I have had a successful third year in the analogue hobbies painting challenge.
I kicked off with some Fauxterre 1930, trucks 1/60 scale lledo models
This year the challenge was less heavy on a theme and returned to a greater focus on the painters choice.
The theme was about rebellion and resistance – 3 subjects and in my case the first was 1848 Hungarians rebelling from the Austro Hungarian Empire (Hat 1/72)
In my case that focus on figures paid dividends as I got plenty done.
A second theme entry was the Duke of Berwicks Irish Regiment (strelets 1/72) the wild geese
In fact it’s my most productive AHPC so far. The constricted theme helped.
More Fauxterre 1930 trucks by PSC in 1/72Tumbling dice 1/72 English civil war figures – Covenanters made my third and final theme submission
These Covenanters were painted in standard block method
A show freebie king Stephen in 28mm
King Stephen was painted with contrast paints
A scratch build of an 1848 Hungarian steam engine using 2 Airfix Stephenson rockets in 1/72
I had made the steam engine for AHPC15 but it missed that boat because it was only part finished by the end of the challenge
This was a garden rescue figure – games workshop era elf – another contrast paint excursion 40mm Vikings by Irregular Miniatures who retired their business this Spring
I used a combination of block, contrast and washes for these figures
Two “days past” OO gauge railway model transporters carry as it happens John at Just needs varnish gifted Renault tanks for Fauxterre 1930
Johns Renault tanks have some campaign colour while most of my AHPC16 trucks are fresh from the factory
1/76 Airfix Morris tractor and bofors anti aircraft gun
At this point the challenge entered its last month and you can see entry photos prep seriously declined…….
Three 1/72 plastic soldier company Opel blitzes 1/72 plastic soldier company Valentine tank Hat miniatures 1/72 World War One British lancers
Just for fun I returned to using static grass without applicator.
Mardav printed 20mm Italian support group
These Italians got a mix of craft paints, contrast paints and dry brush to get the green I wanted- they too are rookies with shiny new helmets
Left to right antitank gun, medium machine gun and a light mortar The challenge was a successThe ones that got away!
My idea for “afterglow” is mainly centred around what nearly got painted during the challenges. In this case 1:72 strelets War of the Spanish Succession, French Dragoons which were fun to paint. I really like the sculpture work in this range – the wild geese Irish also being from that range.
The uniforms were done in Vallejo yellow ochre topped with deep yellow while the bags and cuffs were done in Oxford blue The horses received coat d’arms chestnut brown followed by citadel contrast gore grunta
My 1700 era armies are based in a toy soldier style – these are perry bases from the 28mm box sets
Paint What You Got ran in parallel to AHPC and I aim to post about an “afterglow” for that too.
I got distracted yesterday – the last day of “paint what you got”. Instead of knuckling down with some final painting I legged it to Newark for Hammerhead. That’s Newark, Lincolnshire, old England.
Anyway I did finish a few more pieces although there is no “painting portrait” show as such.
Lots of figures!
Only joking – that’s a hammerhead participation game.
The reality
So “Paint what you got” has been very productive with a lot of miniatures stuck in the paint queue making it over the line.
I finally finished B & B miniatures Prussian limber. 20mm Franco Prussian war figures. Sadly the business shut its doors last year I think?
Then there are 3 wagons from Irregular Miniatures 20mm ranges – I think these were all ACW. I have a couple Hat miniatures ww1 French artillery men on them.
In the background two types of cavalry but from the same company. Strelets are a Ukrainian company who make plastic injection figures.
I quite pleased with the cavalry as they look a bit brutal in the raw plastic
In this case the figures are from their Crimean War series – British Dragoons and Russian Lancers.
I had only minor tweaks to the models before a paint job transformed them to 1848 Prussian Dragoons and Lancers
The lancers are 5th Westfalia
The dragoons are 3rd Neumark
I have a very good funcken uniform book for 19th century European armies. It covers the transition from coatees and shakoes to frock coats and casque type helmets.
*the phrase last knockings as well as knocking off at the end of the day relate to the end of something – a task, process or activity and completion.
It has become a habit of mine to visit toy fairs in Doncaster and York at Christmas and New Year.
Sometimes you get a bargain but mostly the prices are way too high for wargaming and anyway you’re likely to be paying for the classic box or venerable package.
Toy graveyards are common even at the flashiest storeI was almost tempted but 20 quid was too muchNot many games at these shows anyway But lots of toy carsSome collectibles of course for the discerning customer – not me of course!I don’t remember this set Building graveyards too 25 quid gets you a low loader but of course you get that JCB as well!
Then again it is a trip down memory lane – when a toy shop was found on every high street across the country.
Mind you, you can still get to an excellent bricks and mortar hobby shop in York which is full of model kits and trains.
A classic toy shop window of the high street – now a rarity
So this holiday season I managed three trips and came away with some useful purchases after all.
First up from Doncaster I got some buildings and railway wagons
A card market hall by super quick models Card and plastic goods shed make unknown Some more bin end lorries
Two quid each for the buildings and three vehicles for a fiver: they were on a table tidily arranged so not graveyard prices. I can’t find the railway wagon picture and now their store away……probably to be forgotten! Finally from Doncaster…….
Two kits for a fiver in a slightly upper class bin end! I only wanted the truck but this stall only sold combined packs no splitting
Second visit of the three I picked up some strelets sets at York Monkbar model shop.
Monkbar price match hannants from what I see so buying just a few saves me the postage. And I get some fresh air and a walk into the bargain
And finally I bought some more “bin end” lorries at York Toy Fair.
More bin end Lorrie’s which I can’t resist for some reason
These work out a quid each from bin ends. Toy graveyards used to be 50p or less but jumped during Covid and now range between one and two quid a pop or with discount if you buy a few together.
If you’re lucky there are still bin ends selling at 50p. There was one at the Doncaster Show.
So quite a satisfactory haul.
February will see normal service resumed on the Wargames show circuit starting with Vapnartak.
So AHPC16 is upon us – well the 21st December is storming towards me far too fast.
In previous years – well the last two to be exact – first year I started preparing on the 21st way too late and then last year did prepare one primed unit beforehand but held off having a plan before knowing about the themes which then derailed me with a sci fi bug.
I found I was doing stuff (deciding about theme models or simply digging out figures to clean and prime) but not actually painting colour – much before the January deadline loomed into view!
So this year I started my plan in November!
And I have primed some of the planned pieces.
And I decided to ignore the theme and just see what came along.
And lucky me this years three themed pieces have fallen nicely into place within my plan.
Declining Empire should see some planned 1848 Hungarians appear
Childhood toy memory fortunately gets the wild geese treatment from the 1700’s
And rebels hopefully will see some Covenanters appear before the various deadlines
Alas last years failed star of my show might fail to appear yet again. As its anniversary related this is a constant theme – I started my 28mm stoke field armies in 2015……still not much progress ten years on!
And now I have scenery options nudging their way into my plan.
I was hoping to get some more Fauxterre 1930 kit done.
Then there were the 1848 Hanoverians, 1848 Neapolitans, 1700 French Dragoons, 1848 Roman infantry all crying out to be on the plan – the list goes on and on.
Way too much of course for this painting snail, which having done a plan shows so well. It means the exercise has proved its worth already.
However real life is very very busy right now so I might fail on all fronts!
Ancients were my primary interest at the time I encountered blogging and began to follow various sites.
So a couple more blogs that caught my eye and propelled my interests in 20-25mm or 1/72.
First up is Philotep whose 1/72 minis kingdom showed what potential there was in these minis when well painted. Very inspiring.
Second is Parade Ground Again 1/72 going on 20mm this blog also introduced me to Newline figures which I had seen at a few shows in bare metal but never registered until I saw the painted product online.
Ironically blog interest itself resulted in my interests in wargaming changing. My Ancient armies remain largely a work in progress.
This is the tip I found by chance on the “The Waving Flag” blog of Martin who runs Vexillia. I found Vexillia during my interest in impetus rules and italian figure makers.
Then I dropped out of that and very recently came to Martins blog by way of one of his recent posts and then having wandered around his blog site again I found the tips section. And wet pallettes update from 2016!
OK so I am slow on the uptake but I do remember a lot of discussion about wet pallettes a while ago (was it in 2016 though?) and it passsed me by. It so happened this time round I was in the middle of a lot of painting and well the article or should I say tip caught my eye.
And yes I followed Martins advice and it works and works really well.
I had some ochre base paint in the wet pallette box for the best part of 3 weeks – no mould in sight and the paint remained perfectly workable.
So thank you Martin.
This is also my 50th post so I can say that starting this blog and achieving this very small milestone in the blogging world is in lots of ways due to the work of others. All those other blogs I have followed over the last 10 years for example.
Here are some that have inspired my gaming, painting and an appreciation of what blogging has contributed to the wargames hobby.
Thank you to one and all. And for those omitted from the list, thank you as well – it is the variety that matters – the different tastes and interests mean there is always something for everyone to enjoy or discover.
And my whole DBA 15mm world received a massive jolt one day in 2007. I picked up a magazine in WH Smiths at a railway station. Nothing untoward you say, except it was a copy of Battlegames published by Henry Hyde.
Subsequently in one of his magazines I read about the beginners guide to blogging by Greg Horne and his Duchy of Alzheim blog. At the time with zero wargames playing going on blogging looked like a waste of good gaming or even painting time.
Much later, much much later in the atlantic publishers era I read in Battlegames Henry’s guide to starting your own blog. Still not for me. And the site link above is Henry’s consolidated site now – the guide I followed in the magazine has been removed. But his main site mentions it.
Another site Henry introduced me to was meeples & miniatures blog and Neil Shuck, and that led me to podcasts – but thats another story.
Some of my favorite blogs have been the following…………
Pauls Bods – absolutely excellent painting of 1/72 plastics and most recently metals by tumbling dice
Wargaming for Grown Ups – great all round musings and plenty of 1/72 ancients plastics that got me out of a 15mm DBx rut and into simpler gaming with plastics and even modifying them
History in 1/72 – great for ideas about what you can do in 1/72
Parade Ground – got me back into 20mm metals with the likes of tumbling dice/newline/SHQ alongside plastics – motivated my purchase of Late Romans by Miniart. excellent 1/72 ideas, painting and figures
The Eastern Garrison – pics of the much missed figures of greenwood and ball – the garrison metals I always wanted were the Carthaginians. Great archive.
Harness and Array – excellent medieval material, motivated me to do or rather start my stoke field project. Sadly it is my one 28mm enterprise and remains unfinished despite the fantastic figures.
Dark Age Wargames – although it only ran from 2006 to 2016 I found this site very useful for my interests in the Dark Ages
The Wars of Wine and Cheese – another imagination thought stream that got me revisiting horse and muskest warfare – but always with a “fantastic” leaning
Vintage Wargaming – so enjoyed the old metal ranges being replayed I rebased mine and used them again
John’s Wargames page – another blog that got me convinced to go down the soft plastics 1/72 route
Heres no great matter – sustained my interest in 15mm, showed me the drawbacks but pleasure of ancient and medieval warfare (AMW) and lots of small but great ideas like dice army pics to show each turn development when reporting a game
Carpat’Land – simply amazing figures to enjoy especially in medieval period and L’art de la guerre ruleset appeared to me here
Steves Random Musings on Wargaming – consistently offers a variety on interesting ideas for me – books and war of the spanish succession to name but two
20mm figures and modelling – wargaming info provided lots of useful links plus news, rulesets views and some interesting carolingian material
the duchy of tradgardland – another imaginations find in my ealry days of reading other peoples blogs
As I say these are just some of the wargame blogs I have enjoyed – some are no longer updated but I think all I have listed can still be visited.
Thanks to every author who has committed time to share their ideas on this fascinating hobby.
The Wargaming Erratic 