690 - Fairly Random Recent Hobby Pics

For anyone still out there, some snaps of recent hobby antics...

Stay well,

- Drax.

688 - Painting Chart Updates (Part 1 - WWII)

Hullo All,

Well, I'm back at work (which sucks) but I'm also partway through a pretty productive summer!

I thought I'd mark this by updating where I am with all of my forces and projects, starting with the WWII 28mm stuff. Next post will be the Ancient and Dark Ages stuff, which has been...er...expanding rather rapidly of late!

So without further ado, this is where I am with my...

British 4KSLI (11th Armoured Division): 

(Here's the key, by the way)

The British Indian Army in the Desert:

British Paras:

German Early-War Heer:

German Late-War Heer Grenadiers: 

...and finally, the RAF Regiment and the (as yet unbuilt but nevertheless expanding) US Buffalo Soldiers:

Cheers,

- Drax.

679 - Yet Another System?! - Mortal Gods

Yup, 

I've been given a bunch of Ancient Greek minis, and invited to paint them up for a spot of 'Mortal Gods'... and as I'm not one to pass on a freebie, here goes!

They'll be armoured and unarmoured Theban hoplites. As for the game? - well, I have no idea about that... yet!

- Drax.

677 - 'Cruel Seas' Mast Storage Conversion

Evening All,

Just another quick update: I've solved the problem of stowing flimsy white metal masts for 'Cruel Seas' vessels, with help from my brand new brace of Fairmile D 'Dog Boats' (from Warlord Games):

As the mast slots snugly into a hole amidships, I've simply carved a recess into the base of the resin hull into which the mast may be placed. A simple length of tape (plastic tape here, but long-term, masking tape is more likely) then keeps the mast in place. 

Happy days.

And what will I do when I've got flags and pennants etc. Added to the mast? - Well, who knows? Maybe I'll just carve space for them too, eh?

Oh, and I also got a wee shout-out on the WS&S blog, here (link).

More ship goodness soon, I expect... 

...but fear not, Gentle Reader: I promise you I'll be back to 28mm again before too long!

Ta,

- Drax.

675 - On the Workbench at the Moment...

A bunch of Hail Caesar Vikings...

 ...some Cruel Seas card holders...

...and a fiddly ol' 1/350 model of HMS Eskimo:

That is all.

- Drax

670 - Bolt Action Cromwell ARV

Hi All,

I still feel way too poorly to paint, but I did at least manage to get something built this week: my lovely new Cromwell ARV from S and S models:

The metal conversion pieces can come with the Italeri 1/56 kit at a tempting discount, and they're beautifully crisp with next to no flash or mold lines at all!

I chose to pin most of the bits in place, as they're REALLY bulky and heavy, but they are well-measured to fit the kit.

What makes this even better for me, is that I now - at last - have a spare Cromwell 75mm turret, just in case I want to field my CS howitzer variant as a normal tank. Why might I wish to do this? - well, because if I wish to play a squadron of Cromwells in - say - 'What A Tanker!', howitzers are useless in that game: there are no squishy targets. Hmmmm.

Rear view.

(Incidentally, S and S make a Cromwell CS conversion kit, too, as well as other ARVs!)

Another piece of the 11AD puzzle in place.

TTFN,

- Drax

654 - More Scenery Bits and Bobs

Yup - I've been making more scenery for a friend, so here are a couple of snapshots: 

15mm 4-Ground desert dwellings. They are clever kits and look smashing, but they're fiddly. The one third in was bit very well engineered, sadly.

More 15mm 4-Ground - a beautiful kit with amazing latticework in the windows: three floors plus attic.

 And then there are these bad-boys (Sarissa; Antares): I showed the mine-vent-thingy on the left before; the triangular structure on the right is just the central hub of a new complex I'm building. You'll see it in a future post when it's all done, but last night I actually tried out Antares itself, so I snapped these pics.

Again, another post will follow about the Antares game.

Hope all's well,

- D.