First Flats or Homecasts Prince August 1980s

These three strange figures appeared in a (school?) jumble sale mix of plastic figures in the early 1980s. I had no idea what they were, had not encountered flat figures and they were surprisingly heavy for their size.

All the lead hollowcast figures had vanished from the family by the late sixties, these lost legions possibly the casualties of parental concern about lead in children’s toys and the new possibilities of plastic.

I had no idea what these were. They had a strange marking ‘HE’ on the base.

1980/81 – This was the days before the Internet.

They were bare metal or grey undercoated when found, at some point they received my desultory painting of red and black, then languished unseen for decades.

Their survival is probably due to having been in the 1980s Blue Box for the next 25 to 30 years or more, where they remained unused in my 1980s Blue Box of odds and ends, as what use were three figures?

Image source from my blog post on the Military Modelling / Battle for Wargamers 1983 Wargames Manual – https://poundstoreplasticwarriors.wordpress.com/2017/06/30/brian-carricks-big-wars

I didn’t connect these orphan HE figures at all with the tempting adverts in Military Modelling in the early 1980s for these grown up, hot metal moulds. The moulds and the metal were unobtainable on my Airfix figures pocket money income, even if I could be trusted with hot metal (unlikely then).

Another 25 years pass.

Early in 2005/6 in a small craft shop on a backwater street of a backwater southwest town, by chance I discovered in a sale one Prince August casting starter set and a box of 54mm Traditional Toy Soldier moulds. At last I could cast my own figures.

Being able to cast your own figures whenever you want more and own the means of production still seems a little bit magical to me.

I have not looked back since.

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I sometimes wonder how different my toy soldier hobby life would be without that chance shop find.

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I know now that these three figures are Holger Eriksson 18th Century / Seven Years War moulds, still available from Prince August and I now have some of these moulds in my collection:

I know now that HE obviously is the talented Swedish Toy Soldier designer Holger Erickson. His HE figures from the 1950s and 1960s are still available through Prince August and from Tradition Of London including S.A.E Figures from the Featherstone era.

Brian Carrick’s excellent blog posts on Holger Eriksson:

https://toysoldiercollecting.blogspot.com/search/label/Holger%20Eriksson?m=0

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40mm?

This seemed such a weird size when I first encountered these three Unknown figures in the early 1980s. Figures to me back then were Airfix size 1:32 or 1:72/76. I now have a fair amount of 40-42mm figures in my collection and gaming skirmish units, including Pound Store Plastic copies of 54mm figures that have through copying shrunk in size, stylish HE Cowboys and Indians and of course my current STS Little Britons 42mm range Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts.

I wonder if one day these three stray orphan 40mm HE figures – my first metal figures – will kickstart a small gaming collection of Tricorne and Musket figures? Who knows?

These tricorne figures to me inexplicably have a Gulliver’s Travels Lilliputian look to them. If it does eventually happen, it might be unconventional ImagiNations / Lace Wars Steampunk like this 2007 blog link I found via TMP about 6 years ago. But not just yet …

http://mcristobylacew-abdul666.blogspot.com/2007/09/lace-wars-sci-fi.html

Blog posted by Mark Man of TIN, 15 August 2022.

Prince August 54mm Home Cast Armed Gelati and Traffic Wardens on Parade

I made these home-cast 54mm parade figures using the traditional toy soldier moulds by Prince August back in 2005/7.

https://shop.princeaugust.ie/54mm-traditional-toy-soldiers-moulds/

The first group are ImagiNations armed Guild of Gelati or ice cream sellers on parade with their Neapolitan Ice cream based flag.

The second are armed traffic wardens on parade. No arguing with these over your parking fines with these fine well-armed fellows, keeping the local streets clear, safe and responsibly parked for democracy.

These are obviously based on the old fashioned British traffic wardens. I love the black uniform contrasting with the yellow stripes.

If you want them to be Italian / ImagiNations to match the Gelati, they would be called Vigili Urbani. I have no idea really what Italian traffic / parking Wardens look like other than those white gloved ones in 1980s Cornetto adverts and the 60s film The Italian Job. At least there is a spurious Italian link between parking enforcement and ice cream.

The Traffic Wardens do not yet have a standard or flag. Polite suggestions only please.

A marching red hat Band and some Coastguards at the back left mixed in. Airfix multipose haversacks

Very VBCW!

These were painted when I still used Humbrol Gloss enamel paints or Gloss Varnish over Humbrol enamels. I like this ‘Tintin’ old shiny toy soldier style painting still, although today I use Revell Aquacolor Acrylic gloss and gloss varnish. I have noticed that they need the final gloss spray Varnish as the flesh paint is matt, not gloss.

The two standing figures at ease (at the back, left) are not yet Traffic Wardens. They are inspired by 1860s British Customs Officers in Polperro based on a photograph by Lewis Harding of Polperro (taken from the book Lewis Harding Cornwall’s Pioneer Photographer by Phillip M. Correll, Polperro Heritage Press, 2000 polperro.press@polperro.org)

This came from the excellent small local museum of Smuggling at Polperro in Cornwall. Well worth a visit.

1860 Image for research purposes taken from Lewis Harding Cornwall’s Pioneer Photographer

A few more random Prince August home cast figures from the same 2007 recently rediscovered box

A Redcoat figure deliberately aged and roughed up, along with a new replacement arm.

Mixed Patrol

Some of these figures were displayed to other’s bemusement at a local arts and crafts exhibition in my local village church / church hall about ten years ago as they scandalously had little or no boycraft or mancraft of any kind.

A blast from the home-cast past posted by Mark Man of TIN 14 November 2020.

Next post: back to the 54mm Spanish Armada 1588 / Aztecs and Mixtecs

More Prince August 54mm home cast sculpts #3

More of the possible Prince August proposed 54mm alternative heads for new 54mm home cast figures – US Infantry pre/ post 1902.

Good to see that people have contributed suggestions back to Prince August including Anthony Jopson and also Ian Dury (hello Ian!) of the Peter Laing Collectors circle (on MeWe) and the Continental Wars Society.

More sculpts can be seen at https://manoftinblog.wordpress.com/2019/10/02/prince-august-new-54mm-toy-soldier-sculpts-part-2/

Any suggestions for new heads to extend this range? Contact can be made via the Prince August website info@princeaugust.ie or contact page.

Portuguese infantry? Ladybird Leaders: Soldiers

Or Preben Kannik, Military Uniforms of the World, eve of WW1 plates

Blog posted by Mark, Man of TIN 4 October 2019.

Prince August New 54mm Toy Soldier sculpts Part 2

Newest design of 54mm toy soldier home casting from Prince August. Previously:

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Feedback any comments to Prince August via their website.
https://shop.princeaugust.ie
Blog posted by Mark, Man of TIN 2 October 2019.

New Prince August 54mm Homecast Toy Soldiers Planned

Interesting new poses planned

Exciting news from Prince August e-newsletter is the range of new 54mm homecast toy soldiers to add to their existing successful homecast range https://shop.princeaugust.ie/54mm-traditional-toy-soldiers-moulds/

These are still in development and feedback is sought on heads and nations represented. The newsletter comes from info@princeaugust.ie or there is a comment form on their website.

Why not sign up for the newsletter which has details of promotions, discounts, sales and new moulds?

Blog posted by Mark Man of TIN, 14 September 2019.

New Prince August Flats 60mm Queens Guards Moulds

New at Prince August the curiously sized 60mm and flat Queen’s  Guards mould https://shop.princeaugust.ie/british-queens-guard-flat-60mm-scale-mould/

They look quite charming. I like these poses – marching, firing, advancing, bayonet drill –  but not sure yet if I will order any. Are they going to produce any more 60mm flat figures?

Other old plastic Crescent 60mm semi flat figures or older large metal flats up to 60mm could be drafted in as opposition.

Like I need a new size of soldiers to collect. Resisting shiny. Resisting shiny.

Blog posted by Mark Man of TIN 22 July 2019

#MARCH no. 1

Wendal aluminium marching bandsman – Salvation Army or Circus uniforms. British made.

As well as March being Women’s History Month (a continuation of FEMbruary), it is  an excuse for painting, modelling or photographing more of my MARCHing toy soldier figures and MARCHing bands.

I love a marching figure and given the choice, I would rather have a set of marching toy soldiers than the more realistic modern multiple poses, just for that classic toy soldier look.

Here’s one I made earlier … they look great on parade or the battlefield. Prince August 54mm home cast metal Traditional Toy Soldier set. Cast your chosen arms,  head and body, assemble, paint  and you have your own home made figure. Still magical.

https://shop.princeaugust.ie/54mm-traditional-toy-soldiers-moulds/

So here are a few of my marching figures for this MARCH.

Two Britain’s Scottish marching troops with the moving arm still attached. Left,  Highland Light Infantry from set 213 (prewar manufacture) and Right, The Royal Scots from set 212.

More will be MARCHing across this blog for a small parade on Donald Featherstone’s Centenary on 20 MARCH 2018.

https://manoftinblog.wordpress.com/2018/03/03/featherstone100-donald-featherstone-centenary-20-march-2018/

We might even get time for a small suffragette March before the month is out.

A simple tartan and lace trimmings … in Scottish doublet and tartan trews.

The simple beauty and joy of a MARCHing figure or a MARCHing band.

Blogposted by Mark, Man of TIN,  MARCH 2018

Fimo Figure Failure Fun

Brian Carrick, blog author of the brilliant Collecting Plastic Soldiers blog, http://toysoldiercollecting.blogspot.co.uk  wondered whether the Prince August 54mm chess toy soldier pawn figures that I featured this week would work in Fimo polymer clay.

https://manoftinblog.wordpress.com/2017/03/17/prince-august-chess-pawn-toy-soldiers/

Would this work in Fimo, Brian wondered?  Would it be both cheaper and lighter?

I said I would Have a Fimo Go! (If you are reading this in America or elsewhere, Fimo is the equivalent to Sculpey Polymer Clay).

I wasn’t expecting much and was sadly proved right. Using a block of slightly old red Fimo, I rolled out, softened or warmed this through the hand rolling and then an appropriate size chunk inserted into one half of the mould.

I chose the simplest of the Prince August chess set moulds that I used this week  – the Alamo American Infantry pawn figure.

Fimo Figure Fail?

Putting the the second half of the mould on and squeezing them together, on removing the figure, it was clear that it had only partly worked. The face and front moulding was mostly there, the hat not quite.

The back was missing the lovely detail of knapsack and powder horn.

There was some detail but lots of spare Fimo flash  to trim in the form of a big moulding line.

With more care this could be lessened if the amount of Fimo were reduced.

With care a knapsack could be added which I have done to add 3D roundness to other flatbacked 54mm Fimo figures.

Rather than build up the figure with detail, I baked it at 110 degrees for 30 minutes then trimmed of any spare Fimo and the mould line with a scalpel.

With a bit of paint, a bit of trimming and a bit of detail added to an already baked figure (you can rebake and add to  Fimo like this), a passable figure could be made. The hat could be built up or trimmed to a battered kepi.

However if you have the ability to cast as intended in metal, this is surprisingly simple and fast.

Brian Carrick wondered how they compare in terms of weight. The Prince August chess pawn figure weighs in at just under an ounce of metal, the Fimo figure with twopence base for stability, about 5 grms (most of which is the tuppence coin!)

You could also work out cost in terms of an ounce of Prince August metal versus a small lump of Fimo.

Fimo Figure Fun Or Fail?

In the first months of Man of TIN blog, I featured several Fimo soldier figure experiments including using simple silicon Cake Dec mould Soldiers (my Cakes of Death battalions) and fun  Fimo freestyle or freesculpt figures.

https://manoftinblog.wordpress.com/2016/05/27/more-diy-gaming-figure-making/

This was one of my first Fimo failures, as I reinforced the body around a cocktail stick which led to cracking. I had not learnt that you can bake, add detail and rebake etc.

Over cooking at the wrong temperature was another Fimo failure and gives off not nice fumes and the figures distort badly.

Arise Angria! The Rising Sun banner of the Bronte kingdom of Angria.

This battered and cracked figure eventually found a role, painted up initially as some kind of Confederate standard bearer, he now carries the newly designed  flag of Angria, one of the imaginary kingdoms created by the young Bronte sisters.

The way we wore – this is how the figure first looked on the blog back in May 2016 after a little tinkering. (I don’t use  Green Stuff / Milliput in my house as some of my household are allergic to it).

Unpainted, cracked – Fimo failure or a bit of fun?

Fimo failure but fun!

Blogposted  by Mark, Man of TIN, March 2017.

 

Prince August chess pawn toy soldiers

The 54mm Alamo Chess Set pawns from Prince August –  ‘pewtered’ by applying then quickly  wiping off black paint before it dries. Small casting error on one of the rifle butts to repair.

 

A special  offer or ‘promotion of the month’ for March 2017 on the Prince August website led me to try these Alamo Chess set pawns at a reduced price, which I bought alongside their American Civil War and Napoleonic chess set pawn moulds.

http://shop.princeaugust.ie/chess-sets

These 54mm toy soldier chess pawn moulds in silicone rubber are available separately from buying the whole chess set moulds.

An interesting selection of 54mm figures

These figures cast well and cleanly, using Prince August Model Metal,  aside from the occasional glitch on the Alamo American figure rifle butt which is easily repaired.

Close up of the background and front of some of the  Alamo and American Civil War chess pawn figures Home cast from Prince August moulds.

By mixing the sets together, a varied Confederate or Union type Army or Militia can easily be created. I like the powder horns on the Alamo figures, and think that these could serve for figures from earlier periods than the Alamo.

Close up of the Napoleonic moulds 54mm chess pawns alongside the Alamo Mexican infantry figure (Prince August).

These figures with different paint schemes will bulk out the ranks of any 54mm toy soldier army.

Officer figures are included only in the whole Chess Set of moulds, admittedly on a slightly raised base. These bases could of course be adapted or removed. Alternatively other suitable figures could be used.

Standard bearers should be easily created from the rifleman figure by adapting the musket into a flag standard.

These figures are of course great for “Imagi-nation” games with some alternative paint work.

Slender of build as these chess pawns are, I was concerned how they matched up to other 54mm castings. Some castings from home cast and vintage moulds seem closer to 50mm.

Size match with 54mm Prince August chess pawn soldier Napoleonic British Infantry compared with (left to right) homecast red greatcoated infantry, Britain’s Napoleonic British, Prince August 54mm saluting Guards officer (my Man of TIN gravatar)  Herald Lifeguard, my Fimo Guards officer, Herald Guardsman. 

However in a quick line up with other manufacturers , they match these slighter figures and my previous castings from metal home cast moulds well enough.

Prince August chess pawn soldier Imperial Guard Napoleonics prove a reasonable size match for other 54mm figures (left to right) Britain’s AA Patrol, Airfix Imperial Guard, Britain’s line infantry and Guards marching, Herald Lifeguards. 

54mm American Civil War chess pawn Soldiers size match for other manufacturers including (left to right) my Fimo Union style Infantry, Herald confederate bugler, Britain’s Line Infantry (repainted). 

Perefect for parades, perfect for gaming – lots of possibilities.

Blogposted by Mark, Man of TIN, March 2017.

More Homecasting

Getting back into casting my own figures in metal, rather than Fimo / Sculpey Polymer Clay, after a break of several years is proving interesting.

It hasn’t all gone to plan. Moulds, especially metal vintage ones not used for a while, need to be “run in”. Warming the moulds gently helps the metal flow too.

Moulding disasters get put straight back into the melting pot or melting spoon.

Schneider Settlers and Indians – Back into the melting spoon together …

Rough, but useable 54mm castings from old metal moulds in need of a bit of trimming and filing. Faces are a bit blank. 

An attractive WW1 / early WW2 British infantryman marching, c. 54mm height

 

Rough raw castings of Prince August 40mm Cowboys and Indians designed by Holger Erikkson

Lovely to know that these ‘HE’ or Holger Ericksson figures (cast from moulds sold by Prince August) are still popular many years after they were first carved by Holger Ericsson (1899-1988) as shown here http://www.tabletoptalk.com/?p=572

Schneider type moulds for 30 to 40mm flat 19th century British infantry.

Straight out of the mould, clipped but not filed yet – 40mm PA5 modern 1950s infantry marching (Holger Eriksson / Prince August moulds).

Lots of filing and trimming awaits … and lots of imagi-nations skirmish game ideas.

Casting using the vintage metal casting moulds is definitely trickier than the silicone rubber moulds, but a few tricks picked up from the toy soldier forums  such as warming the moulds first does help with the metal flow.

Blogposted by Mark, Man of TIN blog, January 2017