Hi to one and all

The subject of this review is from the company called Ellie's Miniatures run by the respected fellow Ian Burton and assisted by his daughter Ellie ( hence the name!!) .

Producing interesting subjects and using top sculptors and painters for the box art we have been treated to figures and busts from the AWI and the Franco-Prussian in particular , with the display stand at shows being a pleasure to see ( they will be at Euro Miniature Expo in September )

There is a series covering a very popular period of history with currently 4 available and with this release making the 5th ( with others coming soon ) .

Obviously the uniforms and subjects are important but the main focus of this series is to show the variation in head wear worn during the conflict

The release was announced here and on social media

http://www.planetfigure.com/threads...6-bust-ready-to-ship-ellies-miniatures.88349/

With the box art here

http://www.planetfigure.com/threads/box-art-for-the-continental-marine-1775-ellies-miniatures.91109/


The release being this:

A Continental Marine from the AWI

Lets have a bit of background to the Continental Marines

November 10, 1775:
Robert Mullan, then proprietor of the "Tun Tavern", received word that he was commissioned by an act of the "Continental Congress" to seek out volunteers for the formation of the first two Battalions of Marines, which would be under the direction of Samuel Nicholas, who had been duly appointed the first Commandant of the Continental Marines by the Continental Congress.

November 28, 1775:
In just under 3 weeks, the two Battalions had been raised, and it was at that time, that Samuel Nicholas was officially appointed "Captain of the Marines" (the 1st Commandant). The "Continental Marines" enter the Revolutionary War.

The Marine eagle globe and anchor Marine Corps Emblem

The history of the Marine Corps emblem is a story related to the history of the Corps itself. The emblem of today traces its roots to the designs and ornaments of early Continental Marines as well as British Royal Marines. The emblem took its present form in 1868. Before that time many devices, ornaments, and distinguishing marks followed one another as official marks of the Corps.

In 1776, the device consisted of a "foul anchor" of silver or pewter. The foul anchor still forms a part of the emblem today. (A foul anchor is an anchor which has one or more turns of the chain around it). Changes were made in 1798, 1821, and 1824. In 1834 it was prescribed that a brass eagle be worn on the hat, the eagle to measure 3 1/2 inches from wingtip to wingtip.

In the early years numerous distinguishing marks were prescribed, including "black cockades, "scarlet plumes," and "yellow bands and tassels." In 1859 the origin of the present color scheme for the officer's dress uniform ornaments appeared on an elaborate device of solid white metal and yellow metal. The design included a United States shield, half wreath, a bugle, and the letter "M."

During this period a green broadcloth was used to make the uniforms with the facings being white in 1775 and being changed to red in 1779 with the green being changed to a dark blue at a later date .

The marines have been featured on stamps in the past as well :
and on Corps magazines:

References are readily available and all make interesting reading and good additions to the book shelves



Continued in next post

Nap

Lets move onto the resin

Title: Continental Marine 1775

Series: American War of Independence

Reference: N/A

Scale: 1/9th

Material: Lt Gray Resin

No of pieces: 1

Sculptor: Pavol ( PF Member Offo )

Box Art: Gerrard


Initial thoughts

I knew this was a one piece casting so was intrigued as to how it would cast especially with the cap depicted ....well I can honestly say the casting is TOP NOTCH so well done there .

The undercuts on all the belts are very sharply done with overall definition being as good , the casting has really brought out the skill of the sculptor


My purchase was arrived quickly and on opening I found the brim broken ...however I contacted Ian and with much speed and haste a replacement was sent quickly with no concern...I have to say that the communication and customer service that I received was a credit to Ellie's ...WELL DONE

The packaging was in a bag with bubble wrap around it , held in a cardboard box with aslip over surround , on the review piece a unpainted version was on the top with a nice bit of quote ..." Your painting adventure begins here" ..how very true .



Prep

I hunted high and low on the torso and could find nothing whatsoever to do , paying particular attention to the cap a slight and I mean slight sanding was needed at the back of the cap rim ...it took about 15 seconds!!

The surface is really smooth with no blemishes whatsoever

Then a quick wash and dry to remove any casting residue and away we go .

The Bust

As you can see its a one piece casting so I will have just the full bust to share with you .

Wearing the cap held up at the side on the models left , the thing to note here is that the scale of the brim is excellent , very nicely done with edging being clear in definition.

On the side we have a rosette again a very good sculpt on this part .


The facial features are something that the sculptor achieves with skill adding character to the piece and that is what a bust is all about IMO

The features are excellent , good eye definition and despite the brim easy to get to for painting , even un painted a determined look is evident , the chin is strong and chisel like , ears are good with the hair sitting on the tops and moving down the back to form a pony tail , again the hair is nicely shown in texture.

The neck area has his shirt collar sitting over his neck stock , all very naturally doe with good folds being in place

Across his body we have a total of 3 belts , one having the buckle the other plain , a thinner one running over the right shoulder ...all have excellent undercuts and very well sculpted ...all making painting so much easier and a pleasure.

There are folds on the jacket naturally done and not overworked .

This is a classic style of a bust and I must admit I like it lots ,

Final thoughts

This is a fine addition to the series from Ellie's and a really good choice as well , very well sculpted with excellent casting , there are of course the facing colours option but this could easily be reworked to other units in the AWI .

Very highly recommended


Lets have some pictures of the unpainted




For more details on this and other products why not visit the website at:

www.elliesminiatures.com

,o

Of course you can also follow them here and on FB


I look forward to getting the next release , worth noting also that there is a 3 and 4 package offer on the website ...great value .

Here's the 3 together and with the 4 next ...WOW !!!


Thanks to you all for looking in

Happy modelling

Nap