Wargaming

Dapol Girder Bridge HO/OO Scale

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 4 Comments

I needed another bridge. I have two home made country bridges but really wanted an old rusty looking girder bridge. Down the road I want to add a railway line onto my table top so a girder bridge would be perfect for that. Dapol make a very cheap range of plastic terrain aimed more at railway modellers. Their buildings are too small for 1/72 scale wargaming, in my opinion, but this bridge is perfect. It is 32cm long and wide enough to take a medium tank (Sherman etc). It makes it easy on creating a rule for what weight it can withstand. If the tank is too wide for the bridge then it is too heavy for the bridge.

I think I bought this direct from Dapol at their web site Dapol Girder Bridge

It is a simple model, with three main bits, two sides and a bottom. Plus some struts to link the tops. There is some decent detail showing lots of rivets. I had a lot of fun painting this up. A solid undercoat of matt black, then a spray of red brown. Then i attacked it with buckets of track rust and light rust weathering powders. Using a really wrecked brush i stippled more black back on top, plus a wash of brown on top of that. I think I even went again with more rusty powder. I wanted a really old rusty effect so spent some time adding more and more. The colour and texture came out quite nicely and even looks like peeling paint in some places.

I also made some quite steep roads for each end so I can place my bridge over a river. I used polystyrene on MDF bases coated with plaster for good strong and light results.

Here you can see a cautious advance from a Dingo Scout Car backed up by a half track and a Humber armoured car.

 

 

 

 

Revell King Tiger in 1/72 scale

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 3 Comments

Ooh so as working from home continues, working on model kits also continues at a feverish pace, if you will excuse the term in the current pandemic. I bought this Revell King Tiger from eBay for not much as it was missing a box and decals. No box means cheaper postage anyway I guess too. Win win.

Boxart Tiger II Ausf. B Production Turret 03129 Revell

This is a great kit. So much in a tank kit boils down to their treatment of tracks. This monster of a tank has excellent link and length tracks. They are nice big track links to begin with, but very easy to put together. I always start with multiples of two and around the sprocket wheel. The running gear and tracks you can make as two units before attaching them both, left and right, to the lower hull. Wheels are individual but are easy to get nice and straight. You can model the hatches open or closed which is always nice when you want to put in a couple of AB figures tank crew like me.

A few tow cables for the sides look good. There is also some spare track to put on the turret, but they don’t include hooks. So I added some of my own just by gluing small squares of plastic card where the hook would stick out. I left the spare tracks off until I had painted the turret so the rusty effects would not interfere.

For painting I loosely followed the plans in an excellent book i have called “How To Paint 1:72 Military Vehicles – The Weathering Special”. They actually use the Tiger II for one chapter so I went through the majority of the techniques in the book. Another guide to painting that I can really recommend.

weathering172_01.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

 

I chopped off some of the side guards for battle damage, like they had in the book, and copied best I could the colour schemes. Lots of chips, dirt, mud and grime using various sponges, powders and other products. AB tank commanders to finish him off. Great little kit and great fun to spend a bit longer on the paint job and all the weathering effects.

OTP Terrain Houses in 20mm

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 10 Comments

I think I am totally addicted to making buildings and creating a tiny world, rather than actually playing a game in that tiny world! I found OTP Terrain while looking for the great designs by Jens Najewitz. So they make a whole heap of Printed 3D terrain in a hard plastic. I bought three houses, the Normandy Hotel, Small Building and Town House. They each have removable roofs and floors perfect for your wargames. The detail is excellent and easy to paint. The only additions I made were chopping off the chimney stacks and adding my own metal ones. It has become a thing, I need to replace every chimney pot on any bought building model. I get mine from S&D Models in the UK. They do not cost much and are way better than any of the attempts at chimney pots you get with kits or ones you can make yourself.

These houses are not cheap compared to their MDF counterparts, but they paint up really nicely, have good detail, and they have a huge range. Check them out at OTP Terrain

Photos below. Check out the French Boulangere called Brien. Weird.

I have my eyes on a farm house and barn and bridge. But so much else to get painted first.…….. Good thing we are locked up at home………

Superquick Card Model Houses HO Scale

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 4 Comments

I figured I would need some more houses to build while the world goes into lockdown. These card kits from Superquick are just pure nostalgia. My big brother had built some for his railways in the 1980s and they were swiftly borrowed to be used on my ping pong table for battles. After 35 years they have not changed. I will get to build them this time. I am sure I can make them look a little more French and a bit less cardboardy this time around. My aim is to have enough buildings to have a full town on a 6 x 4 sized table.

IMG_1041

Heller Somua Tank in 1/72 scale

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 4 Comments

Boxart Somua 79875 Heller

I didn’t really need any French tanks, as I do not have any French forces, but I do like these Somua tanks. They were captured and used by the Germans later in the war and so I thought I would build a troop of them anyway. I think the only plastic model kit in this scale of the Somua is made by Heller, so I bought three of them on eBay from someone, somewhere. Loved the box art and attempted to base my camo scheme on the front action shot.

It’s a tiny tank and the kit is easy to put together. Detail is nice and there were zero construction issues. By the third build I was doing it with my eyes shut! Tracks are like a soft vinyl that fitted perfectly which made a nice change. I think I drilled out the gun barrels with a very tiny drill, but did not do much else. Camo scheme was applied using the blutack masking technique, which ended up coming out very nicely. The decals were a mixture of the supplied ones plus some other spares. I really liked the French red white and blue insignia and white numbers so I sourced some similar stuff from my decal files. I figure I can use these for either side, early war French or late war Germans.

Here is le Troop just wandering through a village.

CP Models, SHQ Miniatures and AB Figures British Infantry in 20mm

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 5 Comments

I finished one more platoon of British Infantry for my Battalion of Northumbrian Light Infantry. These guys made up of 5 figures from CP Models, 4 from SHQ and 1 from AB Figures. All great ranges of figures. My aim is to have a full 3 companies x 3 platoons and support without duplicating a single figure. I have about forty figures to go before completion, so getting there slowly.

The group of five men, including the waving officer with the SMG, are from CP Models. I love their range of figures. Great detail and interesting poses. They are especially easy to paint as everything is so clear. I keep faces simple with a basecoat, a red oxide wash, and then some lighter fleshy highlights. The officer has a nice blue bandana round his neck. My only criticism maybe is their legs get a bit chunky, but you do not really notice. CP do provide bases with slots but I usually cut off most of the slots and glue them into clay on 20 cent pieces. CP have a fab range, I have a bunch of Germans from them getting ready for camo smocks.

The group of four men are from SHQ miniatures, also a company I like. Their figures are cheaper than other brands and slightly smaller. The detail is not as clear as CP or AB but I still really like their poses and they fit in nicely with the other brands. Subtle differences but these differences just add to the look of the unit.

The last lonely man in front of the Brasserie is an officer with an SMG from AB Figures. I have written enough about AB Figures! Great figures and a fantastic range. My battalion is 50% AB figures, but the other manufacturers are very worthy accompaniments for them. All my plastic will now be consigned to storage or eBay as it has all been replaced by these excellent metal miniatures.

 

Armourfast Stug IV in 1/72 scale

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 5 Comments

You always know what you are going to get with a Armourfast kit. Two tanks in a box for something like seven pounds. Great value at about seven Australian dollars a tank for me down here in the Southern hemisphere. There are only a few parts to each tank, so they are super quick to build. Nothing wrong with a fast build tank. The detail is good enough for a wargame, and if you want a large number of tanks in quick smart time, then these kits are for you. You cannot beat value for money to bulk up an army.

I had a lot of fun doing a lot of weathering to my two Stugs. I really wanted to try the hairspray chipping effect on these two to add a bit more interest to them. So after building, and leaving the side skirts off, i sprayed everything with a red oxide and a dark brown spray can. Then i gave it three thin coats of hairspray, letting it dry in between each layer. Oh and do this outside….. It can get smelly. Once this was all dry i did the usual dark yellow dunkelb  spray over the top. Once that’s all dry you can grab a stiff brush and a toothpick, wet a small surface of the tank and give it a rub and a scratch. The trick here is to do this in areas that would get worn out, like hatches etc, and also not to over do it. I was impatient as usual and went overboard. It’s a fun process and can look really good but you need to remember less is more. Next time i will take it easy.

I gave it all a gloss varnish and a dark wash. Plus some decals. You don’t get decals with the tanks so you need to source elsewhere. I added my favourite AB figure crewmen plus a home made aerial and also some camouflage foliage. These Armourfast tanks really do improve greatly if you take a bit of extra effort and make some modifications!

“Setting The Scene Volume 2” by Pat Smith

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 1 Comment

I was lucky enough to discover Pat Smith’s amazing wargaming blog a few years ago and also grab a copy of “Setting The Scene Volume 1” a while back. Pat’s work is just outstanding and inspirational for anyone with an interest in small scale modelling.

Volume 2 is jam packed with techniques and invaluable skills for the terrain making modeller. Accompanied by buckets of excellent photos Pat runs you through all sorts of building projects from large rocky hills, orchards, terrain mats, to roads, buildings and bridges. Even though the style of terrain is based around the Mediterranean region, it is totally applicable to anyone making terrain for wargames or railways or any small scale project in any geographical region or historical era. It is so much more rewarding to make your own terrain rather than buying it. A whole lot less expensive too!

The photographs are great and accompanied by easy to read text that make the jobs look simple to do, but give you amazing looking results. This is the kind of book that makes me want to run to the hardware store and craft store and then spend a week making new terrain! If you can still find a copy I would recommend getting one!

Sentry Models Ruined Terrace

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 8 Comments

My last building from Raventhorpe all done. Another awesome sculpt from Tony Raven. This one is a big piece, half intact and half demolished. The remaining roof and first floor is all removable for easy access of troops. I glued it onto a large MDF base and gave it the same treatment as the other ruins with plenty of smashed up bricks and MDF mini bricks. Painted with acrylics and then liberally weathered with all sorts of powders and charcoal dust. I added some flock and tiny leaves for the foliage and grass round the back.

Next time I am in the UK i will be filling my suitcase with a few more of these awesome models. Need a spare bag for 10kg of resin from Sentry Models!!! The last picture has all three of the buildings I bought together. I am excited to get them on a table and have some excellent house to house combat.

Sentry Models Ruined Building

~ Colonel Mustard ~ 5 Comments

I painted another fabulous resin building from Sentry Models I bought from Raventhorpe. Its a two storey and a one storey wrecked building. I made my own base from MDF and added heaps of extra rubble to the base to blend them in. The second storey is removable to allow a squad into the ground floor.

I used my normal cheap acrylics to paint over a spray paint undercoat of dark brown. Plenty of dirt and dust added to finish them off plus some flock and tufts.

If you do not want to build your own buildings these really are the best things since sliced bread. I am happy to mix them in with my home made stuff as they really add an extra bit of detail and realism to your table. The last photo has my first ruin and a Jagdpanther creeping around looking dangerous. I have a finished farmhouse from Sentry next up. Check out Raventhorpe on Facebook, there is a massive range. On their Facebook page there are heaps of inspirational photos of amazing looking table setups using these buildings. It’s a closed group but you can sign up.