Goats (plastic)

[Silent Invader]

This is a carryover from a WANTED thread, that might be of use to a wider audience.  

For my Second Afghan War project# I struggled to find 19thC images of Afghan goats but I did discover a lithograph, by Lt. James Rattray (1818-1854), of Ghilzai Nomads in Afghanistan, painted in 1848. This extract shows a singular goat, possibly a buck of a breed that is seemingly quite small relative to the adjacent man.

#
http://leadadventureforum.com/index.php?topic=89654.0



As the breed in the lithograph isn't clear to me I have decided to model mine on Anglo-Nubian herding stock, which have distinctive long, floppy ears and are normally kept hornless (being disbudded soon after birth).



The minimum height to the withers (the top of the 'shoulders') of a buck  is  89cm and of a doe is 76cm.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Nubian_goat

As an all plastic project, I wanted plastic goats and LAFer Sinewgrab very helpfully replied in my WANTED thread with a link to Meyer-Imports of the USA.

I bought the 3 pack bundle (18 goats) @$12.95 plus shipping to the UK (though I was able to apply a 'new customer' 10% discount):

https://www.meyer-imports.com/product_info.php/goats-sheep-set-102-2062-p-3023

The goats are all in the same pose and all female (with udders). They are a soft-to-hard plastic that I think will take paint well. As it happens, they are supplied painted but I'll change the scheme for my own purposes. I shall also modify the ears to give the distinctive Anglo-Nubian appearance.

The goats are sold as being 3/4" but elsewhere in the store are described as O scale, which seems to vary from 1:48 to 1:43.5

The goats are approximately 15.5mm to the withers, which at my project's notional scale of 1/56 compared to target minimums of 15.9mm (buck) and 13.6mm (doe). They are therefore larger (but not necessarily over large) specimens.

However, this image of grazing Anglo-Nubians suggests that the model's legs are a tad too long. Taking off 1.5mm at the hoof (which could be lost in the basing medium) brings the model height down to 14mm, which if 1/56 equates to 78.4cm at 1/1.



So, the Meyer-Imports goats do provide a good starting point, but what do they look like next to the minis? In the following image, L to R as viewed, are a goat with shortened legs and with jutting ears removed, one of my (unfinished!) Afghan tribesmen (converted from a Perry plastic Zouave), and a goat as supplied:



I also have plastic goats by Pegasus* and Hornby* on the way and will compare them to the Meyer product idc.  

*both of which seem to be going out of stock or out of manufacture

EDIT: corrected image formatting

[Malamute]

Your dedication to this project is outstanding.

 I think you have gone above and beyond to research and to create the perfect goat

[Silent Invader]

Lol

Bullocks next. 

I need a couple for my supply carts.

[OSHIROmodels]

Steve, you really are a nut job

But we love you for it 

cheers

James

[Elk101]

The little black goat could be a vatani breed though good luck finding an image. They apparently originated in Afghanistan and are still one of the main breeds today.

[Mason]

 

You, sir, are stark raving bonkers!
 

The only question is: Can you knit a plastic 1:56 balaclava for your Afghans from plastic goat 'hair'?
You will have some left over, after all, from shaving them goat legs down.....
 

[Silent Invader]

James and Paul: 

Steve: Thanks! That's very interesting. Googling didn't reveal anything more about the Vitani except Wikipedia, which described it as "Vatani, Afghan native black". Thinking about it, the Hotnby goat might pass as a Vitani:

[FramFramson]

The goats in the Pegasus farm animals set are very nice, I must say.

[Mason]

Steve: This is just what you need:

http://www.strange-aeons.ca/umw-shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=74

If anyone can help, they can.

 

[Silent Invader]

The goats in the Pegasus farm animals set are very nice, I must say.

I've got a couple on the way but the box is very hard to get hold of  


And Paul: you weirdo ! 

[Will Bailie]

Here are a few of the animals from the Pegasus set.  They are 1:48, and may be a bit big if you are concerned about scale.  I've also got the Eureka (metal) goats from the modern civilians line, which are much smaller.  I don't have a comparison shot right now but will see if I can set one up tonight.  The box gives you two adult goats and one kid, in addition to mules, sheep, poultry and a small herd of cattle.



Edit:  the mules, goats and the sheep in the front are from Pegasus.  The sheep at the rear are from Warlord Games, the ones in the back are old MegaMinis.  I forget where the dog is from.

[joroas]

Gripping Beast:

[Silent Invader]

Thanks chaps 

This'll seem perhaps a tad odd but I've set myself the objective of using plastics - no metals at all, not even conversion parts - for the project. I know I'm making life difficult for myself in not using any of the very good and readily available metal goats that are out there but it's an enjoyable challenge. 

[carlos marighela]

Eureka produce flocks of 28mm goats, primarily for their Afghan range. Nice models too.

[Sinewgrab]

Good little review - can you remember to give us a side-by-side with the Pegasus goats when they come in?