"Murch's Americano Mercenarios" Topic

Has anybody tried painting Bob Murch's Americano Mercenarios yet?

Bob Murch sculpts awesome figures. Depending on how you paint, super simple.

I have not gotten these but I am drooling over them. I have to wait until he has enough new figures to make it worthwhile to order and get the free bonus figures. I already have duplicates of almost every set so I have to get new ones. Thus I am postponing gratification.

I really want to get that lewis gun so I can name it La Cucaracha As in The Treasure of Poncho Villa

I like those Vaqueros Americanos – they've got that Saturday morning serial 'singing cowboy' look about them.

If it wasn't for the inclusion of that incongruous bare-chested figure I might have bought that pack.

Henry

If you mean the guy on the lower right, he's wearing a tee shirt. Incongruous? It's hot in Mexico. :-)

Maybe, but that's more celluloid Hollywood California than historical Baja California.

OK Henry. I see what you're saying. If the guy had his shirt off he'd be wearing period long johns, or something similar. And in period flicks like "Wild Bunch" and "The Professionals" they would be dressed correctly.

The T-shirt was just coming into use around this time, as underwear, amongst US Navy personnel. It could be worn without additional layers of clothing in hot weather, so I suppose if the man depicted was a sailor by profession there's an outside chance he might have worn just a T-shirt in summer – but as far as I can determine American volunteers only served in the first, Maderista phase of the revolution (1910 – 11), which occurred in the cooler months. Unsurprisingly then, all the photos of US volunteers I've seen show them in at least a shirt – which of course doesn't preclude the possibility that any ex-sailors amongst them might be wearing a T-shirt under his shirt.

Another purchase deterrent is the pistol-only armament of two of the figures. No fighter would go into action unequipped with some sort of long-range firepower, even if the best he could obtain was the ubiquitous Winchester 30-30 carbine.

The Mauser armed figure can easily have a rifle or shotgun put in his left hand, although a Mauser should be enough firepower as it is. Likewise, the big hat shootist on the bottom left just need a little filing between hand and leg to add a long gun. I think I would add an ammo box for him to carry more lewis clips, and put a rifle on his back.

I just saw The Professionals the other day, and that top left figure is just great as the not Lee Marvin character.

Not that I'm overly historical in my Pulp range, being as my primary inspiration is drawn from cinema and pulp fiction, but the sleeveless mercenary was partially inspired by Alan Arkin's wardrobe in 'And Starring Pancho Villa As Himself'

I suspect that the garment in question is less likely a t-shirt and more likely a sleeveless union suit. A common form of underwear at the time.

Put them on horses as well and i'll buy the collection…

Has anybody tried painting them yet? Photos?

I have been waiting for V neck tees from the Gap.

>>I have been waiting for V neck tees from the Gap.<<

Ummmmm…what?

I'm in the process of painting them now. I also loved the Movie.

The Shadow:Ummmmm…what?

I was very impressed by the above quibbling over underwear and all of the conditions under which people could not even consider purchasing some high quality miniatures at a reasonable price. I wanted to be a part of that grand conversation.

Love the Union Suit. Bob -- you going to do a guy with his six-gun strapped on over his union suit? You know, like John Wayne and Kirk Douglas in the hotel scene in _The War Wagon_?

Am I the only one who thinks that machinegun ammo belt is loaded backwards? Or maybe it just looks that way because it's firing blanks

The maxim loads from the right. It always throws me off too.