Britains Herald & Swoppets - Toy Soldiers

Britains Herald was a brand within the Britains product line. It was Britain's first incursion into plastic figure market. They launched it in the mid 50s and continued to produce them and sell them through the mid 70s. The Herald product line coexisted with the Britains Swoppets, and 'eyes right' brands during the 60s and 70s, when they were phased out in favor of the Deetail figures. In contrast with the later Deetail figures, the Herald range did not cover WWII. Perhaps it was too soon to address that subject when the Herald guys came out. They did produce a set of 'modern infantry' which can pass for WWII figures though. The figures came factory painted with some basic colors. To give the Tommies an opponent, the same figures were released with a darker helmet. Initially this set was made in the UK and later it was made in Hong Kong. To read more about the evolution of the Herald product line, check out this excellent post . OK, so let's take a look at their poses.

Britains Herald British Infantry - Part I

You can see based on the weapons they are carrying these guys seem to be post-WWII figures, but their poses are nice enough that I couldn't resist being a purist and I drafted them into the WWII Army. I like the dynamic nature of their poses, like the guy who is charging with the bayonet. 

Britains Herald British Infantry - Part II

I don't like casualty figures that much -mainly because they are not very useful for war-gaming- but I have to say that the guy in this set is quite dramatic and well done. BTW, you can tell some of the newer figures, the ones made in Hong Kong, from the base which is not part of the figure but attached to it.

Britains Herald British Infantry - Part III

This is how they looked in their original colors. The mine sweeper guy did not get painted because I got him after I was done painting the other guys. The marching guy was eliminated because I wanted more active poses.

Britains Herald British Infantry - Part IV

This guy is more like a 50mm figure than 1/32. From what I understand he was designed and manufactured as a test product -and just this single pose- when Britains was evaluating getting into the plastic market. In case of a failed experiment, they were going to be sold to the tourist market, hence the ceremonial stance. 

Britains Swoppets British Infantry - Part I

I only have a handful of these guys, but this sample is quite nice. The mortar team is very well put together. Unfortunately the man dropping the shell into the tube is missing the shell, but if you assume that he just dropped it, then it works just fine. The stretcher guys unfortunately are also missing the stretcher, so I had to place the wounded man on the ground. I guess that's the downside of the swoppet approach. Those detachable pieces go missing. Note that the wounded guy comes with a blanket, which gives it an additional nice touch.

Britains Swoppets British Infantry - Part II

A couple more guys. The marching guy is nothing out of the ordinary. The other guy is showing quite a bit more action. Definitely more into the heat of the moment. 

Britains Swoppets British Infantry - Part III

This guy came to me already in a pretty beaten up shape. Looks like the previous owner wanted some casualties in his army and even painted some blood stains on this poor fellow. I wish they had kept him in his original state... BTW, his upper body looks like the one from the man dropping the shell into the mortar. 

Britains Swoppets British Infantry - Part IV

This guy seems to have the same lower body as the previous guy. although he seems to have lost his base, but that's OK. He does not really need it. The upper body is very much to my liking and his weapon is in great shape. I think he is one of my favorite swoppet figures across all swoppet manufacturers. 

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Forces of Valor - Toy Soldiers

Forces of Valor came into the Toy Soldier scene approximately 10 years ago, shortly after 21st Century Toys began production of armored vehicles. They also go by the name Unimax. Forces of Valor has produced high-end die cast vehicles for the most part, but it has also released a few figure sets. Its vehicles sometimes also contain figures as part of the crew or to enrich the scene around it. Their figure sets also contain a good number of accessories, such as sandbags, furniture, boxes, etc. The figures come factory painted and they are also unique in the sense that the base is detachable. I don't like that in particular because you have to put them together again when you deploy them and I have not found a good glue to keep them together. Considering FOV's output in terms of vehicles it would have been nice if they had produced a few more figure sets. They certainly seem to have the sculpting and manufacturing capability.

Forces of Valor German Infantry - Part I

These are the first series of FOV German Infantry. The paint job on the figures is very realistic,. For instance, the helmet have thin lines of metallic paint simulating scratches. The poses depict a decent level of action. The scuplting is on the blukier side, particularly when it comes to details like hands and facial expressions. As mentioned earlier, the bases are detachable and they constantly come off.

Forces of Valor German Infantry - Part II

This is the most recent set of FOV German Infantry. They still have the same detachable base system, but the sculpting of hands and faces has improved. This set comes with a nice MG mounted on a tripod. The plastic for the MG however is really felxible and you will need to spend some time straightening it with hot water. Hopefully it stays that way, as mine hasn't.

Forces of Valor German Infantry - Part III

These were actually released before the previous set, but as you can see, they are not meant for battle, but rather for some specific diorama scenes. They came with one or two GIs guarding them. The sculpting of these guys is actually better than that of their other figures. You can tell that they were made by the same people that sculpt the guys who come with the FOV vehicles.

Forces of Valor US 82nd Airborne Division - Part I

Forces of Valor released these over the past few years in two or three different series, each with 4 or 5 guys, with some poses being repeated across sets. Similar to their other figures, their hands and facial features are a bit thick. The poses are good and dynamic.

Forces of Valor US 82nd Airborne Division - Part II

If I remember correctly, the guy on the right was the guard who came in the set with the three German prisoners. That would explain why his uniform and sculpting look a bit different. The guy in the middle is my favorite pose.

Forces of Valor US Infantry

A decent set by Forces of Valor. 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. Other than that, the bodies are much better proportioned.

Forces of Valor British 7th Armored Division - El-Alamein 1942

This is a set that I originally passed on buying. I did not like the bulkiness of the upper bodies. Of course, later on I felt that I should plug the hole in the collection, but by that time, they were no longer being produced and were much harder to find and pricier to get. Anyhow, I am happy I finally got a hold of them. I am still not a big fan of the sculpting and I still don't like the detachable bases, but it felt good to be able to check them off the list.

Forces of Valor British 7th Division - Part II

Here are a few more poses. They came in a different set, Two of them appear to be repeats of guys in the previous set. One of them, the man firing while kneeling, might be slightly different - note the knee is slightly off the ground - or it could also be that the one on top os missing the base and they are actually the same pose. Either way, there's really only two new poses. The wounded man and the man calling his men forward. Sculpted in the same bulky style, so not much new to say about them. 

Forces of Valor German Winter Troops

These guys actually came as 'accessories' for the tanks. They were not released as a figure set. Because they were meant to ride/fight from a tank, I had to customize a couple of them. For instance, the man on the right, would be sitting on a tank, but I made him sit on a box handing out panzerfausts. The man on the left was supposed to be standing on the tank firing a machinegun, so I made him stand on a box, and fire a panzerschreck. Overall, a nice set of figures, with a nice degree of action in them. I will have to paint a few more Germans with winter outfits to complement them. I will also add bases to the other two to make them more stable. 

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ESCI - Toy Soldiers

ESCI was an Italian manufacturer that was in business during the 70's and 80's. They produced models of vehicles, figure kits and a few plastic toy soldier sets, but their emphasis was definitely on the vehicle model kits. However they did produce a couple of interesting WWII sets. They are in 1/35 scale, but they are close enough in size to blend in with 54mm guys. In recent years Italeri has been re-releasing some of their sets.

ESCI German Infantry

This is one of their best sets in my opinion. As you can see, once they are painted they look fairly decent. The officer is a bit rare in the sense that he is wearing a helmet. Most officers are usually depicted wearing a cap, but in combat they would certainly wear helmets.

ESCI Soviet Infantry

These guys are on the smaller side of 1/35. Next to some of the larger TSSD figures they look very small, but when you need extra poses, you can't be very picky. The officer on the right might be a woman, but it's hard to tell for sure. The third figure from the right also looks like a woman.

ESCI US Paratroops

These are some hard to find guys. I actually had to order them from a hobby shop in Greece. For being 1/35 they are actually really close in size to the 1/32 guys. The poses are a bit too straight in my opinion, but the level of detail is nice. The commander reminds me of the one in the Airfix set.

ESCI British Paratroops - Part I

Here is another unique set from ESCI. Also pretty hard to find. So much that I wasn't even aware that it existed until one of our readers pointed it out to me. The figures are actually pretty decent and in my opinion, better posed than the other ESCI sets. They are using a good range of small arms and even their helmets show a bit of variety, some having a cammo net and some without.

ESCI British Paratroops - Part II

I particularly like the man charging forward with the Bren gun. One of the more dynamic ESCI poses that I have come across. I don't care that much for the guy standing guard. The guy on the right is one of those funny poses... he seems to be turning at the same time that he is running forward, but yet he is a bit too straight for that amount of movement taking place all at the same time. Anyhow, a good addition to the British paras. Maybe they can help hold Arnhem one more day...

ESCI Soviet Spetznaz - Part I

The Spetznaz are Soviet Special Forces, however they are post WWII figures. I find their uniforms however close enough to the Soviet Naval Infantry that I have decided to use them as such to complement the Pegasus figures. The weaponry is a bit modern, so I'll have to overlook that. In terms of the poses I like the men who are crouching better than the ones who are standing.

ESCI Soviet Spetznaz - Part II

Some of these guys are wearing a different head gear. Not sure if those will blend in with the Naval Infantry. Their weapons however would fit quite well in the WWII period. Again, I have my reservations about the poses of the guys who are running. I would like them better if their upper bodies were leaning more a bit forward.

Hing Fat (ESCI Clones) Japanese Infantry - Part I

These guys came with the 'Big Bucket of Fun' from Hing Fat. It took a bit of research to figure out that they were clones of the original ESCI figures. They are about 50mm tall.

Hing Fat (ESCI Clones) Japanese Infantry - Part II

Some of these poses are not my favorites, like the guy standing in the middle. He would really look out of place in a battlefield. ESCI produced 15 figures, at least that's what I counted on their 1/72 set, but Hing Fat only cloned 9 of them.

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Dulcop - Toy Soldiers

Dulcop is an Italian firm that manufactured toy soldiers during the 60's up to the early 90's when they transitioned into other types of plastic manufacturing. Their corporate site actually says that they were founded in 1938, but I guess they didn't do toy soldiers initially. Unfortunately for us, their WWII range is very limited. I am only aware of two sets. The rest of their sets are knights, cowboys and indians, napoleonics, and so on. That is too bad, because their sculpting, poses, and level of detail was fairly decent.

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.

Dulcop German Infantry - Part I

These guys were hard to come by. In fact I only managed to get 7 out of the 8 poses. The guy who is firing from the kneeling position is missing. A few of the poses resemble Airfix a little bit. Perhaps what I like the most is the variety of weapons.

Dulcop German Infantry - Part II

There are a couple of funny details though. Not how some men seem to be sculpted in a different scale. Also, the helmet on the guy on the left. Was that meant to be a paratrooper helmet or did they just did not sculpt the edge well enough? Anyhow, a nice set to round up your collection.

Dulcop German Infantry - Part III

This is the last man in the set. He came in a different plastic. Not just the color, but it is also harder and feels a bit easier to break. If not for the color, he seems to have been cast from an original mold. As you can see, he is a typical pose in most infantry sets. His carbine seems to be a bit small, but other than that he is a solid guy. 

Dulcop WWI Italian Troops

Dulcop really gave us a sampler of troops here. We are looking at two Bersaglieri (second and the sixth from the left), two Arditii, a specialty of Italian Army which assaulted the trenches with hand grenades and long knives (first and fifth) and two Alpini (the two in the middle). While these guys are technically WWI troops, considering that Italy did not modernize their military that much during the interwar period, I think that their uniforms and weaponry could pass as WWII equipment. A nice, dynamic set by Dulcop, even if some of the poses seem a bit off balance. The officer's heard is also a bit too small. However the head gear and the facial hair in some of the figures are quite unique. A good addition to the collection.

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DSG - Toy Soldiers

DSG is a firm from Argentina which somehow ended up with a few of the molds from the original Britians Deetail figures and have renewed production of the figures. Unlike the original Britians Deetail figures, the DSG figures come mounted on a plastic base. This makes the figures feel less 'solid'. Also, the color schemes are different, although I think they are actually better than the original ones. DSG has also come up with a creative way of increasing its sales, by releasing the same sets with different paint schemes, with some sets -like the Afrika Korps- being released in up to 10 variations. In terms of cost, they sell for close to 3 dollars a piece. Still cheaper than the original Britains Deetail, but providing them a very healthy profit margin. Note that there is also another firm called First Gear that produces new casts of Britains Deetail figures. DSG makes the British 8th Army and Afrika Korps, and First Gear makes the other WWII sets.

DSG British 8th Army

For some reason this set has rectangular bases. These are even lighter than the green plastic ones, which makes the figures feel even less sturdy. But they turned out to be a good alternative to the original Deetail guys which cost two or three times as much per figure.

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