The down side to painting mounted Soviet Cavalry was that I "had" to paint dismounted figures. The upside of painting mounted figures is I "got" to paint dismounted figures. Anyone who has ever painted motorcycle troops or other cavalry knows there is both pain and joy in collecting mounted troops. Yes painting and having extra dismounted figures can be annoying, but it is worth it in the end to have proper models for when your troops dismount. True, you don't have to paint dismounted figures and can use regular infantry, but having matching dismounted figures really makes an army stand out.
I built and painted up a variety of dismounted figures to replace my mounted figures for game play. This included the command section with NCO, musician, and standard barer. It also included a mix of SMGs, rifles, and an LMG team.
The infantry section is armed with rifles and SMGS.
My LMG team is based together. I base my team weapons together so it is easier for me to identify and move during game play.
Here is the command section ready to lead the way.
I tried to match up my mounted and dismounted figures as much as possible. Here we see half the patrol side by side with their mounted counter parts.
Here is the rest of the patrol.
I tried to give the dismounted men swords if possible. I did not have many left over swords when I was done with the project, so only half of the men ended up with swords. Luckily I have ordered another box of cavalry and can hopefully find a way to fix this.
Next I plan on trying to make cossacks. I am really excited to start this project. As much as I loved building the Soviet Cavalry, I am really stoked about trying to make presentable cossacks for my Soviet collection. I feel better prepared now that I have done it once. When making this cavalry there was a lot of experimenting and mistakes made. Now I am prepared and plan on taking the cossacks to the next level. Make sure you stay tuned so you can see how they turn out.
