Some Royalist Scottish Muskets Based

Last night I was able to get eight of my completed Scottish muskets based. I am using 40mm square bases and the figures ended up looking pretty good four to a base - there is that sweet spot between too much room and too cramped that I think looks about right for wargaming. My process for basing these is as follows:

1. Find a reasonable mix of four models that work well together and arrange them on the base, playing with angles and depths until they look "right".
2. With a pencil, mark the location and angle of each model.
3. Using a gel superglue, I then attach each of the four models to an unpainted base.
4. Take an old brush and coat the exposed base in white terrain glue while avoiding feet.
5. Dip the base in the scenic ground layer of choice, making certain that all the glue is covered. For this project I am using Woodland Scenics Fine Ballast in brown. This product has a nice dirt/mud feel that I will later cover with grass, flowers and stones.
6. Once the glue has dried, shake off any excess sand.
7. Spray with a matte clear-coat finish. This will protect the figures during handling and will also seal the basing material so it doesn't come off all over the table.

I was having a blast all the way up until step 7, when the clear-coat I am using currently (GW Purity Seal) decided to leave a "light dusting" on all of my models. I was absolutely furious. I had taken all the proper steps to prevent such a thing from happening (because I know it does), but it did it anyway.

So, in the end I have two bases done and ready for some scenery detail while some of my hard work was tainted. My hope is that when combined with the rest of the army this mishap will go unnoticed and will be forgotten - but I am still pissed.

Royalist Scottish Musketeers awaiting the arrival of their regiment.