During my visit to SKIRMISH yesterday I managed to buy some of the things that I had planned to purchase including some Britains Deetail American Civil War figures (to form the basis of an infantry unit for my LITTLE WARS army) ...
... two boxes of 1:72nd-scale Pzkpfw38(t) models (made by Pegasus Hobbies) ...
... and two boxes of Carro Armato M13/40s (made by Italeri).
The tank models are all fast assembly kits, and when they are constructed and painted they will probably form the backbone of a 1930s imagi-nation's tank force.
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Those britians figs must have cost a couple of quid or?
ReplyDeleteCheers
Paul
Paul's Bods,
ReplyDeleteThey were £1.50 each ... which I thought was quite reasonable.
All the best,
Bob
The fast build Italian tanks caught my eye I will have to look out for them
ReplyDeleteGeordie an Exiled FoG,
ReplyDeleteThey cost £8.50 for a box of two models.
I suspect from the way that they are packaged, the chassis will be used as the basis for models of the Italian self-propelled guns.
All the best,
Bob
Some nice toys Bob. I've been scratching around looking for diecast or fast build British tanks as I have an embarrassingly large collection of Germans.
ReplyDeleteHi Bob,
ReplyDeleteLove those Czech tanks - it seems to be a good time to get 1930s kit!
All the best,
DC
Conrad Kinch,
ReplyDeleteFrom what I can see, both kits will only take a few minutes to construct, which makes them almost ready-to-roll.
I am planning to use the chassis of the M13/40 to build several models of a tank design that is based on the Vickers 6-ton tank. I am using the Hungarian Turan (which was based on a Czech development of the LT-35) as my main inspiration. If you think of the M13/40 fitted with the turret of the Pzkpfw38(t), you will get a rough idea what it will look like.
All the best,
Bob
David Crook,
ReplyDeleteThe good thing about the model of the Pzkpfw38(t) is that it was used by quite a few countries including Czechoslovakia, Germany, Sweden, Slovakia, and Hungary in both it's original form and as the basis of a variety of self-propelled guns.
Buy and build is my advice!
All the best,
Bob
Well done on picking up the Deetail figures - I recently found a few. Let me know if you want to swap any of your guys for kneeling firing Confederates (I have 10 of 'em). I think I'm OK for M-13s and Pz38s though!
ReplyDeleteTim Gow,
ReplyDeleteMany thanks for the offer.
I am hoping to find some more of these figures on eBay and at various shows. Once I have enough, I will use them to create a unit (probably of ten figures initially). Then all I need is some artillery crews and cavalry.
All the best,
Bob
PS. Ross Mac's 'Hook's Farm' battle using 54mm figures has made me realise that I could easily demonstrate my portable wargame at COW using these figures ... plus any that you might care to bring along as well!
The Confederates bring back memories, me and my brother used to have stacks of these when we were kids. It makes me wince when I recall playing games together and throwing handfuls of marbles at the soldiers to kill them!!
ReplyDeleteBob I have a number of the 1999's version of the Deetail ACW horse & foot, Grey and Blue in my spares box.
ReplyDeletePicked them up new for next to nothing at the time and they have been well used since. Bases aren't pristine but if you're interested. Not worth my effort to list them on ebay but if you'll pay postage I'll send you a list.
-Ross Mac
Ray Rousell,
ReplyDeleteI had a small collection of pre-war Britains that I used to play with as a child. Likewise, many of them got very 'knocked about' and damaged.
If I still had them they would now be worth quite a lot of money ... but I am glad that I used them for what they were supposed to be used for ... fighting wargames!
All the best,
Bob
Ross Mac,
ReplyDeleteThat is a very kind offer, and I would be very pleased to take you up on it.
My intention is to repaint the figures for my LITTLE WARS imagi-nation, and I would understand if you would prefer that they were kept in their original colours. If the offer still stands, then I would be only too willing to pay for the postage and packing.
All the best,
Bob
These were the Hong Kong painted versions, marketed as kid's toys rather than for toy soldier collectors. A very poor paint job and well worth repainting, I just never got to it.
ReplyDeleteI actually bought the first of them because I had a 54mm Volley & Bayonet ACW game scheduled and was short on troops. I stopped on the way home to buy a few, plopped on bases and was ready to play when Tom arrived. These were the first factory painted troops I'd had since I was a kid. They were cheap but cost me a lot because they opened the idea and set me up to buy various boxes of new Britain;s etc!
I'll burrow into the back of the closet this weekend and see what's there.
Bob
ReplyDeleteHave you tried shooting the Britains figs with any of your guns yet? My memory of them is that those big square metal bases do a bang-up job of keeping the figures standing upright. Which is great for regular wargaming, but of course in Little Wars you'll want them to fall over when stuck so much as a glancing blow.
Ross Mac,
ReplyDeleteThe ones I have bought are not the best pre-painted figures in the world ... but they are better than unpainted ones.
Also, the bases seem to make them more stable than purely plastic ones, which means that I will not have to stick them to bigger bases.
Let me know if and when you find them, and we can sort out the postage etc.
By the way, is there anything that I can send you as a 'thank you'? If there is, let me know.
All the best,
Bob
Dr Vesuvious,
ReplyDeleteI have used them for target practice, and you are right, they don't fall over when hit by a matchstick projectile.
In the latest incarnation of HGW's 'Little Wars', you don't actually have to knock the figures over, just hit them with the matchstick projectile to 'kill' them.
As a result, the large, heavy bases on the Deetail figures are an advantage as the figures don't fall over too often of their own accord.
All the best,
Bob
1.50 each, That´s not bad.
ReplyDeleteCheers
paul
Paul's Bods,
ReplyDeleteI thought they were a very reasonable price, and certainly cheaper than some I have seen on eBay!
All the best,
Bob
Hi Bob
ReplyDeleteI know the weekends are difficult for you at the moment but if you are looking for more 54mm plastic toy soldiers here are a couple of dates for your diary:
26th March - London Toy Soldier Show
http://www.thetoysoldiershow.com/index.asp?upid=8
7th May - Plastic Warrior Show
http://www.plasticwarrior.co.uk/show.html
BTW if you paint Deetail figures with enamels and then varnish them you sometimes find the varnish does not "cure" and you are left with very sticky toy soldiers, I find it best to use acrylics on them.
Mike Blake, Ted Herbert and crew of the Skirmish Wargames Group usually put on a 54mm demonstration game at the London Toy Soldier Show and they are always well worth a look, if you can make either of the shows let me know and I’ll buy you a pint.
Best wishes, Brian
Brian,
ReplyDeleteMany thanks for the links. With a bit of luck I might manage to get to one of the two shows.
Thanks also for the advice about painting Deetail figures. My plan was to wash them very thoroughly to remove any dirt, grease, loose paint etc., and then to give them a coat or two of PVA to seal them. I was then going to paint them with acrylic paints before giving them a couple of coats of polyurethane varnish.
I know that this method has worked for other people, but if you have any advice about better methods, please let me know.
All the best,
Bob