Cyanoacrylate

There are many reasons why I am a wargamer, although being especially interested in war or the military isn't actually one of them. What the hobby does do is reflect a number of other interests of mine. I've always been keen on history; I like playing games; the accountant/mathematician in me relates in the saddest of ways to sets of rules; the hobby is easy to pick up and put down which is handy for my erratic working life; and I really enjoy modelling.

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Note that I say modelling rather than painting. I don't mind the latter, but I have no flair for it or any particular interest in getting any better. My painting style looks perfectly OK from a distance when stuff is on the table and that is more than good enough for me. Nor unfortunately do I possess any sculpting aptitude beyond the odd hat or cloak. What I really like, and think I'm good at, is creating something new from existing figures and bits and pieces. One of the virtues of plastic (the vast majority of my collection is 20mm plastic) is that it's straightforward to chop things up and put them back to together again in a different combination. Or at least it would be if it weren't for my inability to master superglue.

I have never been able to get the stuff under control. Admittedly the belated - to me - discovery that nail varnish remover can unstick fingers eased the level of pain and blood involved somewhat, at least when my daughters had not made of with the stuff for the outrageous purpose of removing their nail varnish. But that still leaves my complete inability to reseal a tube in a controlled manner so it can be used again or not to stick craft knives to kitchen roll or plastic bags.

I am driven to write this by a completely disastrous attempt to fix swords to four Russian Dragoons that represent the second unit of heavy cavalry without cuirasse required by the C&C Napoleonics Russian expansion. The first such unit that I finished contains one figure whose sabre droops in a manner that might be useful if he was trying to gut a fish, but doesn't immediately call to mind a Napoleonic cavalry charge; and which was caused by my turning my back for a nanoscond during which time the bloody thing had shifted and the glue stuck hard.

"We can do anything we want to if we stick to it long enough" - Helen Keller