28mm Hollywood Western Gaming - 15.1.21: US Cavalry

[guitarheroandy]

I've always been fascinated by 1950s-60s Hollywood westerns involving the US Cavalry and I love the look of them in those movies. Currently nobody does those in 28mm (although there are whispers that Empress are gonna do some in their Wild Bunch range), so I decided to have a bit of conversion fun. I bought some Galloping Major troopers and a set of Dead Man's Hand 7th Cavalry and I already had some 'proper' US Cavalry from Artisan and I love their officer figure, so added him in. I added braces and a couple of neckerchiefs with Greenstuff - this was a bitch of a job! Getting consistency in the width of the braces and getting the Greenstuff thin enough was a complete pain. I'm not 100% happy with what I did, but it'll do from 'gaming distance'.

I also struggled with the painting. The GM figures are delightful but the detail is sculpted very thin and the faces in particular aren't well defined. This made it difficult to use my 'dip and highlight' technique effectively. 8 months without doing any painting didn't help either (I know...8 months without even touching a brush!!) as I was simply very rusty. However, they haven't come out too badly - certainly good enough to put on the table, although they'll win no prizes and the close ups aren't flattering!

I went with the classic 'yellow neckerchief and pale hat' look, even though in many period movies the soldiers have a range of neckerchief colours and in many movies the hats are black. I think this look I've given them is very generic '50s movie' and that's exactly the look I wanted.

Anyway - here they are. There are a few more shots on the blog.















Next up, some cactus plants, then some Apaches, plus some Cavalry horses (horse holder stands). I'm hoping that Galloping major will soon bring out some mounted variants as I really need those!!

I've done a unit of 10 for the Facebook group Plains Wars house rules for The Men Who Would Be Kings (where Cavalry units are 10 strong), although initially my gaming will be small skirmish Fistful of Lead with my son, hence planning on getting some Apaches done shortly too.

[Grumpy Gnome]

Looking good! I think you captured the look you were going for.

[Harry Faversham]

So do I, soon as I saw 'em I started singing 'She Wore a Yellow Ribbon'!

[Malamute]

Splendid. I have a fondness for the Hollywood cavalry, it takes me back to my childhood.

 Your figures remind me of the old Britain's 7th Cavalry figures. Happy times

[Romark]

Top job on those 👍
"Forward Yo!" 

[warlord frod]

nicely done 

[Sir_Theo]

Lovely! I know its a Hollywood thing but US Cavalry just look right with yellow Neckerchiefs!

I also agree about that Artizan Officer model. Wonderful sculpts and you've done it justice

[NickNascati]

Nice work.  Hand sculpted neckerchiefs?  The color of the slouch hat I’ve been told depends on where the troops are deployed.  In the southwest, ie fighting Apaches, the hats are the beige/off white. In the Dakotas, they are black.

[guitarheroandy]

Nice work.  Hand sculpted neckerchiefs?  The color of the slouch hat I’ve been told depends on where the troops are deployed.  In the southwest, ie fighting Apaches, the hats are the beige/off white. In the Dakotas, they are black.

A couple of them have hand sculpted neckerchiefs but most neckerchiefs are 'stock' on the sculpts. All the braces are hand-sculpted.
The hat colour - yes, I'd heard that too, but I think it actually depended more on the period rather than theatre if my reading and memory of what I've read in the past is correct. In the mid 1880s a pale coloured hat was issued as standard for all cavalry. Prior to that the official issue hat was black, but in reality most troopers wore a civilian hat of their own purchase, especially in the late 1860s to early 1880s, as the official issue hats were utterly useless and fell apart quickly.
However, this project is not about reality; it's all about Hollywood, so all my 'research' is 1950s and 1960s movies - for Cavalry and Indians alike! 

Thank you for all the appreciative comments. I'm excited about this project and might actually get it to a point where, if not 'complete', it's playable on the tabletop!

[Hitman]

Great job!! You certainly shook the rust off. When I haven't painted for a long stretch of time, I paint a bunch of terrain pieces to get the dexterity back...guess you didn't need to!! 

What colours did you use for the pants and coat? I was just going through the remaining western figures in my collection this past week and all I need to paint are my cavalry and Apaches. Thanks in advance for sharing.
Regards,
Hitman
 

[Trooper]

That is definitely the right look for US Cavalry of the Plains Wars. It just looks so good. The Foundry range is pretty nice, and check out the Old Glory packs too, their mounted figures are very nice and would fit in with your look. They are very "John Ford".

[guitarheroandy]

Great job!! You certainly shook the rust off. When I haven't painted for a long stretch of time, I paint a bunch of terrain pieces to get the dexterity back...guess you didn't need to!! 

What colours did you use for the pants and coat? I was just going through the remaining western figures in my collection this past week and all I need to paint are my cavalry and Apaches. Thanks in advance for sharing.
Regards,
Hitman
 

Thank you! The pants are Foundry Union Trouser Blue (mid-tone and highlight tone only) and the shirts are Foundry Union Blue (midtone and highlight tone only) with a final highlight of Sky Blue. I use the mid-tone shades for base coats, then add Army Painter dip (brushed on). Once that's fully dry I matte them down with Dullcote and then highlight up with the original basecoat shade and the highlight shade. Occasionally (as with the shirts) I need an extra highlight to make them 'pop' but this is rare.

[Galloping Major]

A very nice project  I've always loved the John Ford westerns, especially his "Cavalry Trilogy".

Cheers,
Lance

www.gallopingmajorwargames.co.uk

[DS615]

Those look very cool, and certainly bring back memories of watching the shows, so very successfully done!

I know Black Scorpion makes 7th Cavalry figures in their Tombstone range if you're still looking.

[guitarheroandy]

Those look very cool, and certainly bring back memories of watching the shows, so very successfully done!

I know Black Scorpion makes 7th Cavalry figures in their Tombstone range if you're still looking.

Cheers!
The Black Scorpion 7th Cavalry are no good to me though. They are completely 'fantasy' in their uniforms - not even based on Hollywood! It's hard to tell where the sculptor got his/her ideas as there's resemblance to neither reality nor movies in their look. It's a shame because their sculpting is always top notch...