Action Report: National Capital Model Soldier Society 2013 Toy Soldier Show

After having missed several local Toy Soldier Shows, I had the opportunity and pleasure of attending the NCMSS 2013 Toy Soldier Show this past weekend. Besides being able to chat with the vendors and pick up missing or new items for the collection, what makes this show special is that it also contains an exhibit of dioramas built by the members of the society. Many of these dioramas are quite nice and even if they are on topics beyond WWII, they still manage to grab my attention and inspire me. In terms of vendor interaction, I was able to spend some time with Gary Green from Warstore Collectibles who, BTW, is one of the few vendors still carrying FOV vehicles and gave me a very nice deal on several of them. Now that FOV has increased its prices so much, their vehicles are becoming harder to find at the shows as dealers are hesitant to invest in them, aware of the lower demand given the higher prices. Quite unfortunate as I think that this will ultimately hurt FOV. Moving along, I also had a chance to stop by and chat with John Stengel, 'the Marx man'. His knowledge of the hobby and friendly character made it quite a pleasant experience, while I picked up from a couple of bins some figures which I had been hunting down for a long time. Hobby Bunker was also there, and George Guerreiro from Minute Men Toy Soldiers as well. All in all, quite a successful and enjoyable trip. Anyhow, here are some pictures from some of the sights, and in particular, some of the dioramas which caught my attention.

Getting to the show...

The parking lot was packed, so I was getting a bit nervous about things starting to sell out, in particular the Pegasus German Paras which was my main goal of the day... By the time I got in there, only Hobby Bunker had them left, but I got them!

A shot of the floor, showing about two thirds of the vendors.

A very nice diorama of the battle of the Alamo.

Here is another angle, depicting the battle outside the chapel.

Great figures, great building, great layout and composition.

I initially mistook this for a Napoleonic battle, but an alert reader -see comments below- identified it as the 'last stand of the 44th foot at Gandamak'. A battle that took place in Afghanistan in 1842. The amount of drama in this diorama is quite palpable! 

The perspective from the attacker's point of view. 

This ship was magnificent. Built from scratch, the level of detail was amazing, and on top of that, the engine and the propeller actually worked! You could see the pistons firing and moving up and down in the engine room and even though the propeller had its own separate electric motor, the illusion was quite impressive. I hope this guy won the prize... 

A WWII scene showing a couple of knocked out T-34s, allegedly taken out by some SS troopers. Nice job with the water and the grass.

Click here to see a post about a prior NCMSS show.

Click here to see a post about the Heart of the South show

West Wall Museum at Bad Bergzabern

This was my second attempt at visiting one of the West Wall's bunkers. My first attempt at Pirmasens turned out to be a very nice museum, but was not really a bunker. This one at Bad Bergzabern was a real bunker, although, as far as I am aware of, it did not see any combat and it did not have any dragon's teeth around it as I had envisioned them. Nonetheless it was a good and enlightening visit. The bunker has also been turned into a museum and the staff are helpful and knowledgeable. Let's take a look at what it has to offer.

This is the entrance to the bunker. It is located on its back side.

This is the main firing bay. Today it hosts a WWI howitzer. I don't know if that was also the equipment that it hosted during WWII. I would not be surprised as following the fall of France in 1940, this sector would not have deemed in need of the latest equipment which was better used at the actual battle fronts. The firing port is closed off today, where the photograph can be seen infront of the gun. Another interesting detail is the damage that can be seen around the firing port. As it turns out, that happened after the war as the US military used the bunker to conduct some tests with explosives from within the bunker.

A bit more detail of the supporting implements to operate and maintain the howitzer.

This shell was next to the howitzer, but I believe this is an 88mm shell.

Looks like the gun carriage/limber for the gun. Back then, despite Germany's blitzkrieg reputation, a lot of the artillery was still horse drawn.

This one is more likely the shell for the howitzer.

This is a rocket of the kind that were launched from the Sd Kfz 251, the German Halftrack which was also known as the 'Stuka zu Fuss' and carried 6 of them, 3 on each side mounted on the metal grid shown above.

An unlucky mortar in which the shell exploded prematurely.

A trunk filled with all sorts of tools and repairing equipment.

The sleeping quarters for the bunker crew.

Their eating area. Notice how the shelves are used to store the helmets and mess kits which were probably superfluous during everyday life within a bunker.

Now, here is an item that was an absolute necessity: the toilet. Since they could not flush it, notice how there is a mechanism to close the lid tightly.

Some artwork made by a Lansdser.

Sign warning soldiers not to be shocked by explosions within a bunker which can be very loud, because 'the west wall is built out of some of the best material in the world'.

A sign showing the rations that the bunker occupants were entitled to receive.

Signs warning that theft was punishable by death.

Some early machine gun model.

Looks like the tip of a 75mm gun. After the war it was sawed off the main gun and embedded in a concrete bucket.

Looking down the barrel... good thing it's not loaded!

The museum also had a few interesting pictures. This one for instance shows a bunker cammouflaged as a barn... quite a deadly trap for an enemy column moving up the road.

Another unique picture. Makes you wonder how many children met an early death or serious injury playing with such 'toys' just as the war was ending.

An observation turret of the kind that were installed outside the bunker.

This is an actual turret located behind the entrance to the bunker.

A close up of the schematic depicting the inside of the turret. Note that it was also a defensive position.

A scaled down layout of the bunker.

It has more rooms and compartments than one initially suspects.

Click here to see a post about the West Wall museum at Pirmasens

Click here to see a post about the British Airborne museum at Arnhem

Click here to see a post about the rocket museum at Peenemunde

Click here to see a post about the US Airborne museum at Fayetville
Click here to see a post about the Auto and Technik museum at Sinsheim
Click here to see a post about the Normandy Landing Beaches

Starlux - Toy Soldiers

Starlux was a French manufacturer of Toy Soldiers. Not sure when they were founded, but according to O'Brien's Collecting Foreign Toy Soldiers, they were in production until the 1980's. They initially manufactured composition figures, like Elastolin, and then, after WWII switched to Plastic. They made figures in 20, 40 and 60mm, and included a good range of time periods, like romans, vikngs, knights, civil war, and WWII.  The figures were factory-painted in two styles, basic (Choc) and detailed (Luxe) and their prices vary accordingly. Unfortunately, they are a bit rare on this side of the Atlantic. One day I would love to go to France and stock up on some of their sets. For now, I have to be content with the only set I have found so far:

Starlux 60 mm German Infantry - Part I

I was pleasantly surprised by this set. My first set of Starlux figures. The poses are 60 mm in scale, but are really close enough in size to 54mm that they blend quite well with the rest of the 1/32 guys. The sculpting is nice and detailed, and the poses well balanced and proportioned. Quite surprising for the time when they were made. My only complaint is the paint job. I am not sure if this is how they were painted at the factory or if the previous owner gave them a touch up. Particularly the faces/eyes are a bit odd.

Starlux 60 mm German Infantry - Part II

Here are two more figures that I recently found. Unfortunately one of them had the rifle tip broken, but they are still quite nice and match the other guys perfectly. I like the stance of the man on the right. He really looks ready for some action.

Starlux 60 mm German Infantry - Part III

Here are a few more guys. By now I am starting to realize a manufacturing pattern used by Starlux. If you pay attention, the manufactured the bodies and arms separately and then they glued different arms to different bodies to create a large combination of figures. Conte used the same approach with his first set of Germans.

Starlux 60 mm German Infantry - Part IV

A not very common pose is the one carrying the anti tank rifle.

And we also have an officer wearing a field cap.

Starlux 60 mm German Infantry - Part V

Another kneeling man. Not sure what he was holding on his left arm, as it has come off. 

Starlux German Marching Band - Part I

These are just three poses. I just thought I'd let you see how they look from the other angle. I don't know how many there were in the original set, but I'd bet there must be more. These will probably go well marching with the Marx guys, as they are also stepping forward with the left foot and are the same scale. I might also combine them with the Atlantic SA set which come with flag and standards, although those are lifting the right foot.

Starlux German Marching Band - Part II 

Three additional poses and a second version of the officer, this time with the unbroken scabbard. Of these, poses, I have to say that hands down, the best pose is the flag bearer. A very good find which will add a lot visually to the parade scene. 

Starlux French Alpine Troops - Part I

I find this set quite nice, primarily due to its uniqueness. The figures are very well proportioned and with a decent level of detail. The only thing that I would have preferred is to have a few more action poses and fewer guys just standing around. But still it is a very nice set.

Starlux French Alpine Troops - Part II

Again, these are perhaps not the most exciting poses, however they do have a certain elegance to them which makes them feel special. The paint job could have been a bit better, although it could also be that it has deteriorated over the years.

Starlux French Alpine Troops - Part III

A couple of musicians. One of them is playing the distinctive bulge horn which is the emblem of the unit and is work on the right side of the beret.

Starlux French Alpine Troops - Part IV

These three are my favorite poses. I just wish I had more of them to build a real patrol unit.

Starlux French Alpine Troops - Part V

The same three guys from another angle.

Starlux US Medical Team

This is another nice medical team. Again, I am missing the stretcher, but hopefully I can come up with a replacement to load up the casualty. The medic in this case seems to be walking along unconcerned about the patient. Might have been better to make him pay a bit more attention to him. The nice thing about the Starlux figures is that they come factory-painted which makes them look nicer. What is a bit odd, though is that they are all wearing ties, which is not something that I think would happen in the field.

Starlux US Infantry

This guy looks like he could be an artillery officer waiting for the right time to begin the barrage. I wish I had a few more figures to go with him, even if it were just a mortar team.

Starlux US or French Infantry Part I

These guys look like GIs to me, but knowing that French troops also wore US equipment, I don't know if they might have been made to represent French Infantry. Since they were made by Starlux a French firm selling to the French market, I would not be surprised if they are actually representing French soldiers. BTW, I am not sure why the second guy from the right was made of a multi-color plastic. I like the pose though. 

Starlux US or French Infantry Part II

A few more GI looking guys. The uniform color is a bit different and some of them are wearing ties, but the helmet does look American issued. As you can see I only have a subset of the total poses as the man feeding the machine gun belt is missing the machine gunner to partner with.

Starlux US or French Infantry Part III

Here are a few more poses. The funny thing about Starlux figures is that they meant to make some poses exhibiting action and movement, and yet the execution always seems to have fallen a bit short. The bodies are often straighter than you would expect for a guy running or throwing a grenade. Still it's better than standing or marching poses... An interesting pose in this set is the guy handling the captured panzerschreck. 

Starlux US or French Infantry Part IV

And one more. This guy is firing a bazooka, although I don't get a sense that he is braced well enough for the explosion. I know the reaction is supposed to be rather neutral, but I've got to think that it must shake you up a bit and he is standing rather casually. Anyhow, it's always good to have more heavy weapons in the squad to fend of the German armor. 

Starlux US or French Infantry Part V
A decent looking pose. Too bad the detector is broken off.

Starlux US or French Infantry 45or 50 mm

These are slightly smaller figures than the 54mm guys. I don't know why they would have manufactured figures in two scales so close to each other. These guys show slightly more action than the other two sets. Would have been nice if they had been a bit bigger. 

Starlux French Commandos - Part I

I have seen 10 poses of these, so I know there are at least that many of them. Unfortunately I only managed to get one of them in a batch of mixed figures.

Starlux French Commandos - Part II

Here are two more poses. Again, I found them in a large lot of mixed figures. They are a bit damaged, but it's still clear what the poses were meant to be. With the right parts and a bit of patience and skill I think they could be repaired. 

Starlux French Foreign Legion - Part I

The FFL did see action in WWII, but I don't know for sure if they wore this uniform during that conflict. In any case, FFL troopers are always interesting, regardless of the time period. From what I have seen, the FFL figures were released in both green and khaki uniforms.

Starlux French Foreign Legion - Part II

Here is one more guy who appears to be from the same set, or at lest the same scale, about 50mm. He looks like he might have been throwing or holding something, but unfortunately it broke off. Given the fact that he came with a green base, I later realized, he was probably not meant to be set in the North African desert... well, he might have to adjust a bit.

Starlux French Foreign Legion - Part III

I am actually not sure if these guys are FFL. They are wearing similar headgear, but I think officers in the regular army might have also worn these. Perhaps one of our readers knows better? 

One thing to note is that the man on the right has the tip of his baton (or flag pole?) broken off. 

Starlux French Foreign Legion - Part IV

These guys are slightly larger than the previous one. Perhaps somewhere between 54 mm and 60 mm. I really like this set in particular. The MG can be disassembled and rotates freely around the vertical axis. I don't know if the man signaling was originally part of the crew, but he comes in handy.  

Starlux French Foreign Legion - Part V
Here are several more poses with quite a bit of variety. Definitely good to have some of those special poses which are less common, such as a flame thrower or a radio man. In addition to them, we also have a decent officer, a grenade man and a funny looking guy running with a sub mg. I say that because we all know that when running we move opposite arms and legs at one time, unlike this guy.

Starlux French Foreign Legion - Part VI

And a few more guys. The guy on the right, obviously was not part of this set given the color of his base, but I grouped him with them based on size. I still don't get it why Starlux made so many different sets. With all the poses across different sets and scales, they could have made very comprehensive contributions in fewer areas. Anyhow, the most interesting guy in this picture is probably the mine sweeper. 

Starlux French Foreign Legion - Part VII

And here we have two mounted officers. One seems to e leading his troops into battle, which I doubt would have actually happened on horse, and the second one is more of a spectator. Both are nice and interesting, as horses by themselves lift figures to a different level. Again, the bases don't fit the desert setting, but I'd like to keep these guys with the rest of the FFL figures that I have, who have tan bases and would fit well in North Africa. 

Starlux French Red Berets - Part I
I believe these red berets represent Paratroopers, so in that sense, they very likely they represent post WWII troops, as to my knowledge, the first French para units were created in the mid 50's The poses are a mix of fighting guys and parade poses. I am certainly biased towards the fighting guys. The only one I find a bit odd is the man with the rifle above his head. More than fighting, it looks like he is cheering or beginning to surrender.


Starlux French Red Berets - Part II
Two more parade poses to go with the two other guys on the right of the prior picture.

Starlux French Red Berets - Part III

These guys are slightly larger than the ones in the previous picture. Somewhere in between 54mm and 60mm. The man on the left is operating a flamethrower, although it's not so easy to tell that from the picture. The man on the right is an officer, but he is missing his left hand and I don't really know what he was originally holding. 

Starlux French Red Berets - Part IV

A grenade thrower in a style very similar to the two previous figures, but with enough differences that it makes me wonder if it was part of a different set.

Starlux French Red Berets - Part V

These guys are about 50mm in height. Unfortunately two of them are pretty battered. The one on the left is my favorite one. Not because he is still whole, but I like the pose. It's one that could lead him to engage the enemy at any moment. There's a bit of tension in it. The man aiming is very traditional and the one with his arms raised can't be doing something very useful.

Starlux French Red Berets - Part VI

Here are some other red berets in parade poses. I don't know if the tan uniforms represent a different service branch or just another outfit worn by the French Paras.

Starlux French Navy
A couple of  French sailors. Also from that batch of mixed figures. Not that exciting in terms of poses, but a bit unique as there are no other French Navy sailors that I am aware of.

Starlux French Navy - Part II

OK, so here are a few more poses, but also from Starlux. Most of them are on parade. In this batch you have a couple of high ranking officers. You also have the guy carrying the submg, which he does in a rather elegant manner.

Starlux French Navy - Part III

Then you have a few members of the marching band. Interesting to see that they also played the bag pipe.

Starlux French Navy - Part IV

And a couple more percussion instruments and a horn.

Starlux French Navy - Part V

Now, for these folks you might need to get yourself a warship, as I can definitely picture them on its deck taking care of business. 

Starlux French Navy - Part VI

The two guys in the middle could the the ones watching the parade go by. The man on the left could be an officer on the ship's bridge. And then finally, we have an action pose, although I don't really picture many scenarios in which a navy guy would be using his hand gun.

Starlux 60mm Swiss Officer - painted as Japanese

This is a figure I ran into by chance, but picked up without hesitation. It was advertised as a Japanese officer, but one of our fellow collectors confirmed that it is a Swiss officer. I suspected that might be the case based on the shape of the helmet. It will be placed at the front of the column of Japanese troops which I am in the process of painting. The uniform is a bit darker than I'd like so I might need to give him a bit of a touch up. It looks like the prior owner already did touched up the paint a bit, so I am not too bothered by the thought of modifying the original. Anyhow, as you can see, it is a nicely made figure. The rider can be removed from the horse. The pose could have used a bit more action, but even like this, I find it a nice addition to the collection. The reality most likely is that officers did not ride their horses into battle, but rather used them for transportation, as shown in the picture.

Starlux Soviet Infantry
I suspect these might be recasts as they don't have any color on them as opposed to the typical Starlux figures. Also, I don't really know how many there were in the set. I only got a hold of five of them, with two repeated figures. I am not overly excited about the poses. I don't like figures which just seem to be standing around not doing much, and that's how these guys look. But they are hard to find, so at least I am happy I have a few guys as a sample.

Starlux Soviet Infantry ?
I can't say for sure if these guys are Soviets. They look like they could be, but then again, the look very different from the three Soviets in the prior picture. I do like that they are action poses, so I hope they turn out to be Soviet. Even if they are not, maybe I will just use them a such.

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Click here to see a post about the French Navy
Click here to see a post about French Infantry
Click here to see a post about German Infantry
Click here to see a post about French alpine troops