The Kaiser range of metal doll stands have provided me with two great solutions for 6" and 7" figures where a more robust waist gripping stand is required. The issue is that these are not easy to obtain in the UK so I have been looking at some alternatives.
The first of these is sold via Amazon's 3rd party seller Highly One and is described as a Generic Adjustable Doll Stand. The smallest size is the one we are looking at here, listed as 8-9cm - and the size relates to the height of the waist grip and NOT the size of the doll or figure it is designed to hold. These do also appear to be shipped from the Far East, although I have not waited more than a week for these to arrive.
Like the Kaiser stands, this is a 2 piece design with a base section, into which sits a sprung piece of wire. The height of the wire is adjustable within the base so it can change height to a small degree to meet the needs of the figure.
The base is a bit chunkier than the flat sleek Kaiser version, so it will raise the height of any figure placed on it. It is also oval rather than round. The gloss finish is a plastic coating and looks OK at a distance, but is a bit cheap close up.
The wire piece is quite a large profile, and it is not painted. This makes it quite conspicuous on any figure. It is also a bit unwieldy to get gripped in place and no where near as elegant as the Kaiser version. Yes this will hold you figure, but where it does so is not disguised particularly well.
Cost wise these will set you back £1.67 each. This is a saving of about 43p per stand (prices vary). On a large volume of stands this saving will prove sizeable, but the question is one of "getting what you pay for" with the Kaiser equivalent of this stand being the better designed and the better looking. The benefit of this seller is the relatively ease of availability into the UK and for larger figures a wider range of sizes (we will be looking at these larger sizes in due course)
