20mm Kennington & SHQ vs 1/72 Esci, Napoleonic mounted

The photo above compares a pair of plastic figures from Esci with two metal figures from Kennington and SHQ. Click on the image to see a larger version.

THE METAL FIGURES

Manufacturer’s Designation and Number of Poses:

The metal figures are sold by both SHQ and Kennington, and are catalogued as BRC 2 “Napoleonic British Heavy Dragoons, Command.” The Napoleonic range from these two firms is quite extensive, and includes all the major participants.

Figure Characteristics:

Rider Height above ground (measured to rider eyes): 33mm.
Rider Height above ground (measured to top of head): 35mm.

Availability and Cost:

The metal figures can be purchased directly from the two manufacturers. The cavalry featured here sell for €5.50 at MBM Models (Kennington) or £4.50 through SHQ. For that price, you get 3 horses with 3 riders (2 officers and one trumpeter).

Kennington figures are available on the MBM website:

http://www.mbmmodels.com/1-72/kenf20mm/ken20f.htm

The SHQ site is here:

http://www.shqminiatures.co.uk/

Notes on the Samples:

The metal figures were generously provided by Peter Edwards from SHQ.

THE PLASTIC FIGURES

Manufacturer’s Designation and Number of Poses:

The plastic figure second from the left was originally released by Esci in set 217: "Napoleonic Wars Waterloo 1815, ‘Scots Greys’ British Cavalry.” The box included 12 riders in 5 poses, and 12 horses in 3 poses.

The plastic figure on the right was originally released by Esci in set 218: "Napoleonic Wars Waterloo 1815, 'Polish Lancers' French Cavalry.” The box included 12 riders in 4 poses, and 12 horses in 3 poses.

The second set has been reissued by Italeri as box 6039: "Dutch-Polish Lancers, Red Lancers, 1805-1815.”

Figure Characteristics:

British Rider Height above ground (measured from ground to rider eyes): 33mm.
British Rider Height above ground (measured from ground to top of head): 35mm.

French Rider Height above ground (measured from ground to rider eyes): 32mm.
French Rider Height above ground (measured from ground to top of head): 34mm.
French Rider Body Height (measured from foot, to knee, to hip, to eyes): 22mm.

Availability and Cost:

Italeri continues to produce the lancers, so they are easily obtained. Esci is no longer in business, so the Scots Grey figures are a bit harder to track down.

Rose 20mm vs Esci 1/72, Colonial foot

The photo above compares three plastic figures from Esci with a pair of metal figures from Rose. Click on the image to see a larger version.

THE METAL FIGURES

Manufacturer’s Designation and Number of Poses:

The metal figures are from the Rose Miniature range, currently manufactured and sold by Garrison Wargames Figures. This figure is from the 20mm range, which also covers Napoleonic, American Civil War and First World War subjects. Garrison uses the following codes for these figures: ROSEAW1 “British private standing firing” and ROSEAW24 “Zulu Running with Assegi and Shield.”

Figure Characteristics:

Height (measured from sole of foot to eyes): 20mm.
Height (measured from sole of foot to top of head): 22mm.

Availability and Cost:

The Rose figures are sold for £0.50 each, and can be ordered from the Garrison website:

http://www.garrisonminiatures.com/index.asp

Notes on the Samples:

The Rose sample was kindly provided by Garrison.

THE PLASTIC FIGURES

Manufacturer’s Designation and Number of Poses:

The British Esci figure comes from box 212 “Zulu War, British Infantry Soldiers” and was also issued in box 232 “Indian War Kiber Pass British Infantry.”

Box 212 included 50 figures in 15 poses. The set was later re-released by Italeri as box 6050, “British Infantry, Zulu Wars, 1879.” The Italeri version of the set included only 40 figures.

Box 232 added three new poses, bringing the total to 18, while keeping the number of figures steady at 50.

The Zulu figures were released in box 213 “Zulu War, Zulu Warriors.” It was also released by Italeri as set 6051, titled “Zulu Warriors, Zulu Wars, 1879.” Both versions included 48 figures in 12 poses.

Figure Characteristics:

212 Height (measured to eyes): 21mm.
213 Height (measured to eyes): 21mm.
212 Height (measured to top of head): 23mm.
212 Height (measured to top of head): 23mm.

Availability and Cost:

Esci no longer exists, and Italeri is not currently producing these sets. However, the figures can be found fairly easily in second-hand shops and online auction sites.