My first entry into the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge No15 were figures left over from last years challenge. They were primed but that was it.
So having a LIMBO section in this years theme of the Divine Comedy by Dante was most helpful.
The figures were Hat 1806 Prussian Hussars repurposed as 1848 Prussian Hussars. Fortunately the Prussians in 1848 were going going all new with frock coats and pickelhaubes but also retro with flugelmutzes!
Next up for my Painting Portrait is another Paint What You Got effort, this time it’s the 4th line who differ only from the 7th line in their facings – yellow for the 4th with white metal buttons while the 7th sport pink with yellow metal buttons.
Painting Portrait 25a details the scenery.
My mid nineteenth century units are four 40mm square bases coated with pva and budgie grit followed by a three colour paint job – burnt sienna then heavy dry brush yellow ochre finally light dry brush a yellow white to highlight.
Firing line
Peco railway scenic grass is the final addition. I tend to match the base greenery to the uniform colour accepting my armies are mixed based.
This is my first contribution to this winters “paint what you got” by Dave Stone. Last year I managed to get going by 7th January so it’s even slower progress this year.
Anyway this post also marks the switch to “painting portraits” after the demise of the “painting pedestal” before Christmas – it has a nice new home – just not mine.
The portrait approach should enable me to show scenery as and when it appears.
First up then are 7th line infantry of Bavaria who were sent on behalf of the north German federation to fight in support of the Schleswig Holstein rebels against the Danes.
The 1848 war was a victory for the Danes.
The figures are in fact Newline 20mm Prussian Napoleonic Landwehr. I simply trimmed the hat top and used some liquid green stuff to mask the officers coat long tails.
I must say these figures were a pleasure to paint and I really like the colours I chose in the end. This makes it all the more surprising in that I actually primed these figures back in March 2023!
The building is total battle miniatures bought ready painted – still my favourite piece – it no longer features as the range has changed. I think it was from their 15mm range or old 25mm one now they advertise only 28mm or 15mm.
The trees are mainly S&A Scenics by Lancashire Games. Again some of my favourite off the shelf pieces.
Finally I tend not to do flags straight away so came up with a furled flag option using some black tubing and a ball topped pin head.
Ralph Weavers’ book on the Hungarian Army of 1848/49 was my source for this unit or rather legion. They represent the Romanian or Rumanian legion who fought for the Hungarian side in the war for independence. The Austrians crushed the rebellion as they saw it but the empire was diminished.
The Romanian troops came from ethnically Romanian areas that ultimately became Hungarian ruled in the Transylvanian region after World War One ended the Austrian Empire.
Again I have used Austrian World War One infantry turning a blind eye to ammunition pouches etc.
The flag is homemade and again it suffered some bleeding when pva coated.
A trim of the peaked cap and a paint job gives me what I wanted. The fact is I bought these Austrians speculatively during lock down when I was in the hunt for capped infantry. The 1840’s is a difficult period to model as you often get the right hats with the wrong uniforms or vice versa!
World War One era figure ranges are useful if you ignore the equipment errors.
The uniform was a bluey purple so I tried contrast paints and was very happy with result.
Again I used Ralph’s text to help me decide on uniform details – the flag says Justice Fraternity.
This basically clears the decks for two painting challenges. AHPC15 started last Friday and “paint what you got” starts Boxing Day. They finish 21st March and 28th February respectively so will keep me occupied.
It’s been quite a gap since June when I posted the last of my AHPC14 miniatures – Danish artillery 1848. And I had not clocked a pedestal moment since my French cuirassiers appeared in May.
In fact the pedestal has physically moved on to a new home but I plan to keep the post title for now.
Today on parade are some irregular miniatures I painted as part of a challenge I did with John@justneedsvarnish.
The figures are actually 20mm Austrian World War One infantry.
I like irregular’s style of figure which works for the relaxed 3 figures per 40mm square basing I use for my nineteenth century armies
I trimmed the peaked caps and a paint job later I got my 1st Roman Legion (who became the 10th line infantry) of the Roman Republic.
My reference is Ralph Weavers Garibaldi and the Siege of Rome published by Partizan Press. I used his text description which differs somewhat from the colour image in the book.
As I mix old 25mm, 1/72 and 20mm figures from different manufacturers basing sometimes includes height adjustments.
2mm washers help these 20mm figures blend in.
The flag is homemade and the emblems in ink bled when I pva coated them! So that flag will need replacing-one day!
Finally the background tree was a bring and buy find while the two very nice trees to the fore are from “scenics ?”. The cottage is one of my very old airfix models given a makeover during Dave Stones season of scenery this autumn.
The Wargaming Erratic 