VBCW: Woodbine Indian Infantry

I was building a trio of Birch Guns, for which I needed a number of Woodbine Designs WW1British heads. Since I was putting an order together, I decided to add a unit of Indian infantry to my VBCW forces.

These are from their WW1 Indian Infantry range. I specified ‘All advancing or charging figures’ and they were kind enough to provide a great selection. They have separate heads, and I chose Hindu rather than Sikh heads.

The officer is a Woodbine British officer. I had a few spares, so I just slotted one in.

Thinking about it, I already have plenty of Indian troops in my WW1 and Colonial forces, so there was no real need to get more. But I am very glad I did.

The Woodbine Indians were a joy to build and paint, I actually felt like they were painting themselves. The detail is good, and well-defined without being coarse or overdone.

Here’s a comparison with Great War – Woodbine – Wargames Atlantic – Crucible Crush.

All in all, lovely fellows, and highly recommended.

VBCW: The Cricketers

These are the Irregular Miniatures armed Cricketers.

My little town of East Boxley has a fine Cricket pitch, and the locals are more than willing to come out and defend it.

They are actually rather well armed, having both a SMG and LMG in their ranks.

The figures were clean castings, with no flaws or flash, and the service was as always fast and friendly.

VBCW: Renegade Gorblimey Caps

This is another unit made made from ‘spares’ that I didn’t want in my WW1 forces. It’s intended for use in my VBCW, but it’s appropriate for use on the Western Front in 1915. There are no armbands or modifications particular to VBCW.

As fond as I was of the Renegade Early War British, they did one thing that annoyed me a lot. They had several packs of early war infantry, but in two of them they included figures in gorblimey caps. These figures were useless for a 1914 army. And I was building a 1914 army.

If they had put them all in one set, it would have been a nice option for folks building 1915 armies. As it was, it just meant that only one of their sets was useful for 1914. When I started, I converted some gorblimey caps to field caps, but eventually just didn’t get any more of the sets that had them.

When I searched my spares, I found 6 figures in gorblimey caps. To round out the unit I added an officer, and an NCO with a converted cap. To finish it, I took two of the rifleman with bandaged head, another despised pose.

I used blue stuff to make press-moulds of gorblimey hats, put putty in them, and pressed the figures’ heads into the putty. Surprisingly, it worked.

Above we see a converted bomber and gorblimey cap – both done with press-moulds and heads shoved into the putty. The third figure is the same pose, but already had a service cap.

In the end, they turned out to be a nice little VBCW unit, and a great use for otherwise unloved figures.

VBCW: Boy Scouts

When I started my VBCW forces, I made a BUF Youth Corps unit from Studio Siberia Boy Scouts. As it turns out, Hitlerjugend uniforms looked like Boy Scout uniforms with a side cap. (Note that they would also be perfect for a ‘Blackshorts’ Youth Corps.)

So I figured I’d make a unit of Boy Scouts for the Good Guys too.

 Studio Siberia has armed (Polish) Boy Scouts in their RCW range. They are available with several choices of head, so I just chose the lemon-squeezer style.

The troop leader has a hiking banner showing his authority, and identifying the Troop.

I went online to look up the colours for a 1930’s Scout uniform. The blue shorts make for a nice splash of colour.

 

There are two HMGs available, both Austrian Schwarzlosses: One is on a tripod, the other is mounted on a handcart. I had already used the other for the BUF Youth Corps, so I went with the handcart.

There was a third crewman with the BUF Youth HMG. He will be useful as an observer, a scout, or a runner.

I bought the figures directly from Studio Siberia, and the service was fast and friendly. They also sell single figures from sets if you ask. The figures themselves were cleanly cast with no flaws.