Jack Scruby - updated - Fantasy War Game Miniatures

 

Back in September, 2012, I received a parcel off the great folks at Historifigs containing most of the old 70s Scruby fantasy range......total joy.  Nice clean castings and a trip down memory lane - remember, you have to think Minifigs ME range as the only alternative at the time...

This is an updated version of the original post with new pics (blue background). Mike Taber sent these a while ago but I misplaced them and, of course, found them again whilst looking for something else... I was sent one with looks like F9 on the base however it's the same figure as F14a... I'll leave it blank until I get more info! 

F-1 Troll, Advancing with tree trunk - 54mm tall

F-2 Living Tree, with out stretched branches - 54mm tall

F-3 Hero, chainmail with long sword - 40mm tall

F-4 Wizard on rearing horse - 30mm tall

F-5 Elf, firing longbow - 28mm tall

F-6 Giant Orc, shield, curved sword - 30mm tall

F-7 Orc, charging with spear - 25mm tall

F-8 Orc, charging with sword - 25mm tall

F-9

?

F-10 Goblin in Morion, with pole-axe - 20mm tall

F-10b Goblin w. Spear / Short Pike

F-11

?

F-12 Hobbit, with sword

F-13 Wizard, with staff - 40mm tall

F-14 Dwarf, with Axe

F-14a Dwarf, with sword

F-14b Dwarf, with axe

F-15 Evil Wizard - 40mm tall

 Historifigs leaflet

The figures are available via the Historifigs website with ordering details here. Give them a shout and let them know I sent you...

They also did a large scale LotR style range under 'The Soldier Factory' - I'll post about them soon.

enquiries@deartonyblair.co.uk

Minifigs ME1 Man-Orc with Sword - the box!

 

Every so often I dig out something that makes me smile. This is just a box, very true... however this isn't just any old box, this is a Minifigs box! The first coded mini for the Middle Earth / Mythical Earth range. There's still argument over who produced the first of the fantasy ranges... people still argue that Jack Scruby may have been the first but I think they came after Minifigs around 1975 whereas Minifigs advertised in 1973... the way adverts went back in the day you needed to send your material well in advance as well.

Minifigs ME over on the Lost Minis WIKI here.

Jack Scruby fantasy here.

Note the COMING SOON section at the bottom (Military Modelling, July 1973)

More details on this post;

http://www.deartonyblair.co.uk/2020/09/beginnings-of-fantasy-minifigs-me.html

The old Minifigs ME catalogue page...

An earlier box of unknown date... picked the image up off eBay some time ago so unsure where from. All kudos to the original poster. 

My own painted ME34 Giant... tried to make him more worrying looking than the casting suggests!

Lots more Scruby and Minifigs posts if you want to have a browse, check the tags on the right of the blog. Don't forget that Dave Ryan over at Caliver Books / Minifigs is slowly rereleasing all the old fantasy... 

http://www.miniaturefigurines.co.uk/Home.aspx

If you're interested, I appeared on the Rollin Bones show the other night... Canadian time 20:00... UK time 02:00. I'm still recovering! A good chat about the history and evolution of miniatures in tabletop gaming although I think I kept straying back to my own love of old lead.

 https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1446655812

I've also put a couple of old Empire of the Petal Throne minis on eBay... got to pay that mortgage somehow!

https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/deartonyblair/m.html

Jack Scruby Table Top Talk - April 1963

 

Once again, courtesy of a friend's PDF wizardry, we have another issue of Table Top Talk magazine in to download via my Google Drive... Volume 2, number 4.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YMNmDr1AI6wMlM8_JJf94L_YjDgUjrH1/view?usp=sharing

As always; enquiries@deartonyblair.co.uk

Don't forget to become a Politico (top left, grow the lead revolution please) or even hit 'The Little Soldier Company' banner at the top and pick up some pieces... every little helps. 

Also, if you would care, you could buy me a cup of coffee at the link below... miniature collecting is thirsty work.

https://ko-fi.com/davidwood

Jack Scruby Table Top Talk - February 1963

First published in 1962, Jack Scruby's magazine was a beacon of light in the darkness... not for me at the time, I hasten to add... I was 1 year old at that point... I have a number of copies of these and am attempting to scan them... coming to terms with Canon Image Garden is another thing unfortunately...

I hope the images are decent enough to read...

Edit... courtesy of a friend we have the pdf... in theory you can download it here...

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1bvBIn1XjLbUhMqLXTEDaSIH_Csdpwlvw/view?usp=sharing

As always; enquiries@deartonyblair.co.uk

Don't forget to become a Politico (top left, grow the lead revolution please) or even hit The Little Soldier Company banner at the top and pick up some pieces... every little helps. 

If you would care, you could buy me a cup of coffee at the link below. Every little helps.

https://ko-fi.com/davidwood

Little Wars Magazine Ads and other bits.....

I am now missing just 2 Little Wars Magazines - Volumes 1 and 2, number 3. Please email me if you have them spare or know anyone who does! These are all from the late 70s.

An interesting ripping apart of the UK micro scale armour scene by then managing editor Mr T.J Kask.......unfortunately I agree with the comments! Contacting companies in those days was an interesting feat of endurance......

Pics under the ads of the very few I have of my own.

Never seen any of these in the flesh and am not sure who the designer was.....possibly George Freeman but I could be a long way off.

Most of these ancients, if not all, are now available again from Iron Wind Metals .....standing the test of time after 35 years.

 Classic Jack Scruby ad....

  

I didn't even know John McEwan had done cowboys!

I picked up these old minis a while back. Firedraek Exotic Miniatures, manufactured by Classic Miniatures of Nevada. I did see a small review ad in an old issue of Fantasy Modelling in the 80s but have no other information about the line at all. Help!

ELD-1 Jharud Nir Centaur

ELD-2 Gurathi Minotaur

....and joy of joys I have managed to track down the old Archive Miniatures Yosemite Sam the Samurai Dwarf. He came packaged with Conan the Duck.....

Slight mis cast on his wakizashi (the smaller of the two swords carried by these old Japanese Knights) so I have now mixed putty and applied with trepidation......pic from before the putty.

Archive did a nice range of Runequest minis which I assume is where the duck references came from....

Small WIP update on the Heresy Miniatures conversion of their Sharclon Trooper to a Medieval Sontaran...so much more stuff on the painting table.....

Also came across an oldish blister for Zap Designs...designed by Paul Henni. I believe these are still available from The Baggage Train but a lack of photos has kept me away for now. I have had some nice alien type er...well, aliens from him before...pics under the blisters.....must dig them out and well....look at them some more. They were distributed by Fantasy Forge who went bankrupt then rose from the ashes then went bankrupt etc. Not 100% sure where the Zap minis are if not at TBT.

Edit - had an email off Stephen Oates who runs The Baggage Train;

Yep these are mine, I think I also have all the  old Zap range too. Yes I must make time and get some photo's done for my site. Will you be going to phalanx? I will have them with me.

Phalanx show is on Saturday 15th June at the Sutton Community Centre in St Helens, UK. Contact Stephen directly with queries via his website but please mention my name as I am trying to promote them a little!

Finally a bargain Gormeti 3D Puzzle toy from Home Bargains here in the UK. £1 for a plastic kit and box - the box looks great for VSF / Pulp jungle ruins etc. The figure possibly for superhero gaming??? Anyway, there are a few variants and I am told the Pound Shop also has them. 

As always; enquiries@deartonyblair.co.uk