Pound Store Plastic Air Power and Pilots

I picked up this red plastic biplane from a children’s magazine about 10+ years ago, I think it was the Children’s BBC TV Grandpa in My Pocket magazine.

It looked like it might be suitable for 30 to 40mm figures.

Here it is alongside two SAE Madeira sample 30mm figures I bought last year from Tradition Of London online.

I found these vintage SAE Madeira 30mm figures quite slender in comparison with other 30mm figures.

Screenshot / photos from my blog post: https://manoftinblogtwo.wordpress.com/2023/05/16/when-30mm-marks-little-soldiers-met-my-kitbashed-28mm-marines-and-mountain-men/

Two shiny pilots from the 30mm SAE Madeira (Holger Eriksson) Range look very slender in comparison.

L to R (above) Marks Little Soldier (MLS) 30mm Officer, our two SAE pilots, then orange spaceman conversion from Pound Store Plastic Warriors, 28mm Wargames Atlantic conversion to mountain trooper and Warlord Games 28mm conversion.

As an alternative, the new Mark’s Little Soldiers 30mm or some of the larger 28mm figures might suit this two-seated biplane aircraft better?

30mm MLS character figures feature a very 1920s 30s type pilot figure

although in keeping with the pound store ‘penny dreadful’ nature of this blog, one of those penny figures with a US tanker type helmeted figure looks like he could be painted as a pilot with flying helmet and possibly life jacket?

https://poundstoreplasticwarriors.wordpress.com/2018/01/28/little-green-men-pound-store-plastic-space-warriors/

So there you go, an interesting aircraft, one that you might find as a jumble or charity shop find.

Blog posted by Mark Man Of TIN, 18 May 2023

Poundland Shelfie Toy Soldiers still £1 per 100

Good to see these versatile figures are still available in Poundland UK, surrounded by other intriguing toys. (I wonder what was so Totally Roarsome Toymania and DinoTastic?)

These Battle Squadron figures are still available in store or online

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I have used and converted many of these penny plastic figures in the past, so wondered how they fit with other modern figures. Some of these conversions from modern to colonial, space and natives can be seen here:

https://poundstoreplasticwarriors.wordpress.com/2020/12/21/more-retro-packaging-for-the-penny-dreadful-pound-store-plastic-warriors/

L to R, MLS 30mm Officer, two 30mm Pilots SAE Madeira (Holger Eriksson) , then orange spaceman conversion from Pound Store Plastic Warriors, 28mm Wargames Atlantic conversion to mountain trooper and Warlord Games 28mm conversion.

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I wondered how these pound store plastic warriors (which are about 30 to 32mm) mixed with 28mm plastic figures and new 30mm metal Marks Little Soldiers

– you can read more about them on my blog post here:

https://manoftinblogtwo.wordpress.com/2023/05/16/when-30mm-marks-little-soldiers-met-my-kitbashed-28mm-marines-and-mountain-men/

Big Combat Figures

I noticed the only other vaguely ‘toy soldier’ related item in PoundLand were these larger action figures range at £3 for a box of heavily armed eight military figures with outsize weapons!

They also have some vehicle back up above, a quad type bike? and inflatable boat. Possibly large scale enough or harder to loose / useful for garden gaming?

Blog posted by Mark Man Of TIN, 16 May 2023

Plastic Warrior Show 2023

One of my trusty blog readers Peter (snaves23) has reminded me again this year that this excellent one day show is coming up, one of the last such toy soldier shows around and a visual feast and rummage of plastic figures :

http://plasticwarrioreditor.blogspot.com

Not sure if I will make it to Plastic Warrior this year, as it’s a long way from the deepest darkest West Country, as I found travelling upcountry for the Woking Games Day in March (and possibly the Northern Stockport one in Autumn) on which I have spent much of my hobby budget for the year!

You can get an idea of what a visual feast it is from Brian Carrick’s Collecting Toy Soldiers posts in 2018 and 2019:

https://toysoldiercollecting.blogspot.com/2018/05/plastic-warrior-show-2018.html

https://toysoldiercollecting.blogspot.com/2019/05/well-thats-all-done-for-another-year.html

Blog posted by Mark Man Of TIN April 2023

Britain’s Stargard Space figures 1980s catalogues

Another site bookmarked for further inspiration

(Above) 1983 catalogue page from the fascinating We are the Mutants website, for example :

https://wearethemutants.com/2020/01/07/mutating-empire-britains-space-toys/star-guard-britains-toy-catalogue-1987-we-are-the-mutants-2/

Several years of calendar scanned in already on this We Are Mutants site ready to explore, so I don’t need to do this for the space pages of my surviving 1980s Britain’s catalogues treasured and pored over as a youngster!

A few Star Gard and Alien figures survived from my teenage collection, although I have the Star Gard boxed set 9147 shown, picked up very affordably about 10 years ago.

Blog posted by Mark (Star) Man Of TIN, 12/13 / 21st April 2023.

Donald Featherstone in Outer Space Skirmish? Pure Sci-Fi Fantasy!

H G Wells – Little Wars – Donald Featherstone – Sci Fi Gaming – Fantasy Gaming – Gary Gygax – Skirmish Wargaming … and Pound Store Plastic Space Marines!

Crossposted from my Man Of TIN Two blog

https://manoftinblogtwo.wordpress.com/2023/04/13/donald-featherstone-in-outer-space-skirmish-pure-sci-fi-fantasy/

Fantasy Toy Soldiers blog Sci Fi Figures posts

Bookmarked this interesting web site and post to explore later:

http://fantasytoysoldiers.blogspot.com/p/vintage-sci-fi-toy-soldiers-before.html

Whilst these plastic and metal original figures from the 1950s and 1960s may be hard to find, fragile and / or expensive, especially in the UK, they give a style guide or mood board inspiration for cheapo pound store figure conversions.

Watch this Space 🙂

Again thanks to Alan Tradgardland Gruber for this possible theme for our next Little Wars Revisited game at Woking or Stockport …

Blog posted by Mark (Star) Man Of TIN, 12 April 2023

One Page Rules Game Jam

This may be of interest to some of my readers?

Reposted from the Wargaming Pastor’s Death Zap Blog

https://deathzap.co.uk/2023/04/07/1-page-game-jam-ideas/

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Short simple rules are always more to my taste, as they are to The Wargaming Pastor

https://manoftinblog.wordpress.com/2019/09/28/instant-airfix-featherstone-ww2-game-by-the-death-zap-wargaming-pastor/

Rules you can easily keep in your head such as Featherstone’s Close Wars appendix to his 1962 War Games book.

https://manoftinblog.wordpress.com/2016/06/09/close-little-wars-featherstones-simplest-rules/

or simple versions of his Ancients ACW and WW2 Rules

https://manoftinblog.wordpress.com/2016/10/15/featherstone-simple-ww2-rules/

And Featherstone borrowed or reprinted in his Skirmish Wargames simple duelling rules by Gerard de Gre:

https://poundstoreplasticwarriors.wordpress.com/2017/04/26/duelling-in-the-sandpit-lunge-cut-and-stop-thrust/

All good simple back of postcard / one page rules …

Blog posted by Mark Man Of TIN, 9 April 2023

£1 Charity Shop Cowboys and Indians Gift

This was a welcome recent gift from a family member, a £1 gift bag picked up from a British Heart Foundation charity shop.

Let’s look at the figures and bits in more detail:

There were some interesting 50mm cowboys that I don’t recognise (top row) , alongside China copies of Airfix cowboys. It was thought by the gift giver that they might possibly convert into Boy Scouts?

I would be curious to know which maker made the two top row cowboy poses.

The Indians or Native Americans appear mostly 50mm versions, possibly based on Airfix or Britain’s Deetail Indian poses.

They make fairly good generic tribesmen with swords, rifles, spears and shields. These weapons could be removed or converted as needed.

A small amount of repair is required in places as these figures are a bit bashed and well playworn.

Interesting as the figures were, the best parts of this pound were the accessories.

These are versatile accessories such as a cooking pot on a tripod over a log fire, an animal leather skin stretched out and the slightly more Native American weapons and shield tripod or wooden frame.

Mixed in were a few common plastic bushes and some interesting plastic trees that look like copies of older metal or lead trees.

The log fires are handy, they could be used in any age (or scout camp).

The third pole with a hole near the top is a bit flimsy or easily breakable but works for the weapons stand or pot hanger. A long thin dowel or cocktail stick could stand in for this flimsy pole to make up the spare accessory tripods.

A good find as buying these accessories new or vintage in metal would be reasonably expensive.

Many of the trees, figures and accessories have flimsy or minimal basing, so could do with a suitable mdf sort of base.

As befits the scraps from someone else’s toybox, there is also a stray fence or gate panel and steering part of a wagon. All useful for the bits box!

So there you are, a pound donated to a worthwhile charity, a welcome gift and some helpful recycling of vintage non-SUP (single use plastic).

Blog posted by Mark Man Of TIN, 27 March 2023

Having the Bottle to come out Tops in Tribal Warfare?

Somehow this post never got finished in 2018 but thanks to Alan Tradgardland Gruber’s memories in his comment on my Mother’s Day post on my Man Of TIN blog, I thought of Subbuteo and its odd influence on my gaming. Alan had memories of playing Subbuteo Cricket with his mother, which reminded me of this Subbuteo / bottle top tribal wargaming crossover.

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Reading John Patriquin’s interesting blog Wargames Hermit, John was interested in recreating the free flowing rituals of Tribal Warfare as seen amongst the Dani people of New Guinea.

YouTube link West Papua 1963 https://youtu.be/JI4uirwxx1Y

John called into action his chessboard battlefield and good old Airfix Indians.

https://wargamehermit.blogspot.com/2018/08/ritualized-warfare-in-new-guinea-1963.html

https://wargamehermit.blogspot.com/2018/08/new-peter-laing-purchase-and-no-brain.html

https://wargamehermit.blogspot.com/2018/08/one-more-no-brain-wargame.html

It reminded me of a strange article from an early 1983 Miniature Wargames No. 11 magazine called ‘Stone Age Wargames’ that used beer bottle top mounted Warriors as a bizarre Subbuteo / Wargames mash up to reflect the free flowing movement of such Tribal Warfare.

When I mentioned this to John, he too remembered this article!

I thought I would have a winter (2018) evening knock around to see how this might work with whatever figures and bottle tops I had to hand.

I believe this Stone Age Wargames article in Miniature Wargames c. 1982/83 rules were by Andy Callan.

Andy Callan, he of the Hair Roller Armies, the Maori Wars Rules using Peter Laing 15mm amidst dense carpet forests and who is still writing rules for the Peter Dennis Paperboys Series, Never Mind the Billhooks Rules etc.

Blog posted finally by Mark Man Of TIN, 20 March 2023

Mother’s Day toy soldier thoughts 2023

What proved to be my last Mother’s Day card that I drew and sent ‘home’ in 2016.

Some interesting memories from readers in response to the Mother’s Day post on my other blog, my first Man Of TIN Blog, about the influence their Mums as well as their Dads had on their early gaming life.

https://manoftinblog.wordpress.com/2023/03/19/mothers-day-2023/

Crossposted by Mark Man Of TIN, 19th / 20th March 2023