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Anniversary Special issue

A themed issue
commemorating the
75th Anniversary of
these decisive World
War Two battles

100
PA
GE
ISSUE

El Alamein
Special Panzer
The short barrelled Panzer IV
British M3 Grant
The General in North Africa
Sturmpanzer II Bison
D.A.K. Panzerkampwagen II (Sf)
Ausf.F1(F) in action
31st March 2017
MODELLING GROUP

5.10

PLUS An overview of the El Alamein battles


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Features
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10 The Battles of El Alamein
EDITORIAL Turning the tide in the North African desert
Contributing Editor: Martyn Chorlton
Enterprise House, Enterprise Way,
Edenbridge, Kent TN8 6HF
18 Special Panzer
Email: contribeditor@militarymodelling.com Dragon 1/35 8./Pz.Rgt. 8, 15th Panzer Division, Panzer IV f1 (f)
by Mark Chisholm

PRODUCTION 26 Granted Special Status


Designer: Richard Dyer Modelling Academys M3 Grant by Mark Bannerman
Illustrator: Grahame Chambers
Retouching Manager: Brian Vickers
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34 Desert Gossip
Follow us on Facebook and Twitter
Marmon-Herrington in service with the Afrika Korps
in Libya 1942 by Robert Blokker
48
40 Second-hand Swallow
Chris Lloyd-Staples presents his 1/35
www.facebook.com/MilitaryModelling Tasca Sherman II
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All rights reserved ISSN 0026-4083
The Publishers written consent must be obtained before any part of
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58
Military Modelling, ISSN 0026-4083, is published monthly with an
additional issue in April by MYTIMEMEDIA Ltd, Suite 25,
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48 The Final Service
99USD). Airfreight and mailing in the USA by agent named Air Busi-
ness Ltd, c/o Worldnet Shipping Inc., 156-15, 146th Avenue, 2nd Floor, Gary Radford presents a Desert Emil
Jamaica, NY 11434, USA. Periodicals postage paid at Jamaica NY
11431. US Postmaster: Send address changes to Military Modelling, in North Africa, 1942
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Queensbridge, The Lakes, Northampton, NN4 7BF.
Air Business Ltd is acting as our mailing agent. 54 Montgomery at El Alamein
Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery
was one of Britains most famous Generals 54
during WW2; by Malcolm Cuming

58 The Desert Fox


Erwin Rommel, Alexandros 1/10
resin bust by Adrian Hopwood
Vol.47 No.4 2017

62

62 Italiano
Stand Easy...
Self-Propelled 68

W
Automotive elcome to a Special version of
in North Africa Military Modelling Volume 47,
Italian Italeri Semovente Issue 4 which on this occasion
M40 da 75/18 focusses on the 75th Anniversary of the
by Mark Bannerman Battles of El Alamein. As we all know,
it was a crucial, tide-turning campaign
68 Matildas which saw the Allies suddenly step from
last Waltz the back foot to the front. Traditionally an
Tamiyas 1/48 Queen of the Desert, AFV Special slot, I thought it would make
the Matilda II by Chris Meddings a change to concentrate on a particular
event and, with 100 pages to play with, I
74 Dirty Diana have taken advantage of the extra space
7.62cm FK 296(r) auf 5t Zugkraftwagen 74 to present you with 13 quality articles by
Sd.Kfz.6 Diana by a range of authors, some familiar and a
Ivan Momcilovic Momcha couple new. I realise that this may seem a
little early to some with regard to the dates
80 British Tank Commander of the two Battles of El Alamein but, all
Sovereign 2000 miniatures 1/9th scale being well, I also may be able to create a
resin bust by Adrian Hopwood second special in the slot that was once
occupied by the Euromilitaire Special this
82 Sturmpanzer II Bison coming November.
The 15cm sIG 33 Auf Fahrgestell
Panzerkampfwagen II (Sf) Even with a mag this size there is so
by Ivan Momcilovic Momcha much more I wanted to include such as
the artillery, the multiple soft-skins and
diverse range of armoured cars, half-tracks
and light vehicles that were involved in the
82 colossal toing and froing conflict which,
by the time it had come to an end, had
lasted for nearly three years. In that time,
the Axis forces had dominated the bulk of
Europe and North Africa and by the end
80 were retreating and defending on all fronts.
It really was one of the most important
theatres of war during the Second World
War and the sacrifice made by British,
Australian, New Zealand, South African,
Indian and Greek troops, not to mention
the equally high losses for the German and
Italian forces, should never be overlooked.
Regular Features
Please send me a message at
5 Stand Easy contribeditor@militarymodelling.com
A message from the Contributing Editor if you think you have a project that I might be
interested in within these hallowed pages.
96 Next Issue Please visit www.militarymodelling.com
Whats coming up in your favourite modelling magazine! for ideas, inspiration and advice virtually 24
hours a day.

Carry On!

Cover Story... Martyn Chorlton


MAIN IMAGE: Malcom Cumings 1/9 Monty bust (Left) and Adrian Contributing Editor
Hopwoods 1/10 bust of Rommel (Right).
contribeditor@militarymodelling.com
LEFT INSET: Dragon 1/35 Panzer IV by Mark Chisholm.

CENTRE INSET: Mark Bannermans Academy 1/35 M3 Grant.

RIGHT INSET: Sturmpanzer II Bison by Ivan Momcilovic Momcha.

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History

Alamein but was still under no illusion that defeat


was still a possibility so provision for further
defensive positions was built deeper into Egypt.
It was Auchinlecks plan to use X Corp for the
defences at El Alamein but they had taken such
a pounding at Mersa Matruh that he was forced
to re-position XXX Corps, made up of 1st South
African and 5th and 10th Indian Divisions on the
right of the coastal sector. To the left would be XIII
Corps, comprising 2nd New Zealand and 4th Indian
Divisions. What was left of 1st and 7th Armoured
Divisions was held in reserve but during the battle
would be deployed as mobile units.
Meanwhile, Rommel continued to advance and
by June 30 was close to El Alamein. His forces
were exhausted but Rommel was convinced that
if he kept advancing he could overrun the 8th Army
and continue into Egypt. The problem of thinning
supply lines never went away and they were
continually attacked from the air by the RAF.
Regardless, Rommel planned his attack, beginning
with the 90th Light Division and 15th and 21st Panzer

The Battles of
Divisions being ordered to pierce the 8th Army lines
between the El Alamein box and Deir el Abyad. The
90th Light would then turn north to the coast, trapping

El Alamein
all Allied forces while the Panzer Divisions would attack
XIII Corps from the rear. Two Italian divisions would
follow the 90th Light into the El Alamein box while
the Italian XX Corps would attack the Qattara box. The
133rd Armoured Division Littoria and several German
reconnaissance units would cover the right flank. All
was set, but the battle did not begin well for Rommel
Turning the tide in the North African desert because the 90th Light were 15 miles short of their
start point and the 21st Panzer was stranded in the
desert without fuel.
ABOVE: One of the most effective
artillery pieces in the British Army
The first Battle of El Alamein
inventory was the Ordnance QF (July 1-27, 1942)
25-pounder seen here during the
opening barrage of the Second Battle El Alamein was little more than a railway station on Rommel attacks
of El Alamein on October 23, 1942. the coast of Northern Egypt. Ten miles to the south The Axis attack began at 0300hrs on July 1, when the
was the low Ruweisat Ridge which was an excellent 90th Light advanced east only to discover that they had
observation position and a further 20 miles south travelled too far north which exposed them to the guns
was the Qattara Depression. This natural terrain was of 1st South African Division. The 15th and 21st Panzer
the British Armys line of defence and, if Rommel Divisions had fared no better; a fierce sandstorm and
wanted to outflank them, he would have to travel attacks by the RAF had hindered their progress. The
across the Sahara. This area had been surveyed divisions managed to advance to Deir el Shein where
as a key defensive position long before the war they were halted by 18th Indian Infantry, supported
began and part of the region was already prepared by nine Matildas, 23 25-pdrs and 16 anti-tank guns.
with boxes of dug-outs surrounded by minefields With the element of surprise erased, the German
and barbed wire. Three boxes were created, the attack began at 1000hrs and it took them the whole
strongest of them at El Alamein, another part-built day to overrun the defenders who had bravely bought
BELOW: The Italian forces featured at Bab el Qattara and a third close to the Qattara Auchinleck enough time to bolster his defences at
prominently during both battles of El Depression at Naq Abu Dweis. Ruweisat. Meanwhile, the 90th Light had negotiated
Alamein. This pair is serving with the
Bersaglieri (Light Infantry Marksmen) Gen. Auchinleck (C-in-C Middle East Command) the El Alamein box but was now pinned down under a
during the First Battle of El Alamein. was confident that he could halt Rommel at El barrage from the South Africans.
The next day, the 90th Light again tried to make
progress against the South Africans but failed, forcing
Rommel to re-position his panzer units to the east
of Ruweisat in support of the infantry. Under the
command of Brig. Waller, the Royal Artillery of 10th
Indian Infantry Division held their ground on Ruweisat,
buying further time before 4th and 22nd Armoured
Brigades arrived to take on the 15th and 22nd Panzer.
This extra armour enabled the Allies to further reinforce
Ruweisat that night and further attacks from the air
kept the Axis forces at bay.
On July 3, the attack continued, bolstered to the
south by the Italian XX Motorised Corps while the
Italian X Corps held El Mreir. The panzer divisions were
down to 26 tanks (from 55) and no closer to breaking

10 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


History

through at Ruweisat. On the left of the 8th Army line,


XIII Corps was ordered by Auchinleck to advance
from the Qattara box and then steer north behind the
attacking Axis forces. As they advanced, New Zealand
2nd Division, the remnants of Indian 5th Division and
7th Motor Brigade were greeted by the artillery of
the Ariete Armoured Division which was driving hard
towards Ruweisat on the Axis southern flank. Before
the day was over, the Ariete was a shambles, their
near demise again aided by the RAF.
Extended supply lines were now beginning to
suffer under regular air attacks and Rommel was On July 11, the Australians responded again by ABOVE: Very rare colour image of
El Alamein railway station during the
forced to dig in. In contrast, the Allies were getting despatching 2/24th Battalion, backed up by the Second World War.
stronger thanks to the Australian 9th Division arriving tanks of 44th RTR to attack the western side of Tel
on July 4 and Indian 5th Infantry and 161st Infantry el Eisa hill which, by early afternoon, was captured
Brigades joining the defence on July 9. and defended against several counter-attacks. A
small column then probed deeper into the Axis lines
to raid Deir el Abyad where a battalion of Italian
Australian victory at Tel el Eisa infantry surrendered; by the end of the day, a further
(Jul 8-16) 1,000 Italians became POWs.
It was now time to fight back and, on July 8, Auchinleck The 21st Panzer attacked the following day, this time
ordered XXX Corps, under the command of Lt. Gen. against the South African positions but, once again,
Ramsden, to capture the ridges at Tel el Eisa and Tel the Allied artillery pushed back the Germans. Further
el Makh Khad and to dispatch mobile forces south to counter-attacks were attempted on July 15 with heavy
Deir el Shein and El Daba. The Australian 9th Division casualties at Tel el Eisa hill. On July 16, it was the turn
and 44th Royal Tank Regiment (RTR) would take Tel el of the Australians to attack, with the support of British
Eisa and South African 1st Division would attack Tel el tanks but this time the Allies suffered heavy casualties
Makh Khad, while raiding parties were provided by 1st and this scrap of land called Tel el Eisa was proving
Armoured Division. costly to all. By the end of a week, fighting for Tel el
The attack on Tel el Eisa began after a bombardment Eisa hill had faded out.
during the early hours of July 10 by the Australian
26th Brigade. The Italian defenders, the 60th Infantry
Division Sabratha, were easily overcome and over Operation Bacon (Jul 14-16)
1,500 prisoners were taken. The Australians also Having drawn a number of German units further
captured German Signals Intercept Company 621; by north to the Tel el Eisa region, Auchinleck recognised
this point Rommel was now blind from an intelligence that this left two demoralised Italian units, the
gathering point of view. Before the sun was at its Brescia and Pavia Divisions, on their own near
highest point, the South Africans had also acquired Ruweisat. The plan, named Operation Bacon, was
their objective at Tel el Makh Khad. for 4th and 5th New Zealand Brigade to attack the
Rommel responded by bringing up the 164th western side of the ridge while the Indian 5th Infantry
Light Division while the Italians followed with the Brigade would attack the east. As these brigades
101st Motorised Division Trieste to bolster the progressed, the 2nd Armoured Brigade would pass
weakening Axis position. Counter-attacks were then through the centre and on towards Deir el Shein and
launched by the 15th Panzer and Trieste against the the Miteirya Ridge, while 22nd Armoured Brigade
Australians but all failed. would provide support to the infantry.

ABOVE: The Commander-in-Chief


Middle East Command (Jul 1941 to
Aug 1942), General Claude Auchinleck.
Cecil Beaton

LEFT: El Alamein Map.

www.militarymodelling.com 11
History

LEFT: Making use of any vehicle you could lay your hands
was no more prevalent than during the North African
Campaign. This is an example of a captured Ford F15
converted by the Germans to carry a 2cm Flak 30 cannon.
www.o5m6.de

The British tanks did eventually move forward to


support the infantry but a swift counter-attack by
the 15th Panzer and the 8th Panzer Regiment early
on July 15 saw New Zealand 22nd Battalion, 4th
Brigade, outgunned and 350 Kiwis taken prisoner.
Rommel quickly responded to the Brescia and Pavia
Divisions plight and by 1500hrs the 3rd and 33rd
Reconnaissance Regiments and the Baade Group,
all under the command of Lt. Gen. Nehring, arrived.
Nehring launched a counter-attack and, at 1700hrs, took
on 4th New Zealand Brigade. 380 New Zealanders
were captured. At 1815hrs, 2nd Armoured put a stop
to Nehrings advance and he withdrew.
On July 16, Nehring attacked the Indian 5th
positions twice but thanks to a well-prepared
defence, reinforced by a regiment sent to bolster
2nd Armoured, the Axis attack was thwarted. This
three day battle, (aka The First Battle of Ruweisat
Ridge) saw the Allies capture another 2,000
POWs. This again came at a cost though; the New
Zealanders suffered over 1,400 casualties but three
Italian divisions had been removed from Rommels
strength, forcing him to dig in again.

The Second battle of Ruweisat


Ridge (Jul 21-23, 1942)
The 8th Army now found itself in a stronger position
with regard to hardware; the 1st Armoured Division
had 173 tanks in contrast to Rommel who only had
89. Auchinleck was determined to take Ruweisat
and his next plan involved the Indian 161st Infantry
Brigade which would seize Deir el Shein via the
ridge and the New Zealand 6th Brigade which would
ABOVE: An Italian Semovente M40 da At 2300hrs on July 14, the attack began and come in from the south to the El Mrier Depression.
75/18s ready to move on!
before dawn broke, the New Zealand brigades The 2nd and 23rd Armoured Brigades would take
had taken their objectives, although minefields advantage of the gap created by the infantry.
and some resistance slowed their advance. The At 1630hrs on July 21, the battle began with the
New Zealanders found themselves occupying a New Zealanders taking the El Mrier Depression but
number of exposed positions and were further again, they left themselves exposed. The following
compromised by a communications failure between morning, neither armoured brigade had managed
BELOW: Rain or shine, day or night,
the conditions in the desert for both 2nd and 22nd Armoured, the latter not knowing that to make any ground and, at the same time, Nehring
the Allies and Axis forces. it had been called up earlier to support the infantry. launched a swift counter-attack with the 5th and
8th Panzer Regiments which overwhelmed the
New Zealanders. The Kiwis suffered over 900
casualties despite 2nd Armoured despatching a pair
of regiments to support them which were stopped
by a minefield and anti-tank fire. The attack by Indian
161st on the western side of Ruweisat failed but at
0800hrs a reserve battalion did achieve its objective
although they were soon driven back.
In an attempt to recover something from the El
Mrier situation, 23rd Armoured was determined
to advance. However, the commanding officer of
the 1st Armoured Division, Maj. Gen. Gatehouse
suggested that 23rd Armoured advance should be
cancelled as he was not sure that their path was
clear of mines. Lt. Gen. Gott, the commander of XIII
Corps, disagreed and ordered the attack to continue
a mile further south of the original plan; an area he
thought to be mine free. However, 23rd Armoureds
advance went ahead as originally planned because
the revised orders were not received. The assault
came to an abrupt halt as it bogged down in a dense
minefield. To add further insult, 23rd Armoured was
attacked by the 21st Panzer at 1100hrs and was
completely wiped out.
Gott order 5th Indian Infantry to capture the
western side of Ruweisat and Derir el Shein at night.
At 0200hrs on July 23, 3/14th Punjab Regiment and

Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


History

9th Indian Infantry Brigade launched its attack but


lost its way in the darkness. An attempt to recover
the situation in daylight also failed.
Meanwhile, Australian 9th Division continued the
pressure and, at 0600hrs on July 22, Australian 26th
Brigade attacked Tel el Eisa and 24th Brigade set out
for Tel el Makh Khad. Both objectives were taken,
Tel el Eisa seeing high Australian casualties while Tel
el Makh Khad was made easier by having 50th RTR
in support. However, the latter still lost 23 tanks.

The final stages of the first battle


During July 26/27, XXX Corps was bolstered by 1st
Armoured Division, 4th Light Armoured Brigade
and 69th Infantry Brigade. This gave Auchinleck the
opportunity to hit Rommel again and push through
the enemy lines south of Miteirya Ridge and on
towards the northwest. The South Africans were
tasked with clearing a path through the minefields
southeast of Miteirya before midnight on July 26.
The plan was for 24th Australian Infantry Brigade
to capture the eastern end of Miteirya Ridge by
0100hrs on July 27 while the 69th Infantry would
take the safe route through the minefield and push
on to Deir el Dhib. The 2nd Armoured would pass
through the minefield and head for El Wishka while
4th Light Armoured Brigade followed and attacked
Axis communications. tanks mines they were walking over, thus the ABOVE: An M3 Grant of the 1st
Armoured Division receives some
Unfortunately, the plan had little chance of name of the operation. However, before the attention from a group of happy
success and the defenders were well briefed as main action began, 24th Australian Brigade German soldiers.
to where the attack would take place. At 0200hrs, distracted the 15th Panzer with an intensive
the Australian 24th Brigade reached its objective barrage. The main barrage followed, which
at Miteirya Ridge and 69th Infantry also reached involved 882 guns. Initially, the first shells fell
their goal, albeit at 0800hrs. Confusion reigned as at the same time along a 40 mile-long front.
information as to where the entries to the routes However, after just 20 minutes, the barrage
through the minefields were was inaccurate. This switched to individual targets in support of the
delayed the anti-tank support and 2nd Armoured infantry and continued for over five and half
from reaching 69th Infantry and seizing the hours. Meanwhile, paths were sliced through
opportunity; Rommel counter-attacked. The 50th the minefields by the engineers.
RTR was having the same problems getting through The four infantry divisions of XXX Corps began
the minefields, the routes of which had been made to advance at 2200hrs. Their task was to establish
by the Australian 2/24th Battalion. Unable to get a bridgehead close to the toughest enemy
through, 50th RTR was hit by enemy fire and 13 defences which were on the furthest side of
tanks were lost. The 2/28th Australian Battalion was the second line of minefields. When the infantry
also overrun by German forces and, by the end of reached the first minefield, a path was created BELOW: Captain Charles Upham VC,
the battle, 69th Brigade had suffered 600 casualties. for the armoured divisions of X Corps. It was not who gained a bar to his Victoria Cross
during the first Battle of El Alamein on
Auchinleck ordered that all offensive operations until 0200hrs that the first tank set out and it was July 14/15, 1942.
should come to an end on July 31 and that the another two hours before they were crossing the
focus should return to defensive positions. There minefield. Chaos ensued as dust was stirred up
were no winners in The First Battle of El Alamein; and the tanks became bogged down, resulting in
both sides needed to regroup and strengthen their only half the infantry achieving their objectives and
positions. Rommel could not wait for the 8th Army none of X Corps tanks breaking through.
to build up its strength; he had to strike again, while To the south, a secondary attack was made by
Auchinleck adopted another defensive strategy and 7th Armoured Division and a Free French Brigade
stated that he would not be in a position to attack from XIII Corps. The objective was to attack
until mid-September. That decision brought about the 21st Panzer and the Ariete Division located
his replacement; Gott was appointed as the 8th around Jebel Kalakh. The Free French were tasked
Army commander and Gen. Sir Alexander became with securing the El Taqa plateau and Qaret el
C-in-C Middle East Command. Gott was killed in a Himeimat while 44th Infantry Division and 131st
plane crash on August 7, 1942. His replacement was Infantry Brigade protected the right flank. The
Lt. Gen. Montgomery. Allies were faced with the 185th Airborne
Division Folgore and the Keil Group, both of
them determined defenders. The minefields
The Second Battle of El Alamein in front of the Axis were much deeper than
(Oct 23-Nov 11, 1942) expected and progress through them was
First Phase slowed by accurate enemy fire. To the south,
At 2140hrs on October 23, 1942, Operation 50th Infantry Division achieved some success
Lightfoot was launched; the infantry who against the Brescia and Pavia Divisions and
took part were too light to set off the anti- parts of the 185th Folgore.

www.militarymodelling.com
History

RIGHT: One of the more unusual


vehicles to be seen during the conflict
was the Italian Pavesi P4M artillery
tractor. www.o5m6.de

To the south, in the XIII Corps sector, 44th Divisions


131st Infantry Brigade managed to clear a path quickly
enough for the 22nd Armoured Brigade to pass through.
Again, the brigade came under heavy fire and at least
31 tanks were lost.
Montgomerys initial push was over by October 25
but the Allies had broken through the minefields to
create a new six mile wide and five miles deep gain,
which included the top of Miteirya Ridge.
The 15th Panzer and Littorio Divisions went on
the offensive to find weak points but were left
disappointed. At midnight, 51st Highland Division
launched the first of three attacks but sadly the assault
was a failure and 500 soldiers were killed. During
this assault, the Australians attacked an Axis artillery
observation post southwest of Tel el Eisa known as
Point 29. Their objective was to surround the German
164th Light Division which included a number of Italian
infantry. At midnight, Australian 26th Brigade launched
its attack, supported by 40th RTR with artillery and 30
tanks. Fighting was destined to continue for several
days and this scrap of land was eventually captured.
ABOVE: Italian soldiers are marched Phase 2
into captivity during the early stages
of the Second Battle of El Alamein in During the morning of October 24, Montgomery Phase 3
October 1942. gave orders to the New Zealand Division, with The Axis forces in the northern section of the line
10th Armoured Division in support, to push south suffered heavy losses; artillery and air attacks had taken
to Miteirya Ridge. The Australian 9th was ordered their toll; the Trento Division had lost half of its infantry
to carry out a crumbling operation in the north and virtually all of its artillery while the 164th Light was
that night, while in the south, 7th Armoured would down by two battalions and the 15th Panzer (down to 31
continue to push through the minefields. tanks) while Littoria were also suffering.
The Axis HQ suffered a major blow when its Rommel now focussed on retaking Point 29 and, at
temporary commander (Rommel was in Germany), 1500hrs on October 26, the 15th Panzer, 164th Light and
Gen. Stumme, travelled towards the front line to study sections of the Italian XX Corps attacked the position
the situation. His car came under fire and, even though which Rommel referred to as Hill 28.
Stumme was not hit, he died of a heart attack. Maj. While the 8th Army had stalled in the middle of the
Gen. von Thoma was put in temporary command. front, a significant incident took place off Tobruk when
Rommel flew back to North Africa via Rome on October the oil tankers, Tergestea and Proserpina, were sunk
25 where he appealed for more fuel and ammunition. by RAF Wellingtons and Beaufort torpedo bombers.
BELOW: Sgt. Keith Elliot who won the Axis tanks from the 15th Panzer and the Littorio On hearing the news, Rommel knew that the fuel they
Victoria Cross whilst serving with 22nd Divisions launched the first counter attack of the carried was his last chance of victory in the desert.
Battalion, 2nd New Zealand Division
on July 15, 1942 during the First Battle battle at dusk on October 24 to engage the 1st Montgomery received news on October 26 that the
of El Alamein. Armoured. More than 100 tanks took part, more than infantry of XXX Corps had finally secured the planned
half of them had been destroyed by nightfall to the bridgehead, although the tanks of X Corps had still
advantage of neither. failed to breach the anti-tank perimeter. Montgomery
A convoy of 25 Allied vehicles was attacked by therefore decided to reduce the strength of his front line
Axis aircraft on October 24, their fuel and ammunition and draw a reserve force from it which would, when
destined for the 10th Armoured Division. Because of called upon, swing the momentum of the battle back in
this, Lumsden wanted to cancel that nights attack on favour of the 8th Army. This reserve included the New
Miteirya Ridge but Montgomery was insistent. Once Zealand Division (inc. 9th Armoured Brigade) and the 7th
again creating paths for the tanks to get through the and 10th Armoured Divisions.
minefields took longer than anticipated, complicated
by the 8th Armoured Brigade, the lead unit, being
scattered by an air attack. The brigade found itself in Snipe and Woodcock
open territory in broad daylight soaking up enemy fire During the evening of October 26, the heart of the
while the 24th Armoured Brigade at least managed battle was located around Tel el Aqqaqir and the Kidney
to push forward and, by dawn, claimed to be at the feature located at the end of the 1st Armoureds route
Pierson Line. However, once the dust had settled, they through the minefield. To the northwest of the Kidney
were found to be a long way short. was the Outpost Woodcock and, to the southwest,

14 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


History

one mile distance was Outpost Snipe (Skinflint was


also located nearby). Two battalions from 7th Motor
Brigade; 2nd Battalion, The Rifle Brigade and 2nd Battalion
Kings Royal Rifle Corps (KRRC) would attack Snipe
and Woodcock respectively. At dawn on October 27,
the plan was for 2nd Armoured Brigade to move north
of Woodcock while, at the same time, 24th Armoured
Brigade would travel south around Snipe; both units
supported by X and XXX Corps artillery.
Both battalions set out but both found it difficult
to locate Snipe and Woodcock. 2nd Battalion did
find and capture Snipe, thanks to some assistance
from artillery while the KRRC had still not reached
Woodcock by dawn and were dug in when 2nd
Armoured began its advance at 0600hrs on October 27.
The 24th Armoured moved off not long after and it soon
linked up with The Rifle Brigade, although it did shell positions at Thompsons Post. If successful, 26th ABOVE: M4 Shermans of the 4th Tank
Regiment, County of London Yeomanry,
them in error. Progress for 2nd Armoured was not so Brigade would continue across the railway, on to the British 1st Armoured Division near
swift and they had still not reached the KRRC by noon. coast road and then turn southeast and attack the El Alamein in November 1942.
The tanks of the Littorio Division and anti-tank guns of rear of the Axis forces.
the 15th Panzer kept 2nd Armoured at bay, even with the 20th Brigade objectives were achieved but 26th
support of anti-tank guns of the The Rifle Brigade. Brigade ran into trouble. The tanks and carriers of 46th
Determined to dislodge the Allies from Snipe, RTR, which were carrying a large number of troops
Rommel launched a combined counter attack which because of the distance involved, ran into a minefield
saw the 90th Light carry out another attempt to capture which forced the infantry to dismount. Tanks and
Point 29 while the 21st Panzer would re-take Snipe. infantry lost touch with each other when fighting
These counter attacks were launched at 1600hrs but as began with the 125th Panzergrenadier Regiment
the Axis tanks rolled forward they were faced with 13 and a battalion of the 7th Bersaglieir Regiment. The
6-pdr anti-tank guns of The Rifle Brigade and a further Australians suffered heavy casualties and the German
six from 239th Anti-Tank Battery, Royal Artillery. The and Italian forces managed to hold their positions until
brigade held its ground and, by the end of the attack, reinforcements arrived on November 1.
22 German and ten Italian tanks were destroyed. In Even with these Allied setbacks, Rommels
error, British forces were withdrawn from Snipe and position was tenuous and he admitted to his
Woodcock that evening without replacement and, commanders that there was not even enough fuel
when it was discovered that these hard fought patches to retreat. To confirm this train of thought, a third
of land were vacant again, 133rd Lorried Infantry tanker bound for North Africa was sunk by the RAF
Brigade was quickly despatched to re-capture them. off the Greek coast on October 28.
At 0130hrs on October 28, 4th Battalion Royal Sussex Thanks to Rommels commitment of the 90th
Regiment estimated that they were at Woodcock Light against Point 29, Montgomery was well aware
and dug in. The 2nd Armoured rolled forward to provide that his foes reserves were disappearing fast.
support to the Royal Sussex but before they could Rommel was still convinced that the main thrust
reach them, the battalion suffered a heavy counter would come from the north and Montgomery,
attack. Two other battalions of 133rd Lorried thought knowing this, decided to carry out the same plan as
they had re-captured Snipe and also dug in, only to before with the 9th Australian again on October 31/
discover that they were short of their objective. November 1. This time, however, the assault would
In the meantime, the 90th Light launched its attack take place along a new front, south of Point 29.
on Point 29 in the afternoon but suffered under heavy The Australians continued their attempts to
artillery fire which brought the action to a swift halt. capture the paved coastal road and late on October BELOW: Men of the 28th (Maori)
Infantry Battalion, 2nd New
30, they achieved this. On October 31, Rommel Zealand Division perform the
D+5&6 brought forward a battlegroup from the 21st Panzer Hacker for the camera.
October 28 was a significant day which would again
see Rommel playing his final cards. The 15th and
21st Panzer were ordered to attack X Corps but
their advance was halted by accurate fire. While
the panzers attempted to re-group they were also
attacked from above for over two and half hours.
This was a major turning point in the battle in favour
of the Allies and Rommel would never be able to
grasp the initiative again.
In response to this success, Montgomery
ordered X Corp to take over the Snipe/Woodcock
areas and create a defensive position. Focus was
turned to the north and again the Australians would
be involved. On October 28/29, Australian 9th was
instructed to perform another set-piece action with
20th and 26th Australian Infantry Brigades, supported
by 40th and 46th RTR respectively. The 20th Brigade
was ordered to advance northwest from Point 29
to create a position for 26th Brigade to attack Axis

www.militarymodelling.com 15
History

RIGHT: Another example of a


captured vehicle, this time the
ubiquitous Chevy CMP C60L
which would literally serve anyone
anywhere! www.o5m6.de

which carried out four attacks against Thompsons defence, Rommel had positioned a Panzergrenadier
Post. The fighting was brutal and close quarter but Regiment to strengthen the Trieste Division with over
the Australians never gave an inch. 100 German and 65 Italian tanks at his disposal.
On November 1, Rommel continued to hit the The operation began with the RAF bombing the
Australians with everything he had but they would area around Tel el Aqqaqir and Sidi Abd el Rahman
not budge. It was more bad news for Rommel when for almost seven hours followed by a four and half
two more supply ships were sunk off Tobruk and the hour-long barrage. The 151st and 152nd Infantry set
only fuel being received was being flown in from out at 0105hrs on November 2 and, in contrast to
Crete. Rommel was planning for a retreat with the 90 previous efforts, had achieved their objectives on
tanks he had left compared to the Allies 800 plus. time and with minimal loss. The 28th (Maori) achieved
its objectives on the right-hand side of the main
attack while 133rd Lorried achieved the same on
Operation Supercharge (Phase 4) the left. Meanwhile, 9th Armoured set out from El
This phase of the battle was designed to destroy Alamein railway station at 2000hrs on November
enemy armour by forcing them out into the open 1 with 130 tanks and, by the time it had arrived at
and disrupting and destroying enemy supplies. The the start line of the operation, it was down to 94.
ABOVE: Montgomery accepts the objective of Operation Supercharge was Tel el Aqqaqir, At 0615hrs, slightly behind schedule, the three
surrender of Gen. Wilhelm von Thoma located three miles northwest of the Kidney shaped regiments of 9th Armoured began their advance.
on November 4, 1942. area positioned on the Rahman lateral track. With the sun at their backs, the Allied tanks were
The operation would be performed by the 2nd New visible to the defending German guns and Italian
Zealand Division under the command of Lt. Gen cannons. As the attack unfolded, a number of German
Sir Freyberg. The division would also have the 151st tanks managed to slip between the advancing
(Durham) Brigade (50th Division), 152nd (Seaford and Warwickshire and Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry, causing
Camerons) Brigade (51st Division), 133rd Royal Sussex many casualties. The Axis guns also began to account
Lorried Infantry Brigade and 9th Armoured Brigade under for a number of Allied tanks but momentum was on
its command, in addition to its own 5th New Zealand their side and in a short space of time approximately 35
Infantry Brigade and 28th (Maori) Infantry Battalion. enemy guns had been destroyed and a large number
The plan, which was very similar to Lightfoot, was of prisoners taken. However, this had come at great
for 151st and 152nd Infantry to advance and clear a cost and 9th Armoured were down to just 24 tanks
path through the minefields for the supporting 8th (many more were recoverable) by the end of the action
and 50th RTR. Through these paths, the 9th Armoured, and 230 crew had been killed.
BELOW: The Commanding Officer of backed up by a heavy barrage, would crack open the The 9th Armoured was almost wiped out trying to
the 8th Army in North Africa, Gen.
Bernard Montgomery surveys the Axis defence followed by 1st Armoured Division which achieve its objective and once the dust had settled
battlefield from a M3 Grant. would push on and attack Rommels reserves. In the gap it needed to create for 1st Armoured to pass
through was still not there. When 1st Armoured began
to deploy, it collected the remains of 9th Armoured
while behind, 2nd Armoured Brigade arrived and, a
few hours later, 8th Armoured Brigade joined the
fray and, as one, the British armour advanced in a
south westerly direction. Further heavy fighting soon
followed and, at 1100hrs, the remnants of the 15th
and 21st Panzer and the Littorio Divisions carried out a
counter-attack against 1st Armoured and what was left
of 9th Armoured. Well dug in and with a wall of anti-tank
guns supported by artillery and good air support, the
Axis counter failed and 100 enemy tanks lay strewn
across the desert.
By late afternoon on November 2, 133rd Lorried and
151st Infantry attacked Snipe and Skinflint. Assisted
by a heavy artillery barrage, what few defenders of the
Trieste Division that were left were quickly dispersed
and the area which would form a base for future
operations, was captured, with minimal casualties.
On the night of November 2, Montgomery took
the opportunity to re-organise and refresh his forces
ready for the next stage of the attack. The 5th Indian, 5th

16 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


History

New Zealand, 151st and 154th Infantry Brigades were


all placed with XXX Corps and X Corps was made
stronger by bringing forward 7th Armoured Division and
moving 4th Light Armoured Brigade to XII Corps in the
southern sector. On the Axis side, it was a different
picture, the number of serviceable tanks had reduced
significantly and artillery and anti-tank weapons were
down to half strength.

Phase 5
Rommel was now forced to withdraw to Fuka.
Montgomery attacked again at 1745hrs on November
3 when 152nd Infantry, supported by 8th RTR, advanced
two miles south of Tel el Aqqaqir. The objective was the
Rahman track which 5th Indian Infantry Brigade would
attack during the small hours of November 4 and, at
0615hrs, 154th Infantry Brigade would hit Tel el Aqqaqir.
This three pronged attack met with varying resistance By November 7, 1st and 7th Armoured were ABOVE: British soldiers and airmen
show off a couple of souvenirs
so initially the infantry fell short of their objectives and completely static thanks to heavy rain and a lack of including a German sign warning of
were forced to dig in. However, by the time the 5th fuel. The 10th Armoured were in a better position on unexploded ordnance.
Indian began its advance the defensive positions had the coastal road and managed to push on to Mersa
been vacated and the objective was achieved with Matruh, while the infantry cleared the road to the
virtually no casualties. west of Galal. 80 miles west of Mersa Matruh lays
On November 4, it was time to begin chasing Sidi Barrani and it was here that Rommel planned
the enemy down, the plan being for the 1st and 7th to fight a delaying action which would give the
Armoured Divisions to head north while Freybergs remainder of his retreating forces time to travel
2nd New Zealand Division would advance west to an through the passes at Halfya and Sollum. The Axis
escarpment above Fuka. The plan did not begin well forces held Sidi Barrani until late on November
and the New Zealand Division found itself bogged 9 while the New Zealand Division continued to
down in a number of minefields and it was not until push west towards Sollum the following evening.
dark that it reached the Rahman track. At the same time, 4th Light Armoured Brigade
The 1st and 7th Armoured did not advance as quickly were positioned at the foot of Halfya Pass and 7th
as hoped either and their plan to encircle the 90th Light Armoured swung south and prepared to attack Fort
was halted by stiff Axis resistance. The remains of the Capuzzo and Sidi Azeiz. On November 11, the final
21st Panzer held up 1st Armoured up for most of the day day of the battle, 5th New Zealand Infantry Brigade
while 7th Armoured was halted by the Ariete Armoured poured into the Halfya Pass and took over 600
Division which was wiped out as a result. Italian prisoners.
November 4 also saw the demise of the Littorio By the end of play on November 11, 1942, the
Armoured and Trieste Motorised Divisions while the Egyptian border area was finally declared clear of
remains of the Bologna and Trento Divisions tried Axis forces and Churchill had finally been presented
desperately to fight their way out of El Alamein. with the victory that he had been craving for so
Again it was obvious to Rommel that all was lost; long. It finally showed the world that the German
many of the Italian units were now abandoned and the war machine could be beaten. The North African
situation for the Axis forces continued to deteriorate Campaign would drag on until May 1943 but this BELOW: Rommel at the head of his
troops, specifically the 15th Panzer
when 1st Armoured steered towards El Daba and 7th really was a major turning point in the Second World Division, after retreating into Libya in
Armoured advanced towards Galal, 15 miles further War for the Allies. November 1942.
west. Only the New Zealanders were prevented from
reaching their objective by the 15th Panzer who caught
the Kiwis tip toeing through a minefield which turned
out to be a dummy.
On November 5, 7th Armoured was ordered to head
for the coastal road at Sidi Haneish and 1st Armoured to
move from a position west of El Daba to Bir Khalda, 80
miles west of the Rahman track and then cut through
the road at Mersa Matruh. Neither move worked,
7th Armoured ended the day 20 miles short and 1st
Armoured ran out of fuel on November 6, 16 miles from
Bir Khalda. At 1100hrs on November 6, two armoured
regiments of 1st Armoured were refuelled, only to run
out again 30 miles southwest of Mersa Matruh.
The 2nd New Zealand Division managed to advance
nearer to Sidi Haneish and 10th Armoured Brigade
arrived west of Galal to take over the airfield and
escarpment at Fuka. The 7th Armoured ran into the
21st Panzer and Voss Reconnaissance Group, 15
miles southwest of Sidi Haneish during the morning
of November 6. The 21st Panzer lost 16 tanks and a
number of guns before making their escape during the
evening towards Mersa Matruh.

www.militarymodelling.com 17
AFV

Special Panzer
Dragon 1/35 8./Pz.Rgt. 8, 15th Panzer Division, Panzer IV f1 (f) by Mark Chisholm
ABOVE: The authors completed model
placed into a North African scenic
Introduction armour for tank on tank engagements the Germans
setting courtesy of Photoshop.
At the time of the Second Battle of El Alamein in could muster. However, the short barrelled Panzer
1942, the legendary Afrika Korps, the force that IV was still being used in the role of infantry support
had been commanded by General Feld Marshal and the latest version was designated the Ausf.
Erwin Rommel as the scourge of the Desert Rats, F1(F) and was marked by the fact that the armour
comprised approximately 443 armoured units. The thickness was increased to 50mm at the front and
15th Panzer Division had been fighting as an integral 30mm on the sidewalls, increasing its weight to
component of the Deutsches Afrikakorps since over 22 tonnes. This necessitated a wider track in
1941. At this time the primary tank remained the order to spread the increased weight over a larger
Panzer III J with the 50mm gun as the only mobile area and therefore slightly altered running gear. This
armoured component able to take on the British subject interested me as it was the last appearance
Matildas with their thick frontal armour. Also at of the Panzer IV in the guise of an infantry support
BELOW: The nearly complete model this time was the appearance of the new Panzer IV tank and the second Battle of El Alamein was
from Dragon, not the photo etch air
intake louvres and fine detail on these special as the British designated the long barrelled largely an infantry battle.
Smart Kits. 75mm armament, which was the most effective

Construction
I chose the Dragon rendering of the Pz IV f1 (f) in
the SmartKit production series number 6315. This
is a very straightforward project that can be nearly
completed using just what is in the box.
Construction as normal starts with the lower hull
and suspension; the model benefits from highly
detailed slide moulded single piece lower hull and
turret. I started adding extra detail consisting of
photo etch to represent the chain that keeps the
front and rear toe pins from being lost.
I recommend being very thorough in the
clean-up; in particular the upper hull parts
which all layer together and interface in a
very precise manner. I found it best to
have all the parts removed from the
sprue and to dry fit all the pieces to

18 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


AFV

ABOVE LEFT: Details of the armoured visors and crew hatches; these were deliberately posed open and ajar to give the model a feeling of animation. ABOVE RIGHT: The very simple
modification to the standard kit was the addition of a plastic strip to represent the retaining bar (a field modification) to enable external storage of the water carriers (Jerry Cans).
BELOW LEFT: Karaya brass cable was used to substitute the kits springy steel wire. The recovery tow cable is posed as if ready for action by draping it out along the fenders
to affect more rapid battlefield recovery in the event of combat damage or mechanical breakdown. BELOW RIGHT: Super detailing of the tow pins was achieved using photo
etched fine chain to depict this detail.

understand all the connections before committing to


glue. There are no fit problems whatsoever with this
model as long as the instructions are very accurately
studied and you are careful with assembly.
You have the option of using either plastic or
supplied photo etch engine air intake covers. I opted
to use the thin and in scale photo etch parts. The kit
is supplied with a metal wire to depict the recovery
wire, however I found this to be to springy and
difficult to use in the past. I therefore replaced the
wire with aftermarket 0.3mm wire from Karara.
The recovery wire was also posed in the ready
for action position of being rolled out
and draped over the fender. ABOVE: Although real hairspray can
be used, I opted to use the product
scratches effects the fluid is applied
via air brush and left to dry naturally.
As can be seen the coverage produces
a sheen on the model which is the
barrier to paint adhering to the primer.

LEFT: The application of primer in this


case I used Mr Surfacer Mahogany
Colour to both cover the photo etch
parts and also to depict worn exposed
metal in the hairspray chipping
explained below.

www.militarymodelling.com 19
AFV

The acrylic colour available in


the Mig Ammo Afrika Corps
paint set Gelbbraun is applied
by airbrush as the base coat.

All ports and hatches are separate parts so they


can be posed open and the various vents and louvers
can be either open or closed. I therefore opted
to depict some of the armoured visors and crew
hatches in open positions to highlight these details.
The turret is relatively conventional in its parts
breakdown and for the L/24 gun. The barrel is nearly
complete in regard to length, being trapped between
the recoil cylinders at the rear and slid through the
armoured recoil cover and barrel jacket. I found the
slide moulded barrel perfectly rendered so decided
not to replace with an aftermarket metal part.
The provided tracks are the Magic Track snap-
together-then-cement type, which are again first
rate. However, I opted to use Friul Modelsimso
metal link tracks to provide further detail and
realistically weighted and sagging track appearance.
I noticed on reference photographs that many
ABOVE: I used the colour Dunkelgelb aus 44 to Afrika Korps vehicles were modified in order to carry
provide some contrasting shadow tones to the more fuel and water cans commonly referred to by
previous base colour. This was again applied via
airbrush and small paper masks are used to provide the British as Jerry Cans. I therefore purchased
hard breaks in some areas for a varied appearance. accurate cans in a kit from Tasca Models. I only
RIGHT: The model after completion of the basic tone
shading as can be seen by using just two slightly
contrasting colours there is immediately more
visual interest to the viewer.

20 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


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ABOVE: In order to chip the paint, the surface of a small


area is dampened with water. I tend to use a toothpick
and some fine tweezers to very carefully chip the paint
in a controlled manner.

RIGHT: On completion of the chipping, a gloss coat


was applied to prevent any further degradation to the
camouflage paint. The decals were applied at
this stage note the distinctive divisional
insignia of the 15th Panzer division
on the turret and bow plate.

ABOVE LEFT: The many pioneer tools that adorn the German Panzers require detail paint work. I use the Vallejo acrylic colour Chocolate brown as a base colour for some
of the tools applied using a fine brush. ABOVE RIGHT: To begin the weathering steps and overall application of a filter will unify the paint work. I used the Mig Ammo
enamel Brown for Desert Yellow filter and a broad brush to apply the filter.

www.militarymodelling.com 21
AFV

ABOVE LEFT: At this stage I felt the model was to light in tone. In order to create more depth and a shift in tone to better represent the Afrika Corps camouflage colour I
used oil paints that were applied as filters and blended with a very small amount of white spirit. ABOVE RIGHT: I made a mix of burnt umber and shadow brown oil paints
with white spirit as a solvent. Using a fine brush this wash is applied in the shadow detail areas and recesses of the model in order to accent the panels etc.
RIGHT: The lower hull and suspension components are weathered using different mediums. I tend to use
pigments in this case several pigments including Mig Ammo Middle East Dust are
applied dry to the lower hull and fixed with pigment fixer.

had to add a small strip of styrene onto the hull


side of the tank as a holder for the cans. From my
references it seemed that it was only really water
cans that were carried externally by combat vehicles
which would make sense as it would be detrimental
to the crew and tank to become a fireball due to the
gasoline tins being hit by enemy fire!

ABOVE: Friul white metal tracks were


used as an alternative to the kit supplied Painting and Weathering
magic tracks. This photo shows a test fit used to determine Prior to paint work I think its worth mentioning a
the appropriate number of links to create a realistic appearance.
Also note the white crosses to designate the jerry cans as water carriers. quick tip. All too often we forget that during the
process of construction the model will be covered
in dust from sanding and greasy fingerprints. I use
my airbrush to blow pure air over the entire model
to remove sanding dust. I will then use painters
rags (cloths in light alcohol) to clean the surface of
the plastic.
I primed the model using Mr Surfacer Mahogany
Colour; this product achieves two goals in one
application. The primer will coat all the different
surfaces including the brass photo etch in a durable
base coat; the mahogany brown will represent the
underlying colour of weathered steel that will be
exposed in the chipping steps.
The individual links are required to be I chose to depict the model in a highly weathered
cleaned out. A 0.5mm drill bit is fitted into a state; references on the actual Panzers at the
pin vice and the holes are carefully reamed to remove second Battle of El Alamein show no clear
white metal debris. Be careful not to drill completely through the links.
consistent picture of wear and tear to the actual
vehicles in the battle. However, in telling the story

22 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


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ABOVE LEFT: The links are joined together using lengths of supplied copper wire that have been trimmed to the correct size. I use a pair of needle nose pliers in order to
insert the track pins. ABOVE RIGHT: Cyanoacrylate (super glue) is carefully applied to the pin end to fix the pins into position. The super glue will wick into the drilled holes
and only a small amount is necessary.
LEFT: After the super glue has set I use
a pair of fine snips (in this case some
older Tamiya sprue cutters) to trim the
excess track pin wire.

BELOW: After the track lengths are


completed it is necessary to soak them
in a mild alcohol solution in order to
remove any grease or residue.

Burnishing fluid is applied


to the lengths of track
using a soft broad brush.
This chemical agent will
create a chemical reaction
that very realistically
blackens the tracks.
Several applications may
be necessary.

ABOVE: In preparation
for the dust effects, I once
again applied a layer of
chipping fluid via airbrush
to the model.

LEFT: In order to reproduce


that very characteristically
oily dirt that accumulates
on a tanks lower hull. The
out of the bottle product
from Mig Ammo engine
oil is applied via airbrush
on top of the previous
pigment layer.

www.militarymodelling.com 23
AFV

ABOVE: The tracks after


ABOVE: The enamel weathering solution rainmarks effects is airbrushed
completion of the burnishing effects.
on top of the previously applied chipping fluid layer. Although sand dust
They are then coated with the same
effects are available this much lighter tone creates more contrast with the
pigments and fixer as was used on
camouflage colour of the tank.
the lower hull.

RIGHT: The divisional


insignia of the 15th
Panzer division. This
insignia appears on
either side of the
turret, on the bow
plate, and at the rear
of the finished model.

ABOVE: In similar manner to the rust chipping. The model is dampened


with water, however this time a fan brush is used to draw vertically down
the previously applied rainmarks effects. This creates very realistic vertical
streaking of the sand.

RIGHT: An overall view of the model with completion of the weathering effects.
All that remains are the final assembly of the tracks and some final touches.

In order to complete the tracks I


used a graphite pencil to impart
a sheen to the contact portion
of the tracks. This technique
creates a very in scale metallic
effect to the tracks depicting the
polished portions of metal.

24 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


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ABOVE: The final touch I used Mig ammo streaking rust effects both out of the bottle and also slightly
diluted with thinner. The exhaust and some of the pioneer tools received a light application of this wash.

of this particular vehicle I wanted to emphasise the


extremely harsh conditions of North Africa and the
toll this took on men and machines. Its important to
not misconstrue this depiction as a reflection on the
troops of the Afrika Corps being negligent in care of
equipment as this was quite the opposite.
However, by using techniques that can represent
an armoured fighting vehicle that has endured
a hard fighting life, the model can depict the
desperate last battles of Rommels forces. This also
should evoke interest to the viewer and provoke
debate of course.

Views of the completed model.

www.militarymodelling.com 25
AFV

Granted Special Status


Modelling Academys M3 Grant by Mark Bannerman Adaptable M3
The M3 medium tank was a pre-war design that
went into full production in late 1941 and was
provided to the British Army which the British named
the General Lee. The M3s were then updated to
British specifications and were named General
Grant or Grant for short. The Grant played an
important role in the North African campaign because
it was well armed, despite several drawbacks
including its high silhouette compared to other
British tanks serving in the desert. The difference
between the Grant and the Lee can be identified
most commonly by the turret configuration. Although
the M3 was eventually phased out and replaced
with M4 Shermans, the M3 chassis would serve in
numerous roles, such as the M7 Priest. Over 6,000
M3 medium tanks were produced with almost half
serving with the British Army and 1,300 pushed into
Soviet service. The M3 also served in the Pacific with
the Australian army. The Grant mounted a 75mm gun
as its main armament and a 37mm in the turret, as
well as twin .3in Browning machine guns. The Grant
weighed almost 30 tons and was operated by a crew
of six with a top speed of 40 km/h.
TOP: Grant Tank on the move! (Courtesy of Photoshop) ABOVE: The Academy second generation and more correct offering of the M3 Medium Grant Tank
kit 13228 - which includes a set of Miniart figures.

BELOW: The lower hull was built as per the instructions. I affixed the wheels without using glue so that I could reach the rubber on the wheels when it was time to paint.

26 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


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A Grant passing a burning Pz I.
The four-colour camo scheme
is evident in this photo.
(Photo source unknown)

The Model
I have had the Tamiya Grant in my collection of
unbuilt models for many years and, although it is
inaccurate, I managed to accumulate a plethora of
add-ons and after-market offerings to correct the
model. Then Academy announced the release of a
M3 Grant. I made the purchase and realized that the
Academy offering also had quite a few inaccuracies
although not to the extent of the Tamiya model.
The most significant Academy deficiency was the
size of the roadwheel bogies. Fortunately, Academy
re-released the M3 Grant, however, this time with
a set of revised bogies and a few other details to
correct the original release most of which had to
do with interior layout. I purchased both the original
and the revised kits and chose to work with the
updated version. The newer Academy offering, kit
13228, of the Grant is moulded in light grey styrene,
with nine parts trees, including a MiniArt sprue with
five figures from their British Tank Crew release.
The real bonus on the Academy model is the highly
detailed interior that is provided. Almost half of the
model parts are dedicated to the interior. If you are
an interior lover, this is an amazing model with loads
of options.
The construction was relatively straightforward
and I followed the instructions. A few details that
I really liked along the way in the assembly were
the fine casting numbers, the very nicely detailed
rivets, the excellent fit of the parts, little flash and
casting texture. Although the parts in the Academy
kit are very nice, I did have an aftermarket ABM
Grant update which I decided to use - not because
of any issues in the Academy kit but because I had
it and was anxious to use it. The ABM series is out
of production but can still be found on E-bay. Again,
I would have been happy to work with the Academy included in the model are not correct as they are the ABOVE: A damaged Grant in North
Africa. Careful examination under the
turret and details that are included but I figured that padded type. The Grant typically sported the T54E1 dust will reveal the outline contouring
I would use the ABM as I would probably never use type tracks and, although I have the set of plastic the darker camouflage pattern.
it otherwise. tracks from Bronco, I opted to use the DML DS set (Photo source unknown)

I did not deck out the interior as much as included in the DML British Sherman MK III model.
instructed and only used the basics. I was not I really do like these tracks. The DS type tracks are
planning on opening any hatches so spending an made of a rubbery plastic and provide excellent BELOW: The idle and sprocket were not
glued until the very end of the painting
enormous of time on the interior was not worth detail. It removes the painstaking exercise of putting process. The ABM resin replacement
the time. However, if one were planning to open together 168 separate tracks that can come in two for the turret and bins.
up the side and top hatches, the visual into the
tank from the side and above is quite wide
so well worth doing the interior for that
purpose. The model could be built in a
few evenings although it took me five
years to complete it! The vinyl tracks

www.militarymodelling.com 27
AFV

ABOVE LEFT: Surface detail is excellent all


round and rivet placement looks accurate.

ABOVE RIGHT: The ports for the .30 calibre


machine guns. Many photos do not show
the guns mounted when the tank was in
travel mod, probably to prevent dust and
sand getting into the guns.

ABOVE: The fenders were only applied


after the tracks were put in place. Blu-
tac is a very handy product to use to
dry fit and test parts.

BELOW: A Grant heavily laden with


equipment. The white contour line is
not evident but it can be seen on
the rear portion of the tank.
(Photo source unknown)

ABOVE: Although there are numerous


aftermarket sets out there to deck out and
detail a Grant (i.e. Black Dog), I chose to use
plain white tissue, white glue and water.
AFV

LEFT: A burnt-out Grant. Note


counterweight on the 75mm gun.
(Photo source unknown)

BELOW: Note how the interior of


the side hatch is painted the darker
camouflage colour. It was not unusual
for tanks to travel with all hatches
wide open due to heat.
(Photo source unknown)

or three parts each. These DS tracks are absolutely


revolutionary and while not all DML kits offer the
DS type tracks, they are apparently available as
a separate item (which I have not had any luck
locating). If you can find these sets, they come as in
a few track variants the T48 (rubber chevron), T48
(duckbills) and this set, the T54E1 cast steel chevron
patterns. The tracks will need to be shortened for
this particular model by four lengths.

Painting and Finishing


This is the part of the modelling that I really enjoy.
When it comes to the North African Grant, there are
only a few options. An overall solid sand colour was
common - either No 61 (B.S. 381) known as Light
Stone or No. 52 which was a pale cream. Some
Grants were given a secondary camo colour such
as Slate Grey (No.34) or black and other variations
(Green, Terracotta Red).The effect of the sun and
sand altered the base colours significantly so if I
can attain a likeness, I will be satisfied. The scheme
I chose is a four colour scheme used by the 22nd
Armoured Brigade as described in Dick Taylors book
Warpaint Vol 2. He states that the 22nd Armoured
Brigade used a scheme designed by a CLY officer
where a darker colour (a brown shade) was applied
over the sand base, the brown then being outlined
with thin black and white lines. The Grant at
Bovington was painted in this scheme but the base
appears too ochre for what is described as either
Light Stone or Pale Cream. Surprisingly, as I
started flipping through my references, I found
LEFT: The model is almost
many photos of wartime Grant tanks in North Africa complete and requires
sporting this unique four-colour pattern. surface details some were
left off until the end such as
With the model built, modified and ready for the the axe and shovel on the
painting process, I primed the model in two even rear engine deck.

www.militarymodelling.com 29
AFV

point because I would save that for the last step before
the weathering. Once the basecoat was thoroughly
dry, it was time for the camouflage pattern. I started
by drawing out the pattern in Vallejo White 70951. I
kept the line thin and, because of the liquid nature of
Vallejo paints, it was necessary to go over the lines
with a second coat. With the pattern drawn out (and
apologies for no step-by-step photos on this part),
I then painted in the brown using Vallejo Chocolate
Brown 70872. I tried as much as possible to emulate
the tone of the colours of the Bovington Grant. This
required two layers of brown being painted inside the
white lines to eliminate all of the streaks. The brown
was painted within the white boundaries leaving a thin
and consistent white line still showing. This does take
time so patience is really important. With the white
outline and solid brown camouflage pattern painted
in, I then used a Faber-Castell artist Pen (size B) to
draw in a black line separating the white and brown.
It is a bit tricky and very hard to keep it consistent
with the white and black lines having the same width.
ABOVE: The Bovington Grant in a four-colour camouflage scheme.
Although the scheme on the Bovington Grant is very
RIGHT: Two coats of the base colour were necessary. straight and consistent, wartime photos actually show
One needs to ensure all of
the primer is covered these lines to be far more jagged and haphazard when
because there are many crevices that an painted on with some areas having no black lines at
airbrush cannot reach on a first passing.
all. This scheme was applied in the field by the crew
with crude brushes so I realized that having super
straight and very consistent lines was not quite an
accurate representation of what I could see in the
wartime photographs. I did make every effort to
keep the lines consistent but I was not over-zealous
trying to make these white and black lines exactly
perfect. Once the brown, black and white were
down, I did do some touch ups to ensure that
there were no errors or omissions.
I added some transfers from a spares
box to depict a Grant serving with the 22
Armoured Brigade which would have had
the 7th Armoured Division Red Jerboa. Units
were 2 R Gloucester Hussars, 3 CLY and 4 CLY
with Arms-of Service of 40, 86 and 67 respectively.
My thanks to Military Modelling colleague Ken
Holland for this info. Once the transfers were on, a
applications of Tamiya primer in preparation for the light misting of Tamiya Buff XF-57 mixed with 70%
base coat. For the basecoat, I used Tamiya acrylics, Tamiya thinners was applied to the whole vehicle
mixing a 70/30 solution of Desert Yellow XF-59 and to remove some of the starkness between very
Tamiya White XF-2. This mix was further diluted with opposing colours. Tamiya Buff is almost a must
30% Tamiya thinners and 20% Tamiya Gloss and when doing desert vehicles as it really does provide
sprayed on the model in two even coats. There are a very convincing first thin layer of dust. This
loads of crevices on the model so you need to ensure application also helped tone down the glossy finish
good coverage. The tracks had not been installed at this on the transfers. This was followed by a few filters
three specifically for this project three brown
ABOVE: For the basecoat, I used Tamiya
acrylics in a 70/30 solution of Desert toned Humbrol paints and each one was applied in
Yellow XF-59 and Tamiya White XF-2. succession, each mixed with 90% Testors thinners
BELOW: The rubber on the
and separately applied with the widest paintbrush
roadwheels and idlers were to the entire model. This is a very quick process
painted in Vallejo Grey Black. and, once thoroughly dry, I applied a controlled
wash using a mix of Raw Umber Newton oil paints
mixed with 50/50 Testors enamel thinners. This
dark wash, combined with the filters, helped
to enhance the surface details such as partition
lines, panels and rivets and also muted the
overall tone of the base.
To help bring out some highlights
on the vehicle, two light
drybrushes were applied using
a restrained approach - the
first with Humbrol 93 neat
and the second with Humbrol 94

30 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


AFV

mixed with 30% Titanium White Winsor Newton oil ABOVE: The model after the first round of application.
paints. This really is a very light application and hardly ABOVE RIGHT: The two colours I used for the
noticeable but makes a significant difference at the camouflage: Vallejo White 70951 for the outline
end of the weathering process. I then repeated and Vallejo Chocolate Brown 70872
for the secondary camouflage pattern.
the process of applying a few pinwashes using
Rembrandt Sepia oil paints mixed with Testors
thinners and applied onto all seam and rivet lines.
The tracks were cleaned up in soap and water
to remove any greasy deposits as a result of the
production. I sprayed the tracks in primer, then
Tamiya Black and then misted in Tamiya Buff. As
I was going to heavily weather the tracks with
pastels, I was not anxious to do much detailing on
the tracks. I then used the wet technique of diluting
a mix of brown and black pastels with Tamiya
thinners and applying the mixture along seams. I
find this really helps bring out the shadows. The
model was then dusted in various light earth colour
pastels and tried to create the effect of blotchy to
emulate the wartime photos in my references. In
moderation, applying pigments is a very effective
means of bringing the model to another level of
realism. The best way to proceed is to apply small
amounts at a time and to work in sections until it
looks correct. The pastels were applied with a soft
round brush and placed in those areas that would
typically have more dust and dirt accumulation.
Most often, pastels applied to models become
susceptible to handling. To remedy this and make
the pastels more permanent, Tamiya thinners with a
drop of Tamiya Buff was applied by spraying the mix
through an airbrush at a very low dpi setting. This
ABOVE: Touch-ups were necessary and this took the better part of a few evenings to complete.
really helped the pastels to adhere to the surface
of the vehicle. This process was repeated at least BELOW: The model base coated and camouflage complete.
six times each time alternating the colours of the
pastels from light to dark to light using shades of
yellow, off-white and light brown.
Wartime photographs of Grants typically show
these with a mounting array of tarpaulins, bags and
equipment. I found a slew of equipment through
my spares box - Verlinden, Cromwell Models and
Accurate Armour. These were primed and then
hand brushed in Humbrol enamels
using khaki and brown colour paints.
Each piece of equipment was
painted a different colour to keep
it all from looking too uniform. I
like to use Humbrol enamels for
equipment because it is almost
a guaranteed that the paint
will dry flat which is desirable
for webbing and canvas. The
equipment was then given
various washes in greens and
browns from the Humbrol paint
series and then dry-brushed with

www.militarymodelling.com 31
AFV

ABOVE: The decals were sourced from a


spares box. I did not use any decals from
the Academy offering as these are not
accurate for the model I was depicting.

RIGHT: Three applications of heavily


thinned Humbrol paints provide a
different tone to the base, making
the surface gritty which is important
when the pastels are applied, and
which creates a multi-layer effect on
the surface.

BELOW: Note the light accumulation of


Sepia oils around the bolts.

Humbrol, lightened with Humbrol white. All straps


were painted using Humbrol 110 and then further
drybrushed with Humbrol 93 and 94 to create a
muted effect and this helped bring out the shadows
in the creases and along strap seams on the gear.

Conclusion
Although the model itself seems to get a lot of
criticism, I thought it was an excellent model
well thought out, superbly designed and
the best rendition of a Grant out there!
The model is basically dimensionally
accurate; it includes an extensive interior,
the assembly is not difficult and painting
the model was the absolute joy of the entire
project. Although I did have several etch sets for it, I
did not make use of any (may have to save for a Lee)

LEFT: Tools for pinwashes and weathering. The pastels are


home-made using various artist chalks that have been
scraped down to a powder.

BELOW: Filters have become very much a standard for me in


the weathering process and Humbrol paints are perfect for
this purpose.
AFV

because there were very few parts that needed to ABOVE: The model is
brushed down in various
be replaced. The only downside are the rubber tracks light earth-coloured pastels
included in the kit which are inaccurate and need to and my purpose is to create
a blotchy effect to emulate
be replaced. This kit is definitely recommended. dusty surfaces as shown
on tank surfaces in wartime
desert photos. I repeat the
Recommended Reading process of applying pastels
then spray Tamiya thinners
Classic AFV No 2 Lee and Grant by Ken Jones and with a drop of Tamiya Buff
at a very low dpi setting to
Peter Chamberlain (Airfix Book 1977) help the pastels adhere to
ISBN 0 85059 269 0 the surface of the model.
M3 Medium Tank (Grant & Lee) by Dave Doyle, RIGHT: A black and white
Squadron Series, Walkaround Series image in wartime quality
M3 Lee/Grant in Action - Squadron/Signal (Courtesy of Photoshop)
Publications No. 33

M3 Lee/Grant in Action - Squadron/


Signal Publications No. 33.

M3 Medium Tank (Grant & Lee)


by Dave Doyle, Squadron Series,
Walkaround Series.
ABOVE: The blotchy effect is difficult to reproduce in scale
form because the base of the tank is light. To create the
effect, I will drop a minute speck of dark brown pastel into
the pastel mix and when it is applied to the surface, it will
create a streak and muddy up the pastels and that is the
blotchy effect I am looking for.

RIGHT: The effect after six rounds of pastels and thinner


applications. Note how the amount of weathering on the
turret is much lighter than the lower hull. The turret only
received three pastel treatments.

www.militarymodelling.com 33
AFV

Desert Gossip
Marmon-Herrington in service with the Afrika Korps History
in Libya, 1942 by Robert Blokker One thing I always thought was interesting when
reading about the Afrika Korps and its actions in
Northern Africa, was the vast amount of captured
vehicles it put to use in its ranks. Because of
shortages and long supply lines, everything had its
use and published pictures often show columns
of vehicles of different origin and plumage. These
ranged from American halftracks to British light trucks
working alongside the workhorses of the German
war machine. The original markings were either
painted over or just covered over in a basic DAK
livery. Allied vehicles under new command could be
found in all echelons up to Rommels Staff which had
several captured machines. The most well-known
were probably Max and Moritz; a pair of AEC
Dorchesters captured during the African Campaign.
The re-use of these vehicles makes for some
interesting diorama subjects and, with that as
inspiration, I decided to build a Marmon-Herrington.
It doesnt get more diverse than a South African
designed vehicle, used by the British, under the
new Management of the Germans.

ABOVE: The as yet unmodified Marmon-Herrington.

RIGHT: The added ribs on the interior.

34 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


AFV

Often overlooked; the amount of stuff soldiers take around with them. New size of the side doors.

Point of no return. Drill holes to enlarge the door. Cut the excess out.

The kit
IBGs 1/35 Panzerspahwagen Marmon-Herrington
(e), Kit No.35024 served as the basis for this project.
I found a few pictures of this type online. What was
interesting was that the German crew seemed to have
used it for some time. It had damaged fenders and the
doors that protected the radiator were missing. The
vehicle was also fitted with a makeshift wire antenna
on the roof and a telescopic antenna on the side.
The IBG kit is very nice and features both engine
and interior. Overall, the dimensions and details are
accurate. There were only a few things that were
incorrect or missing. On the interior side, the most
obvious were the ribs to which the armour plates
were welded, a detail that is well visible with such a
big hole in the roof. I fixed this by making the ribs out
of evergreen styrene. The IBG MH still comes with

ABOVE: Doors cut and insert added.

RIGHT: Added locks to the


inside of the doors.

BELOW: Dented fenders


and antennas.

www.militarymodelling.com 35
AFV

ABOVE: Vehicle in base colour.

Decals added. No weathering yet. Bleached, sandblasted and chipped.

the British wireless and I figured that if they took the and size. The kit doors are rectangular and should
time to add the antennas to the vehicle they probably be square that is as wide as they are high. So I took
swapped the radio sets as well. My choice of radio measurements and enlarged the door openings, cut
came from Plusmodels Easy line range, an EL020 the original doors in half and made inserts to widen
German wireless station WWII with accumulator. The them to the required width. I also fashioned some door
interior was further detailed with scratchbuilt storage locks on the inside of the doors. The legs of the roof
boxes, a rack for the telescopic masts wirespools antenna were made out of styrene and the telescopic
and a lot of personal kit of the crew. mast came from an old Verlinden set. Last but not
The biggest mistake they made on the exterior was least, I fashioned some Jerry can racks and storage
BELOW: Close up of the chips and scuffs. the vehicles access doors. They are the wrong shape boxes. I used fishing wire to make the antenna wire.

Painting and weathering the vehicle


After priming the MH with Tamiya light grey primer,
I mixed a desert sand colour out of Tamiya Acrylic.
The mix consisted of XF-60 Desert Yellow, XF-57
Buff and XF-2 White, airbrushed over a black pre-
shade. I have no ratios of the mix as I tend to mix
everything by eye and rarely write down anything
on how a mix came together. When that was dry,
I added the few decals that the vehicle had and
painted the details, mostly with Humbrol colours.
With the Marmon-Herrington spending a lot of
time in the harsh desert environment, I wanted the
paint to look bleached and sandblasted. To recreate
this effect, I mixed some Humbrol enamel colours
to a tint lighter than that of the basecoat and applied
this by stippling and wiping the paint onto the
vehicle with a piece of sponge.
The sponge was also used to do all the chipping
on both the interior and exterior of the vehicle.
Again, I mixed a light variant of the base colour
out of Humbrol enamel and applied this with the
sponge to high traffic areas; around hatches and
such; areas that the crew walked over constantly
and the areas that would get scuffed and chipped by
general use like the lower area of the vehicle. Then I
AFV

mixed black oil paint with Van Dyke Brown to create crew was trying to see what to do with that bit of new ABOVE: Views of the painted details.
a dirty Black Brown colour. The chips with this oil intelligence. The figures were assembled straight out
paint mix were also added by sponge on smaller of the box and painting was again done with Humbrol
sections than the light chip colour. When that was paints. A wet on wet technique followed; I started with
dry, I added scratches in both the lighter Sand the darkest colour and I painted up to the highlights. The
colour and the Black/Brown oil paint with a 10/0 wet on wet technique allows for relatively quick painting
brush. After everything was cured, I hit the vehicle and smooth blends. The skin colour was built up out
with some Tamiya XF-70 matt lacquer from a rattle of Humbrol 70, Humbrol 63 and Humbrol 147 which BELOW: Pigments sponged, brushed
can for the next step. was mixed between the steps to six different coloured and spattered.
One thing the desert provides in copious
amounts is dust. The stuff will get everywhere. To
simulate this, I made a pigment wash out of the
first series MIG pigments with the colour alkaline
dust (MIG00054) and turpentine. I applied it as
a generous pinwash to both the interior and the
exterior of the vehicle to give the impression that
the dust had settled in the nooks and crannies. The
lower part got the same pigment wash applied with
the sponge to give a mottled appearance, which
was toned down by brushing off the excess with
an old stiff bristled brush. The wheels were treated
the same way and, when dry, I wiped most of the
pigments off with a moist piece of tissue paper,
just leaving pigments in the ridges and
treads of the tyres.

The figures
Along with the IBG Marmon-
Herrington I also got myself
the Masterbox Deutsche
Afrika Korps Kit No.3559. I
liked the interaction between
the vehicles crew and the
Bedouin. It was like he was telling
them about something he just
encountered in the desert and the

www.militarymodelling.com 37
AFV

Where the figures were pretty neat in detail


the donkey lacked a bit. There was something in
the texture that did not work very well; it was soft
and rather unconvincing so I took some extra time
texturing it by making small scrapes with an Xacto
#11 knife and toned it down with Tamiya extra thin
cement. Then I painted the donkey in a variety of
greys and whites. The blue and white theme was
ABOVE: Base ready for paint. transferred to the saddlebags as well with some
blue decorative piping.
RIGHT: Base in colour.

The Diorama
The soldiers and the Bedouin created a visually
interesting story, the only additional thing it needed
was an interesting backdrop. So, it was time to
build myself some groundwork. I wanted some
decent sized rocks behind the vehicle so I started
to explore the various methods of creating rock,
from using bark to charcoal to pouring them with
plaster. I settled on the latter and bought some
rock moulds from Woodland Scenics; a very useful
product with quick results. Aside from the rocks, I
also saved the leftover plaster from the mould as
it was a great source for smaller rocks. It was now
time to determine the size of the base and cut that
out of green styrofoam. I marked the locations of
the newly formed rock formations and the wheel
ruts with a marker then continued to start forming
the landscape by cutting and sanding the foam. This
gave the impression that the rocks were actually
poking out of the sand. I made a sloping angle in the
foam from the base of the rock to ground level to
simulate sand that has been blown towards the rock
giving it a more natural transition. The wheel ruts in
RIGHT: Close up of rock face.
turn were cut out a bit wider to allow the Spackle to
BELOW: The officer painted up. move around naturally later on.
One of the things I like to do is a smooth finish
layers. The uniforms were painted in the same manner. I on the bases edges. So out of 1mm thick styrene
wanted the soldiers to be part of a communications unit I crafted a tub, that followed the contours of the
so some time went into researching what waffenfarbe groundwork, complete with rocks and ruts and
the unit had for their shoulder boards. Yellow piping was glued the whole base into that.
added where necessary. Then it was time to cover the whole thing up; I
The Bedouin figure had his own treatment. I again use Spackle for this, the kind you use to fill
painted him mostly in light bright colours to offset seams between plasterboards. This is available at
him against the vehicle, the DAK Soldiers and the any DIY Store. It comes ready to use in a small
groundworks. The headgear and trousers were tub and dries really fast to a rock hard state. The
painted white with the djellabah a bright blue. whole base received a nice thin layer of around
1mm. As I said before, the wheel ruts were cut a
RIGHT: The Bedouin little wider than necessary but were filled evenly
and his steed.
with the rest of the base. At this stage, you need
to work quite fast as the window in which you
can effectively work the Spackle is limited. On top
of the fresh Spackle, I sprinkled birdcage sand.
It gives a nice texture to the groundwork and
prevents the Spackle from sticking to everything
you push in it. Then the vehicle got pushed into its
final place. I took it off the base again and rolled
the ruts with a spare wheel. Because the wheel
ruts are deeper and wider, the Spackle moves
pretty much like real ground producing the ridge
created by the wheels pushing the sand aside.
With an old figure, I stamped footprints around
the vehicle as if the crew had been walking there.
The donkey also got its place at this stage. I made
sure that the Spackle reached all the way to the
edges of the styrene tub so that it looked like
somebody had cut out a square of WW2 Libya
and lifted it out of the ground.

38 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


AFV

Views of the authors completed model


and figures on their scenic base.

Painting the base


When the whole base was cured, I primed it with
Tamiya light grey primer then I added a coat of Matt
Black from a Motip rattle can. I masked the bases
sides and then it was on to the interesting stuff of
bringing colour and life to the groundwork.
I first did some research into what colour the rock
formations found in Libya would be and eventually
settled on the dark greyish brown rocks of the
Akakus mountain range. Again, I used a mix of
Tamiya acrylics to get a dirty dark greyish
brown and a reddish dark rust tone which
I airbrushed onto the rocks trying to form
different layers in the rock surface.
The sand was airbrushed in a mixture
that was made to mimic the Alkaline dust
pigment that was applied to the vehicle.
This was built up out of XF-57 buff and XF-
02 White in which the latter took the biggest
part of the mix. This was airbrushed over
a pre-shade of Dark Grey. The transitions
between the sand and the rock were
blended with the Alkaline Dust pigment.
The rocks received a drybrushing
with some Humbrol 72 to get
some more
depth in them.

Finishing
With all the
painting done, it
was just a matter of
gluing everything to
the base with white glue
and gluing the figures to the
vehicle. I placed the diorama on
a nice wooden base and gave it a
space in the display cabinet.

www.militarymodelling.com 39
AFV

Second-hand
Swallow
Chris Lloyd-Staples
ABOVE: The authors completed model placed into a scenic
setting courtesy of Photoshop.

BELOW LEFT: A view of the completed model from the front.

The origin of the Swallows


presents his 1/35 Following the disastrous fall of Tobruk in late June
1942, the whole of the North African theatre was
Tasca Sherman II placed in jeopardy, with the very real risk that
Axis forces would thrust eastwards into the Suez
area, cutting the canals lifeline to Britain. The
Allied army made a stand at El Alamein, halting
Rommels advance at the narrowest point between
the coast and the impassable Qattara Depression.
It was from this narrow front that the British and
Commonwealth forces burst out in the Second
Battle of El Alamein, leading to the eventual defeat
of the Italian and German armies in North Africa.
The success of the Second Battle of El Alamein
can be attributed to many factors: tactics, logistics,
leadership, terrainbut one very significant
factor is the availability of new and modern
equipment. Principal amongst these
were the new Sherman tanks,
known at the time by the codename
Swallow. President Roosevelt
had been anxious to support
the war in the Middle East and,
following the Tobruk debacle
had mooted sending the US
2nd Armoured Division. However, this
proved impractical in the time available
and instead 300 M4 Shermans (and 100
M7 Priests) were hurriedly stripped from
American units and sent across the Atlantic. These
pre-owned vehicles arrived in the Cairo workshops,
and were quickly modified to meet British needs

40 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


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ABOVE: Crew wearing side caps and


SD caps.

LEFT: Note extreme weathering of


surface paint.


The Allied army
made a stand at
before being repainted and allocated to units. Once like an easy build became steadily more complex El Alamein, halting
in the hands of individual units, the vehicles were as the project evolved!
often further modified at unit level or according to the The stimulus for the model came from the book Rommels advance...
preferences of individual commanders. Codename Swallow, British Sherman Tanks at
Alamein, by Dennis Oliver (2006). This slim book
contains countless details of the colour schemes
Planning the model and markings employed, along with details of the
The request from the editor to make this model units allocated the M4A1 and M4A2 vehicles. I
came at a time when Id already gathered the basic was really torn as to which vehicle to represent
kit and the numerous accessories in preparation but I eventually went for the Queens Bays, using
for an informal competition with two friends markings from the Bison Decals sheet 35061 and
(Chuck Aleshire and John Charvat) at the AMPS meticulously following the official painting diagrams
Nationals in Danbury, CT. However, what seemed in Mike Starmers excellent reference book Alamein LEFT: Stowage packs, MG on turret.

www.militarymodelling.com 41
AFV

ABOVE: hard edge to camouflage.

To the model
The Tasca Sherman II is a superb kit and can be
made with complete confidence in all parts of
the assembly, leading to a near perfect model.
An alternative starting point would have been the
Dragon El Alamein Sherman but, as a personal
preference, I really rate the Tasca/Asuka kits.
Assembly is very easy, although it is essential
to carefully follow the numbering of parts. If
something doesnt fit, you have made a mistake!
I found this to my cost when assembling the air
cleaners and realised I had mistaken parts F7 and
F19, which look similar..

Starting on the hull


Working from various references, I discovered that
ABOVE & RIGHT: The curved fillet many (not all!) of these M4A1 vehicles had welded
under the rear.
rather than riveted hulls. To make the necessary
changes, I stripped rivets from the lower hull
sides and, at various points on the rear, following
guidance from Paul Owens blog on the Track-Link
website, Steve Zalogas article in Military Modelling
(2008, Vol.2) and the Son of Sherman book. I was
aiming for a vehicle produced by the Lima factory in
the correct time period. Once the necessary rivets
had been removed, the lower straight fillet on the
hull rear needed to be replaced with a curved piece,
as found on these vehicles. I agonised about how to
do this but in the end it was very easy to cut a slice
from a piece of plastic tube (an old biro!).
The only other modification at this stage was
to carefully fill in the slight step at the top of the
cast transmission plate (part C50) and blend this in.
BELOW: Smoothed join.
Once the bolted flanges had been added, the whole
nose was given a coat of Mr. Surfacer to replicate
the cast texture and remove any gaps. Casting
numbers were added; using Archer Fine Transfers
and After, 1942-43 (2006). The attraction of this unit, set AR88007 which actually includes the correct
the Queens Bays (2nd Hussars) was that they kept casting number sequences for these parts!
the .50cal machine gun (many British units did not Turning to the upper hull, it is quite noticeable
because they impeded hasty exit from the turret, as that the front hatches sit a little too proud of their
well as raising the overall height of the tank). They surrounds and some trimming of the protective
also modified the turret hatch pads is necessary for the correct look of the closed
by removing the rear hatch hatches. As for the open hatches, little needs to be
flap, retaining only the one done other than for detail fanatics only adding
with the periscope. Finally, the tiny plate into which the closing handle locks
along with the 9th Lancers, on the inside of the hull! For personal preference, I
the Bays were reluctant chose to replace the Browning machine gun barrels
to adopt the black beret with Aber 35 L-82 brass parts because the open
and the photos clearly show holes in the sleeve are very visible. However, once
the crew with sidecaps and again, the Tasca parts are more than adequate for
the commanders with Service the job. The tiny cable running from the horn to the
Dress caps. front hull is a detail that some may like to add. As

42 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


Overall view of the model before painting. AFV

for the tools, the ones in the Tasca kit are superb
and highly accurate, though they lack some of the
brackets and all of the straps needed to hold them
in place. I opted to use the WW2 U.S. M4 Series
Sherman Pioneer Tools (F018) by Formations, since
I had them and they saved time on this project.
With no deadline to meet, Id prefer to add paper
straps to the tools in the kit. While working on these
aspects of the model, it struck me that anyone
could have a thousand pictures of Shermans but not
one showing a particular detail of a tool fitting.

Making tracks
The one-piece tracks in the kit are excellent, with
great detail and only the faintest trace of a mould
seam. As this tiny mould line would be impossible
to remove, I foolishly decided to try aftermarket
replacements. Amongst the best available are the
Bronco T51 tracks and I used these. They fit with no
difficulty, although the sprockets need some minor
sanding on the inner surfaces in order for the end-
connectors to fit inside. In retrospect, the extremely
tedious construction of individual track links has little
ABOVE: Rear deck before painting. BELOW: Tools on rear plate. You need to drill out a starting handle
benefit on US tanks which use so-called live track hole in rear plate.
and there is virtually no track sag at all. To make

ABOVE: Details
on rear plate
before painting.

43
AFV

ABOVE LEFT: Turret bin catches and other details. ABOVE RIGHT: Details on MG and turret bin.

top need to be carefully removed, along with the


mount for the searchlight. For details of these
initial turrets, you will need to consult references
but in essence they had few extras and were
very basic. The turret hatch is superb and I chose
to remove the rear leaf of the hatch as was
common at the time. Very careful examination of
the hatch and the cupola will reveal tiny features
linked to the hatch-locking system that was later
fitted to prevent the hatches from slamming shut.
A tiny bit of filling is needed on the pads around
the interior and on the hatch leaves themselves.
The blanket box or turret bin is the type used on
Crusader tanks and these appear to have been fitted
to the turret in various ways. It is often not clear, so
for my vehicle I opted for thin metal strips. What is
most definitely missing from the kit is any sign of
clips to secure the bin closed. After much searching
on the internet, I located photos of the Crusader
bins and I replicated the locking mechanism which
ABOVE: Turret before painting. matters worse, on the British Shermans much of consists of a circular nut on a threaded spindle. The
the track is hidden under the sandshields, plus the antenna mounts were drilled out in preparation for
painting of the tracks is much easier done with the carbon-fibre aerials. The A set aerial is in four feet
one-piece tracks that can be added afterwards. For sections and crews could use from one to three at a
all of these reasons, Id strongly recommend using time. I measured mine to be eight feet in scale, but
the tracks in the kit! you could go for the full 12 feet version if you want
The characteristic sandshields are excellent your crew to be using all of the rods. Meanwhile,
and fit very well. My only real problem with this the B set aerial is about 20 inches in length or
kit was with the fitting of parts M13 and M14, 15mm on the model.
which are the inner parts of the rear parts. I just
could not see how these fitted in relation to parts
E2 and E4, which are added early on. I ended up Colouring the Swallow
with what appeared to be a bodge job, with the The Shermans arrived in the depot in Cairo
sandshield parts leaving little space next to the painted in standard US Olive Drab, having been
track. I suspect that some cutting would have pulled from army units. After adding the various
helped but, as this is hardly visible, I closed my fittings for British service, the tanks were painted
mind to it! The so-called houseboat rail along overall Desert Pink No.Z.I., and for this I found
the sides is very well made but the slots for the Tamiya XF-59 Desert Yellow to be a very good
disguise cover are moulded as lumps rather than match. One surprising fact is that this colour
hollow channels. I replaced these blobs with seems to have worn very badly in a short space
sections of U-channel plastic strip, producing the of time and photos of vehicles show a great deal
ABOVE: Filler cap area.
desired effect. of chipping to reveal the OD beneath. As the US
BELOW: Water cans fitted on front wing. paint was baked on in the factory, it was much
more resistant.
The Turret Around October 1942, the policy changed and
Moving on to the turret, the kit supplies both types regulations specified that vehicles would receive
of barrel the early type with a slight flare at the dark camouflage bands designed to run through
end and the later straight-sided type. The kit barrels areas of shadow on the vehicle and disguise
are split lengthways and need careful treatment any openings. These patterns were very specific
of the join between the two halves. I prefer metal and all vehicles were to carry an identical design
barrels and simply substituted the Lion Marc so that the enemy could not identify individual
LM10021 which is designed for this kit. Incidentally, vehicles. On many of the Shermans, the pattern
the straight sided barrel appears more commonly was first marked out in white paint before the
in photos and the early flared type is relatively rare, darker colour was added. Traces of this marking
even on this batch of very early Sherman types. out can be seen on many vehicles and in some
Aside from this, the turret needs very little classic cases this developed into a distinctive
attention. A few lumps and bumps on the turret edging to the camouflage areas (rather going

44 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


AFV

ABOVE: One hatch on turret. BELOW: Suspension is excellent and can articulate.

against the whole idea of the vehicles being Hairspray ABOVE: Stowed hatch and wheel details.

identical!!). The camouflage colour was specified After an overall coat of Olive Green, which helped to
as Dark Green, with black, very dark brown or slate spot any flaws in construction, the model was left to
being acceptable alternatives. Most illustrations fully dry before being given a coat of hairspray and
suggest that black was used and I chose grey-black then an overall coat of Desert Pink. After waiting a
from the Vallejo range, as it is better than using a short while, the areas of high wear were wetted and
pure black and Vallejo paints are easy to apply by then scrubbed with a rough sponge. The dampened
hand. Having settled on the colours, the painting hairspray loosened the topcoat, allowing patches of
sequence was the next issue. the pink to come away from the green beneath. My

ABOVE: The spade on left haand side.

BELOW: Each tank came supplied with


two huge funnels for fuel.
AFV

ABOVE LEFT: Scratched turret. Red square is B squadron in the senior regiment in a brigade. ABOVE RIGHT: Tools on the right hand side.

first attempt at this technique was quite satisfactory I experienced strange blistering of the paint as I
but I quickly realised that I had left the hairspray for applied the wet decals and only now do I realise the
too long, meaning that removing the surface colour reason.. the hairspray layer was getting wetted by
was much more difficult than it should have been. the decal solutions. Clearly something to be aware of.
The pattern of the black camouflage was carefully
copied from Mike Starmers book, though these
diagrams can also be found on the internet. I Weathering
marked the areas with white outlines, then painted The desert environment can be very harsh and the
in the grey-black using a brush. In areas, I allowed a scraping of gritty boots can play havoc with paint
trace of the mark-out in white to remain surfaces. On the other hand, these tanks were
visible. The weathering of the black relatively newly painted and had not been exposed
coat was done in Desert Pink, as if to the elements, including rain, since arriving in
the black had worn off and revealed theatre. As a result, rust stains and downward rain
the layer beneath. The belly of the streaks would not be appropriate but the tanks
front transmission armour, plus the were looking quite worn after a short period of
underside of the gun barrel, were time. Simulating this, I made good use of pastels,
painted white as per regulations grime colours and dry brushing in order to carefully
ABOVE: Clips on bin for countershading a replicate a vehicle that had been in the desert for a
shown to good effect.
camouflage technique to hide few months.
RIGHT: The commander shadows by painting those areas Detail painting takes a long time but is ultimately
figure under construction. in a lighter colour. satisfying. This covers tools and little parts, the
The decals were applied in the tracks, the tyres and then simulating bare metal
usual way with Johnsons Klear on worn edges - a long task. It is important to
applied beforehand and matt varnish imagine which parts of the vehicle will experience
afterwards. With the turret decals metal rubbing together, such as on the edges of

46 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


AFV

ABOVE LEFT: Good view of side scratching from hairspray method. Tow cable is made from tristing copper wire strands. ABOVE RIGHT: Good shot of bin clips and antenna bases.

the road-wheels where they chafe against the end- with Hornet heads. The Tamiya figures are not the
connectors of the tracks. Similarly, as the crew most detailed but with the sharp tip of a new blade,
clamber up the glacis, this is an area prone to the features of the uniform can be brought out.
abrasion and the turret roof is often grimy from dirty They needed cap badges to represent the Bays and
boots. Meanwhile, hatches are rarely stepped on, so a search in Dick Taylors The Men Inside the Metal,
they are relatively clean. All of these things need to vol.2 provided the detail for this. The figures were
be considered when applying the final weathering. painted in a mixture of media, with acrylic base
Tools are often painted by the subcontractor who coats and detail in oils and enamels.
made them and when the vehicle is repainted, they
are often sprayed in situ. In truth, tools are rarely
bare metal and bare wood. I therefore painted mine Finishing touches
unrealistically but they do add a touch of colour. The .50cal machine gun in the kit is exquisite
Im not at all happy with the dark wood, however, and some tiny details are all that is required to ABOVE: Driver and worn area up the galcis.
and a quick check in your garden shed will reveal make this a model in its own right. Most of the
that wooden handles are very pale, often greyish Shermans in the El Alamein period had a variety BELOW: The driver from rear.
and never a rich mahogany colour. I think my tools of stowage fixed to the houseboat rails each
will get a repaint in the future. side. This often consisted of an enormous canvas
sheet on one side, designed to cover over the
tank and typically five British 37 pattern large
And so to the crew packs suspended on the other side. Lack of time
I was attracted to the cavalry regiments as they prevented me from adding these details but
tended to resist the introduction of the black beret, they can be added later. Overall, the Swallow
and kept their own headgear for as long as possible. from Tasca is an outstanding kit and, despite my
After trying out various figures, I eventually went additions, can realistically be made straight from
with two figures from the Tamiya Matilda, though the box with great accuracy.

www.militarymodelling.com 47
Aviation

The Final Service


Gary Radford The long-serving Emil of operations. The E-7 which was an up graded version
presents a The mainstay of the Luftwaffe until 1941 was the
Messerschmitt Bf 109E Emil variant which was
of the E-4 rectified this problem. It was the first Bf 109
subtype to be able to carry a standardized Luftwaffe
Desert Emil in integral to maintaining air superiority during the 300ltr drop tank mounted under the fuselage.
North Africa, 1942 Blitzkrieg of 1939-1941. Production of the E variant
began way back in 1938. Powered by a new Daimler
This increased its range from 660km to 1,325km
alternatively a bomb could be carried in place of the
Benz DB 601 engine and armed with two 7.92mm tank. A tropicalized version of the E-7 was developed
machine guns above the engine and one 20mm for use in the Mediterranean Theatre. The Bf 109 E-7
cannon in each wing this was a significantly more Trop as it was known was easily distinguished by its
ABOVE & BELOW: Views of the powerful variant than its predecessors. As the war long air filter in front of the supercharger intake.
authors completed 1/32 scale
Messerschmitt Bf 109E-7 Trop model progressed in North Africa it soon became apparent This particular aircraft is S9+DR and at some
on its scenic base. that a fighter was needed to fill the roll in that theatre time in its life the aircraft had been fitted with a

48 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


Aviation

replacement starboard wing which retained its


European splinter camouflage. The aircraft was
flown by Unteroffizier Hans Sennholz (February
3, 1922 to June 23, 2007) who was a German-
born American. He was drafted into the Luftwaffe
during World War II and became a pilot flying the
Bf 109 earning the Iron Cross for valour for his
engagements in Norway, France and Russia. On
August 31, 1942 while flying his Bf 109 on a sortie
near El Alamien, his aircraft was hit by flak causing
him to make an emergency landing. Sennholz
was subsequently taken prisoner and eventually
ended up being moved to a POW camp in Wilson,
Arkansas USA where he was put to work milking
cows on a dairy farm from 1945 to 1946. After
returning to Germany Sennholz took degrees at the
universities of Marburg in 1948 and Kln in 1949.
He then moved to the United States to study for a 02 Grau and later weathered using AK Interactive ABOVE: Eduards typical box art.
Ph.D. at New York University. He taught economics Engine Grime. Once all the parts were dry I added BELOW: The internal structure of the
at Grove City College from 19561992. After he the remaining features such as etched chains etc. at air intake with photo-etched grill fitted.
retired he became president of the Foundation for the same time carrying out the detailed paint work.
Economic Education from 19921997. Once I was happy with everything, the fuselage
halves were joined together although I did leave the
engine bay section loose until the engine was fixed
The Build in place. Any small gaps, of which there were few,
Like the majority of aircraft kits these days were filled and the resulting seam was cleaned up
construction starts with the cockpit. There are two and lost panel lines were re-scribed.
cockpit wall sections (F1 and F9) that fit to the inside Eduard gives the builder the choice of either
of the fuselage which can be detailed before fitting building the kit with the engine on display or all Tail wheel support
if one wishes. One of the port side ribs (F17) is closed up. My personal preference is to build a kit added to the inside
of the fuselage.
supposed to have three control handles fitted to it with engine on show where possible so I can add
that are quite prominent on the actual aircraft. On the extra detail. Using references I started by adding
kit these were simply moulded protrusions which I pipes and wires to the surrounding areas, namely
removed and replaced with more realistic items from the bulkhead that supports the two machine guns
my spares box. You can see in the accompanying and ammo trays. I then assembled the Daimler
picture the moulded detail was removed from Benz DB 601 engine and added extra detail to
the right hand side wall panel (shaded red) to that before spraying the whole thing black. I then
accommodate the pre-painted photo-etched plaque gave the engine block a coat of gloss varnish
(PE26); this was left off until the painting stage had and applied the serial numbers to the side walls.
been completed. Before applying any paint to the These were also taken from spares left over from
interior I added the rear wheel support to each side the Dragon kit mentioned earlier. Another coat of
of the fuselage. The radiator assembly was then gloss varnish (Johnsons Kleer) was applied to seal
built and the photo-etched grills fitted using small them in place followed by a coat of Vallejo Matte
amounts of thin super glue so not to obscure any Varnish. After 24 hours, the engine was dry-brushed
detail. The cockpit floor and seat were fixed together using Humbrol 27003 Polished Steel from their
and PE detail added as per the instructions. I chose Metalcote range. After that had dried a pin wash
to leave the seat belts off until after the painting of the AK Interactive Engine Grime was applied,
had been completed. There was an issue with the blended with a brush and slightly moistened with
oxygen cylinder cover part (E12); it is too tall by AK odourless turpentine. To finish the engine off
about 2mm, it could be cut down but fortunately I the twelve exhaust stubs were first sprayed flat
had a replacement part from an old Dragon kit which black followed by several thin layers of Engine
was of a more realistic size. Before the parts were Manifold ALC-123 from the Alclad 2
undercoated and pre-shaded I made the rudder range. These were then fixed into their
pedals and lower half of the instrument panel. All respective locations. When I was happy
the parts were then sprayed with Mr Hobby RLM with the look of the engine the two engine

ABOVE: Cockpit floor pan assembled.


The PE edging to the harness aperture
was placed onto a cocktail stick which
had been trimmed down to a flat shape.
A small amount of thin Super glue was
then applied around the edge of the hole
in the seat and the cocktail stick then
passed through the hole. The PE part
was then simply slid along the stick thus
ensuring correct alinement.

ABOVE: Port and Starboard side walls fitted in position with red shaded area showing where detail has been removed ready
for the pre-painted photo-etched panel. RIGHT: The replacement CO2 cylinder guard with added detail.

www.militarymodelling.com 49
Aviation

ABOVE: Pre-painted photo-etched lower


instrument panel ready for fitting.

BELOW: The rudder pedals this picture


shows how delicate these parts are.

ABOVE: Cockpit and engine bay primed in Halfords grey primer and pre shade in Tamiya Flat Black.

BELOW: Floor pan added to the Starboard side of the


fuselage after painting and weathering small information support brackets (G4 and G7) were attached and the
placards came from the spares box. whole assembly was fitted to the firewall. I had left
the fuselage around the engine bay loose, the two
halves were able to spring over the exhaust stubs
before being glued together.
With the fuselage now joined, the rudder which
is a single moulding, can be attached. At the same
time I assembled the two tailplane sections. The tabs
that fit into the fuselage were very slightly oversize
and just needed a very light sanding to achieve a
good fit and a small amount of filler was needed at
the fuselage joint. The tail support struts (E10 and
E13) simply slotted into place blending in with the
moulded mounts and needing no filler at all.
The wing comes moulded in three sections having
a full underside and two upper units. Before the parts
are joined the radiator grills on the two wing intakes
need adding along with the wheel wells. Detail is
very basic in this area just like on the actual aircraft.
The instructions call for the wells to be painted black
and aluminium but looking at references I painted
LEFT: Port side of fuselage clearly shows them in RLM-2 Grau again shading and weathering
the three prominent handles which were with the Engine Grime. The wing sections were now
added from an old Dragon kit.
glued together remembering to trap the two machine
gun barrels that are mounted in the wings. In my
opinion it would have been better if these could
have been fitted at a later stage but I was surprised
how robust they were. For the time being I decided
to leave off the leading edge slats. I did this for two
reasons one, I could clean up the leading edge joint
and two, the inside needs painting in RLM-2 Grau.
The flaps and ailerons on the other hand were fitted
into place without any issues at all. The whole wing
was then attached to the fuselage, it needing a small
amount of pressure to get them to fit but a very
satisfying click was heard and any resulting gaps
were then filled.

ABOVE & BELOW: The fuselage has been joined and detail is starting to be added to the engine bay.
BELOW: The engine block with extra cables, wires and
pipes added and then painted flat black.

50 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


Aviation

LEFT: The weathered engine was fitted along


with machine guns and exhaust stubs. It was
at this stage the front part of the fuselage
was finally cemented together.

The undercarriage legs


were assembled and
painted in a similar way to
the rest of the internal surfaces.
The oleos were first painted gloss
black and then Alclad Chrome to
simulate the polished surface. I didnt RIGHT: The upper
encounter any issues with these sections of the wing
showing the basic
items apart from the instructions but original detail
calling for the wheel hubs to in the wheel wells.
be painted RLM-2 Grau they
should be black. I painted the
tyres with Tamiya XF-85 Rubber
Black to add contrast.

Painting
Before any painting could take place I masked all ABOVE: Wing sections fitted together and fixed
in place. When they were eased into place there was
the exposed parts to prevent any over spray. The a very satisfying and pleasing click you just knew from
cockpit glazing was added and masked using the the sound there was no need to take them off again.
set provided in the kit. This area was then sprayed
in the RML-2 Grau. After this had dried I applied BELOW: Engine bay and cockpit masked off and undercoated with Halfords Primer.
an undercoat before adding black pre-shading. The Before the primer was applied the glazed area was painted in RLM02 Grey.
areas that were to be yellow and white were then
painted in. When these had dried they were masked
off so the top colour could be applied. The first thing
I did was to spray the underside and part of the
starboard wing with Mr Hobby RLM-78 Hellblau.
This was then masked off and the lower section
of the wing was sprayed with RLM-65 Hellblau.
Moving on to the top colours, I decided it would
be easier to paint the European
style starboard wing and then
mask it off prior to applying the
Sandgelb. The wing was first painted in RLM- 2
Grau and then the splinter camouflage was masked BELOW: The black pre shading added.
and the remainder sprayed in RLM-71 Dunkelgrn.
The remainder of the upper surface was then
sprayed with Vallejo 71.034 Sandy Brown (RLM-79
Sandgelb). When all this was dry the
masking was removed from the yellow
and white recognition areas and the whole thing
given several coats of Johnsons Kleer.
As already stated the aircraft I wanted to depict was
a Bf-109E-7 Trop. S9+DR. The only set of decals I
could find in 1/32 is made by Rising Decals
RD32005 Unusual Emils Pt II.
www.risingdecals.com.
I found the decals to be very thin and had a BELOW: The white desert identification markings added to the fuselage and
tendency to buckle up while applying them. I did try wing tips along with the yellow underside of the engine bay.
using Micro Soft and Micro Sol system but to my
horror the decal broke up. Fortunately
there are two identical sheets in
the set and the damaged decal was
repeated but not used on the other sheet.
With the aid of a soft brush and plenty
of water I managed to get the decals
in place. After 24 hours I gave the whole
aircraft another coat of the Johnsons Kleer
and placed it in a large plastic container to prevent
and dust from settling on the surface.

www.militarymodelling.com 51
Aviation

BELOW & RIGHT: Basic upper and lower camouflage colours


blocked in note the subtle difference between the European
RLM65 Hellblau under the Starboard wing and the Mediterranean
RLM78 on the remainder of the underside.

Now began the process of making the aircraft


look used. To start with I diluted a mixture of Winsor
and Newton Burnt Umber and Lamp Black oil paint
with thinners. I then took a pointed paint brush and etc. were touched in with a fine brush. In order to
applied small drops of the solution to the joints in seal the paint I sprayed two thin coats of Vallejo
the panel lines. Capillary action fills the engraved Acrylic Matte Varnish. With the final coat of matte
line but if more is needed then simply place another varnish applied I could now concentrate on the final
drop on the joint. Working on a small area at a weathering. The exhaust stains were added by first
time I then took a 10mm flat brush that had been applying a delicate layer of
moistened in thinners and gently dragged it back Yellow Ochre oil, I then slightly
across the airframe in the direction of the airflow. thinned some Paynes Grey and
The result is subtle streaking which can be seen in applied this over the top gently
the pictures. Various chips and scratches were added blending the edges. The reason
using a small bit of sponge dipped in silver paint and for thinning the paint is that thin
dried off on kitchen towel then lightly dabbed on the oil paint will always go over the
required area. Other areas such as around hatches

ABOVE: Undercarriage, propeller and


spinner along with the engine bay
cover showing its distinctive
tropical air filter.

52 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


Aviation

BELOW & RIGHT: The decals in place, I found them to be very thin
and they did not like the Micro Soft/Set treatment. Luckily for me the
DR part of the decal was duplicated so all was not lost. In the end I
resorted to plenty of water to get them in place.

aerial mast and other sundries such as the fuel


tank, pitot tube and aileron counter weights. The
aerial wires were added using thin E-Z Line with
the insulator beads being made from drops of thick
top of thicker oil paint. Finally I applied a thinner coat super glue which were painted flat black when dry.
of Lamp Black. When this had dried I brought the As I had built the aircraft with its engine on display
staining together using Mig products weathering I decided to add it to a simple base so the removed
powders. Lighter streaks were added to the wings panels could be seen at the same. It depicts the
and fuselage again using Yellow ochre this time aircraft receiving its Final Service before that
mixed with a touch of Raw fateful day in August 1942.
Sienna and gently blended Although this Eduard 1/32 version of the Bf
in with a large soft brush, as 109E-7trop is currently out of production there are
they say using a few hairs and still a few to be found in various shops around the
plenty of air. UK. My sample came from Veteranus Model Kits.
To finish the Messerschmitt 6&7 High Skellgate, Ripon, Yorkshire, HG4 1BA
Bf 109E-7 Trop. I added the www.veteranus.co.uk With the Rising Decals set
came from Hannants, www.hannants.co.uk.
BELOW: Aircraft on a modest base
undergoing The Final Service. The
figure of the airfield guard was added
simply to give a sense of scale.
Figures

ABOVE: Face and beret have been given a basecoat of


acrylics and the eyes painted in oils.

Monty
Monty, as I like to refer to him, (just as my late
Father did having served in the 8th Army,) was born
in London on November 17, 1887. Following his
education he went to the Royal Military Academy
at Sandhurst where he was commissioned into the
Royal Warwickshire Regiment in 1908.
During WW1 he was severely injured and
spent the remainder of the war as a Staff Officer.
In April 1939 he was given command of the 3rd
Division of the Expeditionary Force preceding
the fall of France. In August 1942, he was swiftly
promoted to Commander of the 8th Army, British
and Commonwealth forces fighting in the western
desert. He inspired his forces to victory at El
Alamein which was thought to be a turning point
in the war. Following the war, Monty was made a
Knight of the Garter and Viscount Montgomery of
Alamein. He died on March 24, 1976. I remember
my Father being very honoured at being able to
attend the funeral service.

Montgomery at El Alamein
Field Marshal The components to the kit
Bernard Law prior to assembly.

Montgomery was
one of Britains
most famous
Generals during
WW2, notably
for the victory
at El Alamein by
Malcolm Cuming

54
Figures

ABOVE: Basic flesh tones have been added and blended in. ABOVE RIGHT: Ive begun to build up the facial detail by strengthening the shadows and highlights.
BELOW: Final facial detail has been added to bring out the features of the face.

Preparation Pinky Flesh and Basic Flesh give a suitable shade


On inspecting all the components for this 1/9 kit, for the basecoat before the oils are applied. Before
a reasonable amount of cleaning up was required adding in the oils I blocked out Montys beret. I
before assembly could begin. I find that the different painted in the shadow areas first before adding a
challenges each model sets you makes you a better little Basic Flesh for the rest of the beret.
and more experienced modeller. On a couple of Before going any further, I must congratulate
the parts there some ridges or steps (whatever the sculptor, Pavol Ovecka, for the excellent job he
you prefer to call them). In the past, Ive filed and did in capturing Montys likeness. I wanted to paint
sanded them away, this time around I thought Id try in the eyes before moving on to the flesh tones.
a different approach and apply a skin of Magic-Sculp Monty was known to have prominent blue eyes,
leading up the edge then smooth and shape it. This so I began by marking out the iris with Ultramarine
worked very well for me. After all the casting marks Blue. To bring out the detail I carefully started
and filling were complete, I drilled and pegged all stippling in the lighter tints by blending Titanium
the parts I wanted to be secure when fitted. All the White with a little Cadmium Red Light together. I let
components were washed in soapy water to clean this dry before painting in the pupil with Mars Black.
away any particles or grease from handling then left Now for my favourite part, adding the flesh tones
to dry ready for priming. The head was mounted in a in oils. So I prepared my palette.
pin vice and primed with Halfords grey primer. I began by mixing my basic flesh tone mix,
Golden Ochre, Burnt Sienna, a speck of Viridian,
which is the amount on the end of a cocktail stick,
Painting the Face any more than that and you can spoil the tone.
I began by painting in the whites of the eyes and, This was followed by a small amount of Cadmium
for this, a nice warm off-white works very well. Red Light and blended in well. From this I can add
For most of the basecoats I use paints from the various other colours to produce all the tints and
Scale 75 range of acrylics thinned as necessary. tones required. I went on to mix some different
A blend of White, Basic Flesh and a touch of a flesh tones by adding some more White and to The hair, moustache and eyebrows
have been given a basecoat of acrylics
dark blue provides just the right tone, following this the darkest flesh tone I blended in some Alizarin in a shade pale grey before washes of
I moved on to the flesh tone and for that, a mix of Crimson. Rather than paint the face with one flesh oils are applied.

www.militarymodelling.com 55
Figures

The beret has been overpainted in oils


to give a slightly dusty appearance
and the badge is painted in metallic.

Shirt has been underpainted in a pale khaki tone. The shirt has been detailed in oils.

tone and work from there, I add the varying tones, with a basic flesh mix added. These were blended in
i.e. lighter tones to the forehead, upper cheeks , with a flat brush, removing any excess oils at the same
bridge of the nose and so on, the mid to the rest time to leave a nice thin film of oils to work on. I began
of the face and finally the reddish tone to the lower by building up the lighter areas first, by adding more
cheeks. These are then blended in carefully with a flesh tone with the addition of Titanium White so that I
flat brush, to get a nice graduation of tones. I then could vary the tones as I wanted.
worked on building up the detail on highlights and For the shadows, I added a little more Lamp Black
shadows until I was happy with the results. The to the base colour and worked and blended these
head was put aside to dry and settle overnight. in as necessary. At this point I left it to dry for 24
Then all that was required was to add the finishing hours before returning to the palette to add the
touches using the wet on dry process. finishing touches.

Beret Shirt
For the beret I wanted to give the appearance of The shirt Ive painted is a basic pale khaki colour,
it being dusty from being in the desert, this was although I have seen some black and white photos
accomplished by adding Basic Flesh to Flat Black for of Monty indicating that he is wearing a darker one.
the basecoat. Prior to doing this however, I did paint I opted for the lighter one to give some contrast
the areas that were in deep shadow with Flat Black between the shirt and jumper. I began by blocking it
first, then using the above mentioned mix painted in out with a pale khaki shade, using a mix of Andrea
the rest of the beret. With the oils the same approach English Khaki and Scale 75 Birch. Moving on to
was taken. Lamp Black was chosen for this task, as the oils, I started off by preparing a slightly darker
it dries nice and flat. As before, I painted in the dark shade of khaki by blending together Mars Yellow,
shadows first and then applied a blend of Lamp Black Mars Black, followed by Titanium White to acquire

The left arm has


been fitted and the
jumper finished
in oils. The middle
section of the
binoculars has been
cemented in place.

ABOVE: The jumper has been given


a basecoat of acrylics in a shade of
drab green.

RIGHT: Oils have been added to the


body section of the jumper prior to
the arm being fitted.

56
Figures

ABOVE: The main section


of the turret was first given a
coat of a sand colour. Here the turret section
is shown ready to have the camouflage and detailing added.

the shade that I wanted. The base coat of oils was


thinned a little by adding some Windsor & Newton
Sansodor and then applied to the shirt. Any excess
oils were removed before adding the lighter shades
for this I simply added a little more white to the
mix. Burnt Umber was used for the shadows.
These were added subtly to begin with and then
deepened where necessary.

Jumper
Prior to starting on the jumper itself I painted
both hands in oils, using the same palette
that I used for the flesh tones. At this stage
I also painted the binoculars. For the acrylic
basecoat of the jumper I selected a blend of
Ardennes Green, Red Leather and Birch. I was
toying with the idea of painting the jumper in
oils in two stages, the main section and the
left arm separately. I found myself in a bit of a
predicament as I didnt have anything that I could Grant M3 Turret
securely fit the arm to while it was painted. To add I only have a limited knowledge of tanks, so I ABOVE: The completed kit.
to the problem, if I cemented the arm in position googled a lot of photos and videos of the tank to BELOW: The completed bust section.
prior to adding the oils I wouldnt have it easy when get an idea of what I needed to do. After Id primed
painting the front of the jumper. So after some all the parts for the turret, I decided to paint the
deliberation, I decided to paint a section of the interior section first. Its very basic and some of
jumper first, cement the arm in position, add filler the equipment youd find inside has been omitted
and basecoat as necessary and then carry on. Not as the figure of Monty would obscure it. I began
an ideal way to go about things, but there we are. by painting it a light sand colour and the inner
Initially, I mixed a shade of green, using ring in white as depicted in some of the photos
Ultramarine Blue and Cadmium Yellow. First of all I Id seen. For the outside of the turret and the
soaked out as much of the oil by placing the colours flaps I used a deeper shade using Iroko and
on cartridge paper for half an hour. Hopefully this Birch. To add the camouflage pattern, I added
would reduce the shine once painted. I transferred some Ardennes Green to some Iroko and finally
the oils to my palette of greaseproof paper and to take it down a notch, I mixed in some Birch.
began to add some Caput Mortuum, yes thats right, Before finishing off with some oil washes of Burnt
Caput Mortuum - a very unusual name for a shade Umber, I painted in chips and weathering on the
of paint. It is a reddish brown and I have found this Cupola ring and hatches.
extremely useful in blending various shades of Drab The blocked sides were painted black to
Green. Initially I thinned the oils by dipping my brush complete the model.
in Sansodor, to aid getting a nice thin coat over the
acrylic basecoat. Any excess oils were removed with
a flat brush; this will help achieve a matt finish too. Availability
I wanted to keep the highlights subtle, I added This kit is reasonably priced at just
a tiny amount to a little of the base colour that Id 55.00 and can be ordered by
put aside for this purpose, and blended these in as contacting Gordon Mitchell at
required. For the shadows, I used varying shades to gordonmi@hotmail.com.
produce the darker shades for the deep shadows. On a final note, Id like to
To acquire the darker shades I added some more dedicate this article to my
of the Ultramarine Blue and Caput Mortuum to suit late Father who was proud to
and as before carefully blended them in. have been a Desert Rat and
As the trousers were going to be hidden when to have served under Monty.
positioned in the turret of the tank, I didnt go to too And one thing is for sure, he
much time and effort painting them. would have loved to have
Once the jumper had dried, I added a strap to the had this piece in his cabinet,
binoculars, made from electrical tape. taking pride of place.

www.militarymodelling.com 57
Figures

The Desert Fox


Erwin Rommel,
1
Alexandros 1/10
resin bust by
Adrian Hopwood

A complex character
Where to start a little history I suppose. Ask
almost anyone and they will probably give you a
glowing report of Erwin Rommel as a respected
general, both in terms of his men and those who
were standing against him in the desert campaigns
during WWII.
Its not unreasonable to go along with these
first hand views of the man and a lot has been
documented to back it up, he is certainly one
of the few German commanders that are
thought of as generally decent and honest.
Rommel was a complex character. His
tenacity to advance his forces and yet at

the same time to minimise losses within


the ranks, can be read about but the overall
futility of the task that he was assigned led
to a stalemate within the desert. His lines
of supply and repairs to vehicles were the
Rommel was a complex undoing of any advances that his forces had
made. The Allied forces kept hold of their port
character. His tenacity at El Alamein bringing the German and Italian
forces to a point where there simply was no
to advance his forces


other option than to withdraw even against

and yet at the same


instruction from Hitler himself which ultimately
led to Rommels apparent forced suicide.
time to minimise losses Painting this bust accurately, like many historical
subjects, is reliant on the art of deciphering
within the ranks... information and in this case of WWII,
old black and white photos.
Even the few colour photos
out there give the modeller
problems as the reproduction
can be less than accurate in
representing the true shades of
the time and with some pictures
being retouched to produce
colour shots, the information
frequently becomes muddied.

58 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


Figures

I chose to use a mixture of pictures of actual


equipment, lightening some of the colours I then
2
used to represent dust and fading. I planned out
the basic pattern of the scarf but where that one
was concerned there were no colour pictures that
I could find, so I copied the patterns and assumed
(oh so dangerous my friends) that the colours would
be mixtures of cream and browns.......these could
be totally wrong, so please dont take my painting
as gospel.

The model
Ill be quick about this, simply because there are
certain parts that I want to focus on.
Photo 1 shows the box art, very nice; several
pictures of a painted piece and a nice version of the
scarf although a tad too Burberry for me.
Nicely packaged too, but disappointment hit
hard when I got the parts out of the wrapping.
Ive laid them out in photo 2 but for a kit that
costs the wrong side of 45, I was less than
impressed with the casting quality a shame
when the sculpting promises so much. Photos
3 and 4 show what Im on about and speak for
themselves. So, a lot of clean up and a little re-
sculpting are necessary.
Rommels favourite uniform was the D.A.K. one
and hes seen in photos with the dusty coloured
tunic quite a lot. I chose to paint that, using Mars
Yellow, Mars Black (to grey out the yellow a little) 3 4
and Titanium White with just a touch of Mars brown
to warm the mix a little. The basics of this are
shown in photo 5, with only the deeper shadows
needing to be added to the armpits, under the collar
flaps and around the seams.
OK so Im rushing things but I really wanted
to get on to the scarf it was going to be both a
headache and some fun.

www.militarymodelling.com 59
Figures

5 6

7 8

Research told me that the scarf was knitted by Painting it was fun; establishing a light
Rommels illegitimate daughter to Walburga Stemmer background, then adding darker red/brown horizontal
their daughters name being Gertrud. Its said that stripes that would form the basis of the pattern
Gertrud knitted the scarf for her father and that it had a shown in photo 6.
plaid pattern. I worked out what I thought the pattern I noted that there were fine diagonal stripes
could be from a couple of the better photos of Rommel across the darker bands and these were painted in
from the time, although its difficult to say exactly first, See photo 7 - with even lighter lines running
what the pattern is because of the way that the folds across the diagonals and also down the length
and rucks in the wool form when its wrapped around of the scarf. I used a very fine brush to add them
Rommels neck and tucked into his tunic. and discovered that the bristles were probably not

60 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


Figures

meant to be used with oil paints as they developed together a little better. Ive never been keen on
a hook at the tip of the brush. painting tartan patterns and Im sticking with that
Ah, but this came in handy when I the added the feeling even after this foray into knitted neckwear.
darker lines to the pattern. There is an option to paint the scarf as a
At the beginning of planning the layout of the white silk item for those who give the
pattern I noticed that a lot of the lines were actually matter more thought for an easy life.
made up of short diagonal cross-hatches, rather Overall, if I was reviewing this bust
than simple straight lines. The hook on the tip of the I would admit that the initial casting
brush bristles helped me to paint these very fine faults put a dark cloud over the
short lines in, to form what, from a distance, appear project. I know were supposed to
to be solid lines. be modellers but the previous
It was tedious and time consuming but with two or three busts Ive painted
patience the pattern built up and certainly a blind have been a darn sight
man galloping past on a horse at midnight would cheaper to buy and were
agree that the pattern works........if I paid him some of a lot higher quality in
money at least. terms of casting.
The final shots show the finished bust. Im not The sculpting, however,
convinced at the time of writing that the background is good and perhaps for the
colour of the scarf has enough contrast so this might onlooker there is a little bit
well get a couple of very thin washes of a shadow more punch or glamour with
colour put over the whole scarf to make things blend this piece.

www.militarymodelling.com 61
AFV

Italiano Self-Propelled
Automotive in North Africa
Italian Italeri Semovente M40 da 75/18 by Mark Bannerman
ABOVE: The model set in a desert
scene somewhere in North Africa
A superior gun
(Courtesy of Photoshop) The Semovente M40 da 75/18 was the first Italian and other series were later built on the M14/41
self-propelled gun to be produced in series in World and M15/42 chassis. Many of these tanks were
War II. The prototype was tested in early 1941 and pushed into German service in the African and
pushed into operational service later in that year. Italian campaigns.
The first vehicles to participate in active combat The Semovente da 75/18 weighted 14.4 tones,
were assigned to two self-propelled artillery gruppi was crewed by three (commander/gunner, loader
of the Ariete Division. These guns were introduced and driver), sported a Model 35 75/18 howitzer and
in North Africa and were considered superior to typically carried 100 rounds. At the end of the war,
BELOW: The Italeri boxart. The 1/35 both British and German guns. The effectiveness many were sent to Egypt, Libya, Tunisia and Greece
model was previously sold by Peerless of their guns was further enhanced by the use for post war military service. In total, approximately
and Esci. Although the mould is 40
years old, it is still an excellent model of a shaped-charge ammunition. The first series 200 of all series combined were produced.
by any standards. were built on the chassis of Carro Armato M13/40

Timeless Italeri
This release from Italeri has been in existence for a
long time and I believe represents the same model
(and moulds) released by Peerless and Esci. Despite
its age, it is still an excellent model holds its own
and is well up to todays standards. Overall, the
detail on the suspension, breach and sight, drive
shaft and rivets are excellent. The model out of the
box would be an easy assembly with little to no fit
issues. The instructions are easy to follow, the parts
fit together very well and the model offers decals to
cover four vehicles (three Italian and one German).
For this project, I decided to take it one step further
using etch, resin and a little scratch building as a
method of honing in on my modelling skills.
Most of the model was built per the instructions,
however in some cases, where the detailing was
better on an aftermarket offering (exhaust pipe,
sidelights, barrel etc.), I left the plastic part off
for the replacement. The model is a very simple
build and I used a variety of parts from the Italeri
Carro Armatto M13/14 to replace missing parts (I
bought the kit from a flea-market) from the Italeri

62 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


AFV

LEFT: A disabled Semovente.


Note the full track fenders and the
fully extended antennae bracket.
(Photo source unknown)

Semovente offering. Fortunately, many parts for the campaign. Once glued in place, I filled the gap with ABOVE LEFT: I used parts from the Italeri
M13/40 as I was missing some parts for
Italeri Carro Armato and the Italeri Semovente are auto primer and applied copious amounts of liquid glue the Semovente. The running gear was a
interchangeable. With the basic model built up, I to smooth out the primer. Once dry, light sanding with relatively easy affair to assemble.
spent some time gathering close-up museum and fine grit sandpaper smoothed down the connection ABOVE RIGHT: Some parts were
wartime photos of the Semovente on the internet point. I also used some etch from the Royal Models replaced such as the exhausts and
and in magazines and other publications. To start, I after-market offering and while there was really not some of the etch from the Royal Models
aftermarket offering was also used.
used a punch and die set to make 30-40 small rivets much in the way of important etch, I could have done
(Waldron Set using .023 hole and .020 Evergreen without it. Most parts could have been made using
sheet styrene) which were to be attached with sheet styrene. The barrel is an aluminium offering from
liquid glue on the hull where bolts were missing. Aber and it is a super two part offering. This was very
much worth the purchase. The lids on the side boxes
were replaced with sheet styrene and the boxes
Replicating photos themselves were wrapped in the Royal Models etch.
Attaching the front fenders was a little tricky because The exhaust pipes and side lights were also replaced
there was a large gap between the connector point on with the resin offering from the Royal Models set.
the hull and the fender edge. I had purposely sliced off Other replacements included using etch for tie-down
the rear section of the fenders to replicate photos of lugs, etch grill over the engine vent and a few small
the Semovente with short fenders in the North African details on the hull surface.

LEFT: Tracks have been welded to


add a protective layer to the tanks
armour. It appears to have been a
Semovente used by the Germans.
(Photo source unknown)

BELOW: The model was built


primarily out of the box with some
additional detailing. Here, I drilled
a small hole into the fender as per
wartime references.

www.militarymodelling.com
AFV
An Italian tank squad appears to have Rommel (background) in their midst.
Note the tracks welded to the hull and front. (Photo source unknown)

detailed and the best one can purchase. Many


will suggest that the plugs that attach the tracks
together are not long enough so some modellers
ABOVE: The Aber turned aluminium will use copper wire or fine gauge brass wire to
barrel is an excellent offering and well attach the links together. I made an attempt at
worth the investment.
attaching a few links with the plugs but found the
RIGHT: The superb release by process very tedious, time consuming and realized
ModelKasten of the tracks for the
M13/40 which is also applicable to the that it was not that important to me to necessarily
Semovente 75/18. have articulated workable tracks - unless I wanted
to attach the tracks to the tank after the tank was
painted. There is no question that separate track
links create a much more authentic look compared
to single-piece vinyl tracks but I was uncertain that
I wanted to spend hours upon hours attaching links,
adding wire on either end with superglue, snipping
off the excess wire and moving on to the next link.
The next step in the building process was the
lower suspension and tracks. The Italeri suspension
was put together in one evening and was easy to ModelKasten tracks
assemble. With the suspension built, I began the While there are several methods for assembling
process of putting together the ModelKasten tracks ModelKasten tracks, I chose to side step the process
designed for the M13/40 (which are the same tracks of building the tracks off the model and to assemble
as the Semovente). Modelkasten tracks are highly in sub-links on the already attached road wheels
detailed plastic links and are attached link-by-link before painting the model. I snipped off the tracks
using small plastic plugs provided in the track set. from the sprues, cleaned up any excess plastic and
BELOW: I used the metal Friul sprocket When finished, the track links can be articulated then glued 8-10 links together with liquid glue. I used
wheels because I had them. However,
the plastic wheels in the Italeri offering similar to real tracks and are often referred to as a wooden ruler as my surface so that liquid glue
would have been fine to use. workable. The links themselves are exquisitely would not affix the tracks to the ruler. I allowed the
length of 8-10 links to dry for ten minutes, squeezing
the length between two straight-edge rulers to keep
the length straight then mounted the length onto the
suspension. A hairdryer can be very handy to speed
up the drying process. While the glue was still tacky
on the length, I added some slack where the tracks
would suspend between the return rollers. I repeated
this step until one side was complete. One side of
the Semovente took me just over an hour. The tricky
bit with using this approach is the attachment of the
last length and ensuring that the length is a perfect fit
between two already installed lengths. If the length
is slightly too long but removing one link will render
the length too short, I pull the last two links on
either side of the gap inwards by a fraction towards
the gap so that the gap can be reduced in size to

64 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


AFV

accommodate the last link. This worked and resulted I began the process of putting together the
ModelKasten tracks by clipping these off
in a perfect fit. The other option is to decrease the the sprues with nail clippers.
slack in the top tracks. My suggestion when starting
off with putting the tracks together is to start with
the ground lengths, work your way around the idler
and sprocket and then slowly work your way in with
the top length of tracks (the length that extends over
the return rollers) to allow the flexibility of getting
the length correct as you close the gap. This was
my second or third go with ModelKasten and these
are absolutely superior. In fact, the best tracks I
have yet come across. Finishing touches on the
assembly included using the sprocket wheels from
the Friul track set, drilling a small hole in the inside
front portion of the fenders, reinforcing all etch with a
minute speck of superglue and filling any small voids
and joints between parts with liquid glue to ensure a
sturdy bond.

Desert Colours
The colours of a Semovente depended on the theatre
of operation. Tanks leaving the factory were typically
painted in Grigio Verde Scuro which was a dark grey-
green colour. It can be best described as a medium-
dark green with a distinct grey tone. Desert colours
varied greatly with most receiving the camouflage
paint application in the field. Desert colours varied
from tan-brown with a mottled or spotted green
camo, to Giallo Sabbio (sand) with or without dark
Marrone Rossiccio (brick red-brown) and/or Grigio
Verde Scuro (grey-green). From March 1941 onwards,
Italian tanks were painted in the factory in Khaki
Sahariano, a deep sand-yellow which was completely
suitable for North Africa. As I was modelling a tank
serving in North Africa, I opted for the overall one
colour sand-yellow. Sandstorms and the low quality from a dish scrubbing pad and dipped this into ABOVE: Note how the tracks only
slightly sag between return rollers.
field application of paint would not stand up well to small amounts of Tamiya Dark Grey. After removing
the effects of sand hitting the surface of the tank and excess paint from the sponge, I lightly applied the
as a result; some images of the Semoventes finish sponge onto the tanks surfaces concentrating
may appear to be camouflaged when it is actually on high traffic areas used by tank crews and then
BELOW: I primed the model using two
the result of the base sand colour rubbing off and dabbing the sponge more conservatively on all other light coats of Tamiya grey primer the
revealing the paint underneath. areas of the tank. There is no right or wrong way to best primer on the market in my opinion.
To start the paint process, I cleaned the model
down with soap and water and then primed with
two coats of Tamiya Grey Primer. Once dry,
I sprayed the entire model, including the
tracks, in two thin applications of
a mix of Tamiya Dark Yellow XF-
59 (80%) and White XF-2
(20%) further mixed
with 30% water.
Before starting in
on the weathering,
I brush painted the
tracks using a combination
of Vallejo 822 German Camo
Black Brown and 862 Black Grey which
was followed by brush painting the rubber on the
road wheels using Tamiya NATO Black XF-65. This
took about one evening. There are some areas
where I inadvertently painted on the rubber of the
tyres with track colour and rubber colour onto the
tracks. However, the colours were so similar that
any subsequent weathering would eliminate the
glitches. Once dry, the whole model took a light
airbrushing of heavily diluted Tamiya Buff (ratio
paint to thinner was approximately 1:4). To start the
weathering, I ripped up small sections of sponge

www.militarymodelling.com 65
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LEFT: I brush painted the tracks using a combination of Vallejo


822 German Camo Black Brown and 862 Black Grey and this
was followed by brush painting the rubber on the road wheels
using Tamiya NATO Black XF-65.

do this but rather more thinking through where the


heaviest concentration of paint chips may occur.
One way to reverse the effect if the chipping effect
is too heavy is to use the sponge and dab some
of the base colour back in. Once thoroughly dry, I
added three filters using Humbrol paints - 29, 72,
and 83 and applied in that order. All of the filters
were applied with 15% paint and 85% Humbrol
thinners. Each filter was allowed to dry thoroughly
before adding the subsequent filter. Once dry, I
started in with pinwashes using Sepia oil paint
heavily thinned with Testors paint thinner. I used a
liner brush to add a pinwash of Sepia along all panel
lines, around rivets and inside the wheel wells. I
added in a few additional scratches using Humbrol
Dark Grey to the model using a 00 brush. Once the
decals were firmly in place, I started in with copious
amounts of powdered pigments using a mix of
Vallejo Green Earth and MIG Sand. The combination
looks likely to be a light grey shade but once applied
looks remarkably similar to sand dust. I worked
small sections at a time and, once the entire tank
and tracks had received the pigment treatment, the
pastels were then fixed into place by airbrushing
the entire model with pure Tamiya thinners X-20A.
ABOVE: I used small sections of sponge from a dish I typically repeat this step several times because
scrubbing pad and applied small amounts of Tamiya
Dark Grey to the whole tank. the airbrush will remove some of the pigments so
repeating the process provides some depth to the
overall effect I was trying to achieve. The pigments
that I use most often are dry stick types that can
be purchased at a well-stocked art store for a few
dollars. However, I was quite impressed with the
quality of the both Vallejo and MIG pigments. A
few oil stains were added by flicking diluted Sepia
mixed with Raw Sienna oil paints from a dried brush
onto the rear part of the model. The track links were
then picked out with a regular pencil to show bare
metal where the cleats would meet the road. The
interior of the hatch and inner wall were painted in
white Humbrol enamels, followed by a few washes
of Sepia oil paint and regular pencil to show metal
wear. Some finishing touches include painting the
inside of the light pots in Tamiya Silver and filling the
pots with 5-minute epoxy.
ABOVE: All of the filters were applied with 15% paint and The last step was using Friul metal tracks as
85% Humbrol thinners and each filter was allowed to dry extra protective armour on the tanks hull. It was
thoroughly before adding the subsequent filter.
common practice to weld tracks to the tanks
LEFT: Close up view of the sponge effect, filters and vertical and frontal armour to protect it from
pin washes.
enemy fire. I painted the Friul tracks in the same
BELOW: I also added pinwashes using Sepia oil paint colour as those used on the MK tracks and dusted
thinned with Testors paint thinner.
these with the same pigment mix that I used on
the tank. I used 5-minute epoxy to glue these
to the model. To finish off the project, I used a
resin figure of an Italian commander from the
excellent line of Hornet 1/35 figures. My treatment
of figures varies. For this figure, I airbrushed the
clothing ion black followed by light applications of
Dark Grey ensuring only to catch the highlights.
The face was painted in oils as were his helmet,
gloves and boots. Detailing such as the belt and
goggles were painted in enamel Humbrol.

Conclusion
This is an old model that was absolutely lovely to
build and weather. It is certainly not a weekend
project but, once completed, it is a very rewarding
model. I do not know whether it is a highly accurate
rendition but compared to wartime photos and a

Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


AFV

few museum samples, I think Italeri have


done a superb job. This model can be
built out of the box or can be upgraded
without spending a significant amount of
money. The only two recommendations
I would make in terms of after-market
purchases would be replacement tracks
(MK) and a replacement barrel (Aber).
This is a finely engineered kit with loads
of potential for detailing. I do rate this
offering very highly and look forward to
building another in the near future.
ABOVE LEFT: A superb offering by Hornet of the 1/35 tank Commander.

ABOVE RIGHT: The uniform was painted in Tamiya using an


airbrush, the head was painted in Rembrandt oils,
as were his helmet, gloves and boots.
Detailing such as the belt and goggles were
painted in enamel Humbrol.
The now out-of-print Bellona
booklets are an excellent source of
information. These can be picked up
for a good price at flea markets and
on the internet and are packed with
information and photos with scale
drawings for the modeller.

ABOVE: The pigments helped mute down the stark contrast between the base colour and the grey sponge chipping effect.

RIGHT: I worked the pigments in small sections at


a time and, once the entire tank and tracks
received the pigment treatment, the pastels
were then fixed into place by airbrushing
the entire model with pure Tamiya
thinners X-20A.

This is an excellent book by Nicola


Pignato it has all Italian text but the
photo references are superb.

www.militarymodelling.com 67
AFV

Matildas last Waltz


Tamiyas 1/48 Introduction guns, the Panzer IV with its 75mm and better German
Queen of the Desert, The Matilda IIs time in the sun was the war in North
Africa. The Queen of the Desert outclassed all comers
towed anti-tank guns available to the DAK all did away
with her armoured advantage and the 2pdr was no
the Matilda II by when she was introduced. Her armour proved itself longer able to knock out many tanks at a range on a par
Chris Meddings against the best that Italian Armoured Brigades could
offer and the 20mm cannon of the Panzer 2 and
with axis armour. The Matilda had been superseded
in the Infantry Tank role by the Valentine (although still
37mm KwK 36 of the early Panzer IIIs and performed sadly with a 2pdr) and the first few of the new, far
respectably against the 50mm KwK of the Panzer III G heavier and more potent infantry tanks, the Churchill,
to J. Her 2pdr gun, designed as an anti-tank weapon, had been introduced in time for the battle. However,
was very effective against Italian tanks and performed Montgomery wanted every weapon he could lay his
well at reasonable distances against early panzers. hands on, so a few Matildas, that were still capable of
Above all though, she was mechanically eminently fighting were on strength for the battle.
reliable. In a desert that rendered large proportions of
previous British tanks strength unavailable for combat,
this was incredibly valuable. The Model
However, by the time the first and second battles of Released with great fanfare as their landmark 300th
TOP: The authors completed model on
its base set against a scenic backdrop El Alamein had come around, the Matilda II was pretty kit in the Military Model series, Tamiyas Matilda II
courtesy of Photoshop. much obsolete. Later, Panzer IIIs with higher velocity (2009) was a tour de force of moulding, engineering
and was just huge fun to build. In 2012, they
released a 1/48 version that was basically the 1/35
kit reduced to 1/48 with a couple of small changes.
Having enjoyed the 1/35 so much I chose to build
it again, in 1/48. The kit is basically accurate but, as
we will see, I made a few small changes.

68 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


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Assembly starts with the hull tub which goes CA. Then I simply snipped the end off and sanded
together easily and well. We are given two it flat. The long jack handle is simply a rod so I just
cylindrical weights in the newer Tamiya 1/48 kits replaced it with brass rod.
(the older kits in their 1/48 series having die-cast Moving on to the rest of the hull, the exhaust
metal lower hulls) and I elected to use them to give ends are moulded solid so I drilled them out,
the model a little weight. The suspension is next and starting with a .5mm to centre the hole properly
Tamiya have made this nice and simple, in this scale then, using progressively larger bits until the
this results in only a little loss of fidelity. sidewalls were as thin as I could get them, I also
At the rear of the hull I removed the two drilled out the holes in the lifting eyes.
moulded on, solid handles that lock the armoured There are two runs of spare track on the forward
cover of the radiators in place and replaced them mudguards. Regrettably, the metal strip brackets
with scratch replacements. Matildas in the desert that secure them are moulded on and are rather
virtually never used the auxiliary fuel tank so I filled clunky. I carefully cut the brackets off, replaced
the holes for the brackets. Sometimes, they had the missing track detail underneath, then made
a rack in its place with two gallon cans, some fuel new brackets from strips of brass fret from spare
and some water but lacking any 1/48 cans, I left this PE sets. Doing one was a lot of work so, with the
off. On the sides and on top of the hull, I removed other, I only made empty brackets. I also replaced
the tie downs which again are moulded solid. I the rear light and registration plate with styrene
replaced them with stretched sprue. I also removed sheet and brass tube by Albion Alloys.
the shovel, pick handle and crow bar and moulded The headlights are moulded solid in the same tan The shovel comes with a nasty
moulded on bracket. I removed
on straps to correspond with the tie downs and plastic as the rest of the kit. I drilled them out and and replaced it with a strip
the bracket moulded on the blade of the shovel. replaced them with sections of clear sprue from the of thin plastic card.
I placed the tools and tied them down with thin spares box cut and polished them clear again. For the
strips cut from the foil on a Swann Morton blade Periscopes, I heated a piece of clear sprue then pressed
pack. The bracket for the shovel blade was replaced it flat, while it was still hot, with a pair of tweezers. I
with plasticard. Some of the tools had box brackets then cut squares of the right size, painted the backs
on the end. These are moulded very thickly so I black and placed them in the hollow periscope mounts. BELOW LEFT: The tie down loops were
replaced with stretched sprue and thin
carefully thinned them with a scalpel for thickness The last thing I replaced on the top hull was the foil provided the straps.
of a better scale. The locating pin holes for the tools drivers mirror. This is thick and clunky in the kit so
BELOW RIGHT: The long jack handle
were filled by stretching kit sprue then pushing it I soldered two pieces of rod and a rectangle (cut was replaced with brass rod as it was
in as far as the taper would allow and fixing it with from brass sheet) together to make a replacement. easier than cleaning up the kit part.

ABOVE: The desert Matildas almost never carried the auxiliary fuel tank so I
deleted the slots for the tank holders. RIGHT: I made new straps from scrap
PE fret and left one side empty.

www.militarymodelling.com 69
AFV BELOW: To make the missing periscopes I heated clear
sprue from another kit and flattened it with tweezers
before cutting a suitably sized rectangle out.

LEFT: I also replaced the


thick kit license plate with
plastic card and brass tube.

BELOW: I textured the parts of


the tank that would have been
cast metal for better contrast.

I had to make a periscope for the


inside of the commanders hatch as its
missing from the kit.

I was now nearly shape. I also drilled out the


ready to move onto Besa muzzle and enlarged
the turret, so I decided to the slide moulded hollow muzzle
The luggage rack is moulded onto the tackle texturing the cast steel of the 2pdr. I also replaced the finger
rolls provided in the kit. The rolls were parts of the tank. The kit has guards on the cut off Lee Enfield actions
very poor so I discarded all of it and
replaced with a scratch rack. some texture on these parts but used on the Smoke launchers with PE strip. The
it is somewhat marred by seams commanders hatch is missing the internal parts of
and attachment points etc. that need cleaning up, the periscope, so I scratched one to complete it. The
so I chose to re-texture them. I did this by diluting least attractive part on the turret for me is the mount
Tamiya basic putty with Tamiya extra thin cement and for the radio aerial. This is moulded solid as many
dabbing it on with a piece of sponge. things are on the kit but the real one was rather
The turret was reasonable straightforward, interesting and comparatively delicate so I re-made it
although I did make a few small changes. I replaced in styrene sheet, using the insulator dome from the
the left side stowage rack and rolls because they kit. The real one was also tethered and sprung with a
were very poorly detailed, which was quite a let- cable so that it would flip back into place if disturbed.
down in an otherwise very nice kit. I made a new I made this from 0.1mm copper wire, winding it
rack from strips of styrene sheet and straps from the around the shank of a .5mm bit to get the spring
Swann Morton packet, teasing them into a draped section. In practice these were often a little slack so
ABOVE: The aerial mount is very clunky I left the slack in it and attached it to a small wheel
so I replaced it with styrene made from a punched disc of styrene. Finally, the
sheet and 0.1mm
copper wire. commanders blade sight in the kit is rather thick so I
made a replacement from thin sheet.
Due to the design of the Matildas skirts and
wanting to paint the track properly prior to fitting
them I left the track and skirts off for painting.

Painting and Weathering


I painted the whole in a mix of white (XF2), dark
yellow (XF60) deck tan (XF55). Once that
was dried, I used Vallejo model colour
to brush paint the various tools and
smaller parts that have a different
colour from the main colour. While that was still
wet, I quickly added a touch more white to the mix
still in the cup and sprayed some faint highlights in
suitable areas.
Unfortunately, the kit does not come with decals
suitable for this time period. The two options given
are: one tank in the UK on home defence duty and
one in Caunter for Operation Crusader a year before.
The model ready for paint. The tracks and skirts were Moving on to the weathering, I used to use oils
left off to better facilitate weathering. exclusively for weathering but over the last year

70 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


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or so Ive moved over to enamels, partly because


they dry a lot faster (I like to work fast) and partly
because they tend to dry dead matt). I started with
Humbrol 110 Natural wood. I put some on
a strip of cardboard, which leaches the
solvent out of it and helps it dry faster
then applied it with a fine brush in areas
where I wanted to add a general grimy
shade. I chose Natural Wood as it goes best
with the sand colour of the camouflage. Its
important to be flexible in your choices to make
ABOVE: The model was
sure you get a good, sympathetic colour match. basecoated in a homemade mix of
Once I had the colour in the places I wanted it, Tamiya white, deck tan and dark yellow.
I took a clean, dry brush and blended it into the BELOW: I put some Humbrol natural wood
surrounding areas to make a gentle transition from enamel on cardboard to leech the solvent from
shade to light. it and rubbed it into the recesses, blending it
with a soft brush.
I decided to add the chipping next. Given the age
of Matilda IIs by the time of El Alamein, I wanted
mine to look like a really tired old veteran on one
last hurrah. In actuality, its possible that they would
have been recently repainted and I confess to a
certain amount of artistic license, used to tell the
story in this case, rather than for the
sake of heavy weathering on aesthetic
grounds. To add the chips, I got the
finest brush I have, a 0000 with most of
the bristles missing and used Vallejo
raw umber diluted just enough to
make it flow very easily but still quite
thick so that it would keep its opacity.
Using this very fine brush, I added very
fine scratches and chips in areas where
this would most likely occur.
Again, the choice of colour is important here. Raw
Umber is on the same palette of yellowish browns
and has the added benefit of being dark for good
contrast but also having a hint of oxidised metal.
Next, I added a touch more lightening and fading
with very well thinned white enamel. I blended this
in to get the effect that I wanted with a soft brush.
When this was dried, I wanted to start bringing
something of the ever present dust mentioned in
desert war memoirs to the build. I chose to start apply it in areas where dust would collect. When it
this process with a product that was new to me; dried I found it had quite a subtle effect so I gave
AK Interactive Dust and Dirt Deposits; Sand Yellow the whole tank a light wash with it and, when
Deposits, I was thoroughly impressed with it. It that was dry, I built up more in the areas where
appears to be somewhere between an enamel filter it would collect.
and pigments in solution and it dries to a very fine Next, I turned to the tracks. As these
dusty effect. I certainly recommend it. To use it, I were link and length and
gave it a really good shake then used a fine brush to reasonably small, I left them

ABOVE: I lightened selected areas with


heavily thinned white enamel.

LEFT: I tried a new product to me;


AK Interactive Dust and Dirt Deposits;
Sand Yellow. I didnt know what to
expect but it was superb; highly
effective and easy to use.

71
AFV
! added rust by applying just a little AK interactive
rust wash on the chipping for
a rust stained look.

on the sprue for painting. I started by spraying them


with a mix of Tamiya black (XF1) and Flat Earth
(XF52). When that was dry, I gave them a couple of
heavy washes of the AK Dust and Dirt mentioned
above. When that was dry, I dry-brushed the guide
horns with a mixture of Vallejo black, raw umber
and steel. I cut them off, cleaned up the attachment
points and touched up the exposed plastic with a
brush then fitted them. Once they were on I fitted
the skirts.
Next, I wanted to add a little rust. The desert is
thought of as very dry but in fact moisture can form
at night in North Africa and in places the fighting
was not far from the sea. In Alan Moorheads
Desert Trilogy he talks about how quickly the
damaged or knocked-out tanks rusted. So I added
rust but erred on the side of subtlety. I used AK
interactive light rust streaking and applied just a little
colour around some of the chips and a few streaks
here and there but not much and nothing too stark.

ABOVE: A pinwash of dark


brown picked out details.

ABOVE: I carved a base


from dense Styrofoam.

RIGHT: Checking the fit of


the tank, some gaps
under the tracks would
need addressing. ABOVE: The base was finished off with white tape for a mine
cleared lane, and home-made barb wire and stanchions.

72
AFV

Next, I added pigments and used Pinnacle


Pigments Light Mud. I mixed a wash with
enamel thinner and added it heavily in various
collection areas.
Finally, I added just a little more lightening.
When adding so many tones and playing so
much with the look of a project theres always a
danger that it will start to get a bit muddy. You
have to ensure that detail on the model is king;
giving the sense of a complex machine shrunk to
1/48 its original size. This is, in my opinion, best
done with light, shade and above all, contrast. My
model was starting to merge in tones. I was happy
with the dark and the mid-level tones but it was
lacking light. I mixed some diluted white Vallejo to
the consistency of slightly milky water and applied
it a little at a time, blending it to avoid tide-marks.
When I was happy, I painted the commander and
added him and the model was done.

The Base
Its always a good idea to add a base. Models work
so much better in context than they do on a plain
wooden base and its well worth trying. Ive recently
been building a lot of ship models and I decided to
import the method for seascapes here to make an
undulating desert base.
I started with a section of blue Styrofoam (I get
mine from 4D Modelshop) and carved the waves,
err I mean dunes, into it with a knife. This is a
messy job, keep a vacuum cleaner handy! I then
used artists medium (you can use PVA) to stick
patches of tissue paper onto the foam to give a
smoother surface and to seal it for later. Next, I
crushed up some hard pieces of household filler
powder mixed with brown paint. I mixed this for
another base but it crushes to a fine dust or you can
get rocks from it. Mixed with pigment, it makes
a very nice rocky desert terrain. I pained more
medium onto the top of the tissue and scattered it
with the powdered mix. When that was dry, I tried
the tank for fit and built up more of the dusty mix staked to the ground. I cut strips of white paper and Views of the authors completed
model on its base.
in areas where the track didnt meet the ground to used brass rod for the stakes. I also made some
bring the ground up to the track in effect. I set that stanchions from brass rod, annealed, then twisted
with pigment fixer. to make the loops and barbed wire from .1mm
To finish the base, I added white tape for the copper wire. I painted the stanchions and wire with
lane markers used by the sappers to clear routes Raw Umber to give them an old metal look and the
through the wall of mines and wire constructed project was finished.
to stop the British. They cleared these routes to
allow the armour to pass through and penetrate
the DAK defences at night behind
the massive opening barrage; a
dangerous job requiring brave men.
They marked safe routes with white tape

www.militarymodelling.com 73
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Dirty Diana
7.62cm FK 296(r) auf 5t Zugkraftwagen Sd.Kfz.6 very satisfied with the sprue details. But unfortunately,
it waited in my stash until the moment when Martyn,
Diana by Ivan Momcilovic Momcha Contributing Editor of Military Modelling, asked me to
build the kit for this special issue. I was very happy to
finally put it on my workbench and get started.
ABOVE: A view of the diorama with
scenic backdrop courtesy of Photoshop.
Bronco beauty Construction of the kit went very easily. It was not
I remember when I saw this kit in an announcement difficult to build and all parts fitted nicely. For those
BELOW: The authors completed Sd.Kfz.6
model placed in a diorama. by Bronco Models, I was more than happy to see it who like extra detail, there is an engine provided.
finally in plastic, so I bought it right away when it was With the addition of a few wires, it can look very
on sale in an on-line shop (www.hobbyeasy.com). realistic. The biggest minus is that there are no
Like every BM model, it is highly detailed and I was decals provided for instrument/drivers control panel,

74
AFV

so I had to use some of the decals from other kits


that had a similar panel. I decided not to glue the rear
part (combat compartment) to the chassis as it needs
a lot of work after painting (Photo 1).
Firstly, I started with the lower chassis and engine.
The engine was airbrushed in black primer and the rest 3
of the chassis in grey primer (Photo 2). Waiting for it
to dry, I airbrushed the combat compartment in white
primer. The best way to achieve shades of colours that
you desire is to wait at least 24 hours for the primer
to dry. By waiting that long, you will avoid a chemical
reaction between the shades of colours and the
possibility of shade changes. So, after a day of pause,
I started the black and white technique on the combat
compartment. I used Scale75 Petroleum Grey colour,
a dark shade of grey, and I painted lower/darkest
areas first. Then, I airbrushed a White colour onto the
brightest parts which are subjected to more sun light
than other areas (Photo 3). 50% thinner and a few layers were airbrushed on.
I was careful not to cover previously made B/W
effects. Lower parts, like the chassis and wheels,
Harsh African conditions were painted with a darker shade from same
After waiting for few hours, I have airbrushed a base Scale 75 set, Gelbraun Brown. I wanted to create
camouflage to the interior; Scale75 Brown from a difference between the shades of the parts that
War Front series for D.A.K. (Deutsches Afrikakorps) were exposed to mud, dust and dirt and parts that
(Photo 4). It was thinned a lot, about 50% colour were less exposed to these effects (Photo 5).
It is now time to remove the masks from the
floor of combat compartment and paint it. In this
step, some parts are still not glued, like frames for
gun wheels, ammo racks, etc. I guessed that in
African conditions, the floor inside the vehicle was
exposed to the friction of sand. I used Mr. Metal
Iron. As many of you know, these types of colours
are specific because they can be polished for up to

www.militarymodelling.com 75
AFV
6

Brown over it. After a few minutes using hot water


and flat brush, I started to remove it with a standard
chipping technique (Photo 9). Some lower side
parts were also affected by chipping.
The rest of the model was painted with a Braun
colour. The shading effect under the base camouflage
is still visible and waiting for weathering. This colour
was also thinned a lot and airbrushed.

Sand and rust effects


Now it is time to start with the weathering. First, I
7
used a Vallejo Dark Khaki Green wash and sprayed
it onto the darkest areas. It gave a nice filter to the
Braun colour.
Most German vehicles in the first half of the
war had a Nazi flag for air identification. It was the
same for vehicles that served in Africa, although
some had big white stripes instead of flags. This
was the case with Diana. On only few pictures that
document this vehicle during the war, white stripes
are visible. I have masked the parts where the
white insignia would be painted and initially sprayed
chipping fluid. Then, after few minutes, I painted a
white colour. Again, after a few minutes with flat
brush and hot water, I placed chipping effects on the
white insignia (Photo 10).
The next stage was to weather the interior parts
using a new line of Ammo by Mig oil brusher paints
which are great products for weathering effects. On
the first picture, I put the paint straight on from the
bottle. Then, using fine brush and enamel thinner, I
blended them in to get a sandy effect (Photo 11).
After a pin wash, scratches were made on the
rear box with a sand colour and small thin brush
and then, in the same places, with the dark brown
colour which created deeper scratches and damage.
With the brown, I was careful not to cover all the
24 hours after being used. I used a cotton bud and scratches that I had made with the sand colour
polished it all over where I airbrushed it (Photo 6) (Photo 12).
8 achieving a realistic polished metal look. As an option, BM provided a windshield with and
Waiting for the metal colour to dry completely, without canvas. I chose the former which I painted
I began painting the exterior. I used the same in a light green colour. Deeper shades were made
B/&WW technique but, this time, I added a few with Vallejo Dark Brown wash.
more shades, darker and lighter from Scale75 B/W After painting the running wheels in Gelbraun Brown
set (Photo 7). When the model is finished, all of colour, I painted the parts that were most exposed
this contrast will look more natural. I didnt want to to the friction of the tracks in a rust colour. When the
carry out too much detailing on the lower chassis colour had dried, I used a metal pigment and put it on
because these parts would not be visible when with a rubber brush over the rusty painted parts. The
finished. I sprayed a steel colour on the engine metal pigment is representing current friction from the
without any weathering (Photo 8). tracks and has a rusty look under it.
Returning to the combat compartment, I sprayed To highlight the details of the main gun, I used
a chipping effect fluid onto the floor and Gelbraun a standard pin-wash technique with D.A.K. dark
brown wash from Ammo by Mig applied with a thin
brush. When the washing effect had dried, I started
with the chipping. Originally this was a Soviet gun,
so its base colour was definitely green, so for the
chipping I used Dark Green (Photo 13).
9 The rear of the Diana was painted in a Panzer
grey colour. As this shade is dark, the B&W
technique wont be visible. Because of this, the
camouflage colour was not thinned (Photo 14).
When it had dried, a light coat of chipping fluid was
put over the Panzer Grey, followed by the same
Braun that the rest of the upper parts are painted
in (Photo 15). Then, using flat brush and water,
I removed it randomly (Photo 16). Next step, I
airbrushed Ammo by Mig washable Sand. This
colour is different from other acrylics because it can

76 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


AFV
10 11

12 13

14

15

be washed/blended with water and you can work


with that colour until you protect it with varnish.
While I was blending the washable colour, some
of the previously painted Braun over the chipping 17
fluid was removed. This gave me the possibility to
get levels of in depth weathering effects. When I
finished with the blending, I used various mixes
of Scale 75 colours and carried out filtering and
weathering on the box sides (Photo 17).

16

www.militarymodelling.com 77
AFV
19

18

20 21

24

22

The whole model is airbrushed with Tamiya


Clear X-22, which will protect the painted colours
and effects and give a nice base for the oil/enamel
effects. The first of them was a pin wash, to
highlight all of the details on the model and to bring
it to life (Photo 18 & 19).

Dust and chipping


The next step is chipping. Vehicles that have served
23 and are still serving in desert areas are more prone
to chipping effects, firstly from sand friction, then
from the sun. Using Panzer Grey colour, I made
scratches, mostly on the front part of the vehicle,
the crew step and on the grills (Photo 20).
Before I placed the gun inside the rear
compartment, I wanted to make few more
weathering effects. Again, I used Ammo by Mig oil
brusher called Starship Filth. I put it near gaps and
crevices to show grease and general dirt. It was put
on directly from the bottle (Photo 21) and then, with
a smaller fine brush and thinner, it was blended.
Now it is time to carry out some more dusty
effects. African Dust effect from Ammo by Mig is

78 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


AFV

great for this. It was blended with fine brush and


thinner up and down, more like after a rain effect
(Photo 22). Then I made streaking effects on the
sides of the Diana. Randomly size painted stripes
with small brush follow, which I blended from
top to bottom (Photo 23), the opposite to
the previous dust effect. When all had dried,
I made another layer of dust but this time
with oil brusher Buff (Photo 24) and then
blended again using the same method.
The model is now finished but I always like to
build a small base or diorama. The diorama base is
made of Styrofoam. For the earth effect I used Vallejo
Brown Earth and Desert Sand texturing with quartz
sand that I bought in local flower shop (Photo 25).
I then added some small stones (Photo 26) and
secured it with a mixture of white glue and water.
When all was glued, I painted the whole base with a
variety of shades of Sand and Brown. When someone
mentions desert, first thoughts are sand with a few
rocks but not all parts of the desert look that way, there
is also vegetation which can still grow under extreme The vehicle and diorama would look empty
conditions. On visiting my local flower shop, I found without figures. Scale75 has very nice
some nice samples. I repainted them and added them figures of Africa Korps soldiers. I used
to the base. Diopark is also making great cactus plants two of them and painted them with
in 1/35, so I used their set and added it to the diorama. colours from same manufacturer. I only
Cactus is characteristic because is grows in colonies, replaced heads with Hornet and Alpine
plant near plant and on the big rocks and hills, etc. heads for these figures.

26

25

www.militarymodelling.com 79
Figures

British Tank
Commander
Sovereign 2000 The Model
miniatures 1/9th As I noted in the review I wrote in Military
Modelling Magazine Vol.47 Issue 2, this probably
showing the bare resin, I think youll probably agree
that the casting looks a lot better than the box art
scale resin bust by isnt the kind of model that will shake the leads you to expect. And, in some ways, thats good
Adrian Hopwood foundations of your modelling world when you see
it on a traders shelf or pictured on a website, but
because if you did purchase this, then on opening
the box youd be very pleased with your acquisition
that shouldnt put you off. better this way round than superb box art masking
Photo 1 backs my statement on this up, I think, a horror of resin being emptied out of the box, eh?
1 in that the box art depiction looks a little bland and In Photos 3 and 4 Ive just added oil paints to
uninspiring. However, looking at the second picture the face and undercoated the beret and already the
model is coming to life. Admittedly, I feel I should
have carved back the eyebrows before doing this
2 but as it is the model is being painted right out of
the box.......perhaps its something to consider if
you decide to get hold of this one.
Ill skip the details on the flesh colours my usual
use of Mars Brown and Titanium White and go to
the painting of the beret and the shirt.
The beret received an undercoat of mid-grey
acrylic (Chaos Black and Kommando Khaki from
Games Workshop) and I also added a spot of Tamiya
Matt medium to let the paint flow a bit more and
give an absolute matt effect to the undercoat. This
will soak up more of the oil in the finishing coats of
paint and look more like cloth. The same was done
with the Khaki Drill colour undercoat for the shirt.

80 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


Figures

Looking at Photo 6 again, Ive painted in the


edge of the beret with a little Mars Black and
Liquin. The Liquin adds a slight sheen to the paint
even after it has dried and will separate the edging
from the rest of the beret material. Also in this
shot, Ive added the glazing to the goggles, simply
painting the area with black acrylic, washing on
a dozen or so very thin layers of a very pale grey
acrylic to build up a couple of lighter areas (adding
smaller and smaller areas of the paint on each
layer makes for a gradual build-up of colour) and
once that has fully dried I painted over a couple of
thin coats of Tamiya Clear Blue lacquer to give the
effect of glass with the sunlight through it.
The hair at the back of the head and on the
neck is the only part Im not really keen on. The
sculpted hair seems to end too high to me so
I painted it on to be a little longer. It looks OK
but from certain angles you can see where the
sculpting ends and the painting carries on and
again, in hindsight, I think Id add a little putty
6 here and extend the sculpting of the hair to come
further down the neck.
Finishing touches for the main casting are the
goggle strap leather with a little bit of damage
on the edges and the cap badge. Its a very small
space to work on but with a fine brush, a steady
hand and a lot of cursing..... Sorry, patience, it is
possible to depict the tiny WWI rhomboid tank and
the laurel wreath of the badge.
OK, final finishing touches to the main casting
chest hair! Same to you too, I hear you say.
I decided that, seeing as theres a gaping V
formed by the open shirt Id give our Tanker a few
chest hairs peeping out from under the shirt
just some Burnt Umber oils and a very fine
brush no problem.
The binoculars need a bit of refinement
when theyre being cleaned up not a
lot of work really, just a bit of squaring
up of the links between the two halves
and I drilled out the eyepieces a little so
I could later drop a thick blob of Tamiya
Clear Blue lacquer in to make the lens
Mars Black, a little Mars Yellow and some on each side. Otherwise, plenty of
Titanium White oils were mixed to provide a similar matt black, a hint of some silver for
grey to the undercoat and then added to the scratches and wear and that was
beret and Buff Titanium was added to build up the then ready to attach to the front of
highlights. Once dry, Mars Black was thinned with the model.
a little White Spirit and painted into the deeper I found a nice piece of wood and
recesses to give the darkest shadows. a short length of brass pipe for the
The shirt was a mix of Mars Black, Mars Yellow model to sit on, and thats it complete.
and Titanium White too but using a lot more of the OK, not the most earth-shattering
lighter colours. Mars Black and Mars Yellow (or of models, but he is rather nice once
Yellow Ochre) will give a range of Khaki shades and some paints applied and the whole
the addition of the white will make the mix look thing finished here, including
lighter (obviously) and somewhat cleaner. the wood plinth, comes in at
Again, a mid-tone was mixed up and added to less than 25.00. That cant
the model. I added a little more black to a small be bad for a 1/9th scale bust,
amount of the mid-tone mix and blended this decently cast and of an unusual
into the lower edges of the shirt and the deeper subject. There are not many
recesses under the collar and at the junction of British subjects out there
the arms. Once that had been done, I could then and certainly a lot less
gradually lighten areas to build up highlights by depicting British WWII
adding more white. tankers. So, perhaps
The model was put in the drying cupboard for a one worth considering
couple of days and then darker Khaki was used to if your historical
line in the seams and button holes and add definition interest covers the
to the deeper shadow areas see Photo 6. desert campaigns.

www.militarymodelling.com 81
AFV

Sturmpanzer II
Bison
The 15cm sIG 33 Auf Fahrgestell
Panzerkampfwagen II (Sf)
by Ivan Momcilovic Momcha

German self-propelled infantry gun


One of the most interesting artillery vehicles from
WWII, the Bison II, saw service in Europe and
the African Theatre of war but for many, it is most
recognizable through its service in D.A.K. This well-
detailed model was released a few years ago by
Dragon Models in 1/35. For this model, I purchased
a PE upgrade set from Eduard for some extra
detailing. The model that I have built, evidenced by
its side markings, has fought in the famous
Battle of El Alamein.
This is an open roof vehicle so I
began working on the interior and
painting, as during the construction,
I didn`t glue all of the parts at once.
Before I glued the PE parts
(using gel super glue) onto
the model, I put them
in PE burnishing
fluid. For some
of the very small
PE parts, I used a
glossy varnish to
glue them. This is a
nice method for gluing
PE parts onto visible plastic

82 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


AFV

places and it avoids using


gluing fluid later when dry.
Almost all of the parts are
assembled in groups for easy painting.
I start with the primer colours.
The first primer colour is black (Photo 1).
I painted the interior details in black while the exterior
body was left to be painted later using a different 3
technique. After a few hours, waiting for the black
primer to dry, I airbrushed the next shade; this time
in dark brown. When I was painting the dark brown, I
was focussing on shading the black, not over painting
it. Once the dark brown had dried for few hours, I used
a Rusty colour for the final shading layer. After this
step, the painted part looks a little like burnt/weathered
metal. Some parts, like the radio stations and the
cradle for the gun are painted in Panzer Grey.
I then airbrush chipping fluid over the painted
parts (Photo 2) using Scale75 Braun for D.A.K.,
diluted with a thinner (ration 50%-50%) and a few
layers airbrushed on. The previous step should still
be visible under the new colour (Photo 3). I then
used water and a fine brush and started to remove
the paint on places where I wanted to show
first layer of paint (Photo 4). On some parts, the
camouflage spreads around like liquid, which will
look nice later on when weathering.
While waiting for the paint to dry after the
chipping technique, I painted some small details like 4
the fuel canisters, gas mask, etc. (Photo 5). Firstly,
they were painted with white primer and then with
very diluted colours.
Back to the interior painting, and Tamiya X-22
clear was airbrushed over the painted
areas. It protects acrylic paints from a
chemical reaction during the weathering
process with oils and enamels and will

www.militarymodelling.com 83
AFV

6 The interior is nearly finished


but still needs a few more
details painting. It is time to get
started with the exterior painting. As
I already made one model for this special
issue of Military Modelling with one of my
favourite before painting techniques, I wanted
to do something little bit different. The Black and
White technique has become one of my favourites
lately. The model is cast in a grey coloured plastic
so I airbrushed on white primer as a base for the
next steps. Now, weve all heard of the wheel
of colours? A colour wheel or colour circle is an
abstract illustrative organization of colour hues
around a circle which shows the relationships
also help to blend these effects between primary, secondary and tertiary colours etc.
(Photo 6). Pin washing was the first As I have planned to paint this tank as if it saw action
technique used to highlight the details. I used in North African campaign, the Base colour will be
a wash of Ammo by Mig Africa Korps, a dark Braun (German sand), therefore the relationship for
brown shade and put it around the details I this colour is the shades of blue and purple. I started
wanted to highlight (Photo 7). After a coffee with mix of blue and purple (Photo 11) and then
break, when the wash had dried a little, I started I made a mix with blue, purple and white; a very
blending it and removing any excess (Photo 8). light and thinned mix and I airbrushed it over the
In the next step, I used Oilbrushers from Ammo previous blue/purple mix (Photo 12). To make a fine
by Mig. These paints are like artist oils but are reduction between colours, I made another very thin
easier to use because of the supplied brush and mix of Ammo by Mig Cold Gray and, with thinner,
specifically designed bottle. I put on a Buff shade airbrushed it over the model (Photo 13). I left it to dry
straight from the bottle onto the parts where I for one day before I started with the camouflage.
wanted to achieve a dusting effect (Photo 9). As I mentioned before, I chose to paint this
Then, using enamel thinner and a fine brush, I model like it was in service in the North African
started blending (Photo 10). campaign. For the base colour, I chose Braun

7 8

9 10

84 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


AFV

11 12

13

from Scale75. I made a light mix (50%-50%


colour-thinner) and airbrushed a few light layers.
This transparent mix allowed me to add a few
layers of paint, until I was satisfied with the result.
Then I used a Vallejo Dark Khaki Green wash and
airbrushed it only on the darker areas. This wash is
transparent but will give a nice filter to the darker 14
parts (Photo 14).
After the colours have dried, it is time to protect
the surface for weathering and to make a nice layer
for the decals. A coat of Tamiya X-22 Clear was
airbrushed over the model and, when it had dried,
the decals were added. I used Vallejo medium
and fixer for the decals (Photo 15).
Again, a pin wash, but this time on
exterior details and then, with enamel
thinner, I blended it in. All details are
visible and the model is coming alive.
Chipping effects are one of my favourite things
when made with a sponge technique and with a
small thin brush. First, I made scratches with Buff 15
acrylic colour and then Panzer Grey was used to
simulate deeper damage on the vehicle. Chipping
is added on the places where it is expected to
be seen; as a result of damage, scratches, crew
use, battle damage etc.
Again, a light mix of Vallejo
washes (Dark Khaki Green and Dark
Brown) was airbrushed over some
parts on the model, to achieve
more dramatic look.
Streaking grime for D.A.K. was
used for the sides, the front and all
slanted parts. I randomly sized the painted
lines with a small brush from top to bottom.

www.militarymodelling.com 85
AFV

16 17

18 19

20 21

Then, using a fine brush and thinner, I blended them, digging deep trenches. The same technique was
repeating the previous moves, from top to bottom. used in the Africa campaign too. I made a base
Vehicles that were/are serving in deserts are not from Styrofoam and positioned it in front of the
just covered with dust and sand. Many photographs trench (Photo 16). Vallejo Sand Paste was put
show that, in some cases, they are covered in over the Styrofoam. I made little sand dunes
heavy mud on lower parts too, where the tracks with a modelling tool and added some rocks
are. For my model I planned a light texturing effect and fuel barrels. Wire holders were homemade.
of dry earth/sand/mud, so I used a Dry Steppe Then I airbrushed almost the whole scene with
splashing effect from Ammo by Mig and thinned it a a Dark Brown colour (Photo 17). Dark Yellow
little with enamel thinner. I only put it on the lower was airbrushed over it; I left some parts darker,
parts, near the road wheels. to keep the contrast (Photo 18). A Sand colour
Building this model and searching for references for the highlights was the final shade for the
on the net, I found a lot of inspiring photos for day (Photo 19). On this picture you can see
a diorama. One of the most common ways to the reaction that happens between light and
stop enemy advancing tanks and vehicles was dark shades of colours if you don`t wait for long

86 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


AFV

enough between layers. So, after 24 hours, I put a mixture of Light Dust
made another layer of Sand and achieved a much pigment and African sand
lighter effect (Photo 20). At the same time, I made pigment and worked them in
track traces, made filtering with a Green colour on with a fine old brush. The model is
the fuel barrels and painted the rocks. The final step now finished the same as the diorama.
for the diorama was putting a mixture of Sand, Mud Extra equipment is from Value Gear Details
and Dust pigment on it, to get a more authentic and which gave nice detail to the model. The
realistic desert effect (Photo 21). scene without figures can hardly tell the
The diorama is ready for the model, but the story so I have combined an Alpine figure 22
Bison needs a few more final touches. The first of with Doug`s Original figures from Afrika
them involved playing with oils. The same artist, Korps (Photo 22). They were painted using
Oilbrusher Buff was put on the places where I have Scale75 colours, which gave them nice
planned this effect. It is then blended with enamel shades and a matt finish.
thinner, the same as I did for the interior which Big thanks to Hobby Easy for providing
gave a dusty effect. For a more authentic effect, I this model.

www.militarymodelling.com 87
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TM01025 Russian 9P113 Rocket System (FROG-7) ......79.99
DN6847 PZ BEF WG V PANTHER AUSF G .......................53.95
TM05580 Soviet MT-LB 6MB w/Turret .........................59.99
DN6815 VOLLKETTENAUFKLAERER 38 ..........................53.95
DN6718 SD.KFZ.252 LEICHTE GEPANZERTE ..................49.99 TRUMPETER 1/16 SCALE
TM00924 Russian T-72B MBT....................................149.99
RODEN MODELS 1/35 SCALE
ROD810 Opel Blitz Omnibus W39 Stabswagen .............39.99
THUNDER MODELS 1/35 SCALE >>New Address<
THU35002 US Army Loader (bulldozer) ......................27.99 <
AFV CLUB 1/35 SCALE Bison/SStar D
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AF35249 M60A3 Patton Tank......................................49.99 & Black Dog Resin
MENG MODELS 1/35 SCALE NOW IN STOCK!
MMTS031 King Tiger Sd.Kfz.182 (Henschel Turret) ......32.99 ring for details

ICM MODELS 1/35 SCALE


ICM35694 WW1 US Medical Personnel ..........................8.50 POST & PACKING U.K. 3.00
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l The finest tank in the world


ICM, 1/35 T-34/76

l Bayonets at
Hougoumont
Private Centre Company
Coldstream Guards, 1815

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Concrete, brick and wood

l Fordin the water! l The Hunting Panther


Ford Truck, Amphibian, GPA, ton, 4x4 Dragon, 1/35 Sd.Kfz 173 Jagdpanther

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Contents may be subject to change.

96 Military Modelling Vol.47 No.4 2017


WW2 WESTERN DESERT
Perry Miniatures produce a large range of 28mm metal and hard
plastic figures for the Western Desert.

We also makeake 1/56th scale


resin and metal vehicles
to match them
hem and sell
Blitzkrieg
Miniatures
line of resin
n
20 20 AFV's
V's
SdKfz 250/1
Desert Rats Afrikakorps, German Code: GWW 6

1940-43 Infantry 1941-43


38 Hard Plastic multipose 38 Hard Plastic multipose figures.
British or Commonwealth The box contains enough figures for a
infantry for the desert war. platoon or Zug plus command. There is
There are enoughh to a choice of head gear (steel helmets,
make a platoon of 3 tropical cork helmets or field The Mk1 Universal Carrier
Code: WW4
sections plus caps) and arm positions and
an HQ section. weapons including MG 34's, Figures
F from plastic sets
Code: WW1 anti-tank rifles, 50 mm mortars,
rs, WW1
W and GWW2

MP 40's, Kar 98's, etc.


Code: GWW1 www.perry-miniatures.com
M R S
O
NEW
OKS
BOTThe
he Ashantee
Ash Medal 1873-74
to the Royal Navy and Royal Marines
155mm x 234mm, case bound with colour jacket, 604 pages,
numerous black and white illustrations, and colour plates,
Price 20 to members (restricted to one copy each) and
25 to non-members, plus post and packing (UK - 4.40,
Europe - 11.40, rest of the world - 20.40)
Surgeons of the Royal Navy in the First World War
155mm x 234mm, case bound with colour jacket, 772 pages,
numerous black and white illustrations, and colour plates,
Price 25 to members (restricted to one copy each) and 30
to non-members, plus post and packing (UK - 4.40, Europe
- 11.40, rest of the world - 20.40)
To order any of these limited editions contact the General
Web: www.chestermodelcentre.com
Secretary at generalsecretary@omrs.org or by post to:
Email: shop@chestermodelcentre.com PO Box 6195, Royal Leamington Spa, Warwickshire,
Tel: 01244 400930 CV31 9JU, United Kingdom. Members and non-members
OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK
may also order and pay using credit and debit cards via the
Society website: www.omrs.org

BRAND NEW
Set of resin wheels for kits in 1/35 scale.
Our wheels are designed with use of original measurements and pictures. The
original casting method leaves only a tiny trace of casting plug (around 1 mm
wide).
The set contains 14 complete wheels, a spare wheel, a drill and a QuickWheel
painting mask.
FEATURES LIST:
- corrected shape of the steel wheel by adding the grooves inside the rims
- corrected depth of the steel wheel (please note how shallow are the ones
in plastic kits and how deep are the wheels actually on pictures of real
tanks)
- corrected shape and size of the bolts
- added optional stripe in the middle of wheels rubber bandage to imitate
the residue of rubber from vulcanization process, which can be easily
sanded off if not required.
- corrected height and width of the middle hub of the wheel
- added the grease nipples on the middle hub cap and its side (early place
ment and shape)
BK-062 M48 Early pattern wheels + Spare (for Revell & other manfuacturers - added markings on the rubbers
kits). QuickWheel mask included.

www.quickwheelstore.com

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