Provisional 'Line Infantry' mould listing
I had a chat with PA's sculptor yesterday and we agreed the following eleven moulds will cover the 'line infantry' of the Prussians, Austrians, Hungarians and Russians.
Prussian (command reused where possible)
3102 – Prussian drummer (musketeer & grenadier) and NCO - already available
3103 – Prussian infantry advancing (grenadier & musketeer) - already available
3104 – Prussian infantry march-attack (guard & fusilier) and fusilier drummer - due out April/May
Austrian (German)
(For command reuse 3101 & 3102 with new heads from 3105; for Austrian grenadiers see below.)
Hungarian
3107 – Hungarian drummer and NCO
3108 – Hungarian Infantry (fusiliers & grenadiers) advancing & march-attack
Russian
3109 – Russian line musketeer/grenadier (summer uniform), advancing & march-attack
3110 – Russian line musketeers/grenadier (summer uniform) NCO and drummer
(For officer and standard bearer reuse 3101 with new heads from above, these ranks would probably retain there coats even in summer)
3111 – Possibly Russian Observation Corps - not yet finalised.
A bit more on the Austrians
The troops from in the German (called Austrian from now on) and Hungarian regiments were very different. The Hungarians will have a set of three moulds to cover most options, however Austrian units can be quite well covered using the Prussian moulds.
There are three main differences between the Prussian musketeer and the Austrian fusilier. Firstly the Austrian tricorn is more pointed at the front, secondly the Austrians had a single haversack, whereas the Prussians also carried a bread bag, and thirdly the Austrian fusilier rank and file did not carry a sword.
New heads are certainly needed, we thought about doing a mould with just heads, but decided to reuse the Prussian command moulds 3101 & 3102, but add a new one with the new fusilier and officer heads, plus two rank & file bodies (in the same poses as Prussians so they all match).
3105 - Austrian fusiliers
- Private advancing
- Private marching
- 2 x Fusilier private head – tricorn, with moustache
- Fusilier officer head – tricorn, no moustache
There is a bit of work needed, the pole arm needs converting by cutting off the side bars (there will be a 'halberd' type in with the Hungarians), and the hoops need filing off the 3102 drummers arms (the new drummer in 3104 for the Prussian fusiliers will not have hoops on the arms).
Below is a unit in the advancing pose made up from (pre-production moulds) 3101, 3102 & 3105, painted early war so I could give then coloured turn backs.
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| Austrian fusiliers, modified NCO pole arm and drummer with no hoops on arm. (flag is from Maverick Models) |
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| Austrian fusiliers have single haversack and no sword |
Austrian grenadiers
We did a bit of head scratching here, in the end we decided that Austrian grenadiers did not really justify a separate mould - I know that sounds a bit harsh!
It is worth remembering that the aim of this range is to cover most of the major types, and allow others to be made up with a little bit of mixing and matching, and perhaps some conversion work - and these are a good example of both.
The grenadiers most distinctive item is the bearskin; however as Austrian grenadiers are mostly shown with their hair in plaits, so it is fine to use the heads from the Hungarian moulds (when they are released).
Also the grenadiers should have a sword scabbard showing, but again not thought worth another mould, so the options are:
- Convert the fusilier and stick a scabbard on?
- Use one of the Prussians which have swords, but the extra bread bag?
- Forget the sword - it is after all a black scabbard on a black gaiter?
I took the first option and added one out of card, which was pretty easy - I hope they stay on!
Below is the unit made up as suggested, it also shows the march attack pose which will make up the second 'fusilier' body in 3105.
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| Austrian grenadier with 'fusilier' body, Hungarians head and added scabbard |
As usual feedback on the proposed mould range and figure selection would be appreciated.
