Best guns for FPW period

Still going strong! Not being able to acquire genuine S range artillery I have been looking at the various models available with which to arm my Prussians in particular.

I have looked at what is available on the UK market.  I do know that their are  some good models available in the US but when I have tried to purchase these, they either aren't posted to the UK or the postage is really high and makes them prohibitively expensive.

So this is a look at the guns that are easily available over here.  I have had to rule out what look like some excellent looking field pieces on the Northstar 28mm 1866 range as they come with gunners and the guns are not sold separately.  Call me mean but I don't want to spend £12 and throw away 4 gunners. I also ruled out the 20mm B&B FPW artillery as having bought some I considered them too small.  They are shown as unpainted guns in the pictures below.

Basically, this left me with 28mm Foundry and Old Glory.

Franco Prussian War Artillery - Prussian
Make	Type	Length (inc Barrel)	Wheel Diameter	Width	Barrel length
Old Glory GSG-002	Krupp Gun	57mm	25mm	30mm	37mm
Foundry FPPG001	Prussian Field Gun	52mm	22mm	25mm	30mm
Foundry FPPG002	Prussian 90mm Krupp Field Gun	65mm	20mm	38mm	37mm

These are the Krupp Guns available (L to R  25mm Old Glory, 28mm Foundry 90mm Field Gun and for scale a 20mm B&B Prussian Artillery piece.  The Foundry guns can be bought separately and after adding VAT (tax) run in at a little over £6 each plus P&P  for the Prussian Field Gun whilst the 90mm Krupp gun is  £8 plus VAT and P&P.  whilst the Old Glory are around £12 for 2 guns plus P&P.  The 20mm guns are the cheapest.  They could be 'light field' guns given the size, but the seats make them look a bit odd.

The only gun capable of seating my 'Minifigs/S range conversion' is the 28mm Foundry Gun.  The Old Glory gun would probably sit a 20mm gunner.  

As you can see the wheels on the Old Gory wheels are much larger than their Foundry counterpart.

Just to prove a point 20mm and Old Glory 25mm side by side.

 My original artillery from my Crimean War S range army.  This piece is from the S range era, although I don't know whether it is actually an S range piece. Oddly it has a rammer moulded onto the underside of the gun carriage.  The guns were painted way back when by the original owner and I have left them in the same painted condition.

So these are the guns I settled on 2 Foundry guns and the Old Glory Krupp guns.

The real surprise is that the Foundry Prussian Field Gun has a longer gun carriage that the 90mm Krupp gun by comparison. I haven't bought the Prussian 21cm Foundry Krupp Mortar at £8 plus VAT and postage or the 15cm Krupp Siege Gun again at £8 plus VAT (although oddly this looks the closest to the style of the original S range flied piece.

I hope this is of some help.

The Hardest Blog to write?

Well went to see the doctor with a bit of indigestion at the beginning of March and by the end of the month was told it was terminal cancer.  No cure months, not weeks at least!

Having been a gym person and passed all my medicals up to this point it was a bit of a surprise but I guess we all have a shelf life and mine is coming up.  So back home and then looking at 40 years or more collection of Wargame stuff and where to start to sort it all out?

Bit of a bummer as I had cast up figures for my ongoing 1866 project and they sit and stare at me.  Decided that I may push on with these for a bit.  But what to do with them all?  So many home made moulds.  Quality varies but they work.  Castings and other bits and pieces.

Last week, John has sent me examples of the various Belgium/Austrians and French in Mexico figures I made up for him.  The castings look very nice and are available from him.  Annoyingly, as I can see how some of them could fit into my French 1870 army.  I hope to paint some of these too show the finished article. 

So I am looking for advice, rather than sympathy.  The 15mm Napoleonic stuff should be easy to move as their are many collectors but when it comes to the old S range it is a bit more selective and beauty is in the eye of the beholder so to speak. Not everyone's period either.

The question is do I sell all my S range as a collection, or in parts?  My desire is for them to go to someone who would appreciate them for what they are and maybe keep altering them.  But, by the same token, that’s a big ask and there may be many who would like some, but not all and what price does one ask?  It is not an immediate issue.  I am told that since I am ‘fit and well’ (bit ironic) that starting the treatment early means I have a chance of responding better and (maybe) some extra time. 

Before getting a chance to post this l got rushed into hospital this time last week.  If someone had told me it was all over I would have been happy.  But the brilliant nursing staff and doctors at our local NHS hospital got me back home 'fit-ish and more important mentally well enough' to at least post this blog and continue the clear out. 

Setting myself goals and milestones Christmas being the first, then see how things progress.  You never know.

Still aim to wargame with Jack and Bob for as long as I can and hopefully post lots of pictures.  Promised Jack a Franco Prussian/Austrian/Allies mega game with my S range figures may look silly getting everything onto the table but what the hell.