Basing

I have a bit of a problem when it comes to basing. Quite simply I can never decide what looks best and when I do decide I tend to change my mind. Some of my wargame figures have been re-based many times over to which my long suffering wife can testify “Do you think the dry brushed sand with the pale green flock or the grey boulders with lichen?”

When I started this project I initially thought I should mount the infantry figures on scenic bases in groups of six and I tried this with my first batch of figures. They did actually look pretty good but I had a problem. One of the appealing characteristics of Hinton Hunt Figures is their unique square base with rounded corners. Apart from the aesthetics, the base on the figures is the best way to tell if they are genuine vintage castings or not and I didn’t want this feature to be hidden away.

The solution was to go back to basics and use simple plasti-card bases which was exactly what I ended up doing with my 1970’s army (after trying plywood cut with a blunt hacksaw!). The figures are mounted in threes with a two and a one in each unit for casualty removal. The frontage per three-figure base is 40mm with a depth of 15mm and the whole stand is painted with Humbrol matt green 80. I have gone a few steps further into the realms of the sad anorak by adding a label under each base with the figure code.

Apart from the “Old School” look achieved this system has a practical function to help me with my problem – it makes the figures very easy to remove for re-basing!