Friday 31 October 2008

Eureka Order Part 5 - World War II British Paras

Pegasus Bridge has always held a fascination for me, so when purchasing a sample of Allied troops to take on the Germans, it had to be British Paras.
Once again single base per code.
Paras Advancing and HQ

Para Mortars, PIATs and LMGs

And in keeping with the D-Day theme, I picked up some engineers with mine sweepers and also a flame thrower.

I think the flame thrower model should end up quite good!

Eureka Order Part 4 - World War 2 Germans

I'm keen to do World War 2 gaming in 6mm. Once again there's a plethora of rules out there. I already have Flames of War so that was going to be my starting point.
I'd like to start with some Late War Western Front scenarios, so I picked up a sample of German bases from the Irregular range.
Just one base of each as, unlike the moderns and vietnam ranges, these are a single strip per code. I think the standard of modelling is a little better vs. some of the moderns.
Infantry Advancing and HQ/Observers

Panzerfausts and Mortars

Light and Heavy Machine Guns

Thursday 30 October 2008

Eureka Order Part 3 - Vietnam "Free World" Forces

To accompany the VC and also because I thought they would slot in well into AK47, I also picked up a range of US and other bases that I didn't already have. At the moment I have a selection of the US/ARVN types in use for the Colonial AK47 army.
So what did I end up with?
US Green Berets

Montagnards - not sure about these. They're all in cover. See how they paint up.

Australians (or French or US) in Boonie Hats - nice looking figures.

Patrol Boat - I'm keen to have this involved in some AK47 games as well as Vietnam.

Huey - here are all the bits straightened out (but not trimmed yet). The feet for the skids are missing on the far side, so I'll need to glue a bit of sprue in place to match the side you can see. I believe the little lump on the left of the picture is one of the broken feet.

Centurion MBT - Once again dual duty for AK47 and any Vietnam War involving ANZACs

Panhard Armoured Car - Not really Vietnam related. I'm uncertain if the French used these in the French Indochina War. I'll need to check it out! Perfect for AK47.

Monday 27 October 2008

Eureka Order Part 2 - Viet Cong

I picked up one of each of the Viet Cong types from the Irregular range. I currently am using the NVA with some repainting as part of my AK47 PPF army. The photos below show 2 bases (front and back), but there are actually 3 bases per pack.
The items below are the VC infantry advancing and firing, and VC cyclists with supplies.





I have the Peter Pig Men of Company B rules that I'd like to have a crack at. I know there are plenty of other options floating around - I'll welcome any recommendations!

Eureka Order Part 1 - Fantasy

I've started going through my most recent order of 6mm Irregular Miniatures from Eureka Miniatures here in Australia. For the first batch of photos, here are the fantasy bases that I ordered.

Elves and Dark Elves:

Orcs and Goblins:

Lesser Goblins:

These don't look like much in the pictures, but the lighting has washed out some of the detail.  A bit of paint should lift the detail out.
That said, I don't think that they look quite as detailed as the dwarf sample I purchased earlier.

Thursday 23 October 2008

Order Arrived

My Stuff from Eureka has finally arrived.

On the weekend I'll get time to go through it all properly, and take pics.
Here is the Huey though:
From 6mm AK47 Republic

The main rotor (just above the fuselage in the bag) has gotten quite bent.
The model doesn't look too bad from a quick view.
The other bits at the top of the bag include the tail rotor and a metal base and stalk for "flying".

Tuesday 21 October 2008

sixtwentyeight

If you do nothing else today, get yourself along to sixtwentyeight.
If you've been wondering about whether 6mm looks any good (and if all you ever see is my work, I'd imagine you would!); all will be answered.
The blog features some great painting and a lot of examples on how to "lift" your basing to the next level.
Check out the WW2 urban Russians! And how about these Marders?
Definitely one to bookmark....

Monday 20 October 2008

New 6mm Order

I sold some of my old (late 80s/early 90s) eldar models to Eltnot for an army he's putting together. I'm sure he'll put something up on his blog when he gets the chance to show them off. Plus he'll be doing a far better paint job than I could, so they're better off in his hands.

This left me with some cash, so I blew it all on another order to Eureka to satisfy my 6mm urges. I've gotten the email that they're in the post, so I'm hanging out for the mail each day.

I'm sampling a lot of their vietnam range. All of the VC infantry types plus Green Berets, Montagnards, Australians, etc. I figure these will all (except the VC) work well enough in African conflicts. Plus it gives me the option to look at french vs. Viet minh as well as US vs VC/NVA. Also getting a Huey and a PBR to add some variety and flexibility for scenarios.

In Moderns, I'm getting some modern US for the Humvees, and some brits to see if they're 1990+ style, or a bit more 1980 (for Falklands)

Also sampling their 6mm Brit paras and German grenadiers for 6mm FoW, etc. I'm getting about 5 selections from each side (command, basic infantry, LMG, HMG, mortar, PIAT/Panzerschreck). As a first 6mm World War 2 project, I'd like to recreate some of the D-Day battles, particularly Pegasus Bridge.

Finally, basic infantry for some fantasy races; about 5 or 6 races as a sample. The dwarf strip I got last time had amazing detail - much better standard that some of the moderns!

Plus some other stuff besides! As always, I'll be posting batches of images so you can check them out.

Wednesday 15 October 2008

Matchbox DC3 / C47 stand in

I've been looking for an appropriately sized DC-3 (C-47 in military service) to use in the post war african games as an objective, and also to possibly use for air drops in other games.
At the moment, the best I can find with the current exchange rate is about AU$47 once it arrives in Australia.
However, down at the local supermarket last night I located a Matchbox aircraft resembling the DC-3.
From 6mm AK47 Republic

A quick bit of research on the actual size of the DC-3 reveals that the matchbox is pretty much a 1:200 scale model rather than 1:300, but for AU$2.99 I'm prepared to wear the scale issue until I can afford something a bit better.

It will need a re-paint and I'll also need to probably clip off the rear wheel ( and possibly replace the front wheels), but as a stand-in I don't think it's too bad.
Photos are from my phone camera as I ran out the door this morning, so it's probably best to view them at low-res.
From 6mm AK47 Republic

From 6mm AK47 Republic

Thursday 2 October 2008

Humvees!

Today I picked up some FAVs (Fast Attack Vehicles - aka dune buggies with guns)
From 6mm modern

and some HMMWV's (Humvees)
From 6mm modern

I won them in an eBay auction recently. The gentleman who was selling was getting out of 6mm, and I couldn't pass up the chance to pick up some 6mm modern locally!
Here is the whole lot:
From 6mm modern

I'm not sure how Luke the seller managed to get all 38 sitting in neatly like they were when he gave them to me!
I definitely plan to get some 6mm modern US to go with these, and I have firm plans to use them to play out some larger Mogadishu-style actions to complement the smaller Ambush Alley games.
Here's a quick pick showing one of the HMMWV's with some of the my 6mm AK-47 Militia (apologies for the lighting):
From 6mm modern

By the way, these vehicles are from the "Heroics and Ros" 6mm range, which is now produced under license by Navwar

Wednesday 1 October 2008

15mm Israeli / Sci-Fi / Indonesian?

So apparently I'm an ideas man!
Still no actual progress on the many 15mm insurgents I have to paint, and no work on the 6mm Ak-47 infantry, but I found the muse to bash this out:
From 15mm Sci-Fi

It's one of the Quick Reaction Force 1980s Israelis.

The colour scheme is actually very similar to the 1980s Kopassus (Indonesian Special Forces) camouflage, and I'm hoping to do some what-if modern skirmish involving Indonesian forces some time in the future. I also think it looks suitably sci-fi, although I think the weapon needs some further work with colour.
Here's another shot that highlights the issue with the weapon in my view.
From 15mm Sci-Fi

As always, heaped praise or useful criticism is always welcome.....

Attempt at a new way to base....

Since my efforts with basing my 15mm stuff for Ambush Alley (see here), I am still not happy that I have a good method of doing this.
My approach then was to use Selleys Liquid Nails to adhere the miniature to the washer, and then use a filler to fill in around the base on the washer. The problem is that the filler doesn't really achieve the correct hardness that I'm seeking. I probably need a different product, one that does harden up properly (months later it's still soft).
At the time, Eltnot suggested that the Liquid Nails does achieve the correct consistency. With that in mind, I tried using extra Liquid Nails on the washer and attempting to spread it once the figure was in place.
The bottom line? It was sticky and messy, but the end result was exactly what I wanted.

From 15mm Modern


Once it started to harden, I could easily trim away any excess using a blade.
I tried this on the Israelis I posted earlier, and I'm going to try it again today on my SAW gunners and TV crew for Ambush Alley. I'm a bit put off by the mess (particularly my fingertips afterwards), but the end result might just be worth it

I'll leave you with this image of a fireteam patrolling to protect a significant Glue Storage Facility.....

From 15mm Modern