I went along to the Sandown Park Toy Fair last weekend and this is what I found:
The Timpo Station Figures are fairly common but I've never seen this boxed set before, I thought the artwork was quite stunning but at £350 it was too rich for may blood (and thankfully not really my sort of thing anyway!) happily the vendor very kindly agreed to let me photograph it to share with you.
Inside the box the figures are separated by cardboard dividers and include station staff with various pieces of luggage, missing are the sailor on leave with kitbag and one other. Sculpted by Roy Selwyn-Smith before he went to work for Zang and subsequently Britains, it includes portrait figures of him and his wife as Mr and Mrs Smith (top row third compartment in blue jacket leaning on cane and last compartment sitting on suitcase.
And so to the figures I did pick up for myself, all from junk boxes and mostly needing some attention I paid an average of £2 each. Above Britains General Officer and Officer of the 11th Hussars.
An as yet unknown (but I'm working on it) French made 45mm solid Turco, a Britains gun, a 48mm Prussian infantryman marching made in Germany by Heyde and a Britains Senegalise who will be joining an existing unit.
Three medieval knights made in France by CGB Mignot the first two utilise the body of the archer with quiver moulded at the waist but have been given shields and sword/axe (missing) to make them into Men at Arms. See previous post here.
The sitting U.S. Military Policeman was made post-war in West Germany by Arnold and goes in a tinplate model of a Willys Jeep, I have the other figures that go in it with him but always seem to miss out on the vehicle itself.
At first glance I thought the mounted Lineol officer saluting was King Leopold III of the Belgians but sadly when I cleaned the grime of ages off him I discovered it wasn't. Both Elastolin and Lineol painted in the whites of the eyes on their personality figures, and that's the quick way to identify them, but they sometimes used the same figure with a basic paint job as an unnamed General Officer, as here, and the eyes were drawn in by pen.
And finally three plastic Crusaders made in China and sold under the name Supreme, modern production but theyy usually come in large poly bags and I have only wanted these particular poses. At 65mm they are a bit large to go with most other manufacturers ranges but they are great designs, made under licence from King & Country and will paint up great.
