M is for Matters Arising

A few things which got a closer shot or a comparison of one sort or another as this year's show plunder was being put away . . .

A quickie comparison between the unknown cloaked fantasy figure on the left and a Dimensions for Children (DFC) cloak wearer on the right. The unknown one is more sci-fi than swords & sorcery though and I wonder if it might be from the large Toyco set which contains the solid copies of the Colourform space alien figures?

The pilots in close-up, the larger one is a patch above Zang to be honest, and like the better versions of the standing infantryman, has a much neater base, so I think definitely another maker, or a later second version?

Cleaned-up the Airfix bikes; but they're shot to bits! I needed two riders and I didn't have the cap-wearer, so they are useful, and two pairs of blue wheels will prove equally useful at some point in the future I'm sure. I suspect the 'cutter' was trying to make them look more like scramblers, and I may clean them-up by removing the stunted remains of the mud-guards and guard supports

Because they were both to hand as I was putting-away; comparison between the Cavendish (etc.) on the left, and the KT/Shackman et al, novelty plinth/pencil sharpener figure on the right. Cavendish is a stiff 'At Ease', the other is 'easy'!

I thought he'd gone up here already, but I got the left-hand figure a while ago, the one on the right - last Saturday (Sandown tomorrow!), they are the fourth Airfix non-beagle dog, so I now have all four which will go on the Airfix Blog's Bergan/Beton page shortly! I think it's meant to be a Springer Spaniel, which means they are all working/hunting dogs - Setter/Lurcher-Greyhound /Alsatian . . . or; farm dogs.

Three of these are from forthcoming posts on the latest donation from Chris Smith, one was here and five came-in on Saturday. Colour, shade, base marks, copies - the more we find, the more we discover we still had to find! Mostly ABC (or their tool) but there are others!

Two of the figures from PW's show needed the old hot water treatment to get them standing up, one also wasn't shot clearly the other day so I've re shot him here, I suspect another Argentinian figure (silver paint) but more original in the sculpt than the other five which were added to the pile last weekend.

The Jecsan circus (clairvoyant/soothsayer?) figure didn't really respond to the hot water, despite two pouring, straight from the kettle! She stands better, but not flat, the infantry man did much better but needed a jiggit pared-off first.

Well, the blue one didn't clean-up as well as I'd hoped, the black marks seem to be some kind of bituminous splashes which have stained the substrate, so I'm stuck with the 'new' faint ones but he is an improvement on a week-ago!

While the silver one did need a clean, it was only the flash than made him look cleaner, the two other colour ones however have cleaned-up to the point where the flash has rather washed them out! On the left a 5th which was hanging out in the 'TBS Space' tray, from Chris as well I think.

Not quite as nice as the other one, and more Romanesque than Greek (I've seen them online as 'guerrier Grec/Romain', so it's an acknowledged factor of the set), but still a lovely figure, this one has had his replacement weapon blobbed to his hand with glue, at the 'other end' I will drill the hand out as with the previous find.

H is for How They Come In - December 2020 - II Chris - Introduction

A day or two after the lot from Adrian we looked at last Thursday here, I received one of Chris Smith's 'big box' lots, and it was a fantastic collection of odds, ends, rarities or novelty tat I'd never seen before, and I've broken it down into six posts, of which this is the overview/sorting.

I actually shot them over several days with no real order, so some of it confused me! And a Polar bear got shot before everything else, and again half-way through!

The first thing I do is pick through the box, finding the treasures (to me, some might be quite tatty or damaged but if I've not seen them before I get excited!), then I tend to put them all back in the box and do 'my day' as normal.

Then in the evening, I sort them again into thematic piles - civilian, combat, ceremonial and/or historical, space/sci-fi, fantasy, cartoon/TV/movie-related, animals (sometimes sub-piled; sea life, dinosaurs, farm and/or zoo etc....), Kinder/capsule, vehicles, 'planes, accessories/building parts &etc. That is where this shot finds me - little thematic piles of polymer playthings!

Then they get bagged-up as TBS (To Be Sorted [into the collection]), and yes, the themes are all muddled-up again here, but the fact that I've handled them all three times means I've got a good idea what's there . . . and I'm photographing as I go, as well as putting away anything where the master-collection box or tub is near to hand, or if I need to separate for reasons of frangibility, or forthcoming articles, or folders in the long queue, or for follow-ups etc!

Also I have to work out exactly what to shoot for these posts, for-instance I haven't shot the mini-plastic buildings (upper-left-centre) because we've looked at them here, but due to the three building types (two Whilhelmian barrack/flat-block types and a church), and various colours, they are always welcome in the collection, as there are many variations to find!

Slightly to the right and just below them is a bag stuffed with all the small-scale (15-25mm),which are next, but what else can you spot?

Those small-scale, tipped out of their first bag, for further sorting into smaller samples (same 4 / 5½" bags), the absolute highlight here is a clean pair of Blue Box ambulance men, you may recall mine were sun-stained coffee-colour last time we looked at them, all the more special as the white plastic, civilian stretcher-case came in more recently, with both staples (handles/legs) intact, so I now have a clean team for next time we look at them in detail.

Also of interest are the three soft plastic firefighters, also Blue Box, the pair of (Corgi (?) driver/co-driver) firefighters and the red horse racer, possibly from a  board game, but I suspect Christmas crackers or some of those 'early learning' types we looked at a couple of three years ago - where does it go!

This image - in sequence with the previous, but the next day, threw-me for a moment as it didn't make sense, but study suggests in the foreground I'm still sorting Chri's lot, in the middle distance I've got the TBS Matchbox and Corgi out, probably to sort some of Chris's stuff into, at the far right I seem to have lined-up my growing stash of Russian Malysh rubber Wellingtonians, adding the pastel shades to those I'd blogged the previous October?

While the red blob top left is a piece of Betterware from Chris, which was probably waiting to go up to the loft where the Betterware box was . . . actually they don't have their own box, the have a few of the index-carded 4 / 5½" bags in the A-B Minor Makes box!

A mixed line-up which didn't fit the other five posts! A home-made or heat-converted plastic confederate (I think?), two Cavendish Guards, both damaged but it's about the plastic colours, look at that smoky-pink on the left! Another blow-moulded Russian, you can't have enough of these are there are several sets, each of 8-10 poses and at least three sizes!

On the end of the upper row is a nice  - probably Italian 'precepi' or nativity figure, might be a king/wise-man, or just a villager, below which are four Russian knock-offs of the Marx 60mm Vikings, but closer to 54mm as copies.

They actually highlight the situation this year; I have these figures in the short queue, they are actually on the lap-top's desk-top waiting for final editing, but I don't think these four are in the article? As the article was shot a few months ago, and these came in nearly a year ago . . . they should have been united by now . . . so, while a lot of stuff has been sorted together on the way to storage (and a lot photographed), some things which did have two homes, now seem to have three - I fear these chaps are in that category, and it will be at least another year before it's all been fully put straight!

Another eclectic assortment, smaller sixes, clockwise from top left; New Ray (I think, a US model railway issuer has a similar range, so needs checking), the Hong Kong flat railway staffer we saw here, and a late Culpitts Santa Claus - Topical a year later!

The green horse is one I call 'Large Draft' and I've just (last few days) done a ready reckoner on all of them here, it's not how I'd planned the horse page, but it will help people sort theirs for now and as I post them in detail the riders, foot figures (if any) and accessories will be sorted too. Finally one of the hard-vinyl figures from Portugal who had several issues and - seemingly - several iterations of 'full set', which we will try to get on top-of, one day.

Many thanks to Chris Smith, there are five more posts to come, looking at some of the highlights from the thematic sorting phase, but all of it is greatly appreciated, it enhances the Blog and the readers experience and those figures/items which don't get to shine in these 'H is for . . . ' posts will enhance the Blog and A-Z entries for years to come.

P is for Previously Seen on the Internet . . . III - Ceremonials

Two more from the archive of stuff I've posted elsewhere, and we're all starched and ironed this time, with resin and plastic tourist souvenirs, the former new, the later seen before in one form or another.

Alan Copsey posted some lovely resin Turks he'd found (in Istanbul I think?), and in the subsequent discussion on them and similar figures (those pirates we've seen before here with different bases), and fallout from same, I picked-up these four vaguely-54mm (thick bases) figures in poured resin, which are obviously aimed at our tourist trade (as Alan's were aimed at Turkey's). No Yeoman 'Beefeater' or Horse Guard (they may be out there?) but a nice [Gordon?] Highland officer to make up!

It struck me the new one was (although unmarked) stylistically similar to the larger 85mm G•G-marked one we looked at a while ago, donated to the blog by Peter Evans of Plastic Warrior magazine (and coincidentally - webmaster of the Faceplant group), which was in part the point of the original chat; that these Chinese factories are making things for every budget in every [commercially viable] territory!

I also picked up another boxing of the Cavendish Miniatures Hong Kong copies, apparently sold by Cavendish (and many others) until so recently you may still find the odd one in the kiosks round Soho or Leicester Square, or that funny bazaar half-way up Charring Cross road?

The second issue (I don't know which is which, but would place the smaller/white tray as the newer (it's always about shaving unit-costs) continues the error of transcribing the two Household Cavalry regiments titles; 'Blues' are Horse Guards, 'Royals' are red . . . life-blood, Lifeguards!

You were thinking "They look the same size, what's he on about"! Less cardboard is cheaper, less, white plastic is cheaper than more, yellow, so on an order of say ten thousand units, that can be hundreds of dollars saved, plus, the price can stay the same or go up a bit (people expect things to go up after a few years), so you 'make' at both ends, factory-door and Joe-public!

Q is for Question Time - 'ello, 'ello, 'ello!

Another plea for help from Chris Smith with another interesting figure; going full civi' this time but remaining in uniform with an unknown Policeman;

In Chris's own words; "Another unknown, hard plastic 60mm scale well painted factory paint but sadly missing a hand  . . .  Metal square pin sticking out of the base, looks like it was plugged in to something which drove it round or was he the key to wind something?. Made a base stand out of an odd chess piece so it can stand."

And; "Pictured [here] with Timpo to the left, Kentoy/Cavendish to the right and a Hong Kong copy of Timpo (or is it?..)"

My own thoughts were that it might be a tourist keepsake type item, but not necessarily British, I was thinking somewhere like Gibraltar, Malta, even Cyprus? Or; one of the Caribbean islands? Anywhere that had the UK style uniform in the post war period?

The metal locating-spigot is a tad-too substantial and serious-looking for a toy figure, so it may have been on a bit of polished stone, or a wooden plinth similar to the one Chris knocked-up from a chess piece?

The sculpting style is similar to a polystyrene Tyrolean squeezebox-player I have somewhere (who is on a plastic plinth or pencil sharpener I think), so both may have come from the same manufacturer, supplying the museum/tourist trades? Equally; he could be from a board-game?

Anyone got any other ideas? Or on the far right figure in the second picture (BR Moulds?) Anyone got a complete one?

F is for Follow-up - Composition Guards

Further to recent comments on the original thread and - in a roundabout way - this morning's post, here's a little more on Chris's possibly-probably Zang Guardsman in the 54mm bracket.

Adrian wondered at the Harvey styling of the figure - particularly the bearskin, while I had mused on the possibility the figure may have lost a drum. As you can see both are slightly red herrings . . . or scarlet! Not least that - as Chris pointed out - the giardsmen are marching, but also there is some texture to the bearskin, if anything it's now looking more Herald Hong Kong (but I suspect further comparisons would reveal them to be smaller all round), his posing is more 'At Ease' than drumming and he therefore remains a mystery?

Compared with various figures of the earlier period, he's not a direct copy of any of them, although the coat-tails and bayonet-frog (hidden by paint on all three figures) is close to the Long Star chaps to his left . . . as are the shoulder-blades and back sculpt in general?

Anyone got any ideas yet? Not ringing a bell . . . ah! Bell, they're believed to have issued composition!??

Q is for Question Time - W is for Who Knows?

We’ve looked at these before, years ago and garnered no clue, so we'll chuck them up here again in the forlorn hope that someone knows something about them, because, not to put to fine a point on it; they're not terribly rare, and turn up quite often.

The first five images are from Chris Smith and I hope he won't mind me saying they weren't the best, but I've done what I can to embiggen them, and brighten them up a bit . . .

. . . and these are they, you should recognise them if you collect ceremonial, early British plastic, or 54mm. They are similar to both, and almost the cross-pollinated offspring-of; Britains Herald and Gemodels, being (I seem to recall - they're not in front of me) between the two in both size and sculpting and are manufactured in a non-chalky polyethylene.

Moving arms on shoulder-pegs (as opposed to arm-spigots) and their similarity to the slightly smaller Gem's might suggest a second version from Gem, or contracted by Culpitt from Gem (I don't think I've ever seen them with icing-remains?) or someone else?

Now I was going to stick my neck out here, put my neck on the block and get a bit necky, necking-it with the suggestion that the connection with Musgrave at Gem Models might lead us to the door of the Kenway Cycle Shop and Kentoys, but, apart from the fact that there was a flaw in that suspicion, namely; Kentoys already had a Household Cavalryman, with a swappable arm, as we've seen here, previously at Small Scale World, who was handed-on to Cavendish, and produced in both colours (red and blue), There is a third option, as 'obvious' as Gem or Kentoys . . .

. . . Airfix! The only other figures commonly appearing with this dead-centre, front-of-base, mould-release pin mark, are the early Airfix 'eight' later issued by Featherlight in Australia and an unknown New Zealand firm, both of whom issued the figures with the same marks, as it's a 'signature' of the tool (and possibly the tool-manufacturer), not the sculptor, although - a caveat - they may have started 'down' there and come 'up' here, no one's sure?

[I think the one with a dark-green base (asterisked) has been repainted by an owner?]

The arguments for each are good, lots of companies produce two versions of some of their figures, so both Gem/Culpitt and Kentoys/Cavendish could be in the frame, while those base marks are very Airfix (and are now my favored option), however, the bases are painted the same colours as all those minor make offshoots - Speedwell, Trojan, Una and VP we tend to associate with Kentoys - though the khaki infantry.

Seen here previously but I couldn't be arsed to dig them out and re-shoot them!

Also the horse is more of a Britains' piracy (mounted highland officer?), so while it would be nice if they were Gemodels, nicer-still if they were Kentoy and really-nice if they were Airfix, I suspect we have to also look to the four pirates for our answer, and recent developments in Plastic Warrior?

And the obvious one there is Speedwell, as they turned to un-chalked, glossy polyethylene for their later khaki infantry and Cowboys & Indians?

They (the figures) only seem to have had Lifeguard iteration (no blue ones) and may well have been produced for a third-party supplying the tourist-novelty/keepsake market . . . even Cavendish!

The mark is not reproduced on the [what I believe are] Trojan versions of the Airfix paratrooper which now looks to be from the recently discovered (by Colin Penn) BR 'plastic machine' moulds, which would leave Trojan (if they had some or a set of those moulds) as a second front-runner in a five horse race! And; might point to these being from BR tools, but re-fitted for commercial operation in a bigger multi-cycle machine, as they are far more common than most of the stuff it now looks like came from there?

However, there's no sign of a release-pin on those moulds for which the front is shown in PW's 176 (current) and 174 (back-issues and subscriptions available), so they would need to have been Airfix first, to have had the mark reproduced, if they were BR, and if so for these; why not for the paratrooper?

What do you think . . . or know? Have you found dodgy, crumbly or polystyrene versions of these, with odd paint or no paint? Colin? I hate to point the finger, but you've got the BR mould list . . . any Lifeguards or 'Household cavalry' listed?

I favour Airfix, from the commercial aspect and numerousness of them AND the base mark, but they may-well have made them exclusively for a third party contract, and Airfix had had a Household Guardsman of their own in the 'Bergan/Beton' set? Is that plastic the same colour as the late, post-chalk, slightly flashy, HO-OO Guards?

Also Airfix seem to have indulged in a bit of piracy over the years and mightn't have wanted their name associated with these Britains knock-offs? But that only means they must have (or 'probably') had another branding, if only a phantom?

Chris - many-thanks for the images; 'probably maybe might be' Airfix . . . for . . . someone else? And . . . can you set me an easier one next-time!!

F is for Follow-up - Sheds for Sentries

A bonus post this afternoon as I had to deal with a couple of things and make a .gif which proved problematical!

I sort of knew I'd jumped the gun with last-week's post, but I get a bee in my bonnet and then I'm off on one! Went to look for any other's and didn't find them, but them found the little lead ones looking for something else, thought I might as well shoot the Hong Kong for Cavendish one in passing and then realised the origin of the yellow HK one was under my nose all the time, so; enough for a follow-up, methinks!

So these are the little 1:76th scale lead soldiers, presumably [at least] half-aimed at HO/OO model railways? Not sure on the nationality, either of the figures - as depicted - or the maker . . . are they French Cadet Academy; something Italian?

Of course this only reminds me I have a proper 'Nuremburg' flat (these are demi-ronde, verging on full solids) sentry-box somewhere, which will have to be for another day!

As you can see they are perfectly scaled to go with the old Airfix Guards, who with head swaps could provide a band for the lead figures, but one suspects there will be (or was) a band available?

As I mentioned last time, these were originally posted on ETS in a thread about the Scottish penguin who's Colonel in Chief of some Danish regiment or something; it's one of those stories you can't make up and only crazy pink-monkeys can end-up with!

In the course of that discussion someone did ID them I seem to recall, if only tentatively, but I can't remember what the possibility was and if I noted it at the time I don't know where the note is now?

Meanwhile the answer to the yellow Hong Kong marked hidey-hut was under my nose (courtesy of Bill B) all the time; it's a Marty Toys (M-Toys) piece, and was chucked in various sets with no recourse to realism!

Note the Happy Farm set; a copy of a Blue Box copy of Britains/Corgi!

And note also - following the latest idiocy on TJF's Shitestuff, courtesy of Erwin Sell (they make it up as they go along) - they are NOT Star. Star copied the Britains Swoppet figures with PVC-rubber packs/webbing, M-Toys are all ethylene and Airfix/Timpo/Marx piracies, albeit with the Britains stretcher-team/casualty, sans rubber-webbing.

So someone need to have a word with Marc Postelman and explain to him his set (or is it Vectis's set!) isn’t Star or Wello, but a generic from Marty Toys pretending to be Blue Box, meanwhile someone else needs to beef-up the output of Shitestuff or in may get a reputation for being inaccurate shite?

I also think my thoughts of having another in creamy/dirty-white plastic - given I haven't found them, after a look - may have been a false memory triggered by the other one I mentioned on Friday . . .

. . . .also from Hong Kong [and sometimes] for Cavendish. Marked in three little letter 'blocks'; MADEIN, HONG and KONG with a cavity number, here a 2 on one and a 4 on the other.

S is for Sentry-Box Ticking!

Not the greatest sample I'm sure, compared to some of your collections, but I've only been fagged with this large-scale malarkey for ten years, and larger items - like 'large-ticket items' - tend to be a lower priority! But, and as with totem-poles, I do grab them if they're going cheap, others have come-in in mixed lots, while a core of British designs were in the big purchase.

The two main British makers have both had a stab, Timpo (right) went with one tool, manufacturing in two colours and then gluing opposite-colour pieces to each other for a choice of two, otherwise identical boxes!

Britains (left) had three, the Herald one in the middle we'll return to in a second, there was a larger one in the later years (which is a near-copy of their (or T&B's (?)) earlier hollow/slush-cast one I think?) and the semi-flat or relief 'stage scenery' one from late Herald [Hong Kong]'s windowed, long-box sets.

Returning to the earlier Herald version; it gave rise to a family of near-identical, but different boxes, with here from the left; Herald, Kentoy, Cavendish, and two unknown's either of which may (or may not) be Trojan, UNA or VP, or even Speedwell . . . or someone else entirely?

Rather than try to explain all the differences, it's easier to present them as a table for those whose levels of geekiness equal mine to pore-over and compare with the above images!

I will waffle over the marks though! (1) is obviously the Herald design, (2) is the Kentoys version, which - frankly - is the [slightly] better design, it's a tad 'cleaner', more symmetrical and better etched than the Herald version. (3) is the Cavendish version, it's clearly had an attempt at removing the 'KENTOY' first line, although it remains readable if you do that 'turning-it in the light' thing!

I think (4) is the one credited to UNA in the Plastic Warrior 'special' of 2009, it's also seen in grey (as a copy) in the Kentoys special of the same year; it has a heavier gable/roof edge? Trojan don't have one listed (so far!), neither do VP (yet), but then there is (5) waiting for an ascribing too!

Also; given the similarities between the Herald and Kentoy ones, might Gemodels' Musgrave be in there somewhere, I had presumed Norman Tooth for both similar designs? Although there's no larger ex-Herald one in the new Speedwell 'special' (post due . . . overdue!), one has to consider them for the unknown '5' above along with the other possible 'names'?

I seem to have crammed the rest into one collage, but that's how the cookie crumbled, so that's how it is and what we have to work with!

Image A has the 'foreigners', with Афина (Athena) from Greece at 1, and Reisler's equally common Danish box at 2, both have been sold as tourist keepsakes for decades and are just as common as Britains' examples. 3 is from Hong Kong and must be from larger playsets? The Riesler has an incorrect flag, actually taken from a Guards musician!

Image B shows - on the right (2) what I'm pretty sure is Crescent's wooden one which ran alongside their figures through both the hollow-cast and plastic years, but I have a half-an-inkling the heavy steel 'tin-plate' one is Crescent too? But I stand to be corrected by someone who does know! Chris Smith is to be thanked for sending the wooden one to the Blog the other day.

Image C is not that clear, I used to think they were die-cast (and probably Wardie/Mastermodels; they're quite small?), but they may be a hardish whitemetal ('lead') slush-cast, which would open the field of possible makers considerably?

Image D has the diminutive Speedwell box on the right and an unknown wooden giant (also from Chris Smith - thanks again Chris) on the left, the chevron stripes are a bit 'Euro' looking and I suspect a reasonably modern, probably infant's wooden castle or building-blocks type set?

All of them in size-order with the two 'middle' ends duplicated and the addition of the little Airfix one from the Guards Colour Party on the far end of the last line-up. The Athena one should have a sentry glued to it - like the Reisler one

Favorite? I quite like the little may-not-be-Mastermodels may-not-be-diecsat, I'm 'pleased' with the Speedwell from the big purchase, but I don't think you can beat the octagonal Reisler with its pointy, fairy-tale roof and Royal-cipher transfer if you are thinking of starting a collection of these.

Now, it was the arrival of the two wooden-ones from Chris that pre-empted this post, the two (now three) tubs had been here for some time waiting for a post's photo-shoot, but also waiting to have the sentry-boxes here sorted into them, which may not have happened? I can't remember!

It doesn't really matter, but there may be a creamy- or dirty-white version of the yellow Hong Kong one somewhere, and possibly a Starlux one (another common one for tourism reasons) although we have seen the small-scale version here at Small Scale World in the past. Also missing is the Hong Kong [and/for] Cavendish one, with its plinth, but that's also been on the Blog, recently!

I have another small-scale lead one somewhere, which featured with a penguin and some Danish Guards years ago, possibly on HäT as a long-gone Imagshack-upload, but I'm not sure where they've ended-up . . . they're here somewhere; along with a flat one.

There are plenty of cheapie-kahki types from rack-toy playsets, but they are another thing altogether, there's a few small-scale card ones kicking around in the 'paper' crate I think and I used to have the mail-away with 'stars' 1:12th Action Man one, which differed in design from the retail one, both were heavy, mounting-card.

Also Fujimi, Hasegawa and Nitto produced small ones with check-point kits as did Airfix in 1:32, in fact I think I have one somewhere? I seem to recall a bag of grey polystyrene bits (no bridge?) came in at some point - possibly from Jim?

So, we'll have to return to them sooner rather than later! In the meantime, thanks to Chris for triggering this post.