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Saturday, May 28, 2016

Imperial - Toy Soldiers

I don't really know much about this manufacturer. It's not listed on the O'Brien guides and I only found one reference to it online at Toy Soldier HQ, which has it listed under Foreign Manufacturers without specifying the country of origin. It also says that these figures were made around the mid 70s, which would make sense, given the fact that they copied some of the Matchbox and Airfix poses. Whether they made any other figures, WWI or otherwise, is also unknown to me. So if you happen to have any more info on them, please leave a comment. 

Imperial US Infantry
Imperial US Infantry - Part I
This is an interesting set in 1:32 scale. It is a mix of figures based on the Matchbox GIs, Airfix GIs, and the Airfix Australians. The Australians have given up their distinctive hat in favor of the steel helmet. As far as I know there are 9 poses. The missing guys are the Australian Bren gunner who is kneeling, the Australian who is standing/walking on guard duty, the Airfix GI with the bazoooka -he was given a base-, and the Airfix GI who is running with the rifle at his chest. The nice thing is that they have cast them in a way that you can hardly distinguish that they are originally from different sets. The original Matchbox guys used to have baggier outfits, and the Airfix guys were a bit slimmer, but here they look as if they were from the same set. As far as I know, they were made in the mid 70s and they have the Imperial brand stamped beneath their bases

Imperial US Infantry
Imperial US Infantry - Part II
This picture includes four additional poses. Two of the men shown were already in the prior picture. Again, these are a mix of Airfix GIs and ANZAC troops, with some slight modifications. Like the bazooka man has been given a much needed base. And the man standing with the weapon slung over his shoulder has been given a helmet. Other than that, they are very mush the same as the Airfix figures. The paint on this guys was added by a prior owner.