"painting 1840s texas rangers" Topic

I'm saving to buy the Gringo 28mm rangers, and looking for better illustrations of their uniforms, those who had them. Not a lot online that I can find! Grey, evidently. Any suggestions?

I would suggest no uniform at all.
Just ordinary rough outdoor clothes. "Drab" colors, and no Stetson cowboy hats.
I have the first half of their range. And, I too am saving to get the second half.
Old Glory and Knuckleduster round out my collection.
Reading "Empire of the Summer Moon" got me started. I am notoriously not one to stick with any single manufacturer, but I find Gringo40s to be better figured. I would call them 30mm, and the others "large 28mm".

Yes, Empire certainly "permits" lots of figures in games. 👍

The Rangers were citizen soldiers in the truest sense of the word. There were no uniforms issued to them. They wore everything from buckskins to city clothes.

Agree with John and Choc. You might have a rare officer in the Republic uniform prior to 1845 or a US one during the Mexican War.

Yeah. It's kind of like asking about Viking or Gaul uniforms.

As noted, Rangers did not wear uniforms. They didn't start wearing uniforms until the 1900s. The frontier rangers wore whatever clothes they had or could afford.

Except that if you look at the Gringo rangers, about a third of them clearly ARE in uniform. At least they are wearing the same round hat with a Texas star in front.

Are they "uniforms", or simply coats with a common civilian cut?
They're YOUR figures, so you can paint them as "Regular" as you want. "As the Colonel shall decide". 😄
When I buy mine, it'll be purchasing one per code. I like my Irregulars shabby, and the Texas desert makes you shabby.

Well, some of them are wearing what appears to be the 1839 cap, which was worn by some during and after the Mex-Am War. The decision to wear such a cap would have been a personal one because the Rangers were not a uniformed force, even during the war. Eye witness accounts describe them wearing all manner of coats and hats, with one soldier from Illinois stating that the Rangers' apparent goal was to dress as 'outlandishly" as possible. If you want to paint a few of these figures in Army jackets or trousers go ahead.

Well, MINE are going to have a nice mix of grey uniform pieces and hats.

Good for you, Colonel McBride! 😄👍
Age quod agis!

Nothing wrong with that. I am sorely tempted by the range as well.

Of course everyone who has mentioned the lack of uniforms is "correct" -- we all read the same sources -- but the miniatures are a reality of a sort (and a relevant one here in the hobby)and worth honoring, plus I remain as I have long been, based on how LITTLE we actually know of the REAL reality, of what men wore in the field. (Or, say, what flags the Continentals carried.) When the data is so meager, one is free to fill in the blanks.

Later on the Rangers were still un-uniformed, except Stetson provided each with a big white hat, and it became a sort of uniform, or at least a distinguishing feature. In the 1840s there were "plenty of"/"some" Texans wearing grey uniforms, the regulars, and some of them might well have become rangers. So we should exult in our freedom to dress them as we please.

Btw, Walter Prescott Webb's THE TEXAS RANGERS is now available "free" on Kindle Unlimited. A good read, though fairly sparse on the early years.

John,

You are spot on when it comes to finding inspiration for getting into this period. I am currently re-reading "Empire of the Summer Moon" and I have given a copy to my son. Both of us are now putting together Comanche and Texan forces in 28mm. As an aside, I occasionally host game nights at the University where I teach and since I have several Comanche and Texan students, I think we will get a lot of use out of those figures that we am painting.

I was already heavily invested in the French and Indian War.
Then my algorithm threw this at me.
YouTube link

So, now I could do the Spanish and Indian War. 😄 Hey! Both are part of the Seven Years War, but without umlauts.

Research followed. I found that my French figures work fine. Comanche figures are made by quite a few excellent manufacturers. The Conquest range by Warlord. Knuckleduster. Gringo40s. At 28mm, Plains Indians are Plains Indians.
What sealed the deal was the inspirational Empire of the Summer Moon.
The author was interviewed on the Joe Rogan podcast.

Yes, I also am reading EMPIRE OF THE SUMMER MOON nw. Excellent work. There's a bio of Quannah Parker I've downloaded from Kindle Unlimited but not started. MAN OF TWO WORLDS or such.

Kevin, what university?

I am mostly solo these days but often do games at long distance with brother Phil and a couple of old students. Maybe we can collaborate in something. The OFM too if he's interedsted.

Anybody played/own the COMANCHERIA boardgames? Would it be a strategic vehicle for a campaign?