1:48 40’ BEF Infantry On The March No.3

The third man in a line of marching soldiers

The miniature continues the numbered line of British soldiers on the move and is made so that it follows on from the previous two positions in a column. Anyone building a longer column will appreciate that the individual numbers can be bought one at a time and the scene extended gradually according to the size of the base currently under way.

The British field uniform of the turn of the 1930s and 1940s

Battledress, that is a short serge blouse with a high waist and loose trousers, was new in service at that time. It was complemented by a flat steel helmet with a pronounced brim and by 1937 Pattern webbing with side pouches. The set of small pockets and buckles gives the miniature a surprising amount of detail even at so small a size and rewards a careful hand.

Shades and patina

For the serge choose a medium dark greenish color and play it out with two transitions, otherwise the area looks dead. The webbing calls for a noticeably warmer sand tone. The boots and the lower part of the trouser legs are dusted by a fine pigment recalling a broken country road; the head and the shoulders, by contrast, should be left clean so that the figure does not lose its legibility. The metal buckles need only be suggested with a dot of dark steel.

Where the figure comes into its own

• In a scene with a column passing a farm or a copse
• As a comparison of scale beside an armored vehicle in 1:48
• In practice at painting muted uniform shades
• In a collection focused on the British army of the first war years
• In a composition with a civilian cart at the edge of a country road