 |
| The Magnificent 7th |
 |
| Bold as brass |
To make the trumpet arm the simplest thing to do was to remove the original lance arm altogether and replace it with a recast lancer arm supplied by John Cunningham, modified to hold one of my soldered trumpets.
My trumpeter's reversed-facings yellow coat was a bit of a challenge as I've not been very successful with yellow uniforms in the past. I tried a thin wash of brown over the yellow base coat to create a bit of contrast. It sort of worked!
As every one of my remaining lancers has required either conversion, repair or a bit of both, they've been very slow to get started. All things being equal they should start to appear over the next few posts.
WM
Beautifully painted Trumpeter - Yellow is a bad colour to get right,Tony
ReplyDeleteTell me about it! Many thanks Tony
DeleteGreat conversion job WM, this trumpeter is wonderful!
ReplyDeleteThank you Phil. He certainly stands out a bit!
DeleteMatt - that's more stunning brushwork and a very clever conversion. I look forward to seeing the completed unit!
ReplyDeleteI had a bit of a go at the dappled grey look for his horse. Needs a bit of work, I think. The rest of them will be slow work, I suspect. The standard bearer in particular will be a bit of a challenge. The 7th had a particularly intricate guidon that won't be easy to reproduce!
DeleteLove the way you line in the fringes on epaulettes!!
DeleteThe old-school tricks are still the best tricks, LG!
DeleteBeautiful figures, love the trumpeter, the dapple grey effect is excellent.
ReplyDeletePaul
Cheers, Paul, every bit of encouragement helps. Every figure is an experiment!
DeleteAS others have already remarked, they look great so far. You nailed the yellow coat too, and the horse looks convincing. I should add some dappeled greys to my own army.
ReplyDeleteBest Regards,
Stokes
That's very kind of you to say so, Stokes. It's only the tiniest bit of dappling, but I thought I should dip in a toe, as it were. There's a regiment of Scots Greys working its way ever so slowly towards the front of the painting queue, and I want to do them properly when the time comes.
DeleteI'm also still mulling over whether or not to have a bash at the Neuchatel Battalion at some point, so some yellow coat practice was also needed. It's a horrible colour to work with! The Humbrol version starts out with the adhesive qualities of egg yolk and dries to a sort of soft, cheesey goo. However, there is a brief mid-point when it almost behaves like paint.
I fear that the officer and the standard bearer may end up looking a little dowdy next to this chap.
Every single one is a Gem! I don't know how you do it, get that brilliance of colour that you do, but the effect is quite staggering. It's also wonderful how you keep finding the castings and the help you get from fellow wargamers.
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteIt's just good old-fashioned Humbrols over a white undercoat, 'Lee. I also try to be as bold as I dare when adding the top dry-brushed coat for the highlights. The colours always look far too bright on the palette, but it doesn't pay to be too cautious. The rest of the effect is achieved by good lighting and the spiffy little camera on my iphone - and a very shiny varnish, of course! I think my old stripped pine table and the bright blue backdrop work wonders too, which is why I keep using them. Note to self: must try something a bit more adventurous...
There isn't a shadow of a doubt that this project would have fallen pretty flat without the encouragement and incredible generosity of the wargaming community.
Vistula lancers are one of my favourites-excellent job!
ReplyDeleteCheers Matt. I only started them because, well, they were the DK Vistula lancers set! I have an informal rule (i.e., I stick to it when it suits me) to paint the things as they were intended. We won't mention those Portuguese Prussians.....
DeleteLost in admiration, wouldn't have the cojones to attempt conversion at that level, power to your elbow/soldering iron!
ReplyDeleteCheers Dave. The figure was quite badly damaged, so there was not too much to lose. He's only a DK too. I'd think thrice before doing this with a pristine HH.
DeleteLittle to add that others have not already said better. He would be impressive had he been an authentic HH garde lancer trumpeter, but to achieve this from a dk is awesome. On the paints front, have you used Revell email enamel? I was a lifelong humbrol obsessive who moved from the faith when humbrols became unreliable. The Revell colours are brighter, easier to apply, and don't go hard as soon as you open the tin. Just a thought. And no, I don't have shares.
ReplyDeleteThe DK 49s are a lot better than the DK 39s, Archduke, so it was not as hard as it looks!
ReplyDeleteI've never dared to try anything other than Humbrols, for fear of something better, I suspect. I think I've developed a sort of perverse attraction for all those little Humbrol eccentricities. Every colour seems to behave in a different way. However, I may try some of these new-fangled Revells now that you've recommended them.
Interesting informal rule that figures should be painted as designed. Given that Hinton obviously expected us the convert drummers and standard bearers and even grenadiers and voltigeurs, I rather doubt that the Portuguese were purposed as only Portuguese. There always was quite a bit of conversion by paint, so players wouldmake a. cavalry officer by snipping off the carbine and painting the oace in silver or gold and painting onbepaulettes. Repurposing always has been in ntegral to the HH. experience :-)).
ReplyDeleteQuite so LG! Perhaps "guidance" would have been a better term.
Delete