Introduction / Explanation

This will always be a 'work in progress' as photographs are added or upgraded and missing bits are slotted in. Aiming to be no more than a guide to the figural production of Airfix Products.

Wherever possible it will quash urban myths or commonly held beliefs which are incorrect, most of which have grown-up during the 'Internet Years'.

As many search terms as possible will be used in order that anyone visiting whether familiar with Airfix or a new collector/casual browser will be able to find what they want, either singly or in groups of similar size, period or subject matter using the 'Click-on Index' to the right. Likewise the title-blocks will be as comprehensive as possible so they can be discerned in the 'Blog Archive' feature on the left of the page.

As this is designed to be a sort of second page for the Small Scale World blog, there was going to be no 'comments' feature, but I've enabled it, still, anyone with an issue concerning the factual accuracy of any entry can eMail me with supporting evidence and will be fully acknowledged for any resulting change or update.

I will also not use the Pink/Khaki thing here as I have on the general Blog, I want it to be cleaner and more streamlined, so people can find what they're looking for with ease, although I will date additions if I think it's relevant.

Eventually, every post/page will have the figure set complete, a one-of-each-pose numbered line-up for ready reckoning, a set on the runners ('sprues') - if applicable - box types/artwork, inserts, copies/piracies, comparisons with other versions and other makes, moulding variations, conversions, painted figures both my own (when I get round to them!) and tatty old OBE's (Other Bugger's Efforts) from way back when, close-ups of the vignettes and anything else pertaining to each set I (or you - contributions welcome) feel is relevant, interesting, funny or weird!

1977; [Cold War] Modern British Infantry, 51472-9 / 51572-8 / 9 51572 / 51572 / A02718 - 1:32 Scale (54mm)

Announced in the autumn of 1975 (1976 catalogue) I think, they wouldn't actually see the light of day until 1977, the modern Brit's, along with the Modern Germans and the Medieval Soldiers were among our favourite sets, even if they arrived toward the end of our 'playing' days.

Obviously with a too-long wait for the modern Russians and US troops, the scenario tended to involve the NATO Germans 'going bad' and having to be sorted out by the British set, a bit jingoistic maybe, but; kids huh?!

Limited to only seven poses, they were otherwise  a quite good representation of the British squaddie of the day, and only a few years later (1984) I would myself be garbed in a similar fashion! Consequently I know the weaknesses in the set only too well, and they aren't vast.

We'll look at the webbing/PLCE further down, but suffice to say the gunner is holding the bi-pod legs which he wouldn't because they just come-unclipped and spring-open, if you're going to hold them you hold them more firmly as a 'handle' away from the barrel, also they haven't been sculpted substantially enough, but it's a minor quibble.

More serious is the anti-tank gunner, who should be holding something several times the size! The Karl Gustav 84mm was a huge beast with idiot-legs on a big spring while it's replacement - the MAW80 (Medium Antitank Weapon) was A) equally huge and B) still years away when these were issued, so, like Cherilea's swoppets, the weapon depicted here is a fantasy 'Euroweapon' of the artists imagination, based on a conglomeration of any number of other weapons.

Puttee's would be phased-out quite soon after the issue of this set also; instantly dating it!

The real problem with the set is the belt-order, there are three basic types of belt-order, which - in order of lightness - are;

•  Range-day
• CEFO (Combat Equipment, Fighting Order) 
• CEMO (Combat Equipment, Movement (or 'moving' or 'marching') Order)

Range order would be the two front pouches, a water bottle and - depending upon the whim of the officer or NCO-commanding - the respirator case. Dropping the respirator case was rare (as we had to be ready for WWIII to break out in six minutes - even on a quiet day!), but did occasionally happen.

'Cefo' consisted of all pouches, but no packs or digging tools, while 'Cemo' was the whole bloody enchilada, the full donkey-load, large pack or 'Burgan' and digging tool with probably 50-rounds for the GPMG, maybe a couple of mortar bombs or a grenade or two and (if your luck was in) a spare battery for the radio!

These guys, without exception, have no water bottle pouch (always present) and no respirator case; almost always present? Now I think I'm repeating myself here, as the same criticism is true of the Deetail/Super Deetail figures from Britains, who we've seen on the home-Blog several times . . . and the explanation may have been the same there; the limitations of sculpting?

To wit; that there is no room in the relatively inflexible world of moulded (set) polymers for the respirator case at least, the water bottle should be there, and there is room?

Having just mentioned them; the first of what will be few comparisons, I'm not going to run them next to all that 1950's 'Khaki Infantry' output, they are two far removed from what the Airfix set represents, but maybe we'll look at the late HK additions to Herald's set?

Here you can see the Deetail figures suffer from the same lack of both water bottle pouch and respirator case, but do have the kidney-pouches closer together which is more accurate than the gap seen on Airfix's figures. He's a slightly better pose to, leaning into the recoil.

With all four common or 'production' poses; as mentioned already both ATW firers have some weird thing referencing most of the weapons of the time (1980's), but both are far too small to be the Karl Gustav 84mm of British army use at the time (and the SAS wouldn't have bothered faffing about with such an unwieldy lump of heavy shite), yet are equally too large to be the 'sixty-six' (mm) licence-built US 'Bunker Buster' or 'door-knocker', which doesn't have a venturi either - the cone-shaped bit at the rear.

You can see the Britains figures are heading toward 60mm, and while some of that is explained by the deep, die-cast alloy bases, not all of it is and they are actually quite big lads!

The gunner; as one myself, it's obviously my favourite pose of the seven, but the belt of link round the shoulders is a bit Audey Murphy, good in movies and likely to be seen in the ranks of the late 'Mad' Mike Hoare's mercenaries or their Katangese opponents, but frowned upon in the British Army.

A short belt (15-20 rounds) would be carried in the gun, ready for immediate action / return of fire, the rest of at least 200 rounds would be in the front pouches, with the No.2 having another minimum of 200 on his person (along with his four magazines of 20 for the SLR), the rest of the section being loaded with a minimum of 50-round (quarter) belts each.

The reasons for not carrying belts around like this are myriad, but the obvious ones are;

• Rounds get dirty/damaged and jam the mechanism when used
• Links get semi-parted/stuck/damaged and jam the mechanism when used
• Links break fully and rounds are lost
• Belt gets hooked up on equipment and can't be used quickly
• Belt gets hooked up on equipment which then can't be used quickly
• Percussion cap is accidentally detonated leading to injury or death of gunner or comrade/s
• Can be seen by snipers from miles away
• Are bloody uncomfortable after the first twenty yards
• The rounds and the carrying-strap (missing on the above sculpt but utterly necessary when carrying 26lb's of steel around) can't - practically - occupy the same space

Looks great on a Mexican bandit, but it's a no-no in real life, doesn't stop people draping the stuff all over themselves, whenever they get the chance though, usually around camp/bivouac when 'bombing-up'!

I think these are relatively current Chinese production rather than the Turkish Pilsen (who did pirate some of those later sets - thanks for reminding me Chris Smith), and their quality is too poor for the neighbouring Greece's Solpa, so China looks likely, but I stand to be corrected.

The swansong of Briatins Deetail was really more of a tragic tailing-off, as an attempt to stave-off the advance upon the play-rooms' of the world by ravening hordes of 4, 5 and 6" action figures was met with a stab at popularising 2" action figures, a situation not helped by Britains choosing to anchor their feet and paint them as if they were attending 'Military-Man Monday Mayhem' at the Blue Oyster Club! Indeed, I think the grenade thrower is already halfway through the YMCA dance!

1983; [Cold War/Modern] S.A.S. (Special Air Service), 51578 / 9 51578 / A02720 - 1:32 Scale (54mm)

One of the last figure issues to come out of Airfix, following the old pattern of seven figure sculpts and issued only in 14-figure boxes, you got two-each of most, and you have to wonder why you didn't just get pairs of all seven, but actually the officer is 50% rarer and the kneeling firer is 33.3^r% more common than the other five!

And they are unnumbered so we don't know if you were getting most of two tool-shots, or a single runner-worth's of fourteen products? I suspect the latter; it makes sense.

Presumably they were aimed at a market or perceived market resulting from the May 1980 Iranian Embassy siege-break in London, coupled with a bit of Falklands/South Georgia mythology.

The small scale ones would be advertised the next year but never be issued - see section at end of post -  below.

I shot these back in 2008 to shove on evilBay at a 99p-start and I think most went for a couple of quid-each, with the 'officer' maybe going to four-pounds-something? But it meant I had a set in Piacasa with a less than common - for the Blog - background (I know some of my backgrounds are a bit tired now!), it's all a bit sandbaggy!

They are not as rare as the used to appear to be, and often turn-up in mixed lots, while a re-issue in the last few years saw them in an awful troll-shit, purple-blue polymer which made them look like some demented Middle-Eastern SWAT team . . . which may well have been the corporate-thinking behind the choice of that colour!

The figures are wearing what appear to be the (and would still have been in trials) Boot, Combat, High [ankle] or BCH, which weren't fully adopted until August 1984, carrying a passable Heckler & Koch MP5 submachine-gun (non-standard outside Hereford at the time, the anti-terrorist police still relied on Stirling SMG's or the odd M16), and they all have a rappelling/tying-people-to-chairs rope looped round their body.

A stun-grenade (big bang, few fragments) and a pistol (my father carried a Berretta . . . well, actually he left it under his pillow for my brother and I to find!) in its holster complete the weaponry, and they are wearing black-fatigues with a tight hood (pull-cord) over a respirator with side-mounted (left) filter which may be the standard for the time or the replacement S10 which as part of the Combat-80 upgrade also (like BCH, SA80, Kevlar Helmets . . . et al!) filtered into service from the mid-1980's. It may be a non-standard piece, of course, certainly the nose-protrusion is too long for either of the referred service items.

They have thin leather gloves, and a four-magazine pouch for the HK's and a larger pack which seems to be the respirator case - in the infantry worn on the left hip, where it constantly got in the way, especially when vehicles were involved, these guys have their ammo-pouch there and have moved the respirator case round to the small of the back where it's out of the way.

I suspect the jacket (or a 'waistcoat' portion of it) had some padding/protection from fragments, but it would have required flexibility not then available with the full 'flack-jackets' which remained bulky and solid into the late 80's.

The irony is that the embassy siege was probably the only time a unit of the SAS were deployed dressed as that, or these chaps, while the guys operating in Northern Ireland would have worn a mix of standard and aftermarket combats or smocks all made from the four-colour, regulation DPM (disruptive-pattern-material) of the time.

 

Late Britains swivel figures, not very nice, and it's only the non-general service issue respirators which make them 'special forces' for the purpose of this comparison. They came with either the milk-chocolate helmets and pale 'aqua' uniforms, or lightly more realistically outfitted with UN helmets, and at one point the same scheme or one very similar was used with late mouldings of the Deetail WWII US Infantry.

In point of fact the webbing is also non-standard, but since these were issued off the back of the Falkland's Conflict and 'The Embassy Siege', most armies have adopted forms of pick-and-mix webbing or PLC (Personal Load-Carrying equipment), and they are almost more contemporary now (2020's), then when they were issued!

The earlier Britains Deetail, however, were somewhat more accurate, but nobody would wear a beret in combat! Also, they are much larger figures, and I've addressed some more points about this line, on the Modern infantry post.

The recent (2020's) reissues were in a rather insipid shade of sandy-fawn plastic, presumably to try and tie them into our pretty disastrous adventures in Iraq and Afghanistan, despite the uniform worn, being a dated, internal security getup, not used for decades, nor in either theatre.

●○●●○●    ●○●●○●     ●○●●○●     ●○●●○●     ●○●●○●

1984; [Cold War/Modern]

S.A.S. (Special Air Service)

9 01761 - 1:72 Scale (25mm)

 

Because it didn't exist except as a marketing idea in a catalogue issued the autumn before the period to which it pertains, there is no point in a separate entry for the HO/OO (or by then '1:72' SAS set, so it might as well go here for those who persist in looking for such stuff!

Advertised in the 1984 catalogue, it never happened.

Had it; it would have been like the Cold War US or Russian sets and the WWII Italians, i.e.; a rather boring selection of multiples of six of the seven 1:32nd scale figures in sixes, sevens or eights, scaled down, with - probably - two officers, and while Airfix had by then adopted (or were about to) the 1:72 scale for packaging, they would almost certainly have been issued in a size closer to 1:76th scale.

But it never happened and that's that.

1975; [WWII] U.S. Paratroopers, 51464 / 51464-8 / 51564-7 / 951564 - 1:32 Scale (54mm)

One of the late sets which received all the poses of the smaller 1:76th scale or 'HO/OO' set, a set which - itself - had a high number of poses, also a set which quite quickly appeared in a second colour, and it seems to be also that like the HO/OO set, the first; Airfix 'neutral' light grey, is more common than the second; Airfix 'army' green colour, suggesting that a top-up (or end-of-run?) of both scales was produced in the green, to use up some green or because the Ghurkhas or someone else green were also going through the production plant?

Much looked-forwards to when I was a kid, it was strangely disappointing when it finally arrived, having far too many figures doing nothing, standing around doing nothing or prone doing not much. But that was an illusion caused by the number of poses and in fact six of them are fighting/firing, which is more than some of the seven-pose sets.

The bottom right-hand trio are Hong Kong copies we will return to down the page.

29 figures in total, all pretty clearly numbered, in a mint set a drum-like ‘sprulette’ should be present on the following prone/lying figures.

·         9 – on the heel of the right foot

·         10 – on the heel of the right foot

·         11 – on right foot

·         12 – on right foot

The set was pirated at least thrice, with interim second-generation copies also resulting, the near same-size copies were issued with a HONG KONG mark on the base undersides, these were further copied, smaller, and issued as generics.

In the UK the larger figures were carried by Henbrandt of North London/East Anglia, and while the card is similar to the generic there are enough differences, not lest that these are passed-off as Germans on a little label-box!

The generic version were probably earlier (but probably only by a few months or a year at the most) due to the fuller/co-ordinated artwork and at least the nationality matches the uniforms this time! Other than the artwork differences, however, these are the same figures as carried by Henbrandt.

Meanwhile, around 1986 (a bit later than the above sets?) the Artform Industrial Co., of the New Territories, also pirated them (probably separately to the other source) with heavier but neater bases and of a smaller size, matching one of my other copy-samples; which is probably a sub-piracy of the Artform set.

Here's a close-up of the three types with those probable Artform sub-piracies in the middle, the larger generic/Henbrandt to the left and Artform's on the right.

Fourteen poses would have allowed the duplicates to be blanked-off the tool when Airfix switched to the 14-figure boxes, ensuring that each box got all the poses.

The 1985 catalogue carried part of the artwork from the rear of the 29-figure boxes, showing a painting of one of the figure poses from both sides and some like-wise rendered militaria.

♪♫♪♪♫ Let's dance . . . pick up your best grenade and dance the blues

Let's dance; to the song they're playin' on the Werffer of Nebels
Let's sway, while color lights up the foxhole
Let's sway, sway through the line to a safe-throwing space!♪♫♫♫♪h

Further digging (in 2020) revealed Hing Fat to be the producer of another set of Airfix copies, almost certainly issued by several other brand-marks and/or as generics - both bags above are anonymised and . . .

. . . here we see a set branded to Billy V, the now defunct (and short-lived in any event) import-arm of the equally defunct Imex. When I say 'import-arm', most of Imex's inventory was import or joint-venture of one sort or another, Billy V were specifically their 'Rack Toy' arm.

Other revalations in late 2019/2020 have resulted in a 4th identified variation, so just when I thought I could put it all to bed, we're still looking for one's ID! Also a new colour, associated with the un-ID'd set has been sent to the Blog!

Courtesy of Chris Smith came these sandy-coloured figures, probably issued as one of two-sides in a larger rack toy, they are similar to the Hing Fat attributed lot, but (with both these and the larger green sample) there are base differences which point to a 4th source.

Base marks as I believe them to be attributable, but nothing is set in stone with this Hong Kong stuff! The figures from '2' & '3' are almost the same but the bases are very different, and it may be that one pirate supplied duplicate tools to two different makers, one of whom was Hing Fat.

Links

http://biblicrafts.blogspot.com/2020/02/airfix-ww2-132-us-paratroopers.html
http://biblicrafts.blogspot.com/2020/03/airfix-ww2-132-us-paratroopers-part-2.html