Peter Gilder Connoisseur Range

25mm Napoleonic

review by Paul Koch

I have long been an ardent admirer of the work of Peter Gilder, judging his Hinchliffe castings to be the standard by which other figures were judged. The cost however held me back, so for years I struggled along with Airfix and other smaller, cheaper figures.

However being forced to move to the west coast gave opportunity to sell a great many figures and reinvest. The Hinchliffe 4Most range had already captured my fancy and thus I rebuilt my Napoleonic collection using 4Most as a base, filling in with other brands. This range however was both very limited in scope (Waterloo British and French), and in variety (plenty of poses but no guns or artillerymen).

Peter Gilder therefore received my applause when at long last he declared his own range of figures. These are the same big 25s as the 4Most range. indeed most castings tower 28 to 29mm tall, from base to hatband. They match therefore better with most 30s than with the smaller brands of 25s. They might work with Essex or the standard Hinchliffe but no smaller. They do match precisely with the 4Most range. They also are the finest figures I have ever seen. They rival the renowned "Willies" in their overall quality.

Mr. Gilder currently offers 18 British foot, 9 British mounted, 13 French foot, 9 mounted, and 3 Russian foot, and 2 mounted. All Napoleonics. He assures me however that he plans to add about 20 new figures a month including a "Sudan" range of special interest to readers of THE COURIER, given this year's theme.

The figures are all presented in campaign uniform giving them a rather special battered charm. The two French marching figures, for example, actually look tired. Likewise the charging figures have a hair-raising quality about them that must certainly weaken their enemy's morale. The cavalrymen too have a certain dash befitting their arm. The French line lancer being especially well done.

All these kudos are sincerely presented, but I must also list one major shortcoming. The horses are far too small. They are merely ponies. This might aid in mixing the "Connoisseurs" with 25s but it will not work for 30s. This is really the only fault with these truly excellent figures.

I might add that, true to his style, Mr. Gilder slightly exaggerates the depth of straps & belts, etc., thus making these very detailed figures surprisingly easy to paint.

Using THE COURIER figure rating scale:

Variety of Line is 0.6. More are promised but as it stands... Anatomy is 0.9. They are little men, not toy soldiers. Animation is 1.0. The figures have splendid aura of movement. Detail is 1.0. Even the moustaches bristle. Casting Quality is 1.0. There is simply no flash or blow holes, albeit somewhat brittle to allow for detail.

Total: 4.5 out of 5! Really a must. Unfortunately they must be purchased from the UK. They cost .25 pence per foot for Cavalrymen and .35p per horse. US customers should add 10% for packing and 60% for airmail postage (30% surface). At this current rate of exchange that is still only about 60C a figure. Peter Gilder, "Connoisseur" range, The Enchanted Cottage, Folkton, Scarbourgh, N. Yorks. YO 11 3UN Great Britain.

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