Spanish in Barrack Cap
So when I finally got to meet and chat with the owner of Newline Designs at the Broadside show in Kent back in June, I took the plunge and bought a selection of his C19th Gurkhas as the basis of my attempted conversions.
A couple of period photos, so you get the general idea
Photo of a replica cap I found on the internet
16 figures in all, the uniform is olive green (hard to tell in these photos - sorry), black leather belts and pouches.
This first 4 figures were all the same pose originally reloading their muskets with ramrod in the right hand, I removed that arm and replaced each with a plastic arm from the bits box 😄Not perfect but now at least they are not driving a ramrod into a musket and look a bit more C20th (at least at 4ft across a tabletop) 😁
The figure on the left had a kukri, I swapped the arm with a rifle arm from Tumbling Dice
The figure on the right also had a kukri, this time he has a plastic arm
The officer has had a head-swap as I wanted a peaked cap
All together
This probably happens to everyone, but as I was sorting out my next batch of painting, I discovered another pack of these Newline Designs Gurkhas! I bought them at same time at the Broadsword show and they must have got thrown into the same bag and I missed them - D`oh! 😁
Anyway, no harm no foul, I undercoated them along with the next batch of stuff, but painted them first. This now gives me 20 figures in total, roughly two platoons worth under our rules.
Your figures have turned out rather nicely. Well done 👏👏
ReplyDeleteTBH though, the hat itself doesn’t seem, to me at least, to have much of a practical military use, although I suppose the very name “barrack cap” suggests it’s not really for use on campaigns, but rather just around the barracks/garrison. I much prefer the look of the Isabelino side cap - although, on reflection, I don’t imagine that had much of a practical use, other than looking rather snazzy. Military fashion I suppose 😉
Cheers,
Geoff
Cheers Geoff, this barrack cap pre-dates the Isabelino in Spanish service. You will remember the British wore something similar before the introduction of the side cap. The Spanish soldier appears to have preferred this to wearing the bulky cork sun-helmet - as worn by our boys during the Sudan/Zulu/Boer Wars era. These Spaniards wil join my general Peninsula Army units for early Rif War games.
DeleteNice conversions, they have worked really well. Interesting photos as well.
ReplyDeleteCheers Donnie, the photos are Zeluan, Morocco 1921
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