Despair: Chamber of the Mad Mage PDF

All unlocked stretch goals

The Chamber of Despair:  EB:  $128  KS:  $152

Dwarven Mine Pack

Deep Dungeon Pack

Fast Build System Tiles

Dungeons of Despair: Chamber of the Mad Mage PDF

All unlocked stretch goals

The Master of Despair: EB:  $233  KS:  $280

Everything in the Chamber of Despair tier

All content from Dungeon of Despair previous tiles, minis and accessories

Magnet-ready version of old tiles

Fast Build System Tiles

Dungeon Crawl Book (PDF)

All unlocked stretch goals 

With a ton of add ons so you can pick and choose what you desire for your tabletop.

For more info please visit their kickstarter.

MONTHLY MINIATURE RELEASE: Sisters of Eternal Mercy: Unending Pilgrimage Part 2 - Heroes Infinite

 

Hail Mighty Readers and Mini Painting Officionado's,
In this brand new year of 2026 we've seen the latest releases from our friends at Heroes Infinite, the STL Subscription Service from Raging Heroes.  As we're so excited we couldn't wait to show you a good few of these fabulous designs that would make wonderful additions to any Sisters of Battle Army.  

This character centric piece will add so much to your table, giving you a central option to aim for, to add flavour as well as to give your troops something to protect as well as lead them.

Alongside this, they have a whole range of other mini's out there with two price ranges, where under the Leader Tier ($10) you get:

9-10 Heroes

3 Dynamic Troopers

1 Epic Centerpiece

14+ Scenic Bases

2 Monsters

Whereas if you take out the Overlord Tier ($16) you will get in addition to the above:

Additional 15-20 new Troopers, to create 5 different units 

Exclusive alternative versions of Heroes and Monsters, 

Mind-boggingly extensive Modular / Scatter Terrain

Exclusive additional models

fsuch as Mounted Heroes, Monsters, and more.

Finally you have the sovereign tier at $24 with the above alongside:

Additional 30-35 new Troopers

to expand 6 existing units

Exclusive alternative versions

of Heroes and Monsters

Exclusive additional models such as Mini Dioramas and more.

BONUS: Get special 80% discounts off the

Grim Darkness of the Expurgators

Grim Darkness of the Expurgators part II

Sisters of Eternal Mercy : Unending Pilgrimage + their REINFORCEMENTS

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Each tier is pretty fab and we also wanted to link to their YT vid where you can see the full range for your money.

Please join us in celebrating everything to do with the joy of mini's.

And as we continue the series please remember that some of these will only be available at the prices cited for this month, so if you like them, get them now.  

There are plenty of others that we don't have the space to feature so please watch the YT trailer so that you can see everything to decide if there's some that you really want.

FEATURE: Prepare for 2026 the Waaarrrggghhhhh is coming - Totally Pawsome and Warhammer 40K

 

Hail Mighty Readers and Followers of the Painted Mini's,

We've been hard at work and have put together how we plan to start the first few months of 2026 with our own mini schedule.  As such we've uploaded it so if you want to join us on our journey to Orkdom in 11th Edition of Warhammer 40K you can get a lot ready to roll along with us.

Totally Pawsomes 40K Ork Journey

So rouse yourself from the Christmas stupor, get those mini's prepped and primed and join us on week one of the start of 26 to get on with your own army.  Remember, the Waaarrrgggghhhh is coming, prepare to join....

All the best,

Thundermouser