Tank Destroyer!

Just eye candy for this post, no history. I finally got the crew for my Rubicon M36. Painted them and fit them in the turret.

Achtung, Aufklarungs!

Back to tanks... no to armoured vehicles, it is not a tank, it has no turret, and it is not even completely tracked. But I am sure the CNN or the RAI, or even some of my colleagues would call it a tank nevertheless...

So today we have a 1/56 (28mm) Rubicon Models SDKFZ 250/1 Neu.  The 250/1 was one of the ubiquitous halftrack designed and produced by the Third Reich to cover an infinity of roles. Halftracks are a cool (nice to look at in model form) and seducing concept (cheaper than full tracked, better than wheeled vehicles off road) that... never lived to their promise. Basically because the bulk of halftrack ended up being based on civilian truck chassis and engines they often were largely under-powered, and the off road maneuverability was not that improved. Okay, better than civilian truck in mud, but not that good. It was a concept largely discarded after the end of the war.  The 250 was a sort of smaller cousin to the 251. The 250 was based on the Sdfkz 10 light artillery tractor. It was developed in 1939 to answer a request from the army for a light APC to carry an half squad, usually in reconnaissance units. The same army's request involved two other similar vehicles, all based on the 10 chassis, an ammunition carrier and a forward observer vehicle.  The 250 was quickly designed and production started in 1940. Around 7,500 Sdkfz 250 of various mark were produced until the end of the war. It was not a successful vehicles, despite the numbers. The interior was cramped, and its off road ability was limited, more limited than the larger 251. It was also expensive to produce so a new armored superstructure was introduced in 1943, the Neu version I have built, with the more boxy shape. You can see some 'alte' models in 15mm in previous posts. Alte and Neu soldiered on on almost every front Germany fought, despite their shortcomings. They were adapted to countless roles too. Usually the APCs, the /1 version, were found in reconnaissance units, yet some panzergrenadier abteilungen replaced their 251 with them (on 2 250 per each 251 basis, due to the smaller transport capacity). 

Despite its limitation in real life, it is an iconic model, and indispensable asset in reconnaissance (aufklarung) units, and a nice looking little vehicle. 

I bought the kit  from Will at PSC in person sometime ago, built last year and painted quite recently. Yes sometime I have a disconnection between building 28mm kits and painting them. Building an painting queues are separate things here. Do not ask why... just assume there are deep reasons for it (there are!).  Done with the ramblings, back to the kit. As a matter of information Rubicon has both the alte and neu base versions, and accessory bos to produce several variants. At the moment you can buy:

250 alte box (/1 and Sdkfz 253 forward observer vehicle)

250 neu box (with crew, the crew fits in the alte too)

250/11 (anti-tank rifle) conversion for the Alte kit

240/9 (20mm gun in turret) for alte or neu

250/7 (mortar) conversion for alte or neu

250/3 (radio, Rommel's Greif to make it clear!) for alte or neu

Quite an impressive array!

It is a really nice little model with plenty of details, including interior details that will pretty much be invisible. It comes with a driver and two crews. I confess the crew is the reason why I opted for the Neu rather than the alte. I am planning to get at least one /9 but it will be an alte, I cannot really stand the 250/9 neu's look! The building was pretty much straightforward with very good instructions. I did not paint the interior before, despite what the instructions suggest. Why? If I cannot paint it when it is done... 99% no one will see it anyway, I am lazy!

For the final livery (and the uniforms of the crew) I ended up with a late war scheme and SS camo, it will be part of an SS force (I know I hate these guys, but the camo is cool to paint, and they are useful for several scenarios) based on the KG Knittel during the battle of the Bulge. An appropriate opponent for my winter/fall US troops. 

It has the usual base of dunkelgelb (my own recipe: base of vallejo middlestone, wash with dark brown, then drybrush of iraqi sand) and splinter stripes in brown, in this case vallejo chocolate brown.  I apply the camo before the wash and the drybrush. One of the Rubicon heads had been replaced by a warlord helmeted one, I wanted both crew in helmet. Decals are Rubicon and included in the box.

US Army reinforced platoon

Well,

Another long absence from the net… or at least my blog. And in the interval, I have slaved myself painting… and taking my usual bad pictures (almost crappy I would say, I need to improve, not even a good camera will save me).

But let’s post something just to keep my projects moving.  28mm today, and… I completed a project. US Army late 1944 early 1945. It is done. No more stuff to paint at home! Yes it sounds incredible (and I am thinking maybe I can buy something new, obviously…). But everything I bought is not built and painted.

It is the result of several years of works, in two countries! It is also a combination of different manufacturers. The first figures are original Bolt Action bought straight from Paul Hicks in person, at Dadi.com more than 10 years ago...  supplemented by Artizan Designs, Empress (sculpted again by the talented Paul Hicks), and some more recent BA miniatures from Warlord (the 57mm ATG). Vehicles are Hobby Boss, original Bolt Action, current Bolt Action and Rubicon. Some of them have already appeared in the blog but lets go to see the details.

The core of the Force is a full strength infantry platoon, with Platoon Command, 3 squads, and some supports.

Platoon Command with Bazooka team.

The Infantry Squads, you can see different style of basing. In the past, before having access to plastic and MDF round bases I was doing square bases b myself with 2mm plasticard and then magnetizing them. I decided to do the whole force in this style.

Again the infantry

Static antitank support in the form of a Warlord 57mm ATG (US license built british 6pdr). The crew is in winter uniform. The sculpts are not exceptional, but they work.

The platoon is also suppoerted by a MMG squad (yes the .30 cal was designated LMG but it was in the weight class of MMG and it was belt fed).

You can also see the leftover after years of cllecting... start of a 2nd platoon? arrrghhh....

you can also see General Patton (original BA) inspecting the platoon while standing in a M3A1 HT and an additional Bazooka team and a sniper team.

Then we move to the 'heavy metal'

Two Hobby Boss Shermans (M4A3 with 75mm and 76mm, both 1/48 plastic), a Rubicon M4A3E8 (1/56) a Rubicon M36, an M8  Greyhound Armoured Car, and M8 Scott HMC  and a M5A1 Stuart.  The Scott would really befit from having crew, like the M36 Jackson.  Now some comments on mixing scales. I do not think it is a problem, usually, but sometime can be. The eagle eyes will see the difference between the M4A3(76)W and the M4A3E8 very quickly.  The M8 Kit could have been built as an M-20 or an M-8. I have seen people on other blog trying to make both version at once. considering the excellent Rubicon model has different interior for the two versions (as in reality), the 'plug in' idea is frankly rubbish. 

BA (original)  M3A1 Halftrack, Resin 1/56, preceding two Warlord Plastic Tank Destroyer, the M10 and the M18 (both Italeri products, both bough in UK... considering Calderara is not too far from my Italian Home...). I have no preference between the Italeri/WG and the Rubicon kits. Both now are extremely good. Sometime one is better than the other as in the case of the M8, the Rubicon Greyhound is much better. I really enjoy building them. A big advantage off the Italeri TD is the fact that thye have crew included.

Oh well end of post! I hope you like it.

some new additions...

Oh well,

Almost one year of absence from the blog… anyway it is time to start posting again. Exams are almost done, and summer is coming with a lot of other things… including warm weather so I can undercoat outside… how I miss home with the cellar where I can spray even in winter…

Anyway let’s see what I have photographed in the past few months…

Today we have 28mm, US military… vehicles… a Warlord/Italeri (do you know Calderara di Reno is not too far away from my home?) M-10 Tank destroyer. I would say it is a really good model, I really like the fact that crew was included, both US (you can see them in the picture) and UK (now sitting inside a Rubicon Achilles in my office…

The next 'treat'  is a Rubicon M5 Late. Again excellent kit. I have also an M8 Scott GMC, an M36 Tank Destroyer and an M8 Armoured Car built and painted, but I had forgot my camera when I was at home for Easter and worked on them… so no pictures!!!! I have also just built an M4A3E8 from Rubicon. I have to say that, overall, I am impressed with the current quality of the Rubicon kits. They started quite bad, I have their Panzer III (one of the first models) and I was not impressed. Then the M10/M36 kit was quite nice and the various iterations of the M5 hull persuaded me. The Sherman is impressive.  Right now I am quite happy with the direction they are heading, also the inclusion of some crew figures in the M4 was nice, even if they are just simple pop ups from the hatches… but let’s be frank. I know we fancy nice crewmen, but in action you just stick your head out, not the whole body. In the Rubicon forum someone boldly stated (I hate bold statements that encompass the whole world), that everyone will replace them with the US Tank crew Rubicon is supposed to release shortly, but I am quite happy with the current ones. It is a wargame tank, and it is supposed to be in action, not just guarding the corners of a square with a relaxing crew (yes, I am thinking of the panzer-idiot, the man that lost a tiger company at Villers Bocage… and it is always represented in 28mm happily sitting on his tank gun…). Anyway enjoy the pictures and do not bother too much about my ramblings…

One of the great things of Rubicon kits the the multitude of different options you can exploit; of course, in perfect modeler fashion, you need to select only one, but certainly there is a good range of possible version for each kit. Both vehicles are painted for North Western Europe 1944-45, my focus is the autumn-winter campaigns  in France, Belgium, and Germany.