Guadalcanal 1942 in 20mm for Rapid Fire! rules - (Part 2) The Japanese tanks

 

This group was initially planned for the whatever tank encounter of the Pacific from Khalkin Gol to  Saipan or even the last few Battles with the Soviets in 1945. In fact the tank duels in the Pacific, or even a large armored assault by the Japanese, was not a very common sight, specially compared with the Western theaters. In the meantime, Guadalcanal entered as a solid project, and upon reading on the issue, the two main Japanese tank assaults of this campaign (Tenaru and in one of the several actions on the Matanikau) only had between 6 to 10 tanks (Ha-Go and Chi-Ha models) each as the Japanese on the Island(s) were an infantry force with just a few tanks. 

So, besides Guadalcanal, this force allows for pretty much everything you need in terms of Japanese tank actions. 

This Type 89 Chi-Ro is a 3d PLA print from MiniGeneral. This is the type of early tanks used in relatively large numbers which makes a few more necessary.

This one is my most recent Japanese tank with all others made already years ago. As this Chi-Ro is an early version I changed it into a later version with a turret that can be opened and a metal crewman (CP models , I think). 

 

This Type 93 Kokusan by Skytrex was also an early reconnaissance vehicle and, up to now its the only one I have. Maybe Wargaming China can send me few of his Japanese unique and fabulous armored cars? After all that would strenghten the commercial relation between the two neighbors, Portugal and Australia. 

The early mediums Type 97 Chi-Ha with the smaller turret with short 37mm gun. The two to the left are Fujimi and the ones to the right are Airfix. The command version is the Type 97 Shi-Ki with a coaxial long 37mm from Frontline Wargaming.

The Type 97 Chi-Ha with the new turret housing a 47mm gun. The ones closer are Fujimi and the two on the left are Skytrex. On the back are two Altaya die-cast models. 

Again from Fujimi you have here two Type 1 Ho-Ni with 75mm gun and a Type 4 Ho-Ro with  15cm gun from Frontline Wargaming with Fujimi crew. 

The Type 95 Ha-Go is an essential both for Guadalcanal and Tarawa, the two Pacific settings I´m nowadays around. The Ha-go with crewman is Skytrex and the others are Frontline Wargaming. 

The tankette Type 97 Te-Ke and the Type 98 Ke-Ni (sucessor of the Ha-Go) are both Frontline Wargaming. 

The only Japanese artillery I have up to the moment are these two Emhar 75mm model 38 improved (in late war green and not  Artillery Brown as they were originally painted after seeing "Flags of Our Fathers" a late war episode) towed by two Frontline Wargaming Isuzu. The crews are conversions from Fujimi and Airfix. 

Next: Whether a video on the Confederates at Gettysburg or the Japanese infantry of WW2. 

Gettysburg in 1/72nd scale (part 1), the Army of the Potomac

This one is made from all available plastic figures from the venerable Airfix to the more recent Strelets R, including A Call to Arms, Revell, Italeri and also some metal Irregular Miniatures. I tried to characterize all famous individuals from regimental commanders up to Corps commanders since this is a period with abundant information. This army is complete for Fire&Fury brigade rules and it will be followed by the Confederate army. The houses are made of card and maybe one or two more will be added in the future. All other structures, roads, hills, stonewalls, trees, etc are not shown as most of them are generic and useful for a number of periods.

Guadalcanal 1942 in 20mm for Rapid Fire! rules - (Part 1) The aircraft for Henderson Field

 

One of the main hotspots of the Guadalcanal campaign was Henderson Field. In fact the entire campaign (August 42- February 43) is tied to this spot as it started with the construction of a Japanese airfield (Lunga point/Runga point or just "RXI"), so close to Australia and the allied lines of communication, that the US decided to take it over and rename it Henderson Field, honoring a fallen pilot at Midway. 

I´m still very short of Pacific models but the stuff I have (excluding the Tarawa island, SNLF and US LVT´s) fit reasonably to these scenarios as at the shelves there is a Japanese Betty bomber (to bomb the airfield), some Japanese landing craft and the Hoisho aircraft carrier with a number of different Japanese bombers and fighters like Vals and Zeroes used in the attacks. 

Most of the Japanese offensives at the island were destined to take back  Henderson field ( Tenaru, Edson´s Ridge,Matanikau and the October Henderson Field battles) and the airfield with some of its aircraft parked makes a visually nice corner in any of the above mentioned tabletop battles. In fact, small groups of japanese infantry managed to enter the airfield during the battle of Edson´s Ridge. 

The "airfield" was initially a simple strip but in the middle of the battles the americans managed to add a paralel smaller strip for fighter´s usage, before enlarging it at the end of the campaign and later on.

For the Cactus airforce up no now I could find the presence of SBD Dauntless, Avengers and Wildcats at the airfield but others like the P-39 and P-40 were also there at a certain time. 

I already have a Dauntless and an Avenger in parked mode but want a few more so the models at this post had to be made. 

The two Dauntless are (flight mode) Hasegawa and (parked) Testors. In fact they depict in the decals the same exact plane of John Leppla and John Liska, famous for its action at the battle of Coral Sea. Even if these two exact planes were not at Guadalcanal they are famous machines and very close in time, and so are ready for the larger strip of Henderson Field. 

This Devastator was also not at Guadalcanal, as it was put to bomber/torpedo training after the losses at Midway. Even so, one more aircraft on board of the Bogue aircraft carrier. 

Next: The Union army at Gettysburg on video. 

A wargaming trip to Bodrum castle

 

Slowly by slowly I´m on the track of the Knights of Saint John castles, after almost 30 years ago of visiting  Malta. Now I had to opportunity of visiting Bodrum castle in southern Turkey. 

Some information on the military activity of the site: 

During the years of 1402 up to 1452, the Knights Hospitaller built in two phases the Bodrum Castle. In fact the task belonged to the Knights of St. John who built it in order to guard that tip of Mediterranean and its northern access  from Turkish expansion, as the castle faced early threats from the Seljuk Turks. 

Between 1453 and 1480, Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror launched naval attacks and bombarded the castle. In 1480 his fleet caused damage to the English Tower and seafront walls, but the fortress held strong and was later reinforced using stone from the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus. 

As Suleiman the Magnificent’s forces conquered Rhodes, the Knights surrendered Bodrum Castle in 1522 as part of the peace terms and its fortification process continued. 

In 1773 during the Russo‑Turkish War (1768–1774), a Russian naval detachment under Admiral Elmanov bombarded the castle and landed troops (~1,000+), but the local Ottoman garrison repelled them.

The castle was heavily garrisoned  and later was used as a prison (from 1895), with the chapel converted into a mosque and a minaret added.

In May 1915, the French warship Duplex bombed Bodrum Castle, causing significant damage, forcing the evacuation of prisoners, and damaging the minaret and southern ramparts. 

 From 1915, Italian forces briefly controlled Bodrum and used the castle as headquarters before yielding it back to Turkish control in 1921 (via agreement after the War of Independence) 

 

Exhibition Areas

1. Haluk Elbe Art Gallery

2. Cannon Exhibition Area

3. Gateway Tower

4. Amphora Depot Exhibition Area

5. Southern Observation Terrace

6. Turkish Bath

7. Chapel (Castle Mosque)

8. Anchor Exhibition Area

9. Stone Artifacts Exhibition Area

10. History of Underwater Archaeology

10. Amphora Exhibition

10. Serce Limani Glass Shipwreck Exhibition

11. Yassiada Shipwrecks Hall

12. Spanish Tower: Tektas Shipwreck Exhibition

13. German Tower: Bozukkale Archaic Shipwreck Exhibition

14. History of Bodrum Peninsula and Halicarnassus

15. Italian Tower: Early Bronze Age Necropolises Exhibition

16. French Tower: Musgebi Necropolis

16. French Tower: Pedesa Ancient City Exhibition

17. Halicarnassus Eastern Necropolis Exhibition

18. Carian Princess Hall

19. Late Bronze Age Shipwrecks Exhibition

20. English Tower: Knights of Saint Jean Exhibition

The castle stood initially in a small island that had to be connected to the main land making it into an artificial peninsula. 

The 1st phase of the Knights of Saint John build created most of the visible structures that can be seen today. 

Best explained here, as the previous text can only be understood by the large numbers of my Turkish followers (which in fact speak a language that is not easy for most of the european language speakers). 

The 2nd phase of construction by Knights of Saint John saw a secondary line of walls and two more more small towers (Carretto and Gatineau). 

As usual with Ottomans a minaret and Turkish bath was added. 

And this is virtually the looks of the castle today, an impeccable work of art and a place of respect for History as the Turks are very good at preserving their history, even if part of it comes from Greek, Roman or Christian origin. 

A bit of text for the later events. 

 

A minaret of the Ottoman period was destroyed by a French ship during the preparation of the Gallipoli campaign and later rebuilt to the actual state. 

The most important parts of the castle - excluding its walls, obviously! - are the towers, each of the Langues of Knights contributed with one. So each of the main nations has its own tower: there is a  Spanish, an Italian, a French, an English and a German tower. The one above is the Spanish tower.

Another view of the Spanish tower.

The steps leading to the Italian and French towers.

The French tower.

Another view of the French tower. Its topped over the harbor and exhibits the Müsgebi Necropolis and the ancient city of Pedasa.

The Italian tower, the tallest of them all, hosts the Early Bronze‑Age Necropolis hall and the Carian Princess burial displays

The English tower has some nice heraldry and foot soldiers equipment. 

There is a moat between the two layers of walls. 

Here you can see the two layers distinctively. 

                 

The English tower with its Knights armor and equipment. 

As you're exiting, you may be passing through the main gate complex, and you’ll likely see the insignia of the Grand Master Philibert de Naillac (served 1396–1421), who initiated the construction of Bodrum Castle in 1402, together with the insignia of the Knights of Saint John. 

Next: Guadalcanal, part 1.

Able Archer/ RFR rules - Vietnam in 20mm (part 13) - Reinforcements for the 11th ACR and some more aircraft

 

Some 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment (ACR) elements advance in the middle of My Blue province when they are surprised by a low flight of some friendly aircraft, that could well have been some Migs... Well, this event was not registred in the unit´s history and its presented here first hand. 

Each squadron of the 11th ACR had three rifle squads (one per troop) transported in M-113 A1. I read that even these ones could also have the ACAV version but the regiment will end up with nine of these so three of the more plain A1 version looks OK. I´m not sure about placing a simple shield in front of the 12,5mm gun but I still couldn´t find a photo of them like this, the ACAV version being the more common. All models are quick build S-Model.

The figures are left-to-right, Skytrex and Airfix modern fighter pilots which suit the US cavalry tank helmet pretty well. 

Each troop also had a M-106 mortar carrier. I used again the S-Model for this conversion using a M-106 from Esci as a template. Bits of different types of plastic were used and even the mortar base came from a Revell 7YW Austrian artillery wheel. 

The crew is Esci and the M-16 rifles were cut until looking like a 107mm mortar shell. Later, the rifle part/shells were smoothed with a bit of  thick acrylic paint. 

As the mortar base was very brittle (old Revell style) I placed a jerrycan covering the damaged part. 

The floor of the M-106 (light sand part) was also raised so the figures and mortar could sit correctly. 

The Cadillac V-100, mostly used by the Military Police, are very old Corgi Juniors toys. The size is around 20mm as I have a number of Saudi V-150 in 1/87th scale that are smaller. 

The resin figures are surplus from the 3d printed PBR boat and the metal figure is Skytrex. 

The Huey Gunship is Revell. 

The Mohawk is the old Hasegawa model. One of these slow moving aircraft managed to put down a Mig-17 with its rockets, something that was kept as a secret up to 2007, as the army didn´t want USAF to know about this feat and force the Army to disarm its Mohawk as putting down Migs was a USAF exclusive. 

This A-4 Skyhawk F is the old Frog in Israeli colors. All these three aircraft got new star and stripes decals from the decals left-over box and all other symbols were hand painted. This one looks particularly bad as the symbold are painted on top of the grey primer as its (just by chance) the same color and painting style of another Skyhawk C from Altaya that I showed you before. 

Next: Guadalcanal models or a video on Bodrum, Gettysburg or Tarawa. 

Able Archer/ RFR rules - Vietnam in 20mm (part 12) - Armored vehicles for both sides

 

In this FOW style picture, were tanks point at point blank range to each other as if coming from holes on the ground, you have the two missing Sheridans, 2/3 of the necessary M113 ACAVs (both types of models for the 11th ACR), a M42 Duster, just because it was on the stash, and the first few T-34 and T-54 for the NVA. 

The ACAVs are Eskice, printed in Germany by Tom Hobby. I continue to be amazed by these resin 3d printed models as this, for instance, has two pieces, one being the 12,7mm HMG turret, with gun and figure, and the other, well, all the rest, including figures...

I already had some Eskice in the form of six German WW2 side-cars and enjoyed painting them a lot even if they have big heads which doesn´t make them good neighbors for most other brands, exceptuating the sort of the old Britannia metal figures. 

With three more, the full ACAV numbers will be achieved for the 11th ACR. 

Only a few jerrycans, antennas and some stowage was added. 

I made a small raid into the box were I have the 1st group of 4D models. They are around 30 (some 1/72ish, others 1/87th scale) and, if I can remember well I could only use some 4-5 of them (heavily converted, though) as they are toys and not real models, with the bottom part, including wheels, being all the same throughout the collection. The M42 Duster is no exception. But by looking at a comparison on the web between the Altaya and the 4D M42 Duster, I realised the top part of the 4D model is quite reasonable. 

What the 4D model mostly needs is some new wheels that came from derelict Hasegawa M24 Chaffees, glued against a piece of thin cardboard as they needed to be a bit far from the bottom part, which is the same on all 1st series 4D models. Then some crew, stowage, antennas and a HMG were added. 

The Atlantic crew figures lost their heads  as they were too small and were replaced by Hasegawa pilot´s. 

The Sheridan to the left is Airfix and the other is Altaya. They got the same treatment as the first I made a few weeks ago. Now there is one per squadron for the 11th ACR, which is the intended number. 

For painting all these vehicles I followed my first Altaya Vietnam models procedure: the Altaya Vietnam models (Gun Truck, M41 Bulldog and M48A3) came painted in olive brown with the usual sheen of Altaya vehicles; in order to break that sheen I slightly sprayed Krylon's Panama Khaki, which is something I continue to do with all models from other brands for this theater (the olive brown used is Vallejo). In period pictures, Vietnam models are many times covered in mud due to the rainy seasons. This in fact saves two moments of painting, the black wash (which needs a few hours here - days, in England, he,he) and the main color + white drybrushing. 

Finally a few NVA tanks. The T-54 are 4D models and are a big improvement from the first batch they made, to which the M42 Duster belongs. I already made a few of these T-54 for the Angolans and knew how good and easy to build these models are. The T-34 is Polistil, and together with the Airfix Sheridan belong to a small batch of models found in the last month´s flea market at Tomar. Next week I plan to be there again for some extra old findings.

Next: wether Vietnam or WW2 aircraft. Guadalcanal is also close.