Collecting in the 80s and 90s

My contacts in the toy soldier world steadily grew in this time. As well as ACOTS joined some other groups. There was an informal group of model and toy soldier collectors and sculptors, including Paul Clarke. They met once a month at Alan Blacks's shed in Glen Waverly, Melbourne. Alan is an American Indians War fanatic and is especially interested in Colonel Custer and everything to do with him. Alan, with his then wife, Lindy, created Artifact Miniatures which featured the Plains Wars. Alan's figures and paint jobs were superb. Alan gave me a number of his figures to paint. Unfortunately, I have been unable to contact Alan for several years.

One of the people who attended these meetings was Dave Bryant, formerly of South Africa and before that from England. I have maintained a friendship with Dave and have been impressed by his prodigious output of toy soldier moulds. Dave is in his 70s and he is of a generation which grew up with metal figures but we have learnt a lot from each other, he about plastic figures and me about metal ones. He has continued to do this even as his health has deteriorated. I have supplemented my own armies by borrowing the moulds he has generously lent or cheaply sold.