Hey, if John can spend three days milking a muffler for a sub-gun, I can spend three days milking a fiberglass horse. Uhhhhhh -- perhaps that was a poor choice of words. 'Specially since the horse is anatomically correct...

Getting back to the subject at hand topic of making a red plastic horse look quasi-lifelike, the next step in the process is to start building the color layers to get some illusory depth to the horse's "hair." Time to break out the acrylic paints.

An overall coat of watered-down burnt sienna (forequarters) then an overall watered coat of sienna mixed with Mars black (hindquarters) then a dab of black mixed with gesso for the finer hairs on the head (uhh -- head). And, since the area around the eyes, the nose and the lips are pretty much hairless, some burnt sienna right from the tube, feathered in.

And after all that dries, the final coat. Oil paint. It dries semi-glossy straight from the tube and gives a pretty good approximation of how a well-brushed horse reflects highlights.

Ain't perfect, but it's close enough for gummint work.

Now, remember that this thing is supposed to look like it's got a bit in it's mouth. This bit

to be precise. Those of you who have been paying attention probably noticed that there's no "mouth" to the horse. So, to affix a solid to a solid to give the illusion that one solid is going through the other solid -- you've gotta *cut* one solid so it's no longer solid. Are you still with me? Solid...

So, do I take an eighty-or-ninety-year-old piece of hardware and whack a chunk out of it or do I whack the chunk out of something in which I've invested twelve hours of sweat equity? Noooo contest.

Fifteen minutes with a hacksaw is all it takes (as long as you've got three Sea Scouts holding it steady). Then clean up the cut, pop the bit in, wire it so it doesn't drop out, stuff some fiberglass mesh under it, and epoxy the excised chunk back in place. Smooth the epoxy, wait 'til it dries, remove the wires, cammy the cut with paint and then hook up the harness.

Ta-daaaaah!

For the ultra-curious, it's s'posed to be Bucephalus, Patton's horse.

Since High Desert Wanderer was a bit curious about the end result, I figured I might as well toss this pic on the table. too.

Soon as we get the McClellan saddle fit to be seen in public, I'll show you what it looks like with the dressmaker's dummy installed. Oh, yeah -- he's now got a saber, too. Not a *Patton* saber, but it'll cut butter...

Update: For the purists who shudder at the idea of poking through a squid mart for a cavalry weapon, Captain JMH offers this alternative. Wonder if George P had a Subadar as a polo partner back in the early days...