"Has Baccus corrected their ACW figures?" Topic

I have been interested in Baccus ACW figures for a while , but I shied away because their formed infantry carried their muskets on the left side, while American armies had gone to right shoulder by the 1860s. Recently I saw pictures of some Baccus ACW figures with the muskets on the right. Have they been re-designed, or did somebody reverse the photograph?

I could be wrong, but I think the Baccus are still left shoulder arms – March!

No. The owner said he has no intention of fixing them. Shame, because they are nice models but wrong for ACW.

Just turn the figures around on the stand. They're 6mm; who'll notice?

Allen

I went to their website, but couldn't get a decent clsoeup view of the figures. From what I can tell they have their muskets on the left shoulder, with the left hand at the small of the stock just below the breech. I've never seen that carry in either the left or right hand.

Gilliam's Drill did have shoulder arms with the musket on the left shoulder, but the left hand would be at the butt of the musket.

No need to correct. Notice that the left arm is bent at 90 degrees and parallel to the ground and the rifle is being held at the place where the hammer lock and the rifle butt meat in the bend and is supported by the bend in the elbow (or pretty close anyway). It is "support arms" and is on the correct side according to Hardees manual.

If they were doing "left shoulder arms", the left arm would be straight and perpendicular to the ground. If they were doing "left shoulder shift", the hand would be gripping the rifle butt. Both of these would not be correct for the left shoulder.

So, in short, these figures are correct.

John

PS. A decent reference link.

picture

and these castings are what scale? 6mm?? Don't they just blend and blurr at game distance to some extent! Maybe not!

Yes, these are 6mm…

So the whole army is on guard duty? When Support arms tended to be used.

And folks say Napoleonic players are overly concerned with figure detail.

Dave

So the whole army is on guard duty? When Support arms tended to be used.

On review maybe? BTW, this is the most uncomfortable position of arms you can be in.

And folks say Napoleonic players are overly concerned with figure detail.

Dave

^^^^^+1

BTW, this is the most uncomfortable position of arms you can be in.

Yes.

Also, glad to see I'm not the only one put off the Baccus ACW by this.

"It is "support arms" and is on the correct side according to Hardees manual."

Not quite support arms. In support arms the musket is in a similar position, but the weapon is held in the crook of the left arm. The left arm is held across the body so that the left hand is flat against the chest on your right breast. The hammer of the weapon is held in the bend of the elbow. I've never seen left shoulder shift, just right shoulder shift.

Not quite support arms.

Note the following…

"supported by the bend in the elbow (or pretty close anyway)."

I think that was the intent. The men are not exactly holding the weapon with the hand. In any case, as mentioned in serveral posts above, they are 6mm!

I don't want to diminish the concerns expressed about historical accuracy; everybody is entitled to his or her own standards. Sure, all things being equal, perhaps the firearms should have been on the other side.

But I want everybody to know that the Baccus ACW 6mm figures gave me, and continue to give me, great personal satisfaction, and I would buy them all over again.

I've temporarily uploaded, as my member portrait, some of my painted figures. Whether the firearms are modeled correctly kind of disappears into the whole marvelous effect of 6mm, at least for me. And so does the technical issue of whether one used the right colour for the blankets, the staff of the flags, the canteen straps … for this reason alone, 6mm is a nonintimidating way to explore a new period.

Anyway, follow your own judgment, but consider that you may be missing out on a really great product.

I have 4,000 painted and based 6mm Baccus ACW figures. We played many a game with them and in the last 10 years and no one ever mentioned that the rifles were on the wrong side.

Terry

I love Baccus and I am not happy about the current pose. I think the old figures were correct (on the right) and the new figures are wrong, but I will check.

BTW you can use the skirmish figures and minimize the amount of marching figures.

Bill

link

Neil appears to have painted versions of the old figures which the rifles are in the right hand. They are not right shoulder shift, but it is 6mm.

Bill

I've got some 3000+ of the Baccus ACW and after painting and basing (2 strips to a stand) they look fine. Especially when I've got 2 full corps lined up (using Fire and Fury). Yes, I know the rifle is on the 'wrong' side, but on the board, it just doesn't matter. If you want to deprive yourself of the best 6mm figures on the market over this detail, well, that's your decision….

"I think that was the intent. The men are not exactly holding the weapon with the hand. In any case, as mentioned in serveral posts above, they are 6mm!"

No problem, I was going by where the hand was painted and it seemed they were gripping the weapon around the small of the stock. Anyway…I prefer painting 15mm. :)

Some days I worry about myself picking over this and that as I paint figures, sometimes I think I maybe insane. After I come in here I feeel muccch better!

That's what asylums are for, after all.

Isn't it entirely possible that the soldiers may have switched the musket from one arm to the other (and back & forth) when marching when their arms got tired anyways?

Has anybody noticed the buttons on those 6mm uniforms yet? It's enough to make me want to sell all my 6mm …

My biggest complaint is the size of the pant pockets. Simply ridiculous.

… Especially when the troops put loose change in them …