Peter Rathgeb
PlanetFigure Supporter
- Joined
- May 20, 2023
- Messages
- 82
Dear planeteers,
It's a bit more than a year that I have joined PF, so I think it's about time to shortly (?) introduce myself.
I am Austrian, but I live in Switzerland since the age of 8. I have three "children" and three grand-children.
I am retired now, and so hopefully have a bit more time for figures.
Until a couple of years ago, my model building and painting was mainly plastic (1/35, more vehicles than figures), that's probably the reason why I still paint with Enamels (Humbrol and Revell), but I'm ok with it.
I then focussed on 28mm figures, but since I prefer natural proportions, there were not even a handful of manufacturers to be considered.
Now my main areas of interest, on and off, are the following periods, mainly in 54mm and 75mm:
- "Russia", or better: the Muscovite Principality, and later Tsardom of Russia, of the 16th-17th Century
- the Russian Army at the age of Catherine II (1762-1796); I especially like the rather unknown uniforms between the Seven Years War and the start of the "Potemkin uniforms" in 1786.
- various other Russian periods, including Napoleonic wars and the time after, up to and including the First World War.
- Italian Communes in the 13th and 14th Centuries, especially the armies of the battles of Montaperti (1260) and Campaldino (1289).
- the Byzantine Empire of the 10th and 11th Centuries, up to the battle of Manzikert (1071). Here I still use figures in 28mm scale, but I also have started 54mm there.
- ... and (too) many others, like Polovtsy/Kipchak warriors, the Great Northern War (Russian and Swedish figures), etc. etc.
A big part of the fun for me is history and research, so a large portion of my money spent goes into books, and a large portion of my time spent is... online. When painting a figure, I absolutely need the historical context.
What disturbs me most in the hobby is the inconsistency in scales. When I buy a 54mm figure, I only know that it hopefully will be closer to 54mm than to 70 or 75mm. Since I love to see my figures side by side, for a kind of little vignette or so, this inconsistency really bothers me, sometimes it shows up even within the range of one and the same manufacturer.
Well, enough talking. I love this forum, people are not only competent, but also very kind and helpful. I am learning lots of new things, and I think I will - in a couple of months - also post some of my work.
Thanks for everything and cheers,
Peter
It's a bit more than a year that I have joined PF, so I think it's about time to shortly (?) introduce myself.
I am Austrian, but I live in Switzerland since the age of 8. I have three "children" and three grand-children.
I am retired now, and so hopefully have a bit more time for figures.
Until a couple of years ago, my model building and painting was mainly plastic (1/35, more vehicles than figures), that's probably the reason why I still paint with Enamels (Humbrol and Revell), but I'm ok with it.
I then focussed on 28mm figures, but since I prefer natural proportions, there were not even a handful of manufacturers to be considered.
Now my main areas of interest, on and off, are the following periods, mainly in 54mm and 75mm:
- "Russia", or better: the Muscovite Principality, and later Tsardom of Russia, of the 16th-17th Century
- the Russian Army at the age of Catherine II (1762-1796); I especially like the rather unknown uniforms between the Seven Years War and the start of the "Potemkin uniforms" in 1786.
- various other Russian periods, including Napoleonic wars and the time after, up to and including the First World War.
- Italian Communes in the 13th and 14th Centuries, especially the armies of the battles of Montaperti (1260) and Campaldino (1289).
- the Byzantine Empire of the 10th and 11th Centuries, up to the battle of Manzikert (1071). Here I still use figures in 28mm scale, but I also have started 54mm there.
- ... and (too) many others, like Polovtsy/Kipchak warriors, the Great Northern War (Russian and Swedish figures), etc. etc.
A big part of the fun for me is history and research, so a large portion of my money spent goes into books, and a large portion of my time spent is... online. When painting a figure, I absolutely need the historical context.
What disturbs me most in the hobby is the inconsistency in scales. When I buy a 54mm figure, I only know that it hopefully will be closer to 54mm than to 70 or 75mm. Since I love to see my figures side by side, for a kind of little vignette or so, this inconsistency really bothers me, sometimes it shows up even within the range of one and the same manufacturer.
Well, enough talking. I love this forum, people are not only competent, but also very kind and helpful. I am learning lots of new things, and I think I will - in a couple of months - also post some of my work.
Thanks for everything and cheers,
Peter
