Ordering FAQs
How long will it take for my sets to be ready?
Aside from a small quantity of sets in stock, we hand make each set to order from scratch. From making the moulds, casting the figures, fitting and cleaning the cast pieces through priming and final painting, hand-making the boxes and packing; the quality in our product can't be rushed. It is the quality of Imperial's product that we take pride in.
The process typically takes six weeks, sometimes longer at different times of year such as after Christmas. We publish cutoff dates for Christmas deliveries on our home page and in our newsletter.
Do you sell the figures sold in sets individually?
As special orders we sometimes sell individual figures from larger sets.
Can I alter the configuration of a set?
Generally no, as we like to keep the sets standardised. Special orders however can easily be made such as a set of six pipers from a highland band. Custom sets will be labelled as such, rather than be labelled as a standard set.
Can I request a custom painted set?
Yes, for a small fee we provide custom painting options:
Civilian (Town & Around) sets can be custom painted for hair colour, clothing colours, anything that does not involve remodelling the sculpture.
Animals, we provide a custom painting service whereby customers provide photographs of pets to be painted using one of our animal sculpts.
Military sets tend to be less flexible as subtle uniform changes sometime need to be remodelled not just a change of colours. Where remodelling is not required we can custom paint figures. These do not always attract the custom painting fee, for example a request to paint all the horses in a set black would not attract custom painting fees.
If you have any customisation requests please ask.
What are the figures made from?
While most of the world's toy soldiers are still made from lead-based alloys, all Imperial's figures are now made from lead-free pewter which is 95% Tin (Sn) with small amounts of bismuth and copper. We purchase virgin ingots from a metal foundry, and do not mix or melt down our own metals.
Imperial switched to lead-free metal in 2021.
Where are the figures made?
Imperial products are hand made in New Zealand from original sculpts by David Cowe, the founder of Imperial Productions. David is still sculpting our new ranges.
