1:72 Pegasus Hobbies - Pz 38(t)

Two in a box is a very appealing selling point for the wargamer. Two Pz 38(t)'s would also nicely flesh out and complete my early WWII Panzer Battalion (as per Command Decision OrBat). Small little things with a few parts (so it is not an exercise in fiddly modelling, gets the thumbs up from me - especially teh all in one track. One small 'ouch' moment though, in fitting the track to body of the tank there is a sharp "snap" from the track, as it broke cleanly in two. Something had to give as the track was warped in a concave fashion and had to be bent back to fit correctly. Thankfully the resulting small gap was easily bridged with "a small slither of plastic-card" (see below, in its "gap state", construction was therefore a little more exciting than I wanted as this happened four times, once for each side of track):  

Despite that it was a very nice quick build but with a detailed model (see below, the first one finished - commanders cover chosen to be open): 

Two tanks completed, turret hatches open awaiting "commanders" - with a small fleck of white denoting the plastic-card track repair (see below, once the first tank was done, then the second one was much faster): 

Searching around in the spares box for some German Commanders and I found two Plastic Soldier Company (PSC) ones that looked early war(ish) and they were shaved/sculpted to fit into the turret, which meant "breaking arms - the reangling then", sounds much more complicated and brutal than it actually was. It amounted taking a small triangular wedge out of one part of the arm/shoulder and then adding it to another part): 

Undercoating and painting next (tbc when though). At least the "to be assembled pile" is one box smaller.

US Artillery and AT Guns WWII (Part 1)

I was recently looking at my old favuorite Command Decision and the WWII US Infantry (1944) OoB, circa the Battle of the Bulge, to see what 1/72 scale hobby "bits and bobs" I was missing. For the infantry and vehicle types I was pleasantly surprised to see I had them rather well covered but for AT and artillery there were a few "gaps". The US Battalion 57mm AT Gun was a simple conversion project from the stalwart Airfix British six pounder (although I did need four of them for the complete RCT). The heavier three inch cousin, converted AA gun to AT gun was another matter though, but an internet search eventually came up with a stockist of an ACE model kit (see below, sadly they are currently out of production so it was a one off tad pricey purchase - but it is all done now): 

The US artillery was a cheeky, cheap by comparison purchase of 105mm standard US Howitzer (also suitable for post WWII conflicts like Indo-China) from Grubby Tanks and their Britannia Miniatures stocked range (see below, I got two but really on reflection want three for the battalion so I know I will have to "go back" to them - and while there also get some more of their nice US Art Crew): 

Coincidently like all good wargames when I had been to a local DIY superstore for a "bathroom project" - I was also on the lookout for "potential wargame materials" (as well as a bathroom sealant remover). I passed an artificial lawn section where they selling off "cheap" small patches. What is not to like?. Could they be of use? (see below, I think there is potential): 

This was Part One of my WWII US RCT OoB scan, more to follow - such as the "cannon company" gun!

Benghazi Handicap - Command Decision - WWII North Africa Campaign Source Book [Including Command Decision Scenarios]

Sigh. I finally caught this one. Whenever I had looked for it before, it had eluded me - so when I saw a copy of it at Cavalier Books, I jumped at the chance (see below, Frank Chadwick's masterpiece on the early part the Western Desert War): 

This is my designated playground for 10mm play ground for Pendrakon miniatures, although I do have my old Airfix, Matchbox, PSC, Italeri/Esci collections of 20mm toys that can be used too. I am a sucker for the clanky tank era and this theatre of operation was full of them (usually in a state of burning).

Yes, Command Decision is back onside for me! In truth I never felt it had really left ;) 

Command Decision IV - Test of Battle (To Be or Not To Be the ONE? That is the question!). First looking back at CD1.

For some thirty years I have been searching the hobby game stores for THE WWII "land war rule set" that will be the saviour, or rather my excuse for, buying my 20mm (and 1/200) wargaming collections (now 15mm, 10mm and 6mm need also to be included). Like a little lost soul seeking love and attention I yearn for the "perfect enough" set of rules to make me happy. In this quest "Command Decision I, II, III and finally IV (Test of Battle)" have been acquired - as has been the likes of Spearhead and Crossfire. Alas the bonfire does not burn as well as I expected - although I always thought Command Decision was almost right and crossing the Rubicon (its morale and its orders for command decisions, hence the name). Nevertheless the 20mm collection grows steadily bigger with each passing year, but few games have really been played on the sacred table top (see below, what the collective from Board Game Geek thought of CD1):  

Piquing my interest in WW2 land war recently were these posts: 

• https://sgtsteiner.blogspot.com/2023/04/test-of-battle-lindern-1944-scenario.html
• https://sgtsteiner.blogspot.com/2023/04/test-of-battle-test-game.html

Has Sgt Steiner succeeded where I have failed for all these years? In fairness teh games get rated better with each edition (see below, V2, V3 and V4 ratings - so Frank Chadwick must have been onto something I think): 

For my own consumption I revisited the large stack of Command Decision boxes I have, containing therein the sacred rules and decided to do a play-test, actually going back to CD 1 (fondly remembering the day I discovered it lurking on the shelves of the Aberdeen Virgin Store, in the Games Section alongside boxes of Computer Games, thinking "now this looks interesting", as I thought then and still think so now).  

So I took CD1 out for a stroll, to show two of my wargaming allies some 1941 Barbarossa action near Kiev. I chose a 3:1 odds battle of a Veteran German Motorised Battalion from a Panzer Division versus a Green Soviet Infantry Battalion defending a couple of hills in front of a town, a real slap in the face job, but "only" using the organic German and Russian battalion weaponry. A full strength German Panzer Grenadier Battalion is easy 3:1 in advantage over a weakened Soviet Infantry Battalion. I thought he morale extremes should make it a relatively quick battle, just to learn the rules again (I expected the Russian force to melt, as it did). Rather than player versus player, as it was a very static Russian defence (one command order) and an active German (our command orders) there was much more discussion about what the Germans could and could not do.

Most of the issues on the day really stemmed from the difference between reading the rules and getting the gist, then playing a game and finding the reference to the right rule quickly when simultaneously explaining it to two other wargamers (there were too many pauses but my friends were patient). The game (IMHO) played well though, the order system was very representative of the capabilities of WWII forces although it played slower than the accepted 1:1 timeline [game time v real battlefield time] in the Designers Notes (something which I always though should be quicker in CD .. later versions simplified mechanics and tried to streamline .. maybe just a case of familiarity). I think I still need to convince my compatriots though, one a die-hard convicted "Avalon Hill Panzer Blitz rules in miniatures is the way forward", the other likes to see a few examples before making his mind up. Which is all fair enough.

I smile though as I thought it worked and I will tell you why, because the German plan was worked through the CD1 Order System, not as an after thought. No such thing exists in Panzer Blitz and many other rule sets. Two dismounted (that is from trucks) German infantry companies went forward supported by their own "company organic but dropped off" MG Platoons and the well-sited MGs/Mtr of the Weapons Company which punished the Russian defenders. The armoured half-track company was kept in reserve. For simplicity I had the defender's positions already spotted (assuming the Panzer Recon and Veteran Infantry Patrol had doe their job well the night before). A quick full advance and a cautious cautious advance allowed the Germans to fire in the General Phase. This melted away the Russian defenders on the two hills, causing as expected an adverse morale effect for the third Russian company, in the town with battalion commander and a infantry weapon stand (they hunkered down - pinned). One German company however stalled with a bad morale roll (in fairness it took the brunt of the Russian fire). The German reserve was released by their battalion commander while the battered German company regrouped. With over whelming effective fire power the Germans reduced the defenders and their morale broke on turn four, the only survivor - the Russian indirect mortar platoon - decided discretion was the better part of valour and legged it. To me it had an authentic feel to it. Like anything after playing the rules once (especially after so many years) re-reading the rules again ironed out a few queries. Introducing spotting is the next key, as bumping into stuff you have not spotted and dropping indirect on stuff you have spotted is another tactical feature of the CD system I liked! 

PS1: Apologies for forgetting to take pictures of the battle!

PS2: Most significant features I had forgotten about was extreme range for infantry was double normal effective range - which makes life  little more dangerous. 

Some leftover Christmas trappings with Wargaming Potential?

You may see Xmas stars left over from the craft table waiting for next Christmas. But I see "Objective Markers" for the likes of Chain of Command or Command Decision? (see below, all they need is some paint - Red [Soviet or 'generic bad guys - aka the enemy'], Black [German], Green [US] and Blue [British or generic 'good guys' - aka friendlies]): 

Meanwhile .. er, some more Xmas "tat" leftover from a trip over to see The Works, a bargain semi-craft shop. I see a "Road to Moscow" diorama in 15mm (see below, I must confess I did have this alterative notion in mind at time of purchase, but I put it under Xmas cake decoration to get through security): 

Waste not want not! Remembering also that someone's efficient recycling is another person's clutter.

Can anybody answer this strange Troop Type/OrBat Question from Command Decision?

I have recently been 'reinvigorating' my interest in my loft bound 20mm WWII collection, dwelling on the shame of knowing that I have a lot of 20mm kit without without a corresponding large number of battles under my belt. Wargaming "shame". This is something I need to address. Perhaps it is my choice of rules that is at the heart of the problem. I started my collection long before my Chain of Command skirmish interest when Command Decision was my bible (in the early 1990's it was CD I and CD II fresh off the press, post 2000, I picked up CD III with good intentions to do something with it, then quite recently, ahem as in couple of years [pre-Covid] I got a copy of CD IV 'Test of Battle' - for shall we say completeness sake). One of the troubles in getting tabletop is the [relative] 'considerable' amount of kit required for Regiment and Battalion OrBats in 20mm (let along thinking of doing a spectaular Divisional Battle - for which I would now opt for 1:200 [early war] and 1:300 [later war] figures, but then Spearhead is also an alternative rule contender). It is the wargaming butterfly syndrome in me and slow meticulous painter (rather than a ruthless "good enough for a tabletop game" finisher), combined with the terrible "lofty goals" and "ambition" (Arnhem - really?)). The paradox: I am both happy and unhappy at always being an "unfinished WIP". Life is somebody else's problem, it is the journey not the destination that counts.

So, the good news. I have been making progress and creating "battalion boxes" of 20mm formations. Starting with early WWII Eastern Front (1941-42) organisations. The basic idea is to get a German  armoured battalion and motorised infantry battalion together, then field it with some support companies to play against a (depleted) static Russian infantry regiment [three battalions and RHQ], with perhaps some scraped together support assets. It is also a way of avoiding "bundles of tanks and figures" rolling around in shoe and foolscap boxes in the loft, with the inevitable series of broken and missing plastic parts (see below, a German 1941 Motorised Infantry Battalion from a Panzer Division; multiple manufacturers [old and new] and various 'true' scales but all around 20mm [20mm, 1/72, 1/76, HO/OO] which is good enough for me - in this Amazon age we seem to be blessed with lots of suitably sized boxes):   

Now came a bit of a puzzle, a conundrum so to speak. As well as attaching in companies (such as armoured cars, motorcycles and tanks) from other battalions I wanted to also attach down stand to attach from higher level command levels, such as Regiment and Brigade. As it should be. That allows attachment of things such as the dreaded 15cm Infantry Guns and "the like". "The like" being an issue, as all manner of odds and sods exist in the Command Decision multi-verse (from USMC Raiders, Porter Stands, to Japanese National Service Militia Stands), which is great because they are mentioned in the rules as 'specials', or at least appear in Equipment Data Charts under Personnel, showing a "movement" or in the "Small Arms Fire" table with a combat value. To this end when I consulted the Frank Chadwick, Armies of World War II, Volume 1 (note, there never was a volume II) for early those Barbarossa units I was after, I was happy until I reached the German 1941-42 Motorised Infantry Regiments "level" in the Panzer and Motorised Infantry Divisions. 1941-1942. It appears there was a magical musical moment in the German Army in 1941-42? Not before, (1939-1940) and not after (1943-45), does this mystical "band stand" (get it?) appear (see below, perhaps it was a Germanic marching meme of the time? In total there are "three bands" in this Panzer Division OrBat, one playing for the panzers and two playing for the infantry - highlighted purple on the page. Quite a social itinery): 

So what is this "band" stand (that joke is wearing thin after the telling)? It comes along with a light truck as transport so its "motorised". I am puzzled, as I cannot "see it" in the rules. Without any additional mention that I can find, I am going to put it down as a simple "Veteran Infantry Stand" that is RHQ close protection (as it is not in italics which denotes rear echelon elements, so it is a 'fighting' element). If anybody has any other thoughts please let me know, otherwise I may have sleepless nights! I did consider a formation morale point loss if it was eliminated, but as it stands it can just beef up element count by one! 

Note: I have found references to the German Band in CD I, CD II, CD III (and I am still looking in CD IV).

Further Update: These musical Germans were also found in ..

• German Infantry Division (1941-42)
• German Jager Division (1943-45) 
• German Mountain Troop Division (1941-45)

Back to my Tiger Tanks now!

Connections 2019 Fire/Move Components

In hindsight perhaps I should have showed this post first as this was in preparation for the 2019 Connection UK Fire-Move games. I decided to take the same terrain as I did for Connections UK 2016 when I first did Fire-Move, but upgrade the infantry models from Skytrex Action 200 to Pendrakon 10mm figures (see below, the basic British OoB for the game [as per the book], comprising of an infantry battalion, four companies [red, yellow, green, blue] of three infantry platoons, plus a Vickers HMG support platoon [white] and a 3" mortar platoon [top right hand corner, off-table left with basic flocking]): 

The similarity to a Spearhead or Command Decision order of battle (OoB) is somewhat striking (and reassuring) - so I now can field a British infantry battalion for those rulesets too, which is a bonus. These are also the playing pieces that can appear on table top - note the Vickers HMG can support all the other companies with direct fire, but once placed on the baseline cannot move other than to retire out of the game for good. The other thing to remember about the Vickers is a -1 DRM applies when danger close, as in a friendly unit is adjacent to an enemy unit it is firing at. The distinct colour banding is also to act as a aide memoir to help supporting direct fire and close assault respect the "same" company restriction (see below, I have also colour coded fire and assault markers [painted cocktail stick and coffee stirrers] for the combat phase, so a simple "same colour" visual check can be applied): 

The Germans can in theory operate in two modes, the common static defence position, as shown below with a colour coded company (as per the British because the same fire restrictions apply to the Germans)  and a crude "barbed wire" representation to their front (X-X-X). This slip of paper could be detached or folded under the figure base if it was moved in the course of the game (see below, a simple system that worked well in practice, although it is noted that the Germans hardly ever elected to move .. note in the London Exiles game, the only German movement was to move [retreat] off table): 

With that the game components were complete ready to "meet the players". Going back to reference the Spearhead and Command Decision rulesets again, in Fire-Move there is no reference to a Battalion Command Stand, so there is no limitation to the number of orders that could be given in a turn, either in the number of or distance from the battalion. Command Decision drops a level further down to Company Command Infantry stands [Nationalities like the Americans and German can actually elect to have a separate Company Command Stand]. One last difference is the provision of the Battalion Carrier Platoon, often used in a fighting Reece function or a very valuable Admin helper moving munitions and stores around, even evacuating casualties. That element is ignored for Fire-Move and assumed to be on "other duties".

What next ... 2022 fun things explored to date and those currently being explored

Well for a start .. in the spirit of mindfulness .. getting back into the habit of blogging a snippet ever day or so of wargame progress (not using the term "projects" anymore) and thoughts, I find really cathartic. AS a matter of fact I have already blogged more in Jan 2022 than in any month in 2021, so I think that is a good sign (see below, my friend from the 1990's past, I remember that box cover art, the classic menace of the Panther tank, all Sherman crew beware):

I am continuing to play Steel Panthers on my computer and I am finding the scenarios very interesting. My approach is to do them one by in numerical order, previously I jumped from small scenario to small scenario, but it looks like in doing so I missed out on some real gems.  To date sixteen done so far out of a catalogue of three hundred and forty four, [note the sixteen was including the eight training tutorials - which also exposed my "superficial click mouse button bait" style of play. Dumb game play at times but it seemed to be working, sort of. That was my naivety and just surface knowledge of some elements of the rule system. When you slow yourself down (less haste gleans more speed), rather than rushing through stuff as quick as you can, you find Steel Panthers is a very feature rich game (though heavy on the mouse clicks). 

Board game to miniature wise ...

I really want to play the Beda Fomm board game through to completion, but a slight Covid complication is delaying that at the moment (nothing too serious, touch wood). Then after we are all "board gamed-out" doing that - transfer to the table-top some small battalion-sized vignettes to be played under [Frank Chadwick's] Command Decision rules and compare the battles results - then perhaps replay them with some different rule (and compare them too)? That means a bit of a rush on some British early war tanks to be painted up for me (A9s, A10s,and A13s) plus some Morris ACs. (I also have to say that the more I learn of the battle the more unhistorical the Steel Panthers version of the scenario looks). There is an incoming Pendrakon order of 10mm tanks expected oh so soon!

Pep Talk to Self: Now be a good boy and crack on with the "Western Desert" stiff .. never you mid about any sort of calling of the "Warlord Epic Scale" of the ACW in your mind, or the immanent arrival of the Napoleonic range. 

Test of Battle Beda Fomm Scenario

The last revision of the Command Decision WWII wargame rules system was Command Decision: Test of Battle (see link below): 

https://testofbattle.com/upload/bob/Pimple_OB.htm

https://testofbattle.com/

https://testofbattle.com/phpBB2/index.php

The site itself does not seem to have been updated since 2011, however from here you can see the OrBats and scenario (see below, a screenshot of the British Order of Battle):

And the Italians too (see below, quite a few M13/40's required)

Command Decision formation morale values are shown (see below, not sure what game system WPD is referring to)

The aim for me is perhaps to do this in 10mm Pendrakon. It would be interesting to find out if CD: Test of Battle (or any other variant is still actively being played in the wargaming community). There does seem to be "some" activity on the linked CD:TOB forum. 

Talking about a "Matilda", but not the Roald Dahl one, even though it is Xmas!

The "Master of Leipzig" from Battleground 2019 placed a special request, to play some more Blitzkrieg France 1940 (Panzerblitz, Avalon Hill style) in early January 2020, with the BEF. To the spares box I went and found a covey Skytrex 1/200 Matilda I's and II's Battalion which beckons forth the Battle of Arras. A "Battalion of BEF infantry" and an "Infantry Tank Battalion" should suffice to represent "Frank Force". The only 'fly in t he ointment' being the Matilda I assembly process (see below, this tiny micro tank comes in 'four pieces' - out with the superglue):

The first company (Coy) of Matilda I's completed (see below, equivalent to the German Panzer I albeit much slower, armed with a single HMG - the redoubtable Vickers machine gun):

The 7th RTR had two companies of Matilda I's. Each model represents approximately 4-5 actual vehicles therefore the Company has three models [in the Arras battle 4th RTR had 35 Matilda I's and 7th RTR had twenty three Matilda I's and sixteen Matilda II's]. I have six Matilda I's and four Matilda II's tanks, along with two BEF Bren Carriers and a MkVI Light Tank to represent the 7th RTR (See below, that is thirteen models in total using Command Decision and Spearhead OoBs):

The three tanks of the heavy company (Matilda II's) are shown below, plus a fourth tank for the Battalion command tank (see below, the only issue I have with the metal models are the "Western Desert" external "extended range" fuel tank - I may have to "snip" them off):

The origins of this Order of Battle sates back to 1990 when I first started a rejuvenated interest into wargaming (a second birth) when I was living in Aberdeen, UK. I picked up Frank Chadwick's "Command Decision I" from Virgin Games on the high street, long before the Internet when you had to find stuff in shops. Inside the CD rule box was a quarterly newsletter (called The Command Post), in Section S-2 Intelligence the Order of Battle Section the British Infantry Tank Brigade, France 1940 by Jeff Glasco was given (see below, it seems to have lasted the test of time given my reading of France 1940 since 1990):

First Army Tank Brigade

• HQ: 1 x Matilda I (Command Tank)

4 RTR (Battalion)

• HQ: 1 x Matilda I (Command Tank), 2 x Carriers, 1 x MkVI Light Tank
• Light Squadron: 1 x Matilda I (Command Tank), 2 x Matilda I
• Light Squadron: 1 x Matilda I (Command Tank), 2 x Matilda I
• Light Squadron: 1 x Matilda I (Command Tank), 2 x Matilda I

7 RTR (Battalion)

• HQ: 1 x Matilda II (Command Tank), 2 x Carriers, 1 x MkVI Light Tank
• Light Squadron: 1 x Matilda I (Command Tank), 2 x Matilda I
• Light Squadron: 1 x Matilda I (Command Tank), 2 x Matilda I
• Medium Squadron: 1 x Matilda II (Command Tank), 2 x Matilda II

Note on actual strength: Prior to engaging in combat, total Matilda strength dropped to 58 Matilda Is (12 stands), and 16 Matilda IIs (3 stands) due to mechanical breakdowns.

Background References:
http://www.4and7royaltankregiment.com/1940-1941/

Command Decision "Test of Battle" CD4 (or rather CD4.1)

I knew it existed but I had never bumped into it at a show or wargames show and by the time I tried to buy it on-line it seemed to have 'long gone'. So I kind of snapped it up when I saw it advertised on eBay. Reading the bumf I see that it is officially termed Command Decision 4.1 (dated as 2012) because it is a re-edit of the first production run. Good enough for me (see below):

Glimpsing through it says there is lots of extra stuff to download from the web-site (stats charts and scenarios). A few of the core mechanisms I was happily reading about in CD3 seem to have been surreptitiously dropped. In no particular order. Turn time seems to have gone from 15 to 30 minutes. Rather than number of hits to kill it seems better troops are harder to kill. Spotting goes deterministic. Artillery suppression rather than casualties is a "new" concept.

All I want to make sure I "play some games with it" rather than just add to my collection of  wargame rules ;)

Interesting Web Site:

Thought this was a very interesting wargaming site:
http://www.testofbattle.com/upload/bob/index.html

In particular I like it's coverage of:

• Big Bloody WW2 Battles
• Command Decision 
• Command Decision Modern
• Fistful of Tows
• Scenario Design and Research References

The site is indirectly linked to CD4: Test of Battle web-site which got my interest
A game system I never managed to get my hands on (I got as far as playing CD3)
Anybody else out there still playing Command Decision?

PS:
Bob MacKenzie can also be found contributing to the Simulating War Yahoo Group

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.

Weekend Plastic Frenzy (1) Airfix Sherman

Well at the weekend I had the chance to write up an AAR for the blog or do a bit of hands on plastic modelling and the modelling won, first up was an old Airfix Sherman (see below, turret hatch open waiting for a suitable British tank commander figure to be found):

This means I am almost finished the basic 1944 RTR Command Decision OoB complement of standard tanks ;)

Modelling Note: The new Airfix tracks are a great improvement. They were really easy to glue together with "cheap pound shop" superglue! Dried white but everything is going to get painted over, so that ain't an issue,

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!

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).

Making 'that' last American 1/72 scale Sherman for my US Tank Battalion (Cont)

Edging ever closer to completing that last American Sherman (see below) ...

Bit by bit, one sprue down, with the tracks and turret still to do! The cup of char (French for tank, get it? Groan!) comes in handy ;)

I will have to do a bit of interior painting before I seal the superstructure to the chassis (unheard of in my past modelling experiences ;)

Making 'that' last American 1/72 scale Sherman for my US Tank Battalion

Here I am trying to make that "last American Sherman" for my US Armoured Battalion (Tank Division) and I hit the "how many parts is in this kit" bottleneck. I have gone back in time from the streamlined PSC production model to the 1970's, "many little fiddly parts" of the Italeri (ex-Esci) M4A1 Sherman 'Calliope' kit. For my purposes I am ditching the 'Calliope' part of the construction and just making a regular Sherman, my teenage self would shudder at this heretical thought.

The multitude of parts is shown below: 

The track assembly starts, thirty four parts in total for the two 'sides'. I assemble them on the sprue in order to try and keep a "limited spread" in modelling terms as I will be making this over several nights and don't want to lose small parts (see below):

An engine transmission and tank engine? Interior detail. Why am I bothering with all this hidden detail. All I can say is that is because it is there! I would obviously be less of a modeller (but more sensible) if I didn't. I now will have to let the rear engine covers be "lift-able or removable" in some fashion (See below):

That's as far as I got in one night, whereas I would have at least have had a PSC or HaT Sherman in my hands.

At least once it is done the armoured battalion will be done ;)