Rogerpgvg's Britains collection: field horses

I found a lighter black rhino, unfortunately the horn was a bit broken. I'm not an expert but I think as you that it is a late production because it is rarer.

I did not know this so impressive elephant!

Thank you, Rogério, Andreas, Christophe and Alain!

Roger wrote:

You keep finding peculiar things on your Britains figures. Britains is a brand of experts with some documentation and books but I think you're taking it to a higher level. Your childhood friend is surely a very special figure to you even if it is not in perfect shape as your new friend which has a manicure too.

Because Britains figures are usually sold in lots rather than individually, you end up with many duplicates, which makes it easier to study them.

Kikimalou wrote:

I found a lighter black rhino, unfortunately the horn was a bit broken. I'm not an expert but I think as you that it is a late production because it is rarer.

The lighter one loses its paint easily because it doesn't attach well to the glossy plastic.

Caracal wrote:

I did not know this so impressive elephant!

It's indeed not as common as the other Britains elephants.

My African bull elephant is the older version as it doesn't have painted nails!This is my African black rhino.

Yes, that's the older version that holds the paint better. Yours is in a particularly good condition.

Thank you.

Thanks, Andreas!

Another quiz question. I've got a Shire horse and foal:


Both are made of polythene and are marked with the Herald symbol. Do they both float, both sink or does one float and the other sink in water?

How do we know it? Maybe the foal sink and the other float but I'm just guessing.

Wonderful britains figures!! Love this company for all these different and beautifully made animals and other things! The elephant looks amazing! And the rhino is a stunning specimen too!
Too bad about the Shire with the broken leg. Did the warm water work?

Thank you, Shanti. I haven't tried removing the glue yet. I haven't got much hope because hot water didn't remove the glue from my nails. I didn't try to put my fingers in boiling water though.

Roger wrote:

How do we know it? Maybe the foal sink and the other float but I'm just guessing.

You are right! It's clear who the true expert on the forum is. However, to make sure it wasn't just luck , I've got one last question. Let's come back to the unfortunate broken Shire mare:


Do both the leg and the rest of the horse float, do they both sink or does one sink and the other part float?

The leg sink and the rest float.

That's what I thought too, but no, both the leg and the rest of the horse sink. Which is surprising because the other brown Shire mare floated. My conclusion is that I have absolutely no idea why some polythene models float and others sink .

I thought that the bulkier parts could have small air pockets that would lower the average density of the figure. Therefore, there might be small density fluctuations that also occur in similar materials due to additives and other factors. Surely, those that float have a very small exposed part.

Those were my thoughts too. It's not impossible that this is the case in some figures, but on the other hand, the very small black piglets also floated and if there were air bubbles, then you'd sometimes be able to see them on the outside. I seem to remember that Peter Coles said in "Suspended animation" that mixing the plastic was quite difficult. It may be that the composition of the polythene isn't always the same. I need to check whether I can find this information in the book.

Rogério, Roger, you are without doubt the two craziest collectors I know.

Next question: What about taste? It's high time you ate a few to find out.

Kikimalou wrote:

Rogério, Roger, you are without doubt the two craziest collectors I know.  

That's quite an honour!

Kikimalou wrote:

Next question: What about taste? It's high time you ate a few to find out.  

OK, I have got a quiz question for you then: Which tastes like pork: the pink pigs, the black pigs or the brown Shire horse?

Roger, polar bears have a highly developed sense of smell. Smell is actually another factor that can help us identify different types of materials and sometimes even brands, as each brand seems to have a specific scent. However, this is particularly noticeable in composite materials, as the variability in their composition is much greater than in simple PVC pieces. I have some composition figures that have a slight musty smell, which is usually an indicator of the use of organic materials that were not properly isolated by resinous compounds or have degraded due to the fracturing of the insulating material. On the other hand, others seem to have an odor more comparable to inorganic material like stone, such as polystone, which has large amounts of stone dust in its composition. Therefore, before tasting, I advise you to smell and check the expiration date.

I thought Christophe might want to taste them but he is probably afraid to be even crazier than the craziest collectors. It's kind of crazy that you and I think along the same lines, as I was thinking of smell too. The Britains polythene figures often have quite a distinct smell. Hard to define it, kind of a dusty smell. I suspect that it is related to decomposition and that the ones that have become more fragile over time have a stronger smell.

Polythene is odorless, the smell is from additives or paint. Though, these properties are valid for recently produced materials, I don't think they study the degradation of the materials and their smell. Britains have a very typical smell and I don't have any idea what causes it, but it is not through absortion as it also happens with pvc, I have some 2nd hand Schleich figures with a smoke smell and sometimes they even smell like perfume. Most of the Britains I own have a similar plastic odor. When I mention major brand models have specific smells is when I open them new from the bag which is something I never did with a Britains figure.

Roger wrote:

Polythene is odorless, the smell is from additives or paint. Though, these properties are valid for recently produced materials, I don't think they study the degradation of the materials and their smell. Britains have a very typical smell and I don't have any idea what causes it, but it is not through absortion as it also happens with pvc, I have some 2nd hand Schleich figures with a smoke smell and sometimes they even smell like perfume. Most of the Britains I own have a similar plastic odor. When I mention major brand models have specific smells is when I open them new from the bag which is something I never did with a Britains figure.

I know what you mean about Britains having smells. They easily absorb the smells of their surroundings.

A while ago I bought some figures (Jeols included), and they smelled strongly of smoke. Obviously the owner was a smoker and these figures soaked it all in.
They have been on the windowsill for months now, getting sunlight and fresh air to dissipate the odour.
Sunlight does get rid of these smells, including perfume smells, but it takes months of daily hot sun blazing on them to eek it all out.
They have to be laid out individually and turned every so often to really get it all out of the porous plastic.
I never touch the figures until the stink goes away


and I know that same 'new plastic' smell as well. When a plastic item is sealed in a poly/plastic bag - it just makes the plastic smell much stronger! sunlight will really bring the strong smell out more too, if the bag is left in it.

This is an interesting testimonial, Annette. I have an old question, when you expose these figures to the sun for so long, do you notice any degradation in the color of the figure?

Farm animals from the Britains Rosette Range (1993-96) have often changed colour. Whether that is due to sunlight or due to a different kind of decomposition, I don't know. Not all of them have it, so sunlight seems a likely culprit. I haven't seen any examples of other Britains models (polythene or PVC) that have yellowed.

Here is an interesting passage from "Suspended animation: An unauthorised history of Herald & Britains plastic figures" (2004) by Peter Cole (p. 51):

The difficulty with shrinkage had been overcome [in 1954]. Selwyn-Smith had discussed the problem with Herald’s plastic supplier, Caplin. “Caplin and I talked about putting fillers into the plastic. So Caplin started adding chalk in the processing.” As well as preventing shrinkage, the chalk gave a better base to the colour of the plastic, making it less liable to fade; and also it improved paint adhesion by making the surface of the cast figure slightly less smooth. We now know, however, that the chalk increased brittleness in the long term. The larger items, to which more chalk was added because there was a greater need to avoid shrinkage, are generally more prone to snap.

So the reason why some Britains models are heavier than others is likely due to the amount of chalk added. It may also explain why they have a smell (especially if they have started to become brittle): this is from the chalk. I previously couldn't define the smell, but it does have something a bit chalky.