556 - Gorgeous Commission-Painted Churchill I

Hullo, All!

A strange set of circumstances has led to two things: 

1. I won a lovely Churchill I, at the tournament, back in February, and 
2. I've just had it painted by commission - something I've never even vaguely considered doing.

The very talented (and extremely speedy!) Mike Carless - based in the UK as War Paint Workshop; [link] details below - was touting for business to kickstart his commissioning, and after a brief bit of pondering, I decided to take advantage of his absolutely knock-down introductory price...and here is the fantastic result - a battered and bruised Churchill I from 51st RTR - one of a handful that saw stalwart service in both North Africa and up through the Italian campaign:

The model is from Mad Bob's Miniatures: [link here] and is absolutely gorgeous.

It's hard to overstate how impressed I am with Mike's painting service [again, see below for details] - the tank, which was sent as bare and untreated resin, was completed within five days of Mike receiving it, and he even added some excellent stowage. I gave him only a vague steer for unit markings etc. and what he delivered was absolutely spot-on for my needs.  

It looks suitably knackered and beaten up, and well dusted by light Mediterranean dust and muck. In fact, it's made me start to reconsider whether I ought really to weather my NW Europe vehicles a little more convincingly...but that can wait for now!

Armed with a useful combination of (in game terms) a 2pdr light AT turret and a 3" light howitzer in the hull, this thing can bimble along at the back of my lines and lay down some characterfully light 'hurt' whilst hopefully taking a few punches too. 

In this last shot you can also see the alternative hull plate to replace the 3" howitzer. The substitution of the hull MG makes it into a Churchill Mk II.

Having ended up with a surprise Churchill I/II - and being a little baffled by just where it might fit into my long-term plans, it brought me joy to discover that the Mark Is actually kept lumbering on into the Gothic Line in '44 - a tribute to their close support firepower and legendary (if slow) manoeuvrability across rugged terrain. This meant it was in fact perfect to go with the North Africa-cum-Italy force I plan to develop in the future. 

My vague plan now is considering the Perry Desert Rats box with the Perry Sikh heads. I reckon that'd be more fun, and a wee tribute to all the Sikh lads I grew up with and their grandfathers' sacrifices on behalf of ol' Blighty.

Mike Carless - War Paint Workshop

If you are interested in making use of Mike's excellent services, you can find him on 

• facebook on this link [here], 
• twitter as MikeyCarless 
• or by email: mcarless [at] rocketmail dot com.

He communicates extremely well and he really is bafflingly swift!

Spread the word...

Cheers, All,

- Drax.

555 - EIGHT YEARS OF DRAX

Oops! I just realised.

Hullo, Dear Readers.

I started the 'Admiral Drax' blog in 2008, and this - now - is what remains with me of B Company, 2nd Battalion, Cadian 24th Light Infantry and its attached units: 

'After the War' and OC 2 Platoon B Coy, 2/24th Cadian LI.

Everything else is now in the safety of the marshaling yards of Devos IV, under the aegis of the noble Zzzzzz. There is quite literally no better place.

Eight years ago...

This is what I wrote:

Tuesday, 6 May 2008

001 Why am I here?

This is an experiment, and it has probably three parts:

1) I shall try to update this blog - as and when work pressures allow - to show progress I'm making with my WH40K and WFB armies. This is likely to be slow, but does at least give me the excuse to write up my army lists and take photos;

2) Hopefully, this will encourage me to finish more units more regularly and less piecemeal;

3) Finally, I've already found considerable inspiration from those bloggers already doing something similar and - while I don't pretend my armies are anything special - my ideas may just be of interest to others. 

We'll see. 

Also, I'm forcing myself, kicking and screaming into the internet community.

- Drax.

...and this is where I am now...

Five hundred and fifty-four blog posts later, I have now completely forsaken the playing of Warhammer 40,000, and my hobby now is focussed upon the brilliant Bolt Action and X-Wing. I retain my Flames of War force (the perfect 15mm company-sized version of my 28mm Bolt Action platoon) and I hope over the long term to expand in three different directions:

1. I'd like to try 'Chain of Command' (and maybe some other rules) with my extant WW2 British forces
2. The desert war (and into Italy), in both 15mm and 28mm
3. SAGA - Normans. Wahey!

I'm a member of two splendid clubs, which means I've got more chance of games than I ever have before, but with two kids now and a job which never allows much in the way of 'me-time', I still don't get to play very much...

And what about the blog then?

Well, much like me, this blog is something of a relic, stuck in the glories of the past and somewhat lacking in relevance to the year of grace 2016.

So, like me, it shall plod on!

*Drax smiles*.

And for those who've ever wondered what I look like, here's me today, in front of a Cadian Canadian Sherman in Portsmouth, my home town, in front of the D-Day Museum:

(It's taken by No.1 daughter, hence the low-angle)

Take care, all, and thank you. Thank you very much for all the support over the years. New readers and old; friends met and friends long since gone offline, I owe you a debt. 

Cheers,

- Chris/Drax.

554 - Mickey Mouse Camouflage Pattern

Hullo, All.

I've been experimenting with some Mickey Mouse camouflage. Just a work-in-progress, but if you've any thoughts or comments, I'd love to hear them...

Cheers,

- Drax.