Today’s post brings us a pair of models that I painted back in the 1990’s that just got a touch-up to be renewed for tabletop duty in the 2020’s. We have a pair of the second-wave Imperial Guard Commissars, from 1989, incorporating the separate plastic arms.
The fellow on the left is the model that had Carapace Armour, much like the original Imperial Guard Command Squad models, and to so emphasise this, I used the plastic Space Marine arms of the day, as they featured that little bit of lined detail on their under-shoulder-pads, and given the description of Carapace armour of the day, you could think of it as like a version of plate armour, so if you think about the arms being plasteel plate rather than powered armour it works. Depending on the viewing angle of this model, they look either terribly unbalanced or just fine, actually. 😀
The old-school paintjobs on these were (I felt) worth preserving. While I wouldn’t paint them the same way if starting from scratch today in terms of the bright red belts and the parade-white pouches, they still look quite decent and I feel would fit into any of my own Imperial Guard armies from the Rogue Trader days through to today.
It’s sort-of a cheat to count these as models completed in April 2022, as they really just needed a touch-up and a couple of chips and bits repainted, but that’s also because I wanted to leave the original paint intact as much as possible – sure, the chainswords are a wee bit bright, but we’re not talking about some of the skittle-impersonator models that have needed much more drastic repaints over the years, so in many ways these two were best left alone. Either way, they’re now table-ready and ready to execute traitors and cowards in the Emperor’s name once again!
If you enjoyed these Oldhammer 40k models, why not take a peek at my just-restored Ogryn Sergeant post from 2014 for more retro-40k goodness!
Azazel's Bitz Box. 
Excellent looking Commissars mate, and I think keeping some of the old style painting as a nod to where you started is a good thing, and shows some of your history within the hobby.
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Thanks Dave l. The fact that these guys are dressed primarily in black certainly helps keep the original paint scheme passable through the eras! 😆
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I like them, I am now drawn to the older miniatures. Infhink it is why I like Alternative Armies as they are nice miniatures to paint.
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Yep, they do have a lot to them, and it’s usually a lot more than “character” solely based on nostalgia. I’ve got a lot of unpainted models from the 89-95 era still to paint, and a couple of “sets” I do want to paint once I get a few other little projects out of the way first…
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Great conversion. The Spacemarine arms fit with the carapace nicely.
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Thank you! The very first all-metal Arbites had the same shoulders as part of their sculpts!
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Those are fantastic- a blast from the past.
Cheers,
Pete.
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Thanks Pete! Glad you like ’em!
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The classic weapon colours are just great!
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That’s why they need bionic eyes and sunglasses!
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Very nice, I really like them! 🙂
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Thanks John! 🙂
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Ah the good old days – when men were men and swords were hard on the eyes! Much as I love a more modern, muted colour scheme there was/is something about that old style that still speaks to me. Nice to see that old Ogre out of retirement as well. 🙂
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How would the enemy know where to shoot if Commissars didn’t have bright red piping all over their muted black outfits! 😉
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Super stuff, you’re really piling on the nostalgia. If I’m being critical, I’d say that your choice to use the larger arms on the carapace armoured chap make him look a bit weird. I’m especially impressed with the way you’ve painted the sunglasses on the smaller one.
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Thanks mate! Yeah, I’d do it differently today, but of course today we have a much wider variety of available plastic arms (and other parts). I left that aspect as it was since it’s how I assembled (and painted, and rand) the model back in the early 1990’s
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Excellent stuff, love the leather look on the black trenchcoat.
Cheers Roger.
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Thanks Roger! Glad you like it! 🙂
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Brill – classic period painting mate, tickles my nostalgia glands a treat 😁👍
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Cheers, Alex! 😀
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Very nice work, mate! I’m glad you kept the old paint job as it just feels appropriate for the sculpts. These minis are from before my time in the hobby so its a joy to see them and learn about what I missed too 🙂
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Yeah, I have a few more of them that never got completed, so when I finish them they can have more updated paint jobs – they won’t be all that much different, I reckon!
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