Friday 22 January 2010

Fauntleroy and Friends


More Hinchliffe AWI figures - a troop of the 1st Continental Light Dragoons c.1781. The officer is a conversion of the bugler figure, and as usual i've replaced the sword blades with pins, but otherwise they are standard castings.


The standard (i.e. Gilder designed) AWI range cavalry are all one piece castings. Given the choice (as some Hinchliffe cavalry were available as either one piece or separate castings) i'd always go for one piece castings - what you lose in flexibility, you gain in convenience and durability. I usually found that my favourite horses and riders never quite fitted together properly anyway - resulting in tedious work with file and Miliput, or unsightly gaps between saddle and horse. And don't get me started on getting the reins to line up with the rider's hands. The usual criticism of the one piece cavalry is that the horses are too small - there's some merit in that point although i think we tend to forget that armies on campaign would usually be grateful of any old nag they could get their hands on.


Until being mortally wounded at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse the small 1st CLD detachment serving in the Carolinas was commanded by a certain Captain Griffin Fauntleroy - a quite splendid name that just cries out to be recreated in miniature.


Only one more troop of cavalry to go and i'll have finally finished Wm Washington's adhoc Legion that i started a mere 5 years ago....

Friday 15 January 2010

Peter Gilder's 'Painting Wargame Figures & Armies'








The most comprehensive 'how to' PG wrote was this databooklet included in the December 1981 issue of Mil Mod. Despite being nearly 30 years old (yikes!) there are many wise words within.

I have a PDF version (courtesy of Mel Spence) - you'll have to email me if you want that.




Thursday 14 January 2010

Great Gilder Set Pieces 4


Another Gilder Mil Mod cover shot (and another image that you'll also find in Curt Johnson's book). Peter Gilder appears to have got far more coverage in Mil Mod than in Battle - even when Battle was a separate title dedicated to wargaming ....odd....?


This image is a good example of why Johnson's book was so frustrating for us mere mortals - the majority of the figures pictured were never made commercially available. As many of these 'specials' were superior to the Hinchliffe range it was frustrating indeed. The main line unit pictured here (4th Foot) and the opposing rebel riflemen are good examples of this. Actually the 4th could be replicated without the need for God-like talent - take a Hinchliffe Grenadier, scrape off the shoulder wings and remove the head and sword, replacing the former with a line infantry head. I could never face doing that 30 to 40 times (probably just as well for what's left of my sanity).