North West Frontier Family History

 

I've just stumbled upon this excellent website which includes an account of No.39 Squadron RAF and its operations on the North West Frontier in the late 1930's. This is all very interesting as my grandfather flew as a Flight Sergeant with No.39 Squadron at the time and is referenced in the article, both as an experienced pilot and in a photograph of 'B' Flight, in which the author's father also flew as a fellow NCO. How incredible that they actually flew to together, not just in the same squadron but the same flight and even the same aircraft on one occasion! Needless to say I've contacted the author for more information! 

Napoleonic French Fleet Frigates

A slow day but here are the additional fifth rate frigates for La Royale, all of which are the Tumbling Dice ASN10 model from the 1/2400th scale range. The two newly built models are both Coquille class 40 gun frigates, Sirene and Themis, while the one I had in the spares box will either be their sister ship Franchise or the 36 gun L'Insurgent. Ooh La La! 

Winchester Shieldwall

The local club is involved in this event, which looks like a very exciting opportunity to explore some early medieval wargaming in a historical context, especially as Ryan Lavelle is involved. I'm not taking a role in the club contribution, which frees me up to join in with the other games assuming I can get hold of a ticket. I'm particularly interested in Mark's Chivalry and Honour game, which sounds very good and might even give me a boot to get my 2mm Hundred Years War project back up and running. It's all literally on my doorstep too, so no excuse not to get involved, even if my wargaming interests have never really focused on the period, despite having studied it for my first degree (in the very same place!)

http://www.ryanlavelle.net/winchestershieldwall.html

Napoleonic French Fleet Extras

It's cooled down a bit here in Brittany which means I can get down to some wargaming model assembly without the superglue going off like concrete in split seconds. So, here we have three more third rates for La Royale c1800, Mont Blanc (74), Argonaute (74) and Indivisible (80), conveniently filling three spare slots in my storage box. Next up are three 40 gun fifth rate frigates to provide some scouting, patrol and repeating duties, assuming they ever get through the Royal Navy blockade? 

Sword

The summer holidays are a chance for me to catch up with some serious reading, usually hardback titles that I've acquired second hand over the year. I started with this one a couple of days ago and have finished bed it already, not that it's a particularly long read. I went off Max Hastings a few years ago, after hearing him talk live about his book on Vietnam, where he didn't really seem to have anything interesting or insightful to say, perhaps because he churns out books that are more popular military history than academic studies. That does make them an easy and enjoyable read, however, so ideal for holiday consumption. This one is actually pretty good and reminds me of his early books on the Falklands and Korean War, which are some of his best in my opinion. I might have a look at another of his recent books next perhaps? 

Happy Bastille Day 🇨🇵

The Full Nelson

This should be published in the not too distant future, which has me wondering about the Black Seas plastic frigates, sloops and brigs that I picked up a couple of years ago, second hand. The rules are clearly aimed at the 1/700th scale end of the spectrum, judging from the play test reports I've been following, although no doubt suitable for other scales too. In fact, I have some Langton 1/1200th scale kits in a box somewhere that would do the trick. However, this does look like a good opportunity to build and paint those plastic models, specifically for smaller actions with frigates and unrated warships, so that's where I'm headed in the autumn I reckon, as I don't need to spend anything to get myself up and running. 

Napoleonic Naval Rules Review

I've brought a couple of sets of Age of Sail fleet level naval rules along for the holidays, only one of which I've played previously, to use with my 1/2400th scale ships. I really like the A&A Grand Fleet Actions rules, having played in a number of games at the local club, including Trafalgar a few years ago. They are ideal for 1/2400th and straight forward enough to work well for solo games. The other set is from Long Face Games and is a system I've been intending to try out for a long time, as it is also designed for fleet actions using smaller scale models. Finally, I've been asked by David Manley to play test a new set of rules he's working on for frigate actions, designed for 1/700th scale Black Seas models, but easily adapted to 1/2400th by swapping inches for centimetres (I hope!). They look ideal for the Quasi War amongst other things, so I'm looking forward to giving them a go! With the Full Nelson from Toofatlardies on the horizon, I'm even considering building some plastic frigates, sloops and brigs in 1/700th, as I have a second hand stash set aside but don't really like the Black Seas rules...another project for the second half of the year methinks?

JG5 'Eismeer'

The latest additiin to my research library for the Arctic Eagles project is this Kagero Publishing book, designed for scale modellers but with lots of photographs, profiles and useful historical details, so a great source of information to back up why I've already gathered together. It is usually quite pricey but I got hold of a brand new copy for under a tenner, so a bit of a bargain.!

Napoleonic Naval Summer Holiday

It's been a bit quiet here lately, as I've been at work then on the road, but I'm now on holiday for the summer in sunny Brittany. To keep myself occupied I've brought along my 1/2400th French and British Napoleonic fleets for a few solo wargames, as well as an entire Spanish fleet to assemble and base, with a few additional ships for La Royale and the Royal Navy. It's very hot at the moment so I might wait a bit before unpacking this lot but I'll get started as soon as it cools off a bit!