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414:, which produced both realistic soldiers of great detail and also historical collections of plastic men and women, including the "Presidents of the United States" collection, "Warriors of the World", "Generals of World War II", "Jesus and the Apostles", and figures from the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. Marx also produced boxed
466:
both old and new toy soldiers, with an abundance of small manufacturers, dealers, and toy soldier shows. There are even specialty magazines devoted to the hobby, such as "Toy
Soldier Collector", "Plastic Warrior" and "Toy Soldier and Model Figure". Collectors often specialize in a particular type of
529:
Some of the more noteworthy, annual toy soldier and historical figure shows include the
Plastic Warrior Show, which is the oldest established show in the UK. Beginning in 1985 and still being held annually in Richmond, South London. Another well known show is the London Toy Soldier Show held in
387:
figures made of glue and sawdust that included both military and civilian subjects. After 1950, rising production costs and the development of plastic meant that many shop keepers liked the lighter, cheaper, and far less prone to break in transit polythene figure. This led to greater numbers of
433:
Timpo Toys, Britains main competitor in terms of sales and quality in the 1960s and 70s developed the 'Over - Moulding' system. Different coloured plastics were injected into the mould at various stages, creating a fully coloured figure without the need of paint.
534:(OTSN) in Illinois, the East Coast Toy Soldier Show in New Jersey, the West Coaster Toy Soldier Show in California, the Sammlerbörse (Collector's Market) in Friedberg, Germany and the biennial Zinnfigurenbörse (Tin Figure Market) in Kulmbach, Germany.
570:
Different types and styles of toy soldiers have been produced over the years, depending on the cost and availability of materials, as well as manufacturing technologies. Here is a list of some of the most commonly collected varieties of toy soldiers.
437:
During the 1990s, the production of metal toy-grade painted figures and connoisseur-grade painted toy soldiers increased to serve the demands of the collectors' market. The style of many of these figures shifted from the traditional gloss-coat
158:
for toy soldiers is expressed as the soldier's approximate height from head to foot in millimeters. Because many figures do not stand up straight, height is usually an approximation. Standard toy soldier scale, originally adopted by
137:. Metal toy soldiers were traditionally sold in sets; plastic figures were sold in toy shops individually in Britain and Europe and in large boxed sets in the U.S. Modern, collectable figures are often sold individually.
352:. Miniature soldiers were also used in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries by military strategists to plan battle tactics by using the figures to show the locations of real soldiers. In 1893, the British toy company
565:
Set of 40 cast metal World War I era toy soldiers, Barclay
Manufacturing Company (note aviator carrying bomb site, soldier with trench mortar, and anti-tank gun are made by Manoil), West Hoboken, New Jersey, ca.
506:
of
Providence, Rhode Island, US, began collecting miniature toy soldiers on her honeymoon to Europe in 1930, eventually amassing a collection of over 6,000 figures; these are on display at the
426:
produced a variety of high quality plastic sets, which were frequently painted by hobbyists. Many Airfix figures were imitated by other companies and reproduced as inexpensive, bagged plastic
348:
were produced in
Germany as early as the 1730s, by molding the metal between two pieces of slate. Toy soldiers became widespread during the 18th century, inspired by the military exploits of
744:
Although people continue to play wargames with miniature figures, most contemporary wargamers use a smaller scale than that favored by collectors, typically under 25 mm.
242:
Model railroad "I scale". Also used for display models. Britains toy farm sets (animals, structures, and most vehicles) and "Stablemate size" model horses were in this scale.
418:
that featured many famous battles with armies of two sides, character figures, and terrain features. Britains produced plastic figures under the brand names of Herald and
396:
as early as 1937. The first plastic toy soldiers produced in Great
Britain were made in 1946 by Airfix before they became known for their famous model kits range.
530:
central London (now owned and operated by the magazine Toy
Soldier Collector), the Miniature Figure Collectors of America (MFCA) show in Valley Forge, the
467:
soldier or historical period, though some people enjoy collecting many different kinds of figures. The most popular historical periods for collecting are
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446:, which allows for greater detail and historical accuracy. The change was largely inspired by the introduction of very high quality painted figures from
630:– cast in metal, usually a lead alloy, which cools and sets as it touches the mold; the excess molten metal is poured out leaving a hollow figure
718:. Wells, a pacifist, was the first to publish detailed rules for playing war games with toy soldiers. He suggested that this could provide a
502:, who began collecting toy soldiers in the late 1960s and amassed a collection of over 90,000 figures by the time of his death in 1990.
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has a substantial collection of toy knights and castles. The most extensive collection of toy soldiers was probably that of
507:
175:
and miniatures enthusiasts, 25 mm and even smaller scales are available. On the larger end of the scale are
American
642:
Wood - From the 19th century
Germany produced large amounts of wooden fortresses and toy soldiers sometimes working on a
35:
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589:– unpainted, soft plastic toy soldiers sold inexpensively in bags or with terrain pieces and vehicles in boxed
375:
In addition to
Britains, there have been many other manufacturers of toy soldiers over the years. For example,
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734:. After dinner, Jerome began shooting down toy soldiers with a toy cannon and Wells joined in to compete.
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plastic blends have reported brittling and disintegration of collectible miniatures or components thereof.
312:) or German 75 mm size (actually closer to 1/21 scale). 1/2-scale dollhouses are built in this scale.
20:
487:. Many collectors modify and paint plastic figures, and some even cast and paint their own metal figures.
179:, and many of the toy soldiers produced in Germany, which are approximately 75 mm (3 inches) or
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Solid – cast in solid metal, usually lead, common in Germany during the 19th and early 20th Century
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Spanish 60 mm size (actually closer to 1/26 or 1/27 scale) (Alymer Toy Soldiers).
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Composition – made from a mixture of sawdust and glue, manufactured mostly in Europe,
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Paper – printed on sheets of paper or cardboard, frequently mounted on blocks of wood
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Connoisseur – high quality, collectible figures featuring highly detailed paint jobs
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may come in military uniforms, but they are not generally considered toy soldiers.
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scale. Among different manufacturers, standard scale may range from 50 mm or
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had a collection of 3000 toy soldiers when he sold it in 1977. Fantasy novelist
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produced hollow cast lead figures in the same style and scale. Companies such as
222:). Also used for the accompanying human display models like crew and passengers.
106:
730:. According to Wells, the idea of the game developed from a visit by his friend
360:, making soldiers that were cheaper and lighter than their German counterparts.
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experience, possibly preventing future real wars. Although this was not to be,
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to distinguish them from traditional toy soldiers. Larger scale toys such as
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revolutionized the production of toy soldiers by devising the method of
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Toy soldiers are made from all types of material, but the most common
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Popular military modelling scale for vehicles and light aircraft (
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Traditional "Normal scale" lead or die-cast metal toy soldiers (
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toy soldiers. The first American plastic soldiers were made by
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Anne S. K. Brown Military Collection, Brown University Library
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In recent years, collectors of vintage toy soldiers made of
117:. There are many different kinds of toy soldiers, including
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was published by Harry Dowdall and Joseph Gleason in 1929.
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95:
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The playing of wargames with toy figures was pioneered by
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Plastic – hard and soft plastic, generally painted figures
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83:
883:"How HG Wells Invented Modern War Games 100 Years Ago"
704:
H. G. Wells playing a wargame with toy soldiers, 1913
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Dimestore – hollow- or slush-cast iron, sold through
864:p. 59 Fritzsch, Karl Ewald & Bachmann, Manfred
613:stores from the 1920s to 1960 in the United States
942:- collection of over 6,000 miniature toy soldiers
953:
82:-related themes. Toy soldiers vary from simple
876:
874:
54:. The term applies to depictions of uniformed
650:Prominent vintage toy soldier makers include
603:. Made in the US during WWII metal rationing.
410:One large historical producer in plastic was
422:. Also in England, the scale model company,
16:Miniature figurine that represents a soldier
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841:Plastic Corrosion of Collectible Miniatures
948:- largest annual show in the United States
739:Shambattle: How to Play with Toy Soldiers
726:was a predecessor to the modern hobby of
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583:during the early and middle 20th Century
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147:Miniature_figure_(gaming) § Scales
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163:, is 54 mm (2.25 inches) or
58:personnel from all eras, and includes
866:An Illustrated History of German Toys
383:and Lineol were well known for their
508:Anne S. K. Brown Military Collection
171:, to 60 mm or 1:28 scale. For
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304:American "dimestore" 3-inch size (
78:, and other subjects that involve
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86:to highly realistic and detailed
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881:Rundle, Michael (9 April 2013).
525:-era plastic figures by Accurate
855:Retrieved on August 25th, 2008.
843:Retrieved on August 25th, 2008.
831:Retrieved on August 25th, 2008.
812:. Retrieved on August 25, 2008.
808:Sheil, T., and Sheil, A., eds.
799:Retrieved on August 25th, 2008.
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21:Toy soldier (disambiguation)
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151:List of scale model sizes
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512:Brown University Library
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853:Collecting Toy Soldiers
458:There is a substantial
377:John Hill & Company
737:A similar book titled
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145:Further information:
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868:Hastings House, 1978
754:Britains (toy brand)
728:miniatures wargaming
492:Douglas Fairbanks Jr
36:Imperial Productions
19:For other uses, see
997:Frederick the Great
962:1730s introductions
887:The Huffington Post
769:Miniature wargaming
696:Miniature wargaming
496:George R. R. Martin
350:Frederick the Great
827:2007-01-15 at the
712:in his 1913 book,
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644:scissors mechanism
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523:American Civil War
477:American Civil War
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50:that represents a
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34:) toy soldiers by
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119:tin soldiers
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43:
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30:54 mm (
779:Tin soldier
724:Little Wars
715:Little Wars
710:H. G. Wells
628:Hollow cast
575:Aluminum –
481:World War I
462:devoted to
404:World War I
131:composition
127:hollow-cast
44:toy soldier
992:Metal toys
956:Categories
785:References
694:See also:
662:, Herald,
577:slush-cast
469:Napoleonic
464:collecting
454:Collecting
450:, Russia.
369:Trojan War
181:1:24 scale
169:1:35 scale
161:W. Britain
84:playthings
32:1:32 scale
972:Militaria
904:601353012
720:cathartic
664:Elastolin
557:Varieties
539:polythene
473:Victorian
385:composite
381:Elastolin
330:Used for
198:Examples
825:Archived
810:Army Men
748:See also
668:Johillco
660:Britains
620:cast in
591:playsets
587:Army men
428:army men
416:playsets
266:Britains
56:military
48:figurine
936:article
656:Barclay
601:Germany
597:Austria
541:PE and
420:Deetail
390:plastic
341:History
306:Barclay
277:0.423"
260:2.165"
256:2.125"
233:0.375"
214:1.811"
209:0.342"
195:Height
115:plastic
76:samurai
72:pirates
64:cowboys
60:knights
52:soldier
902:
690:Gaming
680:Manoil
672:Lineol
652:Airfix
581:France
490:Actor
483:, and
424:Airfix
321:0.75"
310:Manoil
295:0.50"
282:2.36"
238:1.98"
220:Tamiya
189:Ratio
173:gamers
149:, and
88:models
80:combat
684:Timpo
624:molds
622:slate
460:hobby
394:Beton
251:0.4"
156:Scale
141:Scale
123:flats
111:metal
96:dolls
900:OCLC
676:Marx
599:and
566:1925
332:Ertl
317:1:16
291:1:24
273:1:28
247:1:30
228:1:32
204:1:35
165:1:32
113:and
98:and
551:ABS
510:at
326:4"
308:or
300:3"
268:).
121:or
958::
932:-
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873:^
686:.
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547:PC
479:,
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183:.
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70:,
66:,
62:,
42:A
889:.
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549:/
23:.
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