Black Scorpion Hillbilly Boys

Here I present the four 32mm scale Hillbilly Boys figures from the Black Scorpion Tombstone range. I haven't named any of them yet but will do when I use them in my Six Gun Sound campaign.

At the far left is "Junior" who is armed with a pitchfork and a .44 Colt Army Revolver. "Junior" is clearly not the sharpest tool in the box. Note his buck teeth.
Next up is an old timer armed with a Double-Barrelled Shotgun and wearing dungarees and a big hat.

Second from the right is the leader of the group, sporting a mightily impressive white beard and moustache. He is also armed with a Double-Barrelled Shotgun.
It wouldn't be a proper Hillbilly gang without at least one moon-shiner. At the far right is the old timer in charge of the moon-shine still. He has a bottle of hooch in his right hand, a .44 Colt Army Revolver in his left hand and a banjo slung over his back.
These resin cast miniatures are very well detailed and so full of character. They'll be a great addition to my growing Wild West collection. This set costs £9.60 for the four figures from the Black Scorpion webstore.

Black Scorpion Female Gunfighters 01

Black Scorpion make my favourite 32mm scale Wild West figures and by far my favourites amongst them are their females. Here I take a look at their Female Gunfighters, all of whom have been sadly withdrawn from their website to be replaced by the Female Gunfighter Faction from last year's Tombstone Kickstarter. I think this is a crying shame. Why they couldn't sell both is a mystery to me. Anyway, let's take a closer look at these beautifully sculpted figures.

I start with two figures who came in mounted and foot versions. At the left is Missy Scarlet who wears an unfashionable for the time, short buckskin dress and a top hat. She carries a lasso and a 12 Gauge Double-Barrelled Shotgun.

Next up is Barbara Allen, who is much more appropriately dressed in jeans, shirt, duster coat and Stetson hat. She is armed with a .44 Winchester Rifle and a .45 Colt Peacemaker Revolver.

The scantily clad lady at the far left is "Diamond Sue" Dawson and she is the cover girl of the Tombstone skirmish game rulebook. She was offered as a stretch goal in the Kickstarter launch. This sassy lassie is armed with a 12 Gauge Double-Barrelled Sawn-Off Shotgun and a .44 Colt Army Revolver. She is one of my favourite figures and I'll certainly be making her a Star in my Six Gun Sound games.

The next two ladies have not been named yet. The one in the centre has a 12 Gauge Double-Barrelled Shotgun slung over her shoulder and a .45 Colt Peacemaker Revolver in a holster on her right hip.
The Gunfighter at the right is carrying two .45 Colt Peacemaker Revolvers by her sides.

In this next batch, none of whom are named. I start at the left with a Native American female who is carrying a .45 Colt Peacemaker Revolver in her left hand. It is unusual to see an armed female Native American but I welcome her wholeheartedly.
The lady next to her appears to be unarmed but I'm betting she has a Derringer Pistol hidden away on her person. To me, she looks more 1920's than 1870's and wouldn't look out of place in a gangster setting.

The lady in the olive green dress wields a .44 Colt Army Pistol in her left hand and looks like she knows how to use it.
Last in line is a young lady with incredibly long blonde hair. She is armed with a pair of .44 Colt Cavalry Revolvers. From the waist up she is perfect for the Old West period but from the waist down, she appears more suited to a contemporary period with her mini-skirt.

This final batch of female gunfighters are not how I'd expect women of the Old West to dress. As modern day cowgirls they'd be perfect with their shorts, miniskirts and crop tops showing acres of cleavage. Don't get me wrong - I absolutely love them! I just don't think they're appropriate for the 1870's. Anyway, let's take a closer look at them. Once again, I have yet to name them.
At the far left dressed in a duster coat and skimpy denims, this lady is armed with a .44 Colt Cavalry revolver and .45 Sharps Rifle.
The busty beauty next to her carries a pair of .44 Colt Army revolvers by her sides.

Second from left, this miniskirted blonde is armed with a 12 gauge Double Barrelled Shotgun.
Last in line is a brunette firing a .44 Colt Army Revolver left handed.

Ral Partha Lakota Sioux

The Sioux are groups of Native American tribes and First Nations peoples in North America. The term can refer to any group within the Great Sioux Nation or to any of the nation's many language dialects. The Sioux comprise three major divisions based on language divisions - the Dakota, Lakota and Nakota. The Dakota reside in the extreme east of the Dakotas, Minnesota and northern Iowa. The Nakota are considered to be the middle Sioux and they mainly reside in Minnesota, Montana as well as Western Canada. The Lakota, also known as the Teton Sioux, are the westernmost tribe, and are known for their hunting and warrior culture. In any of the three main dialects, Lakota or Dakota translates to mean "friend" or "ally", referring to the alliance that once bound the Great Sioux Nation.
The Lakota Sioux took part in numerous wars including Red Cloud's War (1866-68), the Great Sioux War of 1876, which included amongst others, the Battle of the Little Bighorn, and the Wounded Knee Massacre in 1890.
I have slowly been building up a collection of Plains Indians from numerous companies but the four 28mm scale figures I'm showcasing here were bought many years ago in the 1990's and were actually created for the near future Shadowrun game. That said, they are sculpted in such a way that they fit in perfectly in an Old West setting of the late 19th century.

At the far left is White Eagle, a Lakota tribal chief, who is wearing a buffalo skin head dress and cloak. He is armed with a coup stick and a knife. He is Jackson Ryder's adoptive father. He is a quiet, thoughtful man with a stoic exterior, although in recent years he has become more relaxed. He became leader early in his life, and now, not even 50, he has led the band for more than 15 years. Although a fine warrior and hunter, he is anticipating the toll that age will take on him and has been looking for a worthy successor. Against all the odds, he believes he has found one in his adoptive son, Splits Arrow. He worries that because he is white, the tribe will not accept Jackson as chief.

Next up, is Jackson Ryder, aka Splits Arrow, a white man who was raised by White Eagle when Jackson was orphaned as a child. Ryder is a character from GURPS Robin Hood, who is a reincarnation of Robin. In this supplement you can play Robin Hood in one of five alternative settings - 17th century Scotland, the Old West, a contemporary setting with superheroes, a cyberpunk world and a far future sci-fi setting, as well as the traditional Sherwood Forest setting. Jackson is now fully integrated into his adoptive tribe and regards them as his family. His skill at bow and arrow is legendary. He is also armed with a knife and a tomahawk. His efforts on the part of the Lakota have earned him a great reputation among the Sioux, whilst his reputation among whites as a renegade has grown; there is talk of hanging him as soon as he is captured.

Jackson's closest friend in the tribe is Lone Tree on the Plains. In the supplement, he was a male ally but I decided to change his sex, to match that of the figure. She is the daughter of White Eagle and is glad that her father is grooming Splits Arrow to take over the leadership of the tribe. She views Jackson as a brother and the two work well together. She is armed with a bow, arrows, knife and tomahawk.
Finally is Looks at Fire, the tribe's medicine man and shaman. He is respected and honoured for his wisdom and experience, and is consulted on every important matter undertaken by the band or a member. His love of children extended to the young Jackson, whose interest in tribal lore and ceremony Looks at Fire encouraged. Note that his figure was produced by Grenadier Miniatures, as part of their own Shadowrun range.
These are four superb sculpts and they fit in so perfectly with the GURPS Robin Hood characters that I had to use them as such. I do have plans for using them in a Six Gun Sound setting, so that is something to look out for.

Black Scorpion Townsfolk 02

Following on from my last post here are the rest of my Black Scorpion 32mm scale townsfolk from their Tombstone range of figures. I haven't got round to naming any of these yet but it's just a matter of time before I do.

These five figures come from the Civilians 03 set. At the far left is a dog, which I was pleasantly surprised to see included. Another useful figure is the little boy holding a poster. Figures of Wild West children are extremely rare, so once again, I was mighty pleased that he's included in the set.

In the centre of the group is a banjo player. Note his holstered pistol on his right hip. Next in line is a farmer or homesteader with a 12 Gauge Double-Barrelled Shotgun.
Finally, is a drunken cowboy who is having difficulty walking in a straight line. He has his revolver drawn but the chances of him hitting anything with it must be very remote.
This set of five figures cost £9.60 from Black Scorpion's webstore.

This next set of figures are the Town Watch, the brave folk who volunteer to join a sheriff's posse or defend their town from bandits and outlaws. They are a mixed bunch, that's for sure. At the far left is an elderly bespectacled gentleman armed with a .45 Colt Army Revolver and a 12 Gauge Double-Barrelled Shotgun.
Next up is another old timer who also wields a 12 Gauge Double-Barrelled Shotgun.

Not as old as the previous two, but still getting on in years as denoted by his greying hair, the gent second from the right is left-handed and is firing a .45 Colt Army Revolver.
Last in line is a spunky lady who means business as she wields a 12 Gauge Sawn-Off Double-Barrelled Shotgun. This set of four figure also costs £9.60.
As always, the sculpting of these resin-cast figures is just superb. They were very crisp and a pleasure to paint. They are also so full of character - each one looks like he or she has a story to tell - and I love that in a figure.
Note that my next posts will concentrate on my Zomtober challenge. Progress is going really well.

Black Scorpion Townsfolk 01

In this, the first of two posts, I'm reviewing a couple of sets of Black Scorpion 32mm scale Townsfolk from their Tombstone range of resin cast figures.

The four figures to the left are the Civilians 1 set, consisting of a miner/prospector, a store owner with broom, an elderly fat gentleman and a young lady with umbrella. I haven't named any of these yet. This set costs £9.60 for the four figures.

At the far right is a rambler and Humphrey the dog. I named the rambler as Russell Tucker, or as most folk call him, "Ole Man Tucker." He and Humphrey are inseparable, which is rather appropriate given that they are a one-piece casting. Together, they cost £4.50.

Next up are Civilians 2, which also consists of four figures -  a blacksmith, a bartender, a doctor and a middle-aged lady. This set also costs £9.60.

All of these figures are crisply sculpted and were a joy to paint. I will be using them in my Six Gun Sound games and I will name them all and give them character record cards.

Black Scorpion 7th Cavalry

One of the seven factions offered in Black Scorpion's Tombstone Kickstarter last year was the 7th Cavalry faction and I'm showing them here in their entirety. The regiment was constituted on 28th of July 1866 in the regular army as the 7th United States Cavalry. It was organized on 21st of September 1866 at Fort Riley, Kansas, as part of an expansion of the regular army following the demobilization of the wartime volunteer and draft forces. From 1866 through 1871, the regiment was posted to Fort Riley and fought in the American Indian Wars. In the Battle of Washita in1868, the regiment sustained 22 losses, while inflicting more that 150 deaths on a Cheyenne encampment, mostly women and children. This attack was led by George Armstrong Custer, who later led the 7th Cavalry to the most calamitous defeat of U.S. forces in the Indian Wars.
Typical of post-Civil-War cavalry regiments, the 7th Cavalry was organized as a twelve-company regiment without a formal battalion organization. Battalions at this time were flexible tactical organizations, with companies being assigned and removed as the field commander desired or felt necessary. Throughout this period, the cavalryman was armed with the .45 calibre Colt Cavalry Single Action revolvers and Trapdoor Springfield Carbines, calibre .45–70, until 1892. The regiment used the McClellan saddle. Sabres were also issued but not often carried on campaign.
From 1871 through 1873, 7th Cavalry companies participated in constabulary duties in the deep South in support of the Reconstruction Act and, for half the regiment, again in 1874–1876. In 1873, the 7th Cavalry moved its garrison post to Fort Abraham Lincoln, Dakota Territory. From here, the regiment carried out Custer's 1874 Black Hills Expedition. This led to the discovery of gold in the Black Hills, starting a gold rush in 1874 that precipitated the Great Sioux war of 1876-77. In June, 1876, Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer was killed in the Battle of the Little Bighorn, Montana, along with 267 soldiers of the 7th Cavalry. Although the regiment is well known for the Battle of the Little Bighorn, it also participated in other battles of the American Indian Wars, including the Battle of Bear Paw in Montana (30th of September 1877 – 5th of October 1877) and the Battle of Crow Agency in Montana (5th of November 1887). On 29th of December 1890, the regiment instigated the Wounded Knee Massacre in South Dakota, an event that signalled the end of the American Indian Wars.

In these two photos we have Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer on foot and mounted on a white horse. Although Black Scorpion sell him as Custer, I have no desire to use him as such. I don't plan on running any of Custer's battles in my Six Gun Sound campaign, so I will rename him when I find the right time to introduce the 7th Cavalry. That said, they are really superbly sculpted figures. Note that the horse came with separate front and back right legs, but you wouldn't be able to tell from my photos as I hid the joins so well with Milliput. Custer on foot costs £4.50 and the mounted version costs £9.60.

At the far right is an unnamed officer. Actually, I haven't got round to naming any of the figures from this faction yet. He is armed with a pair of .45 Colt Cavalry Revolvers. He costs £4.50 from the Black Scorpion webstore.

These four figures are from the 7th Cavalry Set 1 priced at £9.60 for all four of them. At the far left is a trooper with a single .45 Colt Cavalry Revolver. Next to him is a trooper with a .45 Colt Cavalry Revolver and a Sabre.

Second from the right is a trooper armed with a 12 Gauge Double-Barrelled Shotgun and .45 Colt Cavalry Revolver. The trooper at the right of the group is armed with a .45 Trapdoor Springfield Carbine and a .45 Colt Cavalry Revolver.

Next up is 7th Cavalry Set 2, consisting of four more troopers and again, they are priced at £9.60 for all four. At the far left is either an officer or an NCO armed with a .45 Colt Cavalry Revolver and a Sabre.

Next in line, from left to right, are a trooper armed with two .45 Colt Cavalry Revolvers and two troopers armed with .45 Springfield Carbines.

7th Cavalry Set 3, is also priced at £9,60 for the four figures shown directly above and below consists of three troopers armed with twin .45 Colt Cavalry Revolvers.

Last in line at the far right is a trooper armed with a 12 Gauge Double-Barrelled Shotgun and a .45 Colt Cavalry Revolver. I have no idea why two of the troopers are toting Shotguns instead of Carbines, but it does offer more variety, so I'm not complaining.
All of these figures are available from the Black Scorpion webstore and all are cast in resin. Note that I have glued all of mine to MDF bases, which I bought separately from Warbases. The 25mm diameter bases are MDF slottabases. There is no denying, the level of sculpting on these figures is extremely high. You may think that they are expensive, and I wouldn't argue with you, but bear in mind, you're paying for very high quality figures and quality comes at a price.

Knuckleduster Wild West Starter Faction

Knuckleduster Miniatures produce a superb range of 32mm scale Wild West figures for their Gunfighters Ball range that, as far as I'm concerned, are second only in quality to the Tombstone range produced by Black Scorpion. As well as selling individual figures, they also sell faction sets, which usually consist of six figures and these are better value than buying the figures individually. The faction sets cost £18.50 for six figures as opposed to paying £21.00 if you bought the same six figures individually. Obviously, the first faction set I bought was this one here - the starter faction. It does contain six figures but I'm only showing five of them here. The missing figure - Honest John - will appear in another post real soon. He has joined another faction.

At the far left is "Rowdy Jack" Ferguson, a cowboy. He is armed with a .44 Colt Army Revolver. Next to him, is his his good friend, "Buck-tooth" Billy Watkins. He is armed with a pair of .44 Colt Army Revolvers. In the centre of the group is hired gunfighter, "Mysterious Dave" Mather. Dressed in a smart suit, he has notched up a few kills already. He, too, is armed with a .44 Colt Army Revolver.

Second from the right is bartender Bob O'Neill who is armed with a 12 gauge Double-Barrelled Shotgun, which he no doubt keeps handy behind his bar. At the far right is "California Kate" Knox, who took over the leadership of "the Graceful Seven" and renamed them "the Elegant Eight." She is a Rep:5 Star with the Born Leader, Marksman and True Grit attributes in Six Gun Sound. She is armed with a .45 Colt Cavalry Revolver and a Knife.
These are really beautifully sculpted figures and I plan on collecting the complete range of them. My favourite figure here, has to be "California Kate," whom I had to add to my Graceful Seven gang as their leader. These are all one piece metal castings. Rather unusually, they come with MDF slottabases, which I like a lot more than plastic slottabases.

DMH The Graceful Seven

As soon as I saw this set of The Graceful Seven from Great Escape Games' Dead Man's Hand range, I knew I had to buy them. They are listed under the DMH Collectibles (Stronghold Terrain) section and they cost £32.00 for all seven figures. A group of gunfighter saloon girls was just what I wanted, although I was a bit surprised they weren't called The Saucy Seven! I guess The Graceful Seven is  more tasteful.The one thing that I was slightly concerned about is no scale was given for them. However, all was fine when I received them and discovered they were about 30mm tall. I named them all and gave them stats for Six Gun Sound. Let's have a closer look at them.

At the far left is Goldie "Dusty" Cole, a Rep:5 Gunslinger with the Marksman and Tough Attributes, who is armed with a 12 Gauge Scattergun.
Second from the left is Lydia "The Cheat" King, a Rep:4 Gunslinger with the Marksman and Expert Gambler Attributes, who is armed with a Smith and Wesson .32 Pistol.
Moving on, is Irene "Lucky" Fry, a Rep:4 Gunslinger with the Marksman and Lucky Attributes, who is armed with a Colt .45 Peacemaker Pistol.
In the centre is Grace "Big Gun" Mullen, a Rep:5 Gunslinger with the Marksman and Quick Reflexes Attributes, armed with a Long-Barrelled Colt .45 Buntline Pistol.

The plump red-headed lady is Abbie "Brawn" Savage, a Rep:5 Gunslinger with the Marksman and Brawler Attributes, who is armed with a 12 Gauge Scattergun. She is my favourite figure out of this group.
Second from the right is Susie "Shootout" Lester, a Rep:5 Gunslinger with the Marksman and Crackshot Attributes, who is armed with a Colt .45 Pistol.
Finally, is Genevieve "Songbird" Hogan, a Rep:4 Gunslinger with the Marksman and Resilient Attributes, who is armed with a Colt .45 Pistol.

Knuckleduster's "California Kate"

Note that these are all Grunts and that I haven't nominated any of them as the Star Leader. I had planned on making Grace "Big Gun" Mullen the leader but when I was checking out the Knuckleduster Gunfighters' Ball range of figures I saw this figure to the left. She is called "California Kate" and I thought she'd be a perfect leader for this gang, although if I did add her I'd have to rename the gang. So, the gang will now be known as The Elegant Eight.
I could have made these ladies a gang of outlaws but I prefer the idea of them being Gunslingers in the style of The Magnificent Seven. I plan on basing them in the Sassy Gal saloon, made by 4Ground, a most impressive building.
As for the figures, they are very beautiful sculpts and look quite delicate. I do like that they come with various weapons instead of all being armed identically. I should point out that there is one potential problem with them and that is they come with separate hands and weapons. The hands have very small plugs at their wrists to fit into very small holes on the wrists of the arms. I glued them with superglue and when the glue was dry I added more superglue for extra strength. Mine fitted together better than I expected but it could be a problem to some. Be warned!
I'm busy painting "California Kate" right now and she'll be a Rep:5 Gunslinger Star with the Born Leader, Marksman and True Grit Attributes. I am very much looking forward to using them in a batrep but that will be later rather than sooner as I've yet to get the Sassy Gal Saloon. However, it is high up on my "to buy" list.

Hinchliffe Outlaws

In my last post I showed off my old collection Hinchliffe Mexican Banditos, which I had rebased and touched up their paintwork. At the same time, I did the same to my smaller group of Hinchliffe Outlaws and here they are.

At the far left is outlaw leader, Clay Allinson. I am aware that there was a real life Old West gunfighter called Clay Allison but it is pure coincidence that they share similar names. When I ran my Outlaw Campaign in the 1980's using my 54mm scale figures, Clay was my player character and leader of a gang of brutal and sadistic killers. My players really enjoyed playing bad guys and getting away with murder and mayhem. The campaign ended abruptly when the gang decided to rob a Mexican bank and just about everything that could go wrong did go wrong. Most of the gang were killed. Some were arrested after being wounded including Clay. He was imprisoned for a long time. Others who were arrested faced the hangman's noose. I guess it was a fitting end as it proved crime does not pay. This figure is an almost exact copy of the Airfix Cowboy figure that I used to portray Clay. Clay is armed with two Colt .45 Peacemaker Pistols.
Clay's best friend for many a year was "Mad Jack" Duncan, a crazed psychopath who did some unspeakable things in my campaign. In my campaign that I mentioned above he suffered numerous wounds in the final battle, was easily arrested and swiftly hung. He is armed with a Colt .45 Peacemaker Pistol, a 12 Gauge Scattergun and a Bowie Knife. Note this figure is not produced by Hinchliffe. He is a plastic toy that I got from a Christmas cracker and he is a perfect 28mm scale copy of the Airfix Cowboy that was used by one of my players in the campaign. I made two alterations to both 54mm and 28mm scale figures of "Mad Jack" and that was to convert his Winchester Rifle into a Double-Barrelled Scattergun and to add his Bowie Knife to the back of his belt.

Next in line is Frank Harlan, who did not take part in my old Outlaws campaign. However, he is going to be part of Clay's new gang when I introduce them to my Six Gun Sound campaign. Frank is 42 years old and looking for one big score so that he can retire and settle down. He is a reliable ally with nerves of steel. He is armed with a Colt .44 Army Pistol.
Last up, is new recruit, Adam "Rustler" Madden, who at 23 years of age is the youngest member of the gang. He is an expert rider and very good with horses. "Rustler" is armed with a Colt .44 army Pistol and a Knife.
I'm looking forward to using this gang in Six Gun Sound, especially as I know Clay and "Mad Jack" so well. It'll be interesting to see how they fare this time around.

Hinchliffe Mexican Bandidos

One of the things I've done this month is to rebase and touch up the paintwork of some of my old 28mm scale Wild West figures. I was quite surprised at just how many figures I had from Hinchliffe Models, all now sadly out of production. By far my biggest set were my Mexican Bandidos and it is these I'm going to showcase here. Every one of these figures were based on 54mm scale figures that I own, in terms of names, colour schemes and as near as possible, poses. I have just finished creating Character Record Sheets for them to use in my Six Gun Sound batreps.

At the far left is Leon Cordoba, who was one of the gang leaders. Sometimes I used all of the figures in one gang and at other times split them up into smaller gangs. Cordoba is smartly dressed and is armed with a pair of Colt .44 Army Pistols.
Next to him is the other figure who was also a gang leader, Emiliano Muerte, whose surname means "death". He is also smartly dressed with gold-trimmed clothing and he is also armed with twin Colt .44 Army Pistols.
In the centre of the group is Pachuco "the Bloody". This figure is a conversion of the Muerte figure. I repositioned his left arm and gave him a Winchester Rifle from my spare parts box. I filed off the gold balls from the sides of his trousers. His pistol is a Colt .45 Peacemaker.

The kneeling figure is Nino Garcia, who was originally standing up. I reposed him to better match his 54mm scale version. I can't remember if the original figure was bare-headed or not (he probably was) but I do know that I added his sombrero, which I made out of Milliput. He is armed with two Colt .45 Peacemaker Pistols.
At the far right is the only figure from this set not made by Hinchliffe Models, but I have included him anyway as he often appeared alongside the others. He is called Juliano Ortega, who is a sadistic homosexual hunchback! I based him on a Dixon Miniatures Confederate Trooper and sculpted on his poncho around his backpack to represent his hunchback. He is armed with a Trapdoor Springfield .45 Rifle and a Colt .44 Army Pistol.

The next batch of five are all rank and file footsloggers of average quality and ability. At the far left is Alfredo Esposita, who is armed with a Trapdoor Springfield .45 Rifle, a Smith and Wesson .45 Schofield Pistol and a Bowie Knife.
Second from the left is Juan Juose, a conversion of the Alfredo Esposita figure. I repositioned his arms, added a Bowie Knife to his left hand and made his shirt hanging out from his trousers. He is armed similarly to Esposita but his Pistol is a Colt.44 Army model.
In the centre is Fernando Almeria, another conversion of Alfredo Esposita. I repositioned his arms so that he is holding his rifle in both hands. He is armed with a Trapdoor Springfield .45 Rifle, a Colt .45 Peacemaker Pistol and a Bowie Knife.

Second from the left is Gabriel Valencia, a cowardly man who will happily shoot an opponent in the back but is more likely to run away if charged than stand and fight. He is armed with a Winchester .44 Rifle and a Colt .45 Cavalry Pistol.
Finally, is Jose Carrillo, who is a conversion of the Gabriel Valencia figure. I reposed him so that he was kneeling. He is armed with a Winchester .44 Rifle and a Remington .45 Pistol.
Hinchliffe Models had a distinctive look about them that made them very recognisable. They were certainly not the best sculpted figures on the market but nor were they the worst and I must admit I liked them. I got into their range almost as soon as I started wargaming seriously in the late 1970's, when I collected some of their Napoleonic figures. Most of my current Mexican Bandidos are made by Black Scorpion, who are far superior sculpts, but even so, I do like these old figures and I most certainly will use them in my Six Gun Sound games.

Grenadier Old West Heroes

Way back in the early 1990's I bought a boxed set of ten 32mm scale Western Gunfighters produced by Grenadier Miniatures. They were beautifully sculpted by Andy Chernak but at the time were over-scaled as most Wild West figures back then were either 25mm or 28mm scale. Now, however, they are a perfect fit with the majority of my collection of Wild West figures. I have shown one of them - the Gambler - in a previous post (see here - http://vampifansworldoftheundead.blogspot.com/2017/06/assorted-wild-west-gamblers-01.html ). Two of the figures - the Gunfighter and the Rifleman - never got painted and have gone missing. I have no idea where they went. So that leaves just seven to show you and here they are.

First up is the easily identifiable Man With No Name as played by Clint Eastwood in the Dollar trilogy of Spaghetti Westerns. I do love this figure but I must admit I was conflicted when I bought the Shadows of Brimstone male Drifter, who was a superb sculpt of The Man With No Name (see here - http://vampifansworldoftheundead.blogspot.com/2017/10/shadows-of-brimstone-heroes-03.html ) as to which one is the best. On reflection, I do think the Shadows of Brimstone version only just edges this Grenadier version. The boxed set lists him as a Range Rider and not a Bounty Hunter. It also shows him in an alternate colour scheme, which I may use if I decide to repaint him. It is a distinct possibility because I don't want two versions of the same character.

In the centre is the U.S. Marshal whom I have named as "the Duke" due to his uncanny resemblance to John Wayne. Note the way he is cocking the lever of his Winchester Rifle - a nice touch.
At the far right is the Cowpoke, whom I named Johnny West. When I was a young lad growing up in the 1960's my parents bought me a 12" action figure of a cowboy called Johnny West as a Christmas present (see below). This figure reminded me of him so much and so I had to name him Johnny West. Johnny will be a recurring character in my Six Gun Sound campaign, although not as a Cowboy. Most likely, he'll be a Bounty Hunter or a Gunfighter. Johnny is armed with a Winchester .44 Rifle, Colt .45 Peacemaker Revolver, .41 Derringer Pistol and Bowie Knife, just as his taller version is.

Moving on is Saloon Girl Madeleine DuBois, who is described as being "vivacious" by Grenadier Miniatures. Yep, that's a good description of her.
She works for Bartender Guthrie Fullwright, who is an expert gambler. He is armed with a 12 Gauge Scattergun, which he keeps behind the bar to deal with troublemakers.

Last up are the two outlaws. Second from the right is Mexican bandida, "Hole in Juan" Gomez, who is armed with a pair of Colt .44 Army Revolvers and a Knife. He is a crackshot pistolero.
Finally, is young Bank Robber Gil Hardy, who goes by the nickname of "The Cheyenne Kid". He is left-handed and is armed with a Colt .45 Peacemaker Revolver.
Sadly, this set is long out of production. I think it would sell very well if it was re-released today as all of the figures are superbly sculpted and because of their size will fit in so well with so many other ranges.

To the left of here is this wonderful picture of 12" action figure, Johnny West, showing him and all of his accessories that came with him. This figure was produced in 1965. I still have mine but some of his accessories have gone missing. In the same year as I received this figure, my brother got the 12" action figure of Chief Cherokee and a horse to go with him as his Christmas present. I also got a horse who was named Thunderbolt and my brother's horse was named Comanche. Note that unlike the humans, the horses were not pose-able. These figures were made by the Louis Marx company. The Johnny West range of figures were very popular. In later years, Johnny gained a family, wife Jane, daughters Janice and Josie, and sons Jay and Jamie. Chief Cherokee also gained a family - his wife was Princess Wildflower. Other figures like Sheriff Garrett and Outlaw Sam Cobra were added to the range but my brother and I never got any of the others. Below is the complete range of figures. If they were sold now I'd definitely want them all but whether I could afford them is another matter entirely.

Assorted Heroines of Western Films 01

I have always been a big fan of Western films and I still am. In recent years I've noticed that more and more Westerns are featuring females in the starring roles, and this is a good thing in my opinion. I have already shown the two heroines from the film, Bandidos in action in my first Six Gun Sound batrep. In this post I want to show the figures I've collected for two more of my favourite Westerns - Bad Girls and The Quick and the Dead.
Bad Girls was made in 1994 and very briefly the film follows four former prostitutes on the run following a justifiable homicide and prison escape, who later encounter difficulties involving a bank robbery, a train robbery and being chased by Pinkerton detectives.

The four Bad Girls who aren't really that bad.

In this still from the film are the four Bad Girls, who are from left to right, Eileen Spenser (played by Andie MacDowell), Anita Crown (played by Mary Stuart Masterson), Cody Zamora (played by Madeleine Stowe) and Lily Laronette (played by Drew Barrymore).

These are the figures I've used to represent the gang and they all came from different companies. At the far left is the gang's leader, Cody Zamora. Cody is based on the Reaper Chronoscope figure, 50111 Diamond Sue Dawson, who costs £5.22 from the Miniature Heroes webstore. Diamond Sue Dawson was far too good a name not to use, so one of my Black Scorpion Tombstone ladies has adopted that name.
Next up is Eileen Spenser and her figure came from the Knuckleduster Gunfighter's Ball range and is GBF37 - Elly. I added her waistcoat, made out of Milliput, which was a really simple conversion. Her figure costs £3.50 from the Caliver Books webstore.

Second from the right is Anita Crown, and she was produced by Black Scorpion as one of four figures in the Tombstone Cowgirls 1 set, which sadly was just withdrawn from sale at the beginning of this month. I suspect that was because the new range of Tombstone Females were released at the same time, but that seems like a strange decision to me. Surely more choice is a good thing? I do wonder if these older figures will ever return? If not, that is a sad thing, but I'm glad I bought mine when I did.
The last figure in line is Lily Laronette produced by Belt Fed Gaming in foot and mounted versions. I've already shown her once before in this post, https://vampifansworldoftheundead.blogspot.com/2018/05/belt-fed-wild-west-ladies-01.html However, she is worth showing again, only this time with her three cohorts.
I have created stat cards for these four to use in my Six Gun Sound games. I feel a team up with my two ladies from Bandidos would make for a fun game.

Sharon Stone as "The Lady" or Ellen

Another strong female lead who greatly impressed me was Sharon Stone's character known only as "The Lady" or Ellen from the 1995 film, The Quick and the Dead. The story focuses on "The Lady", a gunfighter who rides into the frontier town of Redemption controlled by corrupt mayor John Herod (played by Gene Hackman). She joins a deadly duelling competition in an attempt to exact revenge for the death of her father by Herod.
"The Lady" character is a popular figure for sculptors of Wild West miniatures. I know of three such figures and there may well be more. Probably the most well known of them is the Reaper Chronoscope figure - 50003 Cowgirl Ellen Stone. I do like how they have combined Sharon's surname with the character's first name. The only thing that prevented me from using that figure as "The Lady" was the fact that she was armed with a double-barrelled scattergun, which she never used in the film.

However, the figure I have chosen for my own Ellen Stone (somehow that name is so appropriate for her) is this new release from Black Scorpion. This is the female leader on foot and mounted from the Female Faction of the recent Tombstone Kickstarter range. I backed this project as soon as it was launched last year. As soon as I saw this figure, I knew that I wanted to use her as "The Lady".

I copied her colour scheme from the photo shown above. All of the leaders of the seven factions from the Tombstone skirmish game come in foot and mounted versions, which I do like a lot. This is a fantastic sculpt, very animated and a darned good likeness of Sharon Stone. As I said earlier, the female faction has only just gone on sale at the start of this month and the foot version of the female leader costs £4.50 and the mounted version costs £9.50. Expensive, I know, but they are high quality resin sculpts, full of detail.