Figure conversion

Head-swaps and other things

Part of my enjoyment in my hobby is looking beyond what is to what can be (sounds very touchy-feely that). I like odd projects, obscure conflicts, nations not usually the bread and butter of wargamers and so by that very thing is my hobby undone. If a period or country is unpopular or simply little known its not practical or economic for a figure or model designer to make. So being of the Airfix generation and a student of Featherstone, Wise, Grant and Sanders I`ve learned to become adaptable and flexible in my approach to building my armies.

A while back I bought a large job-lot of Platoon20 Egyptians/Syrians/Iraqis/PLO types among the mix of sculpts was about 20 of this Egyptian NCO with SMG -

Now with selective use of Raventhorpe's excellent spare heads and a change of paint-job I created these -

French Foreign Legion (indo-china)

 FFL in white Kepi

 Spanish 1990 mech infantry NCO, here I also swapped out the SMG for a G3

 Spanish 1990 mech infantry with H&K MP5

Spanish Tercio de Ifni (Spanish Sahara) late 1950s

This time I`ve used a Warrior Miniatures head with Isabelino cap plus the G3 (I`ll paint him up with the others of his unit when I have them all together as a batch)

 

Natasha Pavlyuchenkova

Another 28mm girlie, this time from Statuesque Miniatures

These models are of the more delicate style of 28mm sculptures, the detail is quite superb, though Im` not sure my painting does her any justice.

I`ve tried to paint her up like a character from a 1970s "adventure" serise like New Avengers or The Professionals - showing my age :-)

Alpha squad

28mm figures from Shadowforge 

Squad leader

  NCO

 RTO 

(this is a slight conversion with her left arm altered and added aerial)

Whole squad

Mexican Colorados

Again clearing away odds`n sods

Colorados were ex-revolutionaries who sold-out to Huerta and became "Bandit hunters" turning upon their former comrades and the very people whom they once tried to help. They were renown for their nasty zealous natures and tactics and were in return hated by the Revolutionaries whom killed them on sight.

At Crusade I bought a pack of mounted Australian Light Horse figures off Paul @ Early War Miniatures, the pack contained three identical castings like this -

Using spare arms from Tumbling Dice and with a little cutting and fiddling, I changed two into these

 

I think the final effect is OK and they seem to blend in the ones I`ve already done.

Heres the three figures with one of my original batch (round base) he started life as a SCW cavalryman by Warrior Miniatures  

  

Moroccans of 7RTM

Clearing the decks of the odds`n sods I bought at Crusade.

A few pieces to add to my 7RTM forces -

Early War Miniatures (formally british Indian Cavalry)

Slighly altered and painted up as Moroccan Traillieur, M1922 LMG team with a couple or riflemen 

Moving team (mounted) the LMG packed on the horse is a terrific model 

The whole team with an additional rider (a converted Retrokit resin figure)

Additional mule-team (packed 80mm Brandt mortar by Combat Miniatures)

Closer look at the packed mortar