Wednesday 9 May 2012

Black Cat Bases Gangstas 01

I had a lot of fun painting this set of Black Cat Bases 28mm scale gangsta figures, known as "Da Dowgs." These are very reminiscent of Bobby Jackson's "Thugz" range and if you have them, the two sets combine together very well.
Each of the five Black Cat Bases' gangs comes with a canine mascot and five human gang members. Da Dowgs have a Doberman (shown at the far left of my photos) as their mascot. I have named him Tyson, after the boxer, Mike Tyson. His face is snarling aggressively. I think the term "beware of the dog" certainly applies to him.
I have named all of my gangstas in this set, so I'll use my names to identify them. The dude at the left of the gang, wearing the light blue vest, is Enoch Sinclair. He is pointing down with his right hand, which makes me wonder if he's telling Tyson to "sit!" In his left hand he holds a Big Ass Pistol like the .50 calibre IMI Desert Eagle. Note his gold medallion and gold bracelets. He likes to show off his "bling."
Next up is Dougie Da Dowg, whom I have appointed leader of this gang. He's not fat but he is overweight, so he probably gets his posse to do all the hard work for him, whilst he enjoys too many fast food meals. He is armed with a pump-action Shotgun, possibly a 12 gauge Remington. When I first saw him I thought he was wearing knee-length shorts, like the dude to his left. But upon closer inspection, I saw that he'd tucked his baggy trousers into the tops of his combat boots. It quite took me by surprise but it does show off his individuality. I'll let you decide whether he looks cool or not. Speaking of looking cool, I actually think he's wearing the glasses to help with his vision and not because they make him look cool... which they certainly don't! The least said about his tiny quiff of hair the better!
Selasie Richards is the name of the gangsta wearing the green T-shirt and pale blue knee-length shorts. Like Dougie, he is also armed with a pump-action shotgun but his is a sawed-off version with a much shorter barrel and no butt. His hair is just turning grey, making him the oldest member of my gang.
The gangsta second from the right is the uber-cool (in his eyes, anyway!) Adonis Mensah. GURPS Tactical Shooting has a section called "Things Not To Do" and second on the list is "Gangsta Shooting" as demonstrated by Adonis here. GURPS disparagingly remarks, "gangsta shooting has become popular with people who don't know what they're doing but worry about how they look while doing it." Ouch! The problem is gunmen who adopt this stance cannot aim properly. Adonis is clearly a fool. Just look how he's clutching his crotch. Who's he trying to impress? Note that he is wearing a black bandana on his head.
Finally, is Samuel Amoah, who, even though he's wearing a belt, has his trousers at half mast - all the better to show off his Calvin Klein boxer shorts. Yes, he's another poseur! In his right hand is a Coca-Cola bottle and in his left, a 9mm Micro-Uzi Machine Pistol. He's wearing a black beanie hat. Check out his gold ear-rings and bracelets, as he also shows off his "bling."
I love these figures, as they are so typical of African-American gangstas, for whom attitude is everything. These figures are so full of character and beautifully sculpted. They are crying out to be teamed up with Bobby Jackson's Thugz. Scale purists will be pleased to know that these figures are true 28mm scale. You can buy each figure separately for £3.00 each or £2.00 for the Doberman, but a better deal is to buy all six as a group for £12.00, saving you £5.00. Next time, I'll take a look at their female counterparts, the Sun Valley Bulldog Babes.

30 comments:

  1. I have these minis too, but it's nice to see them beautifully painted. I really, really like your paintjob on the Doberman.

    Whiteface / Oliver

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    1. Thanks, Oliver. The easy option to painting Dobermans is to just paint them all black. But I did a Google Image search and found that a lot are black and tan, so I just copied a colour scheme from there. It was still an easy paint job but looks more effective than just black.

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  2. These are very nice. Your paintjobs are excellent (again) and the minis are very well done. I like the black and tan on the doberman. Made a huge difference adding the tan.

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    1. I thought so too, Joe. Google Image is your friend!

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  3. Ah, those are REALLY nice Vamp. You have definitely brought out the 'thug' in these characters!

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  4. They were on my to buy list but you've nailed the look on those boys, great work.

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  5. I've been looking for some gangstas with a little more firepower to add to Bobby Jackson's Thugz, and these look like the ones to get. Thanks for sharing them.

    Also, what colours do you use to achieve such a nice light blue colour as seen in the vest on the first ganger? It looks really nice, and is noce a colour I seem amble to replicate.

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    1. Believe me, Adam, these will definitely mix well with Bobby Jackson's Thugz.

      I paint all of my figures with Foundry paints, now, although I have kept my Citadel Ink Washes. For Enoch's shirt, I used Foundry Sky Blue Light 21C for the shading, Foundry Vivid Blue Shade 22A for the base colour and Foundry Vivid Blue Base 22B for the highlights. Whereas Selasie's shorts are painted with the three shades of Vivid Blue 22A, B and C. If you're using Citadel paints, the closest would be Ice Blue, now called Lothern Blue.

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    2. Thanks.
      I've actually put an order in for a handful of Foundry paints since picking up their Painting Guide. The light blue I opted for was Tomb Blue, not vivid or sky. Hopefully it is close enough.

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    3. Tomb Blue is a pretty close match. Incidentally, Tomb Blue is the colour I usually use when painting faded denim. Very useful colour! :)

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    4. Perfect. Any other 'must have' colours you can recommend from the Foundry Line?
      How about reds. I purchased the Bright Red triad, but there were many red options.
      Tons of browns too.

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    5. Far too many choices to mention, Adam. I like so many of their colours. I'll tell you what really attracted me to the Foundry paints were their choice of flesh tones. I bought their boxed set of flesh colours and I'm very happy with them. You can paint any etnic type with them.The only thing they're not good for are zombies. For zombie flesh I use Granite 31A, B and C and Arctic Grey 33A for a final highlight. Most times the three tones are enough but for zombies I feel they need that fourth colour. I have well over 200 Foundry paints. I've been meaning to write up a review of them and the Foundry Painting Guides but I keep getting sidetracked by other stuff.

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  6. I borrowed some for a game some years back. They are lovely figures, and you've done a great job on them

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    1. Welcome aboard, Flashcove, and many thanks for leaving a comment.

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  7. I like the fact that every set has a dog with it.

    I may have to look into that, but or now....Too many damn projects!

    You have done a good job painting them Bryan. Again I might add.

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    1. The dog mascot feature of these figure is great selling point for BCB. I know all about having too many projects, Johnny!

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  8. Bryan! Stop showing all these kool minis. I already have to much stuff to work on lol. JK. Great job once again. I've started a blog as well and will update my city board progress daily. =)

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    1. Well done on getting your blog up and running, Morbious. I've added your blog to my list of favourite blogsites in the sidebar to the left. I hope others will start following you too.

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  9. Another piece of minature love.liness

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    1. What a nice phrase, Irqan - miniature loveliness! Thanks.

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  10. Great paintjobs as always Bryan andI will be copying your dog colour.

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    1. Thanks, Joe. I didn't expect Tyson to get so many comments but it seems he's the star of the gang. Go figure!

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  11. Good choice of colours on these hooligans Vampifan, they look good, and your right they go with BJ's Thugz very well.

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    1. You'd almost think that Bobby Jackson had sculpted these himself, but he didn't. I don't know who did sculpt them but kudos to him, whoever he is.

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  12. Nicely done Bryan. Still love how you instil personalities when naming your minatures. I do like all these figures and are on my want list

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    1. Thanks, Simon. I try to name my figures whenever I can. And you're right - it does give them a personality.

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  13. Bryan you are doing some of your best painting ever. The latest zombies and thugs are excellent :) Sorry I have been incommunicado, things have been difficult and I am working hard again. I'll try to send an email soon.

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    1. Many thanks, Roger. No need to apologise as I know what you're going through. I'm pleased to hear that you're working hard. I'll send you an e-mail this weekend and talk more with you.

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