Using my blog as a scrapbook (kind of what Pinterest was invented for), here are a couple of cheeky screen shots from an online auction site of the Timpo Desert Fort.
Never had this fort or knew it existed. However I still have my childhood Timpo Arabs and Foreign Legion, some of them in need of repair from brittle joints.
I have been slowly collecting the odd beaten up Timpo cowboy buildings for 54mm games.
There are lots more Timpo buildings at this site for some Timpo Nostalgia:
http://www.spanglefish.com/hallmarkstoysoldiers/index.asp?pageid=169845
Blogposted by Mark, Man of TIN, 29 August 2018.
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Published by 26soldiersoftin
Hello I'm Mark Mr MIN, Man of TIN. Based in S.W. Britain, I'm a lifelong collector of "tiny men" and old toy soldiers, whether tin, lead or childhood vintage 1960s and 1970s plastic figures.
I randomly collect all scales and periods and "imagi-nations" as well as lead civilians, farm and zoo animals. I enjoy the paint possibilities of cheap poundstore plastic figures as much as the patina of vintage metal figures.
Befuddled by the maths of complex boardgames and wargames, I prefer the small scale skirmish simplicity of very early Donald Featherstone rules.
To relax, I usually play solo games, often using hex boards. Gaming takes second place to making or convert my own gaming figures from polymer clay (Fimo), home-cast metal figures of many scales or plastic paint conversions. I also collect and game with vintage Peter Laing 15mm metal figures, wishing like many others that I had bought more in the 1980s ...
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Man of Tin blog 
Oh very nice! I’ve never seen one of those. I had some Arabs too but no FFL. My Arabs used to fight Timpo ACW figures or Britains Grenadier Guards!!
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MJT, I had never seen one either, hence the hasty screenshot. It is a good simple play fort by the look of it, but I didn’t bid as this fort being (semi) complete, in the box etc. it would go for Timpo collectors prices. It looks a little like a knight’s castle redone in Khaki / sand plastic, rather than the (slightly more accurate?) Airfix OO HO Foreign Legion Fort just like the BBC Beau Geste TV series.
My scrappy childhood collection of a few Britain’s Deetail Arab or Desert Warriors, along with the few Timpo Swoppet Arabs and purple plastic Timpo Action Pack Arab figures, would also fight a wide range of enemies too. These ranging from the sword and dagger wielding ones fighting Knights and Crusaders through to the rifle ones fighting Waterloo figures and Legionnaires right up to WW2. Versatile figures. Happy days in the rockery and sand pit, sorry Desert and Mountains.
Some Timpo Arabs are on my repair and painting desk at the moment.
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The Timpo swoppet Arabs are highly prone to losing arms.
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Yes this is usually the plastic joint / mould bit that has gone – I have a jigsaw of Arabs and Arms to reunite.
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Brilliant. Wish I had one of those as a kid. My grandad built me a wooden fort though so I was happy with that hehe
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IRO, The fort your grandad made you would always be better.
Only one of my childhood / family ‘boughten’ forts has survived, the others have warped and fallen apart, long since discarded by the rest of the family.
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Something similar to this is in the Armies in Plastic catalogue.
I’ve been experimenting with basic gaming with their 54mms at work; the kids prefer to build forts with the Jenga blocks we use for terrain. Hey, it still counts!
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The Jenga blocks is in the true spirit of H.G. Wells Little Wars and his Floor Games.
It’s also not offputtingly expensive for a kid like some of the highly attractive Demo Games, magazine photos and Warhammer / Games Workshop material.
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I have just dug the remnants of my desert fort out of a box in my shed, given to me as a Christmas present in the mid 70s.
I searched the net to find out more about this and pleasantly came across your site. I too have a couple of Arab and Foreign Legion figures mixed up with some cowboys and Indians, knights, Waterloo figures and various farm and African animals.
The fort still has four sides. There are only three corner pieces; two have connectors missing. There are no doors I’m afraid, but I do recall many hours play. 😀
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A great thing to have these touchstones or portals to childhood games. It should prove an excellent backdrop for a display of your surviving figures, if not in regular tabletop or floor use.
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