Michigan Dawg Posted July 26, 2016 Share #1 Posted July 26, 2016 I finally finished my Buck Jones/AEF Doughboy figure. The figure features a scratchbuilt CEM gasmask bag, photoetched collar disks, scratchbuilt scabbard for the bayonet, scratchbuilt helmet liner and chin strap, and extensively reworked web field gear, boots, and weapons. I wanted to show Buck more or less as an iconic figure so to some extent his appearance is correct over a period of time beginning in early 1918. To further emphasize this, I have him displayed on the most famous recruiting poster of WW1, that of Uncle Sam and his "I Want You for U.S. Army". I would like to acknowledge the help and contribution of several individuals who helped me complete this figure: Tony Barton for his wonderful cotton tape that he makes available for purchase, Cesar Dubon for the beautiful photoetched collar disks that he graciously supplied, and "RustyCanteen" of the US Militaria Forum who supplied me photos and dimensions of the CEM respirator bag from his personal militaria collection. Thanks very much to all of you for your help! Hope you enjoy Buck Jones as much as I did in researching him and attempting to improve on DiD's fine figure. Please feel free to comment and if you have questions I shall be happy to try to answer them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michigan Dawg Posted July 26, 2016 Author Share #2 Posted July 26, 2016 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michigan Dawg Posted July 26, 2016 Author Share #3 Posted July 26, 2016 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michigan Dawg Posted July 26, 2016 Author Share #4 Posted July 26, 2016 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michigan Dawg Posted July 26, 2016 Author Share #5 Posted July 26, 2016 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michigan Dawg Posted July 26, 2016 Author Share #6 Posted July 26, 2016 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michigan Dawg Posted July 26, 2016 Author Share #7 Posted July 26, 2016 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Posted July 26, 2016 Share #8 Posted July 26, 2016 Really nice work. The effort and time you put into your project shows! Well done! Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArtyScout Posted July 26, 2016 Share #9 Posted July 26, 2016 Very nicely done. I figure him to be in 1/6 scale? He looks like he makes you feel like you are there in 1918. Semper Fi. Manny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
world war I nerd Posted July 26, 2016 Share #10 Posted July 26, 2016 Very nice Michigan Dog, especially the helmet liner! Can you post a close up of the field shoes? Just a suggestion, I know that the campaign hat was iconic for an arriving WW I Doughboy, but by December of 1917, the men of the 1st Division had been ordered to turn in their campaign hats and been issued with "trench caps" instead. Have you considered making a French pattern overseas cap? Excellent job, now you need to do a late war Doughboy ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BEAST Posted July 26, 2016 Share #11 Posted July 26, 2016 Nice detail on the helmet! Great job! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
superchief Posted July 26, 2016 Share #12 Posted July 26, 2016 Very nice work and detail. I'm unfamiliar with "action figures", what is the origin of the model? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michigan Dawg Posted July 27, 2016 Author Share #13 Posted July 27, 2016 Very nice work and detail. I'm unfamiliar with "action figures", what is the origin of the model? Action figures had their birth way back with the first Hasbro GI Joe figures in the 60's. In the late 90's their was a rebirth with several Chinese companies beginning to produce figures that were markedly more realistic than the earlier GI Joes. This particular figure that I've shown was made by a Chinese company called DiD which stands for Dragon in Dreams. The scale is typically 1:6 and the figures stand about 12" tall. DiD figures are kind of a mixed bag with some elements done really well and some elements that don't seem to belong. For instance, with this figure they included a very nicely made 1903 Springfield rifle but with a bayonet for the Enfield rifle. It seemed they were trying to portray a very early war figure with the 1904 russet marching shoe but gave him puttees instead of leggings. They didn't include a helmet or gas mask bag and much of the web gear was actually taken from a WW2 figure that they also offer. I spent a lot of time removing the ladder buckles from the pack and meatcan pouch to make it resemble the correct WW1 field gear. The rifle had no finger grooves in the forestock so I had to mill them myself. Thanks to RustyCanteen I was able to produce a CEM gas mask bag that is to scale and correct in appearance (or as correct as I could make it). American forces are not my area of expertise at all so I had quite a steep learning curve. Thank goodness for US Militaria Forum and the kind souls that answered all my woefully uninformed questions! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RustyCanteen Posted July 27, 2016 Share #14 Posted July 27, 2016 This is fantastic! I've been wondering how it was proceeding, but I know good projects are worth the wait. The level of detail is amazing! Thank you for sharing the final model with us. Regards, RC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michigan Dawg Posted July 27, 2016 Author Share #15 Posted July 27, 2016 Very nice Michigan Dog, especially the helmet liner! Can you post a close up of the field shoes? Just a suggestion, I know that the campaign hat was iconic for an arriving WW I Doughboy, but by December of 1917, the men of the 1st Division had been ordered to turn in their campaign hats and been issued with "trench caps" instead. Have you considered making a French pattern overseas cap? Excellent job, now you need to do a late war Doughboy ... Nerd, here's a photo of Buck's footwear. I am familiar with Parts I and II of your excellent series on US footwear and tried to incorporate what I learned. The boots I'm using are offered by Newline Miniatures and are supposed to be representative of WW2 British Ammunition boots. I'm not super familiar with British boots but to my untrained eye they don't appear to be drastically different from the WW1 version of the ammunition boot. I did add a partial sole to the boot to hide the tread pattern of the NLM boot and then added hobnail detail and a heel iron. So basically I'm hoping that it might have been possible for a Doughboy to have acquired British ammunition boots. I suppose we'll all find out when you publish Part III. Alternatively, and again to my untrained eye, the boots had some resemblance to the 1917 trench boot. I'm hoping you'll tell me one of the two scenarios is at least approximately represented by the boots I've used. For what it's worth, I'm going to try to produce my own 1918 Pershing boot with my next figure. Wish me luck with that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michigan Dawg Posted July 27, 2016 Author Share #16 Posted July 27, 2016 Here's the underside of my boots ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted July 27, 2016 Share #17 Posted July 27, 2016 Very nice! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
world war I nerd Posted July 27, 2016 Share #18 Posted July 27, 2016 For what it's worth American Doughboys did wear British Ammunition Boots, which were, for the most part, universally hated when compared to the more comfortable fit of the American made field shoes. Nice job on the shoes by the way. Although the British Army issued at least half a dozen (or more) patterns of hobnailed boots between 1914 & 1918, this sketch of a WW I British boot circa 1917 is a good example of what an American would likely have been issued. The most noticable feature about the British made boots is the squared off toes, which would probably be very difficult, if not impossible to alter on your converted WW II British boots. The British did issue a round toed boot, with what they called a "toe case" in May of 1918. I've no idea if the round toed shoe ever found its way onto a Doughboy's feet. The sketch of the 1918 boot shows how the bottom of the shoe looked as it came from the manufacturer, i.e. before the sole was hobnailed. Also, apparently British boots were made without any hobnails. In the British Army, with the exception of one or two rows of hobnails just behind the toe plate & the hobnailed heel,hobnails were added to the soles at regimental level. Because of that a wide variety of hobnail styles & patterns can be seen on surviving examples of enlisted men's boots. They were also made form both rough side out & smooth side out leather. I don't have any solid information on exactly what type of British boots were purchased by the AEF, but I would assume that they would have arrived with hobnails already on the soles & heels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
world war I nerd Posted July 27, 2016 Share #19 Posted July 27, 2016 Here's the British late war shoe with a rounded toe & toe case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry K. Posted July 27, 2016 Share #20 Posted July 27, 2016 Unbelievable work! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michigan Dawg Posted July 27, 2016 Author Share #21 Posted July 27, 2016 This is fantastic! I've been wondering how it was proceeding, but I know good projects are worth the wait. The level of detail is amazing! Thank you for sharing the final model with us. Regards, RC I'm glad you like it. I really consider the CEM gas mask bag as the centerpiece of the entire figure, primarily because I've never seen any other figure with a bag as historically correct in overall dimensions and level of detail. Needless to say the help you provided me made it possible and I thank you for your assistance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Proud Kraut Posted July 27, 2016 Share #22 Posted July 27, 2016 From the top of the hat to the bottom of the base a real masterpiece! I can't get enough of regarding your pictures. Simply stunning, thanks for sharing! Lars Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Backtheattack Posted July 27, 2016 Share #23 Posted July 27, 2016 Great work. Such a lot of details. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fstop61 Posted July 27, 2016 Share #24 Posted July 27, 2016 Fantastic job-detail work is superb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CesarD Posted July 27, 2016 Share #25 Posted July 27, 2016 This is a beautiful figure and besides that, I've learned a lot about the WW1 dough-boy. Semper Fi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now