28mm Crimean war figures.

Here are some wargames Foundry 28mm British Infantry of the Crimean war. Firsty I know VERY little about this war or the uniforms and units so If I get anything wrong 10 Please tell me, so I can learn and 2) Bare with me as I am all at sea in this period.

Not knowing Matt provided me with pictures \nd I have copied them as best I am able in the hopes that they are right. A total of 6 riflemen each 3 to a base now ready for action. I have 12 more to do so you shall be seeing more of them soon. Well soon(ish) as I shall start the next 6 tonight.

 In addition to the 6 foot-sloggers I have 1 mounted officer done. One more to do. I showed it last time unfinished. But now it n is finished better to reveal it complete and with the first stands of infantry.  With luck this will give some leadership to the men and allow some games to better be played. But on this score time will tell.











I had more than 1 enquiry about the make of the robot last time.  As such I went up the loft. Straight away I found the box the kit came in now stuffed with old decals. None the less it does show the scale 1/35 and the name "Crusher Joe" of the kit but as yet I am unable to find any ore of them. So if you are looking good luck and comments below on where to get them would be appreciated. (Not holding my breathe though)

Until next time, good luck, good gaming and may  the dice e favourable  to you and also hinder your opponent!

15mm Robot ( and sneak peek. Historical)

Firstly here is a robot model from about 30 years ago. RE-PAINTED. At the time I was using it as a 28mm model but now I feel more of a 15mm model. The joy of Fantasy/sci-fi is no one knows so it can be whatever you want it to be. No one knows and few (if any) care.

I am afraid I do not know who makes it or what it is for. I remember that our local toy store got some and as such I bought 3 (the other 2 are in pieces and are missing heads. But rebuilding them is for another time/post!

This was a very easy re-paint. Almost too easy, or embarrassingly easy. Just 3 colours of brown on the legs and a thin brown was overall. It really was that easy.  About an hour in all including drying time. In fact the base took longer!

I look forward to finding the missing pieces and getting the other 2 finished now. Obviously this will bulk out my 15mm sci-fi army and give them some mech support.  And we all lke a bit of mech support. The only conversion work is the adding of a gun to the right arm. Way back in the day (no not quite when dinosaurs walked the earth) GW used to do separate weapons and arms. Not for a long period, but they did, Anyway the weapon is a cut down "Lasgun" I just chopped it about and added it on. Mech  with guns is usually a good idea!

Just the mech and a random 15mm alien, (on the to paint pile)
and a random 28mm figure. Just as a size/scale cmparison.

 Ok all Historical nuts can breath now. Finally some 28mm Crimean war WIP. Nearly finished ths mounted officer still got the face and the flesh and a few other bits to do, and a tidy-up. But it at least shows what I am working on for Matt. And that perhaps I have not been as lazy as I appear to have been. This is a 28mm Wargames Foundry and I have needed the practice in 28mm as it seem to have been a while. So I had best do some 28mm figs next!

Thanks for looking and more again in a day or so. Okay 2-3 days more likely!

All the best Clint

35+ years later!

That maybe a record for me. More of that later though.

While I have finished very little that is a long way from thinking I have not done a lot. Just most of it is not anywhere near finished! So let,s start with what I have done.

Here is a platoon of H+R infantry and transports. The transports are 6mm BMP 1's the infantry are equally small. Strickly speaking I need another BMP and a couple more stands of infantry for the HQ of the platoon. But this is a start.

OK so what has taken 35+ years. ? Yes I can hear you ask even from there so I will keep you in the dark no longer.  Yes my desert. This is how it was and as I have always been led to believe it might stay. BUT. And that is a big BUT with a capital B. I looked on line and found I can afford the nessercary materials. That being 10mm thick "Foam Board" so I ordered a pack. And Yes it arrived. So my 1/300th scale desert has taken a step forward.

As I only started with 2 A1 sheets buying 5 more sheets Should (I hope) be enough. Time will tell but I am hopeful. So expect desert to feature in upcoming weeks. (You are warned).


The spending continues ,while I work on some 28m figures, appearing soon on this blog. Firstly I squandered money for Pulp alley and bought a Clapper board. Traditionally in Pulp Alley the person with the initiative has a "Directors Megaphone" But at about £2.50 inc postage this was cheaper and will work just as well.

Finally I bought some MDF buildings for Pulp Alley wild west. Or Ghost town as I am currently calling it. The 2 Sarrissa buildings are exactly the same So I should be able to get them up and running in a week or three! The TTCombat "Grand Hotel" (on the left may take a bit longer! But at least I am on my way.

Until next time (and I hope) some 28mm figures take care good luck and remember everyones paint brush needs to taste paint one in a while.

All the best Clint

Pulp Alley started!

I have spent the last few days thinking (No jokes about "burning dust" please!).At the club we do have one player (Peter) who plays Pulp Alley at another club! So I know we are not totally adverse to the idea. (Some people will be no matter what  while others embrace the idea!) Anyway over the last few days I have been thinking we should play "Pulp Alley" at the club. But what kind of PULP I hear you scream in my head. Now there is the rub (misquote Shakespear). I want to do Dieselpunk. BUT I am away from doing this at present just because it will take some time.

So what about Western Pulp? Now I think it is a good idea. There is PLENTY of precedence for Western pulp. (Just do a very quick internet search if in doubt). And for this I am READY TO GO. I have about 75-100 painted figures and a model western town. So a standard western game is a possibility! A good and strong possibility.

BUT knowing that Peter (as mentioned above has a Vampire league (I know as I painted it for him) I was thinkin Wild West Horror!

So That is the plan now. Some of you I can tell are delighted.  This also allows other club members with amore historical bent to play  straight cowboys and Indians. (Should they choose, and some will). So I have now started to convert some of the wild west setting to more Horrific than normal.

Ghost town.

OK where to start.  I have started with  a derelict house. Yes this a pre-cut MDF building. (Sarrissa I think). I shall get some more and make them for my Ghost Town (in my head I am calling the town "Bitter-Creek!" but that is  subject to change. ) Anyway the Ghost town does not need many buildings. I think 5-6 is enough As "Pulp alley" is played o a 3' by 3' table and we are not looking for a metropolis!

 While I only have 1 building finished at this stage. I shall add more in the next few weeks.  I already have 2 more to add but at present they are still wrapped and pristine.

My "Pulp Alley rules!

Additionally I have 2 packs of Foundry cowboy Zombies (painted), so they are ready to go. Add the figures from "Draculas America!" and I have enough of a selection to get me going until a player wants something odd.... which is probably straight away!


Currently on the painting table

• 3 Wild west Mexicans in 28mm.
• 1 platoon of 6mm Middle-east Modern troops with transport. (BMP1s or BTR 70s not sure yet)
• 1 unit of 15mm Buffalo Soldiers (9th or 10 Cavalry) Then this force is finished.
• 1 squad of 15mm cold war Russians.  (Just starting these.
• Anything I get side-tracked onto!

Ok just a building finished for today. I am still struggling to get back into painting!

All the best Clint.

Gasbag (zepelin 2)

Yes I know my work bench needs a tidy.

It takes a while and it goes a long time through what I call "The NASTY stage". By that I mean a time of construction where you think it will not get better and it is worth scrapping it! BUT rest assured I shall continue.

At present I am only working on the gas bag. Yes it is not historically accurate. It is a model for wargames and not for a museum. So Who cares?

the basic shape

At this stage I have given it 3 layers of paint/glue and tissue to build up the skin. It is too big to paint in one go for It has to be done in layers.  At present I am repainting with a mixture of paint an glue not settled on a colour just yet but I am hoping/planning a dirty beige!

All I care about at this stage is the look and while I realise a 3 year old would destroy it in second I am hopeful (but only just) that it will be strong enough for wargamers.  I plan for it to have 2 or preferably 3 more coats of paint and glue. By which time it may be strong enough. Which of course mean not even close to strong enough.

Rear end (so far)

The read is always awkward. And being as it has 5 lumps maybe doubly so. Fins, rudder and ailerons need to be added at the next stage and will be discussed then. So at this stage not really to much more to say mostly it is do 15 mins work and return the following day. With luck I should have more to talk about next Zeppelin update.

Until then paint  and blog if you can and I shall get more out next time..

All the best Clint

Pulp Zepplin (1)

Additional Stretch goals

I had a sleepless night last night. (Not though choice I hasten to add!) As such I did some thinking. (Yes it  did hurt and I am sick of listening to the worlds smallest violin before you ask!) Anyway Long story short. I had an email from Karl at Crooked Dice to let me know that my Kickstarter should be ready to ship in a week or 2. As all the stretch goals are now finished and delivered to his home.

Starting Point

Anyway as I wanted to build a "PULP" board any way I decided to start. And what is more Pulp than an Airship!?  What a Zeppelin? Who in their right mind build a Zeppelin? The answer is NO ONE! But I thought it was worth a try anyway! I decided it would not be all that large, So swigging down the Pepsi I figured 2 2 litre bottles would make a good enough "hull" (I am sure that HULL is the wrong word but until I think of it HULL will do!)


 Needed a nose of some description. So I simply cut a pimg pong ball in half! I am sure there is a better option but I just went with what I had! As with the hull I am sure there is a MUCH better option but I could not wait for that. I NEEDED to crack on!








So using some UHU general addehisive I stuck 2 Pepsi bottles together.  At this stage I have no idea if it will work but am hopeful! It is now about 3 foot long. Judging that to be sufficient I stopped there. At this stage it is all pretty rough but with scissors glue a scalpel and a saw I am not overwhelmed! (That comes tomorrow!).

This afternoon allowing PLENTY of time to dry I shall give it a skin. I ran to the local store (A tescos as it happens) and bought some cheap Kitchen towel. So I will detail my endevours later on maybe Sunday.

Now while I wait for this afternoon to arrive and me to get a little more spare time I have some questions about Zeppelins. I promise not hard ones.

Firstly the engines and bomb rack will be external to the gondola! But what else would you like to see in the gondola.  I shall put a cockpit and Matt has suggested some machineguns. But what else is needed bearing in mind it shall be quite small? Please add serious ideas to the comments and I will see what I can manage!

COLD WAR WARGAMING.
As mentioned last time I plan some cold war wargaming. With a bit of tidying up I have a modular desert board. So it makes sense to me to work in a middle east setting. I shall say no more until I get the basics done. But remember you heard it here first! Or forget all about it if you choose.

Not going to Salute

Yep that's right I am not going to "Salute" show this year. It is just TOO big and TOO expensive. As has become my practice I have made 2 (so far) "NOT GOING TO SALUTE!" orders over the weekend.


Order 1 :

Yes I caved! I caved in and succumbed! Yes I am weak and I have pledged to this Kickstarter. ( LINK ) I only went for the "Heroes" option. as I have more of a use for them. I did look at the Villains very closely but as there was only 3 I would (at this point) use I dismissed it. MAybe in the future I will get the 3 I want from these selection. maybe I will  not.

Most importantly I am also going to get the "stretch goals!"  So for the price of £22 (plus postage) I should get the Heroes and the stretch goals. And to be honest the stretch goals are more to my liking at present than the figures.

Yes I am an awkward cuss!" At present the Ark of the covenant is not in the stretch goals but maybe by the time it closes it will be. (Fingers Crossed).  We  all like a few stretch goals!



Order 2:
As "alternative Armies" was having a sale I splurged and ordered some figures.  ( LINK ) Not a huge order but (I hope) enough 15mm US cavalry to finish an army! We both know that I will still buy some more at a later date. But this should be enough for my 9th or 10th US CAVALRY "Buffalo soldiers!" yes I could have done 7th Cavalry as seen as famous in the films but these are more interesting.

END NOTE
Sorry it is only talking today. I have had a step back and rethink on a project. Enough of a re-think to make me start again but using some existing items.

Ad a special thanks to Ray for getting me back in touch with an old friend. Not that they are old but we had lost touch over the last 23 years. So thanks again Ray I appreciate it!

Smoke gets in your eyes. (and WIP)

Ok these were made for Peter Pigs PBI rules. That said  there is no reason not to think they could and will not be used for other rules. However I wanted something a little "better" than cotton wool. I know most of you will use cotton wool without issue But I wanted something different.

Therefore I created 5 smoke clouds. (5 more are started and 10 should be enough for me!). They were simple to do just "clump foliage" then sprayed white (3 coats) and then the bases painted and they are good to go. I must  say I am very happy with them. You only need 1 in a PBI square to represent the whole square being filled with smoke so they are indicators only and not realistically modelled terrain. I am  sure you shall do better on your own with a little thought.

 Aztec farm (2) WIP

 As you can see I have started the second part of my sci fi farm. So I HOPE  to get that finished in the week. More details when I do. Please don't try to hold your breathe it is still several days away at the very earliest.

Donner vehicle ! WIP

Yes more WIP, and this is a while off so really don't try to hold your breath (that would be a very bad idea! Continuing my dieselpunk obsession I wave started a donner vehicle. All I have done so far is break things up. Ok saw things but you get the idea! On this model (thanks eBay) I need to rebuild the radiator and the headlights. remove (that's done) the side wheels and rebuild the running boards. And then either rebuild the rain cover or rebuild the back seat not sure yet and add some MGs and some other bits and bobs, like maybe a new hood ornament.

So expect this to take weeks and not days to do. The chances are I  shall get bored and throw it away before I finish so PLEASE don't suggest anything to do with this car. But at the very least you know it is a live project.

That's all for now folks have a good Sunday and try not to get too much done or I shall be disappointed in myself.

All the best Clint.

WIP

Figure ONLY shown for scale.

I dislike Work in Progress blog posts. So I tend to not do them. None the less here is what's happening... At least as far as I am going to show.

Yes I have been working on my "Dieselpunk" game idea. The rules are started and this is my first vehicle. STARTED.

I have loads to do. So far as far as I can see no one make any rules. If you know better please feel free to let me know. there are several makes of figure which can be used but NOTHING as far as I can see directly aimed at this era. THat is not a problem any figure that would fit Spanish Civil war or VBCW or 1920's Gangster is appropriate.

On the right is the START (And only the start) of a vehicle for this period. I started wit a matchbox model of "yesteryear". I have several more to do and yes before you ask vehicle rules shall be in the rules I am writing.


 I have mentioned an idea to Dave Stone (WTW  . LINK ) so the first step in that direction has already been taken. I HASTEN to add it is only a 1st step. Nothing more.

I plan/hope to have a show game done by September, fingers crossed. I know very many of you will have no interest in this project.

Until I have something else to share I shall just shut my big mouth!
All the best Clint

Civilians

All together now.

Yep had a disappointing weekend. Oh well ! Could be worse and small things are sent to try us. As such I did not play any games at the wargame club. 2 were on offer, but not of my liking. My choice, so maybe I should be LESS fussy!

On the other hand here are asset of the figures I have managed to finish. They are by several different makes/manufactures so quality does vary.

1st 6

2nd 6

 There is a height difference (which I like as people are of different sizes! There is also a difference in the quality of the scupts, which I am less keen on. They are a mixture of Foundry, Footsore, Ironclad and even a col Bills "Special" I am told but they just make up a set of Interwar civilians. They are  for MATT s I expect to see them in a VBCW context.

As I have a show this coming weekend I have been sorting out what I wantand am beginning to make some orders to be picked up at the show. Wore of this NEXT week.

Anyway thanks for looking and I hope you had a better Sunday than me... All the best clint

Flying Girl

This is one of Col Bills "Belt Fed" miniatures. Totally unsuitable for Victorian Science Fiction, but totally suitable for Dieselpunk.  I realise that I may be the only person into "Diesel-punk!" but to be honest I don't care. As a Col Bills figure available a MOST UK shows for the princely price of £3. (At time of Typing).

I realise that many of you are thinking "All well and good but what are you thinkin!" Well it is a long term plan and not one to be discussed here. I Know I am a tease but I hope al shall become clear in the dim distant future.

That's al my finished painting up to date and I know it's not a huge amount but sometimes Real life stops me picking up a paint brush.

Still not got act together

Sorry NO aar today. I still have not found the time. (I hope in the next few days).

Until then I have finished another knight for Lion Rampant. As such it is one of my OLD Bretonian Knights from Games Workshop. Clearly part of the Black, white, Purple troop. So it will fit into my second unit. I did not know (Until I checked on the internet) that both Orange and Purple were legal heraldic colours.  Still live and learn. As soon as I found that out the colour choice was clear to me. And an Old Games workshop figure is given a new lease of life.  I am sure most of you will already have noted that and used Purple and Orange in your heraldry. Yeah I am a bit behind the times.

While this does not finish the second unit of knights it is now a step closer.

Talking of a step closer. here are the Wild west (western) 15mm figures I still have to re-base and touch the paint up. In some cases a total re-paint. The sand yellow bases are my 20-30 year old ones, (and they do need a re-paint)
While the ones on the green bases are a gift from Peter. (And guess what they also need a re-paint). Here is what there is in total. Left to right)

• 7 Mounted figures with Long arms.
• 8 Mounted figures with pistols.
• 12 Civilians un armed) for use as Liability bases.
• 16 +8 Rifle armed towns men
• 8pistol armed townsmen.
• 1 BUFFALO (back row)
• 1 Pack mule.
• 2 mounted Scouts. (I can use them as leaders)
• 1 Wagon with supplies,
• 1 broken and unarmed figure.

This is VERY nearly enough for a "Townsmen" group ready to play "Western Rules By Peter Pig. I shall of course need a few extra packs but only 2-3 packs. For example Townsmen are not allowed more than one unit mounted!
So that's it  for now more again soon.  And I have an AAR to do when I get the chance!

All the best Clint