1:72 Polish field artillery XVII fox

Field artillery of the 17th century

A set of figures from Mars in 1:72 scale capturing the field artillery of the Polish-Lithuanian state in the 17th century. For this country it was a century of almost unbroken war: the Cossack uprising from 1648, the invasion of the Swedish armies in 1655, fighting with Muscovy and with the Ottoman Empire, and finally the march to the besieged Vienna in 1683. In these field battles the artillery opened the fighting from a position taken up in advance. The gun stood on a wooden wheeled carriage, a team brought it to the spot and the crew worked around it in a settled sequence of actions: clear the barrel, load, apply fire, step back before the recoil.

Size and laying the scene out

In 1:72 scale an adult figure corresponds to roughly 24 mm. Lay the battery out dry, therefore, before you glue the figures down, so that a passable space is left between the carriage, the crew and the ammunition being brought up and the scene does not look overcrowded.

Painting and preparation

• Before you reach for the paint, wash the figures in lukewarm soapy water and let them dry.
• Apply the base coat thinly, so that the shallow relief stays legible.
• Set the metal of the barrel and the fittings apart from the wood of the carriage and from the cloth of the clothing.
• A dark glaze at the end will unify the whole crew and bring out the folds.
• Cut the excess material off with a sharp blade and sand the cut lightly.

Who the set is for

For builders of battle dioramas of the 17th century and collectors of historical figures. The crew will complete infantry and cavalry of the same scale and give a scene its second plane.

Paints, glue and a base are not included in the package, unless stated otherwise.