Progress update May 2023

Varied progress over the bank holiday weekend.

Nine of the Perry 28mm Afrika Korps figures painted and based, photographed here drying in the sunshine.  As an added bonus, I was rummaging through the stash and came across a sprue of Warlord DAK figures - I think from a copy of Wargames Illustrated.  Bonus additional 6 figures, which I've assembled and started to paint (no photos as yet).

With the 3D printer behaving itself at the moment, I scaled up some Bergmann jeeps from 15mm to 20mm and added some SHQ crews.  Two US recce jeeps with .50 cals.  One British para recce jeep and a para transport jeep.  Still have another para recce jeep and regular British jeep crew to work on.

Started back before Christmas, these 15mm M151 jeeps from QRF just needed varnish and basing.  Dried in a matter of minutes in the afternoon sun and simple static grass on base.  Two recoilless rifles and two TOW armed jeeps.  Suitable for 60's through 80's.  I just need some M151s with a recce HMG variant.  They might even make it on the table in AK47 games, or as Indo-Pak or Arab-Israeli wars forces.

Finally, for now, I got around to finishing the batch of 20mm figures I ordered at Christmas during the Elhiem sale.  These are a pack of random Middle Eastern insurgents and a pack of RPG armed insurgents.

 I finished these pretty much as my Not Going to Salute sale order from Elhiem arrived on the doorstep.

As ever, thanks for looking.

28mm Late War German Infantry

Since last summer, we've been playing WW2 Chain of Command, mainly pitting Owain's US paratroopers against Late War German panzergrenadiers.  I've steadily worked through boxes of Warlord panzergrenadiers and support weapons, as well as picking up some unpainted figures at various bring and buys.  These metal Warlord Volksturm were picked up at the Penkridge table top sale back in September, a pack of 16 figures, just 4 missing from a complete box.

First up a unit of 5 tank hunter types armed with panzerfausts and mainly dressed as Hitler Youth or DBM.

Next, a group of 6 factory workers or similar with various small arms, a panzerfaust and an improvised Molotov cocktail.

The remainder of the set, 4 tough looking veterans and a "Golden Pheasant" SA officer.

Sniper with bendy barrel for shooting round corners - not seen any rules for this particular weapon, so probably just use him as a sniper or rifleman.

Three veterans, the guy on the left has put on a little weight since his last physical and carries a mine and panzerfaust.  Centre guy wears a reed green tunic and carries a late war improvised SMG, while the guy on the right, in addition to an assault rifle, carries a fliegerfaust hand held AA rocket launcher.  I'm not sure the Volksturm would have been issued with this wonder weapon, but I guess anything could happen in the last days of the Reich.  Wiki suggests a photo from Berlin in 1945 shows several of these weapons expended and lying in the street.

The SA officer or "Golden Pheasant" if I remember correctly from extensive reading of Sven Hassel novels in my youth.

Nice castings, very little to clean up and they have lots of detail that rewards some painting time.  I'm not sure when/where I'll be able to get them on the tabletop, but I did enjoy painting them.

Thanks for looking! 

More 15mm WW2 3D prints

 Some more 3D prints based on Bergman and Tigerace1945 stl files.  All need decals to finish them off.

Cromwell platoon with Challenger.  I already have a Battlefront Cromwell platoon with Sherman Firefly, so will at some point do another Challenger and a Firefly to make both platoons suitable for Normandy and Germany and the Low Countries.

The Challenger (two views).

One of the Cromwells (again two views).

A pair of Archer SPATs with Skytrex tank crew figures.

The business end of the Archers.

A Stug 33b SPG  (two views).

A zug of beute S-35 tanks (with Becker added commander cupolas).

A zug of beute Renault FT-17s.  Maybe useful for anti-paratrooper duties but way past their best in 1944.  Still armoured support is still armoured support.

Lots more 3D prints to work on.  Sadly, the printer prints far faster than I can paint, so I'm giving it a little rest at the moment - it has been somewhat hammered the last few months.

As ever, thanks for looking.

20mm WW2 German winter Fallschirmjager

 I've had these in the completed pile for some time, but needed to add magnetic bases to get them stored away.  Having done that, it was time for some photos.  These are from the recent Mars set and provide a selection of Fallschirmjager in padded winter clothing.  I've based them in the standard late war organisation with three rows of 5 man rifle groups (rear right) and three MG34 teams of three men rear left.  The front row is a command rifle section of 6 men including the CO, plus a 2 man panzershrek team (front left) with an old Airfix figure with arm in sling as a No 2 gunner.

Most are painted in variations of white or mid-grey to reflect their winter patterns, with the off figure in a Luftwaffe camo smock of beige, green and brown.

Close up of the CO and radio operator.  Odd pose with the pistol pointed into the air, perhaps he is signaling with a flare gun.

Each rifle and command section is also equipped with a panzerfaust for local AT defence.

Quite nicely animated figures from Mars, with some annoying, but manageable pieces of flash, mainly close to faces and ankles.  The figures hunched and leaning into their shots look nice and lively, as does the figure leaning into a trot with rifle across his hips.

Thanks for looking.

20mm WW2 German artillery support

Some on table artillery support for my late war Germans.  A pair of 105mm Howitzers, guns are from Zvezda, crew are Britannia/Grubby in camo smocks.  Guns are basecoated in middlestone lightened with Iraqi Sand, green stripes/blebs are Luftwaffe camo green with German Field grey to tone down the green, and armour brown, lightened with mid-brown.  All washed with Agrax Earthshade and dry brushed with Iraqi Sand.  Uniforms are cork brown with Luftwaffe camo green splodges, dotted with German camo light green.  Boots, webbing and metal equipment is black-grey.

Gun No 1.

Gun No 2.

Then a 150mm Sig 33 infantry gun and crew from Britannia/Grubby, painted the same way as the 105s.

I've also been working on some US paratrooper supply carts and I've still to photograph the winter Fallschirmjager platoon.  Still to come off the workbench are an Airfix 88m with SdkFz 8 tractor and more APCs for 21st Panzer.

Thanks for looking. 

20mm WW2 German 21st Panzer Division vehicles - Normandy

Ready to Roll 21st Panzer vehicles suitable for the battle of Normandy, especially early German attempts to nip out the British landings on Sword Beach.  All are painted in Vallejo middlestone with a little Iraqi sand, with stripes of WW2 German field grey and a little refractive green alternating with stripes of armour brown with WW2 German camo mid-brown.  All washed with Agrax Earthshade and dry brushed with Iraqi sand.  Decals are from Skytrex.

A Somua Pioneer half track with light bridge mounted.

The SPW P107 command half track.

The Hotchkiss SP AT gun with PAK40 75mm AT gun and Grubby Britannia SS crewmen.

The Hotchkiss SP 105mm Howitzer with Grubby/Britannia SS crewmen.

The pair of Hotchkiss vehicles.

The Somua SP AT gun half track with 75mm PAK 40 AT gun and Grubby/Britannia DAK crew painted as late war SPG crew.

Rear detail of the Somua SPG crew.

And from the front with their brightly coloured scarves/bandanas - a souvenir from an evening excursion to Caen or Rouen perhaps?

Still to come for 21st Panzer are more SPW P107 half track infantry carriers, commanders vehicle with PAK 36 and 20mm AA variant and longer term there are plans for more of Becker's "funnies" including the unarmoured half tracks, and multi-barreled mortars and rocket launchers.

Thanks for looking.