Airfix British Redcoat Infantry 1960

Trying out different colour schemes:  Airfix Guards Colour Party repaints escort the Governor General’s Daughter (originally / promoted  from the  Airfix Waggon Train) Photo/ figure paints: Man of TIN. 

Amongst the proliferation of so many plastic gaming figures today , I sometimes  wonder what would have happened if the gaming clock was a reset to 1962, the year of first publication of Donald Featherstone’s War Games book.

Imagine, Groundhog Day style, that all you had available (going back in an “it’s 1962 again” time loop) were conversions of these figures:

• Airfix  S1 Guards band 1959
• Airfix S2 Guards Colour party 1959
• Airfix S3 Combat Infantry Group 1960
• Airfix S4 Farm Stock 1960
• Airfix S5 WW2 German Infantry 1960
• Airfix S6 Civilians 1960
• Airfix S7 Cowboys 1961
• Airfix S8 Indians 1961

Donald Featherstone in his WW2 example game used Airfix figures and tank kits, featuring Set S3 Combat Infantry and Set S5 WW2 German Infantry. These gave me much pleasure as a gaming child as they were the same as figures that I recognised and had in our family collection.

By 1962 when Donald Featherstone’s War Games went to press and was published, the following lovely Airfix sets were issued, expanding the conversion possibilities:

• Airfix S9 8th Army 1962
• Airfix S10 Foreign Legion 1962
• Airfix S11 Afrika Korps 1962
• Airfix S12 American Civil War Union Infantry 1962
• Airfix S13 American Civil War Confederate Infantry 1962
• Airfix S14 American Civil War Artillery 1962
• Airfix S15 Wagon Train 1962

Some simple ideas on wargaming with the available figures 0f the time in this much thumbed (Ex-library) copy of Donald Featherstone’s Tackle Model Soldiers This Way, written in 1963. 

So circa 1960-62, what were the paint and conversion possibilities available to gamers then or vintage gamers today?

 

From sketch book to first draft painting or repaint, I’m happy with the results so far with these Victorian British redcoat paint conversions of Airfix 1960 Infantry Combat Group:

Still a few final details to add to these figures, along with some natives or opposition.

The opposition could be these blue coated Danish style guardsmen, still unfinished in fine detailing.

I hope the late Donald Featherstone would have liked these simple redcoat figures c. Airfix 1960/2.

Several years later, many of the conversion ideas of his and others featured in his book Military Modelling were made easier by production of WW1 figures, the American War of Independence figures and the Waterloo range.

Colonial redcoats could by 1966 be made from Airfix WW1 German Infantry:

These are part-painted, first draft Victorian Redcoats formed from some spare  Airfix WW1 German Infantry, a suggestion made in books at the time.

Unfinished / Rough first draft repaint into  Airfix British redcoats or steampunk VSF Victorian British infantry? Some more brass and silver required for steampunk! (Figures / photo: Man of TIN.)

And if these redcoats on land required any naval back up, Airfix Cowboys could make a passable Royal Naval landing party …

turning these Cowboys (top right) from American Civil War infantry conversions into Victorian sailors something like these Fimo cake mould conversions sailors.

More paint conversions and retro / vintage Airfix c. 1962 to share with you in future blogposts.

Back, back, back into the past in our Airfix time machine …

Happy gaming!

Posted by Man of TIN, June 2016.

The Prince’s Quest board game

Another interesting junk shop find, this book of reprinted Six Edwardian and Victorian Board Games compiled by Olivia Bristol.

One of the interesting games is called The Prince’s Quest, a ‘fairy race game’ with plenty of random setbacks, depending where you land, access to secret paths and a starting mechanism of rolling a d6 to find which path you set out on.

One of the drawbacks of the reproduced game (which originally covered three game panels) is the tiny spaces to put game counters on.

Marcia Malia’s comment below suggests that her original game board is quite small, like the reproduction.

Peter Laing metal 15mm colonial figures serve as game counter pieces. Photo / figures: Man of TIN.

One solution is to use 15mm Peter Laing figures on simple small bases – I grabbed the nearest figures to hand but should probably have chosen Peter Laing 15mm Knights to match the theme.

It is perfectly dice led as board games go with absolutely no skill element at all, just the luck of dice,  so perfect for solo gaming if you fancy controlling two figures and rolling two dice yourself!

Interesting game and several other techno / scifi almost comedy steampunk games of diving for treasure and an airship inspired A Trip to Mars, beautifully colour reproduced.

Well worth tracking down a copy.

Posted by Mr. MIN, Man of TIN.