Finished!

At last the first unit of my converted Perry figures is finished. This is the regiment of the Cuirrassiers von Stolzhuf, the first completed regiment of my imaginary Mendelstadtian "SYW" army, converted from Perry ACW cavalry.


(More photos and relevant history are on the Mendelstadt blog).

As an exercise in conversion, this proved quite time-consuming. On the TMP group, I was called "mad" for doing this, and I think that viewpoint has some validity. However, I've very much enjoyed doing it. And I've produced a unique regiment which also, because of the work involved, feels very much a personal endeavour, meaning I identify with them much more than if I'd merely done a decent paint job. (Which almost certainly means they will turn tail and run at the first opportunity on the battlefield: C'est la guerre, chez moi.)

I've learned quite a lot about how to model with greenstuff, and developed a few ideas for possible future work. You'll perhaps see that I've modelled flames around an eagle (Napoleonic French, I think; or perhaps Austrian) on the head of the flagstaff to turn it into the phoenix of Mendelstadt. Little touches like this make fanciful warfare a la Tony Bath that much more interesting.

Of course, this is not for everyone. I'm simultaneously developing the 10mm and 15mm World War Two collections and these are as close to authentic as I can be bothered to make them. I had my first taste of Flames of War the other day (I'm usually well behind the fashions in rulesets) and was quite taken with them, though I did find the complexity of looking things up in rules, helpsheets, army books and so-on rather too reminiscent of the worst excesses of Games Workshop. I don't know which generation of 40K it was, but I remember with irritation and frustration old games where more time was spent cross-refencing different variants of the rules than actually playing the game. (Needless to say, I gave up playing 40K a long time ago).

A couple of posts ago I mentioned a comment from Adam pointed me towards some Youtube videos which show how to make a mould and cast simple components in green stuff. Thanks, Adam, for this really useful suggestion.

Essentially the process is like casting in metal, except you use green stuff both for the mould and for the casting. Adam's idea was that I could make some of the parts of my figures, such as the hats, this way and thereby speed up the process and ensure a higher degree of uniformity. (You'll see, if you inspect the cuirrassiers, that their hats are quite varied, and the turnbacks, not really visible in the photo, are different lengths, too).

I've found that, once I had my turnback mould I was able to produce 10 pairs of turnbacks in about 15 minutes, a massive increase in speed. And they were pretty similar to each other, meaning that once I'd figured out how to attach one pair, I knew how to attach the rest.

I still needed some judicious filing to make it work, so the process is not yet ideal, but I think with a little more forethought, I shall be able to produce my conversions pretty quickly now.

Which has inspired me to think about sculpting my own masters on a dolly, and perhaps casting my own figures. I've not yet taken this step. But....watch this space....

Huzzah!

I told myself I wouldn't attempt a hussar conversion from the Perry plastic ACW cavalryman, as it was too complex. But I wasn't listening to myself, apparently. So here's my first hussar attempt.

I think this regiment will become the Landgravine Musetta's Own Hussars, the light cavalry of the Mendelstadt Guard, and the bodyguard of the Landgravine herself. (Rumours have it that some of these handsome gentlemen may perhaps guard her body just a little too closely.)

Their uniform is a design of the Landgravine's own, as no doubt Major Wittering will report on the Mendelstadt blog when a full squadron has been recruited. And the mounts will all be greys, especially imported at outlandish expense from Spain.



But I suspect recruitment for the hussars may take some time, as I'll have to model each one separately. Mind you, the twelve strong cuirrassiers (who are being considered for possible demotion to mere dragoons, given the poor quality of their mounts and their generally drunken behaviour - of the riders, not the mounts) are nearing completion already, much faster than I'd expected. I've been bitten by the modelling bug.

You'll probably see that some of this "conversion" is merely paintwork: the thighknot, Polish cuffs, and lace on the dolman, for example. So what have I actually modelled (just in case you are mad enough to want to do something similar)?

Mirlton: green stuff in a cone (easier than I thought, but it may be hard to make the next one the same size!) with a plume of the same, the cone wrapped in a thin flamme of paper, very much like the original. I used greaseproof paper, after a couple of false starts with ribbon and tissue as this was flexible and yet tough, so when I soaked it with dilute white glue, it didn't dissolve into shreds. My flamme was a little too wide, so that in wrapping around the angle of the slope it creased a little, meaning a lot of teasing was needed to get something that was both flat enough and overlapping enough to be plausible.

Shabraque: the original Perry shabraque has squared corners, so I've shaved the front corner to a rounded edge and built the rear corner to an elongated point.

Pelisse: sculpted entirely from greenstuff, one layer at a time (first a draped diamond for the basic jacket, then two sausages for the sleeves, which are probably not long enough on this model; then greenstuff roughed up by the scalpel for fur around cuffs and the pelisse edge. Finally I used a thread of cotton to model the cord holding the pelisse around the neck (visible on the second photo). I drenched this in thinned white glue so it adhered across the model but also so it was stiff and had a good surface for subsequent painting.

Queue: modelled from greenstuff.

Barrel sash: modelled from green stuff, but with only three cords (not the more reasonable five or seven). As it's almost invisible on the model, I might not bother on the remainder.

Sabretache: made from green stuff as a component separate from the main model, then glued on when it had dried. I originally made a more satisfactory shape than this, but it was so small I lost it. Once it was gluedin place, I added two thin strips of scrap paper for the straps holding it on. (A more historical model would probably use three straps, but I found it hard enough manoevering two pieces into place. Three would need to be thinner, so more difficult to shoft about, and must end up placed in parallel to look right). I've been wondering about trying casting for the first time, so small pieces like this or maybe the mirlton might be a starting point.

What I didn't do:

- worry about the bucket stirrups. Instead, I painted them as if they were part of the boot, using the line of the stirrups to disguise this somewhat.

- worry about the sword and scabbard. These are (obviously) the same as the ACW original and therefore idential to the swords used for my cuirassiers/dragoons. But light cav swords are generally curved whilst heavy cavalry are much straighter (although this by no mean a universal difference). Fortunately this sword is both suffificiently straight and sufficiently curved to get away with being either.

- give him a fusil/musket. I'm reconsidering this as it would be more accurate, and the pantaloons are not really as tight as a proper hussar's ought to be, so a weapon on the thigh would disguise this somewhat.

- put cords on the mirlton. Although having no cords is fine historically, of course, I'd quite like to go the whole hog and add them, but I can't figure out how to do it convincingly and eptly. An attempt with green stuff created cords the size of ropes.

- model lace on the pelisse. I didn't think about the frogging until I'd modelled the rest of the cape, and by then I'd not even left enough room to paint any lace. I'll perhaps try and model the pelisse a little larger on the next figure.

- shave the saddlebags. To me these are the most glaring anomaly on this model, so ought to go, but I'm not sure that I'll be able to model the "missing" bits of the blanket roll and shabraque, if I do. This may be one area where I'm simply saved from the need by sleight-of-imagination.

- paint a dog's tooth border, or a national emblem on the shabraque. It seemed too arduous, really. Also, any such emblem should be the golden phoenix of Mendelstadt, but I've not yet managed to render it free-hand in any way that doesn't look like a five year old's cartoon. (Although there is just a hint of it on the sabretache, pretty much invisible in the photo). More practice needed here.

Even so, I'm quite proud of this one. But now I've three more cuirrassiers to finish, fifteen jagers and five (or maybe even eleven) hussars. SO it might be a while before you see my next effort.

Although, I've begun thinking about dragoons....How would they be different from cuirassiers?

And what about some irregular lancers????

Another Perry conversion

I was so pleased with my Perry cuirassier conversions (which will soon be a 12 figure regiment) and the feedback from my courteous visitors has been so positive, that I decided to see what I could make of the Perrys' ACW infantry, too.

It's more difficult to work on the foot figures than the cavalry (for SYW, at any rate) because there are more variations in equipment, uniform and poses. Also, the ACW trousers (that's "pants" for my American readers) are a long way from the tight-gaitered Adam Ant leg-revealers of the eighteenth century. So it isn't just a question of adding judiciously placed green stuff, but also deft wielding of a scalpel to remove offending creases and folds.

I didn't think I'd be able to sculpt (read "gouge") the required shapeliness (but highly military, of course) of the calf-muscles effectively, so for my sample figure, I decided on a jaeger, based loosely on the Prussian jaeger in Blandford's uniforms of the SYW plate 41 (also in Osprey Men at Arms 248, plate E), because these guys wore cavalry boots. Other possible original models might be the Russian Corps of Observation (basically your standard Russian uniform, plus boots) or perhaps some of the Freikorps or light troops (either as "dismounted" cavalry, or else more irregular trousers than the norm).

Of course, mine aim is entirely fictional, so I can apply some license. So, without further ado, here is the entire jaeger Corps of Mendelstadt:





You might notice that I forgot to shave his beard, so, despite the conversion, he retains a somewhat un-C18th look. I only realised this mistake during painting, so I added slightly more Germanic points to his moustache by way of compensation, during painting, and decided that Mendelstadt's jaegers, being recruited from the wildmen of forest and hill might generally be a little less than couth in their coiffure. The paint scheme I've chosen is almost traditional jaeger, except that I went for a slightly brighter green than might be thought sensible.

Other slight oddities are:

- the ammo pouch from which this guy is retrieving shot, though hidden in this model, is not really suitable. If I wanted a fully credible SYW figure, he should perhaps have a large rectangular ammo pouch centred on his abdomen - but I couldn't figure out how to do this convincingly

- I've modelled the boots as if there are loose trousers gathered into them, rather than the gaiters that seem endemic to SYW. On the next model, I might try to be more correct. The boots are also rather dumpy - I think more plastic needs shaving away.

- the emblem of Mendelstadt is a phoenix. I'd like this on the cartridge box on the figure's hip but no way can I paint a convincing micro-phoenix. Any tips?

- eyes. I've seen photos of these ACW plastics with convincing eyes. Unfortunately, my eyes are no longer good enough to make sure this guy has any eyes at all.

Otherwise, I'm quite pleased with him. In time, there's likely to be a full regiment - though it might only be sixteen figures.

What have I learned so far from these Perry conversions?

1) It's possible, even easy. I think to get reasonably accurate SYW figures from the Perry figs would take rather more skill than I can muster, but, if you're prepared to accept the occasional compromise some good figures can be created quite cheaply. (In the UK the cavalry work out at £1, infantry at 34p).

2) You need patience. This is a bit of a problem for me! I'd like a complete battalion here, now, please. I think each conversion takes me about an hour in total - perhaps a bit longer. Moreover, you can't do the whole thing in one go, because each time you add a new blob of green stuff, you risk damaging the previous pieces if they haven't quite hardened. Really, you need a day for hardening between each stage of the work.

3) Even small changes can make a big difference. Just putting tricornes on ACW heads makes a huge difference. You can always paint on coloured cuffs and other facings, if you don't want to mould them.

4) Be creative. The turnbacks on the jaeger, for example, are partly created by trimming down the existing model and partly by building up with green stuff. The key was to spot the point at which shaving should stop and building begin.

5) Think about how the figure might be painted. For example, the Prussian original of this jaeger has no lapels, so I'd no need to paint or model them. This obviously makes conversion easier.

6) There's lots of possibilities for originals. Of course, if you want exact historical accuracy, you're unlikely to find many of these ACW figures a good starting point, unless you trim them right down to their basic architecture and build up a substantial part of the uniform itself. (Using the Perry model as a "dolly" is, I think, the right way to put this). But if all you want to do is create interesting units for a plausibly historical context, you can look around between different armies and theatres for starting points. For example, shell jacket ACW figs are probably the easiest to give turnbacks to, but sack coated ACW might be better for coats without turnbacks, such as early French and many officers. No reason why you couldn't have both in the same army, perhaps even in the same unit.

Anyway, I'll continue to experiment and report on what I find.

Oh - and I've just noticed that Victrix have issued lots of info and some pictures on their forthcoming 28mm plastic Napoleonics. (See http://www.victrixlimited.com/) Maybe there'll be possibilities here, too. But they won't be around till September.

Perry Plastic SYW Cavalry

Wouldn't it be wonderful if there were some? But - I know - there aren't. Nor likely to be in the the near future. If we're waiting for 28mm plastic C18 the best we might hope is that Wargames Factory respond to their poll (at
http://www.wargamesfactory.com/AnnouncementRetrieve.aspx?ID=15206) by producing SYW figures in the next few months.

Let me explain. I'm building fictional armies of roughly SYW vintage. The core troops are beautiful Minden miniatures, supplemented by a whole ragbag of bits and pieces salvaged from my lead mountain which appear broadly eighteenth century and broadly compatible: I've Front Rank and Old Glory command figures, with a Hinchcliffe AWI and a Minifigs Napoleonic thrown in for good measure; Front Rank artillery for one side, but a mix of Old Glory, Foundry, Front Rank and an unknown soldier for the other; there'll be a small naval contingent recruited from Foundry, Citadel and Dixons pirates; cannon are Front Rank, Foundry, Hinchcliffe and Spencer Smith. You can see it's quite a hotch potch.

But what I lack is cavalry. Minden will produce some, no doubt wonderful, figures in time, but what am I to do till then? Both Foundry and Front Rank are attractive ranges, but they're expensive (especially since Foundry's price rise, which has taken the price of 28mm to ridiculous heights). As the project is an "Old School" imaginary nation, Spencer Smith suggest themselves and, whilst they have charm, I'm not sure that mixing them in with more detailed figures will be satisfying.

RSM95 look highly compatible and attractive, and are a good price even when overseas shipping is taken into account, but they may take months to appear from across the Atlantic, given the vagaries of the postal service. Other ImagiNations have been built around 20mm plastics, some of which reach 25mm and so ought to be compatible in height, but the slenderness of the mouldings makes them look distinctly odd next to a true 28mm or 30mm figure.

I went round and round these possibilities for ages, and then had, for me, a brainwave. What about the new Perry plastics? I'd seen an article in Wargames Illustrated showing that they were easy to convert, and surely converting plastic figures into something completely different was a highly "old school" idea, perfectly in keeping with my rather rambling project.

So I bought a box of Perry ACW cavalry. I was both impressed and slightly surprised by these figures. Impressed because they carry many of the virtues of Perry metal castings, yet are only £1 per cavalry figure; surprised by the one or two weaknesses in the designs (e.g. lack of clarity in the moulding in a couple of places).

Well, I thought, I could simply add a tricorne and away I'd go. To add a tricorne, I simply needed to adapt one of the soft hats included in the box. Didn't I? (I should perhaps say here that I've virtually no sculpting or conversion experience. I did convert a load of Airfix Indians to "Numidians" in 1968 (!) and I once armed a Foundry Mexican peasant girl with a rifle for my daughter in a Wild West RPG - but basically I'm a duffer in this department.)

But I am also a cheapskate. So I tried this. I tried building a tricorne around a kepi. I tried making a tricorne from scratch. I tried several approaches. In the end, my best bet was to scuplt the hat directly on the head of the figure. Which worked quite well, I think, given my complete and utter lack of sculpting expertise. First create a disc of green stuff. Then get it to adhere to the top of the figure's head (not too easy - the green stuff seems to prefer to stick to the sculpting tool, even when suitably moistened). Then bend up three sides. Adjust the corners. Stop it from slipping over the eyebrows. Then correct for the previous over-correction. And, eventually, you might have a tricorne hat.

Though probably stuck to the knife!

In the course of this sophisticated millinery, I realised that a few other touches would be needed to turn my shell-jacketed ACWs into plausible 18th century cuirassiers or dragooons (at least I wasn't so touched by the sun that I believed I'd be able to create hussars!) Each model needed its tricorne, a queue, cavalry boots and turnbacks. So I used green stuff to build each of these in turn.

Results were mixed. As I say, I've neither skill nor experience, so there are problems with the finished results. Different figures have hats of different sizes and turnbacks of differing lengths, and there's some uneveness in the sculpted lines where I've not created a smooth enough line but, essentially, it worked. By adding this little shopping list of variations to the commercial ACW, a reasonably convincing (18th dragoon/cuirassier can be created.

Here's the first two models, painted last night:




There are some oddities, of course. I only realised when it came to painting that some of the horse furniture and pistol holster are rather inappropriate. These should probably have been shaved off. I'll try this on the next figures. Also, the bucket stirrups are not C18th (which is why I've painted boots and stirrups black, to disguise them).

Hopefully the sculpts will get better as I learn more.