Mike is Collecting Troops

For the last couple years I have been sorting out my collection of US Army figures from the period 1898 to 1998.  I am doing American Army troops that work for that whole period with touch points at 1898, 1918, 1938, 1958, 1978, 1998.  These periods essentially conform to our involvement in several wars.

I got some trays from Dollar General stores and I am using them to help me sort the troops by one platoon per tray, four platoons per company.  Sadly, hundreds of my Esci, and Airfix troops went brittle and will have to be replaced.

The cost of getting replacement troops has slowed the project by years.  I am also arranging them into companies, battalions, regiments, with the over all plan to be able to field the combat elements of an infantry division.

I am very vaguely, basing these troops on actual units.  The little photos are paintings of actual US Army units from these eras showing their uniforms, headgear and personal equipment.

All these Esci Zulu Wars British Infantry figures went brittle and will need replacement.  It's at least 8 boxes of figures.  The Italeri version of these troops have about a dozen fewer troops per set than the Esci figures sets and fewer riflemen.  So I anticipate having to buy 10 to 12 Italeri sets.

I am using this book as a guide to uniforms and equipment at the small unit level for each era.  This book is a great resource.  The collection will include private, local, and state militias, organized guard units and other militarized groups.  The US Army actually used saucer caps, Montana Peak hats, garrison caps, M1917 helmets, M1 helmets, pith helmets, pickelhaube helmets, and several other types.

My plan includes Boy Scouts, and US Forest Service men.  The Boy Scouts often performed search and rescue, and other auxiliary duties in the World Wars.  The US Army guarded the US Forests in World War One because wood was a strategic asset in World War One for airplane building and light ships.  They were special units that were the only US Army Federal troops issued lever action units.
 

Two Mountain Guns

Here is another version of the Atlantic Maxim gun converted to a mountain gun.

Barrel bored out for more realism.

Airfix USAAF MP for size.

Note some differences in the carriage, the newer gun is mounted a little higher up.

This is part of my project to clean up some of the spares box and make a few interesting items out of the bits whenever possible.
 

Maxim Cannon

I took one of the 12 pounder Napoleon guns from the Eagle Games cannon and mounted it on the Atlantic Maxim gun carriage.  I drilled out the barrel so it looks a little better.

It makes for an interesting little mountain guns.

Until at least WWII National Guard units and even local militia units and private citizens purchased their own artillery to supplement whatever the Federal Government had or provided to them.

This does not represent any specific gun.

Perhaps it was manufactured locally by local craftsmen to support their state or local militia.

There has been an American tradition of local arms makers all over the nation, even today.  Airfix USAAF MP for size.
 

Mounted 1 Inch Maxim

One inch Maxim gun.

Atlantic Maxim gun and Eagle Games carriage with the 12 pounder Napoleon cut off.

I am sure this is not an exact replica, but it's close enough for my purposes.

I plan on using it for US Army for my War of the Worlds project.  I have a small battery of them.

1898 it will be used by the Regular Army.

1918 it gets used by National Guard.

1938 it belongs to local militia forces.

It's a big gun, here with an Airfix USAAF military policeman.
 

WOTW US Army, National Guard, and Militia Troops

I am working on a major 1/72nd scale figure sorting and conversion project.

My plan is to have American Regular Army, State Militia, National Guard, and local militias for War of the World invasions.  They will be separate units for every 20 years starting in 1898, 1918, 1938 and 1958.  The first three are the primary focus on this project for now.  I am planning on about a regiment of each but the regiments will mostly be small from those days.

Here is some of my artillery.  The French 75 was used from 1917 to about 1945 by various US Army units.  By the end of WWII they were likely all gone by then.  This is 24 of them with the original wooden spoked wheels for World War One, and 24 others that have rubber tires and they will work for the 1938 time period.  24 is enough to support two battalions of infantry.  All 48 can be in use for the 1938 period.

I am sorting figures on my table, in units of about 50 or so troops.  Prior to WWII most units in the Regular Army, National Guard, Reserves, and militias were way understrength much of the time with companies having as few as 50 men.  I am also working on American police and Royal Canadian Mounted Police RCMP for the same period.  It's a big project and just the research has taken years, but it is all starting to come together.  It will likely take me another year or so to finish but it has been going on now for at least 10 years so far.
 

Boer War Artillery

Here is the Boer War crew for the Strelets Cresout Long Tom gun.

Back side.  I intend to use the gun as a US 5 inch siege gun model 1890.  I will likely make a US crew from an ACW crew or a British colonial crew.

The crew in action.

Note the little stand for the crewman to stand on to take a sighting.

Close up.

These figures are very well detailed.

And they have a lot of character.

People checking the maps for long range fire.
 

Cresout Gun

This gun is very similar to a 5 inch gun that was in US service at the same time.

I tried to find out if the US gun was a license built version of this gun because they look so much alike.

But I could not find anything about it.

5-inch Siege Gun 1890, 70 were made and although mobilized for combat in the Spanish American War none actually made it into combat.

 Several were later taken to the Philippines and Hawaii but were disposed of in the 1920s as obsolete.  A battery of these cannons was four guns towed by eight horses each.

Unusual Troop Types

One of my favorite books is the Military Uniforms in America, The Modern Era From 1868, from the Series Produced by The Company of Military Historians. Presidio Press, 1988.  It is one of a series of books that describe and paint the uniforms of North America, primarily the United States, in various time periods.  I am now using this book to try and recreate some of these uniforms in miniature.  These are four units I am hoping to create.

My intention is to take soft plastic figures that are similar to these and with head swaps, and other plastic surgery, as needed, and maybe even a little paint, to create these units.  At least good enough quality to pass the arm's reach test.  That is, they look good enough from arm's reach.

My plan is to give me soldiers that will work for 1898, 1918, and 1938 periods.  I am trying to develop US Army troops for each of those time periods to fight invaders into the Continental United States.  Those invaders could be Indians, Mexicans, Spanish, English, Canadians, Germans, or of course, Martians.

My intention is to use regular troops in standard uniforms, but to add a few of these troops to create a headquarters unit that will be in the dress uniform.  These troops will be a squad of a dozen, or perhaps two squads.  Depending on the difficulty of the conversion needed, I may create as many as a full platoon, maybe to include a few mounted troops.

I like to include unusual troop types in my units.  Often I give them special abilities, perhaps better morale, or better marksmanship, or sometimes worse abilities than the norm, just mix things up a bit.  If you have any suggestions for soft plastic figures that can be easily converted into any of these troops, please note them in the comments.