[chiefs70]

I've started branching out to figures as much or more than aircraft and I have a few questions I hope can be answered by the folks I know and trust. What is a good forum site to frequent? I've been to the Treefrog site and it seems alright but perhaps I missed a better one in my searching. Also, what are the best dealers in the hobby - opinion only of course - as far as pricing and s&h?

I appreciate the guidance.

Eric

[Old Crow]

If you are referring to the metal toy soldiers, like King & Country, Britains, etc., in 1/30-1/32 range, the Treefrog forum is the forum for collectors from what I see. It is frequented by representatives of many of the toy soldier manufacturers and seems pretty active with respect to the major brands.

Two of the better dealers, in my opinion, are Treefrog Treasures and Sierra Toy Soldiers. Sierra Toy Soldiers, I think, has free shipping in some cases- have to check with them about that. Crossroads Diecast, run by one of our forum members, seems to have a nice complete selection of K & C and some of the other brands.

[Legio LXXII]

What scale figures? Prepainted or ones you paint yourself? I know several.

[chiefs70]

Thanks, Old Crow. Treefrog seems like a great forum thus far and its good to know the manufacturers frequent the site. I ordered a few figures from them last night so we'll see how it goes for a first run.

Legio - I am referring to the 1/30 - 1/32 King and Country, Conte etc. I am mostly looking to start scratching my itch for the Napoleonic era as well as medieval.

Thanks for the replies.

[Legio LXXII]

In that case the Tree Frog forum Old Crow recommended is the best one (that I've encountered).

[trex0770]

Originally Posted by chiefs70

I've started branching out to figures as much or more than aircraft and I have a few questions I hope can be answered by the folks I know and trust. What is a good forum site to frequent? I've been to the Treefrog site and it seems alright but perhaps I missed a better one in my searching. Also, what are the best dealers in the hobby - opinion only of course - as far as pricing and s&h?

I appreciate the guidance.

Eric

Chiefs,
you might want to try Militaryissue and Old Toy Soldier Home in Vista, CA. (San Diego area). I just bought a crap load of 1/32 The Collector's Showcase figures from Militaryissue at some really awesome prices. You can see The Collector's Showcase figures at their website (thecollectorsshowcase.com) if you are not familiar with their products. Militaryissue is a bit hard to navigate because they carry a huge inventory but some of their prices are awesome (i.e. Corgi's Battle of Britain Scramble set for $19.99).

Old Toy Soldier Home has a good selection of figures and puts on a show every summer in Southern California with a good number of vendors attending.

Anyway, good luck!

-Trex

[chiefs70]

Thanks, Trex. I was able to pick up the scramble set at that same fantastic price. I'll have to peruse their site a bit more it seems.

[crossroads]

Hey Chiefs70,

Glad to hear you are starting into the toy soldiers. There are a lot of great items coming on the market now. It is hard to go wrong with any of the manufacturers. Everybody is putting out great figures.

As I am sure you know King & Country definitely has the largest market share of the industy. Some of the recent vehicles from Honour Bound and Figarti have raised the bar but they seem to be answering. As far as figures most would say K&C has the best figures. They definitely have the largest selection in WWII and Napoleonics.

One other thing about King & Country: They usually announce their retiring figures around the first of the month. Once a figure or vehicle is retired they are usually sold out shortly thereafter. Retired pieces can become expensive very quick.

William Britains is making a comeback since they were purchased by First Gear a few years back. They have a very nice Napoleonic series based on Hougoumont. They have also announced a new Zulu series which looks to be very well done.

Patriot Models is a small company which makes some WWII and Napoleonics figures. Their Napoleonics are very well done and will fit in with K&C.

Collector Showcase makes some interesting figures. Their first releases were somewhat oversized but they have supposedly corrected that problem. The first sets are about 1:25 and will not fit in with most other manufacturers. The second round of figures appears to be very well done. They have some very good action poses; particulary in their Civil War line. Some people still have issues with their figures due the skin tone and facial features.

We carry most of these lines and would be glad to help you if we could.

Thanks
Ronnie

[chiefs70]

Excellent information, Ronnie. I appreciate your synopsis - much quicker than digging through a forum. It looks like you have a great selection of what I'm looking for at the moment.

Thanks again-

Eric