Sunday, November 20, 2011

French Napoleonic Artillery Limbers

I know many of you are Napoleonic enthusiasts - as am I - despite my eclectic postings on just about everything else lately!


I recently obtained a couple of beautiful Front Rank French artillery limbers  for a song (and a few more $!) from my mate Dean at Olympian (see also logo left side of this blog).  Quite a bargain considering how good they are.  They were a bit banged about and were just the limbers - no artillery pieces attached.  


After a few repairs and some minor repainting and a bit of touching up, I made up two 8 pdr artillery pieces to go with them and finished them off.  The following (below) is the Line Horse Artillery limber - my favourite of the two.

French Line Horse Artillery - after 1807? - the rider at the front has a new plume!

No, second thoughts the Guard (Foot) Artillery limber is my fave, no wait...  Actually they are both beautifully done.

French Guard Artillery limber




Don't know how I'll use them on the table in a Black Powder game but they'll make great eye-candy anyway.

While I'm at it I'd just like to say a big thank you to my Irish mate Angry Lurker for his generous donation to the Movember cause (my previous post) - the only one so far - so I'd like to again appeal to my fellow bloggers to donate to the very good cause of men's health.  The link takes you to the Movember site and my son's account on it.  Any donation (click under the Mo symbol, left hand side) will generate a receipt for tax purposes.  Last shameless plug - I promise!

Well, that's it for now - still sorting out computer problems with my old PC but have another battalion of FPW French line and Turkos about half done.  Also got a regiment of Spahi - French colonial cavalry used in the Republican phase of the conflict - that will make a very colourful addition when I paint them up.

And another thank you to BRB for pointing out my brain-fart calling them all caissons rather than limbers - now corrected - cheers mate - what can I say - its been a long day!!

Cheers,
           Doc

16 comments:

  1. Very nice work! Love the straining horse.

    I think you may mean limbers, rather than caissons, which are the long Addams family coffin-like wagons for carrying ammo.

    Cheers, Simon

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  2. Great work Doc.
    A great effort on your young lad for having a crack a Movember. We run this at work and believe me there are are alot of 70 porn mo's getting about. Although we have one bloke who now looks looks the Persian Emissary from 300. I reckon he grew it in about 3 days. good luck on your fund raising.
    Cheers, guido.

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  3. They're lovely figures but the green looks more like Russian artillery than that used by the French?

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  4. Wow, wow, wow! Those are beautiful. Whether the colors are 100% accurate or not, they are stunning to look at. Best, Dean

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  5. Nice, I keep wanting to get a couple of these but they are so expensive... Again very nice work!

    Cheers...

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  6. Could you post a picture of the detail between the horses? I'm interested in seeing how the horses are connected to the limbers. It seems like that angle shot is rarely taken/posted.

    Cheers,

    Dave

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  7. Very well done - full of character.

    Frank
    http://adventuresinlead.blogspot.com/

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  8. Excellent looking limbers. front RAnk make some very nice stuff.

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  9. The limbers loo great - very well done. I have some Parry limbers somewhere on the lead mountain that need to be attended to when I return to Napoleonic painting.
    Miles

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  10. Thanks for the comments guys - I had a sneaking suspicion that a post on something Napoleonic might generate a few! Thanks to Simon for pointing out my initial stuffup in referring to them as caissons - after looking at the new Perry Prussian ones I think I had them on the brain!

    Red Cardinal: re the limber colour - you're right - a bit too much like Russian apple green than the French olive green. I plan to put a flesh wash over it to tone it down some time but it'll be a fiddly job and I haven't the time at the moment.

    Sorry DaveB I can't find any shots that detail what you're after. Basically the limbers are attached by one of the cross beams being glued to the fetlock of one of the horses. The wheels are glued to the base and that's how its done - a bit precarious and as they were all busted when I got them - another very fiddly job. Some pedants reinforce with traces attached to the harness - but that's a step too far for this pedant!

    Front Rank are a bit too Tele-tubby in proportion for my taste with some of their figures but they do produce some beautiful sets like these limbers. I only wish they'd make one for the Polish Horse Artillery which would be the top of my wish-list (and save me fruitlessly pestering the Perrys!)

    Well, thanks again for all the comments - I've got to get back to some painting - French Turkos and Spahi cavalry - probably the next post!

    Oh and big thanks for those of you who have donated for Movember - my son&hair should have posted some pics of his hirsute progress!

    Cheers,
    Doc

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  11. beautiful! I love figures and toys in the shape of horses! More animals please :)

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  12. Thanks Dezmond - if you like horses there's a fair amount of cavalry posted on this blog - and I'm planning to do more including French Spahi (native Algerian cavalry - mounted on Arabian horses) which are very colourful.

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  13. very very nice I still have another limber to do you've just got to love them don't you great painting

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