Mike Blake on War of Independence Uniforms, Weapons and Equipment 2 German Infantry from Almark Modelworld January 1973

The second of four articles in the series by Mike Blake, from Almark Modelworld January 1973.

As the article on German Military Semaphore Signals 1939-1945 doesn't run over the page, I have left it in as a bonus.

Mike Blake on Airfix AWI conversions, Almark Modelworld November 1972

First of a series of four articles (the rest to follow) by Mike Blake on converting Airfix figures for the American War of Independence.

Ground breaking stuff for the time, in one of my favourite magazines.

Almark Publications

Almark was a company that was hard to get your head round - prolific publisher, of books and the short-lived (I think) magazine Almark Modelworld; producer of the plastic and metal Charles Stadden designed World War 2 wargames figures (see my The Old Metal Detector blog here); and other interests including 54mm figures.

This post is mainly about the books - published in both hardback and paperback versions. With the passage of time the wisdom of investing in the hardbacks has become clear - the paperbacks were produced in the format laughingly called "perfect bound", with individual pages glued into the spine - not a good recipe for frequent use as a painting reference.

Authors included Emir Bukhari, Rene North, Alan Kemp, Michael Head and David Nash. The format included line drawings, colour plates and photographs. They could vary - the Prussian Army volume has delightful line drawings of gnome like figures who look like either children dressed up or early prototypes for Wargames Foundry figures.

I haven't been able to locate anything like a complete list of Almark titles, so have illustrated this post with some of those I have in my library (below). The three advertisments above are all taken from issues of Almark Modelworld.


The Books

Exotically Continental - Roco Minitanks

Exotic (because of their sheer range and variety, and the difficulty in obtaining them in the UK), and exotic (because 1/87 scale, though confusingly described here as HO/OO as used by Airfix for their plastic soldiers), this ad for ROCO Minitanks is from Almark Modelworld December 1972.

Invasion! Instant beach-heads for wargames or dioramas by Arthur North, Almark Modelworld November 1972

Today's second D Day post is again by Arthur North, this time on invasion models for wargaming and dioramas,including waterlining kits and making beach obstacles.

Make your own LCA, by Arthur North, Almark Modelworld September 1972

The first of two D Day posts,this article contained plans for a 1/76 cut out card Assault Landing Craft (LCA). I remember an excellent article in (I think) Military Modelling which had similar plans for making a cut out universal carrier.

Arthur North contributed extensively to Almark Modelworld, with a major series on Military Bridging, and several kit reviews. A draughtsman by trade he served until 1962 in the Royal Navy survey branch, drawing charts. later he worked in local gi=overnment, living in Birmingham. His modelling activitiesincluded ships, aircraft, soldiers, AFVs and railways. His work was also made available through the Bellona Prints series of military drawings.

David Nash: World of Wargaming, #3 Dec 1972

David Nash: World of Wargaming, #2 Oct 1972

David Nash: World of Wargaming, #1 Sep 1972

A forotten pioneer? David Nash and his World of Wargaming

Ah yes, the greats of early British wargame writing - Don Featherstonem, Charles Grant, Terence Wise, Tony Bath, and... David Nash?

Though not as prolific in specifically wargaming titles as some others in the 1970s, David Nash seems oddly neglected. One of the founders of the London Wargames Club, he was maybe better known for his work on the Prussian Army of the Napoleonic Wars and the German Army of the Great War.

Hamlyn all-colour paperbacks published his book Wargames in 1974. It covered three periods, the Napoleonic Wars, the American Civil war, and the Second World War. If you google it you will find Mike Siggins describing it as "seminal".

His book on the Prussian Army 1808-1815 was published in 1972 by Almark. In the same year he started a series of articles in Almark's Modelworld magazine called World of Wargaming, which covered Napoleonic Wargaming and seems to have run to eight instalments between September 1972 and May 1973 (there were no articles in the December 1972 and March 1973 issues). In comparison, Charles Grant's long running series The Napoleonic Wargame had started in Military Modelling early in 1971 ,and was published in book form in 1974.

To redress the balance somewhat, the next post includes the first three articles in David Nash's modelworld series. I do have the others and will post them if there is interest.

The eight articles cover:

ground and figure scales
the line and mixed order
the column
the skirmishing line
the square
cavalry tactics
engineer services
artillery

Almark plastic British Infantry and Heavy Weapons sets

Over on The Old Metal Detector I posted some information on the Almark metal and plastic WW2 figures sculpted by Charles Stadden.

As it is illustrated by conversions of the British Infantry and Heavy Weapons plastic sets, I thought this article from Almark's Modelworld magazine of January 1974 might sit better here.

In it Bryan Fosten covers British Army Battledress 1939-45, illustrated with figures converted by Don Skinner and Noel Ayliffe-Jones. I don't remember reading this article before - it has something of the feel of John Sandars' 8th Army in the Desert series in Airfix Magazine.

Minifigs 25mm buildings take 2

Advertisement from Almark Modelworld August 1973

Minifigs 15mm strips and 25mm buildings

Advertisement from Almark Modelworld Sepyember 1973