Confused about bust scales

[MSzwarc]

I've only recently become interested in busts , and so far I have only three. Each is sold as a 1/9 scale or 200mm bust, and each is by a different manufacturer. Left to right in the picture below are Dynasty's Japanese pilot, Pili-Pili's Geisha, and Verlinden's Samurai. Obviously, the 3 busts are each a different scale . Can anyone help me sort out how busts are sized ( :lol: ) or is it simply a matter of each manufacturer using his own idea of scale?

Mike

 

[frank h]

Hi Mike,
I think busts should be seen as stand alone pieces
of a size rather than a scale

I have seen photos of pieces that I would like to paint
and then seen the actual bust and found it to be tiny
The Madagascar Pirate from Latorre being a prime example
beautifully sculpted but so small.

I tend to buy according to size assuming I like the subject

Frank

 

[John Long]

Mike, it's pretty much what the mfg./sculptor decides. I've seen busts scaled in 1/16, 1/12, 1/9, 1/5, 1/6, 1/4, 1/3. Mix those in with 150mm, 250mm, 300mm and you can see it's a mixed bag. Since busts are stand alone items and seldom integrated into any kind of vignette or diorama it's not a problem to have these discrepancies.

 

[Augie]

Hi Mike,

Busts are "scaled" in the same way as their full-figure brethren are: you're just working with approx. 2 head lengths ("classic bust") instead of the normal 7-8 (depending on what proportions the sculptor has chosen).

In your trio of samples, the Verlinden bust is definitely not 200mm/1/9! This bust is approximately 1/5th scale, pushing 1/4th. If memory serves, the Dynasty and PiLiPiLi busts compare favorably, though the former might be closer to 1/10th scale (180mm) than 1/9th (200mm).

I alluded to the "rub" in my opening paragraph: proportional scale, and its cohort, "standard" height. There are no established rules, per se. While the human body on average is 7 1/2 head lengths long, its average range is 7 to 8 head lengths. The chosen height that will be subjected to this proportional breakdown will also affect the unit head-length. It should come as no surprise that this variability is reflected in the sculptural miniature.

Hope this helps!

Augie

 

[jasonballamy]

Mike, as you like samurai and are now getting into busts you should try and track down some of the ones by the now defunked Fort Duquesne sculpted by Augie while there are still a few about.

They come out a bit larger than your geisha but look a lot more impressive due to their large and elaborate kabutu. I have done all eight of them.

Jason

 

[MSzwarc]

Thanks for the info, guys. I see the point of looking at busts as stand alones. Since I must buy all my figures via mail order, though, it helps to have an idea of approximately how large the figure might be.

Augie, thanks for the guidelines. I thought the Verlinden bust must have been mislabeled, but I wasn't sure. I'm still keeping an eye out for any of your Fort Duquesne samurai series, but no luck yet. Let me know if you hear anything about a rerelease.

Mike

 

[quang]

Hello Mike,

Just caught your thread.

The geisha (Kyoto Belle) and the other ones in the Belles series are 1/6 scale. So are the busts in the Man O'War series (the Daimyo, Tomoe Gozen, etc.).

By some stroke of luck, they're about the same scale as the popular action figures (Dragon, Sideshow, BBI).

One of my dream projects is to adapt the Tomoe Gozen bust to a Sideshow female mannekin and dress her up as a 1/6 full figure Tomoe complete with bamboo bow and arrows just like Colin Frazer did with his Maréchal Ney.

Too bad that life's too short and I'm entitled to just one. :lol:

HTH,
Q.

 

[MSzwarc]

Quang,

After reading your post, I was trying to figure out where I got the idea your busts were 1/9 scale. I checked some dealer sites and discovered that both Michigan Toy Soldiers and the Red Lancer erroneously list them as 1/9 scale.

The Tomoe Gozen bust is #1 on my want list at this time. Hopefully late this year! A female samurai action figure sounds like a winner .

Mike