Double O Scenics Static Grass Applicator

 Hello there! I was asked today about the static grass applicator I use. This method of scenic flock is very realistic and can be used for large areas or for figure bases.

After looking at the alternatives available from the model railway fraternity I chose this item from a small company called 'Double O Scenics', here

The company has a wide range of static grass in different colours and lengths. I feel the colours available are a bit more realistic than some others on the market as the mix of colours in each bag does not include 'rogue' colours, such as red, in a 'Summer Mix'!

In the past I have also used the static grass for figure bases by taking a small clump of a suitable colour amd rubbing it in the palm of my hand until it forms a clump of fibres which are paralell. Then level one end of the clump and place into a blog of PVA on the figure base.

This provides a varied density of foliage which looks more realistic.

I have also used various lengths of static grass to show shorter green grass with longer, 6mm long, yellowed grass. I do this by shaking the applicator over a layer of PVA laying longer static grass first then after removing the excess placing a layer of shorter, 2mm, green afterwards. Then leave this to dry.   

The applicator I use has had a repair on the connecting earth wire but this is after a massive amount of use. There is a guide included with the applicator which also shows you how to use in properly, without getting a small shock. Keep your fingers clear of the bowl which holds the grass before it spreads on the subject. 

I have found this product very useful and it can also be used for making tufts.

French Light Company Skirmishers

 Hello There! I have added to the skirmisher project with some further French forces. these will be adversaries for the Spanish guerrillas I have completed previously.

These are from the Perry twins and are the pack of skirmishing voltigeurs. They were cleanly cast, something that I have heard is not always the case from other blogs. They are based on two pence pieces with magnabase on the under side.

The white is 836 London grey, 989 grey sky and thinned 951 white. The blue is Foundry 65A, 65C and Vallejo 965 Prussian blue.

 

I bought these figures from the Hammerhead show three years ago, (yes, remember Wargaming shows?).

They provide a nice variety of poses which are all suitable for my needs. I have further figures to add, from Front Rank, which although more of a parade dress than these, are more than acceptable. These can all serve as skirmisher screens for larger 'big battalions' games.

I have added clumps of static grass to these bases as I feel this makes them look a little more irregular and realistic.

Austrian Line Colonel, German Infantry.

 Hello There! Here is the latest addition to the Napoleonic Austrians. He is in the 42nd regiment and the facing colours are described as just 'Orange' in my copy of Rawkins. This is a figure from the Wargames Foundry range which provides a pack with figures in different positions. 

This figure is painted as per the feature I had published in WSS magazine, here.

The accompanying battalion is almost completed and is part of 1st Armeekorps Vogelsang Division, Henneberg Brigade. This is part of the forces in the order of battle at Eckmuhl. I have used 'Armies on the Danube 1809' written by Scott Bowden and Charles Tarbox.

This division gives a wide variety of facing colours for the units in it and also includes landwehr as well. Wargames supplies now have a decent choice of these troops so making sourcing these landwehr easier to obtain.

 

Battle of Maida

Hello There! I have been painting units to refight the Battle of Maida so have decided to write the British and French orders of battle to show progess on the project.

Here is the French now. After referring to a number of written and internet sources I have found many discrepanicies concerning the number of battalions that some regiments had at the battle. For example the 1st Legere is reported to have had either two or three battalions present while the Swiss had either one or two battalions.

Also the number of men in each unit has not been forth coming as there appears to be many vague total quoted for the whole French force but little on individual units. I have listed the hypothetical figures from a copy of 'First Empire' that I have found on the internet.

French Order of Battle

Commander: General Jean-Louis-Ebenezer Regnier, (Reynier)

1st Brigade: General de Brigade Louis Fursy Henri Compere

1st Battalion, 1st Legere                                                                                            600 men

2nd Battalion 1st Legere                                                                                            600 men

1st Battalion, 42nd Line                                                                                              600 men

2nd Battalion 42nd Line                                                                                              600 men

2nd Brigade: General de Brigade Antoine Digonet

1st Battalion 23rd Legere                                                                                            600 men

2nd Battalion 23rd Leger                                                                                             575 men

3rd Brigade: General de Brigade Louis Peyri

1st Battalion 1st Polish Legion, (1st Polish Line Infantry Battalion)                            400 men

2nd Battalion 1st Polish Legion, (1st Polish Line Infantry Battalion)                           400 men

4th Battalion 1st Swiss Line Regiment                                                                        600 men

Artillery: Commander, 'Griois'

1 Company Horse Artillery 2 guns                                                                                20 men

3 Batteries Foot Artillery 18 Guns                                                                                45 men,

                                                                                                                    (I don't think so!)

Cavalry:

 9th Chasseurs a Cheval                                                                                            300 men

Compere's Brigade

Conflicting sources state this brigade consisted of three battalions of the 1st Legere only while the greater majority of sources state there were two battalions of 1st Legere and two battalions of 42nd Line.

I have chosen to place two battalions of each regiment in this brigade.

The 1st Legere had an extensive experience of campaigning in Italy, during the revolutionary Wars and were present at the Battle of Marengo.

The 42nd Regiment also fought in the Revolutionary Wars in Flanders

Digonet's Brigade

The 23rd Legere were formed in 1792 and had fought in Northern Italy in 1805 and been present at the battle of Caldiero.

Peyri's Brigade

Some sources has placed the 42nd regiments battalions in this brigade. I believe that this  brigade only consisted of the foreign troops in French service.

Again the Swiss troops here are described as either one or two battalions 

The Polish troops are repeatedly described as 'poor and unreliable' in Hopton's book and this was put down to the fact they had been recruited from Austrian prisoners of war.

On their initial contact with the British, while they were landing on the peninsular, 400 of these Polish troops drove back the Corsican Rangers but were in turn pushed back by British infantry.

9th Chasseur a Cheval

The 9th Chasseurs were the only cavalry to take part in the battle. They arrived with further Polish troops and General Digonet on the 1st July. 

Artillery

These are described a 'mountain guns' in Hopton but the calibre is not described. Mountain guns are more easy to transport across the mountainous tertain of the area but lacked the punch of larger calibre guns on the battlefield.

Regnier's force was described as deficient in artillery so I am unsure of the eighteen foot artillery guns present in some orders of battle. However the speed of the advance of the French and the mountainous character of the region may explain why they are not present but the mountain guns are.

Initially Regnier is supplied with two companies of horse artillery and two companies of foot artillery and present at the battle itself were 'four light field pieces' I would say these were four pounders.

The calibre of the guns are described as not larger than the four pounders used by the British.

The total 

5100 infantry

300 cavalry

Sources

The Battle of Maida 1806, Fifteen Minutes of Glory by Richard Hopton

Wellington's Switzers by Alistair Nichols

Scenario: Maida 1806 - Honour Scenarios Wiki (google.com)

FOR SALE Airfix Sahara Desert Fort

 Hello There! I have been meaning to put this up for sale for a while and at last I have had the opportunity!

I have this work for sale. It is the Airfix Sahara Desert Fort which has been refurbished and reconditioned. It has embossed sheet walls with worn plaster finish and replaced gate surround. Gates are fixed in place. This model was the subject of the feature published in Wargames, Soldiers and Stratagy magazine issue 105.

The Illustration shows two SHQ Italian figures for scale comparison.

Price is £60 plus postage and packaging sent fully insured.

Reconditioned Hex Terrain Rock Faces.

Hello There. I have completed a commission for a friend which is some of the last hex terrain I have to recondition for him.

The three hex terrain tiles were originally representing high ground but had no rock face. They were typical of the hex terrain available from the 1980's onwards. I covered the raised areas in styrofoam off cuts and after glueing them on with gorilla glue, or polyurethane expanding adhesive, I let it dry and carved the exterior to match up between the tiles.

The styrofoam was carved to match up between tiles. When I was happy with this I took a sharp scalpel bpade and carved the basic corrugated shape. I wanted the face to be irregular but also the separate layers of the styrofoam to be disguised so that the layers of foam board could not be seen. 

Once this was done I then ran the sharp scalpel blade paralell to the ground many times to form the geological layers in the rock faces. Every now and then this cut small piecs of the foam face free of the board but this is not a problem as the irregularity of the paralell cuts makes the frock look more realistic.

Then paint the whole face in black. As there are many recesses in the rock face I added some water to thin the paint and some washing up liquid to break the surface tension of the paint and water. This allowed the paint to better permeate into these recesses. I found that spending a long time under a strong light led me to miss many spots here and there and tell tale bright blue styrofoam would poke through here and there. I had to take a break until my 'paint gap blindness' went away.

Once I was sure this had all been covered in black I then heavily dry brushed the rock face surface in dark grey and progressively lightened the grey and made the dry brushing more subtle until you reach a very slight dry brush in just white. This process picks out the subtle gaps and spaces in the rock faces.

Here is the last remaining half tile to show what I had started with. This system of dry brushing can be used with different colours. Sandstone cliffs are various shades of brown so that could also be used.

The sample figures are 28mm Perrys ACW Confederate infantry and a mounted Union Colonel from Old Glory for scale.

Murawski Polish Foot Artillery 28mm

Hello there! The latest item I have finished is this Polish artillery battery. There was a delay finishing this when there was a small mix up in my order with some 'firing' figures having made their way into my 'loading' figures. It was soon sorted out and the results are here.

 

The cannon is also from Murawski and was easily put together. The figures were clean casting with very minimal flash.

I have started to glue the cannon to the bases now. Initially I had the option of changing the cannon for different sizes. While this is probably more relevant in the American Civil War period here it is less so.

At different time the Polish troops had Prussian, Austrian  and French guns. Here I have used a French supply.

I have many figures from Murawski, to paint, and if these and the infantry on the previous post are anything to go by they will be a pleasure to paint.