Does anyone make good Bir Hakeim type FF Legion in 1:72/76?

[BattlewagonBruce]

I am looking to do some French Troops for my desert collection in 20mm.

I really want to do some FFL for Bir Hakeim after seeing the murals in the Metro Station in Paris of the same name. A force in Kepi Blanche and maybe some colonial troops would look great.

I know there is a plastic set by Ykreol, but not all that keen on them. If only someone like Italeri, Peiser, MMS or Milicast made them! I have the Milicast Italians and they are superb.

Why are there so few companies that sculpt like plastic and cast in metal. I have all the bags of Almogavers Germans I could get as these are the definintion of this imo. Shame they stopped after two sets!

I might end up with the Ykreol, or maybe metals or resin, but I generally prefer the sculpts on plastic figures.

Oh and I have the Foundry 20mm ones which are ok, but not the best of that excellent range.

Any ideas?

[NTM]

Dixon have a few;

http://www.dixon-minis.com/shop/20mm-wwII-range/#sub-wwii-french-forces

[BattlewagonBruce]

Thanks for that.

I find Dixon very small. I have some of their 8th Army Brits.

Worth a look.

Bruce

[dice shaker]

Hello,

 at the moment the best is to wait. Long awaited tanks like T 26 & Panzer 1 came new to the market by First to Fight & Minarion. Italerie, Waterlo 1815 & Hät bring nice guns + crews. All plastic.
Plastic soldier company bring many new tanks, guns and soldiers.
Maybe a composition of diferent french WW1 & WW2 soldier sets will be the best choice. Manufacturers for you are Pegasus, Heller, Caesar and Hät with their french 75 mm guns.They have early french crews and US crews in tin hats Soon they will bring WW2 crew for polish (with pneumatic tires) and french WW2 gunners.  
Plasticsoldierreview.com show them all.

Hope to help,   Sebastian

[BattlewagonBruce]

Thanks for that.

As it happens I paint for Minairons. I did their SCW light tank, Pop and CR32 aircraft.

I know the other manufacturers. I use a lot Preiser - they are excellent. I also use Caesar and Heller. Not so keen on HAT.

I thought about using some good desert British and head swapping them, but the FFL did have French webbing. The Rifles I could live with at 1:72/76 as being MAS.

Milicast do a nice French officer in Kepi, but only the one!

Maybe I will just wait, like everyone I have a mountain of painting to do for myself on top of work.

thanks

Bruce

[former user]

You will only need a few with kepi, for the rest You can use simple British 8th army. that is how they looked.
the only french stuff would be the 75mm guns

[V]

Foundry?

[BattlewagonBruce]

Got the foundry ones. They are ok - not as good as Perry's Yanks in this range for example, or the Brits and Aussies.

I was hoping there was a maker like Milicast that I did not know about.

I could use 8th Army and head swap, but the webbing would be wrong.

thanks
Bruce

[former user]

no, they were outfitted with british webbing, AFAIK

[BattlewagonBruce]

I am pretty sure the legion had some French webbing:

https://www.ww2incolor.com/french/untitled.html

and

https://sites.google.com/site/aaleducalvados/historique-de-l-amicale/marechal-koenig/bir-hakeim


The Musee d'Armee also shows a Legionaire with the leather French pouches. I have seen pics with 38 pattern Brit webbing too.

regards

Bruce

[former user]

they obviously had both, yes I would guess that some stock was obtained in Syria

However,
the first picture is a propaganda picture taken a year later, that belongs to this series

for authenticity, I would rather go for these ones, taken after the outbreak



the second link is to a very nice article, THX for that one, but many of the pictures are from the same propaganda photoshoot.

I am very confused myself about this, regarding my own 28mm project, because there actually aren't any miniatures that properly depict what we want to construct. I am toying with the idea of mixing in LRDG and desert commandos that look very hodge podge.

[pacofeanor]

they obviously had both, yes I would guess that some stock was obtained in Syria

However,
the first picture is a propaganda picture taken a year later, that belongs to this series

for authenticity, I would rather go for these ones, taken after the outbreak



the second link is to a very nice article, THX for that one, but many of the pictures are from the same propaganda photoshoot.


i totaly agree with you ! the real dress of FFL in Bir Hakeim doesn't fit with propaganda photos! i hope (and pray !!) for a perry released in their western desert range for some FFL and senegalese troops !!

best regards
paco

I am very confused myself about this, regarding my own 28mm project, because there actually aren't any miniatures that properly depict what we want to construct. I am toying with the idea of mixing in LRDG and desert commandos that look very hodge podge.

[former user]

I have started a mostly related thread of my own, in 28mm
http://leadadventureforum.com/index.php?topic=62270.0
@Bruce, if You don't mind continuing the options for conversions, or how they should look in wargaming terms

[njetkulturny]

Another possibility would be to look out for photographs of prisoners taken at Bir Hakeim. I seem to remember seeing some in books, but I have no access at the moment. AFAIK it looked like a hodgepodge of uniforms and equipment.

Regarding miniatures there really is not that much around and taking into account the wanted realistic look the resulting answer is nobody makes GOOD figures in that scale. 15 years ago I started out with rereleased Airfix Italians and Skytrex and now look at what the market has developed to.

Personally I would look out for Caesar to produce something in that style, Waterloo 1815 coming in as second choice.

Cheers njetkulturny

[njetkulturny]

Found something.

http://www.avia-it.com/act/biblioteca/periodici/periodici_cronache_della_guerra.asp

download the iuglio 1942 magazine. It is a weekly magazine, so there are four or even five issues in the files. In the first issue there are pictures of Bir Hakeim prisoners. This is an contemporary italian magazine, so no chance of having allied propaganda pictures. Rather this is axis propanda 

All in all the pictures make these very interesting for WW2, especially for italians in North Africa.