Early-War German Vehicles Part 1
Our Editor, Guy, has a habit of reminding me to finish projects. Now he's quite right of course, and occasionally even manages to do this himself(!) but in the meantime I thought I might drag another project from storage: my 1/56 early-war German vehicles.
The plan is to finish my five remaining early-war vehicles (five-and-a-half? - see below) by midway through the month: 16th June. Seeing as they're all at least base-coated, and I don't plan on doing intricate schemes, this should be achievable; luckily, a change in my working patterns means that I now have slightly more hobby time in the evening.
Here's the first, and probably the prettiest of the bunch - a Rubicon Models Sd.Kfz.222 (and yes, I know there's a hole in the front-left mudguard - to be fixed!):
Next we have Warlord Games' Kradschutzen motorcycle combination, which is a surprisingly pleasing little kit (although awkward to work out with no assembly instructions provided!). It's based on a ferrous washer for magnetic storage/transport, as are all of my German infantry - in this case, 40mm:
This miniature - clunky and awkward as it is - is one of my favourites: it's from Company B miniatures, and is a Kfz.13 'Adler' Armoured Car (more emphasis on the 'car', I think, than on the 'armoured'!). I got a bunch of Company B models in a great sale a few years ago, and sadly the casting on this particular mini was a bit rough: the resin wheel axles(!) broke readily and the MG34 pedestal seemed both miscast and weak...BUT I have prevailed and improvised. The bent paperclip you can see will support a plastic replacement MG34, and for extra solidity I'll be basing the model too.
Also from Company B, we have the Horch heavy transport in the light artillery tow role (Kfz.70). For some reason (probably sale-related) mine came without the canopy, but even though it currently looks rather spartan, the officer passenger is a lovely little miniature in a deliciously effete pose! There are s few more metal pieces to attach than you can see in this image.:
Finally, we have the inevitable classic, the Sd.Kfz.251 Hanomag. Now it's here that some of my readers will be yelling at their screens that it's the wrong model. Quite right, but please allow me to explain! This is the Warlord Games Sd.Kfz.251/1 Ausf. C kit, which is too late a model to be readily called 'early-war', and it's certainly too late to be seen in the company of vehicles like the 'Adler' above... BUT this is a discounted purchase from a time in my past when I had almost no hobby funds and less of a clue what I was doing. Now I've brought it out of stowage with its grey brethren, I shall be determinedly unashamed of my deployment of my 251 Ausf. C as a proxy for a 251 Ausf. B: I cannot in good conscience waste or even needlessly repurpose a miniature just on the off-chance that an opponent or bystander might mumble into their beard that it's the wrong mark of vehicle, and I'm lucky enough to have regular opponents who are generous and sporting.
You'll note that the Hanomag has also been remodelled and magnetised to take a 251/10 PaK36 "door knocker" gun for close support: the bun, gunners and benches all swap out to offer a gaming option for either 251/1 or 251/10. Again, this was an experiment at the time.
Well, here's the gang all together - looking absolutely terrible! - and below that are a couple of snaps of my recently finished Panzer 38(t) Zug so you can see what I'm aiming for...
(Over-exposed photos notwithstanding, these models - which are an absolute delight to build - are also from Warlord Games.)
That's the plan, then: to get this lot smartly painted and then grubbily weathered all in a fortnight...and I know it'll take me an entire session just to paint the tyres! Let's hope the painting gods are feeling generous, eh?
