Bloody Miniatures Horses and Bicorne Miniatures

[Calvin59]

I just received my first Bloody Miniatures riders, as usual there is nothing to say they are superb. But some of the horses' attitudes do not please me too much. As Bicorne Miniatures makes horses without riders, could I take these horses and put a Bloody rider? I would like to have your opinion. 

[Paul Richardson]

Calvin: I'm afraid I can't answer your question, because I don't use Bicorne horses. What I would say is that you may have to be quite careful with any answer you get, because I understand that Bicorne figures are now smaller than they were when they were first brought out - figures do get smaller when they've been pressed many times. Are you thinking of using horses newly bought from Bicorne?

[Calvin59]

Thank you Paul for your intervention. I want to change some Bloody horses, especially the riders whose horse is grazing, by replacing them with Bicorne, but there you are giving me very bad news. Because I don't see any other models on the market that could do the job.
So I'll see, because I have to place an order in a while for other pedestrian figurines. 

[Paul Richardson]

Calvin: Assault Group sells separate horses and, as they were sculpted by Nick Collier, they are probably not too different from Bicorne horses. Whether they will fit Bloody riders, I do not know.
Empress Miniatures sells horses sculpted by Bob Souter in their TYW range (similar horses to those supplied with the Bloody riders), but they come without saddles. They also sell these horses with saddles in their ECW range, but you would have to buy them with riders and then sell-on the riders. I should say that although the Empress horses are similar to the Bloody ones, they are not identical because they are fatter than the Bloody ones and you might have to carry out some surgery on your Bloody rider and/or Empress horse to make them fit together. 
Personally, I find the question of horses for my TYW collection a bit of a nightmare. I've bought Perry ones, but they are only sold with riders and they come in very few poses. I've bought Calpe ones, but they come without saddles and their reins are for a later period. I've also bought Medbury ones, but they come without saddles and they're resin. At the moment I'm waiting for Medbury to bring out some hard plastic ones, but they will need saddles and may need surgery to make them fit my Assault Group riders. 

[Calvin59]

Again Paul I thank you for taking the time to give me all these details. For now I will wait and see for the TAG horses since I already have an order on the go since October 26th. In addition now he seems to have a large stock since the references I had requested, it is noted "Awaiting casting (about 10 days)".
I only hope that it will arrive before Christmas, because that puts my schedule behind. But hey! I have to be patient. 

[Codsticker]

As I am prepping some Bloody Miniatures cavalry I thought I would dig out a TAG horse form their TYW range and a Bicorne horse from their Cuirassier pack.

BM trooper on TAG:


BM< Trooper on Bicorne:


Although it looks like the trooper sits high on the Bicorne horse, with a bit of wiggling and pushing you can get home to set down better. For an even better fit a bit of filing or spreading the legs would do the trick. You can also try the Warlord Games plastic horses. Although the detail on them is poor, the anatomy posing and size are great.

[Calvin59]

Thank you Codsticker, for illustrating your point with photos, thus showing the differences that I might encounter.

[vodkafan]

Redoubt ECW horses are another possibility you could sample. They can be bought separately and won't break the bank. I have some Bicorne horses and figures and Redoubt horses and figures and I remember swapping them about although it was a while ago.  Don't own any Bloody Miniatures yet but they are on my list.

[Calvin59]

Thank you Vodkafan for your suggestion, I am waiting for an order from TAG and I will see, before ordering from Redoubt.
For the Bloody Miniatures you can go with your eyes closed because it is a very nice range.