The ongoing adventures of a boy who never grew out of making and playing with plastic model kits (and even some metal ones too). Also a wargamer in search of the perfect set of wargaming rules for WWII Land and 20th Century Naval campaigns.
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Life is full of strange connections so my motto is take them when they come and work to your advantage. I was out on a "first stage job interview" and was mulling over on how I thought I had done when I passed a "toy shop", Saw it and thought "What the heck I will treat myself" (see below, good result):
And was glad I did! Nice little combination of Cold War NATO lightly armed NBC guards and rear echelon types, useful for modern Chain of Command or Black Ops (Osprey Rules).
Hopefully not a controversial social statement but this cheaply available glue (£1 from retail shops) has always beguiled me at to its actual designed purpose as it did not do "plastic on plastic" which is what 95% of what I want glue to do. For the other 5% of the time I use "cheap" (again £1 for many tubes) of super-glue or PVA: 'metal on metal' usually, but occasionally 'metal to plastic' or 'paper to plastic'. However returning to an old basing project where I had fifty plastics [1/72 Revell/PSC/Italeri US Infantry] based to metal via superglue every one came off in my hand. Urgh! In desperation I turned to the wrinkled UHU tube last used for a 'paper to paper' school project (a paper Viking ship, approximately 28mm) and "globbed away" (see below):
Hooray .. it seems to have worked.. I think (watch this space). I immediately went out to the shops to stock up on this useful product ;)
Germany: WW2 Panther tank seized from pensioner's cellar
By News from Elsewhere......as found by BBC Monitoring
3 July 2015
Image copyrightEPAImage captionSlow progress: It took hours for the army to remove the tank from the basement
Police in northern Germany have seized a World War Two tank which was being kept in a pensioner's cellar.
The Panther tank was removed from the 78-year-old's house in the town of Heikendorf, along with a variety of other military equipment, including a torpedo and an anti-aircraft gun, Der Tagesspiegel website reports. It wasn't an easy job to get it all out - the army had to be called in with modern-day tanks to haul the Panther from its cellar. It took about 20 soldiers almost nine hours to extract the tank - which was without its tracks - and push it onto a low-loader, the report says. As the surreal scene unfolded, local residents gathered at the end of the driveway to watch.
Prosecutors in the nearby city of Kiel are investigating whether the man's military collection violates Germany's War Weapons Control Act. But his lawyer says the weapons are no longer functional, therefore shouldn't be restricted.
Local prosecutors were tipped off about the cellar's contents by colleagues in Berlin, who searched the home for stolen Nazi art earlier this year.
It seems the tank's presence wasn't much of a secret locally. Several German media reports mention that residents had seen the man driving it around town about 30 years ago. "He was chugging around in it during the snow catastrophe in 1978,"Mayor Alexander Orth was quoted as saying. But he later added: "I took this to be the eccentricity of an old man, but it looks like there's more to it than that."
Image copyrightEPAImage captionThe man had also been keeping an anti-aircraft gun in his basement
You know what, sometimes you think you have to cut-back on hobby stuff as real-life stuff takes precedence, sure, but never cut it out as that "other real-life stuff" benefits from the release you get. Nothing earth shattering has happened to me but I've missed you guys and it great to see everybodies posts are as good as ever
My 15mm Star Gruntz project has been long stalled, but a chance meet-up with some wargaming buddies rekindled my interest (it doesn't take much to distract me) as I was shown a very nice "little tactical force" I can but only try to emulate. The beauty of SCi-Fi is that material comes from a variety of sources, Star Wars models (Republic Gunships), Heavy Metal Gear (Large Warbots) to bespoke 15mm GZG and "remodelled" cheap dinky models (APC's). Hence I start with an Airfix primer and Vallejo Wash (see below):
Next to base coast them in Vallejo Stonewall Grey and highlight it Vallejo White (and Airfix Satin White) with a dirty Vallejo Sepia "dirty" Wash. As per my previous attemprts:
With an eye to playing an American force with the 'Chain of Command' rules and using figures instead of counters in Airfix Battles I gathered together my various "virgin, part painted and fully painted" plastic US Infantry figures. None of the "fully painted" category makes it to the full OrBat as required so some "painting tray" work needs to be done. As it stands I have US Infantry (excluding paratroopers and US Marine Corp) from the following manufacturers:
Valiant Miniatures (23mm)
Plastic Soldier Company
Caesar Miniatures
Revell
Italeri (new not old Esci)
Given the OrBat needs of "riflemen" no one manufacturers (with the possible exception of Valiant) packet suffices to make a whole 'Chain of Command Platoon'. However each manufacturer's packet can easily make an individual squad though. Therefore by careful deduction as I need three squads plus a HQ section, multiple manufacturers shall be used:
Platoon HQ: Lt (Carbine), Sgt (SMG) and Bazooka Team (Bazooka + 2 Crew)
Squad 1: Corp (SMG), Rifle Section (8 Rifles) and BAR Section (BAR + 2 Crew and 1 Rifle)
Squad 2: Corp (SMG), Rifle Section (8 Rifles) and BAR Section (BAR + 2 Crew and 1 Rifle)
Squad 3: Corp (SMG), Rifle Section (8 Rifles) and BAR Section (BAR + 2 Crew and 1 Rifle)
I decided to paint a section from the Plastic Soldier Company, (new) Italeri, Caesar and finish painting up a squad I started a decade ago of Revell 'Ardennes Infantry' which gives me four squads (yes one more than I need, but there are extra things also required from the American "support list" and an extra squad is one of them). They are also all 'size compatible/interchangeable' something that Valiant fails at (it would have to be a full OrBat or nothing). This means the "painting tray" looks rather full (see below):
I am following my preferred painting pattern as of late. Airfix Grey 01 Acrylic primer followed by a Vallejo Wash, in this case Black. The Plastic Soldier Company (PSC) are first up "primed" (see below):
The "washed" Black (see below, though this may not go down in history as the most informative picture I have ever taken!):
EPA
EPA
