Among the finds at the car boot sale last weekend were these post war composition figures of the German Bundeswehr made by Elastolin, which warrant a post of their own.
The immediate post war production of Elastolin was something of a hybrid, utilising the same "sawdust and glue" composition mixture for the bodies but introducing a new pattern of head made in plastic and wearing an American style M1 helmet. Elastolin used the same composition bodies with this plastic head and just different painting schemes to depict both Bundeswehr (as shown above) and American GI's for the export market. Previously the pre war American infantry were made entirely in composition material and wore the British Army style Brodie helmet.
Elastolin had been using the bodies of their German infantry with separate plug in heads and different painting schemes to depict various contemporary armies since the early 1930's but this was the first instance of them utilising plastic parts. The flag was the same pattern of tinplate standard that they had been using pre war but was painted in the black, red and gold colours of the national flag of the Federal Republic of Germany.
Wow Brian! You really did a great job finding treasures at that car boot sale! Very interesting information about these Elastolin hybrid figures, something I never knew before! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteYou never know what will turn up but it's all part of the fun of the hunt!
DeleteInteresting figures and background to them. I must say you must go to some splendid car boot sales or are most fortunate indeed.
ReplyDeleteAlan Tradgardland
Perseverance pays off in the long term and in the meantime it's a great way to get some exercise!
DeleteFantastic find Brian - its amazing that these figures have survived so long. I guess they're really fragile?
ReplyDeleteThe composition material is baked around a wire armature skeleton and the post war examples are a bit more resilient than the earlier ones, which have a tendency to crack if the armature expands from rust.
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