What a Tanker accessories

They say when it rains it pours. Only two days after I received Blood Red Skies, What a Tanker arrived in my mailbox with a resounding thud. If you haven't been around, What a Tanker is Too Fat Lardies' answer to the Tanks game that was released about a year ago.

There's a German tank with the commander in the open hatch on both covers. The similarities end there.

Back To Basics: Wargames Foundry Home Guard

(Warning: a small rant ahead. Pictures of models after the break, if you want to skip ahead.)

So I've sort of hit painter's block... I do paint... but I seem to take ages, not finish stuff other than the occasional odd miniature here and there. I buy stuff, build them, start paint a couple and then... I loose interest. It's just not the Wargamer's Attention Deficit Disorder, otherwise known as the Magpie or "OOh shiny" syndrome. Oh I got that too, but this is something else.

I was thinking back to when I started in the hobby. You bought a thing. Built it. Painted it. Played with it within a week or so. Sometimes you had a big project (like that Tamiya 1:35 Möbelwagen). If you didn't have the correct paint you used another, or mixed a couple of paints to a rough estimate of the box cover art. Things were simpler back then, I thought.

No this isn't a "Things were better before" post.

But no... things weren't simpler, my methods were. Now we have 200 or somewhere abouts paints in the GW range, many of them technical paints, some are dry, some are layer paints, some are washes and some are glazes, some are base paints. Back then you had paints, and inks. You could thin the paints to make washes, use the inks for pin washes or glazes, and you could wipe all of your paint from the brush for drybrushing. You drybrushed or highlighted, washed or pin washed, and that was it.

Don't get me wrong, all the new techniques, all the new kinds of paints are fantastic. You can do some amazing things. But they also lead to overcomplication. Do I need to paint every model like it could belong in the 'Eavy Metal section of White Dwarf? No, but I try to. It's partially because the models have become better and more detailed so they lure you into a complicated paint job. Back then the models often had unadorned armour, maybe the odd spike or symbol somewhere. If you wanted to you could freehand something or put a decal on it. Nowadays the armours are sculpted with lots of details and 3d insignia that beckons to be painted, highlighted, washed, weathered and then some git are doing them in non-metallic metallics. (Don't get me started about that... the Emperor's new paint scheme I call it.) But I'm setting my ambitions too high. It's not that I can't paint that fine, I can. But I don't need to, and it takes too long time.

My stash of Home Guard. Also includes some Crusader and Warlord figures in the top rows.

So I dug up a bunch of Wargames Foundry British Home Guard that I have had in my stash for a while, and decided to go back to the basics with them.

Life... and lots of things...

Hi gang.

First I'd like to apologize for my absence, it's been a long while since I wrote anything. This is because my personal life is going through some changes, and therefore my hobby time has been quite limited. When I have had some spare time I have used it for hobbying and to a some extent gaming, not writing on the blog.  Here, have a kitten as compensation.

Anyhoo, I'm still buying stuff in hope of better times to come. Here's what I have been up to, in no particular order.

How to paint vehicles the Viking way

This one's for Anne, who asked how I had painted my little Kübelwagen.

The vehicle in question

Well, unfortunately I didn't take many WIP shots while I was painting it, but I will try and explain using photos of other vehicles I have painted the same way. So, where to begin? First of all, painting vehicles is nothing like painting figures. Although in theory you could employ the same techniques you can't use them the same way.

Painting an Italeri Cromwell part two

At the end of the last post the basic paint job on the Cromwell was done; shading and highlighting of the main hull and turret completed. Details like the tracks and tools lacked paint however, and the application of markings and weathering was also left. Since I foolishly had left the top hatch open I also needed to paint a commander.

A Tamiya 1/48 scale crewman volunteers for duty.

Painting an Italeri Cromwell part one

Returning from GothCon (more about that in a later post) I was a bit tired of all the desert stuff. For relaxing I decided to build and paint the 28mm Italeri Cromwell I bought a while back.

Coffee, plastic glue and a sharp knife equals happiness. (Note funky Mutant: Year Zero dice on the left)

Assembly was straight forward. It's a good kit, although the instructions tell you to cut the driver's hatch in half if you want to assemble it open, when in fact the hatch already is in two parts on the sprue. Even though it's fast build there are some nice details like the headlamp guards on the hull, the possibility to leave hatches open and the optional Cullin hedgerow cutter.

Now it's very green. 

As I've said in previous posts I like building more than painting, so I was going to try some fast painting techniques to save time. To begin with I undercoated the model entirely with rattle spray cans. First it received a shot of black on the underside and sides from a low angle. Then I sprayed Flames of War Soviet Armour from a higher angle, and last -- still using a rattle can -- I used Army Painter Army Green directly from above to form highlights. 

G-Day!

G as in Gothcon that is, the largest roleplay-, war- and miniature games convention in Sweden. Scandinavian Lardies (as we have dubbed our little TFL fan group) will be there, demoing Chain of Command... the last month has been a furious painting and modelling ordeal to get everything finished, which is why I haven't updated for a while.

I won't write much, since I'm leaving for the train in half an hour, so I will simply post some WIP pictures instead.

Trying to fit stuff into my K&R satchel.

DAK, finished!

More DAK finished!

Brits and jump off points waiting to be varnished.

A well. Could come in handy in the desert. WIP DAK in the background.

An ex-camel.

British hero with looted MP40 and scoped Lee Enfield. Anyone who knows his name?

The vehicles fit! Hooray! 

The obligaotry Panzer Bucket.

Captured Bren gun carrier. One previous owner.

 Watch this space for the after-convention report in about a week.

Building Brutish British

Confession time: I hate painting.

No, no, no I don't, actually. But I like building more. I love building. Converting, carving, glueing, trying out different poses on miniatures, adding details like stowage or battle damage on vehicles. So when I bought the first box of Perry desert rats I quickly built all of the figures, and then painted a handful of them. And lost interest. Same thing with the Deutsche Afrika Korps; built every figure; painted five or six of them, and lost interest. By juggling painting projects around, switching between different subject I can usually keep my interest up a bit, but then another problem appears.

I was so bored painting figures I bought a Tamiya model kit. Of course, now that it's built I have to paint it. Doh!

When I'm steaming ahead I usually manage to build the figures to the wrong organisation, with too many submachine guns per platoon, or not enough light machine guns, or just plain using the wrong bases. With the desert rats I built two figures per squad with tommy guns but Chain of Command specifies only the NCO has one, and I have realised that not every player can discern big men by their equipment, so I needed to rebase the leaders on hex bases. So I ordered another box, of course. I can use the extra figures for dismounted scout squads and crew figures for support weapons.

Is it just me, or do they look like badly shaved gorillas? They look better IRL though.

At the same time I ordered a box of Bolt Action late war British Infantry. Since the Perry box is quite low on extra equipment I'm going to nick a few weapons and backpacks from the Warlord box, and I have plans for a special character using parts from both boxes. Although I already have a platoon of late war brits from Crusader Miniatures it's the bare minimum of figures, so the rest of the Bolt Action figures will be reinforcements for them.

But I have painted some stuff, among others the 2-pounder I bought from Perrys.

Even the sun has its spots

To supplement my Perry plastic Afrika Korps, I decided to buy a couple of their metal packs. At £7 for six figures they are not exactly cheap, and three packs cost as much as a box of their plastic figures. But I decided it was worth it, to get some different poses not possible to build from the box, and also because I really like the Perry twins' sculpts. In my experience metals are always better than plastic if all other things (like sculptor) being equal.

Perry Miniatures. Excellent sculpts, not so good casts.

I was in for a surprise though. The surface of the figures was quite uneven, with pits and even tiny holes were the metal hadn't filled the mold completely. Several rifles and one smg barrel were unformed, there were a lot of flash between legs on some figures, and the equipment on the back of some figures had big lumps of metal underneath. The figures are not unusable, but the quality is definitely not up to scratch. Either the Perry metals are extremely popular and have already worn out their moulds, or their caster is not up to scratch. A shame really.

As I now find that I need a few extra British figures I choose to buy another box of plastic figures instead of metals. Too bad, because Perry's metal British have long trousers instead of shorts and I wanted some variety but I do not dare to order them now.

Hugh Jarce, sculpted by Richard Ansell for TooFatLardies

Speaking of long trousers I recently found the Hugh Jarce figure that Richard Clarke commissioned for those who pre-ordered IABSM 3rd edition. He was buried in my lead pile under a bunch of Bushido miniatures. I originally planned to use him with my early war British, but now he gets to lead my desert forces instead. Armed with a drum magazine Tommy gun he's ready to bag the hun.

Last ditch of 2014 painting part 2 -- A thrilling triple trio.

So, the last day of 2014, and the last chance to accomplish something. Some of these were finished some time ago but lacked basing, or just one splash of colour or... well, the days since Christmas I have really tried to finish as much stuff as possible. What I really wanted to do was to paint my Secret Santa panzer IV, or start building the Stompa I bought for the Christmas money I got from my mum.

Can't wait to build this bad boy for my orks. Question is... Zimmerit or no Zimmerit?

So today comes a mixed bag of stuff really. Pictures after the break as usual.

Dipping disasters! Secret Santa Surprises! Tentacle Terror!

So the end of the year is coming and I'm desperately trying to finish all those nearly-there figures. Last night I was putting the finishing touches to a bunch of Perry's Desert Rats that I started just befor summer but have been virtually untouched for six months.

As the previous Desert Rats had been painted using Army Painter Dip I decided to try dipping the Stranglers from Shadows of Brimstone too. When I opened the can I noticed that a thick crust had formed on the dip, apparently I had not closed the lid properly. Getting rid of the hardened layer I stirred the dip, noticing it had thickened quite a lot. Using an old wash brush I dabbed it onto the first Perry figure. It went on ok but a bit thick, and as it wasn't as runny as normal it didn't really flow into all the crevices. Using the brush I managed to smear it around so it looked ok.

I decided to try and dilute what was left of the dip and tried first Thinner, but it didn't mix properly. I then figured I could try Future Floor polish (that I have been using when making my own dip) and first it looked like it would work. I didn't dare try it on one of the beautiful Perry figures, instead I gunked it onto a Strangler.

The ugly, the ugly and the ugly.

As you can see from the pictures it didn't work as well. While the dip was a bit less thick, the paint itself glooped together inside the varnish/dip mixture and didn't flow at all. The middle figure in the picture above was the first try. Not perturbed by the horrific result I tried again, this time wiping most of the gunk away with a cloth moistened with thinner. Slightly better result on (on the right) except that the thinner took off the base coat as well in some places. I gave up and binned the can of Army Painter and mixed my own wash, which I used on the left strangler.

So what happened to the Perry figures?

Warlord Games 28mm Universal Carrier review + build

I'm taking a short break for all the Shadows of Brimstone stuff to bring you my views of Warlord Games' Universal Carrier.

Looks quite alright, doesn't it? But yet it looks strangely familiar...

When Warlord released their plastic SdKfz 251 Hanomag about a year ago rumours emerged that it was really made by Italeri. A rumour that I can't substantiate or offer my own views on since I haven't built the kit and as far as I know Italeri does not have a Hanomag in 28mm or 1/56th scale. However, early this year Warlord and Italeri announced a partnership that would involve Italeri making four vehicle kits for Warlord Games: a Sherman, a Panther, a Cromwell and a Puma (you can read my views on the Panther here). The deal allows Italeri to sell the vehicles as well as Warlord Games plastic miniatures under their own brand while Warlord also can sell the vehicles under their own brand. Both companies are credited on the box covers though, so there is no doubt.

So when Warlord Games released a plastic Universal Carrier I was intrigued. Was this too manufactured by Italeri, or was it something else? I was then utterly confused when I saw the box cover, it looks exactly like the Plastic Soldier Company model available in 1/72! (You can read my review of that kit here.) So I had to order one to compare.

Figures finally finished! Frigging fantastic!

What's this, another update? Updates three days in a row? Will it start raining frogs next?

Actually what happened was that I had a lot of stuff nearly finished but didn't want to put it up before I had completed my X-wing Tournament report. It was tedious to write though, so I actually got some stuff painted in the mean time. So without further ado, pictures!

Crusader 28mm late war brits.

A little bit of this and that

Just some WIP shots of things I'm working on right now... I'm all over the place it seems!

Started on the first section of Crusader late war British.

Three finished. Was a while since I painted eyes...

 

Basecoated and did some colour modulation on the SdKfz 222 in front of the telly.

Additional bits from the Tamiya kit. Just decals, chipping, pigments and painting the commander left to do!

I also started painting Nurgle plaguebearers. Love these figures!

And that's that as they say.

Tin for the Tin God! Tin for the Tin mountain of Laffe!

Just a quickie to show what the postman brought me yesterday!

It's a parcel!

Hooray, it's my Chain of Command starter set from Rich!

I'm normally more of a coffee guy but tea is essential when sorting figures.

More pictures after the break

And the winners are...

...being revealed in just a little bit. But first I want to show you the results of applying the Dip to the Perry Desert Rats.

The Dip working it's magic.

This is truly the lazy painter's magic solution: the dip has beautifully picked out all the details on the figures, from the pockets on the tunics to the faces. I say again, these figures were just block painted and then had Army Painter's Strong Tone applied with a brush all over. After 24 hours of drying time they were hit with two light coats of Tamiya flat spray varnish.

Now on to the results of my giveaway!

Chain of Command Morale tracker

I should be building and painting stuff for our LRDG convention game in november, but it seems such a long way off that I'm constantly drawn to other projects. I started to build the Caproni bomber that will serve as a target for the good guys, but building planes is such a bore. I enjoy looking at planes, but not building them. Even worse is painting them, and by coincidence, a large part of the Caproni fuselage is taken up by windows -- which means I have to paint the insides before gluing the fuselage together. Boooring!

The cockpit interior and the two bomb racks that will fit inside the Caproni. And I can't be arsed to paint them.

Receiving the Chain of Command rule book last week didn't help, as I got inspired to do some more 28mm painting. I really enjoyed painting the Crusader British figures earlier, and yearned to paint some more. In the rule book I saw a picture of a rather camp German officer, and remembered a set called "The St. Albans Four" that the renowned sculptor Richard Ansell did as a tribute (or perhaps joke) for Richard Clarke. I got the idea to use two of the figures for morale trackers, mounting them on casualty markers from Warbases. I highly recommend Warbases by the way, great products for good prices, and very good service.

Sid and Rich in metal versions.

The figures depict the four main culprits of the St. Albans wargames club, which was the spawning ground for TooFatLardies. Both I Ain't Been Shot, Mum! and Charlie Don't Surf! started out as their club rules. (Much like Bolt Action started out as a WW2 version of second edition 40k that Rick Priestley and Jervis Johnson used when gaming at the Perry Twins' house.) The figures were included in the Bolt Action range, since Richard Ansell also sculpted their french line. Richard is a very talented sculptor and has done work for a lot of companies, including sculpting a 1/48 scale WW2 range for North Star Miniatures, now available from Scarab Miniatures. Ironically, Bolt Action got sold to Warlord games who then produced the Bolt Action game in cooperation with Osprey. The St. Albans Four were then re-released as a Christmas Truce pack! (If anyone fancies them Warlord Games is having a free shipping campaign until the end of August.)

The dial spins around to reveal the numbers 12 to 0.

I painted Big Rich the same way as I painted the Crusader brits, in fact I had my blog post up on an Android tablet while painting to see which paints I had used. The only difference was that I needed some red and gold for his hat and that I painted the boots brown instead of black. The bottles were painted green and washed with gloss black paint.

Big Rich toasting his great find!

The base was textured the same way as the rest of my brits, but very carefully to avoid jamming the dial.

Hugh Jarce? Nah, I'll paint him later.

The figure is a good likeness of Rich, but apparently has too small feet.

Oh well. Back to the Caproni again...

Crusader Miniatrures British painting guide

I'm really intending to play Chain of Command in 20 mm since I do have lots and lots of 20 mm troops already. However, the battle reports coming from the Lard Island blog and Sidney Roundwood's blog using 28mm figures and 1/48 scale vehicles look very tasty indeed. So that reminded me that I actually had a bunch of 28mm stuff I ordered several years ago in a bout of "Oooh Shiney"-syndrome.

The British part of the loot; a section of infantry and some serious hardware.

After rummaging around a surprisingly short time I found a small but suspiciously heavy box. Inside were a receipt from Crusader Miniatures dated december 2006, a couple of unopened blisters, two large ziploc-bags with unpainted figures and a few miniatures I had started painting carefully rolled in bubblewrap.

British Steel -- Revell Churchill

In a bout of nostalgia and inspired by my mate Jocke's blog posts about his Normandie trip, I decided to kick off my summer holiday by building the old Matchbox Churchill AVRE in 1:76 scale. This is of course the re-released version by Revell. It comes with a folding girder bridge but I decided to build it without the bridge, as I don't think I will be playing many bridge-laying scenarios.

British steel in form of the Churchill AVRE close support tank.

 AVRE stands for "Armoured Vehicle Royal Engineers" and was a collective name for a number of variants used by engineers for various purposes. This version carries a 290mm petard mortar for demolishing bunkers and strongholds. Just what I need for Chain of Command. (But of course I can use it in IABSM too or any other WW2 game.)

Small but beautiful

A couple of weeks a go I finished some british armoured cars from GHQ models, but I haven't had the time to write up a report on them.

Daimler armoured cars armed with 2-pounder guns.

These are 1:285 scale, or 6mm scale. 40k players might recognise it as Epic scale, although GW never wrote out the actual scale. It's more commonly known as microarmour.