Wednesday 1 October 2014

Project Zeke Survivors and Zombies

Up for review today are three of the latest 28mm scale figures from Project Zeke Miniatures. We have Zeke the Smart Zombie, Bridges the ex-Texas Ranger and Eddie the veteran biker.
First in line is Zeke the Smart Zombie. When Zeke first heard the adage “Marines don’t die, they just go to Hell and regroup”, I don’t think he realised it would be quite so accurate. Zeke comes complete with broken leg, torn cheek and dangling eyeball but none of these things were enough to pry this Marine away from his rifle. That one’s his... and he knows how to use it! It's just as well Smart Zombies are so rare. By the way, his rifle is a 5.56mm Colt M4A1 Assault Rifle.
Next up is Hoyt Bridges. Former Texas Ranger, Bridges, is the cool head that everyone needs around during the apocalypse. Wise and capable, Bridges and his Semi-Automatic Rifle get it done. Bridges’ rifle (supplied) is a separate piece so can be easily swapped for another weapon in your collection. I have no idea what type of rifle he's holding. The closest likeness I could find doing a Google search was a .30 Springfield M1 Garand Semi-Automatic Rifle. By the way, in case you're wondering about his right hand, it is drawing something out of the pouch, most likely a spare ammo clip.
Finally, is Eddie Ross. This Vietnam veteran could never settle down for a quiet life. Bikes, beer and broads kept this unfortunate son going until the apocalypse gave him a reason to pick up his 7.62mm  M60 Machine Gun once more. Note that this figure of Eddie replaces the original Young Eddie. He's now older, wiser and much better armed.
These are all perfectly acceptable figures. I'm glad to see that Simon (Hunter) has started adding zombies to his range and as the company mascot, Zeke, was an  obvious character to make first. Be  warned though, he is overscale when compared to most other 28mm scale figures. Scale creep never bothers me but I know that some of you aren't keen on this sort of thing, hence my warning. I did think about replacing Bridges' rifle with one from my spare parts box but then I realised I have hardly any figures using a Semi-Automatic Rifle, so the weapon HAD to stay. My only criticism of Eddie is that M60 looks to be underscale, but that's just a minor criticism.
All three figures cost just £2.00 each and come with integral metal bases, which makes a nice change from slottatabs. I glued them onto 25mm plastic discs.

24 comments:

  1. It seems to me there are a number of "Smart zombies " in my home town, although the definition of "smart" might need some assessment.
    That aside I do like all three figures while I might not have a use for a civilian with an M60 I am sure I could make a use for one.

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    1. Who wouldn't want to be armed with an M60 in a zombie apocalypse, Clint?

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    2. Anyone who did not want to make too much noise. An M60 is not all that helpful in sneaking about and moving quietly. But for mowing down a horde probably a very good choice. I am probably more attune to sneaking about!

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    3. Very wise, Clint. And of course any firearm is only good as long it has ammo. An M60 will use up ammo at quite rate.

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  2. These are acceptable sculpts rather than brilliant ones. I do think there is something odd about the middle guy's hat, though - it really looks too small to me.

    It's always nice to see new manufacturers. Although I don't think I'll be buying these myself, I will be watching with interest for further releases.

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    1. I have to admit that you are right about Bridges' hat. It does look too small.

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  3. You've done a good paintjob on some very average (imo) figures, but on the good side they are pretty cheap.

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    1. Thanks, Joe. They are not up to the standard of the likes of Hasslefree Miniatures or Studio Miniatures but nor are they the worst figures on the market.

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  4. Some of them are quite tall, which really surprised me. They clearly lack the sharpness of work that full time sculptors put out, but when you think about it, they are pretty unique.
    I had the exact same thought when thinking about the guy in the middle - I'd swap his rifle for the swapping sake, but semi-automatic rifle comes in handy. As for which type it it, it could be a variety of sporting rifles that Americans put out.
    As for the M60 - it could be the shortened version :P.

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    1. Insightful as ever! Many thanks for your input, Mathyoo. I didn't even know there was a shortened version of the M60!

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  5. Looks great Bryan, love the checks on Hoyt. Simon's done a great job with these, especially when you consdier he's completely self-funded. He sculpting is improviong with every model so it'll be great to see what else he comes out with.

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    1. I totally agree with you, Adam. It is so easy to overlook the fact that Simon sculpts as a hobby and he is not a full time professional sculptor.

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  6. Thank you for the excellent and honest review, matey. The sculpting will slow down a bit since I have started Uni but I do have some bits and pieces in the works and will definitely be taking everyone's constructive input into account throughout future projects.

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    1. I'm always happy to promote your work, Simon.

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  7. Nice paintjob Dude!
    They may not be the best mini's out there but the price is nice.
    With quite a few companies doing seperate heads and weapons conversions should prove easy if a particular part bothers you too much.

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  8. Nice work on them all they all look great. I think Eddies M60 is still instantly recognisable though as what it is. It looks right to me but I don't have anything to compare it with.

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    1. Oh, it is undoubtedly an M60, Simon. I just thought it should have been longer but as Mathyoo pointed out, there is a short version of it so maybe that's what he's holding.

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  9. Nice touch on the checkered shirt ... gives it that little extra 'oomph'.

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    1. Thanks, FEM, but it's not easy to paint checkered patterns.

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  10. Nice looking figures. I also really liked your build of Brummie's Burgers.

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    1. Thanks, Sean. That's very kind of you to say so.

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  11. Great work on the checked shirt! I thought I'd pop back and take a look through the blogs, so it's cool to see these figures! I'm going to sift through the rest of the blogs now...it's much needed!

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    1. It sure is great to hear from you again, Carl. Thanks for popping in.

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