Dear friends, I am in love with 1:72 scale military figures. This passion started in 1974, when I was 11 years old and my father took me to a store to give me Airfix figures as a gift. From then on, I started a hobby that I cultivate today. My feeling when I'm painting my miniatures is that of remembering my father's hand holding my hand and entering the shop's paradise to buy the miniatures. This relationship between memory and feeling I believe to be fundamental to explain our choices.
In addition to painting the miniatures, I create wargames and make dioramas. My wife is very patient with me, because she allows me to have a room reserved for my collection, which today has more than 1500 sets with, I believe, more than 30 thousand miniatures. I confess that I am an amateur and I greatly admire the talent of everyone who participates in this forum. I am very grateful to Strelets for providing a space to exchange ideas about this incredible hobby.
I have miniatures from several companies, but I must confess that it is Strelets miniatures that I like the most today, not only for the quantity, but also for the diversity. Today I am committed to making the entire WSS collection and thanks to companies like Hannants and Drum and Flag I already own all the sets already released. I would very much like some of you to write about the original moment of the beginning of this fantastic hobby, which is to collect military miniatures in the 1:72 scale. A hug to everyone.

So I was 8. Given Airfix Romans by a class mate. Passion from then to now combined with love of all things History etc. Big problem is space to keep collection and no time to paint. will be left to someone to complete the project. That will be the biggest challenge.

My earliest memory of '1/72' (actually 1/76 or smaller OO/HO!) figures was the Airfix Infantry Combat Group, which was given to me as a gift along with the corresponding German Infantry set around 1970. I still have many of the figures, although the boxes have disappeared - would be nice still to have them.

Something at the time suggested to me that this smaller scale would be good for creating bigger battles than would be possible with the larger 1/32/54mm Britains and Timpo type figures which I already had. For a while I saved pocket money and continued to buy toy soldiers in both scales - the next Airfix sets I bought (in a Woolworths store) were of course the original 8th Army and Afrika Korps sets. Friends had other sets, including the Russian and Japanese infantry, a couple of the Airfix play-tanks etc, so WW2 was re-fought on the carpet many times! But when Airfix brought out their 'Waterloo' figures I was hooked, and quickly the larger scales were dropped in favour of the smaller.

I never really looked back from that point, and although I have dabbled with metals (15mm and 25mm) 1/72 plastics have remained the bulk of my collection, and today make up 95% of it (must be at least 25,000+ figures and c. 500+ tanks and vehicles, but to be honest I lost count a long time ago). There have been periods of years when the collection and hobby has been put away to allow me to concentrate on work, family etc, but happily I am now back to having the time to enjoy this absorbing hobby.

I keep saying that I will/should(?) stop collecting...but then Strelets (and occasionally others) keep introducing great new figures, so the collection continues to grow.....:smirk:

For me, too, the passion started in the late 70s when as a child I played with red-skin warriors and cowboys with my father and grew up watching war and western movies with him. Then the passion for history did the rest. I started collecting the Atlantic and some Airfix. Then came the ESCI...Mythical! Italeri years later revived the passion that might have gone off there. When i was army service in Bergamo, i discovered Revell and Hat. With the discovery of model-themed fairs like Novegro expo finally i meet Strelets and Waterloo and Zvezda.
And now i'm here.

This is probably why it is a middle aged hobby. Most of us probably started as kids when the boxes (fantastic artwork) were on sale everywhere. We actually had toy shops in those days that sold Airfix sets, vac formed play sets, war movies were on TV, history involved battles when taught at school etc

My first exposure I think was the Airfix guardsmen set at a cousins. I “borrowed some” so must have been very young.

I had WW2, both sizes, and we played in the garden with dirt bombs and sand trenches. But the Naps were my downfall.

Then I grew up (13 or so) and discovered metals - foolishly although at that time plastics were only Airfix and so very limited - metals (Minifigs for me) offered every nation and troop type. Then early 90s we discovered 15mm Battlehonours then ABs

But sometime in the late 90s I saw Mamelukes and Dragoons on sale at a wargames show. Before I knew it I was back with plastics.

I would wander up to Hannants when it was by the tube at Stanmore at lunch from work and fill my back pack with boxes of HaT, Revell, then Strelets - how odd those first sets were. French camp, engineers, Polish and foot dragoons etc

The Zvezda raised the bar

Now Strelets are serious quality, Franznap make metals, HaT occasionally make MAC sets

So my Naps collection and games are huge. If anyone wants to chat on FaceBook I share pictures there.

Great hobby, and a true golden age

From the replies so far it does seem a) most of us are a 'certain age' and b) Airfix has a lot to answer for!

Well, back when dinosaurs roamed the earth Woolworth's store sold the complete range of Aifix model kits and soldiers, which were just about affordable within the limits of one week's allowance/pocket money. Britains, Timpo, Herald and other large size figures were popular, but expensive: for the cost of a single mounted Knight in the toy store, you could get a whole box of 48 little Airfix guys in Woolworths - it was a no brainer there. Plus the Airfix troops had tank support in the same scale! So every Friday after school, Woolworths was our first port of call, breathlessly looking to see if there was a new Airfix set to add to our collection..........back in the days before the internet, the yearly Airfix catalog was definitely required reading :relaxed: After seeing the awesome new (1970) movie 'Waterloo' at the theater, I remember how excited we were to find they were going to make troops for the battle, and how bitterly disappointed we were at the quality of them when they appeared. Even at the age of twelve, we knew better!

Then Matchbox arrived on the scene with their WWII sets, better made and more realistic than Airfix, and a bigger range of vehicle to go with them and about the same time my best friend was given a book called 'Battles with Model Soldiers' by the late, great Donald Featherstone which set us on the path to war gaming.

Now 50 years later Woolworths has long gone but I'm breathlessly awaiting the announcement that the Strelets Boer War Highlanders have been released!

I've always loved plastic figures. The first 1/72 figures I had were the cheap grocery store knockoffs, but my first "proper" 1/72 figures were the ESCI WW2 U.S. and German soldiers, which my parents bought for me at MJ Designs (now Michaels) in the early 90's. I was amazed at the level of detail that was put into figures so small and I was really hooked after that. My collection as a kid was not too large, though, as there were no real hobby shops where I grew up and there was no internet at the time, so the only time I could get 1/72 figures was when I would go on my annual family trip to France, since there was a cool little shop near my Grandparent's apartment in Montreuil that always had an abundance of 1/72 sets in stock.
I got out of the hobby when I entered my teen years, but I got back into it when I was in college and was watching the movie "Toy Story" with my ex girlfriend. Strangely enough, seeing the toy soldiers in that movie made me want to buy figures again, and from that point on my collection has grown exponentially.
I do have a sampling of 15mm and 28mm figures, but 1/72 plastic will far and away always be my favorite.

It's terrible what you're saying. All your stories are somewhat similar. Having said that, I'm not going to stand out. You bring back 50 years of remembrance. And how many frequented stores have disappeared. in Beauvais, Paris, Belfort, Le Mans, Tours, and during my holidays in other places. That's terrible.

I am 63 years old and the beginning of this passion: the figurines at 1/72, dates back to the year 1972. At the time I lived in a small provincial town in France. I could only buy Airfix figurines. Then came, in bulk, Revell, Esci, and many, many others . . . . . . . Zvesda have been my favorites for a very long time. About Strelets, the first releases were original but not well engraved. Today, they are the best on the market. They are original and well engraved and very diverse. The choice of periods is quite impressive. In addition, I think it is a company open to its customers. I love it so much, so much that this is the first time I've registered on a blog and made the effort to converse in English. One last thing like Stuart say, I'm also looking forward to the Strelets highlanders during the Boers' War exit.

Friendships to all here. Above all protect yourself - stay healthy.

Hervé

I can't recall exactly when my relationship with 1:72 scale began but I suspect I was around the age of 5 or 6. The earliest figures that I have dim recollection of owning are Airfix's WWI German Infantry (wearing pickelhaubes) and American Civil War Artillery with the horse team and limber. I remember being intrigued by the history behind these figures, representing events from long past (a "nerd" even at that tender age).

What's curious about my interest in 1/72 figures is that it seems to have been pretty much unique amongst all my peers and family! I knew of no one with a similar hobby. Having relied on Airfix and Matchbox, Italian manufacturer Esci began to transform the hobby in the early-mid 1980s and my collection grew.

After 'growing up', I rediscovered the hobby when I walked into a local model store (sadly now closed...) looking for something for my daughter. Inside I found an astonishing range of kits from the likes of HaT, Revell, Italeri and, of course a new kid on the block - Strelets. I resolved to collect more and this time attempt painting them too. As others have said, we seem to be in a golden age for the hobby, keeping us middle-aged people very happy indeed.

Back in 1972 I was in a hobby shop in Gettysburg Pa. They had a rack filled with Airfix figures and I was hooked.
An elderly man worked there and asked if I would remember him whenever I used those sets I bought. 48 years later I still think of that kind man.
Atlantic sets came out and I got hooked on them too.
Quite a departure from being an avid fan of Marx sets to 1/72 scale.

My love affair goes back to the 60s & started with Giant. I used to go to our local Grants store & buy a blister or 2 whenever I could. Then, I discovered Airfix at Woolworths & the affair grew! My first set was the early version of the Afrika Corps. My friends & I rode our bikes all over to get to 3 Woolworths in our area to buy all we could get. My interest cooled in high school & for years after until later in life, I remembered my hobby & wondered what was out there? Local Hobby Shops turned up Revell, ESCI & Atlantic, as well as old Airfix sets. I started buying & keeping up as best I could. Then I found the internet. More sets, more manufacturers, more buying. I didn't buy every set available, but I bought most. I have a room full + & estimate I have over 100,000 soldiers & still counting.

Like many of you my addiction began as a small child in the 1960s. Near to where I lived was a tobacconist/sweetshop called the Candybox that stocked Airfix and I loved going there to see what was new out. My memory is unclear as I can't remember my first set or the price. I certainly owned the guards colour party, FFL, Arabs and Infantry combat group but what I got first I can't remember. I also vaguely think boxes were one shilling and six pence but that seems quite a lot for the time. I simply like miniature things, love model railway layouts although I've never been a railway modeller and I used to love going to model villages when we were on holiday although I would have preferred them in a smaller scale!

Upto about ten or eleven I liked laying out my Aifix Napoleonics in large formations and knocking them down with rolled marbles, then, like a lot of other people, I discovered girls and, for me, motorcycles. Still kept an eye on figures but didn't buy much. Got into wargaming when I was eighteen. I used to commute through Charing Cross Station and browsing in Smiths whilst waiting for a train one day my eyes lighted on Battle for wargamers magazine. I started to read it regularly but didn't know any one who wargamed or where any clubs were. Luckily I changed job and one day noticed a colleague was reading a wargames magazine in the staff room one lunchtime. That was the start, Ken and I got chatting and he was kind enough to invite me to take part in some games at his mate's house. Those games were either Renaissance games in 15mm metal or WWII in 1/300th and this is the route I went down. I did dabble with Atlantic Romans but was dissatisfied with the historical inaccuracy, so didn't really get back into 1/72nd plastics until a certain American company brought out their Punic wars range and kicked off the current Golden Age.

I don't guess it was until I was thirteen when I really started on 1/72 scale figures.

My love for toy soldiers - and history - began really when I was five - Christmas 1961. Prior to that I remember getting an occasional bag of toy soldiers or cowboys and Indians. I remember Mom used to bring home some cowboys and Indians that swiveled at the hips. I later learned they were made by Payton (sp?). But the love affair really began when I saw the "Giant Blue and Gray Battleset" by Marx advertised on TV.

I like to say it became my "Red Ryder BB Gun." When I came out into the living room that Christmas morning and found it under our tree it was a dream come true. My older brother and I set it up (it was a joint gift), I took the North, he took the South. He received a railroad set that year and we ran the track around the battlefield and used it's coal car to shuttle troops from point to point. He explained to me what he had learned about the American Civil War and that along with frequent trips to the Lincoln sites in Springfield (we were living in Illinois at the time) and New Salem (where Lincoln lived as a young man) furthered my interest.

I still have quite a few of those first Civil War figures I received that Christmas in my collection. They travelled with me wherever we went (and we moved a LOT in my childhood).

After that, Christmas and birthdays weren't complete without a playset - either Marx or MPC. I would set up battles on my bedroom floor and refight the great struggles. But they were largely in 1/32 scale. As with others who have already shared, my 1/72 experience was limited to the occasional blister pack of GIANT figures picked up at the local Grocery store or Grants, Woolworths, or Kresge. Another source was the toy soldier ads in the back of comic books. I was able to avoid the "flats" of many of the sets, but managed to save my money gained by collecting empty soda (soft drink) bottles and turning them in for deposit and bought the "204 Revolutionary War Soldier" set and "Gold Crown" game. I was disappointed to discover the "huge castle" advertised was actually a printed game sheet, but the figures were GIANT copies of excellent Elastolin and Britains figures.

And that was that - until we went with my dad to Belgium (as I've described elsewhere) and I visited a toy/hobby shop off the town square in the city of Ath and saw Airfix figures. They cost Bf 25 a box (about .50 US) at the time. I bought my first two boxes - WW1 US Doughboys and French Infantry. For me a big gap in toy soldiers had been WWI. Some years back I had received a WW1 set (I think made by IDEAL) for Christmas that had great aircraft and vehicles but the figures (only five or six on a side) were in a bright blue (German) and red (British or US). This was a chance to "build" a decent WWI set. The rest is, as they say, history.

The smaller scale allowed me to more easily carry my toy soldiers with me. When we went to Belgium a lot of our personal belongings (including my toy soldiers) went in to storage. They were to bulky to carry with us. My new "Airfix" men could fit in my carry-on bag. At least, back then.

I began painting my figures when I was going through my divorce and visited a hobby shop for the first time in years. I discovered a new company - ESCI whose figures more or less matched my Airfix guys, but the colors were off. I started painting my 1/72 collection not only to get them to match, but also while away time when I wasn't in the field or deployed. It brought a new depth to my study of history as I researched uniforms and learned more about the organization of various armies.

Now, it's hard to believe it's been over half a century since I walked into that living room. My 1/32 collection at last count was over 20,000 figures (I've acquired some since last inventory) and 35,000 painted 1/72 figures (I don't know how many are in the closet or boxed waiting to be painted). I don't think I could fit them in my suitcase anymore. :laughing:

Same with me: when I was six years old I started to play with 1/32 scale Cowboy and Indian figures from Jean Hoeffler. The figures were already in the house because of my older brother, who got them from a nephew, who was even more older and didn't play with them anymore. My parents must have seen I liked playing wargames and they let Santa Claus (in fact 'Sinterklaas' as I live in Belgium) bring me a medieval castle with WWII Germans en the British 8th Army (all 1/32 figs from Cherilea). Apparently history was not the best knowledge of Santa Claus, but that didn't matter. As a kid it is no problem to make battles between indians, WWII soldiers, knights and cowboys all together, as long as it was fun.
My first introduction with 1/72 figures was at a fair in our village, where my mother bought me a bag with Giant cowboys and indians and a Fort Apache (later I discovered the Giant figures were scaled down copies of Britains Herald figures). I enjoyed these figures too, but kept mainly playing with the 1/32 figures. I must say that movies and TV-series formed a great source for scenarios and stories to replay, such as The Last of the Mohicans, westerns, war movies. I also was fascinated by my grandfather, who had been fighting as a soldier in the Belgian army during 4 years in the trenches of WWI.
When I was 10 years old, I went to school in the nearby 'big city' and yes, there I discovered… Airfix! And that's when I started my 1/72 collection by saving my pocket money for these little guys. The hobby also increased my intrest for history and that has not changed until today.
I think this is the main reason why I stayed with this hobby: there is a link with history, in which I'm very intrested, art and beauty, as we can see when looking at the high quality of figures produced today and in the past, developping our own skills when painting the figures and just fun when playing with them, like we did when we were kids! It's the perfect hobby ! :smile:

Hi everyone. It is so interesting reading about how you all fell in love with 1:72 miniatures. As a 9 year old boy in Malta in the late 60s early 70s I got hooked on these miniatures thanks to Airfix and Atlantic & the stories my dad and grandpa used to tell me about their experience of WW2 during our walks near the RAF airfields in Malta. I used to spend blissful hours trying to recreate with my soldiers war/ historic films that I would have watched (Where Eagles Dare, Ben Hur, Spartacus, A Bridge Too Far, Waterloo, Guns of Navarrone, Zulu Dawn, Robin Hood, Sudan, March Or Die, Green Berets and so many others).

As I grew older this passion drew me close to History and increased my interest to follow contemporary conflicts: Vietnam war, Russian invasion of Afghanistan, Israeli-Arab conflict, Falklands, wars in Angola, Mozambique, Turkish invasion of Cyprus. I always used to crave to have soldiers to re-enact these conflicts. Unfortunately to this day for some reason manufacturers still hesitate to produce sets relating to these conflicts. I think these will be highly popular as they relate to our youth and they would bring so many memories.

I'm so thankful to all companies which over the years produced so many sets of soldiers (and military accessories) relating to diverse eras and conflicts. You put so much fun into our lives. I'm especially gratefull to Strelets for the many beautiful and variant sets that they are producing. My only appeal would be not to ignore the 70s/80s conflicts i referred to above as that period is part of our life. Moreover, there are certain other important historic conflicts which for some unknown reason have been ignored: Franco Prussian War, English Civil War, UN Troops, Mexican Revolutionary wars, Royal Navy personnel, Spanish Civil War. I'm sure that sets relating to such conflicts will enhance our passion to this hobby as they will fill the gaps in our beloved hobby.

Best Regards to all and keep well