Mameluke Ali

[Cubster]

Eh?

This is a quick shout for help. I've got to paint up a mounted model of Napoleon's servant, the Mameluke Ali, within the next couple of weeks, and I have no idea where to get source material for him. Does anyone know of any pictures or images of the guy anywhere, since a quick scan of the usual suspects didn't turn anything up. I'm going to try to find the Ospreys book 'Napoleon's Commanders 2' in town tomrrow, which may or may not have him lurking somewhere.

So, anyone got anything I can use?

Please?

Pretty please?

I can get you a date with a 'Paul the Octopus' lookalike as a bribe.

[Suetonius Paullinus]

My favourite source for everything Napoleonic (100 days), and nice looking Ali as well:

http://www.mont-saint-jean.com/cent_jours/detail_chefFR.php?rubrique=C&unite=2

and press 'uniformes'.

Guess you'll be painting the Perry miniature of Ali..?

Make sure you share some pics!

Cheers

S.P.

[Cubster]

Now that's what I call source material! Thank you sir, that will make my job a lot easier.

I guess my clue wasn't really cryptic enough then. Yes, I'm starting on the 'Mounted Napoleon' set this weekend and hopefully it'll be done in a couple of weeks. It does mean my riflemen will have to shuffle to the end of the queue, but such is the life of a squaddie, always bottom of the heap.

[Suetonius Paullinus]

I am very much looking forward to seeing the finished work here in the forums.

Please do not neglect you Rifles for too long though. Those conversions you showed off were looking far too good to be left without paint for long..!

And a personal request would be a proper Redcoat .

Happy painting,

S.P.

[Cubster]

Well, it's all time really. Inbetween finishing off orders still outstanding I'm squeezing in the odd little selfish piece of work. I'm doing 20mm Napoleonics and some Foundry Generals right now, then I've got the Perry's to do. It's my birthday at the end of the month so I may indulge myself with some Peninsular British.

[Suetonius Paullinus]

Peninsular British sounds great! In 20 or 28mm?

And Happy Brithday mate!

Cheers

S.P.

[Cubster]

28mm, I've had my eye on the Perry's for a while now.

The 20mm is a customer's order since I flogged off my old 1/72 plastic collection years back. I've still got boxes and boxes of plastic 1/72 waiting for me to magically find several free months to paint them. No doubt they'll still be sat in their boxes when some relative inherits them in my will.

[Suetonius Paullinus]

The Perry plastics are absolutely gorgeous and highly recommended of course, unfortunately not quite so versatile as Victrix. The British Line Infantry is one of my favourite plastic kit ever.

1/72 is soft plastic, isn't it? There are plenty of miniatures for all sorts of periods out there, shame that I found them always a complete pain to paint.. My first box of figures ever was Airfix's Afrikakorps in 1:72. Glory days.

Cheers

S.P.

[Cubster]

Yeah, the 1/72 plastic market has enjoyed a real explosion over the last few years and has an enormous range, although sadly not always particularly historically accurate. You're right about the pain of soft plastic. These days if I have to paint anything thin and bendy (Airfix horse ankles, bayonets, lances etc..) I give the vunerable area a couple of layers of thinly applied PVA before varnishing. It gives it a flexible protective coating, but it's not absolutely foolproof.

With hard plastics in 28mm now becoming more and more common, I'm not sure how the 1/72 market will survive in its current form. It was nice and cheap before to get a box of soldiers for £4, and then when half the poses were unusable it didn't matter too much. I just think now the scales are tipping more and more in favour of the 28mm and the only advantage 1/72 can enjoy is the range (although the big boys will no doubt catch up soon enough), the price and the fact that some people will always have a preference for a certain scale, for whatever reason. If it was me, I'd just sell the plastic sprues online so people can order as much or as little as they want, with no packaging costs or the overheads involved in selling to retail.