28mm Napoleonic Grenadiers à pied of the Imperial Guard

These figures are from Front Rank. It was the sight of their fantastic ragged Old Guard battalion, on the FR web site, which turned me on to their style of sculpting. Plus they have a lot of variety to mix into units. When you add in guys with bare heads, different head gear, full/campaign dress, and a selection of officers you get a very interesting unit. I ended up buying enough figures for seven Guard battalions including the Dutch, which you have already seen, and some advancing figures which remind me of a painting of the French Imperial Guard at Eylau.

This Grenadiers have an obligitary Guardsman in stripey trousers.

The figures have been finished with Damar varnish. The stuff takes weeks to dry. But it seems to add some depth to colours. I won't use it very often because of the hassle. I am planning to use this varnish, over oil paint, for my Epic 40K Tyranids. I will be painting them in aposematic colours.

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28mm Napoleonic Dutch Grenadiers of the Imperial Guard

I painted the whites on these figures with oil paint because I wasn't satisfied with the "whiteness" of the Vallejo white I'd used. Then I glossed them with Damar varnish, which is a natural resin. I just fancied using these materials. I really like the depth of colours with this finish. The red looks particularly fine to my eye.

The figures are from Front Rank. They have a very nice range with lots of variety. Compared to Connoisseur they look like they followed the burger van on campaign which would be eminently sensible.

I love the dappled horse I did for these. It has taken me years to get this right.

I forgot the chevrons. So I will have to go back and do that now!

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Warlord Roman veterans work in progress

I am painting some of my 28mm Warlord Roman starter army, which includes a unit of 20 of these "Roman veterans". The figures have shields with bits missing and too many figures with bandages over one eyes. I can't decide if this is how I am going to do the armour. It was painted, then glossed, then washed and then highlighted by painting silver back in the middle of areas (which means most places except edges and recesses). The whole figure is gloss at the moment. I will matt everything except the metal bits.

28mm Napoleonic Saxon Guard du Corps

Here is the companion unit to the von Zastrow Cuirassier I posted yesterday. These are the Saxon Guard du Corps. I can't decide which of these two regiments is my favorite Napoleonic unit. I have had the chance to lead both units a few times at the Wargames Holiday Center (UK) and it was a pleasure to see them clip-clopping into battle.

You will see that Eureka have a nice casualty figure falling from his horse. Back in olden days you had to do this sort of thing yourself. What a time those folks had in the days before they invented TV and when they had to make their own entertainment ;-) You tell young people today and they don't believe you!

I still have one of each of these regiments in lead from Connoisseur miniatures. Painting those will be a big undertaking as they must be converted. Peter Guilder, the illustrious sculptor, didn't even make trumpeters.

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28mm Napoleonic Saxon von Zastrow Cuirassier

The Saxons had wonderful cavalry during the Napoleonic wars. I was inspired to paint the heavies by the Connoisseur miniatures Saxon heavy cavalry at the Wargames holiday center. The figures are virtually all conversions, very animated, with some figures falling. I actually have the Connoisseur figures somewhere to recreate what I saw all those years ago. I did a "trial run" on some British Hussars, swapping swords, chopping up figures, grinding off reigns and replacing them with thin copper wise - sheer madness.  I am still trying to block the memory of the many hours it took to grind off reigns. I think I spent a couple of days on it.

The Zastrow Cuirassier have have black metal breast plates. To simulate metal I painted them black, then used a graphite pencil to scuff them on the sides and along the ridge where light will hit. After all was done I went back and gloss varnished all the metal work and these breast plates. It is perhaps too subtle to show on camera.

The figures are from Eureka. Most are one piece castings. They are very nice. It was however tough to get nice photos as they are mostly in a Charrrrrrge! pose leaning forward.

These cavalry had silver bugles. They managed to save them at one point in Russia but they, and much else, was swallowed up by the great bear.

28mm Napoleonic Saxon Guard Grenadiers

These lovely 28mm Napoleonic Saxon Guard Grenadiers have marched into my depot and joined my Saxon forces. The figures are from Elite miniatures. They are grenadier figures which I had to paint epaulets onto. I actually like my painted epaulets more than those you get molded onto figures.

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