I have just discovered that Jason over at Der Feldmarschall is intending to do things very similar to me - namely both Seven Years War and Napoleonic projects, and that the SYW armies in question will be Prussians and Russians from the Foundry ranges. When I mentioned in a comment on his blog that I am intending to use some TAG Tartars (excuse the spelling - I am a linguistic dinosaur and prefer the two 'r's), Jason commented that he thought the TAG ranges were very hit or miss. Well, although they are smaller than the Foundry sculpts, I don't think it is an insurmountable problem, and I like them, so I have decided to put up a few comparison pics in the hope it might be useful for someone.
I started off with the less extravagant of the Foundry Cossacks and their TAG counterparts. Here they are:
I started off with the less extravagant of the Foundry Cossacks and their TAG counterparts. Here they are:
Foundry TAG Foundry TAG
While the TAG riders are smaller than the Foundry ones, here the difference isn't all that great, at least in my opinion. Where it really is noticeable is between the larger (than life?) Foundry sculpts for the officer etc. and the smaller TAG ones where the rider is stripped to the waist. The Foundry rider is literally head and shoulders above the TAG one.
TAG Foundry
On to the horses. I have to admit that I am not a big fan of the shape of the TAG horses' heads, but in my book, the Foundry horses are some of the best out there. Surprisingly, the TAG horses seem to be every bit as large as the Foundry ones - so they should work well together.
Foundry TAG Foundry
And finally a comparison shot of one of my Kalmuks next to a Foundry Cossack when mounted. I think sizewise these are perfect together - the Central Asian pony has the weird head again, but I'll just have to live with that...
TAG Ta(r)tar Foundry Cossack
Well I hope that's been of help. Now I must get back to some painting...
Thanks a lot Chris for the comparison shots and write up. I appreciate it! :-)
ReplyDeleteJust to be clear, I said I'd like to see TAG's minis up close (in person) as my opinion can only be formed by the bare metal pics on their website (from which I had my doubts). The "Hit or miss" comment came from the only person I know locally who has actually seen them, someone who has painted up figs for the company themselves. (For a hint who this is see Wargames Illustrated #285, pages 112-113)
I think TAG's Tartartar's :-) look good, some of their TYW stuff looks great, but I'm not sure about some of their other stuff. I can't really take a chance on making an overseas order without people like you posting nice clear pics and opinions on their blogs, so thanks! :-)
Question for you though. I pulled out the few Russian and Prussian WF minis I have after we chatted the other day, and found that the Russians (and Cossacks) are noticeably larger than the Prussians. I don't think it will be a problem as they'll be in separate units, but I only have a few samples. Have you noticed this?
Thanks again,
Jason
Sorry, my blog comments aren't always so long. ;-)
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