"20mm Grubby Kelly's Heroes figs with 1/72 plastics" Topic

This has been driving me a bit batty today, searching around here and other forums trying to figure out what 20mm metal figures I can use to supplement a Chain of Command/Troops, Weapons & Tactics project for which I'm using 1/72 plastic figs (from the usual suspects but not PSC) for the bulk of my forces. This is a B project, and I usually likely having a breadth of troops, so I went with plastics for cost reasons.

However, the plastics are short in things that are key to the CoC lists – like squad-level MGs for the Germans – so I need to top them up. From looking around, the Grubby Kelly's Heroes line has pretty much everything that I know I need now (and foresee for the future) at decent prices, but I can't seem to get a clear handle on whether or not they're too chunky to work with the plastics.

My reading seems to suggests it's a matter of preference and/or the paint job. I have a friend doing the painting and he's pretty good and consistent, so I think once based the KH figures would be ok if they're just a bit chunkier.

Any thoughts on this from TMP's collective wisdom?

Some of the other metal ranges would work, but most either don't have everything (late-war infantry but no fallschirmjager for instance) or you have to buy a bunch of other figures to get the one MG you want. Some also seem to overly use the "shooting with the MG resting on the loader's shoulder" pose.

Thanks in advance,
Chris

My understanding is that Kelly/Grubby are very similar to Britannia.

SHQ fit very well with plastics as they are both skinny.

Although plastic, have you tried the Armourfast German machine gun teams?

plasticsoldierreview.com/Review.aspx?id=684"link

Furgie

I would suggest SHQ, Early War Miniatures and ourselves. Between the three you should be able to get what you need. This does not discount other manufacturers.

What works with Valiant figs for scale ?

What works with Valiant figs for scale ?

Valiant are pretyt beefy, especially for plastic. They are also fairly tall for 20mm (1/72) scale. Raventhorpe would fit the bill nicely for metal counterparts.

Height wise the plastic soldiers I have seen are taller than both our Kelly's and Britannia ranges
To match the thinness of the plastic figs I would suggest Sgts Mess or Shq as better matches

Regards
Chris

BW
If you are at salute we will be trading there…..come over and have a look….
Chris

I am surprised that you have not found what you need in 1/72 plastics

Elheim and Cp models are skinnier taller miniatures
SHQ I highly recommend and have an expansive range

Most metal figures will look bulky. I would easily pick them out if they were next to eachother

Valiant are not 20mm or 1/72 scale figures. Proper scaling for them would be 25mm. I agree they would fit well with raventhorpe.

Thanks everyone, I'll take a look at SHQ and CP, and expand from there. The Armourfast kit looks really good and will help solve one gap, so thanks Furgie.

Armourfast, HaT and Zvezda mini boxes should give you what you need.

I know, as I have shared your pain. Always have liked my 1/72 plastics, but never enough support weapons in the average box. For eg. Revell panzer grenadiers has 6 rwo man mgs, 3 firing, 3 running. But no light mortars

And that reminded me. Pegasus for mortars for the Germans

Thanks Marc, I'll take a look at Pegasus, HaT and Zvezda too.

I'm in the same boat, but the Armourfast MG set helps a lot. You can kit bash the tripod guns on to prone riflemen (these are never very well modeled anyway) with a wire bipod to make extra LMG's; I've also done this using extra guns from various kits out of the spares box.

I never find I am short of prone LMGs – every box seems to include them from Airfix onwards. It was definitely the other support weapons that were always in short supply. But luckily that position has changed with the manufacturers above bringing out really useful boxes. And some have proved very popular – the HaT tank riders sold out in record time.