I hope everyone has been enjoying the summer so far. I have been busy working, creating sets for orders and testing things out. I had some problems with a couple of my machines which has caused some delays with things. But I hope to straighten those things out shortly.I have been testing new designs and resin mixtures. I will touch on that later in the post.
Later this month we will be returning to Gettysburg for the 2nd Toy Soldier Show this year hosted by the Midwest Toy Soldier Group. I will be selling my resin Warhorse Miniatures, LOD/Barzso Toy Soldiers and have some storage containers of loose plastic toy soldiers. I am starting to clear out my collections of stuff that I have gathered over the years. For more information about the show, click here https://warhorseminiatures.com/gettysburg-toy-soldier-show/.
A few weeks later we will be setting up as a vendor at the 1st New Bucyrus Toy Soldier Show. It takes place on 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.
If you are interested in setting up for this show, some tables might still be available. RESERVE TABLES: $40. Call LARRY LOVELY (419) 468-7719for more information.
I have been testing out different resins on some new designs of the British Redcoats that I have been working on. I have been getting different shades of red. It still is a work in progress.
Besides the Red color, I have been testing a Biege color too. This is also a work in progress. These resin mixtures can change quickly because the colors are sometimes different with each batch that I get. Also, there are times where some of the resins that I use are unavailable. The most important part of the resin mixture is the durability for me. I try my best to get close to colors that some collectors want. But at the end of the day, I will use a quality resin over a lesser quality resin because of the color.
I am working on some Firing Line Sets and Marching Sets for both the Regiments of Foot & Grenadiers. The designs for the Officers can be a little different. I am still testing out a few different versions.
Last but not least, the designing of other figures & props continues at different stages. Things have slowed down the past couple of months because of resin shortages and maintenace of the machines. I was testing the British the past month and the Canadians. But not the other things pictured above. So, if you are interested in what I am working on, then stop by one of the shows. I usually have prototypes for sale there.I should have some sets of the British Firing Line figures, Canadians and Wigwams with me at the Gettysburg Show and New Bucyrus Show too. The Officer figure will be sold separately for now.
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.
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.
Yesterday was the 15th Annual Gettysburg Toy Soldier Show. It was a really good show for us, sales were up. It was fun to talk to the fellow collectors and other vendors. The weather was nice, and a good crowd attended. Paul Stadinger was happy with his finds. There was a nice selection of different things. Something for everyone. I also found a few things; one was a holy grail item for me.We will start the review now. You can click on most pictures to enlarge them.
There was a nice selection of vintage Airfix and other brands with the dealer to the left of me. His prices were good.
Paul Amory was at the show with his beautiful paint metal miniatures. He will be at the MFCA Show on May 4th & 5th. I will be at this show too.
If you like Britain Detail figures or Swoppets, there was a collector that had a bunch of those.
Scott Canady had some nice Vintage Marx and foam pieces.
Steve Connell had a nice selection of many different things. From vintage Marx to modern painted metal. I crumbled under pressure when I saw his selection of vintage Barzso.
Fast Eddie had a bunch of tables setup with all kinds of different types of toy soldiers. His next show is on Saturday June 3rd in Annadale, Virginia. I will be setup at that show too.
The reasons we go to the shows is find rare items or some deals. Every show is different. You never know what you will find.
Some of the vendors are very talented. This one had some nicely painted figurines.
Matt from Hobby Bunker had a lot of new painted metal figure sets and some plastic for the show. He will be at the MFCA 2023 Show too.
Bob Hornung is also very talented with his handmade and painted creations.
There was plenty of antique & vintage painted metal figures.
This year there was a vendor with a lot of models.
Nathan Fogt is another very talented creation of custom toys.
There were a number of different vendors with different brands of new or recently made painted metal toy soldiers.
Here are some random pictures that I took.
Rick Eber had a ton of nice vintage plastic figures and playsets. Mainly Marx. He had some Conte Vikings and the Character figures from the Battle of Stamford Bridge set.
Some pictures of the show itself.
Thomas Hiller brought a lot of his collection to sell. He did a lot of toy soldier converting and then painting them. I was lucky enough to purchase his Conte Medieval Cog. I should have purchased some of his miniatures now that I took a closer look at them while editing these pictures.
If you like to go through plastic tubs of plastic toy soldiers, there was plenty of them.
There was a lot of vintage playset and bags of toy soldiers.
And lastly, we come to my table. As usual I had my resin Warhorse Miniatures, LOD/Barzso resin toy soldiers, some foam items and a few Russian brands of toy soldiers. I set up a little display to show off the British Grenadiers that I am working on. I had some sample figures for sale. I should have them finalized sometime next month. I also had my new Confederate Marching Infantry. I will be at the MFCA 2023 Show on May 4th & 5th.
Here are a few of the toy soldiers and accessories that I purchased. I wasn’t expecting to be getting that much. I have not been really looking of anything lately. But once in a while it finds me, lol. Steve Conell had a bunch of vintage Barszo products with him.
Up until yesterday this was what I had seen in regard to the Conte Medieval Cog. It was almost like a myth. About 7 or 8 years ago I saw the box at a show. It was really expensive, but I was still tempted. So, when I saw it yesterday, I was hesitant in checking it out. I really have not purchased that much the past few years. I have been more focused in making things. But I am still a collector. I had expected that someone would have picked it up before I got a chance to get over there. I think it was within the first hour of the show that talked to Thomas Hiller about the ship. He had a price that I was comfortable with, and we made the deal.
After I had purchased the shipThomas packed it up. I did not expect that the box would be that big. Thomas still had the original box. Unless I sold all the foam products, I had with me I would not have any room in my car. Luckily for me Paul Stadinger was at the show. He lives about a half hour away from me. So, he took the ship and I picked it up today.
That is it for the review of the show. Usually, I would say until next year I be back for the Gettysburg Show. But this year there is another. Steve Connell is having a second show on Sunday, August 27th. The same place, 10am to 3pm. Admission is $7.00 for adults. There will be more information coming out, http://www.mwtoysoldier.com/Shows.html.
“We are pleased and excited to announce that our 80th Annual Show and Mart, an event dedicated to the hobby of collecting miniature figures, returns this year on Friday and Saturday, May 5th and 6th, 2023, at the Radisson Hotel-Philadelphia Northeast, 2400 Old Lincoln Highway, Trevose, Pennsylvania. This is our sixth year at the Radisson-Philadelphia Northeast, and we look forward to returning to this great venue. Manufacturers, designers, artists, dealers of connoisseur figures, old and new toy soldiers, model vehicles, and other related items are invited to exhibit. We also invite dealers of uniforms and costume prints, books, post cards, military histories, and modeling supplies that enhance collecting or displaying miniatures.” ~ MFCA
On May 5th & 6th, respectfully Friday & Saturday I will be setup selling my resin Warhorse Miniatures at the 80th MFCA Show & Mart.
May 5th and 6th Friday – 12:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. Saturday – 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Radisson Hotel Philadelphia East 2400 Old Lincoln Highway, Trevose, PA 19053 267-520-6692
Here is a list of the other vendors:
Artist Preservation Group Inc Armand Bayardi Birch Tree Enterprises Black Cat Models BMC Champion Gaming Dan Jones DVH Designs Arthur Etchells Hobby Bunker Bob Huryk James Molenaro Keller Enterprises Last Cavalry Little Tin Soldier Michael Jones Minutemen Toy Soldiers Model Cellar NCMSS Old Toy Soldier Oral History Audio Books Paul Amody Relic Rack Richard DiBenedetto Sabot miniatures Scale 75 The History Shop Fred Unger Warhorse Miniatures Winged Hussar Publishing
The next show I will be attending after the MFCA show is on June 3rd. The “Heart of the South” show in Annandale, Virginia.
Two more weeks to go until the Gettysburg Toy Soldier Show. I will setup as a vendor again. Besides all of my Warhorse resin miniatures, I will also be selling the LOD/Barzso resin toy soldiers.The town of Gettysburg makes a nice weekend getaway. There is so much history to explore. Plus, all the shops to check out too.