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.
Last year I started some posting ideas around bits of things which did not really make a post but when combined with others could justify a post in their own right.
After the first two fragments of 2025 things sorted of dried up a bit. Or rather my focus was on specific miniatures or gaming posts.
I am going to have another try this year and ironically the first driver is the same as last years – magazines. And with further irony the second idea mimics fragment 25/2 – books.
However to kick off 2026 fragments I am going to mention painting challenges. These have kind of taken over my painting activities to the extent that three define my painting year.
First up is “paint what you got”. Now this challenge by Dave Stone works for me because it drives me to dig out what I have either half painted or abandoned. It has proved its worth.
This challenge has caused problems in that it got my ideas flowing and instead of reducing the lead mountain I ended up scratch building models during the challenge as the “themes” caught my imagination.
On the positive side I have found a use for those magazine freebies and indulged in my recycled household junk heaps to create spacecraft.
Klim class Intra planetary trader from AHPC15
I also think it propelled me into painting a background for my model displays – retiring the painting pedestal in favour of the painting portrait. In fact I even produced a sci-fi background last year.
Ahpc invariably overruns well into spring so now absorbs about half my painting year!
The third challenge is Dave Stones scenery season which runs over the summer. Or in my case summer into autumn. This has proven a godsend as scenery production was nil and an ever increasing list of kits, models or ideas were tying me up in knots.
I have just discovered that Ron Kay of Irregular Miniatures has died at the age of 98. He was full time on the team until 93, casting figures for all us hobbyists. He carried on as a part time member of the team still handling the big and complex castings. “Hats off” as they say.
I did not know Ron personally but seem to remember him at the Irregular stand at wargames shows.
I can do best by sharing some of my Irregular Miniatures collection and sending my condolences to Ian Kay and the Irregular family.
Irregular have provided me with some great 20mm figures that helped me build my 1848 forces.
1848 Danish Infantry repurposed from Irregulars colonial range1848 Duchy of Parma artillery Duchy of Modena Dragoons which were Neapolitan Dragoons 1848 Rumanian infantry which were ww1 Austrians 1848 Roman Legion which were ww1 Austrians Colonial British posing as 1848 Danes1848 Garibaldeans in red and blue shirtsNeapolitans posing as 1848 French1864 Dane’s which were ww1 Austrians 1850 Dane’s which were ww1 Austrians Grand Duchy of Tuscany Infantry repurposed from the colonial range
The thing about one hour wargames is it’s genuinely “pick up” attraction. If you want to throw dice, move figures and get that war game with a purpose feeling for minimal preparation, then I find it’s a winner.
Yes, the mechanisms are abstract but you have to compromise somewhere and Neil Thomas rules generally offer that blend of compromises I like.
In the first game the Royalists held the hill with some rookie blues and grays in actionThe royalists divide their forces to hold both enemy objectives The royalists include this new blue unitRoyalist artillery hold the town road The royalists are none other than DanesDanish volunteer horse make up the royalist cavalryMore Dane’s this time by HatStrelets Danish Royalist GuardsEverything hung on the defence of the town
Rebel forces enter the fray
A mixed brigade of cavalry The rebels mass their infantry before the town The royalists are caught outThe rebels quickly assault the town The royalists seek to outflank the rebel attackThe rebel cavalry attack the rookie blues royalists
Rebel victory
The rebel attack on the town is overwhelmingThe rebel cavalry destroy the royalist right wing infantry The rebel cavalry move on the second objective – the hillThe royalist defence stiffens around the town The rebel cavalry are destroyed Rebel infantry struggle in the townThe royalist cavalry rush to aid their compatriots in the town but it is too late
So the second battle ends in Royalist defeat. It’s all square and all to play for…..
The royalists needed to escape through the town and up the great road……
Rebels held the river line woods The rebel cavalry brigade – lucky toys and hat miniatures Irregular miniatures garibaldeansMore irregular miniatures garibaldeansStrelets rebel sharpshooters hold the town roadThe royalists pour forwards The royalists choose the remote river crossings on their left wing to make progress The royalists are peppered by the rebel skirmishers The royalists attack the townThe royalist left wing cavalry lead the way The rebels abandon the river line The royalists begin to make progress The rebel cavalry are swept awayThe rebels are fleeing pell mell Some royalists race up the great road The royalist cavalry take a beating getting to close to formed infantry The royalist cavalry break The last few royalist units must make good their escape up the great roadAgain the rebel infantry shoot well The last royalist infantry are driven away
And so victory to the rebels in the action and also the short campaign.
Today of course saw the end of 3 days of fighting at Gettysburg – the great Union victory which along with the capture of Vicksburg saw the war finally turn against the Confederate Southern States.
I just missed the end of AHPC15 with some 1848 era artillery.
Rather than park them like last year I decided to get these Properly finished.
Three types of artillery on showI have added to my Danish artillery Irregular miniatures bell shako British do good service as Dane’s of the 1840’sGuns were different to the Russian 1850’s version.Full complement with earlier model to fore.These are 1848 Duchy of ParmaSame manufacturer as the Dane’s Same guns as the Dane’s B and B Miniatures provided these chaps posing as 1848 Schleswig Holstein rebels. They are actually 1870 Prussians One 4 pounder horse gun and one 6 pounder field gun both rifled breechloaders But it’s hard work getting pickelhaubes for the 1840’s and the figures come with the guns – waste not want not. At three feet I can live with the difference.
The figures are hat Nassau Napoleonic infantry. 1/72 or 20mm plastics.
I picked them because they have the nearest shako look for the Dane’s bell shako.
I have started to use a furled flag approach as invariably my flag production does not match my figure painting!
I could do some head swops to get other sets in on the act but wanted to try a straight paint job here to see if I liked the result.
The basing is my standard 40mm square mdf with budgie grit pva then 3 colour brown, ochre and yellow/white highlights. As it’s nearly spring the grass is dead tufts from gamers grass over Javis sawdust green.
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!
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.
The Wargaming Erratic 