Jagdpanthers and Valentines

I have just won a single sprue of an Armourfast Jagdpanther to add to the German tank force that I'm assembling. Huzzah! I've wanted one of these all along but couldn't justify the cost of a full kit of two tank destroyer models when they were relatively rare. I can use the leftover spare bits from the Panther detailing set to tart up the single Jagdpanther too. I'll aim to paint it up in a winter scheme a bit like this one:

As a bonus, the auction came with a single sprue for a Valentine MkII, which I can use for my Soviet force as a recce tank, which is how the Russians decided to use them right up to the end of the war. It was a bargain as well, with each tank costing only £2.49, so well under the normal ticket price. I now have more than enough kits for both the Russians and the Germans, which doesn't mean I won't be tempted to get some more...

...and this was supposed to be a small, weekend project?!

Armourfast Panther Ausf G Kit

I have now got hold of the Armourfast Panther kit and also have two detailing sets from Early War Miniatures with which to soup them up. This is handy as the basic models are just that, fairly basic, so things like hull machine guns, stowage, tools and bazooka plates aren't included. I have almost run out of Humbrol Matt Dark Earth spray paint so will probably undercoat the Panthers on the sprues with something else, although I have to find the time to build them as well. I have lots of other things to do in the meantime including building a couple of T34/76, a second Tiger, undercoating the 'Emchas' and finishing off the weathering on the rest of the Soviet tanks. Blimey!

What a Tanker! Tigers

The Italeri Quick Build Tiger I's arrived in the post today, so I've just spent half an hour or so putting one together. It's a brilliant little model with only ten parts and you really wouldn't know that it's a simple fast build kit. The tracks need some fiddly filing due to a seam running down the middle and the turret  has a nasty dimple and a seam on both sides which I have now filled and sanded but, apart from that, it's a cracking little tank. I've undercoated it in Humbrol 29 Matt Dark Brown and will wet brush a basecoat of Panzer Yellow over the top. Panzers Marsch!

What a Tanker! Russian Reinforcements

I've been working away over the last couple of days to add a few more Soviet tanks to the collection from the kits that I already had stashed in the loft. The first two are M4A2 Shermans to replace the ones I mucked up on Monday. I've added some stowage and a rack of fuel drums to one of them, using some spares from an Italeri IS-2 that I had left over. To make the most of the other left over bits I did some simple kit bashing, which involved adding the 122mm gun barrel from the IS-2 to a spare ISU-152 hull to make a ISU-122S tank destroyer. Job done!

Soviet Lend Lease Tanks

I have been flicking through this Osprey and now plan to add some more Lend Lease AFV's to the Russian tank collection. I had to bin two of the three Sherman M4A2's that I built last weekend, when my sticky fingers ruined the paint finish and the decals went pear shaped, but at least one will now be replaced. I have also found an old 1/72nd scale Hasegawa M3 Lee kit that I could build for What a Tanker!, although it would be very unlikely to appear after 1944. If I can find a not too expensive Churchill MkIII then that would be a better option. In the meantime I'm waiting for a couple of T34/76 1943 models to arrive in the post to bulk out the Soviets.

What a Tanker! Mark IV's

I needed some Mark IV's for the German tank forces to use against my nearly finished Soviets. The Level 3 1944-45 career entry point tanks in What a Tanker! include the ubiquitous Mark IV G-H, so I really thought I should get hold of some to go alongside the Panthers and Tigers that are already in the post. The only real option here, if you want a quick build kit, is the Plastic Soldier Company set of three as the Armourfast and Italeri options don't include the Schutzen side skirts.

After a hunt around for the best offer, I found a second hand, unused kit on eBay so I can now bulk out the bottom end of the German tank forces, giving me a clear path for promotion up the ladder. These will be painted up when I do the other tanks in a batch, with a similar winter camouflage theme to the Russian AFV's. I'll also do a couple of one off vehicles at the same time, as I really want a Jagdpanther and at least one Stug IV!

What a Tanker! Wash and Go

I took David Manley's sage advice (Thanks David) and gave the camouflaged tanks an overall wash in the same Gryphon Sepia, Nuln Oil and Future wash that I used on them before I applied the whitewash effect. The end result looks loads better and, with a bit of Nuln Oil pin washing in the various nooks and crannies, I'm now ready to add some weathering and final details.

Unfortunately, I stuffed up two of the Shermans in the process, so they've gone to the great tank park in the sky, which is a shame but not something I'm too annoyed about as they can easily be replaced. I'll aim to finish the remaining tanks off over the rest of the week, by which time I should have some Panzers to start on, as well as a couple of Soviet T34's. Za Rodinu!

What a Tanker! 1/48th T34/76

When I was digging out the 1/72nd scale Armourfast kits for What a Tanker! at the weekend I also unboxed a couple of resin T34/76 that I bought as support elements for a 28mm Russian platoon. This didn't happen, as I decided to do a Japanese army for Chain of Command instead, so they went back in the box. Now that I've had a go at Soviet armour painting in 20mm, I quite fancy doing these as well, so that I can use them for What a Tanker! games with my other larger scale AFV's.

These resin T34/76 are by First Corps and, although a little rough around the edges, they will be perfect as an opposing force against my 1/50th scale Corgi Panther Ausf G and Tiger I. I don't think they'll get started any time soon but they are now sitting on the shelf above the workbench waiting for a rainy weekend. In the meantime, I'm carrying on in 1/72nd scale in order to have a wider range of tanks and to soak up all of those redundant Armourfast and Italeri kits in the loft!

Desert Spitfires Egyptian Decals

I've decided to try the I-94 decal sheet as a possible way to get some insignia for the Egyptian Air Force, even though the sheet is designed for 1/285th scale not 1/600th. If the smallest roundels are small enough for wings or fuselage on the fighters I will be very surprised but at least I'll have something to decorate the C-47's, Ansons and Stirlings with, assuming I can squeeze more than one aircraft out of a single sheet? It's worth a try as Dom still hasn't got his act together, leaving me scratching my head for alternatives. I suppose I could try printing some myself?

What a Tank Holiday Wrap Up

I painted the tracks this afternoon then added some decals, which were a right pain as they didn't behave themselves, before deciding to crack on with the winter whitewash camouflage. This ended up being a bit rushed but it looks good enough for wargaming purposes, so it will have to do. I still need to do some washing and highlighting, add some decals over the winter camo on a few of the tanks, paint the road wheel tyres and finish off with some weathering, but this will have to wait until another long weekend. I'm now wondering it I should have just gone for the Russian Green scheme, as it was looking better than the snow camo end result, but you live and learn!

I've really enjoyed this unexpected diversion over the Bank Holiday weekend, even if I didn't actually finish it or get a game of What a Tanker! squeezed into one of the three days. I'm planning to set up a  solo playtest game using my 28mm tanks at some point soon, but the 1/72nd scale Russian tanks will now be moved to one side, so that I can get on with what I'm supposed to be doing - the Desert Spitfires project.  I've neglected this of late, so will be keen to crack on with it over the next couple of weeks, first of all by completing the RAF aircraft then moving onto the Israelis.