Update on T-34s and Brummbars.

Done a little oil work this evening on a T-34 and Brummbar to see how they looked, I'm not really happy with the brummbar as I went a little overboard on the Zimmerit, however, I stil have time to manipulate this and remove excess.

Quick Update (no pics)

Quick text only update, I've been working on a few commission pieces I've had for a few weeks but I'm having a few problems with them. Mainly in researching the new style basing of Motorcycles, I've been working on and based and base coated 4 small motorcycle teams only to find out that the new style stands have 2 x motorcycle/sidecar combinations on a large base.
 Unfortunately the blister doesn't give enough to field even the smallest amount of teams to use them in a game so I'm at a bit of a loss on what to do. I'm thinking I may actually use what I have here and mod some older models I have in my bits box to make some "action poses"? I've got an old DAK bike and sidecar which is identical to the LW ones that I was thinking about using with a dismounted MG gunner firing over the back of it or something similar? then for the second stand I was considering using a standard bike team but with perhaps a kubelwagen/schwimmwagen based with it. I like to think this reflects some of the ramshackle supply issues that befell the Germans towards the end of the war and that they'll use anything serviceable for the role needed?

New Mini Studio Tester Shots.

So I got a mini photography studio and I've taken some tester shots to see how much of a difference it makes.

I think the difference is pretty apparent, but I also need to dust my tanks :(

Further U.S. Infantry Updates!

Finished these two stands off this morning before I shoot off to work, quick, easy and look good on the table?

Thoughts and CC welcome!

U.S. 3rd Armored Update.

Worked a little more on my U.S. Armoured Rifles today.

Got a couple of test stands 90% complete, they just need basing then hitting with a matte spray. I've gone with a flat grey paint for the gunmetal areas for a change to see what sort of a difference this makes, I've seen it done by various painters and it works very nicely.

Again, I'm really not trying to go all out on these guys, just to have them looking decent on the table top!

Sunday 19th Feb Game Pics.

Mixture of game pics from my local club, they're from several different games going on over the course of the day, followed by pics of Rommel my cat and his unnatural urge to lie on not only my tanks but also my infantry....

M14/41s, almost finished and Jagpdanther hit with some matte!

More Again Lessons From the Painting Table

So I've got the Ferdy and Elefant to the stage where I need some matte varnish and then I can weather them but alas my cans are empty so I'm going to leave these until my cans arrive.

In the meantime I've been constructing a 5 x M14/41 Carri Platoon, not for use with Italians as you might think but to go with SS and Sicherungs armies from Grey Wolf.

These guys are truly tiny and will get chewed to pieces by anything bigger than a rifle but I think they could do a job against some infantry who might get caught unsupported? They've got a 12" move, twin MG and coax MG meaning they could really give some PBI a nasty shock.

Quick Edit with a 95% complete Ferdinand and Elefant:

Quick Elefant/Ferdinand/Jagdpanther update

Tiny amount done this evening, pin wash on Jagdpanther, and wear added to the big boys:

New (and old) kit update

So I've been doing some work today, I've based the US Artillery I cleaned up last week, base coated and started my Brummbars that have been sat primed for 4 months, base coloured the 10.5cm guns I've had primed for 8 months, re-primed an ancient Ferdinand I had lying around to paint with the Elefant I just got as part of my Schwerepanzerjagerabteilung 653 Army!

Update on US Guns.

So while I wait for my 155s to arrive and the missing parts from my Elefant to turn up (and listening to the free WWPD After Hours special I downloaded last week!) I've been busy constructing and tidying the M2A1 105s and the Auster AOP to accompany them.

I've only stuck the crew down at the moment as I like to stick/seat the guns slightly into the basing medium so as to have them sitting reasonably naturally on the base and not look too sunken. With these guns I've also based a few spotters and command rifle teams from the US Artillery HQ blister, I've yet to do the two staff teams but I likely only do one as I'll be getting an FDC for whenever I splash the points on those 155s.

With these goes a British Auster AOP, that may initially seem quite strange but I'm working out of Cassino and Commonwealth forces get access to US Support assets but still use the British AOP. I admit is a little fiddly to construct and I haven't pinned the wings on as I was kind of hoping the support struts will stabilise them, I suspect this may be an error but time will tell.

So not only have I moved into the realm of British/Commonwealth infantry here but also the start of an American infantry force too. At first I thought it was cool having that modularity to the Cassino list but now I really it's only served to suck me in to buying more crap... Damn you Battlefront!

Back into to action!

So I've had a few Christmas presents which were themed towards my painting/modelling/gaming hobby. Firstly some American Artillery to go with my upcoming Kiwi rifles, then an Elefant to go into my Schwerepanzerjager company, some new buildings to put on the board to spruce things up and finally a new Airbrush/compressor setup all pictured on a shiney new camera!

More painting updates, I've been pretty busy.

With the benefit of hindsight I'd have painted this tank green/dunkelgelb rather than brown/dunkelgelb as the rust pigments just seem to blend in with the brown colouring on the hull on the end pictures. Still it's not totally finished yet theres a few more sections to do, hopefully have this finished tomorrow though.

With the paint chipping I tried to do something a little different and show the "oxide red" primer that German tanks were undercoated with but the colour choices I used were poor so I added black into the red sections I did which as you can see in the final pic tones them down quite a lot. There's still a few stages of varnish to go and some washes to add so they'll be toned down even more hopefully.

Base colours:

Some drybrushing and highlighting to tan areas.

Tracks and stowage/tools base coated and some chipping/wear added:

All metal areas drybrushed in gunmetal then mig rust and dry mud pigments added to various areas:

Jagdpanther and VK4501 updates.

Worked on this guy in between waiting for coats to dry on the VK4501 yesterday, not amazingly detailed but it's what I was going for:

Tidyed up some of the pin wash this morning and glossed over to seal: