Friday, October 7, 2016

French 48th Line Regiment - 1859

Having been away from the painting desk for more than a fortnight, time to get back to the work at hand.  Work just finished consists of three, twelve figure battalions of French line infantry for the 15mm Risorgimento project.
These 36 figures muster out as the 48th Line regiment, joining the growing French contingent for the project.  Without checking my notes, the 48th might be the seventh such French line regiment deployed.  Figures are from Lancashire Games.
The 48th represents the first batch of Lancashire Games' figures modeled in the marching pose.  Even though I am quite fond of Lancashire's advancing pose, the marching pose may be my favorite.  Detail is crisp with only a few of the figures carrying either broken or miscast bayonets.  No big deal to me.
  
It is good that I enjoy the marching pose.  Over the last few sales' offerings, large quantities of both French and Austrians in march have been stockpiled.  So many of these figures are presently in inventory that Lancashire's latest sales event was bypassed.
Again, great figures at a great price that look good en masse.  As a bonus, Allan has been adjusting my advertised shipping costs when the posted rate is higher than actual.  That gesture is greatly appreciated!

While piles of infantry remain to paint, next off the painting desk will likely be four squadrons of French hussars by Old Glory.  At the start of 2016, one of my objectives was concentrating on the 1859 project.  Painting wise, that box can be ticked.  On the gaming front, time runs short to get the collection onto the gaming table for a long overdue outing.  The good news is that French, Sardinian, and Austrian troops can be fielded in sufficient quantities to scratch together an OOB using all three of these constituents. 

22 comments:

  1. I like the look of the base density when in column. Is that a 60mm frontage on the base? I just received some Lancashire games 1066 figures to evaluate them for a project, but the soft metal caused problems withthe spears, have you found that to be an issue with these figures?

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    1. Norm, you have a keen eye! The base frontage is 60mm with a depth of 30mm. These figures in the march pose are likely similar to your 1066 spearmen in that these French troops are holding their musket upright with the only connection point at the hand. Everything above the hand is free to move. While the metal is soft, I have had no issue with musket breakage with the exception of a miscast bayonet or two. I have no issues with these. If you do get a package with breakage, Allan would most likely offer to replace them.

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  2. Lovely looking regiment Jonathan!

    Christopher

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  3. Great looking outfit! Among my Napoleonic French, the 48e Ligne is the most veteran of all the Line units; it served in Davout's Corps for most of the Napoleonic Wars. it was the first French line I painted in my original Scruby army, and when I replaced them with Foundry figures about 20 years ago, the 48e once again held precedence over all other Ligne units. It has proved its worth on the tabletop many times. May your 48Ee have an illustrious career as well, Jon!

    And thanks for your support of the Wizard Kraft KS!

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    1. Thank you, Peter! The 48e Ligne is present in my 15mm Napoleonic collection but not present in the 28mm collection. With luck, this 48e Ligne will serve well when under my command!

      As for the KS, you did a terrific job wrangling participants. I was prepared to throw in a little more if needed. Perhaps you have a future career as a WHIP?

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    2. Not in the Frank Underwood style, I wouldn't, LOL! It seemed clear that William just didn't have a very good idea how to market himself, the KS, and his products, which really are outstanding, especially seen "in the flesh". I was prepared to throw in up to another $100 in the final hour to put it over the top, but was glad that I didn't have to. As it was, I went for quite a bit more than I had intended, but I have no regrets, especially once I figured out that I'd probably use the extra $150 as a gift to Jared's Middle school gaming group to add some great rivers to their terrain collection.

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    3. I had not paid close attention to Jake's rivers before. I will next time, for sure knowing that I have a some coming my way.

      $150 in terrain is a generous gift to your local school! Wish I had a benefactor like you when I came up through the ranks. We didn't even have the classic wargaming books in the school, city, or county library.

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  4. Looks awesome Jonathon. I always admire people who can paint big regiments like this its something I struggle with tbh. Ace work dude!

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    1. Thank you, Simon! Thirty-six figures in one go is a big bite for me too. Working on only twelve figures seems too few and it IS satisfying to churn out an entire 36 figure regiment.

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  5. Another great looking unit, Jonathan, for a great period - one I have considered ever since reading about it in Featherstone's "Wargames Campaigns" many years ago. I look forward to seeing the AAR of that great battle.

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    1. Thanks, Mark! At the rate you complete a period, an 1859 project out to be a snap!

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  6. Great Historical Regiment to paint up Jon! The figures look great en massed...um hmm..perhaps may be the time for me to start painting 15/18mm Napoleonic's :o)
    looks like the base sizes are 60mm x 30mm?

    cheers,
    Mrs. DBA :o)

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    1. Mrs. DBA! Ah, I had not forgotten about that! Still cracks me up.

      You can paint Napoleonics but these are for the later 1859 campaign in Italy. You are correct on the base size. 60mm x 30mm for the French and Sardinians. Austrians with their larger battalions have a commensurately larger footprint. That does not include the various bases for the light troops.

      Thanks for the positive comment on the French lads!

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  7. Nicely painted troops - very effective en-mass. A
    The flags really add to the look. Are they hand painted?

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    1. Thanks! For the flags, I pulled the image from the internet, manipulated it a bit, and then painted the edges after it was affixed to the standard. No hand painting outside of the edges.

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  8. Great looking french line unit, it's an interesting period that your covering really well.
    Best Iain

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