March of the Toy Soldiers
Photo Courtesy of Spencer Morgan
When ever I’m interviewed by the media one standard question they never fail to ask is: “Why do adult men collect toy soldiers?”, and my standard reply is: “Because they (toy soldiers) act like a bridge
to our past; a bridge to our childhood.”
I guess that’s a pretty accurate answer because so many men share a similar response. Oh sure, there’s the history aspect of toy soldiers. As they reflect all era’s of history in miniature, but
for most of us it’s the warm childhood memories of playing with toy soldiers that keep us collecting.
Collecting toy soldiers; picking them up; holding them in our hands; arranging them in table top dioramas, and even sharing toy soldier conversations with our fellow collectors help us to escape from our day-to-day concrete and electronic world and return us to our childhood.
And so goes a recent article in The New York Observer about Bill Jackey who rediscovered toy soldiers about 12 years ago and has since collected an army of 10,000.
Read more…
posted by Bill
If you are like me and remember the colorful comic book advertisements for Toy Soldier Sets that ran on the back pages of most typical comic books back in the 1950s through the 1980s then you’ll enjoy visiting 
One way to enjoy the toy soldier hobby even more is to actually cast your own figures and then paint them to your own standards. Just think of all the money you’ll save and the enjoyment you’ll receive when you proudly display your own armies. Prince August is ready to help you with their new online hobby casting newsletter. 
Berdan Sharpshooters were an American Civil War regiment of sharpshooters named after Col. Hiram Berdan (1823-1893). The 1st and 2nd regiment were selected from various Northern states in 1861, through a rigorous test of placing 10 consecutive shots in a 10″ space about 200 yards away without use of a scope. Believe it or not, enough people were able to accomplish this task to create 18 companies within 2 regiments. The regiments marched to their first battle dressed in forest green jackets, trousers, and caps. Each sharpshooter was armed with a 5 shot Colt revolving rifle. Berdan sharpshooters were placed strategically on the battlefield to pick-off officers and distinguished people from the South. The Berdan Sharpshooters made their mark in the Battle of Yorktown. They were also key to the success of the North in the Battle of Gettysburg, as they held stalled the Confederate advance on Devils Den. The Collectors Showcase have released three sets of figures modeled from the Berdan Sharpshooters. There are three soldiers per set. And only a total of 300 of each set will be produced. The sets are: Sharpshooters Firing, Sharpshooters Loading and Sharpshooters Command. 
Posting on the 1st and 15th of each month, Mannie Gentile’s 
