"Do you have a mental catalog of your figs?" Topic

So I'm sorting out my 15mm SciFi, about 90% of which I bought used and already painted. The rest I sent to painters. I need to add to a bunch of the forces as I don't have enough ofr us in my "Another Glorious Day In the Corps" rules. But I have no idea who made them. So over the coming weeks I'll be posting a lot of "who made these" type threads.

For the most part I rarely remember which manufacturer made which figures. In some case it is easy (all my 6mm SYW are Baccus, most of my 15mm WW2 is Battlefront with a little Command Decision and Resistant Roosters) but many of my collections I have no idea – 15mm Napoleonics? Old West?

So, how good is your mental catalog? By which I mean, how well do you remember who made the figures in your collection?

Almost perfect. There are very few figures in my collection, maybe 1%, where I don't know the manufacturer.

I have quite a few Frontier figures which stand out a bit for me – but I have a few periods like ACW where several manufacturers tend to blend a bit.

I have a perfect mental catalog of my collection.

Unfortunately it nowhere near reflects reality.

Very bad at remembering manufacturers. Even just weeks after I have bought something I can no longer remember the manufacturer's name and sometimes not even what scale or period or race it was intended for. I am afraid I think that this will do for that purpose rather than its intended purpose.

x42

It's funny: painted figures/terrain in boxes marked on top-know exactly what's in there.

The unpainted stuff also in boxes – but – I was constantly checking until I made a list and taped it to each box.

I have a few second hand figures that I am not sure about. Other than that, I have a very good idea of what's what.

Pretty close to complete memory of "what's in there". Especially since I've gone through recently and reacquainted the synapses with the visual….

95%

A few odds and ends I don't know. I break out figures from blisters and put them in themed bead/floss sorter boxes.

Example: my Victorian Law Enforcement box has Bobbies from all the ranges (Eureka, West Wind, North Star, CP etc) each in their own compartment. Occasionally there is a manufacturer who'll have a suitable Victorian detective one-off without any other identifying materials. It's those strays I lose track of.

+1 to Flashman's comments.

Yep – I am pretty good at it but that's just me

Good, not great. I'll be posting a couple of "who made this" threads soon, as well.

I have a pretty good idea of where all my stuff came from, barring a few odd (or extremely old) pieces.

I'm in the 95% group.
A few years back we used to do a lot of swashbuckling saloon brawl games. My Cardinal's Guard were made by some one hit wonder company. I think it was in Texas but I'm not sure. I bought them in the early 80s. I know the name was cast into the underside of the base and to solve that mystery I would have to cut them off the playing base. Not worth the effort.

I have some Jacobite Highlanders. I think they were sold by some guys who owned a gaming magazine. I forget most of the relevant details but they are nice true 25mm figures.
And I have some Jacobite British who are ok but not special. Their manufacturer's name escapes me too.

Most of the rest of my stuff I can identify but those above I can't.

It helps that I have had to sell off most of the stuff I haven't played with in years. That way I don't have to remember who made the Gauls or Numidians or Scythians in those deliberately eclectic armies.

I have a fairly good idea of the manufacturers. But then I'm a visual learner and have been doing this since the 70's.

Obscure Fantasy Figures can throw me, but I can usually ID Historiccals

I keep a mental image of what I own and what I sale. I do this in order to help customers to find what they need whether I have it in stock or not. Sculpting style on the head and body as well as the base.
This was a lot easier when I specialized only in 15mm but now with bolt action and Saga, I am identifying companies and casting nationalities in 28mm as well.

100% knowledge of where all my figures come from.

I'd say 80+.

Helps that I did a lot of Ebay and got miscellaneous lots. I decided that I should keep some sort of track of things and started a spreadsheet listing what I had – manufacturer, code, what it was supposed to be, and quantity.

There were some loose lots without original packaging that were listed as being 'unknown manufacturer.' I went online and looked through manufacturer's sites to identify them. over the years that got easier as more manufacturers added more pictures.

At this time I have good idea of manufacturers and types/periods of figures, but would have to go to the spreadsheet to be able to give specifics of codes and quantities of any particular figure.

Pretty much 100%, I honestly can't think of any figures that I don't know who made them.

Pretty close to 100%.

Of Course I have a mental catalog of my miniatures…. Now if I could only remember where I put it…..

<grin>

Mine's pretty good. The only figures I may not know are ones I may have bought in a lot off ebay.

I have figures I have no idea where they came from let alone who made them. They must have been smuggled aboard.

I have a very good memory for who makes the figure and even who sculpted the figure. Both fantasy and historic. One of my passions with the hobby is the art behind the figures.

Pretty much 100%. Reasonable fond memories of converting most of them, and the brain cells are reinforced by looking at the labels on the outside of the boxes as I walk through my doll room.

The vast majority of my figures are from only a few manufacturers and I pretty well know their relevant ranges off by heart – including various changes over the years. Thus I can identify most of my figures.

Easy:

15mm Mikes Models, Jacobite, Essex, Freikorp/QRF, Old Glory 15s, Frontier, Minifigs.

20mm B & B, Hotspur/Bandera/Liberation, Platoon 20.

25mm GZG, Citadel.

28mm Foundry, Copplestone, Old Glory, North Star, Gripping Beast, West Wind, Fireforge.

Most periods consist of two brands at most, and they are all of very distinctive styles. Even the Foundry and Copplestone DA figures differ in height. The Italian Wars collection offers the greatest opportunity for brand confusion, with Mike's Models, Essex, Jacobite, Minifigs, and Old Glory 15s, but I can tell at a glance who made a particular figure.

Over 99%.

The vast, vast majority of my figures I know.

This is beyond the scope of your question, but buildings and other terrain items are another matter. So for a few years I have been marking the bottoms with not only the manufacturer, but also the catalog number.

Tom

95+% when it comes to my figures.

Now if I could only remember what I went downstairs to get – after three tries – I'd be valuable…

Depends on the level of importance to me. I know eveything there is to know about my primary interests.
However, I have acquired a few collections in my time and have shoeboxes full of stuff that I have no idea about.
I do plan to bombard TMP with "Who Am I" questions, as I go through some of these boxes. Lots of Willies, Staddens, SAE and who knows what else.
Another box has a lot of Ral Partha cirica 1977-1982 in it.

One day. I keep telling myself that. One day.

I know who made all of them originally, back to '73. My problem is who bought the molds when the company went out of business or stopped producing them.

95% of what I purchased directly I remember. I tend to keep the original packaging until painted and don't mix a lot of manufacturers in a given project which helps.

I kept a very good catalog – both written and memory – while in the collecting mode. Once I returned to sanity and stopped collecting at such a furious pace, I started letting go of that information. Now I just try to recall a few key suppliers of what I still want – or hope for. And, sadly, I pay much less attention to most overseas suppliers because of postage rates (but a few I continue to follow – like Baueda for there wonderful detailing pieces in 15 mm.) I do try to keep a catalog online so that I can use it for insurance purposes were some disaster to strike.

There are some orc/goblins I bought at Little Wars years ago. Those are the only figs I don't know the manufacturer of (and I wish I did because they are GREAT lesser orcs).