Easter Adventure with Soldiers in Silloth - Museum of 54 mm Magic

Easter holiday fun! The good people of Silloth obviously have some RAF (or Coastal Command) as shown by this Lockheed Hudson ornamented flower bed (see below): 

They also had an interesting museum, whose opening times posed a little bit of a challenge but I managed to get in to see their wears on Good Friday (see below):

Waterloo in 54mm looked spectacular - although I am currently assembling some 28mm Perry's and Victrix chaps whom I consider big (see below, I have to say it "worked" for me, maybe Sharp Practice 2 beckons):

The ACW was more the toy soldiers I remembered as a kid, but not this many (see below, not too sure what the Union gunners are doing at the bottom of the photograph):

These Franco=Prussian "Flats" were the closest is cam to seeing 'wargamers scale' (unless you have become infected by Tim Gow's dangerous past-tines - and don't tell him I have a couple of 54mm Tamiya WWI Tommies partly painted). You have to 'look twice' before you see they are not 3D - or catch them from the side (see below):

The Western Desert looked potentially doable for Chain of Command - but you would need a very large table (see below, I love the Matilda II and Grant - though off camera to the left is a **mm Flak Gun which may well spoil their day): 

To my delight (not so the wife) they had a "rake-out" selling odds and sods. So I picked myself up some very old Practical Wargamer magazines (see below, I was more RPG'ing as an undergrad in those days so missed this magazine the first time round):

I have to say they were all crammed (literally tightly packed type-face) full of interesting stuff. Perhaps my tastes are now wiser or the content in the modern mags is more focused on plenty of photogenic materials and historical detail light (or am I being cynical?). Nice catch methinks.

Matilda 10: RTR HQ Vehicle

The three fighting squadrons have been filled, so time to appoint a RHQ Troop (one vehicle representing 3-5 tanks on CD III rules). Again the classic Airfix model kit is used, however the command tank is given two figures (see below, note the "Monty" figure from an old Matchbox M3 Honey kit and the helmeted observer with binoculars from the Airfix Bofors kit):

All I need now is the specialist CS Troop (aka one tank in Command Decision  II/III terms) to be under the direct control of the RHQ for the "opposition" to be considered.

Western Desert Matilda RTR 1941 (WIP)

All nine Matilda tanks and two Humber A/C's gathered together (see below)

Plenty of painting action to come, but still two short of the tally ;)

Matilda No.9

Waltzing Matilda No.9 has been put together (see below):

As per the hysteria of pre-WWI Dreadnought building competitions "We want ten!" (Psst, actually eleven for the Western Desert if truth be told, two for Russia and another two more for the Pacific in 2015, before Airfix stops selling the kit).

Command Decision: Western Desert OoB: 
I have three companies of three, so therefore by my reckoning I need a Regimental HQ Tank plus a modified Matilda II Close Support (CS) platoon tank!

AWI/FIW Painting Progress

The Perry British Infantry (AWI/FIW) are now all assembled, in a deeper project tin to accommodate the raised rifles (see below, Foxes biscuits if anybody was interested):

The final total in their "type" groupings:

Triangular Hat:

• 12 Line Infantry
• 1 Standard Bearer
• 1 Officer
• 1 Casualty

Cocked Hat:

• 12 Line Infantry
• 1 Standard Bearer
• 1 Officer
• 1 Casualty

Forage Cap:

• 6 Light Infantry
• 1 Sergeant

Mitre Hat:

• 1 Drummer

The Plan: 

Thirty seven of these figures stay in the 'new' Project Tin (the 'old' Project Tin now being full of spare parts and spare colour reference sheets) and go away into the loft (out of site out of mind of my wife). "British Bob" (see below) has been selected to get the full painting treatment as per the Wargames Soldiers and Strategy You Tube video. 

So "British Bob" goes into the current WIP Project Tin, alongside a 1/76 WWII Airfix British Matilda II tank.

Next: Out with the Airfix Primer Paint

Airfix Matilda II RTR: Count Reaches "Eight"

Progress to date: 

The "fighting elements" of a RTR (as per Command Decision 1940/41 OoB), two Humber A/C plus the Matilda II Squadrons and HQ

Still looks a tad "under strength" to me, missing a full Matilda II Squadron, three more tanks needed, or a HQ and three reduced Matilda II Squadrons, take your pick ;)

The Matilda IIs will only come alive when I put on their distinction Western Desert Camouflage Scheme on (aka the fetching Caunter Scheme).

First Models of the New Year - 20mm WWII Airfix Matilda

The Western Desert calls in 2015, so I want to expand the Matilda Squadron of three into a full (Command Decision III) Battalion/Regiment 1940/41, so the festive period saw me put together theses little old favourites from Airfix (see below):

A good start to the New Year's resolutions. This brings my Matilda II (Western Desert) count to eight. I reckon I need another three, one of which I will have to convert to a Matilda II CS (with a three inch howitzer - nicked from the spares pile from the Hasagawa Churchill I/II kits I have previously made).

Note I: Other Matilda II (Airfix) 'modelling' variants or should I say possibilities include the cool "Lease Lend" Russian Matilda (in a winter camouflage scheme), an Australian standard 2 pounder variant and finally the Australian Frog flamethrower tank (seeing as I already have a Matilda Hedgehog).

Note II: I intend to use my Esci Matilda II tank as a BEF version (to go with my two metal Skytrex Matilda I's I have), making a small plastic card "Vickers" mantle.

Note III: The Matilda Scorpion seems too advanced a project for me at the moment (too much fuss making the chain arms) , the Matilda CDL (Canal Defense Light) being too "wacky" for the wargames table (also contravening the Geneva Convention on indiscriminate optical weapons).