New Venture: Empire Military Miniatures

Another new venture to report on this month, namely an operation calling itself Empire Military Miniatures

Once again, this company has been featured in the latest edition of TSC whose editor received a press release from the 'mysterious', and at the time undisclosed, owner

Amongst other things it was announced that their initial releases would consist of some WW1 Belgian infantrymen and some ECW Parliamentarian cavalry. The company's stated aim is to produce quality, matte painted figures sitting somewhere in between the standard of those currently being produced by K&C and First Legion

At the time of publication in TSC precise price points hadn't been decided but as a rule of thumb infantry figures would more than likely be sub £40 and cavalry figures sub £80

The company's stated business plan is to sell direct to the collector via the internet and at toy soldier shows with no plans at the moment to distribute their wares through the retail trade

Currently, the advertised website address, www.empiremm.co.uk, isn't live but they do have a presence on Facebook [see below] and a video posted on Youtube. Why not take a look, see what you think, and if you like what you see keep your eyes peeled for future developments, should there be any

https://www.facebook.com/empiremilitaryminiatures

       

New Venture: The Model Armoury

Whist leafing through the pages of the latest edition of Toy Soldier Collector the other day I came across a half page advert for The Model Armoury, together with an address for a website

www.themodelarmoury.co.uk

At the time of writing, or publishing, this post the aforementioned website isn't yet 'live' however I soon discovered that TMA is very closely connected to Grey Goose Collectibles

Click on the link below and you can take a look at some of the company's initial offerings. For those who like their glossy soldiers to look less like toys and more like the real thing, I reckon you might be pleasantly surprised

The Model Armoury

Happy Hunting!

JG Miniatures: New Address

For those of you still in the dark, John Gittins Miniatures have, due to unforeseen circumstances, had to relocate and are now operating from the following address:

Happy Hunting!

Star Wars LEGO: Flying Bases

I'm in the process of building two, possibly four ultimately, armies of Star Wars LEGO figures that can be used to play wargames with. It goes without saying that quite a few of the models represent vehicles that have the capacity to fly and in order to use them in an aesthetically pleasing way as part of a tabletop game it's best to be able to suspend them in some way a few centimetres, if not inches, above the playing area

At first I thought I'd try using Games Workshop flying bases and small neodymium modellers magnets, a combination which works perfectly well for most of the flying vehicles one encounters as part of the Warhammer 40K universe. This method worked well but there was a problem with it in as much as in order for it to work properly you have to glue one of the magnets on to the underside of one of the bricks used to construct the vehicle, potentially 'spoiling' the brick. A 4mm diameter magnets fits perfectly into the stud receptors mind. A further 'issue' is that it is quite a fiddly process, requiring you to do a bit of trimming to the flying base before then gluing a second magnet on to the top of the supporting shaft

After trying this solution out four times I decided I wanted to try and find an alternative that firstly required no trimming, gluing or despoiling of bricks and secondly involved making use of LEGO bricks as a central feature of the design. I sat and pondered and then started to play around with some spare bricks in the spares box. Before long I'd hit upon a solution I was happy with, and that's one of the marvellous things about LEGO as a toy, the creative possibilities it affords, limited only by your imagination

I'm pleased with the outcome. See what you think

The starting point is a Games Workshop flying base

These three little bricks are all you need to turn it into a base that will support a number of the smaller LEGO vehicles

The cylinder fits perfectly over the top of the shaft and comes to a natural stop as the shaft begins to widen

The insertion of the sleeve piece facilitates the addition of a flat stud

Fit the small flat stud on the top and there you have it. This fits into the stud receptors on the underside of the vehicle

'In game' the flying base will stand directly on the tabletop

May the Force be with you!

First Legion: Latest Releases

The latest soon to be released figures from First Legion including a handful of very bedraggled and war weary Germans and some colourful, peacock like woodland native Americans. Enjoy!

For more information and images go to the company website or follow one of the other links below

http://www.firstlegionltd.com/

http://www.toysoldiersclub.com/2014-10-FL-EN.html

 http://www.sierratoysoldier.com/ourstore/pc/First-Legion-New-Releases-c1062.htm

Happy Hunting!

Collectors Battlefield: Update

Collectors Battlefield seems to be going from strength to strength and the latest new release has just been announced. Take a look at the screen shot of an email that landed in my inbox the other day!

http://collectorsbattlefield.com/

Happy Hunting!

Thomas Gunn Miniatures: Warbirds

With news of their latest wooden Warbirds, here's Vicki from TGM, together with a few pictures!

Dear All

We are very pleased to announce the release of 3 new iconic wooden warbirds
in 1/30 scale only available direct from Thomas Gunn.

Wings of War 012

The Henschel 123 started off as a dive bomber in the Spanish Civil War and
was the first aircraft flown by Adolf Galland during his career in combat
missions over Spain.

Eventually the HS 123 was replaced in most frontline units by the JU 87
Stuka. However because of the rugged design and reliability of the HS 123,
it was kept in service until 1944 and was used in a variety of roles
including ground attack, reconnaissance and as a glider tug.

Our 'green coloured' version is probably one of the most famous and was
flown by Hauptman Josef Menapace who flew over 700 combat missions, most of
them in the HS123 before being killed in action in Russia in 1943. Menapace
was awarded the Knights Cross in 1942 after flying 650 combat missions.
Our model comes with a choice of the 2 figures from Luft 009 A or B, just
let us know at time of purchase whether you prefer the figures in blue or
tropical uniforms.

Limited to 12 pieces worldwide and priced at $499 each plus postage and
packing.

Comes with full interior including pilots seat with seat belts, joy stick
and beautifully detailed dash board.

Wings of War 011

One of the major reasons for keeping the HS123 in operational service even
though it had been superseded by faster monoplane aircraft, was its ability
to operate under the most extreme conditions. Our second HS123 comes in a
gritty Eastern front winter camouflage scheme and looks every bit under the
weather as the cold takes its toll on men and machines.

Comes with a choice of either the A or B version of LUFT 009 figure set,
however the A version figures might look more appropriate may I suggest for
this version!

Once again limited to 12 in number worldwide and priced at $499 plus P&P.

Wings of War 010

Our third Rumpler comes in a stunning doped linen colour finish and is our
best looking and detailed Rumpler to date. We have added pilots seat belts,
dashboard and joy stick to this version along with some very neat looking
subtle weathering.

This colour scheme suitable for both Western and Middle Eastern fronts and
will quite happily sit on an airfield dio in France or Palestine!
This aircraft comes with the 2 figures from GW017 Workshop set which will
only enhance your display even more.

Limited to 12 in number worldwide and priced at $499 plus P&P.
Thats it for now folks, we have more of these beautiful looking aircraft in
the pipeline and I am hoping that next month we will have some more for your
viewing and buying pleasure. Please note that all the other figures and
vehicles pictured in our attached photos are for scale purposes only and are
not included with the aircraft, unless mentioned as part of the sales
particulars. If a particular set of figures is not available we reserve the
right to offer a alternative set from others in stock at the time of
purchase.

I will be adding more photos on our website www.tomgunn.co.uk later on,
please feel free to take a look or if you want to order, drop me an email at
your earliest convenience.

Best wishes
Vicki Lucas
TGM Marketing Manager

And here, as promised, are the images. Enjoy!

Happy Hunting!

King and Country: October Dispatches

Well, here we are in the month of October, it's 2.24 in the morning and I've not long returned home after playing a gig in Lower Gornal, near Dudley

King and Country have recently published their latest Dispatches with news of new figure releases and retirements and arguably the most noteworthy snippet of news is the announcement of a new range of figures depicting the armies involved in The English Revolution, aka The English Civil War, which raged, in fits and starts, across our green and pleasant land between the years of 1642 and 1651

Enough from me, and more from them. Follow the hyperlinks below to find out more
 

http://www.kingandcountry.com/dispatches/october-2014/#section-3

 http://www.toysoldiersclub.com/2014-10-KC-EN.html

Happy Hunting!