Creeping Along- 28mm Battletech Stalker

Well, Thor’s Mechworks is swiftly becoming one of the big names on the 1/60 scale Battletech marketplace. I wish I could link to his blog or user page, but he doesn’t seem to have one. Best I can do is send my readers to Wingnuts Cockpit, a blog which his kits are regularly shown on. I just received a “Creeper” ‘mech from him- literally a 1/60 Scale or 28mm version of the STK-3F Stalker battlemech, using the aesthetics from Mechwarrior Online.

The kit is 3D printed in ABS plastic, which results in a very subtle layered effect, almost like wood grain, with the finished model. This can be smoothed down with fine sandpaper or rubbing with acetone. I’ve never worked with a 3D printed design before, and I have to say that the results are stunning. The kit perfectly captures the MWO aesthetic, which (considering how much more complex the video game designs tend to be) you would think would be harder to print.

Unfortunately the initial shipping missed one of the lower legs….exactly the same as happened to the Catapult. Ironic, but no big deal, Thor is shipping a replacement part and it’ll take me plenty of time to clean, sand, and acetone…ify(?) the mech to smooth it out and ready it for building.

The main construction is very detailed and incredibly posable, with joints at the knee and ankle, and a hexagonal socket for the hips, so that they can be inserted in a variety of positions. There are a ton of extra little greebles which you can see piled to the left, some go to the railing on the torso and the AMS mount, while others I have yet to decipher.

One thing of note: as this ‘mech is made out of ABS plastic and not resin, it is ridiculously light. I mean the whole thing must weigh like a pound and a half. While this certainly doesn’t give the imposing weight of a fully-built Armorcast Atlas, it also means that this Stalker (as all of the parts are hollow) won’t shatter if it’s dropped or tips over. The plastic seems very sturdy, too.

I can’t wait to get this thing smoothed out and built- I realized that ALL of my ‘mechs so far have been ones with the backwards-canted legs, and the STK-3F Stalker is really just the Catapult’s big brother…and by big, I mean 20 tons heavier. This is also the largest 28mm Battletech model I’ve gotten so far, as an assault ‘mech, which seems to be scaled properly, it will stand around 9.5-10” tall depending on how I do the legs.

Stay tuned in the coming weeks to see the full build in all its glory!