Rebel Centre Ward - Foot: Fitzjohn's spear: Prep (I)

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Mirliton Miniatures with replaced shafts and a new spear
The steam fell completely off this project for me since last year with my anniversary mania for Waterloo and affairs of the heart taking precedence over my hobby - fancy. Well, instead of building a windmill and the outskirts of Lewes like I thought I would, I've returned to figure painting - or at least unit modelling at present.

I've scrounged together thirty armed spearmen and assorted weaponry for my latest unit of foot. I've been compelled to model by own hornist. I've filed back a few helmets to round them to a more typical pot helm and replaced weapon shafts with rigid steel wire - I just cannot abide wobbly spears and the like!

They are a mix of mainly Old Glory and Mirliton figures with a few Essex and Foundry figures thrown in for good measure with their commander of Gripping Beast origin I believe. This will be my 30 figure armoured spear unit of the centre ward under the immediate leadership of the rebel baron John Fitzjohn. They will have a sister unit of unarmoured foot within their ward. This is my forray finally past the half way point for the rebel army ... not before time.
Two Foundry figures - left model converted
I've tried to ensure no two figures are the same. I had several Foundry axemen (image above) of the same casting so I cut away some axes and replaced them with my own steel spears on some, filed off some of their helmets to a rounded kettle helm shape on others. I mixed what shields I had throughout across all makes.

 I'm snatching what time I have to get back into this. The Mirliton figures are irritatingly segmented, requiring the fixing of all arms, weapons, shields and heads. Using two part epoxy resin is proving slow going.

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