Any Info Input About Stadden (1 Viewer)

[Partner]

Amazing find by you and awesome paint work by John
The tartans are terrific.
Great that these old castings were rescued.
Regards Kirk

 

[Obee]

Pitty I do not have pics of what these sets looked like when I bought them...with no lick of paint and just a grey prime over them all...no wonders they were hard to spot....
Cheers
Artillery_Crazy

Luiz,

I took a pic before I started on the first dozen marching figures, so that you could see the comparison, and so you can see the final result of my work



John

 

[Artillery_crazy]

Fantastic John,
Great that you had pics of before and after....
Cheers
Luiz

Luiz,

I took a pic before I started on the first dozen marching figures, so that you could see the comparison, and so you can see the final result of my work

View attachment 218541

John

 

[theBaron]

Did you get them all in one lot? That in itself is a great find. Seldom do we see a large number of Stadden castings of the same subject come on the market at one time.

Prost!
Brad

 

[Artillery_crazy]

Hi Brad,
Thanks for the note, and yes they all came in one lot....At first I did not believe what was being laid out on the counter and had to work my best poker face not to blow my cover. But once the stall seller started pulling them out of the box, I said ok no need to get them all out ( was afraid it would call too much attention...{sm4} and competition...).
After settling the deal, I asked the person the source of such collection and he told me it came from the sales proceeds of an estate...

Having said that I have told my wife and kids that Daddy´s soldiers value a pretty penny, so just do not toss them out when I pass to the next level, or box them away....{sm2}{sm2}..Call Vectis or Old Toy Solbier Auctions and get them to appraise the stash...{sm4}{sm4}{sm4}
Cheers
Luiz

Did you get them all in one lot? That in itself is a great find. Seldom do we see a large number of Stadden castings of the same subject come on the market at one time.

Prost!
Brad

 

[The Major]

Yo Troopers, anyone one have any info about Stadden. Its great when you buy something that you have never owned before, then you start to look into all the pros & cons of it.IE: Bought the 1970s Queens Own Hussar Drum Horse yesterday (see Britains thread), and noticed in their description that it was painted at Stadden Studios, not the later TKS painted model. So not being that knowledgeable about Toy Soldiers as some of you guys who have been collecting a long time, I decided to make some enqueries today as to who were TKS. It turns out that they are a group called Toye, Kenning, & Spencer, and if my info is right that they own Stadden. This really surprised me because I was looking at the Stadden site last week and it seemed to me that it was still run by the Stadden family. So if I had gone ahead and bought the Drum Horse today from the site at £615.00 painted, I would have been totally mislead that I was buying a Chas Stadden piece, but in theory its a company that now own Stadden and just using the name. If I am wrong about this OK its down to ignorance of the fact, but if my info is correct, I think these points should be made clear to the buyer. Would like to hear your thoughts on this subject Troopers.
Bernard.

Charles "Chas" C Stadden retired some time ago and according to my contacts lives or moved to Dorsetshire in England. He must have been very rich because Dorset has been the most expensive (and one of the final beutiful unspoiled parts of England !!!) place to buy property since the late Anita Roddick (Body Shop ) parked her massive Luxury yacht down there. A Decent sized house easily can cost over six Million now. I met the great man at one of the London Shows a few years back now, and bought some of his self printed black and white Sculpting and Modelling books.

I admired Stadden's work since when I was a young man and a then BMSS Society member. Though due to ones "humble" origins, one was only able to admire them because we could not afford them. Stadden produced quite a large number of "large scale size" figures, because back in those days the price of Casting pewter or metals was apreciably "less" than it has become now, driving nearly all large scale metal figures out of existence due to very high prices).

In the figure hey day, there were many 90, 75, 80, and 120 MM figures to choose from.
Changeing social patterns , a lack of willingness to teach young people History, and tastes and a change in the quality and type of young man now appearing in society, has resulted sadly in a steady decline in the fortunes of the larger scale toy soldier figures and the hobby in general.

We still have some large scale sized figure Moulds we re shipped back from New Zealand last year. But costs are very high for customers and so are strictly "Limited Edition" only. They are alas a relic of a bygone age.

Staddens figure making production spanned many years, and he made figures for other producers too, including Series77, and Sarum Soldiers (the Sid Horton years NOT the Patrick J D Willis years !!!). When we bought the former CHOTA SAHIB and SARUM STUDIO FIGURINE RANGES from P J D WILLIS in 2009 we acquired a large amount of Masters as well as the castings made from and the Moulds, by STADDEN. he made a lot of what people wrongly think were Sid Horton's Chota Sahib figures. His sister Beckey Stadden was the professional Master Painter who painted a lot, nearly all, of our painted sample models in our range. We still use the production Stadden painted Model photographs in our own Relaunch publicity and Literature.

Chota Sahib was produced by Stadden in both 54MM and the bigger more costly 90 MM scale, and we own the rights to both of these in the Stadden figures we purchased from Patrick J D Willis. Sid Horton in fact did not make all of the figures himself. A few were also done by the late Alan Caton, and seven by Mike French formerly owner of "Dorset Soldiers". We have the master list.

Stadden also did work for "ASSET" and then "LASSETT" Miniatures.

I have several of Charles Staddens "earlier" figures in 54MM scale amongst my own personal Collection of figures.

There is one large scale Stadden figure, the British Grenadier throwing the bomb, which is also seconded during the Patrick Willis era to our range which we acquired from him when we bought the "Business" in 2009.

Unfortuienately for us, (we are a retired couple) the "Business" was not "free from isssues" as was claimed by its selling, retireing owner "International Buisness man" and banker Mr Patrick Willis. Whom Max Chevallier dearly would love to SUE.

Willis retired to Wiltshire "just up the road from DJR Models" formerly known in better days as Marlborough Miniatures when owned by its Welsh based founders, before (the late Dave Palmer). Palmer and his rogue caster John Eden promptly seem to have suddennely "acquired" copie tooling stolen from us and certainly, we caught them openly casting and selling a lot of examples of our own figures and work.

Which angrily begged us to question "Where and from who did you get it?"

All letters to Willis's solicitor went "un answered". From which we draw a strong inference.

A former UK retailer began stealing Stadden figures and illegaly copying them, trading under the Internet site of Studio model Design (in reality our old Frome Somerset retialer "FROME MODEL CENTRE" Simon England produced shoddy slip shod bad re casted copy works, and we received complaints. England owes us over 4000 for a retail delivery of goods un paid for, and thousands for illegal copyright piracy products.


Meanwhile was also found to be busy Pirating Chota Sahib from italy in Bologna and from an outlet in in France. We were "informed" by a visitor to my then Barbican based Plymouth Hobby Shop. "Soldats De Ligne".

We lost a great deal of money, and are absolutely FURIOUS with Mr Willis; who surely knew about the Italian Piracy when he sold it to us, then it seems re sold again "somehow" to Dave Palmer (now deceased) and John Eden.
When Palmer died, Eden set up on his own.

John Eden also sold the former "Rose Egyptian range" to the Simons of "FLEURBAIX" Toy soldiers New Zealand, only to secretly continue illegaly producing the figures and offerring them to customers in Edens studios .

We bought the Rose Egyptian range, and John eden, rather sensibly, aparently, has now "closed down". Ahem.....

Tradition of London (sorry its Tradition of Stockholm now) also got caught selling a lot of our Stadden and other 54 Mm painted figures and despite Cease and desist letters, continue to abuse us in this way, we got print outs from their web sites. TRADITION used to under former different ownership, sell Patrick Willis's Sarum and Chota figures from the now gone London Shop.

PARRALLEL LINES

Sarum Eau de Nil green carded packets look exactly nearly the same colour as the then contemporary Tradition carded packets, for exactly the reason that they were sold from the same retail outlet in London by Traditions then UK management, which alas has since changed. Confusingly also, BOTH Sarum Chota Sahib and Tradition used Charles Stadden as a sculptor sometimes. Hence there are periods of good quality Tradition figures, and periods of (other sculptor) rather in animated or "Wooden" Tradition toy soldiers to be found by the unwary collector there.

STADDEN Prices are high !

Be careful what you buy IS really a genuine "STADDEN" and not "sexton Blake".

BEWARE OF PIRACY PRODUCTS

When the Tradition UK shop closed, stock Willis promised us he had disposed of from the shop, got sold to Magnus Londstrom of Sweden who despite a number of copyright infringement warnings, began selling lots of our stuff, to augment the figures which master toy soldier UK expert Mr James OPIE has described "officialy" as "unremarquable". I would personaly call them "wooden", in comparison to our stolen Stadden Chota Sahib and Studio Figurines, the figures he is "selling " (pimping) are the most lifelike Tradition have been able to sell since the days of the late great Ron Cameron.


Cameron and Stadden produced figures for sale in USA as well, and Stadden remains big in interest even today over there.

Sets such as the Stadden Buckingham pewter figures attrract seriously steep prices now.

Hope that helps? Kind regards Max Chevallier France

 

[theBaron]

...Willis retired to Wiltshire "just up the road from DJR Models" formerly known in better days as Marlborough Miniatures when owned by its Welsh based founders, before (the late Dave Palmer). Palmer and his rogue caster John Eden promptly seem to have suddennely "acquired" copie tooling stolen from us and certainly, we caught them openly casting and selling a lot of examples of our own figures and work...

...BEWARE OF PIRACY PRODUCTS

When the Tradition UK shop closed, stock Willis promised us he had disposed of from the shop, got sold to Magnus Londstrom of Sweden who despite a number of copyright infringement warnings, began selling lots of our stuff, to augment the figures which master toy soldier UK expert Mr James OPIE has described "officialy" as "unremarquable". I would personaly call them "wooden", in comparison to our stolen Stadden Chota Sahib and Studio Figurines, the figures he is "selling " (pimping) are the most lifelike Tradition have been able to sell since the days of the late great Ron Cameron....

Those are some pretty serious allegations. Can you provide more specific examples, such as photos, of figures that John Eden and Magnus Lindstrom are supposed to have produced without copyright? I know that the Tradition website includes figures from other brands than Tradition, but all brands seem to be clearly identified with their original brands. As for John Eden, I know he owns parts of the old Rose catalog, as well as some Sanderson molds. I can't speak to the other brands that he has in his catalog, however.

 

[The Major]

Those are some pretty serious allegations. Can you provide more specific examples, such as photos, of figures that John Eden and Magnus Lindstrom are supposed to have produced without copyright? I know that the Tradition website includes figures from other brands than Tradition, but all brands seem to be clearly identified with their original brands. As for John Eden, I know he owns parts of the old Rose catalog, as well as some Sanderson molds. I can't speak to the other brands that he has in his catalog, however.

Yes, without Prejudice.
Please see attachment images of our figures involved below. (There are others too). All images © copyright Maxime J Chevallier 2009. The images came from Patrick J D Willis on CD Roms from his old web site at the time we purchased the Business with FULL COPYRIGHT before 2010 when I brought the entire affair to Europe as part of our retirement Income Plan.
There are more, but here we can only send attach ten files.


For the avoidance of doubt, the full copyright is firmly written and embodied in the Legal agreement via bone fide Legal Advisors with Mr Willis himself the "seller" and retiring previous owner.

My wife and I have photos of TRADITION of LONDON's stock from their now current web site. I found it a few weeks ago (again still going on after several years !!!) . Tradition have been made very well aware of this issue from us before, but chose to do nothing.
Below Straight from the TRADITION OF LONDON Web Site today, voila our figure of the Duke of Marlborough being sold by Tradition.



Londstrom has been contacted directly by us several times over these issues, in writing, and chooses to ignore the matter.
Recently I noted that Tradition of London (Stockholm) has changed ownership or at least on paper its "Directorship" is now held by a differrent name in Sweden.
Very recently in the past few weeks this year, a "New" Look Tradition web site has appeared replacing the previous version.
Interesting because my wife and I are set to relaunch Chota Sahib, Studio Figures and Ducal, Mountford, Rosedale and others from our own workshops very shortly.

However Tradition site, it continues to contain a number products owned and purchased by us exclusively from P J D Willis and the former Chota Sahib and Studio Figurine Ranges. Pictures "come and go" and do change, but they regulalry appear and re appear at differrent times on their.


Straight away one 54 MM figure example is our English Civil War Figure of Prince Rupert of the Rhine, which comes from OUR Chota Sahib (ex Sarum P J WIllis) Range. It is a figure very distinctively posed, as bowing down to his Cousin King Charles 1. Also there is the figure Mounted of The Duke of Marlborough "doffing his Tricorn hat", and several other Mounted British Hussars. Londstrom was also selling one of our Vignettes of a Victorian British Officer "a walk in the Park" which he continualy featured on the Front page of his web site for several years.
We Do have prit outs showing the copyright issue items taken from Traditions web site, as well as Frome Model centres (Studio Figure design" web site.


Some vignettes like the WW1 Maxim German gunners have shown up too. Tradition have now altered the site, but Piracy continues by Frome Model Centre in Somersetshire of our Chota Sahib range. They stole old stored tools from Graulhet in Occitane and never paid us a penny , took them to Somerset and began copying and selling. I personaly visited VELDHOVEN Model show in Holland and caught their dealer there selling our figures.
My wife and I have lost thousands in retirement income because of this piracy copying.

Re the Vignette "a walk in the Park"Londstrom tried to claim or "claimed" to have sold ONLY ONE but this has never been honestly proved, and indeed frankly, we regard as a "joke" to expect us to beleive that story. When CLEARLY they have been selling so many "other" copied figures from our range series over so long a period of time now. Featuring OUR figures on his front web site page is only for one reason, to sell items.

And to add insult to our financial injury, he has continued to sell our figures online over several years and in addition, there have been others too.

Re JOHN EDEN STUDIOS
John Eden used to be Dave and Rose Palmer's caster, during the DJR Models years of what previously had once been "Marlborough Miniatures". Eden sold the ROSE Egyptians first to Abram Simon of Fleurbaix Toy soldiers in new Zealand, and later, years on, he sold them to us here in Europe. Eden has been selling the "Egyptian" figures to customers, despite having "sold copyright" to the Simons who sold them later to us. Our last information is John Eden has now closed down but we are unable to confirm that ourselves today.
DJR Models in Wilstshire were busy copying and selling our figures, and again we took print outs from their web site and wrote to them "without reply" from Paris.
Below Our Vignette of a British officer and his family. Entitled a walk in the park Londstrom featured this for several years on the frontpage of his Tradition web site, in direct infringement of our copyright.



The Vignette of the German Hussar and lady above were regularly copied and sold illegaly by Dave and Rose and Joan Palmer under the DJR Models brand. Below. We have a pack of Five figures identical to this Herald, all sold by DJR Models, packeted in the "Pink" former Sarum Soldiers carded packet, with DAVE AND ROSES AND JOHN EDENS Business address clearly printed on it. Where did THEY get our figures from??? You cant get more solid evidence than that.

 

[theBaron]

And have you pursued any legal action against any of these people for allegedly copying your items?

 

[theBaron]

Also, to offer a minor correction, it's Lindstrom (or more precisely, Lindström), not "Londstrom".

 

[The Major]

And have you pursued any legal action against any of these people for allegedly copying your items?

We wrote four cease and desist warning letters, of increasing level, to Mr Magnus Londstrom oF "TRADITION of London" (Stockholm based).
Without positive or useful results....

That was just over 2 years ago by now.

The copyright infringements continued for that time, and we took fresh print outs showing a lot of our figures on his web site for sale.

We recieved one reply which ignored completely the copyright issue and was unhelpful.

Then, my wife and I found just in time, that "someone from an office in Stockholm" had actively attempted to embody a dangerous Legal Document as part of a separate French Business "Formation" as Micro Entrepeneur. That False legal Document, was worded to take control of our ENIRE PERSONAL PROPERTY and Land and Business !!!!!!

EVRYTHING WE HAVE.

I angrily marched straight down to the our French Police National Post, who studied the "Document" with some horror and did what they could to investigate it.....

A complaint was also officialy made on the French Police Internet Site about the affair.

We of course kept all documentation.

Legal charges to deal with this level of Copyright Infringement run easily here in Strasbourg into over Twenty Thousand Euro, MINIMUM at least.
(Think how many New sculpturd figures coud be made by us or a subcontractor for that money !).

This is etirely the "trouble" with some people (we say "SOME" it is not everyone) in this Industry, copying and piracy theft is RUINING it for a lot of people not just my wife and me.

We have e mails from Abram Simon also referring excplicity and very honestly, directly, to his Business having "issues wxith Magnus Londstrom" and a nasty e mail recieved by Abram from Londstrom because he and his wife chose to sell DUCAL and the other ranges from Fleurbaix to us instead of to him. (Fleurbaix's home made figures and kits ranges made by Gregg his father he kept for family reasons).

We have been defrauded of a considerable sum of Income because of the above issues and due to the very high legal fees involved have our Mouths gagged and our hands tied behind our backs.

Meanwhile just yesterday we saw a DUCAL Mounted figure of a Danish kettle Drummer (it was on our DUCAL horse as well !!) being sold from his site. Now, this is a real shot in the foot for him, because we know that jack Duc and his wife Thelma the original owners and makers of DUCAL toy soldiers, commissioned that DANISH KETTLE DRUMMER as a personal Gift and present for certain well liked and favoured customers. We know a guy in Australai who right now has one just as this. The Danish Kettle Drummer was NEVER a full catalogue or full DUCAL production range item. None of jack Duc's personal "favour" commissions or gifts ever were.

yet "somehow" yesterday, why there it is for sale in Traditions Web site on our Ducal horse.
hes made a right boo boo with doing this.



IT IS INFURIATING plain and simple abuse.

 

[The Major]

We wrote four cease and desist warning letters, of increasing level, to Mr Magnus Londstrom oF "TRADITION of London" (Stockholm based).
Without positive or useful results....

That was just over 2 years ago by now.

The copyright infringements continued for that tipme, and we took fresh print outs showing a lot of our figures on his web site for sale.

We recieved one reply which ignored completely the copyright issue and was unhelpful.
Then, my wife and I found just in time, that "someone from an office in Stockholm" had actively attempted to embody a dangerous Legal Document as aprt of a separate French Business "Formation" as Micro Entrepeneur. That False legal Document, was worded to take control of our ENIRE PERSONAL PROPERTY and Land and Business !!!!!!

Both my wife and I felt strongly this had to be something to do with our recent complaints against Londstrom and TRADITION Sweden.

I angrily marched straight down to the our French Police National Post, who studied the "Document" with some horror and did what they could to investigate it.

A complaint was also officialy made on the French Police Internet Site about the affair.

We of course kept all documentation.

Legal charges to deal with this level of Copyright Infringement run easily here in Strasbourg into over Twenty Thousand Euro, MINIMUM at least.
(Think how many New sculpturd figures coud be made by us or a subcontractor for that money !).

This is etirely the "trouble" with some people (we say "SOME" it is not everyone) in this Industry, copying and piracy theft is RUINING it for a lot of people not just my wife and me.

We have e mails from Abram Simon also referring excplicity and very honestly, directly, to his Business having "issues wxith Magnus Londstrom" and a nasty e mail recieved by Abram from Londstrom because he and his wife chose to sell DUCAL and the other ranges from Fleurbaix to us instead of to him. (Fleurbaix's home made figures and kits ranges made by Gregg his father he kept for family reasons).

We have been defrauded of a considerable sum of Income because of the above issues and due to the very high legal fees involved have our Mouths gagged and our hands tied behind our backs.
IT IS INFURIATING plain and simple abuse.