Wednesday, November 7, 2012

New TSSD Playset

TSSD will have a new Civil War playset soon.   I remember when Conte launched their ACW playsets how collectors howled over his inclusion of other makers products such as MARX re-issues.  The TSSD playsets it seems will have much of other folks products included.  I wonder if folks will accept this this time around?

2 comments:

G. Thomas Fitzpatrick said...

I personally don't see what the problem is. I like the concept of incorporating other figures to round out a playset. CTS does it with their playsets. And it seems pretty successful.

And I have taken the concept and run with it. With Barzso's new Lexington playset as a starting point, I added figures from Marx, Accurate, A Call To Arms, Barzso's F&I sets, W. Britains, Imrie/Risley, and First Legion (very good but pricey, so I am adding one per month), houses (in process) from a lady who makes ceramic New England candle houses, and trees from Lemax, as well as my own production "Battle Boards" to really make the playset come to life.

By next summer, good Lord willin' and the crik don't rise, I will be able to game both Lexington Green and Concord Bridge (and some Battle Road scenarios) in 1/1 numbers.

There were 77 Lexington Militia on the Green and my militia is already at 145 without doing any conversions. Ron only gives you 8 new poses in the playset. So unless you want 6 copies of the same guy, you have to vary it up. Then there are conversions. I'm not that skilled, but even I can lop off a head and glue it onto a different figure.

I have about 3 companies of redcoats from different manufacturers, and the goal is 6. Uniformity of pose works better for the redcoats than for the militia, so I don't need to do so much with my redcoats.

And although I have been focusing on Rev War this year, in effect I am doing the same thing with my Normandy figures, without even planning it that way. I have figures and vehicles from TSSD, Conte, Marx, Italieri, Airfix, Matchbox, Forces of Valor, 21st Century, and Monogram (especially the M4A1 Rocket-launcher Shermans built as simple M4A1s). Lead and plastic, 1/35th and 1/32nd all mixed together. And eventually I want to build my own "Battle Boards" with hedgerows.

I think whether you like the concept of a "mixed" playset depends on why you are buying toy soldiers. If you want to have the factory release version of the playset and keep it in its original wrappings and in a safe place so that it can appreciate in value, then you might not like the mix of figures from different companies. But if your goal is realism and play-ability, then you tend to say the more the merrier. I think the playset is what you make it into, not just what a single manufacturer produces as "The Blue and the Grey," or "The Sons Of Liberty."

The Collector said...

Oh I agree on adding to a playset. I was commenting on the fact that the last time a manufacture added items he did not make he caught quite a bit of flak and we wondered if that would occur again.