My Toy Soldiers & Me

REPLICA special comission for James Opie.

If you do collect 54mm Toy Soldiers it would be a good idea to join The International Toy Soldier Club… really good company!

Look one of the last Posts there… A highlander late campaign uniform (kakhi) full Band (Band + Fifes&Drums)… done by Andrew Stevenson for a customer no other than James Opie of worldwide fame expertise on Britains Toy Soldiers.

A fantastic set (bespoke… so unique)…

Enjoy!

REPLICA does a magnificent set (a la BRITAINS) of the Royal Navy in 54mm.

Published in the web of the ITSC (The International Toy Soldier Club) this is an awesome set done by Andrew Stevenson for a customer (a lucky customer I will add full of positive envy!).

It reproduces one mythical set of Old Britains with figures ad hoc (many of them Britains never did I must clarify!).

Never have seen something so awesome in years of collecting.

Enjoy!

Royal Marines Light Infantry… and Bluejackets pulling limber…

The massive box and the superior tray… Awesome!

Britains (NEW) Scots Grey’s set… bought in ebay.co.uk (2 sets).

It all started last winter… (2024)… I discovered a lot of sets of NEW Britains I did not knew about on ebay.co.uk! (not easy to buy them because a lot of seller do not send to ANDORRA!… only the really good businessmen among them (some real gentlemen mind!).

Afterwards of a lot of madly buying (feeding frenzy when applied to sharks)… I decided to buy Norman Joplin’s book about those sets… the normal thing would have been the inverse procedure. A quick read showed me that I had not done so bad after all… BUT… introduced me to sets I did not know existed at all… as this present Scots Grey’s set (2 sets I bought from the same ebay seller!).

Well, in less then 24 hours after their arrived in ANDORRA… I have already converted a sergeant into a trumpeter… could not avoid the temptation…

Enjoy!

One of the segeants has been converted (quickly) into a trumpeter…

Only had to change the arm and paint the plume red…

The main reason behind buying those sets… magnificent sentry boxes!

REPLICA new parcel!

Not complaining at all because the order from 2023 arrived on 2025!… quality compensates in spades.

The “cottage” industry of Toy Soldiers has that… limited production… long queueing… but SATISFACTION!

The Toy Soldiers Britains never did… not in its heyday (classic times)… not in his centenary sets either… bespoke orders… simply fantastic output.

You can also buy from him… see replica metal model soldiers in google or email “HQ@replicametalsoldiers.co.uk” HQ@Replicametalsoldiers.co.uk and just wait to be satisfied… it helps if you are not in your seventies like me!

Enjoy.

And something completely different… an armoured car (Rolls&Royce) if you please… a model a bit late for my period… but I guess the fact that is a secret prototype can adapt well to my needs!

The Best Books about Collecting Toy Soldiers.

You will have in this quite complete list the books I own (or have owned)… and those complementary on the subject. Sadly no “flats” or zinnfigurine because I am not a fan of them… they appear on some of the books… but not my passion at all. Sorry about that.

I wish I had had a list like that many years ago!… would have saved time and trouble. BTW my comments are only my opinions (but frankly a bit tired of amazon publishing comments criteria… lol) but after more than 70 years I can be quite frank about it.

Get them all if you can, they are very informative… maybe one day I will do a list of wargame books classics too! (Not that I do not use some of my 54mm gloss toy soldiers to wargame the Old School Way (but no marbles or rods involved… do not want to spoil the paint on them you know… just dice and fun).

Hope you enjoy this list.

Thi one is the book you need as a great generalist book about collecting toy soldiers (even if Britains centred the ideas and concepts are superb) Imprescindible even on paperback (actually I have the paperback edition myself). A MUST HAVE!

Fairly useful as a general intro (mainly 54mm). It stops when NEW toy soldiers begun to be on the markey (it deals mainly with Old Toy Soldiers)… RECOMMENDED.

It dissapoints at first read… but slowly grows upon you… an international reference. I nearly throw it away and now I am a fan!

Probably the best book on Britains Toy Soldiers by James Opie. Imprescindible (and I do not collect Old Britains). Simply lavish!

Probably his second best book. I bought first as a kindle book and afterwards ordered a real book.

Now outdated but a classic nevertheless… he saw it coming! One of my personal favoutites as a DUCAL collector.

The description of a Collection (quite fantastic if you want an opinion). Excellent pics even if a bit dark. VERY GOOD!

Interesting book… from a British point of view.

He tries very hard but fails a bit short… better stick to his BRITAINS books!… no idea at all about Playmobils or Legos outpout, but interesting nevertheless.

Simply lavish! A must have on the second Britains era.

Impressive and completionist but too many items are not Toy Soldiers I am afraid. (I bought at Hamleys and later sold my copy)

Less known book… get it too! I do not own a copy myself.

Very short… but much to the point, recommended too. It come as a nice surprise.

It is what says on the cover, a guide on prices of Britains, if you collect them a must have! Sadly nothing of interest in it for me…

On the limt (a very thin line) beyween Toy Soldier and MODEL (Military Modeling). A MUST HAVE!

Probably one of the oldest on the list… but clever and advanced for its time. Recommended.

Lavish French Book about C.B.G. Mignot production. Had a copy for some time but sold it because I could not afford them (the toy soldiers I mean) as really vintage Old Britains… I am not into very expensive “Antiquarian things or items”

Another Norman Joplin book… do not own this one so I do not know how good it is.

Not bad at all. But probably less isteresting and much a special subject.

This one I owned but sold because did not find it a “Keeper”… maybe wrong mind! BIG FORMAT.

Put it on the list but I do not own a single one… and personally not interested (Same with Dime-Store Toy Soldiers)

For those interested it contains the pics of the toy soldiers I had when a child! (LOL), mainly cautxuc toy soldiers… later plastic… It involved hours of sheer pleasure.

The cover of the second edition of my book (in Spanish I fear)… later I went to create a Facebook group and this present webpage.

And last but not least the second edition in English (FREE to DOWNLOAD in here top right corner!). I was fool enough to write it influenced by the autoedit promo in Amazon… and the opus ACHTUNG SCHWEINEDHUND! (see below).

A must read… just because it is GREAT!… very well written with tons of humour… it produced an allucination on my brain so to write a book about my toy soldiers myself…

A view of one of my cabinets just to prove I am actually a collector!… this summer a vast reorganization would see deep changes on 7 shelves…

NEW William BRITAINS (from the nineties) small conversions.

Followers of this website must know I am now collecting sets of the BRITAINS CENTENIAL COLLECTOR SERIES (1993)… to use in AGW Old school wargames.

With the Infantry there is no issue as they come in sets of 6… so two sets makes a complete Unit and that’s it. On the contrary Cavalry Sets have 4 Cavalrymen… you buy two boxes and then you have two redundant figures (redundant is a term I do not use at all) to be converted in something else.

Bought two sets of the 4th Hussars and then one trumpeter and one sergeant were promptly repainted to represent another regiment of Hussars of SIMKIN times… they will be added to the General Staff (A General always needs a trumpeter and a flag!)… or whatever… had fun messing with them… still not gloss varnished mind… probably work a bit more with the flag too (in the pic it is not correct… mend it by now!)… and why not paint the trumpeter’s horse white? (done too!)

Enjoy!

“New” Standardbearer… the flag is wrong and has been repainted!

Finally painted the horse white.Original and Conversion.

Also painted the horses lancers in other colours… too many blacks as it is!

They still lack gloss varnish… but you get the idea…

BRITAINS and REPLICA (and DORSET artillery) Victorian Army in 54mm (SIMKIN TIMES).

Well, finally taking shape!

I expect some brigades of Infantry from Andrew Stevenson before the 30th of June of 2025.

They do mix very well indeed even if the design and finition of REPLICA is superior, a case of the disciple surpassing the master.

Will add pics of the Hussars once conversions finished.

Enjoy!

Royal Marine Artillery and Westminster Rifles (Territorials)

The Cavalry minus the Hussars (not finished).

Royal Artillery (DORSET SOLDIERS) and BRITAINS LINE INFANTRY in the background.

John O’Brien Figures… (mainly Rose)

I know… I know… they look a lot like Military Modeling… great quality if you ask me.

Enjoy!

NEW BRITAINS (modern… but more than 30 years old!) Centenial sets of the nineties…

I am nowadays buying some of this sets to hurriedly complete some projects (British SIMKIN times Army and others…).

I can not wait for the more traditional way of collecting. Probably some of this units will be “embellished” with paintjobs in the near future… I can do that mind!

Just thought to mention that for me the only “toy soldier shop” available nowadays is ebay… and that’s that… nearly instant satisfaction… at nearly 73 years old is what I need in spades!

Enjoy!

Recent arrivals… the General is a Dorset figure…

British Hussars (two of them would be “converted”.

REPLICA… My new sets of 54mm Toy Soldiers.

The two sets of Victorian (SIMKIN TIMES) Cavalry

Forefront 6th Dragoon Guards (Carbineers) and 16th lancers in the rear rank. Pic “in process” by Andrew Stevenson.

Finally here! (meaning ANDORRA)

They are part of a larger order… but Cavalry always have an extra appeal to me.

In 2023 (by the last months) I placed an order with Andrew Stevenson (REPLICA METAL MODEL SOLDIERS)… this is part of it.

Intended to be a part of a little British Army to play AGW (Yes you’ve guessed right I will of course mess with the original rules!)

Never thought the vast amounts of patience needed nowadays to collect “la creme de la creme” (si j’ose dire)… days, weeks, months, more than a year sometimes… but well worth the wait.

The problem (main) is not the wait itself… it is my age LOL)… time is now an issue…

You can not “hurry up” Andrew… he is IMHO an “artist”… multiple interests…. multiple ranges…. multiple novelties…. multiple objectives… he also collects!…. whatever… Probably the best if you are affected by BRITAIN’s nostalgia… I have never indulged in collecting “antiques” if you think pre-WWII (or WWI for that matter) Toy Soldiers…. do not have the time… neither the money (or budget)… neither the interest (pure or purist). On the contrary I do collect NOW the Centennial sets by Britain! (You need all sorts you know…).

The use of REPLICA models in wargames is a bit of an heressy as I considere them “collector’s items” on their own right!. But boy do they bring “class” to your tabletop…

Enjoy the pics!

Cheers