Well, now I've caught your attention......this is a blog about gaming miniatures, both old and new school but with a leaning towards old school. I've been in the hobby since the 70s and seem to show no sign of stopping in the foreseeable future.....
Got a small job lot of minis the other day and it included a number of old historical minis, most easily recognisable, however there are two Gauls infantry that I can't pinpoint. Pictured below with a Hinchliffe rider. Ga1 and Ga3 on the bases respectively. Any thoughts? They're seriously nice sculpts and it'd be great to find some more.
I also came across some of my old Ral Partha minis. Some were from Wargames Publications (Scotland) Ltd who imported them in the later 70's (at a hefty 50p or more!) before Citadel/Games Workshop started producing them under licence. I've used the UK prefix as they're all from the early 'Personalities and Things That Go Bump in the Night' range. Most of these are the first versions produced and all Tom Meier sculpts who is, of course, still going strong producing minis for many companies such as Darksword and Ral Partha Unleashed.
ES43 Armored Knight
ES31 Dwarf Lord, ES24 "Foregum" Super Hero and ES22 Elf Lord
ES11 Vallor, Warrior of the Gods, ES15 Super Hero w. Axe and ES5 Winged Gremlin
ES13 Assassin, ES56 Enchanter and ES10 Hill Troll
ES28 Gremlin War Party
ES9 Barbarian Hero, 2nd version with some cotton and plastic bits added.
Most of the range can be seen on the Lost Minis WIKI;
As always, please leave a comment below (seriously, it's like a desert sometimes in the comments sections!!) or email me on enquiries@deartonyblair.co.uk
For me Tom Meier is one of the sculpting Gods of the hobby. I picked up examples of his work when Ral Partha were first imported into the UK by Wargames Publications (Scotland) Ltd in the later 70's. His work is just about second to none and I hate to think of how many unpainted sculpts of his I have sat around the house... Jacob Fathbruckner has taken on the task of Ral Partha Legacy and it is a worthy one indeed. Take a look at what the Kickstarter has to offer, link below.
Beyond that you've got regiment sets, giants, dragons, siege weaponry and more... pop over and pledge as Jacob tells me all the funding is going into producing the miniatures and then into getting more produced. Greater love hath no man.
Being the slowest painter in the multiverse does have its drawbacks but all things come to fruition... some lovely Tom Meier pieces from Ral Partha Legacy and some new Tenoch pike from me.
The Alice Kickstarter won't be too long now (finished lots more painting today) but, in the meantime, 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...
Well, with a Kickstarter or two under my belt it was time to collate the eBay finds of the last few months... some a little older that a US friend had sent over but all good stuff to add to the lead mountain... lots of Minifigs Mythical Earth and Sword & Sorcery... oh the joy!
Some Citadel AD&D minis... unfortunately they'd had their slottas taken off but still nice to find. Two versions disappeared to a friend in America to complete his collection. I'll find them again one day!
Lovely miscellany of old Citadel DA, Grenadier AD&D and early Ral Partha elves.
A handful of Minifigs repairs... so many broken ones appear that I thought it was type to get the drill out.
Vulcan Miniatures... hopefully from 'The Court of Fools' as per the old ad below. Early Bob Naismith sculpts.
Ackland Miniatures bagged Citadel Spacefarers 54mm pieces... one more still to get in the baggie though. Tony said the giant robot sentinel in the Spacefarers 25mm range was originally destined for these...
This was an interesting 'bid on a whim' - turns out to be a Michael Perry early large scale sculpt, now believed to be related to RAF apprentices - groundcrew - RAF Halton (info C/O Chaz Elliott who painted one back in the day).
More Minifigs...
An Asgard Snark Dragon and the old McEwan bag header...
More Minifigs!
Three of the 4 Dragontooth Personalities I was missing...
Dragontooth Crocodile Giant... accompanied by a hand-sculpted weapon by a friend, Michael Booker... thank you!
More Minifigs along with a lone Garrison S&S demon...
Finally a Nick Bibby Citadel Chaos Demon...
That's it for now... as if it wasn't enough... who needs to pay the mortgage! Any comments or similar lots to get rid of please give me a shout on;
Iron Wind Metals have started another Kickstarter to reissue a lot of old Ral Partha classics alongside some new sculpts........I've been chatting to Jacob Fathbruckner of Iron Wind Metals about what is happening and they have plans for lots more reissues over time. So many Tom Meier classics and also some unreleased pieces occasionally! We really need to support this venture!
For more pictures of old Ral Partha you can check out the Lost Minis WIKI here. Iron Wind Metals themselves are here and Ral Partha Europe here. Tell them I sent you please!!
Tom Meier is, for me, the most accomplished miniatures sculptor of this generation. I have been in awe of him ever since the first Ral Partha figures were imported by Wargames Publications (Scotland) Ltd back in the 70s. I could not understand how so much detail could be added to a figure.......nowadays it's commonplace for sculptors to stretch the boundaries of their art but back then....well, it was just a 'wow' factor. Citadel / Games Workshop started importing and then producing Ral Partha miniatures and the rest is history. He formed Thunderbolt in 1988 after leaving Ral Partha (there is a history there in itself waiting to be written)....
https://www.thunderboltmountain.com/ (site no longer avaiable)
We have until the 25th december 2017.............
Edit (thanks for the push Jacob!).....Tom's early days were spent at Ral Partha (that history deserves a post of it's own) who are now re-releasing most of his old sculpts, remastered and including some new works......well worth a look through the site......some of the old Empire of the Petal Throne sculpts are in the 'coming soon' sections....
If you go to the blog section there are loads of articles includes the old (and new) 'Fantasysmith's Notebook' that I read in my youth and was a great source of both inspiration and frustration due to not getting many of the miniatures over this side of the pond....
In fact, just looking at the site now makes me remember how much Tom has contributed to the hobby....he's awesome! Here he is via Iron Wind Metals You Tube channel (also worth checking out)....
Tom works mainly in the toy industry nowadays although is rarely able to publicise his work as he has to sign non disclosure agreements.....it is far more lucrative than the hobby and games industry and, as such, the time involved in keeping Thunderbolt Mountain up and running has to be put elsewhere..... Jim Ludwig of Darksword Miniatures spoke to Tom a few weeks back and he confirmed this was the reasoning behind the decision. If you check out Darksword's selection of Tom's sculpts you may become as hooked as I am on them.......especially the Game of Thrones minis of course....not based on the TV series but taken from the books and all authorised by George R.R. Martin...
Best to go and visit the site and pick up these classic sculpts before they become history. It just cost me $120 and I thought I had most!
Tom sculpted a bunch of other bits and pieces whilst he was in the UK in the 80s including some whimsical earrings and badges.......at last count I think I have found 40 different types....
These badges (a small selection, most of which I've never seen catalogued) were only available for a short while.....
Thunderbolt also released a large amount of small vignette pieces that can be found on eBay occasionally. A good source of pics for all the releases is, of course, the Lost Minis WIKI here but, more specifically the vignettes, here.
Some more Thunderbolt Mountain posts here and various Tom Meier posts here.
Incredible version of one release by Dirk Stiller...check out his site here.
Tom also sculpted a bunch of WW2 soldiers in 40mm 'scale' for Fox Industries....a project that has yet to see the light of day unfortunately (Edit, a little bird just informed me that the miniatures are back on track......no more for now).....details from an old 'The Miniatures Page' post here...last blog post was in 2012 from Fox Miniatures.
I finished sculpting the 1/48 WW2 line for Jim Fox about four or five years ago. He hasn't put it in production and I don't know why.
Here is the list of figures.
A-1 Walking, ready M-1 Garand, sprue A
A-2 Standing, port arms M-1 Garand, sprue A
A-3 Walking, port arms, M-I Garand, sprue A
A-4 Standing, firing, M-1 Garand, sprue A
A-5 Running M-1 sprue A
A-6 Running M-1 sprue J
A-7 Walking, ready, BAR sprue A
A-8 Running, port arms, M-1 Garand, Colt 1911 pistol, sprue A
A-9 Walking, ready, Thompson SMG, Colt 1911 pistol, sprue A
A-12 Walking shouldered.30 cal Machine gun sprue M
A-13 Walking shouldered, M-1 carbine MG tripod, sprue I
A-14 Walking MG ammo sprue N
A-15 Walking, shouldered, Bazooka, M-1 Garand, sprue H
A-16 Walking Bazooka Ammo sprue L
A-17 – A-20 Not assigned
A-21 Kneeling, firing, M-1 Garand, sprue A
A-22 Kneeling, port arms, M-1 Garand, sprue A
A-23 Kneeling, firing, M-1 Garand, sprue A
A-24 Kneeling, port arms,M-1 Garand sprue A
A-25 Prone, firing, M-1 Garand, sprue A
A-26 Prone, loading, M-1 Garand, sprue A
A-27 Prone, firing, BAR, sprue A
A-28 Prone, firing, M-1 Garand, Colt 1911 pistol, sprue A
A-29 Kneeling, ready, Thompson SMG, Colt 1911 pistol, sprue A
A-30 Kneeling, port arms, M-1 carbine folding stock, Colt 1911 pistol, sprue C
A-31 Kneeling radio sprue K
A-32 Prone, firing, .30 cal Machine gun, sprue F
A-33 Prone, loading sprue O
A-34 – Not assigned
A-35 Kneeling, firing, Bazooka, sprue E
A-36 Kneeling, loading, Bazooka ammo sprue D
A-50 American Army sergant Thompson SMG
Germans are 'D' rather than 'G' because it's easier to scribe and read on the base.
D-1 Standing, firing, G 43 semi-auto, sprue A
D-2 Running, port arms, G 98 bolt action rifle, sprue H
D-3 Running, port arms, StG 44 assault rifle, sprue I
D-4 Running, port arms, StG 44 assault rifle, sprue G
D-5 Standing, port arms, StG 44 assault rifle, sprue E
D-6 Walking, port arms, G-98, sprue N
D-7 Running, port arms, StG 44 assault rifle, sprue D
D-8 Running, port arms, StG 44 assault rifle, sprue J
D-9 Running, loading, MP44 machine pistol, sprue M
D-10 Walking, ready, MP44 machine pistol, sprue B
D-11 Walking, port arms, G 98 bolt action rifle with scope, sprue F
D-12 Walking, carrying MG sprue W + W1
D-13 Walking, carrying ammo sprue R + R1
D-14 – Running, port arms, StG 44 assault rifle, sprue A
D-15 Walking, carrying Panzershrek, sprue T
D-16 Walking, carrying Panzershrek ammo, sprue U
D-17 – D-20 Not assigned
D-21 Kneeling, firing, G 43 semi-auto, sprue A
D-22 Kneeling, firing, G 98 bolt action rifle, sprue A
D-23 Kneeling, port arms, StG 44 assault rifle, sprue C
D-24 Kneeling StG 44 assault rifle, sprue A
D-25 Prone, firing, StG 44 assault rifle, sprue A
D-26 Prone G-98 sprue P
D-27 Prone StG 44 assault rifle, sprue A
D-28 Prone StG 44 assault rifle, sprue A
D-29 Kneeling MP44 machine pistol, sprue X
D-30 Kneeling MP44 machine pistol, sprue Y
D-31 Kneeling, firing, G 98 bolt action rifle with scope, sprue A
D-32 Prone, firing, machine gun, sprue K + K1
D-33 Prone, loading, macine gun, sprue Q + Q1
D-34 Kneeling, firing, Panzerfaust, sprue L
D-35 Kneeling, firing Panzershrek, sprue V
D-36 Kneeling, loading Panzershrek, sprue S
The only miniature hobby work I've done in the last decade or so has been for Jim Ludwig at Dark Sword and a few 15mm figures for Khurasan.
There are many reasons for this but the key one is probably economic. Sculpting miniatures, like crime, just doesn't pay. In 1980 I was paid $300 USD for a relatively simple true 25mm figure, according to an online inflation calculator that's $862 USD in 2014 currency. For the same figure today I would expect to get about $400 USD so in real terms the pay has halved. So while the money was great in 1980 now it's only somewhat better than working at 7/11 when you factor in work hours, self-employment tax and lack of benefits.
I have done several more 54mm nativity figures, shepherds, sheep and an angel but I haven't put them in a mold. Sculpting is free (for me obviously) but molds are an expense. I intend to work on the project for the rest of this year but I probably won't make molds until I have everything but the wise men done. The stable animals are proving difficult. The style is based on Albrecht Durer's woodcuts and it's hard to get right. I'm also going to make a micro version in HO(about 20mm).
