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Everything in this set cries "Airfix" to me - detail, size, proportions, poses all remind me of this hobby's first Golden Age.
PSR say the rifles are difficult to identify. To me they look much like the Lebel, the French standard rifle in WW1, and it is reasonable to assume the Serbian army received these together with French webbing and helmets. (The artwork shows a different rifle, probably the Berthier modèle 1916.)
PSR complain about the grenade pose. I dipped the figures in boiling water for some seconds, bent the arm, dipped them into cold water and thanks to this 50 year old method I now have them all in nicely natural poses.
Now, I don't need any post-1915 Serbians so I am converting these figures:
I converted some into Requetes (Spanish Civil War Carlists) by swapping the headgear for berets. 10,900 Lebels were used by the Republicans, so probably also by the Requetes. The Lewis guns are fine for that war.
The rest will double as 1940/41 Greek infantry after carving some caps and replacing others with Italian helmets. They should carry different rifles (2nd line troops had some Lebels though) and single-breasted coats but in my book they are pretty close, and the Greek did have Chauchat guns.
The footgear is fine for my Greeks and probably also for others.
Thank you Strelets for this versatile and premium product! Regards, Pa
Re: Need no Serbian Infantry in Winter Uniform? Me neither, but the set (M126) was worth every penny
I strongly agree with Pa on this matter. :+1:
This great set provides quite a few remarkable possibilities.
In the first place though, these superbly executed figures finally pay some well-deserved attention & respect to those important but neglected troops.
In terms of 1/72 plastic figures, everything we had at hand so far were the miserable & useless Hät blobs. So this new winter Serbs kinda represent a highly welcomed first in this scale. They may not be perfect (but then, only very few sets score that well), but provide the best material for this interisting theatre of war by far.
I truly hope that Strelets will produce early war, heavy weapons or artillery crew sets as well!? :grinning:
Re: Need no Serbian Infantry in Winter Uniform? Me neither, but the set (M126) was worth every penny
Good to know that Strelets shows a continuing interest into this highly inspiring but regrettably neglected WWI theatre. :grinning:
Therefore I really hope the new winter Serbs (just as Strelets other recent WWI sets) will be a success!
Have bought 2 sets myself and can only recommend these very nice figures that can perform in various roles. :+1:
Some additional opportunities to expand this great WWI range:
- Serbian infantry (1914-16) in "summer" dress
- Serbian artillery crews "summer"
- Austrian infantry (1914-16) "summer"
- Austrian artillery crews "summer"
- Austrian cavalry (1914-16) "summer"
- Bulgarian infantry "summer"
- Bulgarian artillery crews "summer"
- Turkish infantry (regular) "summer"
- Turkish artillery crews "summer"
- Romanian infantry "summer"
...
Assuming that Strelets will continue to create first-rate figures in the same vein as their present releases, I even see no risk to ramble into subjects other manufacturers handled meagerly or inadequately (Austrians & Turks).
Guess that many WWI enthusiasts would support a venture into the south-east european theatre of the conflict. At least I would. :wink:
The Balkans, thats where this first global conflagration of the 20th century started. It may be viewed a secondary theatre by some, but it holds a significant place in history. The unsteady situation and the wide variety of involved nations/units makes it one of the most interisting WWI chapters.
And I didn't even deviate to the vast diversity of the Armée d'Orient, french colonial troops, greek Evzones, ... .
One can always dream, but maybe Strelets could take some of the earlier mentioned subjects into consideration? :grinning:
Re: Need no Serbian Infantry in Winter Uniform? Me neither, but the set (M126) was worth every penny
Has anyone else based a 1914/15 army on the Strelets set yet?
To increase the number of poses, I replaced the Adrian helmets with Serbian Šajkača caps.
The Chauchat and Lewis machine guns have to be used elsewhere since these were introduced later, the Lewis not by Serbia. I added a heavy Maxim MG from the HäT Ottoman artillery set, the carriage replaced by a tripod and the gunners underwent a headswap.
Artillery crews might be recruited from HäT's Austro-Hungarian gun crews. Except for the headgear, the uniform is quite similar even up to the pointed external pocket flaps. Alternatives: gunners in shirtsleeves from Airfix RHA, HäT British WW1 gun crew, or the upcoming Japanese artillery from Strelets.