Military Miniatures

The parts have been dry fitted together,  the joints tidied up with swiss files where possible, and where not possible, filled with “Miliput”.

If you look at picture below, you cannot see the joint between the Cuirassier’s body and his arms. You do not have visible join lines in real life, so why should your military model have them?

Showing the area where both the left and right arms join the figure.

Fill the joint with a little too much Miliput, or similar compound. Smooth off with a wet finger or spatula and try to leave slight ‘lumps’ to mimic muscles. It gives your 54mm model a better look, and it is not as difficult as it seems.

The figure of the French Cuirassier has been allowed to dry and then undercoated ready for painting.

See a video of my British Infantry Square at Waterloo on YouTube

I have planned which 54mm model to do next; The “Cuirassier’s Toilette 1806″ from Andrea Miniatures.

(Kit number S7-F32).

This is a white metal kit of 11 parts and an initial look in the box shows that the model has wonderful detail cast onto it.

When offering up the parts to each other to check the fit, I found that one arm was not a good fit to the body, and one leg, when held in position on the figure, did not line up with the locating holes in the base.  So I will need to use some “Miliput” to fill the gaps and make good with sanding with flour paper or similar.

It is always a good idea to do a ‘dry run’ and assemble any model without glue to see how well the parts fit together and whether any alterations or filler will be required. It is far more difficult to correct any casting faults when the model is fully assembled and, possibly, partially painted.

Both the British Infantry Square and the charging French Heavy Cavalry have had the scenic dressing added to their bases, completing my diorama of a corner of a British square at Waterloo.

The French dragoons and the British Infantry were kept on different bases, and the final shapes I chose for the bases has worked well. Even though these are two small dioramas, they capture the movement and feel of a real cavalry charge in Napoleonic times. I am very happy with how they have turned out and how well the two separate dioramas combine together to tell one story.

The corner of a British Infantry Square at Waterloo

The charging French Heavy Cavalry

French Heavy Cavalry charging a British Infantry Square at Waterloo

The Bren Gun Carrier Crew have been painted and fitted into the vehicle. The driver (seated figure) was difficult to fit into position. In the end I took out the steering wheel, glued the figure onto the seat, but without his arms. After refitting the steering wheel the driver’s arms were glued into place. No such problem with the officer standing up and leaning on the Bren gun carrier’s front. After moving the Bren gun to the left, the figure was easily glued into place.

The completed bren gun carrier crew in place

You can’t see in these photos, but the driver has tatoos on his arms!

The French Lancer has also been based. I decided to place the bucket directly onto the polished wooden base instead of on the model’s base.  It gives this model of the French Lancer a bit of individuality.

French Lancer Based