Catch Up With Part 15 : HERE

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Another week past and I’ve finally gotten around to doing another update. The base is done and hopefully it captures the sense of the Steyr coming out of a narrow sunken lane. So this is where it’s at.

I’ve played around with the Para figure and I think I’m finally set on where he will go. I want to portray him as having stayed in place a bit too long trying to get a PIAT into action so I’ve used the Tristar CLE Mk.I Airborne Container together with a few packs from the spares box and a Plus Model PIAT. I’ll add another PIAT bomb container with two in it and the third on the ground beside him as if he was trying to get it loaded. I’m toying with the idea of draping a part of the parachute over one branch of the tree but I’ll see how that goes.

Continue on to Part Sixteen …

Catch Up With Part 14 : HERE

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Wow, two weeks since the last update, my bad. But I have actually been working on it over that time and it’s starting to come together. I’ve been painting up all the stowage and accessories while also working on the diorama base and doing small periods of painting of the figures ( my eyes these days seem to only be able to handle a half hour or so of fine detail painting before they start to hurt ).

So all the stowage and bits are now done with the exception of an MP43 and a mag for it, an MP40 mag, an MG42 ammo tin and a lot of fired brass which I’ll do closer to the end. There is of course also the para gear as in the end I decided to go with the para laying right on the end of the bridge beside a opened CLE Mk.1 Airborne Drop Container so will have the impact pad loose beside that as well as the underwing cradle. There will also be a few packs inside plus one of two PIATs with the second PIAT beside the fallen para. The idea there being that he stayed on the bridge too long in an attempt to get a PIAT set up to fire at whatever vehicle was coming.

Most of the stowage will be in the rear compartment or on the rear deck with a few bits in and around the seats. It’s all pretty self explanatory, the suitcase and bible, violin case, soft stowage, boxes, bread and basket are all scratchbuilt, the rest are from the spares box. For those of you who missed the earlier parts the engine is also scratchbuilt, just a quick knock up to give the impression of an engine through the mesh and gap in the hood.

And finally a few bits that didn’t make the cut.

Continue on to Part Sixteen …

Catch Up With Part 13 : HERE

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All the figures are now done and are at the ready-to-be-painted stage. I went with the full eight for the German crew in the end, plus there’s a ninth figure in production who will represent a fallen para at the edge where the bridge finishes. He’s still just a possible at this stage, if I feel he doesn’t fit the scene then I’ll leave him off.

So the eight figures will be made up of two groups of three and two individuals. One group is made up of the injured driver and the guy pulling him out of the vehicle along with a third figure running from the rear to them carrying a first aid bag. The second group is the MG team who will have a couple of ammo cans at their feet. The last two figures are one reaching for a grenade case in the rear compartment of the Steyr, and the officer who is hit and slumped against the side wall of the bridge.

Because the MG crew are being depicted in action it was necessary to add the extended belt link coming out of the right of the MG42 as well as expended ammo. So there will be a series of empty cases falling down ( strategically placed to connect with items along the way including the last one on the top of a blade of grass ). These are taking a lot of time to produce as I need 44 ( have 14 done ) as they are all drilled out, necked and belted one by one. Hopefully when painted up with a dull brass the effect will be worth the effort.

I’ll also be adding an empty MP40 magazine at the feet of the NCO as well as a few 9mm cases ( luckily they fly further from the gun so wouldn’t be a pile of them on the diorama like there is with the MG42 ). Ditto a few cases for the loader who is reloading his Kar98K, he’ll get a couple of empty cases.

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I’m going to slightly shorten the rifle sling on the guy running with the first aid bag. His bag was made from epoxy putty and the straps connected with fuse wire made into clips. The handle ahs been set up so that it has the bag swinging rearward as he runs. Likewise his gas mask canister is swinging freely forward ( try sitting in a vehicle without pulling those around to sit on your thigh ).

Now it’s onto the painting. I’ve left the top part off the MP40 on the MG NCO until his face is painted to give me a little more clearance, likewise their headgear. I want to do them in a mix of camo so it will be a mishmash of field grey trousers, Italian M29 pattern camo trousers, first style camo smock in early oak pattern, late style camo smocks in oak autumn and oak spring, peadot tunics and trousers. Likewise some helmets with camo cover and some without, some well worn, one or two nice and new.

In the meantime I’m painting up the stowage and then will get the groundwork done so I can fine tune that to their poses before I paint them. So this is pretty much where they are now at, all slings etc added, undercoated and ready to go ( though they’ve had a few touch-ups since undercoating which picked out a few areas that needed addressing ).

And lastly how they’ll all work together on the base, together with the para who is still a WIP and still undecided as to whether or not he’ll be included in the finished result. The driver and NCO are missing from these photos, and the “bushes” are just stand-ins to give me a feel for how the finished result will balance out. The tree will be in full foliage and I want to give the impression that the road leads into a typical Normandy lane with hedgerows either side.

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These last four photos are a possible variation I’m considering with the Steyr pushed back 1cm, the wounded officer moved to be slumped up against the Steyr instead of the wall, and a drop container added. Just can’t decided on the final composition just yet.

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Continue on to Part Fifteen …

Catch Up With Part 12 : HERE

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The basic base layout is now done and positions are finalised. Ignore the state of the base, it still needs work, the non cracking modelling clay cracked faster than a teenage suspect on a CSI episode and the bushes are just temporary stand-ins to give me a sense of size and placement so I can get a feel for the overall effect. The end of the bridge seemed a bit empty so I’m toying with the idea of adding a fallen Para to both fill the space and give more background to the story, to make it a bit more self evident just what is happening.

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From here I need to paint the bridge and then start adding groundwork and the tree foliage. The underside of the bridge has been given just basic detailing as I intend to have it 90% covered in slimy growth. There will also be just a touch of muddy water along the edge to the right under the bridge. So all pretty simple from here on in, just time consuming as there will be a few washes on the bridge but at least I can work on the other groundwork while they dry. Plus of course there’s all the stowage and figures to paint.

Here’s a few close ups of the bridge sides as well as showing the fender of the Steyr impacted into the stones. Basically you just take varying sized blobs of clay and slap them onto the wall surfaces and then sculpt them into the shapes you want together with the gaps for the mortar. The painting will bring them out and that’s the hard part.

One side was done straight onto the foam base, the other side had the foam covered with a thin clay base first just to see the difference. I prefer the second way as putting it straight onto the foam gives the “mortar” too much of a uniform depth.

Continue on to Part Fourteen …

Catch Up With Part 11 : HERE

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So here we are a few steps back, a little out of order I know but at least I did get around to doing it. This is the stowage that I’ve been working on. The vehicle is intended to depict one in an area expecting eventual hostilities, but just not expecting them that morning, but of course being in an area of Partisan activity the crew are still in combat gear, armed and ready.

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But it also means there’s a few things aboard that you wouldn’t normally find in a combat vehicle. I like to give my builds a little personal touch and a little bit of personality, so in this case under the seats is a violin case and a soccer ball, and in the back is a suitcase with a book tucked under the strap as well as a couple of tied up small cardboard boxes and a spare pair of boots.

Of course there’s also the basket of bread which has been dropped onto the seat as the crew dismounted under fire. This is the key to the story showing where they have been that morning, off into town to buy bread from the French bakery to take back to their post.

Due to sitting down while wearing all your kit can be a right pain ( ever wondered why current U.S. troops wear the bulk of it on their chest ? ) I’ve taken the mess tins off most and put them into a box where the crew will access them at meal times. I’ve also removed a few gas mask canisters and a bread bag and hung them around the vehicle ( one hanging by the jerry can, one in the back, one on the rear deck ). The important stuff like ammo pouches stay where they should be.

The driver’s G43 has fallen forward in the crash and the violin case and MG42 drum mag carrier have slid forward from under the rear seat at the same time. The jerrycan will be marked as containing water. There’s also a spare Kar98K with a rifle grenade in place and two grenade cases in the rear, one of which is being reached for by the figure at the back.

The MG42 laffette has been pulled out of the back by the same guy, and by the jerrycan is a trophy PPsH 41 showing that at least one of the crew is an eastern Front veteran.

The rolled stowage, bags, bread and ball are all made from Tamiya epoxy putty, the laffette is from the Tamiya “Machine Gun Crew on Maneuveur” set with just a few details added, and all the slings etc on the gas mask containers and bread bag are paper with wire clips and small mounts added from thin stretched sprue.

Continue on to Part Thirteen …