Monday 18 September 2023

Here comes the cavalry or Oliver’s , sorry Eric’s, Army is here to stay

 As promised some goodies from Eric Knowles’s Army . Firstly ,as Bob commented,  Eric uses a fascinating mix of figures in his armies. This is evident in the figures he has used in this Ottoman Army- ancient, Persians, ancient Britains, Huns and so on. I find this approach both charming and refreshing and one I can identify with. Secondly Eric labelled his figures with sticky labels on the underside of the bases in his own hand writing. I am impressed by this and want to preserve the bases and labels. Now for some pictures-

Light cavalry - diverse periods and manufactures as Dellis or Tartars.
Labels on the underside of the bases, neat and concise .
Other light cavalry, not sure of who manufactured them. Lively animation…
Underside of the lively animated figures. I really like the style of them.
Heavy cavalry this time , mainly Minifigs, not sure what they are but they look the part.
Another view of the heavy cavalry showing the bases and labels.
Over the weekend I agonised about how to use these figures and yet retain their charm and labels. I thought of sabot basing, clear Perspex bases and on and on. Then it came to me - l will use them as they are base wise for square based the Portable Wargame . An ideal solution, allows them to remain intact with a variety of basing styles. Ideal l think. One final question l am tempted to varnish the figures to protect Eric’s paint job . What do you think ? Will the integrity of the figures be diminished if I varnish? 



Posted by at
Labels: ,

10 comments:

  1. Maudlin Jack Tar18 September 2023 at 09:21

    Bit of Wargaming history there. I'd be tempted to gloss varnish them personally and definitely leave them on their EK bases.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous19 September 2023 at 06:29

      Indeed, definitely retaining basing and l will varnish to preserve the paint job.
      Alan Tradgardland

      Delete
  2. Rob Young18 September 2023 at 11:05

    Nice mix of figures there. The horse archer and lancer are Garrison S&S figures - Hykranian cavalry.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Rob Young18 September 2023 at 11:07

      Oh, and the Minifigs seem to be S Range Persians.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous19 September 2023 at 06:30

      Thanks for identifying them. The Garrison figures are charming and full of poetry in motion.
      Alan Tradgardland

      Delete
  3. Donnie McGibbon18 September 2023 at 17:28

    Lovely stuff, really nice to see them, I would gloss varnish them to protect the original paint job. You are spot on as well, keep them based as the way they are, great that they will continue to give enjoyment.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous19 September 2023 at 06:33

      I am glad you enjoyed seeing them. I agree re basing and varnishing. I am pleased they will fight again too as well as give enjoyment. I just wish I had seen the whole army deployed on the table top in Eric’s day. Wonder who they fought against?
      Alan Tradgardland

      Delete
  4. MGB18 September 2023 at 19:52

    Alan, I wonder if the mounted figures in photo no.3 are Garrison? That type of horse looks very much like their style. I had a large collection in the 1990s.
    Michael

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous19 September 2023 at 06:36

    Thanks for the suggestion. Do you still have your nineties army? Btw l am currently unable to post comments on your blog and have been unable to do so for some time now, much to my frustration. Just wanted to say I have really been enjoying you posts.
    Alan Tradgardland

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. MGB19 September 2023 at 07:39

      Thanks Alan. I sold my Garrison collection many years ago. When Ian Hinds took over Hinchcliffe, he used to buy any figures that were surplus, or swap them for new castings at favourable exchanges. He liked my painting style and basing. I still have about 500 Ottoman Turks/Tartars, and 400 Renaissance Russians (Hinchcliffe/Essex) but mainly game with 54mm now. Yes, I have the same problem with non google blogs, my old Apple can't work out their formats.
      Michael

      Delete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)