lazyschnauzer

Leigh - Yes, the dead German is based a classic Great War photograph widely published. It could have been a separate figure vignette all by itself. Who knows - maybe it should have been. I put the two figures together and they seemed to work. Michael and Leigh - Thanks for posting the song. I have had bits of it quoted to me before, but not all of it. Great stuff! And, of course, almost literally true. Whole British companies and darn near whole battalions were caught on wire and machine-gunned. On wire that was supposed to have been blasted to bits before the infantry attacked. In 1915 the wire was intact for a variety of reasons, but primarily because of severe shortages of high explosive gun ammunition. And the young men of a whole generation paid the bill. All the best, Dan

Two for the dog and man - duly noted. Many thanks for your comment! I've just about finished the Jack Russell terrier. Started it with waste putty and it took over. All the best, Dan

Many thanks, SSgt Luna! More figures to come in the The Old Contemptibles product line. Stay tuned. All the best, Dan

David - I'm sure that's not true! Anyway you must never put yourself down in public. That's rudely taking away the fun from others!!!? Seriously mate - thanks for your comment and I'm positive you'd do a grand job on the model. All the best, Dan

I'd like to conduct a poll. I'm posting four photos which might be used as photo references for a 1/16th scale Great War figure. Please tell me which one you'd find the most attractive, assuming the pose and the theme or story are both well done and the prices are all equal. French Fusilier Marin - in 1914 blue uniform lightweight, no top coat, all field gear and Lebel rifle, leaning on haystacks smoking a pipe German Landsturm - In this case, I'd just use the pose in the photo. I propose to do the figure in 1914 dark blue uniform with grey or black trousers, black oil cloth covered cap, all field gear and Mauser 88/s rifle, sitting on stonework and eating happily. The photo is of a re-enactor and was sent to me by Roger Newsome. British Tommy scribbling a note home with a friend - 1915 uniform, dug-out entrance with hanging socks, all the rubbish, 1914 field gear and SMLE British Tommy knitting a sock and smoking in mud, muck and water - actually in the photo it's hard to tell precisely what he is doing, but I'd go with re-knitting a sock. 1914 field gear and SMLE This photo comes from some 1930s era British movie. None of these would be exact copies. The graphic would only be a reference. Unfortunately I can't see how you insert the poll into the text or whatever. If the administrator would insert the poll or PM me and tell me how to do it, I'd appreciate it. Until that's sorted out, those of you who'd like to vote, just add a reply. All the best, Dan

John McNenney and I are pleased to announce the availability of Tommy of 1915, the first of The Old Contemptibles line. We wish to express our gratitude to Roger Newsome who painted Tommy. 1/16th or 120-mm scale resin figure kit Tommy's uniform details contain: M1902 khaki field service tunic; M1902 khaki field service trousers; M1902 khaki putties wound up from ankle to knee and tucked into trouser bottoms. Hobnailed blackened ?ammunition? boots; on left hip, M1908 khaki haversack, bayonet scabbard, entrenching tool helve attached by straps; on right hip, M1908 entrenching tool head in khaki carrier and 2 pint water bottle covered with khaki cloth and hooked to belt; M1908 cotton webbing equipment with two sets each left and right of five cartridge pouches, each carrying three five-round charger clips, total of 150 rounds. The back pack is strapped to the webbing. The broad waist belt would have a brass elongated buckle, but the buckle is covered by the PH satchel. Short Magazine Lee Enfield rifle No. 1, Mark III, 0.303 inch caliber with M1908 cotton webbing sling (Sling not included). Please note this Enfield rifle has been re-cast with expressed written consent from DJ Parkins, British manufacturer of fine military figure subjects under the Firing Line brand. The rest of the equipment with Tommy: Phenate hexamine (or PH) type anti-gas hood in small two button satchel on ragged-looking strap with two buttons (buttons buried under other equipment); furry goat skin vest worn over service tunic and under single-breasted ?British Warm? great coat. Head 1 - M1915 trench cap worn with flaps up, known as the ?Gor Blimey?, cap badge of the Kings Own Yorkshire Light Infantry (KOYLI) Head 2 ? M1915 trench cap worn with flaps down, cap badge of the Grenadier Guards For further ordering info: http://www.milminwh.com/theoldcontemptibles.htm or go to the Military Miniatures Warehouse web site and look for The Old Contemptibles pages. Dealer inquiries are welcome! All the best, Dan

Many thanks Msgt mode! All the best, Dan

Many thanks Gordon! All the best, Dan

Many thanks, Lorenzo! All the best, Dan

Many thanks Lorenzo! This vignette has just been mailed to Rafael Gonzalez Aquayo, a very talented Spanish painter in Madrid. Sure hope the mail is kind to it!!!! This is a one-off, but I'm going to re-do it as a 1/16th scale master for casting for The Old Contemptibles model line. All the best, Dan

Lorenzo - Many thanks! This figure is being painted by the very talented Rod Allison of New Zealand. I can't wait to see the final results myself!! All the best, Dan

Just digging, Lorenzo. The idea for this figure came from Roger Newsome. The illustration from which the Three Tommies comes actually shows 5 soldiers. I was going to do 4 and this shoveller was #4. The fellow that commissioned Roger and I to do the Three Tommies, Marty Fine, said he didn't want the fourth one, so I removed it and was going to throw the figure out, but Roger stopped me. The shoveller became a "one-off" for Roger. Roger and I both have a fondness for figures showing soldiers doing something other than standing holding a rifle or running at the enemy, etc. Those poses are OK but if you want to depict a soldier, 99% of the time they're actually doing something else. Eating, sleeping, patching clothes or equipment, reading a letter from home, on work detail, etc., etc. In the Great War, they spent a lot of time digging - There ya go. Right now I'm working on a Seaforth Highlander cobbler of 1916 repairing a boot and a Yorks and Lancs corporal of 1914 cleaning a rifle. John McNenney and I recently formed a small model-making company, The Old Contemptibles, and these (hopefully) will be figures 2 and 3 in our line. Figure 1 is almost complete with some necessary revisions, Tommy of 1915. All three of these are in 1/16th scale or 120mm. I'm not going to do only British soldiers. I have an Austro-Hungarian army Tiroler mountain sharpshooter that I put aside to work on these two. And if I can get the face right, I'm considering doing a shell-shocked German soldier cowering in a corner of a trench. Here's a link to our company - http://www.milminwh.com/theoldcontemptibles.htm And this is a link to my blog. http://heroesonthewire.blogspot.com/ All the best, Dan

Lorenzo, The "mud" is a compound of epoxy resin and pumice. It's sold by Vallejos as "Grey Pumice", product 26.213. You can buy it from http://www.warweb.com/index.php All the best, Dan

This is the start, Lorenzo. All the best, Dan

SSgt Luna, Many thanks for your comment. The chills. From a fellow vet that's a tall compliment. I'm sure that's the response Gilbert Rogers was looking for and I'm gratified that Kreston and I could duplicate it. If you have an on-going interest in military figures, may I suggest two web sites: www.planetfigure.com and www.timelinesforum.com. All the best, Daniel R. Morton, Major, USAF, BSC Retired

Many thanks Joe! Check out a new link on Military Miniatures Warehouse - The Old Contemptibles. John McNenney and I will be releasing our first release of a commercial figure soon. All the best, Dan

More photos...

More photos...

Just completed everything yesterday and waiting for the painter. The scale is 1/16th. The yellow stuff is photomount holding one arm on to the shoulder temporarily and the figure at the right boot to the base. With one hand on each side of the horse's neck it was necessary to make one arm separately. All the best, Dan

And the last two...

And more...

A couple photos... More to come...

One of the Great War's best illustrators was Fortunio Matania. Arguably his best work is a study of a dying artillery horse and its' rider/artilleryman saying goodbye. It was published widely and ultimately bought by the British organization for animal protection, the Blue Cross. I've converted other Great War illustrations into figures and vignettes, but this one may be the most challenging. I'm not going for an exact copy of the illustration, just the general look and feel of it...provoking the same emotional response from the viewer. Your comments and critique would be appreciated. Because of the size of the files, it will take several postings to show you the photos. All the best, Dan

Sweet! Those are really fine aircraft! Your detailing is superb! All the best, Dan

Many thanks Snoopy and nesredep! I'm working on several new projects and will try to post a work in progress of one this weekend, "Goodbye Old Man". This vignette is an homage to the great wartime illustrator Fortunio Matania and his painting of the same name. All the best, Dan