2023 ~ Gettysburg Toy Soldier Show Review, The New Bucyrus Toy Soldier Show September 10th. Plus, the Chicagoland Toy Soldier and some updates.

September 3, 2023September 3, 2023 / Warhorse Miniatures / 3 Comments

I hope everyone enjoyed the summer. We ended it by being in Gettysburg last weekend.

One of Steve Pyle’s displays for the Gettysburg Toy Soldier Show.

We attended the second show in Gettysburg last Sunday. The crowd was lighter than the first one this year. But it was nice to see everyone. There were more collector’s selling things from their collections. Good deals were to be found. I was not really looking to make any major purchases, but I did…

Besides Steve Pyle’s creations, there were other collectors with their own painted figures.

There were different types of old painted metal toy soldiers. I have a few of the old painted metal Indians in my collection. But I really do not know too much the old metal miniatures.

There were some modern painted toy soldiers for sale also. One collector had a bunch of the John Jenkins figures for sale. With and without boxes.

There was a lot of boxes of loose toy soldiers available to pick through. Mainly plastic toy soldiers, but there were metal ones too.

One of the great things about the shows is seeing things that you rarely see or items on your wish list. You can also find them at good or fair price.

Joseph Saine had a bunch of the Barzso Playsets with him. I purchased one from him towards the end of the show. Besides that he had a lot of antique toys. You can check out his website over here, https://www.josephsaine.com/.

Here are a couple of pictures before the show started.

Collector Steve Pyle likes to paint and modify toy soldiers for the displays he creates. He makes a lot of the terrain pieces too. Steve was telling me that he is related to artist & author Howard Pyle.

There were bags of vintage Marx & original Barzso figures at good prices. Plus, some loose figures to pick through.

Here are some more of the old painted metal soldiers.

And more pictures of vintage plastic.

We end with my table, here are some pictures of my Warhorse Miniatures and some of the Russian made toy soldiers. We will now talk about some of the things I got at the show.

Here are some plastic Airfix WWII American and British toy soldiers that I picked up. I have a bunch of these that I have picked up over the years. There was one French Marx soldier painted in grey. They are 1/32 in scale. I purchased this lot for $10. The plastic WWII Airfix figures are some of my favorite toy soldiers in my collection.

I got some more Barzso Redcoats. Here is one compared to one of my Colonial Longhunters.

I picked up these two Marx Teepee. Here is one of the new Native figures I am working on.

I scratched another item off my wish list to join my collection. I purchased this Ron Barzso Daniel Boone Playset for $450. I will take some pictures of everything one day.

Next weekend We will be setting up as a vendor at the 1st New Bucyrus Toy Soldier Show. It takes place on Sunday September 10th, 2023. Show is 10am to 3pm. Crawford County Fairgrounds, 610 Whetstone St, Bucyrus, Ohio 44820. Inside the Fairgrounds Youth Building. Early Admission at 9AM $5, KIDS FREE w/ adult. There will be dealers from over 5 different states with a variety of toy soldiers, vintage toys and collectibles.

September 24th is the biggest toy soldier show in the world! Over 100 dealers from the USA, Canada, Belgium, France and the UK.

The show is at the Schaumburg Marriott, 50 N Martingale Rd Schaumburg, IL 60173. September 24, 2023 10AM-3PM. Admission $10.00, Kids 12 and under Free. Plus 3 days of room trading leading up to the show. Just walk right in the hotel and browse through peoples sleeping rooms and buy, trade and socialize. Free. Contact: Matt Murphy – Hobby Bunker, Inc. www.chicagotoysoldiershow.com matt@hobbybunker.com Ph. 781 321-8855.

Here is the latest update from BMC. They have a lot of exciting news. A lot of Marx & CTS recasts are coming later this year. You can read more about this over here, BMC Toys Production Roundup September 2023.

I will have some updates and review of the Bucyrus Toy Show in my next post. That is it for now, thank you for reading.

The Latest News!! 05/08/2023 ~ MFCA 2023 Show Review Part 1, and some Hobby News.

May 8, 2023May 9, 2023 / Warhorse Miniatures / 1 Comment

The past Friday & Saturday was the MFCA Annual Show & Mart. The exhibition is for painters, modelers and collectors of Toy Soldiers of all skill levels and interests.

The Marketplace also attracts hobby vendors from throughout the United States. Vendors providing everything from miniature figure kits, plastic and wood models, books, Toy Soldiers, Militaria, Art, and connoisseur figures.

This was a different type of show than we usually do. Most of the shows we have setup as a vendor have been traditional toy soldier shows. Since Warhorse Miniatures is can be collected as a toy soldier or a model to be painted for a diorama, we decided to check out this show. I have been to this show in the past, about 7 years ago. It is a good show for painted metal toy soldiers, resin miniatures, paints, historical books, and you can even find some plastic toy soldiers.

The show took place over two days. Here are some pictures from the first day. It was hard for me to get around the room. It seemed like every time I left, I had to return to my table to answer some questions. The first day Paul Stadinger stopped by to say hello and he spent some time with us behind the table.

I think this vendor was AC Models. He had resin figures and resin accessories.

Another Vendor that I saw had some old painted metal toy soldiers. Joe Wallis was the name I saw. He is an author of books about Britains toy soldiers. Here is a website about that, http://leadsoldierbooks.com/index.html.

The next vendor was Minutemen Toy Soldiers. George was busy setting up a bunch of the painted metal toy soldiers from brands such as King & Country, First Legion, J.J. Designs, W. Britian and others. You can check his website over here, http://www.mmtoysoldiers.com/.

Paul Amory had a huge selection of the finely detailed painted miniatures for sale. Works of art.

Here are some pictures of the vendor that was across from us.

Here are some pictures of the exhibit from the Artist and our friend, Steve Pyle. He does some amazing work.

Fast Eddie had large selection of mainly Osprey books.

Here are some random pictures from the show.

Here are some pictures of different exhibits from various artists. I was not able to take pictures of everything. The room was packed when I was trying to take some pictures.

Winged Hussar Publishing had a table setup too. I purchased some books from him. You can check them out over here, https://www.wingedhussarpublishing.com/.

We will end the first part of the review here with my table. We had a nice selection of the Warhorse Miniatures resin miniatures. When first opened we had a collector come straight to our table and request a Krampus figurine. We also had a nice selection of the LOD/Barzso resin miniatures, foam houses and plastic toy soldiers. I setup a small display of the Saxons. Mainly the village pieces. We had the Blacksmith shop, Potter shop and the Pig Farm setup with some of the Saxon prototype houses. It was a slow burn for most of the day, but we were able to sell some things that I had for a while now. It was fun to talk to new & old friends.

Here are a few of the different things that I had picked up at Gettysburg a couple of weeks ago. Most of it is Barzso. The Blacksmith shop, some French Tents, New Orleans character figures, a split rail fence and a teepee. The mounted British in the last few pictures are Replicants I think.

The second part of the review will be this weekend. Well, that is it for now. I will be in Annandale, Virginia on June 3rd. Then returning to Gettysburg on August 27th. Thank you for reading.

The Latest News!!! 02/21/2022 ~ Warhorse Miniatures Compagnies Franches de la Marine set, Vintage Britain Task Force Set, and more updates.

February 21, 2022 / Warhorse Miniatures / 7 Comments

In today’s post we will talk about some new sets that I am releasing soon. One is not a Medieval set, but it is based on the French & Indian War. I have a few more updates and some hobby news. Before that I found a vintage playset yesterday. So, this is where we will begin.

I stumbled across this Britain Task Force Playset yesterday. I don’t have to many Britain Deetail figures in my collection. Just a few WWII figures. But for less than $30 I couldn’t pass on this. I never saw this playset before. The terrain base is awesome. There are 6 figures and some accessories. The spring-loaded mines are a nice touch. The set has a Nato type theme to it. I will add some modern Britain figures over time to my collection now.

**Toy Soldier Collector & Historical Figures Magazine #103**

There is an article about Warhorse Miniatures in the Toy Soldier Collector & Historical Figures magazine #103. In the article Jim Clouse discusses my 1st set and my company. Steve Pyle & Scott Walter helped with taking some pictures.

Prikaz, Warhorse Miniatures & Conte

Talking about Steve Pyle, he sent me some pictures of my figures that he had painted. The first set of pictures is one of the Armed Saxon Peasants. The second set is a prototype of some Vikings with a deer.

**Two of the latest sets I am working on.**

In the coming weeks I will have some new set ready for production. The Saxon Hare Hunter set is $25, and the Saxon Wood Cutter set is $17. There are 4 different Wattle Fence sets. A round fence section with the gate open or closed. Then a straight fence section with the gate open or closed. I will have prices for the fence sets once the pre-orders start.

Here are some pictures of Prototypes. I hope to have the Viking Raider camp finished sometime next month. It will be sold in a few different sets. There will be a Raider figure set, a tent set, the Deer set with campfire and then the supply tent with some supplies. Some things can change.

**Another Viking prototype with some Conte Saxons.**

Here are some pictures of LOD/Barzso Merrymen figures in green with my Vikings & Saxons. They look good with the figures and accessories.

The **Compagnies Franches de la Marine** was the main organization for the defense of New France from 1683 to 1755. In 1683, the Naval Department of France began using the Compagnies to defend the fur trade and the local civilians.

The Compagnies Franches de la Marine will start production in March. The scale of the figures with be the same as Barzso figures or 54mm. The color will be in grey. The 1st set will be of 7 figures in 7 different poses. A second set will be released soon after the 1st set. It will be a firing line of 7 figures in 3 different poses.

That is it for now. More updates to come next month. Thank you for reading.

Columbus Ohio Toy Soldier Show 2021 Review Part 2 & Warhorse Miniatures Update

October 21, 2021October 21, 2021 / Warhorse Miniatures / Leave a comment

Here is the second part of the review. If you didn’t read the first part you can click the link over here, Columbus Ohio Toy Soldier Show 2021 Review Part 1.

If I drive more than 4 hours to attend a show I like to stay overnight a day or two. We try to make it an extended weekend getaway. We might visit some local attraction. Usually we check out the local antique malls. The Columbus show was under 8 hours. Me and Carolyn got up early on Friday. We hit a few antique places along the way and then checked in the hotel. Then we went a antique mall. Here are some of the things we saw.

The next day we got up and headed to the History Store in Chillicothe we stopped at the Buckeye Games Flea Market. It was a nice place full of collectibles. If you are in the area check it out, https://buckeyegamesfleamarket.com/.

We drove about an hour & a half to visit the History Store. I had heard some good things about the store. My main interest with collecting is history. The miniatures are just an extension of that. When we got to the store it is truly an impressive sight just from the outside. They have a really nice window display. You can check out there website for more information, https://www.thehistorystore.net/.

The store is full of painted metal figures from different brands. The main focus is W. Britain miniatures. Which is the main part of my metal painted figures. Besides the metal figures there was books, framed prints, some plastic & resin figures and hobby paint.

The owner of the store is Nathan Baer. I talked to him and another collector about my new range of Medieval figures. I showed them some of the prototypes. Nathan works for W. Britain too. They had a preview of some of the newest figures that have not be released yet. There are two new Viking figures that I really liked. I can’t wait to visit again.

Here are some of the stuff I had picked up at the different places I visited and the show itself. The Barzso cabin I actually got as a gift last year and forgot to take it out of the storage container full of foam products.

I found two vintage Airfix boxes of British Grenaiers in HO scale for about $5 a piece.

I found these original Barzso bagged sets $25 a piece.

I found this vintage Borax Twenty Mule Team for about $18. They are around 40mm.

I picked up two Russian painted metal figures for $36 a piece. Here are some other painted figures that I have.

I picked this W. Britain Saxon Archer for less than $40.

The last item I picked up was at the show. This is a Medieval Church made by Atherton Scenics. The church is really impressive. It was worth the whole trip to pick it up. You have come to the shows to see the price on this. I got a good deal 🙂

We have some updates on what is going on with Warhorse Miniatures. Here is a test print of the second design of an Anglo Saxon house we are working on. We continue to test some things out and are designing new things also. Some of our earlier creations have been pushed back to the end of the year or early next year. We are going to focus on figure sets for now.

We are designing seven new figures for our Armed Peasant set. The set is made up of Thralls, Bondsmen and Free Peasants.

This Thrall is fighting with a sickle and an deer antler that has been carved into a knife. Thrall were not free-folk and lacked all of their rights as a result; they were slaves. It was a state a person entered into through misadventure in most cases. The most common reason would be through being captured in war.

Here is another Thrall. He is armed with a wooden hammer.

I picture this Thrall as an Irish Warrior that was captured in battle and traded as a Thrall by the Danes. He is trying to win back his freedom by saving as much as possible and through acts of bravery. He is fighting with a wood club and a crude wood shield.

Here is the “Pig Guy” reposed. He is a free peasant and is renting land. He has the right to be armed. Which is why he is fighting with a spear.

Here is another Thrall. She is using a wood pitchfork to defend herself.

Here is the Wife of the “Pig Guy” She has been trained to use a bow.

Here is a Bondsman. He is a free man that has sold his service to another Saxon for a fixed term agreed in bond. He fights with a flail that was used to thresh the grains.

I think the next show I will be at is the Midwest Toy Soldier Show next year. I am going to be concentrating on developing the Warhorse Miniature product line until then. I hope to have a few more figure sets ready by December. Maybe the Craftsmen shops will be available by December too. The Viking Raider set has been pushed back. I am going to change a few things and rebrand the set to have two different versions. It will be the Raider or Trader set. You will choose which one you want. They will share some of the same figures and accessories. But will have their own unique features too. The delays are to insure that you get a quality product. It will be worth the wait!! That is it for now. Thank you for reading.

Columbus Ohio Toy Soldier Show 2021 Review Part 1

October 19, 2021March 30, 2022 / Warhorse Miniatures / 7 Comments

Sunday was the 2021 Columbus Toy Soldier Show. The vendors at the show were shouting “Covid, Give me back my Collectors….” Besides the low crowd it was actually not a bad show. There were plenty of vintage playsets, Barzso Playsets, painted metal toy soldiers and plastic figures galore. Plus my new resin miniatures.

I found a few vintage Airfix Toy Soldiers, Original Barzso bagged figure sets at original prices!!, W. Britain Saxons, Painted Russian metal Viking figures and an Atherton Medieval Church. The second part of the review will be on what I found over the weekend & some of the places where we went. Plus some updates about Warhorse Miniatures.

Paul Amody had a bunch of his Russian made metal miniatures with him. The painting is outstanding.

John Atherton & Shane Leonard brought plenty of their foam products. They are great to add to playsets or for display pieces.

Some various pictures from an unknown vendor.

Ted Deddens of W. Britain had bunch of painted metal figures. I re-joined the Collectors Club again. It is worth the price. You can take a look over here, https://www.wbritain.com/collectors-club.

Fellow collector Scott Campbell showed me some of his Barzso figures that he had painted. I always like to talk to fellow collectors to see what they are working on. I sometimes learn some tips or am able to share my own.

Rick Eber had about half of Barzso Playsets available at the show yesterday. There were about 15 total playsets spread out with different vendors. Rick also had plenty of vintage Marx plastic toy soldiers.

John Hamilton had some vintage plastic toy soldiers and other vintage toys.

Here are some more pictures of various vendors.

Robert Horning had his hand crafted & hand painted figures with him. He produces a bunch of different themes from Aliens, Ancients, WWII and even Golf. Plus much more.

Rick Keller had plenty of vintage plastic toys soldiers. Mostly Marx. He had loose figures, bagged sets and some playsets.

Larry Lovely had some loose figures to rummage through. He also had a Barzso Treasure Island playset and some foam pieces.

Mike Lonigro had a mixture of Tin Litho buildings, plastic figures and some playsets.

Todd Nace also had some playsets and storage containers full of vintage plastic toy soldiers. He also had a customized Barzso kneelboat. I think it was the Lewis & Clark boat.

Here was the vendor next to Rick Eber. I didn’t catch his name. He had some vintage figures and other toys.

Rod Chapman had a bunch of antique painted metal dimestore toy soldiers & other antique toys. His Grandson was very kind to help us pack up after the show.

Steve Connell had a combination of different toys. Some painted metal figures and plastic toy soldiers.

Here are some more various pictures of vintage toy soldiers.

I did enjoy the show. I sold the Duke’s Tower to a lucky collector at a good price. It was a little below retail cost. I was surprised that more collectors didn’t come out. They missed out on a lot of good stuff. Most of the vendors will now get ready for next year. Most of us keep our products off the internet. We save them for the shows. I will be at more shows next year.

I would like to thank all the collectors that have shown interest in my work in creating a 11th Century early Medieval world. Thank you for the feedback also. It helps me with the further development of things to come.

In the next part of the review I will have some updates about Warhorse Miniatures. That is it for now. Thank you for reading.

The Latest News!! 07/07/2021. Conte Romans & LOD Barzso American Rangers Review. Plus Some Publius Vikings.

July 7, 2021 / Warhorse Miniatures / 2 Comments

Welcome back for another post about toys soldiers. I hope all is well with everyone. As usual I have been real busy with work, eBay and all of my hobbies. No rest for the wicked… Today we will take a look at Conte’s new Romans, LOD Barzso American Rangers, some Publius Vikings.

I recently purchased some of Conte’s new Romans. They come in 3 different colors of Red, Silver & Gold. The are 1/32 in scale or about 57mm if they were standing tall. Each bag has 16 figures. They are packed nicely. Inside the plastic bag the figures are broken down in separate bags. Plus some have plastic supports.

Some of the figures can be customized with different arms. This way you can have some extra poses. Most of the Romans are armed with a Pilum or a Gladius. I am glad that Richard was able to produce these plastic toy soldiers. Because of the cost we see less plastic injected figures being made. I don’t have too many Ancient themed toy soldiers. The ones that I do have are Barbarians or Celtic Warriors. Now I have some Romans to fight them. We should see some future Roman sets down the line.

Right now you can order from the Conte website, 3 sets for $99 with free shipping. Here is the website, https://contecostore.myshopify.com/.

When I was collecting Barzso Playset products one of the sets that I wish I had purchased was the American Rangers. It is a hard set to find at a reasonable price in the secondary market. Now I don’t have to worry about that because Ken at LOD Toys Soldiers has reissued them again. They are cast from the original molds and in the original lime green color or close to it. This is a great set. They are a little bigger than the earlier Colonial sets but blend well with them.

Renamed “Roger’s Rangers 3” this set was originally released in 2010 for the Bushy Run playset. Seven figures in seven poses.

I just checked the link for these figures and noticed that they are now sold out!!! I guess you will have to keep an eye out to see if the get restocked again. Here is the link for the Rangers, https://lodtoysoldiers.com/collections/barzso-figure-sets-resin/products/rogers-rangers-set-3-lod43.

A few months ago I got these Publius Vikings. As usual they are super detailed. They are about 58mm in height not counting the base. The second Viking in the above picture is a little bigger than the others.

The cost of these figures is between $10 to $25 and can be found on eBay. They are cast in a rubbery type of resin.

These figures fit nicely with a bunch of different brands.

I will have some news in a few weeks about the things I am working on. These will be 3D printed. We are testing some new figures and some other things. Thank you for reading. That is it for now.

The Latest News!! Gulliver Wild West Toy Solder Review, Gettysburg Toy Soldier Show, New LOD Medieval figure colors and Hobby News!! 04/10/2021

April 10, 2021April 11, 2021 / Warhorse Miniatures / 1 Comment

Sunday April 18th is almost here. The Gettysburg Toy Soldier Show is about a week away. This will be the 1st major toy soldier show in over a year on the East coast. Gettysburg is a perfect place for a show. It has history and charm. There are plenty of same shops in the town also. A great place to get away for a weekend or a week. For more information about the show look at these two links. The first is from my page, The Gettysburg Toy Soldier Show 2021. The second link is from the promoters, http://www.mwtoysoldier.com/.

In my last post I wrote about the Gulliver Toy Soldiers. The figures are copies of Atlantic Toy Soldiers. I ordered the Cowboy Camp Playset because it had a mixture of Cowboys & Indians. Here is the link from the eBay seller called Andre, https://www.ebay.com/itm/Fort-Apache-Vintage-Old-West-Cowboys-Indians-Action-Figure-Cowboy-Camp-Playset/184705885173.

I was surprised on the size of the box and playset. The set includes 24 figures, 3 horses, 3 teepees, 2 trees, 1 wagon, and some camp accessories. Here are some pictures of the accessories for the set. Most of the accessories are original products that were made by Gulliver.