I thought I'd start my first vBench with a non armor project as most of my tools and kits are in storage. I ordered a pair of skulls for my daughters from a medical supply company (for that great American marketing holiday - Halloween), and then saw Ian's Avatar post.
Very Cool, I thought - so this the start/before picture, and I'm going to work on my skills/techniques on this puppy... tentatively it will be a Karelian Raider... with the appropriate Finn markings, etc...
-Metalizer paint,
-Molding A+B putty into larger sheets for "plate armor"
-Soldering - a trip to Radio Shack for some lights and resistors to provide a little interior lighting
-Try out the "rock salt" method of paint chips
Looking forward to any comments or criticisms

... Ian, if you're reading - any suggestions on a the type of modelling clay to use - and how did you get it to "set up"? I'm going to use Milliput at this point - but that may get a little pricy.
More to follow!
Paul