"Anyone Make 28mm CIDG/RF-PF/Mike Force?" Topic

All,

I need help, I'm not finding anything. I'm looking for 28mm troops suitable for use as South Vietnamese irregulars, such as CIDG, "Ruff Puffs," Mike Force, etc….

They should be bareheaded or wearing berets, boonie covers, soft covers, or headbands, but NO HELMETS, wearing little to no gear, uniforms or pajamas (or a mix, to include footwear), and carrying WWII US weapons, primarily M-1 Carbines, but some M-1 Garands, M-1 Thompsons, M-3 Grease Guns, and BARs are okay, too.

Like this:

Sorry, I know that's pretty specific, but that's what I'm looking for, and I'd be mighty grateful if anyone could share where I might find some.

V/R,
Jack

Do not apologise.

This is a great request that I have often suggested. Any VN units originating from south of the DMZ had a very characteristic look. They could be ARVN elite or CIDGs or a dozen other acronyms.

They were little guys and did not have arms wider than their legs (as in almost all ranges). They wore tailored overalls (is that pants in US parlance?) which were ridiculously(but now fashionably) tight. Their helmets and weapons dwarfed them, and their kit was the same size as the bigger US and Anzac Caucasians that served with them (obviously).

It might be the limitations of casting and metallurgy and resilience in wargames, but I feel no-one has yet entirely captured what I recall from images of ARVN forces, in 28mm.

It might be that there is still that lack of demand, for what were like the Italians in North Africa, of that conflict in SEA. They were the vast majority of contributors, but way less glamorous.

This is a topic close to my heart that I have been chasing for years.

Directly speaking, no, no one specifically makes them outright.

Indirectly, you have options and maybe I can talk you through some of what i have done.

WW2 US figures might be wrong in height, but because of the simplicity of thekit they carry, look about right for girth compared to the more modern figures with M16 and webbing and kit.

You can get figures and convert by head saps.
I have two platoons of the old Black Tree Dsign US troops bulked out with carbines. One platoon has the baseball cap fatigue hat from Eureka and the other platoon has jungle hat/boonie hat heads from eithe S&S or Dadi and Piambo/Jerwood. A hair tall for locals but thin enough.

You can use Warbases Indonesian paratrooper. One pack has thee carbines and one Garand figure. Other packs have BARs, a 60mm motar and a bazooka as well as leader figures and even some of the morecommie types with vz52 rifles. Height wise perfect and ready to paint up in duck hunter cam.

Another option is to use US marine raiders in boonie hats. Gaddis gaming has a paack but no pictures.

Battle Honors do a pack of marine raiders in boonie hats but being Battle Honors 25s, the height and girth will be perfect bu t the weapons will most like look miniature in comparison.

Something I just found and ordered today are some Alamo Scouts from Company B/Brigade Games. Can't wait to see them in person.

I was really tempted to get some of the Company B/brigade games Filipino guerrillas as RUFF/PUFF but couldn't bring myself to it just yet.

The Gringos 40s are really, really good. Both the troops with carbines and the M16 figures. Don't forget that with Vietnamization after 1969 and following a lot of the CIDG companies were converteed to ARVN Rangers. So if you are thinking of playing that time period forward, helmets may become more common, especially with the US flooding the place with more modern firearms like M16s, M79s and M60s.

Whenever someone says that some of the Ranger companies were elite of good, I always chuckle and want to ask both what year and if that company was either Nung, Montagnard or Khmer?

Jack and Deadhead, pm sent to you both.

I disagree with Gringos, only because they are too large. Luv the scults, though. You really need to check out Empress Miniatures. Paul Hicks is the sculptor. Their VN, both North and South, are proportionately smaller. (Maybe not the first batch in their French-Indochina range, but certainly in their US/VN range.)

Ooops, missed the NO HELMETS, but they have some in hats/caps IIRC, and they have separate heads you can get from both VN ranges.

Fantastic, thanks everyone for the quick responses! It is as I feared, but a lot to take in and look into, to try and get some with the look I'm going for. I suppose a decent option is the Empress ARVN (with appropriate weapons) and do headswaps. I was also looking at the new Rubicon multi-pose VC, wondering if I could just paint the pajamas green (at least the tops) and see if I can get some M-1 carbines, Tommy Guns, Grease Guns, and BARs from somewhere else (I know Warlord does weapons sprues).

And I'm with you guys on helmets and M-16s, it's just my campaign is in early ‘67 and the US Marines are just now getting M-16s.

I'll go check my PM, as well.

V/R,
Jack

I'ld recommend getting a half dozen sample figures of the Gringos 40s ARVN with cabines and a half dozen of the Empress ARVn to compare.

The Empress range will only have one or two figure in total with the carbine and one figure with the M1919.

If you do decide to try to change the heads, the heads available I have listed, might work better with the Gringoss 40s ARVN with carbines.

Yes, my apologies, I wrote Empress ARVN by mistake, meant Gringos40, thanks!

Looking at them again right now. They're still a bit too "geared up" for my tastes…

Rubicon is making ARVN, and this might just do the trick!

link

V/R,
Jack

Rubicon has some nice-looking sets. Furthermore, some of the US troops may be smaller than other manufacturers figures, giving the look you may be looking for. I have some of their WW2 figures and they are very similar to Perry miniatures. Being plastic, conversions are easy.

link

link

Orion made a brave attempt but this set has issues. Supposed to be 1/72 scale.

Thanks guys! And that Orion set gets an ‘A' for effort, but…. ;)

V/R,
Jack