"Favorite Airfix 1/72nd and 1/32nd fig?" Topic

Reading posts on what got started people wargaming, Airfix seemed to figure prominently.
What was your favo(u)rite 1/72nd figure or figures?
What was your favo(u)rite 1/32nd figure or figures?

[1/72nd – Eighth Army charging, bayonet fixed, Commando kayak, Plains Indian Cavalrymen (liked the horses).
1/32nd – Japanese officer with Sword, Wehrmacht MG42 LMG team.]

I liked the French Napoleonic infantry & Romans in 1/72d. Only had the British Waterloo infantry in 1/32d – liked them too. This would've been almost 40-years ago.

Mine was the original HO/OO scale WWI German Infantry. In 1/32, a toss up bettween the Napoleonic French Line Infantryman or the ECW infantryman. Still have several unbuilt ones in the kit storage area.

Yup, Dean….40+ years ago for a LOT of classic Airfix!

Tom Dye
GFI

1/72 Eight Army Vickers and team and the set in general. Ditto Afrika Corps.

I'm sure there are lots of individual figures I liked in each set. The Romans and Britons saw the most wargames action.

I always thought the AWI Continentals were a very nicely sculpted set. The George Washington fig in particular was very good.

But the Romans and ancient Britons were very nice too.

US Marines in dinghy.

Some of the 'High Chapparal' cowboys.

Has everyone played the Airfix figure game? Freeze frame yourself in a figure's pose and your companions guess the figure. Hours of fun.

My first legion was airfix for WRG 5th (ah believe).

We have also played the Airfix multipose game.

Fave figure? obviously classic German panzerchreck gunner, due to his starring role in Chas Grants 'Action at Twin Farms'.

1/32 would be the Brit Para set, beautiful figs.

1/32nd US paratrooper with a spade and knife, I still have one of them somewhere painted with gloss enamels?! (brunswick green jacket, gloss red pants)

I always liked the 1/32 8th army officer charging with pistol held in front, also the Paratroops, especially the one hauling in the chute, that never seemed to stick to the base, and the guy opening the container.

1/72 Roman Centurion… forget the poncey officer in his chariot, the Centurion was nails!

1/72 Brit Bren-gunner at ease… walking with the bren over his shoulder & an ammo box in his hand. Lovely figure from an otherwise dismal set.

1/32 WWII German throwing hand grenade… for my money, the poise & balance of this sculpt has never been bettered, full stop.

Any of the australians just for the snap shot in time that they are. Jungle kit & amercian gaiters gives them a very specific use. Perhaps the thompson gunner throwing grenade?

and since noone else has taken the bait aren't they 1/76 or HO/OO?

In 1/72 the Commando standing firing a sten gun, I remember copying that pose when playing as a kid.

In 1/32 British 8th Army standing with rifle across chest.

I wish I had kept my ACW collection. Blue vs. Gray basics. If only they had completed the collection with blue cavalry and gray cavalry.

I had some big battles back when I had multitudes of the Airfix ACW.

They are Mr Ripley, they are indeed.

My favorite set is the Waterloo British Artillery (RHA). Ton of value with the full limber team.

amercian?….fingers moving faster than brain again

1/32nd Brit Para Officer and Radio Op

1/72nd DAK lying down MG34 – 8th army was also a nice set.

Favourite sets were Afrika Korps in both scales (2nd edition in HO/OO).

I really liked the French Imperial Guard and Prussian Landwehr.

I had my 1:72 Afrika Korps confiscated when I was 12.

I liked the ACW figures- in fact I still have them, all painted up 30 odd years ago- still look good.

I converted U.S. marines in to zouaves by adding a blob of glue to the trimmed down helmet and adding a pin as a bayonet to the rifle.

Cavalry were the old U.s. cavalry set and the also some from the wagon train set and some from the artillery set

There was a series running in Airfix magazine whereby you could make cheveaux de frise with bits of balsa and nails- convert some figs to U.s. marines by adding a WW1 British head- and all sorts of fun.

Flags were made by using bits of airfix glue tubes and pins and attaching to a converted bugler figure.

Parts of my old mums back garden looked like the siege lines at Vicksburg- some old soldiers were turning up decades after :)

My parents still find my ACW figs in the backyard!!!35 yrs later still want to get some more and paint them up and refight Pickets charge again and again.The union soldiers also did double duty as Custers troops I only had 1 box of cav and 10 of inf, bought a huge bag of Indians from a train/hobbie store used figs.Intresting enough the Confederates and Indians always won, guess I like underdogs great memories!!!!

Airfix second edition Afrika Korps are some of the finest figures ever. The officer and running machine gunner are great.

Mike "Bunkermeister" Creek
bunkermeister.blogspot.com

Sherrif of Nottingham, Napoleonic French marching infantry and a certain Napoleonic French Cuirassier with a sword diagonal across his chest mounted on the horse with two rear hoofs on the ground.

For 1/32 it was a charging WWII german rifleman of some sort.

1/72 Airfix French Foreign Legion for me – full of Beau Geste action! I can still see the column of little blue men climbing the sheeted book 'sandhills' on the floor of my bedroom as they set off to relieve Fort Sahara from the marauding Arabs (also Airfix) …

In 1/32 it would be the 8th Army officer charging – straihgt out of 'Commando' magazine.

NDL – that British Infantry set also had the very effeminate looking officer. What was the sculptor thinking?

1/72 was the Napoleonic RHA mounted officer for an individual figure, the GB Hussars as a full set.

1/35 probably the 8th Army kneeling firng geezer

hussarbob1746.webs.com

1/72 combat infantry figure advancing with fixed bayonet. 1/32 WW2 German officer , at the time I thought finally an officer doing something worth while.

I was never that keen on the 1/72 range but always thought the best in both scales were the American and German Paratroopers.

The Americans had great poses and the correct weapons and kit (Unlike the German infantry pack with their odd Tommy Gun contraption that for years I thought was an MP40)And the German paras were the same.

One of my fav figures was the US Para firing the Thompson from the hip.

I have several of these figures converted that I still use today. I will post some pictures of them if I get the chance.

Loved the waterloo highlanders kneeling and standing as if in square.

Waterloo Highlanders and 1/32 WW2 Russians.
Actually I loved them all except the Paras firing into the air- they really didn't make sense.
I suppose they were meant to fight the German paras who were parachuting down to the pre-arranged battle ground?

For a high school photography class, I did a blackandwhite photo that showed a silouette of British Commando with his SykesFairbairn knife about to take out an unsuspecting German sentry. It was the 2nd issue German marching fig.

The 1/32 British commando, 'at the ready'? with levelled Lee-enfield and bayonet, the most dynamic, and 3-D of any figure Airfix ever made, even now, with slip moulds and all, they would struggle. A true Classic. I need to find a pic of this fella!

John

Found him! middle row second left, and top row, far right, real sense of movement.

picture

John

Part one – 1:72nd scale – will run tomorrow!

Please add a button for "I never owned any Airfix figs."

Scorpio – they are still made, so treat yourself. Box of (approx) 50 figs for less than a GW blister. You could use the ideas above to steer you to a box.

My money – the RHA (Naps) set – still hold up in today's market on detail and style

Once upon a time (early teens) I had large numbers of Airfix napoleonics in 1/32 – I will forever regret the afternoon spent in a friend's garage with an air rifle & airgun darts that rendered them irretrievably wounded (although it was stacks of fun at the time!!) – we hadn't come across the idea of wargames rules back then, and rolling marbles at them just didn't seem such fun.

Phil

The Gaul chieftain with his imposing helmet and the Roman centurion (they always ended up fighting each other).

I replayed "Waterloo" a zillion times with thin red lines and lumbering French columns.

The Foreign Legion officer on foot must have been one of my favs also, although they usually died to a man defending Fort Zinderneuf against hordes of Natives.