Fort Steilacoom Fix Bayonet Game Day

I was able to host a Bolt Action Western Desert game in the morning period. The brown felt represent dug in positions for infantry. The players were allowed to choose to use them or not. They chose to use them.

The Axis failed their preparatory bombardment with a die roll of 1. The Axis players chose to leave three units in reserve and made the initial attack with the rest.

The very cool historical building we get to play in. 

An ACW game with great looking figures. 

Another Bolt Action game. 

The Allies stayed in their dug outs for most of the game - making the Axis advance cautiously. Here a Panzer IV tries to fire HE into a mortar position.

The sole tank casualty, a Crusader - caused by Italian Bersaglieri infantry assaulting it, of all things!

Montgomery was the overall commander for the Allies - and Rommel the Axis. Both had level 3 bonuses.

A Rebels and Patriots game. 

This was the other Bolt Action game in the first period. ETO looks like - maybe a Band of Brothers scenario.

Altar of Freedom ACW game in 6mm (scale correction thanks to Matt!). This is the game in the library.

Dragon Rampant game.

Wings of Glory game.

A few pictures of the Chain of Command Stalingrad game being set up. All the terrain was handbuilt by the host - he even made the train tracks by hand. He said he didn't want to use ready made train tracks because they didn't have correct amount (for him) of ties per track length; or something OCD like that.

I had to leave before the second period gaming started.

The small venue can host 4 tables per period. Although the second period used the library for an ACW game - the gamer who is part of the Fort Steilacoom Historical Society used it. Rank has its privileges.

A great day to game and spend time with old (and new) buddies. 

1/48th Tamiya Jagtiger and 1/50th Corgi Panther - Slightly Weathered

Dry brushed both tanks to soften the greens as I thought they were a bit too dark. This gave the tanks a slightly weathered look too.

Plan to use a lighter/softer green for future projects.

The Tamiya 1/48th Jagdtiger with Victory Force minis for scale comparison.

The 1/50th Corgi Panther, again with Victory Force figures for comparison. I think they look both look like good matches for 28mm figures - especially the ones on the larger side like these.

Head on scale/size comparisons.

Although they are slightly different scales, they seem to work well enough together.

It was a decent experience using an actual airbrush for the first time. It's a nice addition to the hobby toolbox, particularly for projects like this.

Well, so much for now. Thanks again for stopping by and checking out the blog. Best wishes to you all!

First Attempt At Airbrushing - 1/48th Tamiya Jagtiger and 1/50th Corgi Panther.

I just tried out a newly acquired airbrush set and paint booth with fan and air filter - both were on sale from Amazon. The airbrush with compressor was $59 USD - so couldn't pass it up. I also ordered a set of Vallejo airbrush acrylics - also on sale - about $30 for 16 bottles. The primary use for the airbrush was to apply camo to German armor. So - my first attempt was a repaint of an old Tamiya Jagdtiger I had painted green camo stripes on by hand. Never was really satisfied with the results. Immediately after the Jagdtiger, I added camo the Corgi Panther that had been given a coat of dunklegelb. The results for both weren't total disasters, and learned a lot of how to apply the spray. Namely, hold the airbrush close to the model to reduce unwanted overspray. And also to apply successive light coats rather than single heavy ones. I did the latter a few times as I tend to be impatient.

The lines on the Jagtiger are a little closer than I had wanted - wanted to leave more of the dunklegelb basecoat showing. Also, the green for both tanks is a bit darker than I wanted. I mixed the colors by eye, and rather haphazardly and quickly. The colors looked okay on test paper, but spraying too thickly on the models made the colors darker. I may drybrush dunklegelb over the finishes to lighten it up a little. Otherwise, I'm very happy with the airbrush and paint booth. Again, this was my first time using an actual airbrush - the only previous experience was a time or two with those old Testors airbrushes needing a can of compressed air. The few times I used it the airbrush would clog up after a minute or two - leaving me with a barely used can of compressed air.

Here's what the Tamiya Jagdtiger looked like with hand-painted green stripes. I was able to remove the decals that were on using decal softener - a tip I found on YouTube. The decals were on for several years and came off with little effort.

Here's the paint booth and airbrush with compressor. The paint booth has nice LED lights and a small removable turntable. It has a decent fan to suck out overspray and fumes, which aren't much as I plan to use acrylic water-based paints. The airbrush compressor isn't much louder (or more powerful) than a good aquarium pump. You can't hear it over the paint station's fan anyway. Cleaning up the airbrush between colors and afterwards wasn't as bad as expected. Just had a dropper and cleaning solution onhand the whole time.

The paint booth fan comes with an expandable hose for the exhaust. Since I painted it indoors without venting outside, I placed the end inside of a flower pot. I didn't notice any residue inside the pot afterwards.

Well, I'm in the big leagues now that I finally have an airbrush. We'll see if I'll have other uses for it. I've seen YouTube videos with folks using it to prime figures and also for larger areas as a basecoat. Until next time, thanks for your visits and hope you find it interesting. Best wishes to all.

1/48th Scale Shermans - Tamiya and Hobby Boss Kits

Wanted a couple of Shermans with cast hulls. The other Shermans I already have are 1/50th Corgis - and they don't make them with cast hulls, so ended up trying out these two 1/48th scale kits. They're slightly bigger overall than the Corgis as expected being a larger scale, but close enough. The picture below has the Tamiya on the left with a 75mm gun and the Hobby Boss on the right with a 76mm gun.

I used a can of Krylon OD green which looks pretty good - especially after a wash of Vallejo Skin Wash. A light dry brush of muddy brown was also applied. The figures are old Easy Eight dismounted tankers that were modified to go in the hatch. Basically cut off the lower half and clipped off the grease guns they were holding.

The Tamiya Sherman.

The Hobby Boss Sherman.

I'm probably in the minority with my preference for 1/50th-1/48th scale, with most favoring 1/56th scale, but I started out with 1/50th Corgi tanks and the figures I use are mostly on the larger side of 28mm. These two figures are Victory Force Miniatures and look okay with vehicles in this scale - at least to me.

Size/scale comparison with a Corgi, Tamiya, Hobby Boss, and another Corgi.

Top view comparison - Corgi, Hobby Boss, Tamiya, and Corgi.

My next project is attempting camouflage onto a Corgi Panther using a newly acquired airbrush. On the gaming front I'm hosting a Bolt Action Western Desert Campaign game next Saturday at our long-awaited Fort Steilacoom game day. We hadn't had a game day there since 2019 - right before the pandemic (remember that thing?). :) Anyway, just dropping a post to the blog to show that I'm still with it. Best wishes to you all!

Relic Mycenaeans And A Rubicon Montgomery

Here are the 6 sample Relic Miniatures Mycenaeans sent to me by Mike Evans. They are temp based as I plan to give them to a buddy so he can base them to his liking. I misplaced the spears that were sent to me so these are just various ones I had on hand. The Rubicon Montgomery will be used as the senior officer for Western Desert Bolt Action games.

The Relic figures are nicely sculpted but smaller than the Redoubt and Foundry figures I already have.

The helmets are based upon what can be seen in period artwork - frescoes, ivory carvings, etc. The cuirasses are similar to the bell-cuirass style of the Archaic period. Some appear to have throat armor like that seen on the Dendra cuirass. The kilts are also accurate from period artwork. I painted the greaves as bronze ones. Small bronze greaves have been found but they may have been worn over cloth/linen greaves.

As mentioned in the previous post, the shields look good, and the figure-8 one is particularly nice.

Below is a comparison with a Redoubt figures. The Relic figure is noticeably smaller overall. Relic figures are on the smaller/slender size of most 28mm figures.

And a comparison between the Rubicon Montgomery and a Warlord Games Rommel. The are close enough after raising the base with some Green Stuff for the Rubicon figure. The Rubicon figures is sculpted like the Relic ones. Some would argue more realistically proportioned. I mean look at the size of Rommel's head! :)

I've gotten to the point of being quite the lazy painter. That is, my preferred method is block painting followed by a wash - usually with Minwax. After this, details and highlights can be added - or not. In any case, thanks for stopping by and seeing my latest projects.

No Big Whoop, Just A Few Painting Projects

These are the first painting projects that I've done in about 7 months or so. The Ottomans and Mamelukes from TAG and Gringo 40's were the last figures I painted - last July or August. Nothing serious here, just a few Bronze Age Greek sample figures that Mike Evans from Relic Miniatures sent me last year. Also, a Montgomery figure from Rubicon and also a WIP repaint of a Corgi Panther another buddy gave me - also last year. I just found the motivation to paint these up today. I actually spray painted the Panther last night with a can of Tamiya Dark Yellow.

As usual for me nowadays, these figures were given a basic block painting followed by Minwax Tudor Satin stain. In fact, stain is from a can my buddy gave me a long time ago. I had to open it as the remnants of my old can had gone solid. Not surprising as there was only a little left in the can.

The Relic figures bare metal. They are on the more slender side - sort of reminds me of the older Newline Sea Peoples range. They are smaller, all-around, than Redoubt and Foundry Trojan War figures. One thing I like is the size and shape the figure-8 shield. It has a nice bulbous shape about it, much like how it is portrayed in period art.

The Rubicon kit for Monty als includes a figure of General Hobart. I like how he was fired and re-hired several times before and during the war.

Prior to re-painting the Corgi Panther, I had to fix a broken road wheel. I cut out a piece from an inner road wheel and used some Green Stuff to attach it to the outer wheel. For the record, my buddy gave it to me not because of the broken wheel, but because it's too big for the 1:56th scale vehicles he uses.

The road wheel repair isn't the prettiest, and should look okay after weathering. The earlier paint job my buddy added was stripped off using DOT 3 brake fluid. Not the environmentally friendliest nor healthiest to use but got the job done. I had tried 99% rubbing alcohol and it didn't work; I'd also given up on Simple Green ever since they changed the formula and it's also pretty much useless to remove paint. Plan to add camo to the tank using an inexpensive airbrush kit I just ordered from Amazon. My only previous experience with airbrushing was almost 20 years ago using one of those old $10 Testors airbrushes that had to be used with a can of compressed air. The airbrush kept clogging up before I could even finish the tank it was used on - coincidentally another Corgi Panther.

Anyway, guess I'm getting back into the hobby again - ever so slowly. Thanks for dropping by and checking out the blog.

Bolt Action Battle of Alam El Halfa Playtest

Playtest for a Bolt Action Western Desert game. Thanks to a few of my buddies, got in a nice refresher Bolt Action game using the Battle of Alam El Halfa scenario. We ended the game due to time, but got a lot of action in. Not sure if this ever really happened, but my Matilda took out a Panzer III. Anyway, just wanted to post this to show that I'm still in the hobby. In fact, I plan to get back into gaming more once I retire, hopefully at the end of this year. 

The sole vehicle casualty in the game - the Panzer III hit by the Matlida's 2 pounder. A subsequent Damage roll of 6 took the Panzer out of commission. How historical this may be is still in debate.

A squad of Scots in cover. The spotter for the mortar team in the distance.

Italian Bersaglieri on top of the sandstone outcrop - giving them hard cover. The Panzer III supporting them below. 

Senegalese troops with Tough Fighter attributes moving in support of the Matilda. Looks like one of them snuck out and joined the FFL unit ahead of them. 

The Grant creeping along sandstone outcroppings.

Rommel was the overall leader for the DAK and Italians. He's chilling out behind the oasis. He was given an Officer Bonus value of 3. DAK mortar team spotter in front of him.

The halftrack was used to tow the Pak 38. 

 Having been pinned at the start of the game by preparatory bombardment, the 6 pounder was never able to pass their Orders test and never moved or fired. 

The Panzer II and armored car traded shots with the Grant and Crusader with little effect to either side.

Allied units pinned after receiving DAK preparatory bombardment at the start of the game. Skull markers indicate the unit is hidden.

Christmas Rampant 2022.

A good number of us were able to gather at Bruce's place in Gig Harbor for our annual (except for 2020) Christmas Rampant game. Bruce is, as some may know, the owner and proprietor of Company B, and always graciously opens up his huge gaming room for us. There we about 20 of us running 12 point warbands. I ran my Mamelukes as heavy riders with mounted missiles and Janissaries as light missiles with sharp shooter upgrade. The two units did well, and not only survived the game but managed to take out two enemy missile units. A great way to end the year with good buddies and good food as well. Roast beef and shredded chicken sandwiches were provided by Hugh and Michele of Stonehouse Miniatures. They brought pulled pork last year. No complaints in any case!

No new projects on the paint table; although I just picked up the new Xenos Rampant book and it has me thinking of some Weird War or similar. Plan to start the new year with a few trial games using these rules - already have some 40K figures for it. Also, you can pretty much use any figures for them too. Until next time wishing you all a great holiday season - Christmas and New Year!