Normandy

Esci Dodge Weapons Carrier in 1/72 Scale

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 4 Comments

This is the second Dodge I have built from Esci/Italeri. I think the kit is actually out of production so the only place to find it is eBay or second hand somewhere. One of my favourite truck vehicles of WW2. The first version I built I was not aware of the issues with the suspension height of this kit, so the second time around I was ready to fix my mistakes! It is an old kit and you can tell from all the mouldings it has been around a while. Some flashy bits here and there plus some seam lines and ejection marks, some of which I fixed and some of which I missed. The main problem is that the hull sits too high on the chassis if you build the kit straight from the instructions. So some surgery and some messing around chopping off bits of the axle will get you to point where the suspension looks correct. I should have taken a before picture too, but the gap between the wheel arches and the wheels looked double compared to my finished truck in the pictures. The plastic tarpaulin supplied with the kit is also too big and unrealistic. So I returned to my tissue paper and PVA glue technique to carefully make my own tarp cover for the back. Once painted it is quite convincing as a canvas, and definitely more so than plastic. I also added some tiny windshield wipers and a windshield from clear plastic. The winch was finished off with some woolen yarn wrapped around and painted. The original decals still worked fine with plenty of softener, especially on the bonnet. My driver is from AB figures as usual and he will slot nicely into the driver seat. I did finish this off with some flock and tufts on the base, and a good dose of earthy dusty powders. It’s a great little vehicle!!

IBG Models Bedford Truck in 1/72 Scale

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 5 Comments

Another great little kit from IBG. I finished the QLT which took me ages with all the occupants and extra tweaking I did. This is the QLD so a shorter wheelbase and I guess more for carrying things than people. I always enjoy making these IBG kits. Everything fits, the plastic is easy to work with, lots of detail but not too fiddly. I can go on and on. This guy I added some really cool, but teeny tiny, windscreen wipers (photo etch from Hauler) which I think finish it off nicely. My blog buddy Pete suggested a great transparent super glue which worked a treat so I did not get glue all over my windscreen and ruin everything. I also add the tissue paper tarpaulin which looks way better than the flat plastic supplied. At the bottom of the tarp I made an attempt to recreate the straps holding it on using the same plastic bristles I use for aerials. I think that was all the modifications I made. It’s a super little truck and goes well the other Airfix Bedfords I have in the collection. Recently I bought two new kits from IBG Models – their Daimler Armoured Car and a sawn off Daimler too, which I am very excited to build.

IBG Models Bedford QLT in 1/72 Scale

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 5 Comments

I have been away for a month for work and then a very nice holiday so making and painting things been on hold for a while. Happy to be back with one of my favourite model kit makers IBG Models of Poland and their most excellent range of trucks. This time it is a British Bedford QLT. Airfix make an excellent version of this truck so I was excited to see how the much newer IBG kit measured up. I have yet to make an IBG model that disappointed and this one was true to form. Nice plastic, good details, perfect fits all round and easy to follow instructions. The only criticism i have with these is sometimes the connection points are a bit thick, but hey I am splitting hairs a bit there. Amendments I made to the it were the addition of some super cool PE windscreen wipers from Hauler. Tricky to get right as they are tiny but look great. I also removed the tarp sides and replaced them with rolled up foil and wire straps. The top of the tarp i covered with tissue paper and PVA glue. The original plastic was really plain and the rolled sides lacked detail. So i was happy the affect i got with my improvements. Decals were super and you get heaps of choice (3 or 4 vehicles).

I filled the back with some SHQ and some spare Caesar and Plastic Soldier Company seated figures. They are mainly in shadow so was quite quick with my paint jobs on them. No need to waste my best AB figures filling up the back. I was happy with the full looking truck, I think in reality these babies carried a full platoon of men (36+)? Here he is parked up and disembarking a section who look pretty relaxed. Its nice to be back at home with my paints out on the dining room table!

ACE Citroen Traction Avant 11 CV in 1/72 Scale

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 4 Comments

Happy New Year!! It has been a little slow getting things finished as overseas guests and Christmas holidays got in the way. But this little Citroen from ACE Models found its way onto my dining room table and was first off the queue for 2024! I thought I could use this as an emergency transport on the tabletop or just some extra cover on the streets of Normandy. It is a tiny little kit with tiny little parts. Luckily it was quite easy to put together and i did not lose any bits for the vacuum cleaner to pick up. I struggled with the body not fitting flush onto the chassis which leaves a bit of a gap around the boot area but nothing too serious. I painted the seats a nice red brown before putting the body on top. It was a struggle getting windows and the windshield in without making a big old mess. When the windshield needs to be slightly curved I need some kind of more flexible clear plastic. Then there is the problem of not getting glue on the plastic, but having enough glue to make sure the windows stay in place. Tricky business. I painted this a nice light grey and used some metallic silver to highlight the chromey bits on the car like the hub caps. The decals were nice and worked well, of course being extremely tiny they tested out my eyes and manual dexterity……

IBG Models Diamond T 968 Cargo Truck

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 7 Comments

I love IBG kits. They are always the most enjoyable kits to build. I also love trucks. So this was fun times in a box from my Eastern European friends. It’s a big six wheeler cargo truck with lots of room in the back for supplies and stuff or a bunch of troops if you like. This model is a breeze to put together with plenty of well fitting parts, in nice easy to cut and glue plastic. The only things missing are some windscreen wipers, which i neglected to bother adding, and I had to redo the head light protectors. They were moulded in solid plastic so i remade them using fly screen mesh and some wire. The actual windscreens and windows are provided in clear plastic, and I always struggle to keep glue off them when adding to the cab. The rear struts over the rear cargo deck were also a little fiddly to get in the right spot. Patience required!

Nice decals as always finish him off. I added a couple of AB figures GIs having a cup of coffee and a chat amongst some boxes and barrels and small arms. Oh and a bazooka just in case they run into something more sizeable! Love IBG kits, have an armoured Chevrolet truck in the queue….. excited……..

Zvezda Pak 40 AT Gun with AB Figures Crew

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 9 Comments

Been a busy month doing lots of other things except finishing off what is sitting on my painting (dining) table. Still working on my Normandy village board which is time consuming to say the least. But looking good so far. This is a very nice little Pak-40 model from Zvezda, good value, speedy build and nice detail. Takes a few minutes to put together and that is it. Easy. My crew are more excellent productions from AB Figures plus i added a fifth man from the Zvezda kit as I liked the pose he has taken sitting on the gun arm (leg?). The gun received a dark yellow spray and just a dirty brown wash. I glued two crewmen onto the base first, the ones with bases so i could blend them in to the base with clay, and then paint the base easily before attaching the gun. The crew all had an oak leaf type camo uniform except one who just got the camo helmet. I painted the officer with binoculars with a camo jacket even though he has the Y shaped webbing, and I don’t think his jacket is meant to be camo. So not sure that is correct, but my care factor is low on accuracy. Base was textured with fine sand and other powders. I added an old rusty barrel, hope its empty, and some tufty bits. You also get some boxes and ammo with the crew, so they were added for extra clutter. Kapow watch out Mr Cromwell behind that hedge.

Normandy Village Board Project

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 8 Comments

Well, Covid has finally grabbed a foothold in our fortress of a house, putting me out of action for a week. Although really only the first day felt like anything other than a crappy cold-type situation. Anyway, this was a great opportunity to sweep up some odds and ends that have been laying around for years. I had some resin castings that I picked up from eBay plus a Sarissa MDF house or two and a nice Hovels bridge. I decided to make a centre piece for a town with a proper river section sunken down into the board. I had a nice piece of 3mm MDF to mount it all on, and used lots of polystyrene to build up a few layers. Cobble streets were made with modelling clay and my cobble textured roller. There are two more houses to go at one end of the town which are 100% scratch built and not quite completed. I dressed up the MDF houses with new roof tiles, floorboards and chimney pots. A little bit of work goes a long way. Realistically i think this will be the town centre for a much bigger layout (maybe a battle for Caen or something), as i can surround this with more houses, rivers and roads to cover a whole 5 x 8 foot table. Next up will be finishing the last two houses and then can texture the open ground with glue and sand before painting. I have also started making bricks and rubble as I am going to need quite a bit of it to decorate the place, considering all the ruins!!

AB Figures WW2 German Infantry

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 6 Comments

My plan for 2023 is to get all my German infantry painted up. There are 150 or so of them knocking around and most are already based and primed ready to go! Most of my British are completed so its about time I have some opposition to actually get a game set up and even played. This group consist of nine infantry including a standing machine gunner, seven rifle men mostly walking and one officer with an MP40. I also snuck in a senior officer from CP models. For my paint job I used paints from a German Uniform Field Grey paint set I recently purchased, with the jackets and pants being interesting different shades. Reading around about German uniforms it seems that there were many different shades throughout the war, so any inaccuracies are totally accurate. Makes it easy to do whatever shades you like. I love the poses and stances of these AB figures, and the detail makes it so much easier to paint. It still takes me days just to paint a few…….and that’s not even doing camo…….

Plastic Soldier Company Chevrolet Truck in 1/72 scale

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 9 Comments

Another cool truck this time from The Plastic Soldier Company. I bought just one sprue of this little truck as they had some sale on over there in the UK. Very simple one sprue of soft grey plastic. Nice chunky detail as always from these guys. It is a super quick build, although I did pre paint the two crew that come supplied before constructing the cabin. A few additions also add value to the vehicle. I found a pair of spare wing mirrors in my bits box that were added, you have to have wing mirrors for effective combat driving don’t you? I also added clear plastic windows as things do not quite look right without a working windscreen. You do not get decals with any of these PSC kits so I raided my well stocked decals folder for some random bits and pieces. Oh yes and I really did not like the handling of the canvas rear cover, it looked way too unnatural at the back. So I chopped out the back section and replaced it with a rolled up bit of foil and string to represent a canvas roll down door thing. Much better.

Paint scheme i did an overall olive drab for the cab and chassis, and a khaki for the canvas back. Then did a mickey mouse black camo scheme over the top. He is a groovy little truck. Lined up next to him are the Airfix bedford and Tilly from one of their diorama boxes.

AB Figures British Vickers MGs in 1/72 Scale

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 7 Comments

Nearly finished all my British troops for Normandy, just finishing up some support weapons and then should be able to field a battalion or full company depending what system I use. This is AB figures British vickers MG teams, you get two MGs and gunners plus three loaders and a sighting seated figure. I already used the sighting figure some other time. So i had a spare MG and gunner from another bunch of metal figures no idea who. This made up three MG teams. Not much to say about AB figures apart from they are the best! Painted in my usual British uniform plus tiny arm decals from Company B. Based on hardwood bases covered in clay and sand. Lots of tufts and grass finishing them off. I have four infantry mortar teams to go and that is it for the British! Finally!