For some odd reason my least favorite part of the entire 40k hobby is gluing sand to bases. I don't know why, but I just always dread that part. I think it has something to do with my first Warhammer army - Vampire Counts - and the fact that I used PVA glue for the sand and it was always falling off. Since then I have moved to using superglue and havent had any problems, but it is still my least favorite part.
I started using scenic resin bases a while back for some of my models and I just love them. It actually makes basing the models fun. After toying around with casting I decided that I would make my own resin bases.
I started off by gluing sand down to eight bases. I didn't want anything too tricky for my first go. After this had dried overnight I glued them to a piece of plasticard, built a box around them with legos, and then poured on the RTV Silicon from Hobby Lobby.
I let this sit overnight and then popped out the original bases. I was worried that a bunch of the sand would pull off but I only had a little bit of it come loose.
Once the molds were ready I mixed up a batch of resin and poured it in.
It took a few minutes for it to set but I was quite pleased with the results. I only had one or two out of the eight that I cast come out with a wobbly bottom. This will be easily fixed with a dust mask and some sand paper.
I haven't tried painting these up yet but I imagine it will be as easy as painting a base covered in sand. I will be sure to post some pictures when I get some models based on it and we will see if you can tell a difference or not.