My other blog

If you havn't noticed, I put together another blog. It's just my wonderings on non-figure related stuff. I may however add "toy" soldier subjects...Things that helped spur my passion in history and modeling. I'll try to keep it up to-date and interesting.

Thanks for looking and Happy New Year!

I picked this up on ebay last month. It's a pewter 54mm figure of a Prussian Artillery Officer, 1790's, apparently sculpted by Roger Saunders. I love the pose and character of the face, it's just itching to be painted. But alas, destined to be part of the grey army or in the cabinet to admire and study.

Merry Christmas!

"Like a Mountain Avalanche"

"Seeing in the flight of the 2nd Maryland a chance to surprise and inflict severe damage upon the enemy, Washington ordered his trumpeter to sound the charge. Like a mountain avalanche, the dragoons rolled down the hillside and smashed squarely into the rear of the Guards." Quote from "Another Such Victory" by Thomas E. Baker

Here's the finished piece. I should note that the first figures to be glued to the base were the officer and drummer. Since the two were to be attached, I need "room" to sculpt (and paint) the hand of the officer onto the arm of the drummer.

American dragoons painted

Here are the American dragoons painted. What initially inspired me to do the model was Troiani's "balance" of colors with the dragoons. The contrasting uniformed white coats with the blue coat of the trumpeter made an interesting combination.
I originally wanted the officer in greatcoat, but then I would not have that contrast. So, it was suggested that a cloak would work and still "identify" him as an officer.

Still no weathering yet. Everything painted in acrylic.

Sculpted American dragoons

For some reason, I did not take many pics of the figures just after sculpting. Going through my folders, these are sadly the only two that I did take pictures of.

The heads are from Historex.

Guilford project with some paint...

Here's the project with some paint. As you can see, I'm working left to right, front to back. Even though I've composed to my liking, there's still some "tweaking" to do when I place the mounted figures. Note, the figures are not glued to the base yet.

The paint is all acrylic, but I will use oil paint when staining/weathering. More on that later.

The Horses

The horses used are from Michael Roberts. These are beautifully sculpted, I just wish there were more poses. Since I ran out of spare Historex pieces, these were the perfect solution. At the MFCA show, I picked up two of the rearing and one charging. With two of the same pose, I knew a little conversion work was ahead. I didn't want to show the horses in full gallop but rather in mid-halt or a slow canter. I repositioned some of the legs using brass pins and filled in the joints with putty.
Some of the gear, saddle and reins, etc. are based on British patterns.

Guilford Courthouse Inspiration

As soon as I saw Don Troiani's painting of same subject, I was instantly inspired. The sweeping scene screamed diorama...Well, large vignette, depending on ones definition.

I slightly elevated the rear of the ground so dragoons were not too obscured by the figures in the foreground. By keeping a narrow front, and by composing the mounted figures coming down and at the viewer, it helped add a sense of movement.

I'd like to thank Gary Dombrowski for helping with the composing. He and I spent a couple hours discussing the project while hanging together in Gettysburg after the MFCA show. While he drew some rough sketches, I simulated the poses I thought would be effective...Sorry, I don't have those sketches. Those are in the hands of a private collector...Never to be seen again:)