As a continuation from last issue's review of The Foundry's line of 28mm ACW figures, I'll be looking at a selection of castings from their Hardee Hat-Iron Brigade sculpted by Aly Morrison

The series has two command packs (HH7 and HH3), both of which contain a variety of different poses, each with a reasonable amount of animation and character to liven up the rank and file.

The first Command pack is unique from HH7 in that it contains two casualty figures, an officer and drummer falling back, both exhibiting a good sense of motion.

The second command pack (HH7) has a wonderful figure of an officer with his hat raised exhorting this troops, along with swinging his sword as if making a rallying call. Both command packs make a departure from Foundry's norm of providing a cast-on or separate flag staff in white metal. It forces the modeler to use some piano wire or light rod for the standard, but I think this is fine, as it is my opinion that the soft metal flagstaffs are too flexible and rather thick, looking as though the poor colour bearer is toting a log or preparing to throw a caber (a nudge for all the Scots out there ... ).

HH2 is a marvelous firing line with four separate poses of infantrymen reaching for a cartridge, placing a firing cap, making ready and firing. I enjoy how these lads look so steady - obviously veterans who have seen the elephant a few times.

HH4 is a casualty pack which is a bonus for those who use these castings as situation markers in their games. The two figures lying dead are rather macabre, but manage to capture those grisly images from Bloody Lane. I especially liked the discarded equipment, a great addition to any stand of figures.

HH1 is a collection of poses of men loading, firing, marching and advancing. Its a rather mixed and unfocused group, but I suppose it would be a good pack to get in order to give some variation to an existing collection. The fellows kneeling and firing would especially be of use in a skirmishing screen, while the two figures ramming would make a fine addition to the firing line (HH2).

Finally, HH5 is a series of advancing poses, which would provide good variation for both the front and rear rank of a charging battle line.

On the whole these are very nice miniatures, which fill a popular, if somewhat specialized, niche within the period. They are crisp and well proportioned, but a little too well-fed. I found that the castings are somewhat smooth, while I would have liked to have seen deeper folds in the clothing to better capture washes and drybrushing.

While these are the earliest of Foundry's 28mm ACW line they fit in very nicely with the latest castings offered from the Perry twins, all of the figures reviewed measure 28M on the Barrett Scale. In the future I'd like to see some figures featuring that godawful (yet compelling) facial hair that was so prevalent during the period. You know the kind I mean, the mustaches that could keep a meal for a week and beards that would make a fine habitat for a family of barn swallows.

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