Britains Zulu War question (1 Viewer)

[Eazy]

I'm thinking of starting collecting some Zulu war figures based on the Rorke's Drift theme. I know i'm spoilt for choice.

What is the general opinion on the Britain's Rorkes Drift Diorama set? Does anyone here have it? Is it worth getting? I've only seen the box and don't really know how it is in real life.

Also which is the best range of figures to collect? I like the Britains ones from what i've seen, but the Frontline ones look pretty good too.

James

 

[wadepat]

Eazy,

I own the Rorke's Drift Diorama and I am very, very pleased with it. I also own the Hospital Diorama add-on, which compliments and completes the larger diorama. Without the add-on, one end of the basic diorama remains open and defenseless. All the figures in my diorama are the Britains glossy finish Zulu War figures and they look great displayed in the diorama.

If I were to consider another line of Rorke's Drift figures, I would explore the Trophy figures, provided you could find them, of course. In my opinion, Trophy has made some wonderful Zulu War figures and accessories.

I have not really looked at the Frontline figures, so I cannot be much help with that part of your question. Perhaps someone else can voice an opinion.

Warm regards,

Pat

 

[DMNamiot]

Hi,

I have a bunch of Frontlines Zulu War series and think they would go quite well with the Britains sets. I have a friend who had the Hospital and the other protion of the display and they looked great. If I was going to change my current collecting trend I would probably go for the Rorkes Drift series because they are a lot of companies making figures for this period so you would be able to mix and match and field some very realistic numbers of Zulus.

Dave

 

[gk5717]

Did you ever think of Contes Rourkes Drift Playset? It,s plastic and not painted but when you set it up with extra figures, I would put it with any metal set out there.
Gary

 

[Eazy]

Thanks for all the advice. I'm leaning towards the Britains set because it looks a really nice package and has the Britains name.

I do like the look of the Frontline figures and am glad to hear they mix well with the Britains range

 

[aujj65]

Eazy.
You might want to take a look at the range of figures from Little Legion, glossy finish and really nice, also Tradition of London do a range as well.
Regards.
Jeff

 

[VIRIATO]

Couldn't agree more with Aujj64-Little Legion and Tradition, at least on photo, seem to be very good Zulu War figures, glossy like Britains. I especially like Little Legion's hand to hand and horse riding scenes, I am willing to get some of them. On the other hand, the more I see Trophy's photos, the more I doubt them: I like gloss, but with some realism, and to me Trophy's painting and sculpting doesn't look like achieving that. Conte, well, Conte's Zulu War figures are not glossy and for my personal taste gloss is the way for Zulu War ( and matte for WWII-a little crazy, huh?). I am not familiar with Frontline's Zulu War figures, will look them up, but generally I am not a Frontline fan. Britains to me, though, are ahead of the pack and I consider myself fortunate to own some of their Zulu War sets.
Another thing: I believe compatibility has many limitations. Every manufacturer is different form the other, unless there's some cloning going on, so I don't like mixing figures from different companies, at least on small dioramas. Just my 2 cents, like someone has already said...

H. collecting,
Paulo

 

[UK_BOD]

Gents,

Just started my own Isandhlwana display. A lot of work needs doing, such as another three JG boards, grasses and some rocks, as well as some camouflaging of the bases.

The figures are either Britains (the standing 24th) or Little Legion (All Zulus and the Brit casualties). I probably need another dozen or so Zulus and a few more casualties. This should then give a good 24 x 24 display.

Little Legion compliment the Britains very well.

Andy

 

[Steven Chong]

Frontline's original Zulu War figures were glossy, which matched Britains' glossy paint style. However, Frontline changed all their Zulu War sets to a matt paint style about 3 years ago, so they now look different from the Britains' figures.

 

[DMNamiot]

Hi Guys,

I have to older Frontline sets which are Glossy and are great to look at and would be fine intermixed with Britains Sets. If you can find the older sets get them. I know that Matte is all the rage but they dont do it for me for the older colonial wars. I can offer a suggestion if you like a set that is matte you could with very little difficulty make it glossy by simply using a gloss coat on them. Now dont go wild on me here but I know there are a lot of folks out there that are already modifing their sets so its just an idea. I use the gloss coat on unpainted castings if the glossy paint isnt glossy enough.

Dave

 

[Eazy]

I managed to find the Rorke's Drift diorama and Hospital set for a decent price here in the UK.

To start with I'm inclined to try and track down the Britains sets before they all disappear. However I am very impressed by the Little Legion figures from the photos anyway.

Do they match up in size and style to the Britains figures?

 

[wadepat]

Eazy,

I am really glad you found the Rorke's Drift and Hospital sets. I would be very interested to know how much you like them and/or if you experience any disappointments with them. I have really enjoyed mine and I consider it one of the highlights of my collection.

Warm regards,

Pat

 

[Eazy]

Hi Pat,

I've just opened the two sets and I have to say i'm very pleased. First impressions were excellent. The box gives an impression of quality and when you take off the lid the figures are very well presented, while the little gold coloured plaque is a nice touch.

I'm glad I got the hospital section as well as it really completes the diorama.

I'm surprised at how complete it seems. The figures built into the base really fill it out.

The figures themselves are nice and glossy and feel very sturdy. The face painting on the zulus could be better but that's pretty minor as they look very dynamic and have a good traditional feel thats suitable for this period.

Thsi is my first venture outside WW2 collecting and i'm pleased with the colour it's added to my collection.

Now i just need to track down some of the Britains zulu sets which seem hard to find at the moment from a brief search.

Cheers

James

 

[DMNamiot]

Hi Easy,

There are two places that I think can help you, one in the UK the other in the US. In the UK the site is called www.toysoldiers.org

I checked this site and they have the following sets listed as in stock

00258 Water Cart Sortie (good addition)
00146 4 Zulus standing firing
40174 6 Zulus various poses
41099 3 piece Zulu set
00144 British Character set

You may also want to consider adding sets 40176 &40177 Holding the line sets since that will give you more 24th Foot troopers to add to the display and beef it up some. You can also check with the good people over at MKL Models in London Phone is 01189 733690 or on the web at www.theguardstoysoldiercentre.co.uk
MKL also has a ton of other companies that make Zulus so next time you are in London go by the shop at Wellington Barracks on Birdcage Walk.

The place to check with in the states is London Bridge Collectors Toys at 610-967-6887. He has fantastic prices and a really large amount of inventory and the price difference may still be saving you money even with the shipping cost to the UK so dont disregard them. I dont know if they have a website. Anyway, hope this helps lets us know how the hunt goes.

Dave

 

[Eazy]

Thanks Dave.

MKL was where I got the diorama from. It was a good price and excellent service. They have the British sets but no Zulus.

The other website Toysoldiers.org is another of those that rarely updates his listings so i kind of doubt he has them in stock now but I'll drop him an email.

I'll try and find a website for that US dealer.

I've found a dealer with set 41099 but now need to track down sets 41074 and 00146. The British sets seem easier to get hold of.
.
Cheers for the suggestions

James