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!! 06/06/2021. Warhansa English Merrymen and Publius Mounted American Native Review.

June 6, 2021June 6, 2021 / Warhorse Miniatures / Leave a comment

Today we remember the Brave American, British, Canadian & other allied Soldiers that gave their lives when they stormed the beaches of Normandy to fight the forces of Germany.

The Battle of Normandy, which lasted from June 1944 to August 1944, resulted in the Allied liberation of Western Europe from Nazi Germany’s control. Codenamed Operation Overlord, the battle began on June 6, 1944, also known as D-Day, when some 156,000 American, British and Canadian forces landed on five beaches along a 50-mile stretch of the heavily fortified coast of France’s Normandy region. The invasion was one of the largest amphibious military assaults in history and required extensive planning. Prior to D-Day, the Allies conducted a large-scale deception campaign designed to mislead the Germans about the intended invasion target. By late August 1944, all of northern France had been liberated, and by the following spring the Allies had defeated the Germans. The Normandy landings have been called the beginning of the end of war in Europe.

Today I am doing a quick post about some new products from Warhansa and then a figure from Publius. The first Warhansa set is called “Friends of Robin Hood”. There are 6 figures included. It looks like we get Little John, Friar Tuck, a Merry man with a pitchfork, Will Scarlet, a Jester and Maid Mirian.

The figures look really sharp. List as 1/32 in scale. They are nice size and will blend very well with Conte & Barzso medieval figures. The poses are good too. Weapons are to scale. I give them an A. The only figure I don’t need is the Jester. But he has his use in a court some where…

The other set is called “Forest Camp”. It has a camp fire and an animal spit roasting above it. Plus some barrels and chest. Some much needed accessories that we need a ton more for displays.

These items can be used with a lot of other brands as well. You can visit the Warhansa website over here to see more, http://warhansa.com/katalog.html?new=1&start=16.

Here is a new figure by Publius. He is a mounted Native American or a Plains Indian on a horse. This figure is very nice. Again 1/32 in scale. He is a little bigger than the TSSD figures. But will make a nice leader for you figures.

I found these trees in a train hobby shop last month. I purchase about all that they had. Not bad for about $3.00 a piece.

I am still working on some new figures. We are testing different designs and resins. I hope to be able to share something new in a few weeks. That is it for now. Thank you for reading.

An Interview with Austin Beidelschies of Austin Miniatures.

February 17, 2019February 17, 2019 / Warhorse Miniatures / 1 Comment

In 2013 Austin Miniatures started production of plastic toys soldiers plus foam buildings, terrain bases and accessories. Their figures can be compared to Conte figures in scale and detail. The first figure set made was of cowboys. They followed later with a set of Marines for the Pacific Theater.

Marines

I noticed their figures about the time I started collecting again after about a 10 year absence. I had picked up a set of the WWII Marines a couple of years ago. They have nice details and mix well with other brands.

Recently I was able to chat with Austin Beidelschies. Austin is the son of Dan Beidelschies. Together they are now expanding the product line of Austin Miniatures. He was able to take some time to answer a few questions.

Warhorse Miniatures: Hi Austin. My first question is; can you tell us about yourself and how did Austin Miniatures get started?

Austin: My name is Austin Beidelschies, I am 19 years old and I am the concept artist and painter for Austin Miniatures. My dad (Dan Beidelschies) started up Austin Miniatures in 2013 and named the company after me in hopes that I would eventually take over the business. Which I am most definitely going to do. The passion for toy soldiers started with my dad when his mom bought him a Marx Battleground Playset when he was just 8 years old. Like some of us he “grew up” and got rid of his toy soldiers. He still regrets doing it to this day. It wasn’t until his late twenties that he reconnected with toy soldiers again. He saw Conte’s Airborne figures on the internet and was so amazed at how detailed they were. So then I got to grow up with all these great WW2 figures from his collection. He would make these giant dioramas that went from the kitchen to the end of our living room. Playing with Conte’s WW2 figures is how my passion for toy soldiers began. I was around 14 years old when we released our western figures. Since I have grown I have been becoming increasingly more involved into Austin Miniatures. Just last year I created some concept sketches of a new set of WW2 US marines and now they are in the hands of our sculptor who is making a new set of US Marines. These will be the first Figures coming from Austin Miniatures that I have designed.

Terrain

Warhorse Miniatures: I recently picked up some of your cowboys the details are really nice. Why did you start here as your first set of figures?

Austin: We decided to do cowboys as our first set because we love the idea of the wild west. This era of American history happened very fast but so many awesome characters and battles have came from the wild west era. My dad grew up watching many western movies. It just seemed right to make cowboys for our first set.

Warhorse Miniatures: I have seen your prototypes of the WWII Japanese Infantry for a few years now and heard you were supposed to produce that set years ago. Can you tell us more about this?

Austin: We have been teasing you with the Japanese figures for a very long time. The simple answer as to why you don’t have them yet is life. We are not a multi million dollar corporation like Hasbro or Mattel, we are just normal everyday Americans. Sometimes life gets in the way of our goals and aspirations. But they are going to be available for purchase this year so we can all look forward to that. Trust me I want to make shooting noises and knock over the Japanese figures just as much as you guys do. We at Austin Miniatures are just as much collectors as we are producers.

Warhorse Miniatures: This year looks like it might be a break out year for you with the announcement of a few news sets to be produced. Can you tell us more about your plans?

Austin: So for 2019 we have 3 new sets planned as well as a pacific theatre playset. We have another set of WW2 US Marines coming after the Japanese. The new Marines are being sculpted as we speak and will include 2 riflemen, an NCO with a Thompson, a Navajo code talker radio man, and a new and improved BAR gunner. Included in the set will also be interchangeable arms and equipment. This will be very useful for the guy who likes to convert their figures. For example; the radio man can swap his radio for a backpack turning him into a standard infantryman. Maybe you want him to have an M1 Garand instead of a carbine, you can do this with our new set. Because of our new system we were also able to include the parts to make a Marine with a Winchester model 97 shotgun which I am very excited about. After the Marines we have more cowboys in the works. So far the new set of cowboys will include a Mexican bandito, “Old Timer”, an Indian scout, and the kneeling rifleman that we have not yet released yet. As for the playset it is going to include everything you need for a battle in the pacific. Marines, Japanese, one of our foam battlefields, BMC amtracs, Pegasus palm trees and some other accessories. If this playset sells well you will definitely see more playsets from us. We have all those awesome western buildings so it only makes sense to do a couple western playsets.

Warhorse Miniatures: Are you planning on releasing the playset this year will you be releasing it for next year?

Austin: We are planning to have the playset ready for sale at this year’s Chicago toy soldier show.

The playset could look something like this? These are pictures from the Austin Miniatures.

Warhorse Miniatures: I collect mainly Dark Age or Medieval figures and early American Colonial figures. I recently started collecting WWII & Western figures. Do you have any plans on ever making Medieval figures or Colonial figures?

Austin: We currently have no plans for medieval or colonial figures. However we are gonna be coming out with a bunch of new stuff in the next couple of years. I will just say that NOTHING is off the table. We are collectors just like you guys, except we can produce figures. So we might see a new movie or read a new book that gets us excited for a certain battle or war. If there is enough demand for something we will definitely consider it. There are many sets that I personally would like to produce. World War two is my favorite time period so I would like to make Waffen SS and US GI’s some day. The big conflict when I was growing up was the war on terror in the Middle East, I have always wanted to make modern marines and insurgents. The possibilities for the future of Austin Miniatures are endless. I believe the future of the toy soldier hobby is very bright. The third “Golden Era” of toy soldiers is coming.

Warhorse Miniatures: Here is my last question. I would like to thank you and your father for taking your time to answer the questions. Is there anything else you would like to say to the collectors?

Austin: Thank you for the interview! The only other thing we would like to say to the collectors is thank you for your continued support to Austin Miniatures and to all the other great producers in the toy soldier community. Keep an eye out for our new products, we will be posting pictures of our new sculpts as we get them.

Besides selling plastic toy soldiers, they also offer painted sets too.

Painted

Here are some comparison pictures below of Austin figures with some other brands out there. Their Pacific Marines are some of the best World War II plastic figures since Conte released his WWII figures.

You can see more at the Austin Miniatures website. They also sell on ebay at https://www.ebay.com/usr/maschefie2005. To get the latest news go to the Austin Miniatures page on Facebook.

If you like to make displays or dioramas, their foam buildings are really nice. Some detachable roofs and/or 2 stories. They also have a few accessories, like a Gallow.

I am excited about the news of the World War II Japanese Infantry and future WWII sets. It was nice to also talk to someone that is young and so passionate about the hobby of Toy Soldiers. It looks like Austin will be taking an active part for a long time. The future does look bright. I hope we do enter another “Golden Age”.

Thank you for reading. That is it for now 🙂

Interview with David & Kim Cook of MicShaun’s Closet, The new owners of TSSD.

January 12, 2019January 12, 2019 / Warhorse Miniatures / 3 Comments

Last year Nick & DeAnna VerSteeg of TSSD announced that they were looking to sell their business. I remember communicating with Nick when he first started selling toy soldiers. TSSD was one of the first companies on the internet that I dealt with. The news that they were no longer going to continue was sad.

The VerSteeg’s had built one the of the most iconic plastic toy soldier companies in recent history. They started off selling toys soldiers over 20 years ago. Then they started producing there own products which included plastic toy soldiers and foam buildings and terrain pieces.

Finally they expanded into developing there own playsets. In 2006 with Barzso Playsets they produced one of TSSD most iconic playsets “Road to Stalingrad”.

There was a couple of months of speculation about who the new owners would be. Then in the beginning of December it was announced that TSSD was sold to David & Kim Cook. They have been selling plastic figures from different companies and other products on eBay under the name of “micshaunscloset2013.”

The news that MicShaun’s Closet were the new owners was good news to me. I had purchased toy soldier sets from them over the past few years with no problems. Most of my online purchases take place on eBay.

I started communicating with the Cooks a few days after the announcement of the sale. After things had settled down they were able to take some time to answer a few questions.

Warhorse Miniatures: Hi David & Kim. Congratulations with purchasing Toy Soldiers of San Diego. I have purchased figure sets from you the past couple of years on eBay. Besides your eBay business, what else can you tell us about yourselves and how did the deal with TSSD get made? I am assuming that you have the rights to the molds too.

MicShaun’s Closet: Currently my wife and I have full time jobs and our Ebay business has been a “side hustle” for many years. I have always dreamed of owning a toy/hobby store and grew up playing with plastic soldiers which were always my favorite toys. When I first heard that TSSD was for sale, I didn’t know if it was a realistic possibility. Not long after, I mentioned the potential sale to Kim. We talked about it and decided, why not us. TSSD figures have been high on my favorites list for a long time. The attraction of TSSD was the amazing 30 plus sets, the colors and the quality of the figures.

We reached out to Nick and DeAnna because we have a long standing business relationship with them. After many phone calls & email conversations, we reached an agreement and made this dream a reality. We would not have been able to accomplish this without the openness and candor of Nick and DeAnna. They shared all the information that we needed to make this decision.

The deal included all TSSD inventory including figure molds and foam molds, and all intellectual property associated with TSSD.

Warhorse Miniatures: I have purchased figure sets from you the past couple of years on eBay. It was always a pleasant experience. Besides eBay are you going to sell your items on a website, Amazon and maybe some other venues?

MicShaun’s Closet: We are continuing to sell on Ebay, and we have opened a Shopify site that will serve as our website, blog and store. We are selling through Facebook and plan to add Amazon to our sales channels in the near future. We will also add Instagram as a sales channel in the coming months.

Warhorse Miniatures: I guess that you are going to spend some time selling off the sets that you acquired with the deal. TSSD made some nice sets over the years. My favorite where the Plains Indians. Most collectors I think would like to know if you planning to recast any of the past sets?

MicShaun’s Closet: We are selling off the inventory that we received and we believe the Plains Indians are a great set. Coincidentally, the Plains Indians Set #13 are completely out of stock and are part of a large re-order that we are about to make to our manufacturer. This re-order will include the sets we currently don’t have in most of the colors that Nick and DeAnna have been selling in the last few years. We recently made a large re-order of the foam pieces and should have most if not all pieces back in stock in the next 4 to 6 weeks. We can’t keep the foam pieces – as fast as we put them on, they sell.

Warhorse Miniatures: Do you have any plans to expand any of the existing themes or start a new theme of figures.

MicShaun’s Closet: We definitely plan on producing new figures. It is our understanding that producing a new set is a lengthy process. Our best guess is that we would come out with a new set or sets in late 2019 or sometime in 2020. We are also considering new foam pieces as well. Theme and category is still to be determined.

Warhorse Miniatures: You said that maybe at the end of the year or next year that you will produce some new figure sets and maybe foam pieces. Do you think that you will expand on one of the current themes that is in your inventory or maybe start a new theme?

MicShaun’s Closet: We are thinking about expanding the themes that have been created by TSSD and we are also considering creating new themes. It all comes down to how well our business succeeds. Mold creation is an expensive endeavor.

We are keeping our options open with regard the to foam pieces.

We have lots of ideas but need to recoup some of the costs from the purchase before we move forward with new figures and foam.

Warhorse Miniatures: Do you plan on still using the TSSD brand in the future on recast and new products or will it be MicShaun’s Cluset?

MicShaun’s Closet: On the recasts we keep TSSD on the header card. On the new products we are going to have our name on the header card.

Warhorse Miniatures: I would like you thank you for taking your time with answering the questions. Is there anything that you would like to tell us?

MicShaun’s Closet: Thanks so much Mike for giving us the opportunity. You have been supportive since day one when we announced that had purchased TSSD. Sales have been fantastic. The toy soldier community has made us feel welcome with kind words and support. To the toy soldier/hobby community, we want you to know that we are a husband/wife, small owner business. We plan on attending toy soldier shows and continuing to expand this amazing business that Nick and DeAnna started. We pride ourselves on excellent customer service and love hearing from each of you. I am in the process of winding down my current business and will be in a position in a few months to make this my full-time career!

I have a feeling that David & Kim will continue the success of TSSD for many years to come. Check out their new website. You can look at different themes or brands of plastic figures. From Ancient Armies of Rome to the Modern Armies of Vietnam. It is very easy to navigate around to find what your looking for. Besides TSSD products they sell Marx, MPC, Matchbox, CTS, Weston, Ex Force, Americana/BMC, Supreme, AIP, Ideal, Airfix, Mars, Chintoys etc…

My next post will be a review of Publius Vikings Set #3. Thank you for reading.

A Review of 2018

January 5, 2019January 5, 2019 / Warhorse Miniatures / 2 Comments

HAPPY NEW YEAR

The year of 2018 has been Warhorse Miniatures best year so far. There was over 80,000 hits and almost 18,000 unique visitors from around the world. I would like to thank everyone who spent their time to visit this website. I also would like to thank everyone you was kind enough to leave a comment. We had a lot of highlights and some losses this year.

This page is a collectors page. You might notice that there are no ads popping up to annoy you. I spend my time trying to gather information as a source for collectors to get news or decide through reviews if the products or shows are worth the money & time to invest in. The products that I review have been purchased by me. That way I can give a fair review.

About half of the readers are from the USA and the rest are spread around the globe. Thank You, Danke, Спасибо, Grazie, Gracias.

Special thanks to Jose from Mad on Playmobil for time he takes to support me. Also Ken Ciak from LOD Enterprises Toy Soldiers for the support too. Finally thanks to a fellow blogger Paul Stadinger of Stad’s Stuff. Paul has been always helpful and a Great source of knowledge of the hobby.

Last year we had some great interviews. I would like to thank everyone who spent their time for the interviews.

We began with Nino from Petite Guerre. Toy Soldier Review & Interview ~ Petite Guerre Toy Soldiers & Nino Serra

Then Richard Conte shared his plans with us. An Interview with Richard Conte of Conte Collectibles.

Later I was able to talk to Ron Barzso. An Interview with Ron Barzso of Barzso Playsets.

We end the year with Andrew Stevenson of Replica Metal Soldiers & Models. Interview with Andrew Stevenson of Replica Metal Soldiers & Models. Plus some hobby news.

Dad2

Personally it was a rough year with the death of my Father at the age of 81. He was a Navy Veteran and also a Veteran of the NYPD. We also lost some collector friends like Bill Lango and Thor Sheil.

Last year was the first time that I went to the Midwest show. I had a great time. Me and my girlfriend made it a mini vacation. We plan on returning this year. Midwest Toy Soldier Show 2018 Review

I also went to the Gettysburg Toy Soldier Show to see the lights go out, lol. Gettysburg Toy Soldier 2018 Review

Then I went to the East Coast Toy Soldier Show. I hope that it wasn’t the last one. East Coast Toy Soldier Show 2018 Review

We saw some changes in the hobby last year too. We have Conte Collectibles returning and Barzso Playsets & TSSD retiring. LOD joined Barzso Playsets in a joint venture with the “Battle of Yorktown” playset. MicShaun’s Closet bought TSSD. Hopefully we will hear some news about their plans this year. Nino of Petite Guerre was a welcome surprise to me with their French & Indian War era figures.

WWII Japanese Warrior Soldiers and Rising Sun Flag

There were a lot of nice sets that came out last year. A bunch came form outside the USA.

This year I want to expand into custom work of some of my figures by painting and using epoxy. I keep learning and try to improve the way I do my blog posts. I want to try to do some more interactive blog posts to maybe improve or expand our hobby. One of the ways is to get feedback from you the collector. Maybe some the companies can use this data to actually make some sets that you the collector are looking for.

Here is a Straw Poll that I have up now.

What era of plastic 1/32 figures would you like to see in 2019?

https://www.strawpoll.me/17177507/r?fbclid=IwAR1YiGn8Tgnc2koX3tzDORYJivycOpQpGyJNe84swFanSHuTYH7AiYy78GM

I will follow up with more polls as I see the direction they go.

I think this is going to be an interesting year. I already have ordered a few sets to review in the coming weeks. I also can’t to see what new will come up this year. Conte has plans to release a new Viking ship this year. It will be smaller than the original ships that he produced. These new ships will be around 16 inches. This is a nice size and should be affordable too.

set1a set2a

We might see these figures next year in soft plastic. Right now they are looking sources to produce them. From what I hear they were figure made in a limit number and was surprised by the interest of collectors wanting them. Keep you fingers crossed.

Thanks again for everyone that made last year a success for this page. It is a combination of the collectors and toy producers that make this page fun. If you want to share any news or want to set up an interview send me a message. Let’s make 2019 even better!! Take Care for now.

Greater York Toy Show Review 2018

November 25, 2018November 25, 2018 / Warhorse Miniatures / Leave a comment

Today I went to the Greater York Toy Show for the first time. Located in York, Pennsylvania. I heard about the show before but have never been able to attend because it takes place the weekend after Thanksgiving. I am usually busy or too tired to make the trip there. I heard that there were a lot of vintage toys and there were deals to be found. The show boasted of over 850 tables. I some found deals and it appeared to be 850 tables, but I didn’t count.

I got up at 6:30am and left my house about 7:00am. It took me around 2 hours to get there. As I was parking my car, the doors had just opened. I could have spent $20.00 to get the early bird access, but chose not to. I spent $5.00 for the regular time admission. They also had early bird admission the day before the show as the dealers were setting up.

He-Man1

When I got out of my car I saw the line. There were at least 300 people in line and it had started moving already. There must have been easily over 600 people within the first hour. Maybe more. At times it felt like stampeding cattle, lol. The aisles were small and sometimes they got smaller. It was times like this I wish I had spent the extra money and came early or the day before. For most of the show I was on the move. I only stopped if I saw anything of interest to me. I wanted to be in front of the herd of people.

The show was in two different sections. In the second section the aisles were larger. It was really hot also. Even though it was uncomfortable at times the show was worth the trip. I did find some good deals and fair prices on other things.

I found this playset within the first 15 minutes. At first the set was being pieced out. The dealer was selling mainly new toys. I noticed the Marx figures at first for $10.00. The the man told me that the other items belonged together. A bag of rockets and space items. Then the metal Cape Canaveral building. All for $25.00. I got him down to $20.00. Then he said he had the box which he had under the table. He threw that in 🙂

Next I came across a table that had boxes of toy soldiers. I spent about a half hour picking through boxes. I liked the way these vintage Marx Japanese figures looked. I got these for $20.00.

Armymen

Most of these are Auburn Armymen. The first figure marching in the second picture is by Bergen. They appear to be 60mm.

Here are two Marx western figures. I think the first one is a farmer. They also appear to be 60mm.

These two Indians are 45mm. I think they are by Marx.

These Cattle are 54mm and I think they were made by Marx.

Two more animals that also are 54mm and made by Marx.

Here is one of those Hong Kong Elastolin clones made in plastic. The Viking figure appears to be about 60mm.

I got this Marx Robin Hood figure for free because he is missing a hand.

Here are two sailors that appear to be 60mm. I don’t know who made these. I got all the figures above for under a $1.00 each from the same seller of the Marx Japanese.

I also got these Marx figures of General Grant and Jefferson Davis for under a dollar each.

I got the Britain World War II American Infantry and Playmobil figures from the same seller. The Britain set was $9.00. The Playmobil sets were $2.00 each.

While fast walking through the show I bumped into Paul Stadinger of Stad’s Stuff. We would continue to bump into each other through out the show. He helped me find a few of the figures that I got.

I got this Herald Set for $30.00. These are the best kept Herald figures that I have found so far.

I picked up this Britains Cannon for $10.00. I had the figures already.

Here are some western or Civil War related figures in different scales that I also picked up for less than a dollar each. I usually bundle things together and then haggle on the price.

I got this Fisher Price Fireman for 75 cents. I had this when I was a kid.

This Britain World War II German Motorcycle is one of the toys that I wanted when I was a kid. It was something that was out of my reach when I was young. When I saw it today for $20.00 I had to get it. The missing rifle I will get from seller in the future.

Bulldog

One of the favorite things that I got today was this Bulldog. For less than a dollar this dog is great. It looks like it is 1/32 in scale. I think it was made by Marx.

All in all the show was good. I liked the fact of finding some good deals because you had some sellers that were not toy soldier sellers. There was a greater chance of finding some steals. But for me it was too crowded. I might have to either go the early bird way next time or get there a few hours before the show ends. That is it for now. Thank You for reading.

Latest News! July 29th, 2018. Vintage Toy Soldiers, Flea Market Finds, and Hobby News.

July 29, 2018July 29, 2018 / Warhorse Miniatures / 3 Comments

Here is another blog post on the hobby of toy soldiers. Here are a few pictures of some of the figures that I am going to talk about.

I usually try to visit flea markets, yard sales and antique stores in the late spring, summer and fall seasons. Most of the time I don’t find too many toy soldiers of interest to me. But the last couple of years I have been lucky to find some nice items. A couple of years ago I started searching for new places to visit that were about 2 to 3 hours away from the house. I find a store or town that I want to visit and then take the local roads until I get to that place. Usually we find stores or discover some yard sales along the way. The other day me and my girlfriend took a random drive and discovered the small town of Honesdale, PA. There were a few nice shops there. One of the stores that we visited was Ambeez Toy Box. This toy store was selling a combination of vintage and new toys. I saw a lot of vintage action figures there. Plus some Warhammer figures. The store is family owned. The owner Paul Bas was very friendly and helpful. I picked up a 21st Century Airplane. An WWII Italian Macchi C.202 Folgore in 1/32 scale for $30. If you are ever around Honesdale stop by.

Ambeez1

I stopped at a local Dollar Tree and found this Western bagged set. It had a few figures, a wagon and a camp fire. For a dollar you can’t go wrong. The Wagon is not bad, the figure is about 54mm. The other figures are about 60mm.

The last couple of months I have been picking up vintage western theme figures either from the flea markets or the internet. Mainly groups of figures from different companies and not sets. At the same time I have been going through my collection and re-discovering figures or sets that I forgot I had. One example is the Airfix Plains Indians in 1/32 scale. I was looking for a few weeks for some on eBay. The prices are crazy these days. I was watching a set and then discovered a bunch of figures that I already had, lol. I also found some Timpo Solid cast figures and Reisler Indians that I had stored away. I am going to do a future post on them and some other sets that I have. One of my favorite was the 1/32 scaled Timpo Native American in the picture above and the others pictures below. This is from the 1960’s I think. He is holding a rifle with a blanket covering him. I had to repair him and the horse above too. His rifle was broken and the horse’s leg had broken off. I am planning on painting these one day. I think the horse is by Marx?

Most of the items that I picked up this month were from the internet. We will continue with some of the Western themed items that I found. I have been looking for some vintage Marx or European brands lately. I am gathering both painted and unpainted figures. A lot of the older European plastic figures were painted. I first found a few Marx figures. One is Roy Rogers. I put him on a Airfix horse. I got these guys and about 15 other figures for $9.00.

We continue with a lot of figures that I got from Europe. Most of my collection of toys are items from about 20 years old to the present. I am not that knowledgeable on vintage figures. Here are some pictures of the lot that I got for about $13.00. I think some are by Crescent, Lone Star, Cherilea, Hilco and Timpo. Most are about 1/32 to 1/35 scale. Some are smaller. A few have broken weapons and a few scuffs. I will try to fix them and them repaint most of them.

I found this Airfix Mulipose German set for $5.00. Another box to the pile of projects….

Here is an old Britain Herald set of Highlanders. I found this in an antique store for around $7.00. I have about 30 of these or these type of band figures. Most of the ones that I find have broken instruments or weapons. Plus the others have the paint flaking off. This one was no different. One of the figures had two broken legs. I glued the legs together with the Brush on Krazy glue. It works nicely and I have used it on a few of figures. Ed Borris gave me that tip. I am going to keep these guys in the package and display them.

Herald1

Herald2

Next are some figures that I picked up a long time ago. I got these Merten Indians for $3.00 at an auction. At the time I never heard of this brand. They are very colorful. These are 54mm. Made in Germany. They are painted hard plastic. The more common size is 40mm for these figures. These are some of my favorite figures in my collection.

The other day I came across these Walking Dead Zombie figures. Being a fan of the Walking Dead series I decided to get a few different figures. One was the zombies and then some character figures. I will make a mini playset one day. I am thinking of painting zombies one day. Maybe make a display box for a one of a kind playset. Plus I think that we shall see more Soldiers in the future episodes. I can add some of them for the future too. These figures are 1/32 in scale.

Besides the solid unpainted figures they have character figures that you put together. I had to connect the arms, legs, head and a few other parts together. These are 1/32 in scale too. There are some solid cast characters too. These are based on the comic and are different from the tv show.

Here are two 54mm Elastolin swoppet type figures. I don’t to many swoppet figures. When I was a kid I had the Timpo fort with the Cavalry & Indians. These two are nice. Made in Germany.

Here is another lot that I got from eBay a few days ago for around $20.00. I decided to add these figures to the post at the last minute. It is another grouping of European western figures. The main reason I bid on this lot was because of the mounted Indian. I later found out it was made by Cherilea by Paul Robinson who runs the facebook page Marxplaysets (Yahoo Group). This was seconded by Kent Sprecher of Toy Soldier HQ.

I have been coming across some of these older figures here and there. Some of them are expensive. So when I find them they are usually in group lot that I find. This mounted Native American Indian is 1/32 and this figure is casted with the horse.

Besides this figure above there were some other interesting figures. The first batch of Indians were about the same size as Airfix Plains Indians. The three cowboys are about 60mm. The other groupings of Native Indians are about 45mm. The dark blue U.S. Cavalry figures are also 60mm. The other groupings of cowboys are about 50mm. I am planning on painting most of these figures. I will give them a wash and scrub off the old paint with a toothbrush.

That is it for the new additions to my collection. Now here is some news on the hobby.

Just a few things to mention this time. The first is a preview of Evan Oelrich’s World War One figures. You can check that out at Stad’s Stuff. I think the details look good, but the arms and weapons look a little small.

AIP

Also mention on Stad’s page and other hobby forums was that Armies in Plastic has a new promotion and some new recasted figures in different colors to be used as Napoleonic Lancers.

You can head over to Classic Toy Soldiers if you interested in World War II. They have some limited sets available at the moment. The first is the Iwo Jima Playset. It includes the following items.

CTS952A Iwo Jima Playset Contents (175 pieces) (1:32 scale) plastic toy soldiers
1 CTS Bamboo Machine Gun Nest
1 CTS Concrete Pill Box
1 CTS Chi Ha Position
2 CTS Fox Holes
1 CTS Artillery Position
1 CTS Cave

25 MARX Marines

32 CTS GI’s
25 MARX Japanese
24 CTS Japanese
3 CTS Sherman Tanks
1 CTS Half Track
3 CTS Japanese Chi Ha Tanks
2 CTS US Howitzers
2 JAPANESE Field Guns
6 CTS Tree Stands
1 MARX Palm Tree Set
2 CTS US Weapons Sets
8 Barbed Wire Sections
4 Concertina Wire Sections

2 CTS Flag Poles w/bases
1 Japanese Rising Sun Flag
1 American flag

Here is the second set, the Iwo Jima Defensive Positions Set.

WWII CTS7444A Pacific Theater Iwo Jima Defensive Positions Set #2 — 7 different pieces (painted) for 1/32 scale plastic toy soldiers

Iwo Jima Pieces Set #2

Palm Log Machine Gun Nest (12”L x 7.5” W)
Dug-In Chi Ha Position (11”L x 9.5W”)
Artillery/Machine Gun Position (9”L x 6”W)
2 Fox Holes in 2 types (4”L x 3”W)
Cave #2 (large) (6”L x 4.5”)
Concrete Pill Box (7”L x 5”W)

I hope to see the Hat Seven Years War Austrians by the end of the year. Last I heard they are still in development. They are working the 1/32 Austrians and 3 other projects.