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Review Cuirassier ( von Tsastrova ) from Legion Miniatures

Discussion in 'Reviews , Video Reviews and Open Book' started by Nap, Mar 18, 2020.

  1. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    Hi everyone

    Legion Miniatures have established themselves in the hobby with many releases from varied periods in time including ancient , medieval , WW2 and beyond and of course there will be found Napoleonic subject

    ....including

    XXXXXXXXX.jpg

    As you can see we have a very distinctive looking piece from:

    000000.jpg

    I will share the resin first then some reference's at the end

    Details of the release :

    Title: Junior Officer of the Cuirassier Regiment von Tsastrova, Saxony 1810-13

    Reference: LMBT0082

    Scale: 1/9th

    No of pieces: 4

    Material: Medium Gray resin

    Sculptor: Muzafer Vaapov

    Casting: In house

    Box Art: N/A on review item

    The piece was as usual held in the now very popular laser cut box with all sides ( apart from underneath ) having stickers showing the piece , company logo etc

    Legion cuirassier 001.jpg Legion cuirassier 002.jpg

    Packed with foam at the base the resin in clear bags and bubble wrap ...I was concerned ref the helmet peak initially on opening ...but no need all was well packed

    • Our subject depicts the officer cradling his helmet in his right arm
    • Minimal prep ( details below )(y)
    • Casting is very good , smoothly worked
    • Base is sculpted into the bust
    Consisting of 4 pieces , Main torso , right arm, helmet and plume

    Legion cuirassier 003.jpg

    Prep
    • Torso: Remove 2 x formers from underneath , sand away the casting line at the rear ( this was partially done on the review item but needed smoothing off ) , tiny casting line above belt buckle at rear to sand off
    • Arm: Sand casting line on inside of arm and just above seam on other side , remove former from arm top
    • Helmet: Remove casting line at lower edge of crest at rear , remove former from underneath
    • Plume: Remove former from top
    As you can see very little in the way of work needed before priming :)

    Lets look at the Main Torso


    This is obviously the largest piece and has the head included looking to the left and slightly down we also have the top half of the left arm

    Wearing the single front cuirass with a pouchbelt running across

    The sculpt is angled to a point at the lower front edge with the left arm on the same line which flows well

    On an initial look the sculptors obvious skill shines and its a pleasure to have this in my hand

    The cuirass is super smooth , stud work at the edges , underneath is what would be a red cloth , peeking out at the sides and just under the neck

    The cuirass is held in place by metallic straps with the ends being shaped as you can see , the actual belt has a very nicely set of links , all are the same in style and shape and run from each from crossing at the rear

    The pouchbelt has the distinctive lions head and a monogram on a shield ...excellent details in both ...between them there hangs 2 chains again well sculpted

    Under the belt on the cuirass there is also the monogram

    On the shoulders there are ( left a full epaulette and on the left a contra epaulette )....again the detail work is really a joy to look at , I like the way the epaulettes lift at the button area , the casting on these and indeed all area's is very sharply done

    Looking at the collar this is being pushed slightly down as he looks downwards , its has a wide edging on it

    We come to the face now so important to a bust in particular and I have no comment except its a cracking area to look at , sharp detail work on all parts , the hair is well worked as well .

    So as you might guess I am very impressed by this so far ...lets have the pictures

    Legion cuirassier 005.jpg

    Legion cuirassier 004.jpg Legion cuirassier 018.jpg

    Legion cuirassier 011.jpg Legion cuirassier 008.jpg Legion cuirassier 009.jpg

    Legion cuirassier 010.jpg Legion cuirassier 011.jpg Legion cuirassier 012.jpg

    Legion cuirassier 006.jpg Legion cuirassier 015.jpg
    Legion cuirassier 007.jpg Legion cuirassier 014.jpg Legion cuirassier 013.jpg

    Legion cuirassier 016.jpg Legion cuirassier 017.jpg

    Legion cuirassier 019.jpg

    Continued in next post

    Nap
    Borek, Tonton, KenBoyle and 4 others like this.
  2. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    Lets look at the remainder of the resin

    Right Arm

    Sculpted with the arm extended in order to cup the helmet , the arm has muscle showing slightly on the upper part , the material has good folds at the creasing together with seam detail , he is wearing a leather glove

    The glove has some nice details on the upper with the finger work as always from Legion and this sculptor being very good , a nice touch is that the glove cuff is not perfectly straight

    There are cut out area;s at the shoulder and the upper wrist on the inside to allow the helmet to sit correctly

    Fit to the torso is good with a substantial locating piece matching the cutout with ease


    Legion cuirassier 028.jpg Legion cuirassier 029.jpg Legion cuirassier 027.jpg Legion cuirassier 026.jpg

    Helmet

    This was something that I was really interested in as its a highly decorated item in reality .....well in resin ..its the same

    • Around the lower edge on the wide band there are a delight of detail work i the form of leaves and acorns really nicely done , this continues all the way around
    • The chin scales are held up on the peak with a small strap and buckle ....the individual scales are scalloped in shape and very well cast
    • Holding the chin scales at each side there is a icon , flowing hair and another area to wonder at sculpting skill
    • Working up the helmet the crown continues to please me for sure with a lion on each side ...again great detail
    • At the front we have the crown and monogram ....finely sculpted again
    • At the side there is a hole to fit the plume
    • The crest itself hangs well over the front slightly with good texture work
    • The peak is angled at the front and edged
    • Underneath there are 2 small holes ...not sure why but they can be used to pin and hold for painting
    Its a BIG :):woot:from me and congratulations to the sculptor for the detail work

    Legion cuirassier 021.jpg Legion cuirassier 022.jpg
    Legion cuirassier 024.jpg Legion cuirassier 023.jpg
    Legion cuirassier 025.jpg Legion cuirassier 020.jpg

    Plume

    This part is something that is always well done basing that on my previous reviews of napoleonic subject like the Polish Grenadier here:

    https://www.planetfigure.com/threads/polish-grenadier-from-legion-miniatures.196030/

    ......be assured this is the same

    Well sculpted the feathers drooping natuarly slightly as you look around it , there is a rosette with a small shield on it above which there are 3 leaves ...again all is well sculpted

    Fit is by a small resin pin ...I suggest you remove this and repin ....once in place its a really impressive addition to an already impressive helmet

    Legion cuirassier 030.jpg Legion cuirassier 032.jpg Legion cuirassier 031.jpg

    Final Thoughts

    This release has minimal prep again , quality casting and presentation and excellent detail work , a interesting subject that warrants spending time working on the helmet in particular

    You will get a lot of pleasure from this release , adding a fine sculpt to your display ...of course you could also bronze up this or any of Legions busts as well

    VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
    Legion are members here ( user ID Andrey ) [IMG]



    ....so you can order direct from him here on PF or via the website which is:
    www.legionminiatures.org

    They also have a FB page:
    https://www.facebook.com/groups/214757915731528/

    Thanks to Legion for the review item and to you all for looking in



    Enjoy the benchtime



    Nap
    Borek, Tonton, KenBoyle and 5 others like this.
  3. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    As promised some reference material

    first some books you might like to get ..there are others !!

    yyyy.jpg X.jpg y.jpg
    YYY.jpg yy.jpg

    X.jpg XXXXXXXX.jpeg
    XXXXXXXXXX.jpg

    XXX.jpeg XXXX.jpeg XXXXX.jpeg

    XXXXXX.jpeg XXXXXXX.jpeg


    Enjoy

    Happy benchtime

    Nap
    Borek, Tonton, Perseas and 3 others like this.
  4. Zastrow.cuirassier PlanetFigure Supporter

    Country:
    France
    Great review as always !
    I do not know why, but it's my favorite regiment !;)
    Nap likes this.
  5. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England

    Thanks for comment ..it's a fine looking Regt ...reckon it's the helmet I love that part

    Nap
    Zastrow.cuirassier likes this.
  6. Gary_81 Active Member

    Country:
    United-Kingdom
    Another nice review Nap and it's a great looking bust. I find sometimes Napoleonic busts can be a bit uninspired, so it's nice to see the addition of the helmet to lift this bust above so many others.

    Gary
    Nap likes this.
  7. khollar A Fixture

    Country:
    United-States
    Great review, Nap! I have recently purchased this bust and am in full agreement with your comments about it. It is beautifully sculpted and very cleanly cast. I ordered directly from Legion and my order was filled fast and efficiently. The small wooden boxes that their kits are packed in do a fine job of protecting the kit during shipping.

    I would recommend this bust without reservation.

    Cheers,
    Kurt
    Nap likes this.
  8. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England

    Cheers Gary...the helmet is what really makes this piece as you can see from my comments

    Thank you Kurt appreciate your comments and its good to see Legion getting recognised for the great customer service
    Look forward to seeing your version

    Happy benchtime and stay safe

    Nap
  9. KenBoyle PlanetFigure Supporter

    Country:
    United-States
    Fantastic job on the review Nap! Quite a nice looking bust. (y)

    Cheers,
    Ken

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