Wee Friends from Scotland, owned by Ian Harranty is the figure producing branch of Friendship Models (formerly Jakrei Miniatures) with a wide range of 1/35 scale mainly World War II and some modern figures, 54 mm historical figures and a few 120 mm figures of different periods.
WF-54002 represents a Celtic Warrior lifting up a cutt off head and wearing the victim’s Roman Centurion helmet.
box
The figure comes in a clear plastic box along with a label showing a photo of the assembled but unpainted figure. The photo is important because there is no assembly guide which leaves the box photo as the main construction reference . Inside the box, the figure parts are contained in a plastic zip-lock bag.
parts
The figure is sculpted by Peter Morton and comes in 8 resin parts in light cream color. The casting is very clean. There was only a visible seamline on the right leg of the sample. There will be not much need for an extra cleaning process other than removing the parts from small casting blocks.
The main part is the Body with legs. The muscles on the front and back part of the body are well represented and compatible to the posing of the figure. He has a metal ring necklace on his neck which makes the head assembly easier. He wears baggy trousers fastened with a leather belt on the waist. The trotters of the trousers are tightened with cloth straps. Cloth folds, metal buckle of the belt, straps on trotters and bare feet are well defined. The casting blocks are under the feet of the figure and can be easily removed without any damage.
Other parts are ;
Head : He wears a Gallic type Roman Centurion helmet with a long neckguard and big cheek guards. The trimming on the edges, facial details like eyes and moustache are well defined.
Crest : Centurions wore typical transversal ear-to-ear crest named Crista transversa on their helmets which allow their legionnaries to recognise them in the thick of the fight . It is made of horse hair or feathers. The crest is given as a seperate part in the kit . The feathers of the crest are well defined.
Right arm : Posed the hold the sword. Hilt of the sword is cast on the hand. Muscles on the arm, finger details and bone or horn made hilt are well defined.
Left arm : Posed to hold the cutt off head. Muscles, fingers and a small piece of hair of the victim’s head cast on the hand are well defined.
Sword : He carries a long Celtic sword.
Scabbard : It shows nice decorations on both ends but there is no straps on the belt or scabbard on how to attach it to the figure. I think some extra work will be needed on that.
Cutt off head : Facial details are well represented for a victim.
references
The following books can be used as references when painting this figure.
Concord Publications - 6003 - Ancient Celts by Tim Newark & Angus McBride
Osprey Publishing - Warrior Series - Celtic Warrior 300 BC-AD 100 by Stephen Allen
Osprey Publishing - Men at Arms Series - Rome’s Enemies 2 Gallic and British Celts by Peter Wilcox & Angus McBride
conclusion
Nice sculpt with a flawless casting and a colorful subject to paint for all historical figure painters.
Recommended
SUMMARY
Highs: Nice sculpt and flawless casting. Parts can be easily removed from casting blocks with no damage.Nice price for a historical figure.Lows: It looks 1/35 more than 54 mm when compared to other on-market figures. No painting reference on the box. Attachment of the scabbard to the figure needs some extra work.Verdict: A good figure to paint for all fans of the period.
Our Thanks to Friendship Models! This item was provided by them for the purpose of having it reviewed on this KitMaker Network site. If you would like your kit, book, or product reviewed, please contact us.
About Engin Kayral (Graywolf) FROM: IZMIR, TURKEY / TüRKçE
Born in 1962,married and having 2 sons. I started modelling about 8 years old building USS Fletcher with mom. It was a model dad brought from USA., I think in those days only a few people in Turkey had info on scale model kits. Grown as an AF officer son , I built many aircraft models in years. Som...
Thanks for the review, Bro.
It's nice to see historicals being produced in resin, it definitely makes them more affordable - just look at this figure: only 10GBP!
Rudi
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