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Fantastic plastics

Mike Blake reviews the latest plastic figures for collectors

Paragon Scenics
US Cavalry Horse Handlers & To The Last Man Booster Packs

These two sets provide extra figures to go with the previous excellent sets of Apache Wars 1880s US Cavalry, all in the usual Paragon style nice ‘stiff’ but easy to cut and glue plastic.

The dismounted Cavalry Horse Handlers are 10 figures in five poses.

There are four cavalrymen, in pale blue plastic in two poses. One has a picket rope in each hand, the other has a revolver in one hand and a rope in the other. The latter has sergeants stripes on his shirt. He is armed only with his revolver whilst his companion has holstered revolver, sabre and slung carbine. Both wear brimmed campaign hats. Gauntlets and riding boots. There are separate ropes for each horse, and also two swallow-tailed guidons which any of the men can hold in one ‘ring hand’. The picket ropes are a little stiff, and could be easily replaced with some cotton thread of the right dimension (model ships rigging works well).

Because they are plug-in arms (already glued) they can easily be swapped between figures to create even more variety.

The seven horses are in three poses, and come in black, brown or buff plastic. They are the TSSD horse as usually used by Paragon for their sets.

The To The Last Man set is even more interesting, containing an assortment of 12 figures in seven poses and four horses in two poses. This time let’s deal with the horses first – they are all dead! They come in two sprayed colours, brown and black, and are made from a very light-weight resin/poly-foam. Detail is, however, sharp and there are no air holes so often found in resin castings. Both poses are lying on their right sides, with heads and feet in different positions, and are very nicely done.

Actually two of the cavalrymen figures are made from the same material as the horses. These are also dead – or at least seriously wounded! The spray colour on these is pale blue to match the plastic of the other figures. Here there are four pairs in the same pose; kneeling firing carbine, kneeling reloading carbine, sitting firing carbine and lying leaning back on one arm firing revolver. This latter pose sounds a bit odd but is in fact one of the most natural and effective, particularly when placed behind one of the prone horses.

The other two poses are both represented by a single figure each. There is a kneeling figure firing his revolver in his right hand and holding his carbine in his left, and a lying firing figure. This latter is different from the others in that he comes with two heads. Not both attached of course, separate pieces which plug into his neck. One wears a slouch hat like all the other figures, the other a kepi, introducing a nice subtle variation. The head can, of course, easily be used on any other of the figures with a little knife and pin work.

None of the figures are encumbered with sabres, though most have the slings. This was normal by the period, of course, when sabres had been relegated to the parade ground as useless in the field fighting Apaches.
This is an excellent add-on set, which exactly creates that dramatic ‘Last Stand’ moment, just before the firing line is overwhelmed. Shades of the climactic fight in John Ford’s Fort Apache; all that’s missing is the Henry Fonda figure of Lt Col Owen Thursday with the white handkerchief under his kepi, defiant and arrogant to the last! I feel a conversion coming on…

Contact:
Contact:

Paragon Scenics & Miniatures
1520 North Street
Santa Rosa
CA 95404
USA

Tel: +1 707 536 9801
www.paragon-scenics.com

In the UK:

Steve Weston Toy Soldiers
14 Limburg Road
Canvey Island
Essex
SS8 0QJ

Tel: 01268 680117
www.plasticsoldiers.co.uk

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New Releases - Part 1

Reviews of new metal figures to arrive in the hobby by Martin Ainscough

Yeomanry Miniatures
ACW Series & World at War

As previously mentioned there was such an abundance of new figures released at the December 2013 show that it was impossible to cover them all in one go. Coupled to this the bad weather since Christmas and the problems as a result faced by some cottage makers, Brian Harrison at Yeomanry Miniatures, for example, has had his workshop flooded four times since the turn of the year, it is only now that yours truly has managed to catch up!

Brian had some very interesting figures on show in December and plans for 2014 promise many more. The first new release that made its debut was a Confederate Artillery Officer from the new American Civil War Series and is Part 1 in the set entitled ‘Get 'em into action boys!’

Part 2 will feature a 12 pound Napoleon Cannon with four running Artillerymen. Brian is currently working on assembling and painting this part of the set. All will be available as castings, or as painted figures, and in a new departure will come complete with textured surfaces to the bases while retaining the rectangular shape and a small touch of shading for added realism. The cost for the Officer (Part1) is £7.95 (casting) and £16.95 (painted), Part 2 comprising the Cannon and four figures mounted on one base will be priced at £59.95 (casting) and £119.95 (painted).

The second picture shows figures for a completely new set in The World at War Range entitled ‘A dismounted action’ and depicts dismounted cavalry in action suitable for either the Boer War or the Northwest Frontier period. The photograph shows figures from several parts of this set, for example, Part 1 consists of a kneeling Officer with fallen Trooper (front right of the picture). The pair of figures behind them is part of Part 4 and depicts a trooper carrying his wounded comrade.

The other troopers in the photograph are single figures from the set with the exception of the standing Officer loading his pistol (rear left) which is the Officer for the Maxim Machine Gun (Part 2) which will consists of the Gun, Gunner, Loader, Officer and two kneeling Troopers. Part 3 will consist of the Limber for the Gun with a two horse team and Driver turned in the saddle.

Both Parts 2 and 3 are in the process of being assembled and Brian hopes to have them ready for the March Show. Again they will come with the same experimental textured bases with Brian hoping to extend this type of base for all the ‘World at War’ figures as they are released. The complete set is complimented by a number of accessories in the shape of a couple of carbines and helmets which are not shown. All of the figures are available both as castings and painted figures. Costs of the various components of the ‘A dismounted action’ are as follows:-

Single Figures - £7.95 (castings), £13.95 (painted)
Set, Part 1 - £16.95 (castings), £26.95 (painted)
Set, Part 2 - £69.95 (castings), £119.95 (painted)
Set, Part 3 - £49.95 (castings), £79.95 (painted)
Set, Part 4 - £19.95 (castings), £31.95 (painted)

Contact:

Yeomanry Miniatures
10 Dolphin Lodge
Grand Avenue
Worthing
West Sussex
BN11 5AL

Tel: 01903 501028
Email: yeomanryminiatures@virginmedia.com

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Casting around January 2014

Paul Stocker looks at the latest castings to arrive on the market

Fontegris Miniatures
The Fontegris 10 Collection

A new range of 54mm resin castings from Fontegris is the first example I know of a manufacturer responding directly to the current difficult economic conditions and the effect on collectors.

New figures in the Fontegris10 range will all be priced at 10 € each. To maintain this price Fontegris are modifying their usual presentation and packaging. Most figures will not include bases, they will be packed in bubble wrap instead of foam and they will be packaged in an ecological paper bag with a small coloured sticker.

This new approach is perhaps easier to achieve with lighter resin castings than with metal ones but it sounds like a commendable enterprise and I hope it’s successful. The two attractive figures shown here are a Crusader knight and a medieval lady (Lady Marian).

To order any Fontegris kits from outside Spain, you should send your order via email and specify if you require delivery by surface or airmail. Fontegris will reply to confirm availability and total cost including P&P. Fontegris accept payments by Paypal for orders from outside Spain.

Contact:
Fontegris Miniaturas
C/Independencia Nº3-4
33212 Gijon - Asturias
Spain

www.fontegris.com

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Metal Review Jan 2014 New Releases

Reviews of new metal figures to arrive in the hobby by George Phillips, Martin Ainscough and Mark Avery

Open Fire Figures
Various new releases

Last issue I gave a brief review to a new company Open Fire Figures who had released a set of WWII partisans. At the time I knew very little about the company but the figures certainly garnered my interest enough to make me want to find out more. OFF were thankfully in attendance at the December London show so I made a beeline for their tables first thing in the morning to see what they were all about.

Upon approaching the tables I could see a very professional set up (something you don’t always see at toy soldier shows let’s be honest), with sets clearly laid out and smartly presented. The tables were manned by the driving forces behind the business, Adam Gayford (sculptor and painter) and Louise Boardman (painter), the pair are extremely friendly and I was very pleased to learn that although knew to toy soldiers they have been producing wargame scale figures (15mm and 28mm) for quite some time.

As well as displaying the WWII partisans the pair also had three other new sets on display. First up was a WWII SBS canoe, there are actually four very subtly different versions of this available (two different camo patterns with two different oar positions as far as I can tell), these sets are well painted and appear to be aiming to emulate the matte Chinese paint style and scale allowing these to be used in dioramas filled with figures by the larger producers (a smart idea). Price at £80 per set these are interesting little sets that appear to fill a gap in the market.

Next up I took at look at a set titled ‘Sir Henry Morton Stanley – Through the Dark Continent. An age of exploration’. This I feel is an unusual but quite daring set as usually when new businesses decide to enter the toy soldier hobby they ‘play it safe’ by producing Napoleonic, WWII etc. so I think OFF should be highly commended for treading a different path. Personally I love this set and I certainly hope Adam and Louise add to it, all eight figures have a high gloss finish (although can be ordered in matte) but both styles, including the gloss version, feature a more detailed painting style akin to what we’re used to seeing from China based producers in recent years. Priced at £300 the set is not exactly cheap, as this equates to £37.50 per figure, but given the level of detail and the fact that this set, like all current OFF releases, is limited to only 25 sets ever being produced it actually seems like a very fair price. And if you like the look of this set then make sure you turn to page 72 and enter our competition this issue as OFF have kindly donated one of the 25 sets as a prize!

Last, but by no means least, is my personal favourite, the Chelsea Pensioners. I have seen the CP’s produced by dozens of companies in various formats over the years but I can honestly say that OFF’s version are one that really got Andy and I talking when we photographed them at the show. The seven figures that make up the set are all very bright in their red overcoats, and this is enhanced by the high gloss finish applied by OFF, add to this the mix of five regulars, a corporal and a sergeant and varying facial features including beards and moustaches, and this set really stands out from the crowd. Again not cheap at £260 (around £37 per figure) the price may put some off but honestly these are worth a closer look, good chunky sculpts combined with nicely detailed shading, all made in the UK and package in an interesting and somewhat quirky way make me believe OFF are off (no pun intended) to a flying start in our hobby.

Review by Mark Avery

Contact:
Open Fire Figures
77 Belmont Road
Sale
Cheshire
M33 6HY
Tel: 0161 976 3070
www.openfirefigures.com

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Plastic Review January 2014

Fantastic Plastics
Mike Blake reviews the latest plastic figures for collectors

Pegasus
WWII German Fallschirmjagers

A welcome WWII set of figures which are rarely made – German ‘Paras’. Airfix did a set, and the odd figure appeared in some Forces of Valor sets, but other than that there have only been metal ones, like the excellent Britains ones. Pegasus’s previous releases were some WWII Russian Naval Infantry, and they were in hard plastic. This latest set of 10 poses is in brown soft plastic.

Fallschirmjager or Fallschirmjaeger is German for paratroopers. During WWII, together with the Gebirgsjäger (Mountain Troops), they were seen as the elite infantry units of the German Wehrmacht. In WWII they were the first paratroopers to be used in large-scale airborne operations. They were dubbed the ‘green devils’ by the Allied forces they fought, and renowned for their incredibly strong fighting spirit.

The poses are all action ones with a useful variety of weapons; kneeling firing Panzerfaust, kneeling firing Panzersrecke, kneeling firing rifle, standing firing SMG, standing firing LMG from the hip, standing with SMG, advancing with rifle, walking with rifle (smock bottom open), advancing firing SMG and throwing grenade.

All good useful poses, with converting options. For example, two of the advancing figures could be given the anti-tank weapons to carry, so that you have a moving and an in-action version. All wear the camo smack and special helmet, except an officer figure in tunic and peaked cap.

There is a nice dynamic to the poses, especially the kneeling Panzerfaust firer leaning forward, the figure firing the LMG leaning back under the recoil, and the figure running forward firing an SMG.

Review figures provided by:
Steve Weston Toy Soldiers
14 Limburg Road
Canvey Island
Essex
SS8 0QJ
Tel: 01268 680117
www.plasticsoldiers.co.uk

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Painted Metal Review Dec 2013

Reviews of new metal figures to arrive in the hobby by Mark Avery
Frontline Figures
ACW & Napoleonics

Gerard Prime, the owner and operator of Frontline Figures in Hong Kong, is possibly the granddad of the modern toy soldier (I’m sure Gerard will love me calling him that!) My reasoning is due to the fact that Gerard, or rather Frontline, were the first company to begin producing modern style toy soldiers in Hong Kong/China back in the early 1980s (shortly followed by King & Country). Since the company’s humble beginnings FF grew into a major manufacturer of figures during the late 90s and early 2000s, and although now Gerard only releases a few sets a year I can almost guarantee that most modern day collectors have at least one or two Frontline sets in their collection.

The two sets released most recently are Generals Lee, Stuart and Longstreet (with an A.D.C.) for the ACW range (ACP12) and a French Imperial Guard band (featuring 12 musicians) from the Napoleonic Wars (FGB7).

Both sets are really well made and feature Frontlines inimitable style, matt painted, detailed, whilst still retaining a somewhat toy-like quality. Gerard confirmed to me at the time of writing that these sets have been purposely released with less figures than previous, similarly styled, sets to ensure the price is kept lower and more affordable. Expect to pay £66/$88 for the ACW set and £145/$216 for the 12 piece band.

Contact:

Frontline Figures
14th Floor, Unit A, Derrick Industrial Building
49-51 Wong Chuk Hang Road
Aberdeen
Hong Kong
Tel: +852 28380263
[www.frontline-figures.com]

In the UK:
Frontline Figures UK
1 Holmsdale Close
Westcliff-on-Sea
Essex
SS0 0QW
Tel/Fax: +44 (0)1702 352060

ACP12) Generals Lee, Stuart and Longstreet (with an A.D.C.)
FGB7) Napoleonic Wars 1804-1815, French Imperial Guard band

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Casting around December 2013

Paul Stocker looks at the latest castings to arrive on the market

All The King’s Men
Napoleonic French Cuirassiers

Having dealt pretty comprehensively with the troops of the American Civil War, Ken Cliffe has returned to the Napoleonic Wars and released his first set of Napoleonic cavalry. These depict one element of Napoleon’s intimidating ‘heavies’, the armoured Cuirassiers.

By the time of the French Revolutionary War, few European heavy cavalry regiments, except those of Austria, wore the cuirass (breast and back plate) on campaign. Heavy cavalry headdress evolved from tricorne to bicorne hats and then, early in the 19th century, changed to helmets made of hardened leather or iron. Napoleon revived the concept of armoured heavy cavalry with first one, and eventually fourteen, regiments of cuirassiers and two regiments of Carabiniers-à-Cheval. European nations readopted the cuirass for some of their heavy cavalry in response. The British Household Cavalry regiments only adopted cuirasses as part of their full dress uniforms after the Napoleonic Wars.

Ken’s Cuirassiers are cast in metal while their horses and bases are plastic to keep the sets lightweight. The riders are multi-part kits, each consisting of body, head, arms, scabbard, carbine and bedroll. This means that riders can be assembled in a variety of poses.

Each set consists of eight figures, six troopers, an officer and a bugler plus eight horses with bases. The original riders are owned by Stockade Miniatures in their Soldiers of the World range and AKTM are producing them by arrangement with Stockade. The horses are from DSG of Argentina and produced from the old Britains’ Deetail molds owned by DSG.

Each unpainted set costs $45 plus postage. Individual riders and horses are available for $10 each. Osprey Books provide a very comprehensive description of the uniforms and equipment of Napoleon’s Cuirassiers and Carabiniers in No.64 in their Men at Arms series.

Ken is promising to add an addendum to the AKTM wargame rules for the Napoleonic period to cover such things as mass cavalry charges and massed artillery batteries. The rules are available as a free PDF at: http://allthekingsmentoysoldiers.com/documents/ATKMRules2ndEditionOnline.pdf

For orders up to $50, shipping costs are approximately $8 per set assuming a Continental US customer but shipping rates drop per set according to the size of the order (e.g. $22 for Orders up to $400). Contact Ken about the cost to destinations outside the USA.

Contact:
All the King's Men Toy Soldiers LLC
2456 Hewatt Rd
Snellville
GA 30039
USA
Tel: +1 770 978 1645
www.allthekingsmentoysoldiers.com

Nap.French.Cuirasiers.Primed.LowRes1.jpg & Nap.French.Cuirasiers.Primed.LowRes2.jpg) French Cuirassier primed for painting

NapFrenchCuirassiersPaintedLowRes1.jpg & NapFrenchCuirassiersPaintedLowRes2.jpg) French Cuirassiers painted

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Plastic Review December 2013

Mike Blake reviews the latest plastic figures for collectors

Victrix
Napoloenics

Enterprising UK maker of 1:30 - 1:32 scale Napoleonic figures has produced three sets of resin figures to complement the previous hard plastic multipose figures sets. There are two sets for the French and one for the British, with two figures in each pack.

VX54002 and 003 are French Standard (properly Colour, of course, as they are infantry and only cavalry flags are called standards) bearers. The sculpting is up to Victrix’s usual high standard, extremely crisp with very little flash to remove. All four are in different poses and different uniforms. In each pack there are two metal Eagle finials to go on the colour stave. They also provide the flags themselves, but not the staves. These are easily made from brass rod, and the Eagle is made in such a way that the base can be drilled out to fit onto the rod. The figures are real characters, the faces being especially good.

X54004 is a set of British Light Infantry officer (a very nice figure – marvellous pose) and sergeant. All the sets are a most welcome addition to the Victrix range. The company is also planning sets of alternative heads for the British figures, expanding their usefulness even further. There is also a French artillery set planned.

Contact:
Victrix Limited
84 Greenside
Kendal
Cumbria
LA9 5DT
Tel: 01539 724415
www.victrixlimited.com

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Casting around October 2013

Paul Stocker looks at the latest castings to arrive on the market

Irregular Miniatures
New mounted knights and defensive stakes

Ian Kay has followed up the new Medievals on foot featured last time with two new mounted knights – one for the period of the Crusades and one for the Hundred Years War - and a new charging caparisoned horse suitable for either period. The knights will go well with new the foot figures and Ian’s new helmets can be used with either figure. Assembly is minimal consisting of fixing helmets, lances and shields into place but reins will need to be added to the horse as these are not supplied. Purists might think the horse isn’t yet fully into the charge but it’s still a nice horse.

_MG_3643) Crusader knight
_MG_3645) Hundred Year War knight and defensive stakes

Ian has also produced two defensive stakes of the kind used to defend archers and infantry against cavalry attacks at Agincourt. These are bound to be useful but the small individual bases mean they need to be fixed to a larger base to stop them falling over.

The new castings measure 54mm approx. The mounted knights cost £9.50 each and the defensive stakes cost 60p each. Postage: UK 10%, Europe 20%, Rest of the World 20% (Surface) or 30% (Airmail) (40% for scenery). Ian can now accept Paypal but please add 3% or add 5% for conversion charges if not paying in GB £'s. And if you are making payment by cheque, please make them payable to ‘Ian Kay’.

Contact:
Irregular Miniatures Ltd
41 Lesley Avenue
York
YO10 4JR
Tel: 01904 671101
www.irregularminiatures.co.uk

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King & Country - Various WWII releases

October 2013

For the past 15 to 20 years there has been one name within our hobby that has been synonymous with, and some would say defined, the matt WWII genre for collectors. I am of course talking about King & Country, yes you could argue that in recent years they have been given a ‘run for their’ money by companies such as Figarti and First Legion who have also released some superb WWII figures and vehicles, but K&C were the pioneers and are still adding many superb sets every month to tempt collectors.

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