glossy recomendations (1 Viewer)

[vandilay]

Hi Guys
I am looking at expanding the glossy side of my collection and i,m after
any recomendations of current manufacturers,
I presently have some imperial,premier [both britains and the original premier model company]aswell as a few britians.These are the only companys i,m familiar with and as i buy online ,I was wondering whats the best of the current crop are[very subjective i know].
I,m not too big on bands and prefer fighting poses etc,particularly scots
regiments .
Any recomendations would be apreciated as all the companys i like are no longer being made [with the exception of britains].

regards Rob

 

[Louis Badolato]

Check out Little Legion, sold by one of the true gentleman of this hobby, Paul Herrmann of the Toy Soldier Shoppe, in Wauwatusa, Wisconsin (he's a K&C dealer, and his contact info is available on the King & Country website). The sculpting and painting of the figures is the best of seen in a glossy figure. Trophy used to make a pretty good gloss figure, as did Frontline, but Frontline now seems focused on matt, and I think Trophy is very close to being out of business. Some of the 1990-1996 production K&C glossy figures are pretty exceptional, but good luck finding them, and if you do, be prepared to pay a fortune for them. A small company that makes some really fantastic Indian Army, Sudan Campaign, and even a Lawrence of Arabia series is Sommerset, owned by Ron Ley, also a good friend and real gentleman. His figures, including camel corps, camel and elephant mounted or drawn gun teams, are also among the best sculpted and painted glossy figures I've ever seen. As a matter of fact, the early King & Country Camel Corps figures were licensed off of his sculptings (and frankly, not nearly a well painted as the Sommerset originals). Those are the companies I would check out if I were to stray from K&C in the pursuit of glossy figures.

 

[Leadmen]

Rob: Here is web site of soldier - Pac for castings. http://www.soldierpac.com/. I finished cameron highlanders laying, kneeling and standing firing with officers like old Britain sets. Soldier - Pac has many castings and free shiping over 40 pounds. If you use gloss enamels- Humbrol etc. figures turn out neat. Painting takes a little skill but practice makes it easy. I sometimes make molds from early set and cast them 50/50 tin lead bars. I am finishing Egyptian and Sudanese infantry and a early set of Indian Army infantry at trail. I will post some pics when I feel like messing with camera- hate photography. You can add a nice collection and have guys that are no longer made or very expensive to buy. John

 

[CannonFodder1971]

If you have a spare few weeks to pass then try looking at all the links on the William Hocker site:

http://wmhocker.com/resource.htm

For those manufacturers mentioned but who don't have a weblink listed all you need to do is Google them and/or try eBay for examples.

 

[Leadmen]

Rob: Here are some Highlander pics. Britains, Britain recasts, King&Counrtry, Frontline, Trophy, Imperial, plus some figure conversions. John

 

[Leadmen]

Another photo- Leadmen

 

[Leadmen]

a close up- LM

 

[Leadmen]

The left side close up- John

 

[vandilay]

Thanks for the info guys,
It is always hard to judge the quality of figures without seeing them first hand.I will follow up the leads you have provided,I did a quick search on little legion and they look very well done.
John thanks for posting the pics ,they look great.I know the majority of
collectors on the forum seem to prefer matte ,but their is
still something about the gloss figures that I realy like.
I might even have a crack at painting some myself although I,m not too sure if i have the skill or patience too do them justice mind you.
Who makes the colour party too the Right of the gattling gun in the 2nd too last photo
{murphys law would make them K and C and the hardest too come by}
the william Hocker site looks like an excellent resource i,ve added that to my
favourites List,Thanks again.
Regards Rob

 

[Leadmen]

Rob: The color party and sgt. are early K&C glossy figures as well has the khaki color party and bugler with other khaki highlanders. Wished I had more from that period. I have more time to paint now and what I like about doing my own is I can choose which period of history or poses I would like to do. I still like matte figures and do military miniatures once in awhile. Plastic figure sets are also fun to paint and gives me practice for doing the metal guys. Thanks> John

 

[Louis Badolato]

I also have a big place in my heart for glossy toy soldiers. I prefer matt for modern subjects (WWI to the present) but for Victorian Era and before the glossy finish adds a certain nostalgia to the figures that can't be beat. Its a shame that K&C stopped doing glossy when it did in 1996-1997, because its last few glossy releases (particularly the last set of Seaforth Highlanders, the Palio Standard Bearers and the "Les Miserables" poster figures) were the best glossy figures I've ever seen, and the Zulus and Napoleonics from 1994-1995 were also really great figures.

 

[Gideon]

I am a huge fan of Tommy Atkins even though their production and delivery times are inconsistent.

They have a beatiful French/Indian war range, terrific highlanders, WWI and others.

Check them out.