Who would like to see more naval subjects? (1 Viewer)

[theBaron]

Hello, all,

I was just watching "Master and Commander" again, and it occurred to me to ask how many of you would be interested in naval subjects, if more were available. It seems that the majority of collectors collect land-warfare subjects, with some aerial subjects, and naval combat is represented by a very small percentage of figures. Is it accurate to say that less than 1% of existing subjects treat naval themes? Certainly less than 5%.

I know that Britains has issued the Nelson figures, for example. It is that, because there is little demand or interest, there's not too much produced?

Prost!
Brad

 

[Al Fisher]

Aye, matey . . .

Al

 

[Louis Badolato]

I would love to see Naval subjects, and broached the topic with Andy, but his response was not encouraging. Simply stated, to do naval subjects effectively, you have to do ships. Ships are large, expensive and extremely difficult to ship (pun not intended). The vast majority of collectors have neither the space nor the means to purchase ships which in 1:30 or 1:32 scale (as for Napoleonic era you are talking 3-6 foot long, for WWII, 3-35 foot long).

Andy did make some (5 I think) Nile River Gunboats very early on, all of which were named after Comic Strips, line the Beano and the Hotspur. He also bought the rights to make Toy Soldiers from a certain Pirate Movie, and had a Pirate Ship built (based on the plans of Drake's ship, the Golden Hind), but he decided the pirate ship would be too expensive and too fragile, so never put it in production (photos of this ship and the pirates were recently posted on the forum).

 

[maddadicus]

I would love to see Naval subjects, and broached the topic with Andy, but his response was not encouraging. Simply stated, to do naval subjects effectively, you have to do ships. Ships are large, expensive and extremely difficult to ship (pun not intended). The vast majority of collectors have neither the space nor the means to purchase ships which in 1:30 or 1:32 scale (as for Napoleonic era you are talking 3-6 foot long, for WWII, 3-35 foot long).

Andy did make some (5 I think) Nile River Gunboats very early on, all of which were named after Comic Strips, line the Beano and the Hotspur. He also bought the rights to make Toy Soldiers from a certain Pirate Movie, and had a Pirate Ship built (based on the plans of Drake's ship, the Golden Hind), but he decided the pirate ship would be too expensive and too fragile, so never put it in production (photos of this ship and the pirates were recently posted on the forum).

Would you have photos of his gunboats? Thanks,Michael

 

[Louis Badolato]

Sorry Michael. I don't think even Andy has photos of his gunboats anymore, and I've never even seen one.

 

[theBaron]

I would love to see Naval subjects, and broached the topic with Andy, but his response was not encouraging. Simply stated, to do naval subjects effectively, you have to do ships. Ships are large, expensive and extremely difficult to ship (pun not intended). The vast majority of collectors have neither the space nor the means to purchase ships which in 1:30 or 1:32 scale (as for Napoleonic era you are talking 3-6 foot long, for WWII, 3-35 foot long).

Andy did make some (5 I think) Nile River Gunboats very early on, all of which were named after Comic Strips, line the Beano and the Hotspur. He also bought the rights to make Toy Soldiers from a certain Pirate Movie, and had a Pirate Ship built (based on the plans of Drake's ship, the Golden Hind), but he decided the pirate ship would be too expensive and too fragile, so never put it in production (photos of this ship and the pirates were recently posted on the forum).

Thanks, Louis, you're right, in the most popular scales now, the sheer size of a ship can be a limiting factor. But I could see producing a set with a scenic piece as a backdrop or base, like a small diorama. For example, a set consisting of a gun crew and cannon, with a section of deck or hull (as some makers have already done, in the past), wouldn't have to take up much more space than a Berlin streetcorner. In the world of scale miniatures, there is currently a 54mm set kit, I think from Andrea, depicting one of the fighting tops from the USS Constitution, with some Marines in firing postions.

Well, I guess the question about demand answers itself, in a way. If there were a discernable demand, there would be more sets already on the market. I'm still curious to see what kind of demand is there, so hopefully more forum members will respond with their opinions, if they see this thread.

Prost!
Brad

 

[Louis Badolato]

Brad,

Check out Figarti. They did a Bismark deck gun & crew set, as well as a complete 1:30 scale E-Boat. They are the company from which you are most likely to see your ideas come to fruition.

 

[marco55]

I think there is a market for ships.Conte has made some very impressive ships and have been very well recieved.Just looked at the viking ships, the cog,and of course the Roman Galley and a pirate ship on the way.I think the collectors that really want them will find room.Also the prices have been reasonable.
Mark

 

[damian]

I am sorry I am not really interested in naval pieces unless they were involved in land action ( Naval landing party AZW) . I am also not interested in planes or trains. I appreciate that this is a matter of choice so no disrespect intended to anyone, but I feel that I collect toy soldiers not model trains or planes or ships.
Regards
Damian

 

[Chuck Harris]

I am sorry I am not really interested in naval pieces unless they were involved in land action ( Naval landing party AZW) . I am also not interested in planes or trains. I appreciate that this is a matter of choice so no disrespect intended to anyone, but I feel that I collect toy soldiers not model trains or planes or ships.
Regards
Damian

Damian

Many US Navy personal were and are involved land actions, more than one would think.
Myself I was in the USN for 24 years, 4 months and only had 3 days on a ship.
Navy Seals do many land Ops. and I would like to see K&C make some Seal and C-B's sets ( WWII US Navy construction Batt ).
Thinking about it, C-Bees have been overlooked by TS makers. I was not a Seal or C-Bee

 

[damian]

Chuck
Thanks for pointing that out. I am very keen to add sailors to my collection when it is some sort of land based action , The Naval brigades of the AZW and British colonial era being something I am particularly keen on. There are some cool pictures of a Naval Brigade gatling Gun from the AZW by Little Legion over on the appropriate thread that I am particularly keen on. I just don't see myself collecting ships or aeroplanes. This is in no way intended to denigrate any particular service's or unit's contribution or importance but is just a personal choice. There are collectors who love planes and ships and that is great. As it is there is more stuff that I would love to add to my collection than I could ever possibly afford so I suppose I have to limit things in some way.
Regards
Damian

 

[Rob]

Chuck
Thanks for pointing that out. I am very keen to add sailors to my collection when it is some sort of land based action , The Naval brigades of the AZW and British colonial era being something I am particularly keen on. There are some cool pictures of a Naval Brigade gatling Gun from the AZW by Little Legion over on the appropriate thread that I am particularly keen on. I just don't see myself collecting ships or aeroplanes. This is in no way intended to denigrate any particular service's or unit's contribution or importance but is just a personal choice. There are collectors who love planes and ships and that is great. As it is there is more stuff that I would love to add to my collection than I could ever possibly afford so I suppose I have to limit things in some way.
Regards
Damian

Thats the only thing with this hobby,you have to set yourself limits.So much i want but limited funds.The Naval brigade gatling gun sounds cool.

Rob

 

[Saber]

Any naval units in the Axis Coastal Artillery maybe? Don't know if there were, but if they existed then you could produce a gun with the figures.

 

[theBaron]

Any naval units in the Axis Coastal Artillery maybe? Don't know if there were, but if they existed then you could produce a gun with the figures.

They sure did, and that would be a great set. I can set a diorama set of a coastal gun emplacement in Norway, where the Graf Zeppelin's guns were shipped, when the aircraft carrier project was cancelled.

I don't think there are too many figures out now of Kriegsmarine personnel in their blues, with the Stahlhelm and rifle.

Prost!
Brad

 

[Saber]

I'd be down for that. There could also be some naval units like a higgins boat perhaps? I would think that might be small enough to produce in 1:30th.

 

[theBaron]

I'd be down for that. There could also be some naval units like a higgins boat perhaps? I would think that might be small enough to produce in 1:30th.

I think there is 1/35th or 1/32nd scale kit of a landing craft, over in the parallel hobby universe of scale modelling. It might be by Italeri, but I'm pretty sure I saw it in Squadron's catalog. Now, it's one thing to produce it in styrene and photo-etch, and another to produce it in resin and white metal, but it shows that it can be done.

Prost!
Brad

 

[IXEC]

I think there is a market for ships.Conte has made some very impressive ships and have been very well recieved.Just looked at the viking ships, the cog,and of course the Roman Galley and a pirate ship on the way.I think the collectors that really want them will find room.Also the prices have been reasonable.
Mark

Your right about Conte.

I found room for the Galley & Cog in my display case. And I'm going for the Viking & Pirate ship.

But I'd really like to see a Civil War, ship gun deck or land battery with full crews. You wouldn't have to do the whole ship. You could do just one gun then add as many as you want side to side.

Could you imagine a 11" Dahlgren naval gun, it needed a crew of 25 to fully man. Or a 7" Brooke Rifle, and the many other Civil War naval guns, some of which were land mounts as well.

A manufacturer could get so much out of these theme's, naval and land figures for the same gun type.

If their reading this thread, here are some of the best books on this subject.

The Big Guns, by Edwin Olmstead
Wayne E.Stark
Spencer C. Tucker

The classisc work by Warren Ripley, Artillery and Ammunition of the Civil War.

And the master work of Spencer Tucker, Arming the Fleet

IXEC

 

[theBaron]

Your right about Conte.

I found room for the Galley & Cog in my display case. And I'm going for the Viking & Pirate ship.

But I'd really like to see a Civil War, ship gun deck or land battery with full crews. You wouldn't have to do the whole ship. You could do just one gun then add as many as you want side to side.

Could you imagine a 11" Dahlgren naval gun, it needed a crew of 25 to fully man. Or a 7" Brooke Rifle, and the many other Civil War naval guns, some of which were land mounts as well.

A manufacturer could get so much out of these theme's, naval and land figures for the same gun type.

If their reading this thread, here are some of the best books on this subject.

The Big Guns, by Edwin Olmstead
Wayne E.Stark
Spencer C. Tucker

The classisc work by Warren Ripley, Artillery and Ammunition of the Civil War.

And the master work of Spencer Tucker, Arming the Fleet

IXEC

I just got the latest issue of Toy Soldier & Model Figure, and I saw pics of Figarti's 1/30th scale German Schnellboot (E-boat, to our British cousins).

IXEC, I'm picturing the same sort of things you are, I think. I was thinking of a set showing the inside of the Monitor's turret, for example, or a section of gun deck from a Confederate ironclad. I've had that in mind, ever since I picked up Franklin Mint's 54mm Monitor crewman in a box of stuff at a flea market years ago.

Well, doesn't Britains currently have a set depicting a gun station about HMS Victory, in their Nelson series? Didn't they make a similar set back in the day, in the Herald line? I recall a naval gun carriage, with a cannon barrel that was plated with a gold color. I think the section of hull was made from printed cardboard.

I suppose it all comes down to the economics of it. If there is enough of a demand, it's worth it to K&C, and other manufacturers, to invest the time in developing the masters, and producing the figures. Maybe there's enough interest among collectors to support producing a limited edition set, for more of a premium price.

But even if there were more figures, the scratchbuilders among us could make their own displays.

Prost, beianand!
Brad