54mm Toy Soldiers – Page 8 – My Toy Soldiers & Me

A matter of ADC’s

I must be boorish today talking about me projects… you see I am still “squaring” units, so while DORSET SOLDIERS does the last 16 soldiers to complete ny British Army (Khaki)… I am doing some odds and ends because of some old horses I got (do not remember why at all)… First I did Young Winston (see elsewhere in this Blog)… now I am working on Charles Saganne (Depardieu) as a French ADC (mounted) … he is already primed for paint… and his horse has got a new “rouleau” just for the fun of it! (I am getting better with plasticine or milliput)

More to the point a couple of dismounted ADC’s for the British Army (see pic).

And what is even much more fun a couple of motorcycle riders! Full circle I guess (they were my first toys those kind of chaps!)…

So … try to Enjoy!

Primed and prepared for painting (see horseman on the left)

On a more sunny job I corrected the medals on my French General! Count that as a bonus against boredom.

Classic Models

Britain’s Toy Soldiers have a lot of charm… and there are very convoluted sets to collect.

This one seems to have had some different versions of it… or variations on details of the same model… will leave that to specialists.

Enjoy!

Paul Watson does it again…

Yesterday was John Clarke… Today is Paul Watson (a true friend of mine), how can he manage to “cut”, “solder”, “repare”, “modify”, and dig gold from the scrap pile of old discarded toy soldiers by less able people truly amazes me , in this case the two members of the Naval Landing Party has been converted into stretcher bearers… and the “casualty” is a multipart “remake” (you know what I mean… one torso, other legs, other arms, and an overall good painting job!

Well done, Congratulations!

Enjoy!

John Clarke Radio Station…

54mm Toy Soldiers have their artists too!

Magnificent set.

Enjoy!

And a final one. (Could have bettered the pic but not the spots!)

French Foreign Legion “Square” in 54mm.

All right, once the figures out of the Cabinet it is possible to do some kind of manoeuvres, so here it is the French Foreign Legion in Square. Of course it is easier to take pics because those figures are mine!

No much problem to do the pics once paraded.

Enjoy!

French Foreign Legion units adapted to AGW.

I had a collection of 54mm Dorset Soldiers (lead) but the numbers of it were indifferent (modulated on 8’s + officers)… now after an additions bit (sharks frenzy feeding) I have 9 Companies of 12 men adapted to A GENTLEMAN’S WAR set of rules (I use modified if you please).

So yesterday I paraded the force to organize properly. Two of the Co’s are mule mounted (see pics), there are two machine guns, a Battery of Artillery, an Heliograph attached to HQ/Command and some Mounted Officers and ADC’s.

It was fun.

Enjoy!

Right Flank Infantry (the one top right has been “reorganized” and has dssmissed from the rolls… I was tring to hard to make “10” Co’s… better at “9” and have ADC’s and keep the Geste brothers out of it… LOL

Charming

There is an old fashion way to wargame… quite charming if you ask me… 54mm or 42mm Britain’s mainly… but a lot of other manufacturers too!… or even home-cast models…

Enjoy!

24th Foot

I was early up this morning… and perusing Facebook found this pic (and added others about the same subject)… guess that there are themes that will never die in the minds of collectors… and one of them is the 24th Foot (Zulu War of course!)… it happens with a lot of other units… the light Brigade 1854… the 7th Cavalry 1876… La Garde Imperiale de Napoleon (specially the Old Guard Grenadiers) and so on…

Why they are all disasters to quite a high point seem to emphasize the legend the lore and the nostalgia… do not ask me why!

Enjoy!

We all keep painting/modelling them… not mine today!

Winston Spencer Churchill as a young lieutenant…

I promised yesterday… so…

It was a poor attempt to “model with miliput” because it is never been “my thing”… but I was tempted to try to do a “Toy Soldier piece unique” (as I can not match the “true” Bill Horan’s in our miniature world).

It all started simply enough, I had a redundant arm with pistol… a couple of horses (Empty Horses David Niven would say in his memoirs) with no rider… and I asked Antony Spencer from DORSET SOLDIERS to send me a British Colonial Rider without right arm. Still planning to do a French ADC (mounted) for the other horse…

Once I got it… I decided to try my hand at what Antony Stevens does effortlessly, meaning adding binocular case and a haversack to a rather “plain figure”… I also worked a bit on the horse (which was already painted since many years ago) adding valise and equipment… I showed all that to you in a Post not so long ago (about end of December 2022).

Well here it is the result of my job in some pics… and YES he is standing on the stirrups!… not at a 100% satisfied but not bad for a first try since God knows when… Never thought “minimalist” Toy Soldiers would be so difficult to do!

Enjoy! (not so easy today!)

Some of my French Foreign Legion

A nearly forgotten pastime… (by yours truly)… painting your own figures… meaning buying the casts naked of paint… and DIY job… it was fun (again)… the toy Soldier style is much uncomplicated.

Thanks to Antony Spencer from DORSET SOLDIERS who understood perfectly what I needed and took the trouble to assemble the kits for me.

Curiously enough they mix very well with my old figures (they have decades in real time difference).

Thought you would like to see some of mine for a change!

Enjoy!