Bargain Battle of Britain Book

It's one of my son's birthdays tomorrow so we headed into town for a nice lunch and some present, card and balloon shopping, as you do. I couldn't pass up an opportunity to pop into the local Oxfam bookshop, where I found an 'as new' hardback copy of this book on Douglas Bader's Big Wing strategy and how it divided opinion then and even now. It's a fascinating subject and the book covers it all in great detail yet still remains very readable, from my the quick dip into the contents. I'm looking forward to reading it properly but I'm back to work tomorrow and will be pretty tied up with other more tedious things as a result. 

2024 Review - Painting Things

This year has been even more of a washout when it comes to painting stuff, once again due to work and illness sapping my time and energy. I did complete the 1/3000th scale heavy units for the Kriegsmarine and Royal Navy early war fleets but not the rest of the British forces which are still waiting to be tackled. I also completed the 1/2400th scale Royal Navy Napoleonic fleet, which I really enjoyed painting albeit stretched out over several months, although I still haven't played any games with them yet.

The Soviet half of the 1/600th scale aircraft for the Continuation War project were finished but not the Finnish contingent, or the 1/300th scale Soviet aircraft either, despite making a good start on the latter. I also built a 1/72nd scale Bristol Scout for Knights of the Sky but had to drop out of the actual game due to illness. A handful of 1/600th USAF aircraft were also finished for MiG Alley. To wrap up an unspectacular year, I painted three test bases of 2mm English Civil War infantry, cavalry and artillery, then ran out of time to do any more before the holidays. I think my report card for 2024 will read 'must do better!' 

Carry on Sweetheart

I have no idea if my Bag The Hun article will make it into this year's Lard Mag but I'm still going to crack on with my 1/600th scale Finnish aircraft for the Continuation War. I had another look at these today, in a break from my domestic duties (my day off is never really a day off!) and have decided to add some more aircraft to the line up, which is based on the scenarios that I've written for the Lard Mag. I can also use them for Lacquered Coffins, which will kill two birds with one stone. Fingers crossed! 

1/200th Lacquered Coffins?

I'm still farting about with different scale options for Lacquered Coffins, with club games firmly in my sights. The default is 1/300th scale using my pretty extensive collection of aircraft, but I've also been considering 1/144th scale as an alternative. Today I remembered that I had a box of Blood Red Skies Yak-1 models that I bought after playing a game at the club. I really didn't like the rules but the models aren't bad, if a bit plasticy. The scale is 1/200th so mid range between my other options, with the advantage of visual fit on the 40mm bases and a good range of 3D printed or injection moulded models. They are, however, much more expensive than 1/300th scale models. Swings and Roundabouts! 

DIY Flight Stands for Lacquered Coffins

I've been away in West Cornwall for a family reunion over the weekend, so got back very early today to find a package of bits from Warbases waiting for me. These are the components for some prototype flight bases to use with 1/300th or possibly 1/144th scale aircraft. 

The basic design uses a sandwich of two 40mm square, 3mm thick mdf bases, a double frame for 7mm mini-dice and a 50mm steel nail. The nail is upside down in the photo but will have the tip cut off and glued into a pre-drilled hole on the upper square, the flat nail head being the surface to which a magnetised model can be attached. It's all very simple and also cheap to put together, making it possible to supply multiple stands to match different terrain cloths without breaking the bank.

I'll glue this lot together during the week and will probably finish them off with a snow or tundra finish, to use with my 1/300th scale early war Soviet models, which I'm going to continue painting next year for both Arctic Eagles and the Contuation War. I also have some plans for Western Desert themed bases to use with 1/144th scale plastic models, assuming I don't go down a Russian Front rabbit hole with those as well? 

Biting the Bag the Hun Re-basing Bullet

I've been thinking of re-basing my hex based 1/300th scale aircraft with magnets, both for storage reasons and to make them flexible enough to use hex and square bases. I magnet based my 1/300th scale Soviet aircraft for the Continuation War project and was really pleased with the result, so I'm going to remove the Raiden Miniatures stands from my other models to match. This will be a bit hair raising as they're glued on tight but I think I can do it without damaging the models. It's a big job so will be one of my new projects for 2025. 

Lacquered Coffins Conundrum

I've had a positive response from some of the club to my Lacquered Coffins proposal, so it's definitely worth pursuing further if only in a planning sense.  I have located my stash of 1/144th scale models and have ordered some 40mm square, 3mm thick bases from Warbases, the suggested base dimensions in the rules being 1 1/2 inches. 

This seemed a bit big for 1/600th scale aircraft, which is what is recommended in the rules, so I'm going to use 1/144th scale models instead, the Zvezda I-16 being pictured next to a 40mm base from my MiG Alley B-29 set up. I'm also obviously considering using my 1/300th scale stuff, as it is quite an extensive collection and just needs re-basing with magnets in order to be deployed. 

It also looks good on a 40mm base, as shown by an unfinished Scotia I-16 model once again mounted on a 40mm square. The actual stands will be higher on the Lacquered Coffins bases and there will be a double dice frame instead of a single one. I think the 1/300th scale option looks very promising, so I now need to decide which scale to use for the project, or even if I could do both?!

Lacquered Coffins in 1/144th

I was doing some googling for after action reports of Lacquered Coffins games today, having printed out and read through the rules, when I bumped into this article from Miniature Wargames back in March 2024. I haven't read the whole thing but I noticed that the author decided to use 1/144th scale aircraft models for his games, which reminded me of my plans ages ago to convert Knights of the Sky for WWII air combat. This plan didn't happen in the end but I did amass quite a lot of 1/144th scale kits from Zvezda, Revell and Minicraft for the Russian Front, as well as a couple of pre-painted diecast bombers. The article also rings some bells when it comes to the scope and focus of the games, the aim being to encourage club players to take up aerial wargaming without complicating things with complex rules, hexes, maths or book keeping (or turn cards...the big issue I've had with Bag the Hun as a club set of rules). I am now having some interesting ideas for my own project for next year, using the model kits I have already stockpiled and the Lacquered Coffin rules for club multiplayer games....Tally Ho!

Lacquered Coffins

I think I've found the holy grail of air wargaming rules for club games, in the shape of Lacquered Coffins, a set of simple air combat rules designed for hex less games in 1/600th scale. This alone ticks two of my boxes but, in addition, the system uses square bases, fixed height flight stands with two dice and a simple but comprehensive set of flight manoeuvres. It also includes extensive aircraft data tables and is suitable for use with historical scenarios, something that is definitely up my street. I've had a copy for ages but never really considered these rules for club games, which is a bit of an oversight on my part. I need to give it a try out a home but, if it's quick and easy to play, I'll work toward a club gane at some point next year.