Plastic Soldier Review - HaT French Line Fusiliers

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HaT

Set 8041

French Line Fusiliers

All figures are supplied unpainted (Numbers of each pose in brackets)

Stats

Date Released	2001
Contents	48 figures
Poses	8 poses
Material	Plastic (Medium Consistency)
Colours	Blue, Grey

Average Height

23 mm (= 1.66 m)

Review

Fusiliers (named after the 'fusil', or musket) were the mainstay of the French infantry. They comprised the majority of the soldiers, and there were four fusilier companies to one each of grenadier and voltigeur in each battalion.

These figures are clothed in the 1812 uniform (which only really appeared in 1813) with the lapels square at the waist and the single crossbelt supporting the frogged bayonet scabbard. They are all fitted out for the campaign, with covers on their shakos and trousers covering their gaiters. The uniform and weapons are all correctly sculpted.

The poses are a standard selection, but all are correct and appropriate for the subject. The last figure on the last row is an NCO, and instead of a weapon he has been provided with holes in both hands, into which either the musket or halberd can be placed (or any of the accessories found in other HaT sets of course). With the musket in his right hand, he is a normal NCO, and with the halberd in his right he is an escort to the eagle. This halberd should have a long pennon training from it, but this is missing from the model, which has a small hook of plastic in its place. While the resulting figure is not convincing as he does not actually grasp the item, for wargames in particular this is not significant, and it does make more of the available poses. HaT say they provided an NCO because more senior officers can be obtained from their other sets.

This set is a good sculpting job, with all the necessary detail present and properly realised. Anatomically these are well proportioned, and we found very little flash to remove. If the NCO is to be given the halberd then he should really be armed with pistols, but clearly this would have limited his usefulness. These figures are appropriate from 1813 to the end of the Waterloo campaign, and can also be utilised for several German units. This is a solid and well-made set which portrays an important subject, and has not been bettered by anyone else.

Ratings

Historical Accuracy	9
Pose Quality	9
Pose Number	5
Sculpting	9
Mould	9