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Wednesday, September 14, 2011

US Infantry - Part II

In this post I'd like to introduce you to a few more of the GIs in my collection. That is, those that have not been painted, or that already came factory painted. The unpainted ones will eventually join the ranks of the painted company once they have matching uniforms, but since it might be a while before that happens, I won't keep you waiting to meet them.  

Atlantic US Infantry (Marines) - Part I
This is one of my favorite sets from Atlantic. The figures are posed with enough movement in them and they are well proportioned. The kneeling guy's bazooka is a separate piece, so unless you glue it, you have to put it in place every time you handle him. I bought these guys on eBay labeled as GIs, but I recently discovered that they are actually Marines. Even so, they pass just fine as GIs.

Atlantic US Infantry (Marines) - Part II
Here are another 6 figures. If you are counting that makes 11, which is 1 more than the usual in the typical Atlantic set. The highlight of this batch are the flag-raising guys. Again, the flag comes separately and it requires a few tries to assemble the three pieces right, but the effort is well worth it. A mini tribute to the Iwo Jima flag-raising marines. This is the obvious clue that they are in fact marines.

Dulcop US Infantry - Part I
I found these guys by chance at a soldier show a couple of years back. A solid, well done set of figures. The base it a bit unusual. It has a lip all around the upper edge of the base, and if you look at them from a certain angle, their bases seem to be floating above the ground.

Dulcop US Infantry - Part II
The Dulcop poses remind me of the Airfix set. They don't have prone guys, but the rest are kind of similar. The color reminds me of the Army Men from Toy Story.

Britains Deetail US Infantry - Part I
The two men on the sides belong to the first series of GIs released by Britains. Aside from infantrymen, Britains also produced extra sets with heavy weapons. Here we have what they called the recoilless rifle. I've also seen it referred to as a 75mm gun. In any case, it is a nice addition to your army, which can provide some indirect fire support at critical times.

Britains Deetail US Infantry - Part II
These are the rest of the poses in the Series 1 set. Note that the right arm is made separately and attached to the figure. As a result of this, the arms often move up and down and can sometimes come off. The later series 2 figures were cast as one whole piece. Also, these guys have a tan base. The later figures came with green bases. 

Britains Deetail US Motor Boat
Here is a simple two man team with a boat ready to attempt an amphibious crossing. The boat does not look like much, but having an engine it provides a big advantage over having to row while dodging bullets. On the downside, with that engine it would not be of much use for a surprise/stealth crossing. Coming to think of it, I think the figures are quite a bit nicer than the actual boat.

First Gear US Infantry
These are the rest of the Britains Deetail guys, as they are presently made by First Gear. You can see that they make them in a couple of different uniform color schemes. Note also the difference in the bases.

Charbens US Infantry - Part 1
Charben was a British manufacturer that made figures in the 60s and 70s. I am not sure if these guys are from back then or if they are new production figures based on the old molds. The sculpting is not very detailed and some of the poses don't feel very natural. They are also on the smaller side of 54mm.

Charbens US Infantry - Part 2
The bases of these figures are also a bit small which does not make them very stable. Now that we have the negative points out of the way, I am still optimistic that once they are painted the colors will give them a lift in appearance and they will fit in with the rest of the unit.

CTS US Infantry Set 1 - Part I
These guys were just released a few months back. The sculpting is nice and some of the poses are quite original, like the kneeling guy with the two pistols.

CTS US Infantry Set 1 - Part II
The standing bazooka man and the flamethrower guy are nice variations for these weapons.

CTS US Infantry Set 2 - Part I
This is the second release of GIs by CTS. The guy I like the most is the one on the radio. I like the intensity that he portrays. The prone BAR man is also a good addition to the unit.

CTS US Infantry Set 2 - Part II
These three poses are what made me get a a couple of these sets. I had the Long Tom artillery pieces from 21st Century Toys, but I did not have crews for them. There is a loader, a guy on the phone, and another one that seems to be ready to fire the gun.

CTS US Infantry Set 2 - Part III
Here is a close up of the crew. The caliber of the ammo looks small for this gun, but I guess it's going to have to be good enough for it.

Bergen Toys US Infantry - Part I
Here are some guys that I found on eBay. They were made by a company called Bergen Toys and Novelty Co. You can tell that they are older figures, the first ones made apparently around 1938, although they went through multiple releases with slight variations. Bergen Toys  is often also referred to as Beton, and its soldiers as Betons.

Bergen Toys US Infantry - Part II
Note how the poses are very straight, favoring ease of manufacturing. I mainly got them for their uniqueness factor.

Bergen Toys US Infantry - Part III
Always a good thing to have a standard bearer, just in case you want to have your troops parade down the Champs Élysées. I find the guy holding the phone so close to his chest a bit amusing though.

Bergen Toys US Infantry - Part IV
The only clue as to who made these guys is at the base. Apparently it stands for Bergen Toys.

Forces of Valor US Infantry
A decent set by Forces of Valor. Most of their other US figures had been paratroops, so it is good that they came out with an Army division. The machine gun needs some hot water to straighten it, and the bazooka is a bit on the small side. Plus you need to glue the men to their base otherwise they keep coming apart.

21st Century Toys US Infantry - Part I
21st Century came out with multiple series of GIs over several years. Unfortunately I did not record what figures came out in each batch. In all, I have 18 of them. Maybe I am missing a couple, but I don't know for sure, as some of them came from someone else's collection. Overall, I like the poses and the nice factory paint job.

21st Century Toys US Infantry - Part II
The guy who is standing firing is a bit stiff for my taste. The guys walking/standing are OK. The bazooka man and the one moving forward are more my kind of figures.

21st Century Toys US Infantry - Part III
The best one here is the guy who is charging. The guy kneeling behind the fence is also good, but I find the fence a bit limiting in terms of the scenes where you can set the guy. And then there's the gy who can barely stand... I won't tell you what I think about him!

21st Century Toys US Infantry - Part IV
These 4 guys are all nice. The guy throwing the grenade seems a bit off balance, but I that's just how he got glued to the base, which reminds me to point that out. The bases are not part of the same mold as the figure, which is also the case with a few of the weapons, like the flamethrower nozzle. 

Blue Box Elite Command US Infantry
This  set represents General Goerge Patton and some of his infantrymen. Compared to other metal figures, like King and Country and so on, they are not as nice, but they are still OK. As far as the resemblance with Patton, you can be the judge of that. 

Ajax US Infantry - Part I
These figures have more value to me as collectibles. The poses are not so well detailed and the proportions are a bit off in some cases -like the size of the heads. The balance of the figures is also a bit off/awkward as is the case with the man throwing the grenade. One interesting detail is the shape of the antenna of the radio man. Anyhow, we must not forget that these were meant to be toys with mold making technology that is now about 60 years old. 

Ajax US Infantry - Part II
These other 4 figures are closer to 60 mm in size. You can tell that they are taller by comparing them against the bunker in the back. The two in the left are a bit better detailed and proportioned. There is supposed to be a 10th guy which was carrying a flamethrower. Apparently this pose was manufactured by a third party, but sold along with the Ajax figures.

If you would like to see some painted GIs, click here.
And click here to see even more GIs.
Here's a post of the GI's breaking out of Normady.
And here is another post with GIs defending an italian farmhouse.

2 comments:

  1. TSSD, Conte, and CTS will make 1/35, even some 1/32, soldiers look like small children in military attire.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yes! even for 1/32 they are on the 'robust' end of the spectrum!

    ReplyDelete