87th (Kieth's) Highlanders Regiment

Minden product code MB-008 Highlanders, Marching.

The Web-store Project

My retirement gives me a lot more time to work on projects that have been on the back burner for some time, and high on the list is to paint every single SKU (stock keeping unit ) in the Fife & Drum and Minden figure ranges. For example, if a product code has eight marching soldiers, then I have to paint all eight of the figures so that I can photograph them and upload them into the Fife & Drum web-store. You can view the work in progress by clicking on the links that I have provided below.

The first link below takes you to the Fife & Drum Web Store Home Page:

Fife & Drum Miniatures Web Store

The second link, below, takes you to the Minden British figures page on the Fife & Drum web store:

Minden British Product Codes & Pictures

While you are at it, scroll around the webstore site (click on the pull down menus for each country) and take a look at the progress that I have made on adding color pictures of every SKU in the ranges. It is quite an undertaking, but it is well worth the time and effort to do this.

One Thing Leads To Another

During the course of this project, I have tackled the British army figures in the Minden range and have enjoyed painting them so much that I have decided to start a new British and Hanoverian SYW army for my collection. Painting the individual product codes has given me a head start on a number of units such as Hat Men, Grenadiers, Dragoon Guards and Dragoons. However, it is the Highlanders that have really caught my eye so I decided to forge ahead and paint a 32-figure regiment of Kieth's Highlanders in the marching pose. I also plan on painting the 88th (Campbell's) Regiment of Highlanders in the firing poses.

 

Minden Product Code MB-007 Highlander Command, Marching

My Kieth's Highlanders Regiment will have 32 figures based eight per stand on four bases. An NCO or drummer will be posted on both the far lefthand and righthand bases, offset a bit to create the appearance of a third row of soldiers. The figures will be spaced closer together than in my Austrian and Prussian armies. It is easier to correct the spacing on new units than it is to rebase every infantry battalion in my SYW collection, so the new armies get the new basing style.

I have painted a few samples of the firing line poses, a couple of which are shown below:

As of today, I have 24 of the 32 figures painted for Kieth's Highlanders and hope to have the final eight finished today or tomorrow, afterwhich I can base them up. I have ordered flags for both regiments from GMB Designs, which to my mind, are every bit as good as some of the hand-painted flags that we see here and there.

British Grenadier Samples

The British Genadier pack MB-004 consists of eight marching figures. We also have MB-003 British Grenadier Command (not shown) which has three command figures:

British Grenadiers, Marching (MB-004)

We have added a new product code for Maxwell's Grenadiers MBR-001 which includes 32 foot figures and one mounted officer. This has a retail value of $70.00 but the regimental pack sells for $60.00, giving you a 14% discount over the cost of purchasing the individual packs that make up the regiment.

British Cavalry Samples

There are only four SKUs for the British cavalry: a command pack (3 figures) and a trooper pack (3 figures) for both the British Horse/Dragoon Guards regiments and for the Dragoon regiments. Here are some sample pictures of the figures that I have painted for the web store project:

MBC-002 British Dragoon Guards or Horse Regiment troopers

MBC-001 British Dragoon Guards/Horse Regt. Command

The MBC-001 and MBC-002 packs together, start to give you an idea of what a full squadron of the figures might look like.

MBC-003 British Dragoon Command

MBC-004 British Dragoon Troopers

As you can see, I have been keeping myself very busy over the past two months working on the web store pictures and, coincidentally, starting my own Minden British army. More to come.

What do you think of it so far?