Completed Mounted Infantry and a Pontoon Bridge

I've managed to finish the Empress Miniatures Mounted Infantry from their Anglo-Zulu War range this week. You can see the completed unit in the picture below, followed by a few close ups. {I know my painting does n't really stand up to close inspection, by the by, but it helps to show the sculpting standard you get to work with.}

I'm quite pleased by the 'tabletop quality' of my paint job ~ I'm no longer in the evil grip of the 'painting facists', who've forgotten the hobby is called 'WARGAMING', not figure painting. I especially like the Ebob horses, as I've said before, they are really interesting to work on and really do repay the effort involved.

I've also produced my first terrain piece of 2012, a Pontoon Bridge to cross the river section of my battlefield terrain tiles Phil made for me, as an alternative to the Ford, Stone Bridge and Covered Bridge we can already deploy. The model is a Renedra plastic kit Matt gave me.

There are nine parts making it up, including the four joint pieces to hold the three bridge sections together, so its well within even my paltry modelling skills. Its based on clear plastic, an idea I got from Charles Grant's Wargamers' Annual, with the road texture and towelling grass effect secured by PVA. {The tufts are added from those I used for my Indian Mutiny basing; dark green and dried grass I think they were from Mutineer.} I undercoated the bridge and pontoons with a grey acrylic primer and washed it with Games Workshop Brown Ink. The visible 'river' section was painted Valejo Deep Sea Blue on the underside and matches Phil's river better than the photo seems to indicate.