About Me

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No Fixed Abode, Home Counties, United Kingdom
I’m a 60-year-old Aspergic gardening CAD-Monkey. Sardonic, cynical and with the political leanings of a social reformer, I’m also a toy and model figure collector, particularly interested in the history of plastics and plastic toys. Other interests are history, current affairs, modern art, and architecture, gardening and natural history. I love plain chocolate, fireworks and trees, but I don’t hug them, I do hug kittens. I hate ignorance, when it can be avoided, so I hate the 'educational' establishment and pity the millions they’ve failed with teaching-to-test and rote 'learning' and I hate the short-sighted stupidity of the entire ruling/industrial elite, with their planet destroying fascism and added “buy-one-get-one-free”. Likewise, I also have no time for fools and little time for the false crap we're all supposed to pretend we haven't noticed, or the games we're supposed to play. I will 'bite the hand that feeds', to remind it why it feeds.

Friday, March 15, 2019

S is for Scruffy Scot's

A mixed post really, I'm finishing the Highlander box-tickers with Cherilea, but they are - as some of you will be only too aware - hard to find in good condition and/or number, so I'll do what I can with not much, although luckily Theo van der Weerden sent me some images of his with nice paint, so the 54mm figures can be shown fully!

54mm Highlanders; 54mm Toy Soldiers; 60mm Highlander; 60mm Toy Soldiers; Cherilea 54mm Soldiers; Cherilea 60mm Soldiers; Cherilea Plastic Musician; Cherilea Plastic Soldiers; Cherilea Toy Figures; Cherilea Toy Soldiers; Drum Major; Drummer; Drummers; Highland Bandsmen; Highland Pipes & Drums; Highland Toy Figure; Highland Toy Figures; Highlander; Highlanders; Old Plastic Figures; Old Toy Soldiers; Piper; Pipes & Drums; Pipes And Drums; Small Scale World; smallscaleworld.blogspot.com; Vintage Plastic Figures; Vintage Plastic Soldiers; Vintage Toy Figures; Vintage Toy Soldiers;
The 60mm however will have to wait until I get some! This is it; not brilliant, but not too bad either, I particularly like the staff/mace, which has a decent rendition of the relief-tooled gilded-silver or plain silverwork you see on the shafts in reality.

54mm Highlanders; 54mm Toy Soldiers; 60mm Highlander; 60mm Toy Soldiers; Cherilea 54mm Soldiers; Cherilea 60mm Soldiers; Cherilea Plastic Musician; Cherilea Plastic Soldiers; Cherilea Toy Figures; Cherilea Toy Soldiers; Drum Major; Drummer; Drummers; Highland Bandsmen; Highland Pipes & Drums; Highland Toy Figure; Highland Toy Figures; Highlander; Highlanders; Old Plastic Figures; Old Toy Soldiers; Piper; Pipes & Drums; Pipes And Drums; Small Scale World; smallscaleworld.blogspot.com; Vintage Plastic Figures; Vintage Plastic Soldiers; Vintage Toy Figures; Vintage Toy Soldiers;
54mm; I think it's only the four poses so I should count my blessings - at least I have them! Paint's tatty, but it nearly always is with these!

54mm Highlanders; 54mm Toy Soldiers; 60mm Highlander; 60mm Toy Soldiers; Cherilea 54mm Soldiers; Cherilea 60mm Soldiers; Cherilea Plastic Musician; Cherilea Plastic Soldiers; Cherilea Toy Figures; Cherilea Toy Soldiers; Drum Major; Drummer; Drummers; Highland Bandsmen; Highland Pipes & Drums; Highland Toy Figure; Highland Toy Figures; Highlander; Highlanders; Old Plastic Figures; Old Toy Soldiers; Piper; Pipes & Drums; Pipes And Drums; Small Scale World; smallscaleworld.blogspot.com; Vintage Plastic Figures; Vintage Plastic Soldiers; Vintage Toy Figures; Vintage Toy Soldiers;
Earlier issue or very different second cavity? The figure on the right's barely 50mm and I'm assuming is taken from the original hollow-cast range, but the 'standard' sculpt, not the 40mm figure which was visibly smaller and wore a Glengarry.

54mm Highlanders; 54mm Toy Soldiers; 60mm Highlander; 60mm Toy Soldiers; Cherilea 54mm Soldiers; Cherilea 60mm Soldiers; Cherilea Plastic Musician; Cherilea Plastic Soldiers; Cherilea Toy Figures; Cherilea Toy Soldiers; Drum Major; Drummer; Drummers; Highland Bandsmen; Highland Pipes & Drums; Highland Toy Figure; Highland Toy Figures; Highlander; Highlanders; Old Plastic Figures; Old Toy Soldiers; Piper; Pipes & Drums; Pipes And Drums; Small Scale World; smallscaleworld.blogspot.com; Vintage Plastic Figures; Vintage Plastic Soldiers; Vintage Toy Figures; Vintage Toy Soldiers;
I'm not sure why I took this shot, clearly - at the time - I was very pleased with my two tatty drummers! Or is it that ones got a slightly squashed drum? I don't know!

54mm Highlanders; 54mm Toy Soldiers; 60mm Highlander; 60mm Toy Soldiers; Cherilea 54mm Soldiers; Cherilea 60mm Soldiers; Cherilea Plastic Musician; Cherilea Plastic Soldiers; Cherilea Toy Figures; Cherilea Toy Soldiers; Drum Major; Drummer; Drummers; Highland Bandsmen; Highland Pipes & Drums; Highland Toy Figure; Highland Toy Figures; Highlander; Highlanders; Old Plastic Figures; Old Toy Soldiers; Piper; Pipes & Drums; Pipes And Drums; Small Scale World; smallscaleworld.blogspot.com; Vintage Plastic Figures; Vintage Plastic Soldiers; Vintage Toy Figures; Vintage Toy Soldiers;
Again two sculpts with the left one probably coming via the hollow-cast range, the right-hand figure has quite good-to-fair paint (for my sample!) but a damaged mace, thus it is trying to collect these I guess . . . also coming to this late, all the good ones have probably been snapped-up!

54mm Highlanders; 54mm Toy Soldiers; 60mm Highlander; 60mm Toy Soldiers; Cherilea 54mm Soldiers; Cherilea 60mm Soldiers; Cherilea Plastic Musician; Cherilea Plastic Soldiers; Cherilea Toy Figures; Cherilea Toy Soldiers; Drum Major; Drummer; Drummers; Highland Bandsmen; Highland Pipes & Drums; Highland Toy Figure; Highland Toy Figures; Highlander; Highlanders; Old Plastic Figures; Old Toy Soldiers; Piper; Pipes & Drums; Pipes And Drums; Small Scale World; smallscaleworld.blogspot.com; Vintage Plastic Figures; Vintage Plastic Soldiers; Vintage Toy Figures; Vintage Toy Soldiers;
Theo's have lovely paint! The broken one will require some Superglue 'Plastix'; paint the upper breaks with the activator pen, put two small blobs ('wettings' really) on the lower breaks and press firmly together on a flat surface. While you're holding them together, carefully paint round the lower break/ankle with the activator pen to encourage some of the glue to flow back.

The glue works through capillary-action, by having the spirit in the activator draw the glue down into the molecular structure of the polymer, like an anchor in sand, however if you follow the instructions to the letter and coat both surfaces you will find the glue starts to set straight away, which as that involves it wrinkling-up and turning glass-like, leaves you with a poor join. The activator is also a- or contains an additional- catalyst.

It's better to coat one-half of the break and then try to draw it (the glue) back into the other half after you've got them both lined-up and jointed flush. It's a skill or 'knack' that requires practice, but try it using some old knackered figures to practice on - it will help you save more valuable or rare figures later.

54mm Highlanders; 54mm Toy Soldiers; 60mm Highlander; 60mm Toy Soldiers; Cherilea 54mm Soldiers; Cherilea 60mm Soldiers; Cherilea Plastic Musician; Cherilea Plastic Soldiers; Cherilea Toy Figures; Cherilea Toy Soldiers; Drum Major; Drummer; Drummers; Highland Bandsmen; Highland Pipes & Drums; Highland Toy Figure; Highland Toy Figures; Highlander; Highlanders; Old Plastic Figures; Old Toy Soldiers; Piper; Pipes & Drums; Pipes And Drums; Small Scale World; smallscaleworld.blogspot.com; Vintage Plastic Figures; Vintage Plastic Soldiers; Vintage Toy Figures; Vintage Toy Soldiers;
Another shot  of Theo's, showing the marching rifleman. He does these images on an Epson scanner, I have an Epson but I can't get results like this, despite trying all the buttons on the 'advanced' settings, I can't get the depth of field, and only end up with the bits touching the glass in focus, there must be an infinity setting . . . or something . . . fussa-russa!

And thanks to Theo for the images!

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