Russian Shock Troops - No Shoulder Boards? (Brigade Games)

[thestoats]

Hey guys,
I'm looking at the very nice-looking Russian Shock Troop packs from the Storm in the East Range and am considering getting them. However, I can't help but wonder why there aren't any shoulder boards on the otherwise gorgeous miniatures. I know that they probably represent troops fighting for the Provisional Government but to my knowledge shoulder boards were not abolished after the February Revolution. However, is there anyone who knows why the figures aren't sculpted with shoulder boards?
Thanks!

[waterproof]

I don't know the miniatures series. a link or pictures would be helpful. I'm not aware that units in the Russian Civil War had no shoulder boards.

[cuprum]

https://avatars.dzeninfra.ru/get-zen_doc/5289413/pub_639bebc2fd18a549400fdbb2_639bfbb09d59002711d625d6/scale_1200

In the army of the Provisional Government, shoulder straps and other previous insignia continued to operate. In the newly created volunteer revolutionary shock units, new, rather colorful elements of the uniform were introduced. But all this did not exist for long. These volunteer units later became part of the white armies, bringing the fashion for colored uniforms and colorful and bright insignia to the white armies.

According to the decree of December 16, 1917 issued by the Soviet government, all military personnel were given equal rights; all ranks and titles, all associated advantages, all “external distinctions” and titles were abolished. On the same day, an “elective principle” was introduced in the army: all command staff and officials were now to be elected by a general vote of the ranks of units; the command staff above the regimental level was approved by the revolutionary committee.
However, the Bolsheviks also pretty soon abandoned such innovations, but only Stalin returned shoulder straps to the Red Army in 1943.

[thestoats]

Sorry waterproof, the range is from Brigade Games, I'll attach images of the figures below.

cuprum, that's what I had thought, which makes it all the more strange that Brigade Games decided against sculpting them with shoulder straps

[cuprum]

Well, apparently it was the sculptor's mistake. I think making shoulder straps yourself will not be difficult.

[waterproof]

Ah, ok thanks for the picture. Cuprum has already explained the history of the shoulder boards very well.
I like the miniatures from empress very much for your purposes.

Or the new plastic box from wargames atlantic, there have options to build shocktroops for the russian army.

https://www.empressminiatures.com/ares28--ww1-russian-range-149-c.asp

[carlos marighela]

Option 1: Thin plastic cut from, say, a butter container.

Option 2. Lead foil, the sort you find on yoghurt containers.

Option 3. Modelling putty.

Option 4. Paint them on.

Voila, shoulderboards!

[thestoats]

Thanks for the input guys! I have little faith in my conversion abilities, so Empress or Wargames Atlantic definitely seem like the way to go, hopefully they will scale well with Copplestone Castings/Brigade Games/Great War Miniatures!

[waterproof]

I think that Brigade Games/ Coppelstone Casting are bigger then Empress Miniatuires or Great War Miniatures.

[trev]

They're a bit late to the counter-revolution but here are some of my 'converted' whites. 

I have little faith in my conversion abilities, so Empress or Wargames Atlantic definitely seem like the way to go, hopefully they will scale well with Copplestone Castings/Brigade Games/Great War Miniatures!

https://thebitsbox.blogspot.com/2020/07/new-whites.html

Converting the shoulder boards was really easy.  I just used some thin plasti-card as Carlos suggests.  The riflemen above are all Copplestone Bolsheviks with the small bits of plasticard stuck on before painting.  Voila!  Shoulder boards.  They're not as good as proper sculpting but they do the job fine and my eyesight is so poor I can't see the difference these days anyway. 

The Empress and Brigade figures can be a little smaller than the Copplestones but we've used them all together, plus Wargames Atlantic and the lovely STP/Studio Siberia figures Cuprum sells, like the priest and officer above.