Sunday, November 3, 2024

British 32nd Cornwall Regiment of Foot


Before getting stuck into my plans to build some armies for a bit of ancients wargaming, I decided I really needed to get this unit of British Napoleonic figures finished off. They've been sitting half done on the shelf for longer than I could remember, and I had no excuse other than a lack of focus and general hobby ennui. Once I sat down to finish the job, they were done in no time. Silly really, to have left them unfinished for so long when such little effort was needed to get them over the line.

I gave the unit the flags and facings of facings of the 32nd Cornwall regiment, which adds another battalion to the collection for the 5th Division at Waterloo, this one being part of the 8th brigade commanded by Kempt.

When it came to basing, I didn't have enough of my usual mdf base sizes to hand, so ended up resorting to my old style of using 6 smaller bases instead of 4 larger ones. I decided to split the flags onto separate bases to allow them to be positioned more centrally in the line, and I think it does look better.

I used a couple of coats of varnish on the figures this time, which does mean the finish isn't as matt as I normally like, but I think it has made the colours a bit more saturated looking, which should help them to stand out more on the wargaming table. More importantly, I hope it will mean fewer paint chips and required touch-ups.

Although the idea is to spend the greater balance of my free time on my new ancients project in the coming months, my Napoleonic collection is still very much ongoing, even though it's been neglected for a while. The next British unit will most likely be either the 28th North Gloucestershire or another highlander regiment, and I'm planning another game soon with Neil Thomas' Napoleonic rules to try out some modifications I made to add interest for solo play. More on that - and my ancients project - in future posts.


19 comments:

  1. Lovely, nice vibrancy to the unift

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  2. Very well done. British line infantry have an elegant mix of colours.

    If you do the 28th, don’t forget they had stovepipe shakos and French style packs (possibly all but definitely the grenadier company)

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    1. I’m glad you mentioned the shakos for the 28th. I would likely have dived in to paint them without realising. Not sure if my modelling skills will be up to modifying the backpacks though. Need to have a think about that one. Thanks for letting me know!

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  3. Great work! I do think a bit of ‘shine’ really works for Napoleonics and a more satin finish does help make the colours pop.

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    1. Thanks Stryker. Yes, after only ever wanting a completely matt finish on my figures, to the point where I avoided any varnish whatsoever, I think I’m starting to appreciate a bit of ‘shine’.

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  4. Thanks Steve. Yes indeed, only I’m now trying to ignore the fact that none of my other units (all now rebased) has centred flags!

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  5. A very nicely painted unit, the Brits certainly would have stood out on the battlefield.

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    1. Thank you, yes I think they would certainly have stood out - until the cannon and musket smoke obscured everything I suppose!

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  6. A suggestion for the 28th- Dutch militia may work. They have calfskin packs and stovepipe shakos (albeit with a different badge). You’d have to paint lace on the tunic

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    1. I’m not all that familiar with the Dutch uniforms so thanks for pointing this out. I was thinking just to use Peninsular War figures and not worry about the packs, but that sounds like a better way.

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  7. Excellent to see some of your Napoleonics and an advancement to your British forces after painting for clients! Also please to see you have joined the Newline painters group you will be in good company there!

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    1. Thanks Tony, yes I’ve been using FB a bit more lately to join various hobby groups and remembered the Newline painters one you mentioned previously. Looks like a good group - thanks for letting me know about it.

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    2. No worries Kevin! Yes that's what I mainly use it for hobby and wargaming groups. There's a Neil Thomas wargame group that may also be of interest to you.

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    3. Thanks Tony. Yes, the Neil Thomas group is one that I’ve already joined and it’s excellent. His rules for the ancient and medieval periods are definitely on my list of ones I’ll be wanting to try out.

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  8. Great looking unit Kevin the colours look superb I've just about finished a unit of 24 Brits for my 28mm army they have been on my shelf most of this year plus another unit also unfinished waiting behind them my painting time this year hasn't been great I used to try and paint every evening now it's down to maybe twice a week

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    1. Thanks very much, Jay. Congrats on nearing the end of your own latest British unit. Some units certainly feel like they just sit on the shelf or paint desk for far too long sometimes. One thing I’ve been trying to do is to set aside around one hour each day for painting my own stuff. It doesn’t sound like much, but it’s amazing how you can make satisfying progress just by doing a little and often. Or sometimes I’ll set a target to paint particular parts of the models and just progress them in small but steady steps that way.

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