binder001
Command Sergeant Major
- Joined
- Apr 30, 2005
- Messages
- 2,729
Thanks to an eBay purchase and George Guerierro of Minutemen I have received my first two sets of the new Conte GI metal figures. I thought that I'd pass along some first impressions.
Overall, I think this will be a great series. The poses look good and natural. The castings look good. The paint is neat, although somewhat darker that I personally paint my figures. These appear to have been finished with a dark wash to bring out detail, sometimes a little heavier than I personally prefer.
The .30 cal light machinegun team is posed in the firing position, on a base. The poses look similar to WW2 photos of these guns in action. The M1919A4 machinegun is nicely rendered and seems to be in proper scale to the figures. On my set the tripod needed a little gentle bending to straighten the front leg and the loader's shovel handle also needed straightening, both common occurances with cast metal figures. Mine has the barrel drilled out - a nice touch!
The set "Oldest Trick in the Book" has a prone rifleman taking aim while his buddy raises a helmet on his rifle. A very creative set that can stand alone or be displayed as part of a larger scene. The base is a little nicer (in my opinion). The figures are well posed. Equipment and uniforms seem accurate. I'm just not impressed with anybody's M1 rifles, but these aren't bad.
Overall, I think these figures are a fair value. Personally, I would have preferred to save $10 or so and made my own bases. The painting isn't King and Country, but I think it's better than many other sets out there. I'm still looking forward to seeing the plastic figures series "up close and personal", but the metal figures really lend themselves to display or diorama.
Overall, I think this will be a great series. The poses look good and natural. The castings look good. The paint is neat, although somewhat darker that I personally paint my figures. These appear to have been finished with a dark wash to bring out detail, sometimes a little heavier than I personally prefer.
The .30 cal light machinegun team is posed in the firing position, on a base. The poses look similar to WW2 photos of these guns in action. The M1919A4 machinegun is nicely rendered and seems to be in proper scale to the figures. On my set the tripod needed a little gentle bending to straighten the front leg and the loader's shovel handle also needed straightening, both common occurances with cast metal figures. Mine has the barrel drilled out - a nice touch!
The set "Oldest Trick in the Book" has a prone rifleman taking aim while his buddy raises a helmet on his rifle. A very creative set that can stand alone or be displayed as part of a larger scene. The base is a little nicer (in my opinion). The figures are well posed. Equipment and uniforms seem accurate. I'm just not impressed with anybody's M1 rifles, but these aren't bad.
Overall, I think these figures are a fair value. Personally, I would have preferred to save $10 or so and made my own bases. The painting isn't King and Country, but I think it's better than many other sets out there. I'm still looking forward to seeing the plastic figures series "up close and personal", but the metal figures really lend themselves to display or diorama.
