Living in England, I grew up with Action Man rather than the GI Joe brand. In fact, it was only when Marvel and Hasbro resurrected the Joe brand in 1:18 scale that I even heard of it. Although there were many similarities between the sets, with Palitoy merely repackaging many of the Hasbro uniforms and equipment, Palitoy went out of their way to make the brand unique. In particular, they produced the 'Ceremonials' range of outfits, showcasing some of the British Army's ceremonial uniforms.

As a kid, I had a large colelction of these. I had fifteen Action Man figures, all of which could outfit in a different uniform. I am trying to recreate part of that collection in 1:18 scale. First up, I am re-posting the figures I have already finished and will continue to post new figures into this thread. I will be posting WIP pictures into my Wippin' It thread: viewtopic.php?f=14&t=40337

ROYAL CANADIAN MOUNTED POLICEMAN (DRESS UNIFORM)











Hat: ARAH Sgt Slaughter (modified and cast)
Head: GI Joe Spy Troops Cross Hairs
Torso/Arms: SW Legacy Bail Organa
Belt/Top Pockets: Trimline
Hands: Indiana Jones (Arab Horse Figure)
Strap: Indiana Jones satchel
Holster: Indiana Jones Cairo Marketplace
Belt Buckle/Pouches: 25th Quick Kick
Waist/Groin: 25th Snowjob
Bottom pockets: IJ KotCS Colonel Dovchenko
Legs: RoC Destro
Pistol: Indiana Jones
Horse: Indiana Jones Arab Stallion
Shabrack (Saddle Blanket): Printed inkjet cotton
German Shepherd: Papo
Sentry Box: Inkjet vinyl/card

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GRENADIER GUARD (BUCKHINGHAM PALACE)















Head: Spy Troops Cross Hairs
Bearskin Hat: Sculpted
Chin Strap: gold ribbon
Arms/Torso: SW Legacy Bail Organa
Hands: Microlady
Waist: Valor vs Venom Duke
Groin/Legs: RoC Cobra Commander
SA80: Marauder
Belt/Cuffs/Trouser Stripes: Trimline
Cuff/Jacket ornamentation: printed inkjet vinyl
Buttons: pins
Sentry Box: papercraft

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TRANS-POLAR EXPEDITION





























Figures: 25th Snow Job
Huskies: Schleich
Penguin: Schleich
Tents: Marauder
Dog sled: Playmobil
Camping equipment: Playmobil
Film camera: Chap Mei
Equipment cases: Playmobil

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Finished. I never had the Action Man set, but this is one of the British Army Ceremonials outfits that made the Action Man line so unique:

ARGYLL AND SUTHERLAND HIGHLANDER









Head: Indiana Jones KotCS Russian Soldier
Torso/Arms/Hands: 25th Wild Bill
Legs: Indiana Jones KotCS Ugha Warrior
Feet: Indiana Jones KotCS Mutt Williams
Kilt: Inkjet cotton
FN FAL: Marauder
Sporran: sculpted

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man I love this thread. Only thing I'd say is - can you get ahold of any of the PTE German Shepards? I know they can run large, but the one here is a bit big.

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I have a couple of Scottish friends who have asked the inevitable question. What is he wearing under the kilt.? Surprised that no-one here has asked that yet.

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Oh we know. We don't want to see it.

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These are all cool. I like the foreign legion one the best

This is a figure I have had planned for quite a while. With my father having been an engineering officer in the Merchant Nay and Royal Navy reserve, this one was a must-do. It is based on the 'square-rig' uniform that was introduced by the Royal Navy in the 19th century. Plaitoy issued 5 different cap bands: HMS Victory, HMS Ark Royal, HMS Fearless, HMS Dreadnought and HMS Raleigh. I have gone with HMS Ark Royal, the ship responsible for damaging and disabling the Bismark. The uniform colour is atually dark blue. Doesn't show up too well in the photos.





Head: Spy TroopsCross Hairs (modified)
Torso/Arms/Hands: 25th Wild Bill
Groin/Feet: Indiana Jones
Collar: Inkjet cotton

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The 17th/21st Lancers was a cavalry regiment of the British Army from 1922 to 1993. It was formed in 1922 in England by the amalgamation of the 17th Lancers (Duke of Cambridge's Own) and the 21st Lancers (Empress of India's). From 1930 to 1939 it was deployed overseas; first in Egypt for two years, and then in India for seven. In 1938 the regiment was mechanised.

This is one of the more interesting and elaborate Action Man Ceremonials sets and has been on my list of customs since the start of this project. I considered several different figures, but the Bail Organa had the right type of boots and was the right height without having to swap parts. The helmet was a nightmare to scult and the top part took four attempts to get right. I considered various ideas for the plume, but eventually settled on the top kmot/ponytail from the Indiana Jones Ugha Warrior. THat may make a reappearence on a couple more figures I have planned. I originally used a wooden barbecue skewer for the lance with the head made from the Indiana JOnes spear of destiny, but it proved far too unwieldy: viewtopic.php?f=14&t=40337&start=15 I was looking through my box of Star Wars accessories for some other parts and found a pike from the Rebel Honour Guard. I reduced the size on the pennants and redid the lance. I was going to leave it the dull silver colour it came as, but I thought I should make the same effort on that as I had on the figure.









Head: GI Joe Spy Troops Cross Hairs
Helmet: Sculpted
PlumL Indiana Jones Ugha Warrior
Figure: Star Wars Legacy Bail Organa
Lance: Star Wars Rebel Honour Guard
Pennants: Inkjet Cotton
Braid: Embroidery Thread
Front of Jacket/Trouser Trum/Belt/Helmet Trim: Inkjet Vinyl
White Piping: Vinyl Coachline Trim
Buttons: Pin Heads

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WOW just spot on to their BIG Brothers.
Well done mate, truly captured them all.

And now for something completely different.

Action Man back in the 1970s was unique. As well as the international uniforms such as the German Stormtrooper, Russian Soldier and Foreign Legionnaire and American outfits that were taken straight from the GI Joe collection, they produced uniforms specific to the British Army. These were some of the most popular. At the time, many regiments of the British Army were petitioning Palitoy to make their uniforms. I firmly believe that if the line had continued, they would have made historical uniforms as well, to go with the WWII British and German army sets.

I am contiunuing the tradition. Been working on three non-original Action Man figures. First two are finished:

Sikh Regiment, Indian Army:





Head: Star Wars Legacy Bail Organa
Torso/Waist/Upper arms: 25th Duke
Lower Arms: Indiana Jones Ugha Warrior
Legs: 25th Roadblock
Sash: inkjet cotton

There have been Sikhs servng with the British Army since 1846. The modern Sikh Regiment traces its lineage back to the 11th REgiment. This version is the modern Indian Army uniform. The first head I considered was the Legacy Bail Organa. The skin already had the perfect skin tone. I sculpted the beard, moustache and turban. I could have used the head from the IJ Thuggee, but I wanted it accurate. I knew I had a 25th Duke minus the lower arms, and I dug out a pair of 25th Roadblock legs. I had to create the pattern for the sash as I could not find it online.


King's African Rifles:





Head: RoC Heavy Duty
Torso: Indiana Jones Russian Soldier
Upper Legs: Indiana Jones Cemetary Warrior
Lower Legs: Indiana Jones Ugha Warrior
Rifle: BBi

The King's African Rifles was a multi-batttalion regiment gathered from colonies in East Africa that served with distinction with the British Army in Africa from its inception in 1902 through to independence in the 1960s.
The Heavy Duty head was the obvious choice for this custom. The fez was quite an easy sculpt. I was originally going to go with a 25th Wild Bill for the torso, and the jacket bottom from the IJ Russian Soldier, But I eventually decided to use the whole Russian torsoas it has exactly the look I was going for.

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Everything in this thread is perfect! I would buy each and everyone if I saw them at retail. These compliment Oreo Builders 50th group just fine!

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Just repainted the arms on the Sikh. They looked okay in daylight, but came out too light in the pics. Used the same paint mix I have put on my Gurkha.

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