And the next unit in the painting queue is. . .

Well, it looks like the votes are all in here at Stollen Central. And the next unit I will paint, following completion of the RSM95 grenadiers, is (drum roll, please). . . a unit of plastic 1/72 Revell Austrian grenadiers, wearing that neat bearskin with the silk bag flopping down one side! Final votes were three for these same grenadiers, and two each for the staff, cavalry, and artillery. Thanks to all of you who participated in the survey.

Now, what makes this REALLY exciting is that this first unit of Zichenau infantry will consist of 80+ figures organized in four companies plus a small regimental staff! Each company will have an officer, a sergeant, a corporal, a drummer, and 16 men. The staff will consist of a mounted colonel, an adjutant, a standard bearer, a regimental sergeant major, and a pioneer, leaning on a great big axe. Total regimental strength? A whopping 85 figures!

I decided to do this because the army of the Electorate of Zichenau will be slightly smaller than Stollen’s with perhaps only four units of infantry – two line, a two-company “light” formation, and a two-company pioneer unit -- plus (maybe) a single independent company. Stollen’s infantry, on the other hand, will consist of six units all told. So, it made sense to beef up Zichenau’s company establishment for its line troops.

Given the relative glut and cheapness of Revell’s 1/72 Austrian infantry sets on the

market (the other SYW sets are much rarer and MUCH dearer), I’ve purchased a final two boxes, to enable these massive regiments. They do look impressive all lined up on the painting table, even in their unpainted state. In the meantime, it’s back to the RSM95’s, singing their siren song to me from across the room. Can you say Odysseus?

P.S.

Thanks to everyone for your "get well" wishes. It’s always a drag to be sick, but especially when the weather is nice!

The Eventual Anhalt-Zerbst Regiment. . .

The Anhalt-Zerbst regiment musters in the drill square to sort themselves into platoons and companies during the coming weeks Fall maneuvers if you will. A large dose of real life the last few days with the start of classes next Monday, various preparatory meetings, and finishing up a few other things this week. But, I managed to sort out 60 or so Minden Austrian infantry from the pile and get 'em stuck to temporary painting bases. Must carefully drill out the hands of several NCOs for flagpoles and pole arms this weekend before the usual basecoat. I'm thinking of mixing the usual white gesso with the usual light gray to kill two birds with one stone so to speak. Applying both base- and undercoat in one fell swoop as my grandmother used to say. In the meantime, the recently finished squadron of Saxon cuirassiers has been placed carefully in one of the clear acrylic boxes on my shelves until I have the suitable flag to affix. -- Sto...

And We're Off!!!

Arrrgh! Gotta go back into camera settings on my iPhone to bring all of the frame into focus. Blast! Painting is underway on the 60 or so Minden Austrians, which are slated to become my version of the Anhalt-Zerbst Regiment of AWI renown. More or less indistinguishable from Austrians of the era really, right down to the red facings and turnbacks, but the eventual flags (already in my files) will set them apart. I went ahead and based-coated all of them over a couple of days lthe last week of August, using a mix of light gray and white acrylic gesso, before next applying my usual basic alkyd oil flesh tone to the faces and hands. In a day or two, I'll hit that with Army Painter Flesh Wash to tone things down a bit and bring some definition to the faces and hands. As usual, the plan is to focus on about 20 figures at a time, splitting the regiment roughly into thirds along with the color party and regimental staff. Depending on ...

Presenting the Anspach-Bayreuth Kuirassiere!!!

Here they are, with the rearmost nine figures still drying, three squadrons of the Anspach-Bayreuth Kuirassiere, now in the service of the Grand Duchy of Stollen. And now, it's onto that artillery!

The Grand Duchy of Stollen

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