Harry is back after a year of hammering his backlog! How has it gone for him, a rousing success or an ignominious failure? Only one way to find out. Over to you, Harry!
Last time Mick asked me to write up a blog for Hammer the Backlog, I was fresh-faced and had a mountain of sprues and half-finished projects cluttering my hobby room. Fast forward a year and I’m excited to say things are going in right direction! The backlog is going down, and I have some nicely painted models to show for it. That said, it has not all been plane sailing. I have learnt a lot from my first year of following the Hammer the Backlog method, and I have brought forward these lessons into my second year. I thought it would be fun to share my top three tips for conquering your backlog!
- Less is more.
I will hold my hands up and admit that several times last year, I overestimated how much I thought I could achieve in a quarter. Ultimately the goal is to reduce my pile of shame to zero, but that should never come at the expense of my enjoyment of the hobby journey. When I was deciding on my quarterly targets, I fell into the trap of thinking that adding that additional squad here or character there would not take that much extra time. Suddenly what started as quite an achievable target became too much and quite stressful to meet the deadline. The quarters I enjoyed the most last year were the ones where I stuck to a boxset only as the target. If I got to the end of the project and still had time to spare, I could either do something extra or have a break. This year I am sticking to just boxsets as my primary targets. I can then do something extra if the time allows. I did this in this year’s Quarter 1. My primary target was to get the Bolt Action Afrika Korps Starter Army boxset painted. I did this with some time to spare. As a treat, I painted up a second Panzer III for the force. This was much a much more enjoyable project as a result!
- Go in with a plan.
The biggest reason for my hobby projects failing previously had been down to me not properly planning out a colour scheme. I rushed ahead in excitement, hoping it would all come together in the end. With the quarter-based deadlines of the Hammer the Backlog method, it is important to use the time you have allotted efficiently. Messing around finding a suitable scheme seriously eats into this time and leaves far less for actual painting. During last year’s World Eaters project, I did not test the scheme properly and the project ended up being far trickier than anticipated. When starting a completely fresh project, it is essential to get a couple test models done prior to starting the quarter. I did this with my Sons of Horus. I painted up a couple test models early last year and let them sit for a bit. It was the right call in the end as I ended up not liking the metallics I initially chose and picked out some more suitable ones. I was then able to get the whole project painted without a hitch. The plan going forward for me, is to set getting the test scheme sorted as a target prior to starting the main project. That way I know what I am doing when the quarter comes round, and I can make best use of my time.
- Factor in the real world.
Whilst we all use Warhammer as an escape from the real world, we mustn’t completely take it out of our minds. We all have social lives outside of the hobby which will affect how much time we can invest into painting. For me, I had a lot going on over the Christmas period and into January which meant my painting time dropped off massively. Likewise, during the middle of summer, I’m never going to turn down the opportunity to sit in a sunny pub garden with mates! This all links back to my first point of less is more. If you believe you will not have as much time in a Quarter to paint, plan accordingly. By not overcommitting, I can be confident I will complete my painting target whilst riding the wave of real life.
Without sounding too stereotypically British, the weather can also play a big part too. The conditions may make using tools like an airbrush more difficult at certain times of the year compared to others. I lost a good couple of weeks in last year’s Quarter 1 because there was too much moisture in the air to spray. Bearing this in mind this year, I chose my Afrika Korps as a project for Quarter 1 as I didn’t need to rely on my airbrush for them. Equally, at time of writing, we are currently going through a heatwave in the UK. It’s not fun trying to paint whilst feeling like a waxwork in a house fire… By not committing too much to start with, I was happy to write this week off and start afresh when it gets cooler!
The biggest advantage from adopting these amendments has been that I have been able to partake in some amazing hobby related events. The one I am most proud of has to be taking part in Merlin’s Miniatures Miniatures for Mental Health fundraiser in aid of MIND. I painted up a Black Templars Emperor’s Champion from my pile of shame and donated it to them. I’m really pleased that a model which has been sitting in my pile for a couple years got some paint on it and helped generate some cash for an amazing cause.
All in all, I’m really pleased with my first year of using the Hammer the Backlog method. I have painted far more models this year compared to previous years. This is definitely due to having a plan for the year ahead and sticking to it. Previously I would have fluttered between a couple projects but not have finish any of them. The satisfaction of getting a boxset fully painted and on display is a massive motivation for me to keep going. As I have shown in the article, I am not afraid to learn from my mistakes and make slight amendments to the process to better suit me. The end goal is still to reduce my pile of shame by setting achievable quarterly targets. If you haven’t given the methodology a go, I really recommend you do give it a try.
Harry is too humble by half, so make sure you give him a follow on instagram to keep up with his awesome projects!
Hammer the Backlog 
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