Moan warning - 15mm cavalry horses.

[Duke Speedy of Leighton]

Just assembling 20  x 15mm cavalry for a friend.
Nice figures, made by a manufacturer who shall remain nameless, and once upon a time their quality and range was what the market aspired to be.
But the horses, despite a great variety and animation, are a pain to assemble! The tiny amount of basing they put on their horses, and the angles it comes out at, can be a right pain, plus, as has just happened, half fall over whilst you wait for the glue to set...
Grrr...
Moan moan...









Happy Friday everyone, enjoy the sunshine and have fun!

[Zippee]

Sounds like Essex - tiny bases.

Blu-tac is your friend

[FierceKitty]

Sounds like Essex - tiny bases.

Blu-tac is your friend

You were not alone in that suspicion.

[Sunray]

You were not alone in that suspicion.

Funny the name that came into my head when I read the "small bases & angles" - Essex were the Airfix of the metal world when it came to horses.

[Duke Speedy of Leighton]

I will neither confirm, nor deny any eastern county was involved...

[sultanbev]

Yes, effin' hate Essex cavalry because of the their bases, and their minimum postage charge of £4.70 (as was), and their separate lances.
As you say, great sculpts, with poor presentation.

None of these problems in 10mm.

Mark

[Zippee]

Separate lances?

Which are those - it would have saved me a heap of pain and tears if my Sassanids and Arabs had had separate lances back in the day. And I dare say my Normans and Lombards, etc would look better too, although they are more robust.

Essex remain my reserve fall back option even if most new stuff is FIB these days. Despite some of the odd poses, the variety and range is still unmatched.

The small bases are a nuisance but as I say a blob of blu-tac whilst your glue of choice sets is the solution 


For instance I base them on my painting strips with blu-tac and copydex, and then peel off when done.

On the proper bases, I use blu-tac blobs/strips/mounds (using it to sculpt the terrain a bit) and then sit the horses/troops in with superglue. Once set wash liberally with watered down PVA and spread sand/grit/etc.

[sultanbev]

French napoleonic lancers, the lances are supposed to glue into the open hands. They bend and get knocked off very easy, have resorted to dremel and wire.
Blue tac often doesn't hold them up, they are too top heavy with the miniscule base. I usually blue tac figures for painting to old Humbrol paint pots , but often I have to glue the Essex ones onto the bluetac!
I only ever buy Essex when I couldn't get them from anywhere else, eg Ottoman Sipahi Oglans and Tarters for my Turkish Napoleonic army.
Our group often call the infantry the Essex dancing grenadiers.....

Not an issue any more as I'm converting to 10mm gradually.

[Zippee]

Ah, I have no experience of their Napoleonic ranges.

I never just blu-tac, always blu-tac and glue, copydex for painting as it then peels away easily - I use some half-inch square strips of compound chipboard that were used as spacers in the packaging of some white goods in 1980 something - about a 8" long and now well shaped to my grip by constant use, holds 6 mounted or 12 foot nicely (in 15mm, more 10mm and loads of 6mm)

Yep, have to admit, some of their poses are a bit on the unusual side 


I have far too many 15mm ancients to make conversion a sensible choice - hasn't stopped me dabbling mind you!