Saturday, May 30, 2015

On Display - A Toy Soldier Collection

After the recent big Pacific NW convention, Enfilade, last weekend I came home to contemplate my next gaming project. As I never really bothered to look for any new figures at the Bring and Buy, it made me wonder if I was losing interest in gaming and/or painting. The only purchase I made was an Osprey book on Troy, which I couldn't pass up for $5.00. In fact, I sold off my Warlord EIR army as well as a few Old Glory Normans and Turcopoles. Downsizing, I suppose. It also made me take stock of what figures I already had, and if they hadn't received their fare share of gaming table time. I ended up taking the images below for the record. Missing are most of the WW1 and WW2 stuff, which are in plastic bins.

Without further ado, here is my toy soldier collection, so to speak. Most of the 28mm figures have been on the gaming table. The French & Indian War stuff have yet to see their first Muskets and Tomahawks game. Possibly this will be the next gaming project.
Top shelf: F&IW - Foundry and Redoubt, HYW - mostly BTD (English) and Perry (French), Normans & Saxons - mostly Crusader, and a couple of 120mm figures as well as a few 54mm stuff. Second shelf: Trojan War stuff - mostly Redoubt, some Foundry and others; Third shelf: Napoleonic French and various others - mostly Victrix, Perry, OG and Foundry.
Top shelf: Napoleonic British - mostly Victrix, Perry, OG; Second shelf: Imjin War Joeson Koreans - mostly Perry, and some Japanese - OG, as well as RJW Japanese - OG.
Top shelf: Gauls, Thracians, Hoplites, Oscans and other such Ancients - OG, Foundry, Crusader and Redoubt; Bottom shelf: Mycenaean ship - Redoubt, OG Viking Longship, and 1/8th scale Aurora/Monogram 15th C. Knight (aka Gold Knight of Nice).
The next cabinet has more of an eclectic mix.
Top shelf: GW Empire stuff; Second shelf: Medieval stuff - Mirliton, OG, FireForge, and some 120mm resin figures which were painted long before getting into 28mm gaming figures.
Top shelf: Early and Late-Samurai, as well as a more recently completed 120mm resin Ii Naomasa figure. The Early-Samurai are mostly T.A.G. and the Late-Samurai mostly Perry and OG; Second shelf: Seleucids - most of the foot are Foundry, the elies are Aventine, the scythed chariot and armored cav from 1st Corps, and some command figures from Relic (Antiochus and Pyrrhus).
Top shelf: 40K Space Marine stuff on the left, and Empire stuff on the right Bottom shelf: WotR stuff - mostly OG and Perry plastics.
The next cabinet are display figures in 120mm and larger - again, mostly painted long before getting into gaming.
These are all 120mm resin figures - mostly Verlinden.
Top shelf: A couple of Verlinden figures flank an Airfix 1/12th scale Black Prince; in the rear 1/16th scale plastic knights by Imex. Second shelf: 200mm resins by Verlinden - Henry V, Earl of Oxford and Lord Bardolph. Two 1/8th Aurora plastic knights in the rear - "Red Knight of Vienna" and "Black Knight of Nurnberg."
Various other 120mm-200mm stuff. Also 1/12th plastic Airfix Richard I and Joan of Arc models.
And in a bookcase display hidden away.
Various other stuff, including the only 15mm figures I have - a DBA Pre-Samurai army which was only gamed once about a year ago
Here's what the larger two cabinets look like in a corner of the living room.
A couple of helmets picked up off of ebay on top the one on the right.
The one thing I don't have is a dedicated gaming room, but since I only occasionally play, the use of folding tables in the dining room suffices. Anyway, hope you enjoyed viewing the collection on this fine Saturday. I'm actually trying to get over a bug I may have picked up at the con.

70 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Thank you kindly, Phil. I'm a bit of a show off you know. Regards, Dean

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  2. Marvelous collection Dean! and lot of hard work painting etc.... Awesome!

    how much do you charge to enter your miniatures world gallery room? :o)

    cheers

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    1. Thanks, Phil! :) I actually offer drinks and appetizers to anyone willing to partake. Warm Regards, Dean

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  3. It must be satisfying to look back at such an impressive body of work! A truly outstanding collection, thanks for sharing it :-)

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    1. Thanks, Paul. It's nice having figures to try out new rules or scenarios. Regards, Dean

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  4. Oh yes!!! What a great looking collection!!!!

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    1. Thanks, Ray. I'm glad it meets your approval! Best, Dean

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  5. WOW. I'm speechless. The size your collection, the quality of your figures and the elegant display cases are truly awesome.

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    1. Thanks, Ted. Added a few since your last visit a couple of years ago. Regards, Dean

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  6. Oh shiny! What a collection.

    I have nothing like those; no figures on display, at all.

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    1. Thanks, Simon. I know my stuff is only a fraction of what you have though. Regards, Dean

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  7. Lovely collection. I too have quite a few figures that have been painted and never gamed with.
    I only have a small display cabinet, most of my stuff is packed away in 'Really Useful Boxes' it would be good to have it all out on display, but I play most of my games at the club so would have to be constantly doing a 'grab and go' from the cabinets.

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    1. Thanks, Paul. I know you have a lot of gear - and game so often cabinet displays might not be the most practical. Best, Dean

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    1. Thank you, Rodger. Appreciate the visit and nice comment. Regards, Dean

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  9. Outstanding! That is an absolutely wonderful display mate and so beautifully laid out. You seem to have a similar problem to me though, not enough display space :-)

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    1. Thanks, Michael. It does make me more careful of future purchases/projects. Warm regards, Dean

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  10. A most impressive collection - I greatly admire your painting skills and aspire to be be just half the artist you are

    thanks
    Miles

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    1. Thank you very much for your kind compliments Miles. Warm regards, Dean

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  11. Nice collection. Great display. What I have of mine are all stored in tubs. One day I should get some cabinets like that.

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    1. Thanks, PC. I think it's because I'm more of a painter/collector than gamer that I have them in cabinets. It would be a pain to get them out frequently to game. :) Best Dean

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  12. Beautiful figures in beautiful surroundings! Great to see, Dean. All the best with the downsizing. Don't overdo it though - you can buy new storage bins in five minutes; it's not so easy to paint up an army :)

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    1. Thanks, Aaron. I think I may get some Late-Romans to replace the Warlord EIR guys - not as many - probably enough for either Lion Rampant or Dux whatever the one for Late-Romans. Regards, Dean

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  13. Oh, gosh.
    Absolutely great.
    I have always wondered where you (all) find the necessary space for all of these models.
    In my are 40 years have been the same chest of drawers (tank tracks defrosted).

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    1. Thanks, MM. Luckily there's a furniture store with sales every now and then nearby. However, I don't plan on getting anymore cabinets. Likely overflow will go into storage bins. Warm regards, Dean

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  14. That's fantastic Dean. Excellent quality figured displayed they way they deserve.

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  15. Well that has certainly been worth a look Dean although I think it is time to buy a new display case ol'boy and banish the thoughts of downsizing. Love your collection of Verlinden and Airfix models I have a few myself, still have maybe half a dozen Verlinden unpainted models I picked up cheap a few years back, an impulse buy. Thanks for sharing your impressive collection.

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    1. Thank you, Dave. Glad you enjoyed the virtual tour. I got all of the large models (Verlinden & Airfix) off of ebay too. I think some folks are a bit taken aback when they see the jumble of resin or plastic :) I still have a couple more to do someday. Warm Regards, Dean

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  16. Wow Dean! What a collection! So many beautifully painted figures. Love your large scale figures too - that grey the Carabinier is on is superb. Glad you've found enough display cabinets to accommodate your collection - I know all too well the problem of not having a dedicated games room available!

    Get well buddy and you'll be back rollin' the dice is no time!

    Cheers,
    Doc

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    1. Mahalo's, Doc. Glad you enjoyed the looksee. It's nice to hear how so many of us also collect/collected larger scale figures too. As soon as I get over this bug (still have a persistent cough) I hope to do a Muskets & Tomahawks game. Much Aloha, Dean

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  17. Impressive, mist impressive!

    Cheers, Ross

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    1. Thank you very much, Ross. Glad you enjoyed the visit. Best, Dean

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  18. Looks amazing! Nice to see stuff on display in the home.

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    1. Thanks, Simon. The internet really makes it nice to be able to allow visitors over, so to speak, without having to ask them to remove their shoes. :) Warm regards, Dean

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  19. Wow... thats is alot of painted minis :) great work Dean!

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    1. Thanks! I just don't like to have unpainted stuff laying around, I guess :) I feel guilty if I have left overs (onesies and twosies at that) when I used to build a point-based army. Best, Dean

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  20. Replies
    1. Thank you very much for the visit and kind comment. Warm Regards, Dean

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  21. Oh wow! That is a tremendous sight Dean.

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    1. Thanks, Michael. I may have crossed the line of sharing and showing off :)! Warm regards, Dean

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  22. Fantastic to be able to display them like that! How nice to be able to see the results of all your hard work in one place!

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    1. Thanks so much, LH! Truly appreciate the visit and kind words. Regards, Dean

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  23. I could only dream of such a collection, and wonderful cabinets to show them off in. Amazing! To think about how many hrs one have put into these collection...
    P.S: As a Dane, you're naturally getting a standing ovation for the Viking longship!

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    1. Thanks, Soren. Glad the longship meets your approval :) Regards, Dean

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  24. Wow Dean, you have one mighty fine and enviable collection there, they look superb in your display cabinets!

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    1. Thanks, Chris. As I don't game as often as most, they at least have a nice home while off the gaming table. Warm regards, Dean

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  25. That's an astonishing collection - I just hope that's toughened glass on those shelves!
    ; )

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    1. Thanks, Evan. There supposed to be; they've held up for a few years now. Warm regards, Dean

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  26. That's one impressive display Dean!

    Christopher

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    1. Thank you much, Christopher. Appreciate the visit and interest. Best, Dean

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  27. That is beyond impressive! I've been in a bit of a hobby funk lately, and this has got me on the way to being productive again! Thanks Dean!!

    Greg

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    1. Thanks, Greg! That is great to hear - that this post has been helpful in getting you back into the hobby. Warm Regards, Dean

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    2. Thanks, Jose. Maybe my next project should be something along the lines of Shinshengumi :) Regards, Dean

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  28. Very impressive and fine looking collection. Hope to see more in the future. Best wishes.

    Sascha

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    1. Thank you very much, Sascha. Thanks for joining this blog and posting such a nice comment. I hope to figure out what to paint next soon. Warm regards, Dean

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  29. Your amazing work is admirable and a permanent source of inspiration. Thank you so much for sharing it! Warm regards!

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    1. My pleasure my friend. Warm regards, Dean

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  30. That is awe inspiring. My wife keeps my cabinets out of sight.

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    1. Thanks, James. We missed you at Enfilade again this year. Hopefully, we'll be able to game with you again someday. Warm Regards, Dean

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  31. So THAT is the magic hat holds all of your armies. So very beautiful Dean, and inspirational!

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