Action Front! A Redemption Story

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Battery B, 4th US Artillery

Here's an artillery story, start to finish.

Recently, on ebay,  I bought this Hong Kong knock-off of the Swoppet limber, gun, and crew.  Upon arrival buyer's remorse immediately set in.

Although the castings were mirror images of the Britains originals, they were finished in a bizarre fake pewter finish.  What, exactly, might have our Hong Kong friends been thinking?

Oddly, the limber was the only piece not pewterfied (or perhaps, putrefied). Two outriders and the lid to the ammunition chest were missing in this counterfeit cannon convocation.

 

That omission of the lid was quickly remedied with a visit to my table and band saws. 

The result was a perfect fit.

Now came time to deal with that wacky metallic finish.

The bugler sounded "assembly" and all hands mustered into an oatmeal can.

All concerned were about to understand the phrase "Better living through chemistry."

Always keep those old toothbrushes around.

Stripped of their finish, a remarkable array of colors was revealed.

Keep an eye on Manny, Moe, and Jack here as you'll be seeing more of them.

 

Everybody got a nice coat of Floquil white primer. 

Our gleesome threesome is ready for painting.

These are the outriders which were missing along with the limber lid.  Fortunately I had acquired this pair earlier in their original and  not-very-impressive Swoppet colors.

Using the hot water treatment. I reshaped them with different arm positions and narrowed their stance for a better seat on the saddle.  Left is before and right is after.

Out came the Testors paint and the sergeant and corporal are transformed.

 

 I finished everyone in the traditional bright toy soldier finish. 

And here we go, the reclaimed detachment, fully redone and rushing into action:

It's a mighty fast and bumpy ride...

but our steadfast trio hangs on tight as the limber and gun charge forward...

over hill and dale...

The noncoms whip the horses into a lather in hopes of beating the Rebels to the high ground.

It's nip and tuck.

Arriving in the nick of time the detachment commander oversees the unlimbering

The gun is man-handled into place...

carefully sighted,  and loaded with double canister awaiting the order to...

Fire!

The rebel charge is broken.

All in a day's work for Battery B, 4th US Artillery.

Buyer's remorse is gone.

Soldier on!

Mannie

Watch This Space

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I'm working on a fun little rehab project.

I'll keep you posted.



Soldier on!

Mannie

CTS Confederates Pass in Review!

This week a tidy package arrived at my door from Battlefield Legends; always a happy sight.

Hot diggity!  Confederate reinforcements.

A box of new figures from CTS.  Sixteen figures in eight poses, with some extras.

 Let's check them out as they pass the reviewing stand.

Standing shooting guy is typical of the lot; exceptionally fine animation, imaginative poses, nice detail, and solid additions to a firing line.

There is something about the sculpting that I really like, perhaps it's just chunky enough to detect the hands of the sculptor behind it.  I like that,  its an element often lost in slicker figures.

The old sarge is drawing a bead on a Yankee or perhaps a wild turkey.  This is the only one of the group with chevrons (pretty robust ones at that).

Charging bayonet guy has the weakest posture of the group, though still a very nice figure...

and it's nice to see that Fred Gwynne is still getting roles these days.

Charging kepi guy is another really nice figure, though I do wish his bayonet was fixed.  I'd prefer it if manufactures routinely cast bayonets fixed.  That would give the consumers - us - the option to keep them on or simply trim them off.  What a perfect world that would be.

This is either a sesesh in full rebel yell, or a three-pack-a-day mudsill who's struggling to stay up with the  rest of the regiment.  They didn't have Chantix back in the day y'know.

From the side some weakness in the sculpting become apparent, though I do like the Shirley Temple locks.

Pete Townsend wounded guy.   Nice windmill, by the way.  Casualties are always an asset in my pretend battles.  And having a member of The Who showing up on the field is an added bonus.

This is a pose I never tire of; a soldier loading from the kneeling position.  On any firing line it's great to have guys loading and firing from behind rocks and fences.  This little reb fills the bill nicely.

Though this guy's whacky facial-hair does seem to have its own agenda.

My favorite figure of all is this very determined rebel heading to a brawl.  The animation is very dynamic, he's obviously in a hurry, and his clenched fist makes it clear that he knows

 this will be no cake walk.

This is one determined Bubba.  Hey, I think I saw this same guy at the Waffle House last week.

Kneeling shooting guy is a welcome asset to the firing line.

Again, the gestural sculpting really gives these figures an artistic touch.

Looking very much like the Ideal version of the same pose, prone shooting guy is perfect for plugging a yank from beneath a fence rail.  Though in this position, reloading is going to be a real chore with that muzzle-loader he's carrying.

Trouser legs bloused in socks is a nice detail.

"Mommy, daddy...were things ever made in America?"

"Goodness no honey, at least not in my memory.  Chinese slave labor has made everything so doggone affordable for as long as daddy and I can remember."   "Sweet dreams, honey."

So there's our soldiers, and check this out as an extra; a nice little section of stone wall for them to take cover behind.  

Boy, our friends over at Battlefield Legends think of just about everything.

And how!  They even include instructions on how to use hot water to straighten bent rifles.

In these three poses note the bent rifles to the left of each pair and the straightened ones on the right.  It's just like magic.  You can see a little video I made on this process here.

Altogether a really excellent set of figures and a welcome addition to the firing line.

But wait...

There's more!

Frequently the fine folks at Battlefield Legends run a promotion.  This purchase included a free gift of a repro of the legendary Marx seacoast mortar.

We've all seen these offered before, but what makes this one unique is that it comes with most of the components to make it fire!

I was very gratified to find the trigger mechanism as well as the original barrel liner included.

All that's needed to return this big boy to ballistic service is a rubber band...

 and a coil compression spring, which may be at the hardware store.

As you see above, the rubber band is already installed to allow the trigger to flex.

As soon as I get the appropriate spring, the Dictator here will be ready to rumble.

Unfortunately, the barrel did come with a crack in it, so I'll probably be shooting reduced powder charges.

I'll keep you posted.

Soldier on!

Mannie