"Prussian Infantry 28mm" Topic

To those who had not visit Hat forum recently, there are a new set of Prussian Infantry 28mm.

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Hope you enjoy.

Amicalement
Armand

Anyone know a good shop that sells Hat miniatures?

Looks like a good point to actually buy some Hät for a change.

Has anybody photos that show them in comparison to Victrix or Perry Napoleonics?

Buy them on line. There are many sources. I prefer Toy Soldier Headquarters, in Pennsylvania. They keep a large stock.

It's good to see HaT taking the plunge and going with separate packs/equipment/arms. They are doing this in 1/72 as well.

Now gimme some 1805 Russian leadership!

Some general advice to anyone considering investing in 28mm Napoleonic Prussians; if you are interested in the post reform period 1808 onwards you should take a look at the Calpe range. Their sculptor has spent years researching and practicising on 'late-war' Prussians and the resulting miniatures are absolute marvels, and its a very comprehensive range, since Prussians are by and large all he does…

link

Kind Regards,

Sparker

Puster,

Compared to Victrix or Perry, they are very "slight" figures. Also, the poses are very much based on traditional 20mm soft plastic figures.

Colin

Ditto, Colin. I find the HaT figs very sub-par.

Not to mention the fact that the Calpe figures are so fabulous that anyone collecting such figures is almost obligated to use them.

Seriously, Calpe seem to be the best 28mm figures of any period or nationality. So outstanding as to raise the bar. Better to have fifty Calpes than 500 of any other late Prussians.

When they get around to molding Frenchmen, look out.

Don't get me wrong. I love HaT. I wish they had been around in 1968, when I was converting WWII to ACW, and then converting THEM into Napoleonics.

I buy their figures alot, and their figures are getting better all the time.

But I work in 1/72.

Calpe are good, but not THAT good.

And they are metal!

The Calpe figures are nice, and are wonderfully well researched. However, as with so many other figures, the anatomy is slightly odd.

The HaT figures just remind me of overgrown 20mm soft plastics.

The Calpe v Hat comparison is a good one. Calpe are GBP 1.00 each, Hat about 20p each. If you are doing an army that needs say 200 infantry that is GBP 200 v GBP 40.

So you have to work out if Calpe are 5 times better. For some, the extra heft or quality is worth the higher cost – for others, the overall cheapness will be compelling.

Personally, being REALLY cheap and with Hat releasing identical figures in soft plastic 1/72 at 8p per figure, I would probably go for them – they are 1/10th price of Calpe. But hey, I wear a cheap watch not a Rolex, so what do I know.

But to each their own.

A good point Eagle Farm. Actually I would argue that Calpe are 5 times better. But if like me you are fortunate enough to be in full time employment, the cost of the figure pales into insignificance compared with the value of your time in painting the actual figures. So for a rather mediocre painter like myself, buying a Calpe figure that lends itself so well to painting, because of the raised detail and edges, is money well spent.

Sparks – it is also a style choice. I moved over to 1/72 soft plastic a while ago and like the look, so HaT's 28mm match my "look", whereas Calpe are more traditional "big" 28mm figures. I love the work that has gone into the range, so a big up to them, if that is your thing. But they just no longer work for me. I also found that the cowskin shako covers on the Westphalians were just too overscale for me, but I appreciate that to some, that is the appeal of heroic scale 28s.

So here is to the new HaT figures, as they suit what I am looking for. Luckily, this is a broad church hobby, so it is great to see options available to a wide range of tastes.

Not to mention the fact that the Calpe figures are so fabulous that anyone collecting such figures is almost obligated to use them.

Seriously, Calpe seem to be the best 28mm figures of any period or nationality. So outstanding as to raise the bar. Better to have fifty Calpes than 500 of any other late Prussians.

When they get around to molding Frenchmen, look out.

Couldn't agree more. I'm about to get serious about rebuilding my Prussian army with Calpe after spending a lot of time and money building a one with Foundry before i discovered Calpe. The army looked great but i just couldn't keep it after seeing some Calpe and painting them up. I sold it a couple of years ago on Ebay.

As far as Hat are concerned these line infantry are not very good at all. The Landwehr, on the other hand, look much better.

Received by Hat.

"People talk about the anatomy of the HaT figures. They are different from the regular 28mm figures because the HaT figures are more anatomically correct (i.e. closer to human proportions). These figures are not upscaled 20mm figures, but downscaled from large master figures."

Amicalement
Armand

Sparker,
You make an interesting point. I buy AB and Adler because they are the best quality castings in their scales. The cost of the figures is almost irrelevant compared with the opportunity cost of the time spent painting them, or the real cost of getting someone else to paint them.

With almost any consumer good, I get confronted with a range of price/quality points. Manufacturers do this because they know consumers have a range of drivers and so want different price/quality points.

Wargame figures are the same.

However, when Hat comes up quite often the discussion seems to be in absolute terms. It is almost as if people think Hat produces the figures they do because they are incapable of producing a better quality figure in a style more in keeping with other manufacturers.

Which could be true.

But I suspect it is a bit like saying why doesn't Honda make their cars as good as Aston Martin – why do they keep producing Accords? Perhaps because Honda know what they are (commercially) doing.

With 1/72 plastics, Hat are undercutting rival manufacturers on price. Their quality IMO is variable, but improving and mostly comparable with their 1/72 competitors. They have a big and rapidly growing range. They have a pretty good niche position.

I presume Hat will try to do the same with 28mm hard plastic. They will position themselves as the budget brand with a big range and a particular house style (non-goblin). I suspect this is a good niche for them since they are not really competing with any current 28mm plastic or metal manufacturer.

I've always been a 1/72 guy. 28mm shrinks the table too much, and I've never had the space for the big table.

I moved, reluctantly, to 15mm, expressly because it was the scale my local game group. I wouldn't go smaller, but that's just a personal choice.

But I'm still painting and collecting 1/72. The cheap plastic makes for economical conversions, and you can still add detail like extra tack, plumes, hand-made paper bicorns, hand-made shabraques, etc. And they are affordable to the masses.

EF – probably right there. The Ansell Napoleonics take a similar approach and are just as unique, and I wonder if the market will gradually shift to the more anatomically correct style.

As to HaT, I often think they photo in the raw state worse than they are in the hand, as the ones I have have nioce, fine detail, that take paint well. But they are definitely more subtle than the standard (these days) 28mm, which I think of as characitures (even though I cannot spell that word) (did I see "gnome" elsewhere :-) ).

There are pupils at the school I work at that are into Napoleonics and they've got about 20 figs each -this range will help them field actual armies so we shouldn't knock it!!

There are pupils at the school I work at that are into Napoleonics and they've got about 20 figs each -this range will help them field actual armies so we shouldn't knock it!!

In fact I'm quite tempted to get a shed load of these -mass spray them and just paint hats and faces and off we go.

That's the point with all plastics really, bulk up your forces. Perries and others can then be used to add 'pop' as command and special units. I do the same thing in metal, with Old Glory and Foundry for my Assyrians for example.

Mash – that is a key point that us Grognards risk forgetting. These plastics are cheaper, and are available in more outlets (as they are in retail friendly boxes), and kids familiar with GW plastics know what to expect.

I see Hat now have test shots on their website of the same Prussian figures but in 1/72. As with 28mm you can get separate marching, action, or command boxes.

Really like the choice Hat are providing now in scale and pose type. Glad I don't have to buy boxes with useless reloading figures and some weird fixed ratio of officers to men.

Hat now need to get a boxes of 28mm cavalry and artillery done – with the first ones as generic (Hussars?) as possible to allow conversions to other nations.

Don't tell us tell them. I already have.