15mm Essex - ACW Confederates Firing

 I find doing 15mm units is a nice break from doing 25/28mm. War of Rights also inspired me to get out part of this ACW lead pile to tackle. I finished the McClellan and Meade command stands. Before that, I did a Virginia unit using Contrast and Speed paints. I do not like the way those came out ...

400 Stone Mountain Ragged Rebs 

...  so I went back to what I'm best at: layering - this time to a later release of Essex figures that were not part of that 1988 acquisition. Behold:

400 Man Essex Firing

Here are the WIPs if anyone enjoys seeing the progression: 

I position the models on their respective bases BEFORE I even paint them. It's just my way. I fudged my way of tracking, which I do on the bases themselves. For first base (one dot, then on the Left or Right, and then an F for front rank). Second base is 2 dots, then L or R or 1 line, 2 lines or 3 lines indicating their position. Third base is three dots, etc. Rear rank is simply (left to right) I-XIII in roman numerals. Way more confusing than it needs to be, and I changed my method halfway for the front rank and then didn't even stick to it at the end! 

Pants and hats (kepis later) done. For every base, I want one pants, one tunic, and at least one hat to not be regulation. I also evenly divide crouching figures along the front and ensure that identical figures will not be right next to each other in the finished unit. 

Skin finished, then non-regulation tunics and kepis/forage caps.

Then the original gray uniform done for tunics and kepi/forage caps.

Rest of the details coming together, gear, pouches, rifles, straps, etc.

Final positioning, fine ballast glued down. All of these, since the beginning, have been on 1"x1" steel bases from Wargames Accessories. 

Bases painted, highlighted. Static grass over Elmer's.

If I had a quibble with these, I'd say that the definition on the faces is not quite what I would have liked. Needs more dynamism, more shadows - even some 5 o'clock ones. Though in reality, I'll never look at them this closely ever again, ha!

As always, thanks for looking - questions, comments and followers are welcome and encouraged! I'm doing more and more on Facebook so follow my page there too! https://www.facebook.com/One-of-My-Men-Became-Restless-100659928063858