Rapid Fire! Russian Contemporary Wars in 20mm - Butler's Printed Models T-64BV

 

 A few more good models from BPM. These T-64BV easy to clean,  and quite detailed. I only added the antennae, some stowage, figures and the small basket for the discarded MG ammo cases. The only problem with these printings is generally around the tubes of the MG's always too large but on the other hand quite robust.

 

 

 

Due to the amount and time for printing these models become more expensive than most of other BPM models  (11.50 pounds) while a M113 APC is less than half price (5 pounds) probably due to its simplicity.

 

 

Next: The  British 6th Guards Tank Brigade in Normandy or some F-16 for the Portuguese Airforce.

 

Rapid Fire! Russian Contemporary Wars in 20mm - First few Butlers' Printed Models (BMP's fom BPM) and a few more repainted Fabbri tanks.

 

 I've showed you my first experience with printed models when my friend Mario Laranja printed for me 10 T-72B2 that I used for Georgian and Russian forces.

 

A few weeks ago I went to Butler's Printed Models (BPM) site to discover that these guys make a wide range of vehicles for WWI, WWII and modern periods. And nice they are. Not only the plastic is strong enough to cope with rough wargamers hands and their sons as the level of detail is very good. But you can judge on yourself by the picture of these BMP-2.

 

With only two pieces, hull and turret, you have all details necessary from headlights to Spandrel missile launcher. For now you can always find some lines from the printing process of nowadays printing machine. The next batch I ordered will have those lines covered - hopefully- with GW Liquid Green Stuff.

 

 

I took advantage of the primer cloud to paint the last three Fabbri tanks of my T-90 battalion.

 

 

Also one repainted 2S9 Nona from Fabbri already joined the VDV unit.

 

 

Rapid Fire! Russian Contemporary Wars in 20mm - Repainted Fabbri for Russians and Georgians.

Recently I've been collecting some Fabbri models from Clive Diecast and also from the short collection of 10 models that we had here in Portugal last year.

In order to have a few T-62 BAR still present in the 2008 Georgian conflict I used some plastic net I had around and added the usual crew member, antennae and a Butler Printed Model DSHK Mg.

This is the last of the seven T-80B I needed to complete this battalion. Now... let's start another battalion!

I painted a few BM-21 with Georgian colours as in internet pictures from a parade a little time after the war. In the war itself I think all these were plain green but they get more lively and distinguishable like this.  

Also a few BMP-1 were repainted. To the right a few are in Georgian colours and to the left in Russian colours. These last ones completed the battalions of S-Models BMP-1's I started months ago.

Middle East/Arab houses in 20mm (3)

Just a few more houses for Arab regions, again made quickly in card.

 

All entrances are just pieces of card glued to the walls which speeds up procedures a lot. Still plenty of places for miniatures on the roof tops.

 

 

 

The shop to the right had some tissue paper on the cover and some chairs and table from Faller (HO scale).

 

Rapid Fire! Russian Contemporary Wars in 1/72nd scale - Troposphere Relay Station vehicle for SS-25 Topol already painted

                              

The TRS vehicle is already painted. I used a camouflage close to its SS-25 partner, only using Russian Tan from MIG colours instead of Iraqi Sand from Vallejo.

 

 

Most of these vehicles I found pictured are not in fact camouflaged but camouflage also helps conceal some mistakes in the making of the model.

 

 

 

At the same time I built another ModelCollect T-72 this time a T-72B3M. This one has no camouflage to go along the Russian T-72's 3D prints I have  from Mario Laranja.

Rapid Fire! Russian Contemporary Wars in 1/72nd scale - Troposphere Relay Station vehicle for SS-25 Topol

I wanted something to go along my 4D Topol. Two different vehicles work together with the Topol: a Launch-Assisting Support vehicle and this Troposphere Relay Station vehicle. Both have the same vehicle as basis, the MAZ-543. So I used another 4D model from China, this time the radar vehicle of the S-300 system, as the basis of this conversion.

 

The parts of the original vehicle are in a distinctive grey while most of the scratch built parts are white plasticard.

 

 

The WWI buffs probably recognize the green Airfix wheels of the Mark 1 tank on the flat bed of the truck used here as the power wheels of the relay system.

 

 

As usual I prefered to replace the flimsy structure of the Relay Station with sturdy plasticard.

 

A few other parts were taken from the surplus parts of the Matchbox Flower Corvette, as the stairs and several boxes.

 

                             

 

 

The radar itself was taken from a plastic Chinese toy of a small truck with radar and then carved until the desired shape was reached.

 

 

 

 

Rapid Fire! Russian Contemporary Wars in 1/72nd scale - How to make your own figures for aircraft and some other additions.

In order to produce quick WWII planes and to reduce its stash I don't place any figures on them for a long time. Like this it's much quicker to have new aircraft as you only need to paint the exterior parts.

Somehow I started to do exactly the opposite for modern aircraft. The problem here is that many of the brands don't carry the pilots and this is specially true with the Die-cast models. Besides the surplus pilots you may have don't sit well in the cockpit forcing you to brake, heat or destroy them while trying.

So I made up this way in order to have the missing pilots:

1- Model the full body in cheap and fast drying two-part paste (the one you buy at supermarkets) as it dries quickly and allows you into next step;

2- Model the helmet in GreenStuff;

3- (This is really worthy of Hannibal Lecter's talent) carve off the face of a soft plastic figure and place it deep on the front of the helmet;

4- Model the helmet again, glasses or other details you may want to add and they are ready for painting.

 

As  a proof of the crime I exhibit evidence number one on the top right side.

 

 

As confidence grew  I made others without plastic faces. Soon I regreted it as the first ones with plastic faces are much better. Some of them are even better for Planet Of The Monkeys, as faces are really tricky to do correctly. Only the pilots of the F-16 got well as they have their faces completely covered.

 

 

Having found a reasonable way to make pilots I built a few more Altaya Helicopters. This Mil Mi-24 was repainted with Georgian colours with hand painted symbols and numbers.

 

 

Two more Hinds with added missile pylons.

 

                                 

 

And a Mil Mi-8 with no additions but the crew.

 

 

 

Next: Arab houses, Iraqi helicopters or Russian T-72's. At least its what I have closer to completion.

Middle East/Arab Mosque in 20mm (2)

A Mosque is mandatory in all places in the Middle East. In fact their minarets is one of the main characteristics of the landscape and they can be recognized for miles.

The minaret on this one came out too large. It looks more with a lighthouse than with a minaret.  I only realised that after finishing gluing it to the building and base but then it was too late. At least its sturdy...well, we have to find some satisfaction on our own blunders, right?

Many Middle East construction have beautiful varandas and woodwork.

The base of the minaret is a yogurt cup.

The dome is a half of a christmas tree decoration ball.

Next: as you fly away from middle east you will go back to Georgia 2008 soon.

Rapid Fire! Russian Contemporary Wars in 1/72nd scale - SS-25 Topol and a few extras.

Somewhere inside Russia, Putin orders the powerful SS-25 Topol to change its location. Some support vehicles and tank protection follows. You can never know when separatists may strike...

The 4D SS-25 Topol is the last offer of this nice Chinese company. Its a tough competitor for the Zvezda kit but only at a fraction of the price. This one is around 18 Euros, directly from China, free post, while the Zvezda is something around 50 Euros.

Comparing with the S-300 models of 4D its a much more complicated model with many dozen pieces, specially in its chassis. 

The model was painted with the Russian modern range paints from Mig. 

If such a thing will be ever used at wargames? Probably not but you can always threaten your wargaming opponent with an ICBM...

To go along the Topol or to tow or carry some heavy stuff I repainted these Fabbri MAZ-535. I have a few aside to be converted to the MAZ-537 tank transporter.

Finally, I also repainted a Die-cast Zvezda T-90 with the new (at least for me) Mig colours and a figure copied in GreeStuff with Blue Stuff... companies are getting less and less imaginative with names...

Rapid Fire! Russian Contemporary Wars in 1/72nd scale - BM-27 'Uragan' Batteries

Somewhere in South Ossetia (I can't precise the place as I also don't know) two battalions of 'Uragan' are ready to fire on Georgian positions...

All models are repainted Fabbri models. Only the Transport-Loaders have its decks converted as you can see ın the last post.

 

This is the way as the Uragan reload its missiles. The elevator on the 9T452 lifts each missile at a time making the entire procedure of reloading the 16 load of missiles very time consuming, around 20 minutes. More recent Russian missile systems have quicker missile reloading time.

The BM-27 is a machine from the seventies and replaced many of the older BM-21.

Here you can see to advantage the cocktail sticks that I used to make something like the 220 mm missiles.

If I haven't been lazy I would have carved a decent missile and reproduce it in Press Moulding but I was too eager to see the final result. Like this each missile head became a little bit too pointy,

Next: something for these Uragan's to shoot at: Georgian Armour!

Rapid Fire! Russian Contemporary Wars in 1/72nd scale - 9T452 Transport-loaders for the BM-27 'Uragan' batteries.

The 9T452 is the Transporter-loader of 220-mm multiple rocket launching system for the BM-27 «Uragan». It saw service in Georgia War of 2008, Yemen and recently in Syria.

Armada Hobbies makes a very good one in resin. But, as a kit and watching its images in the internet, it must be really complicated to build. Besides its very expensive, around 50-60 euros each.

Some months ago I followed my megalomanic tendencies and bought 12 Die-cast BM-27 Uragan from Fabbri. Each cost around 5 euros and are really good. Ended up looking at them and having the usual thought of  'what the hell am I going to do with all of them? '.

After reading about these machines I realized that the truck is the basis of the Frog Missile system and I made three of them for the Iraqis. Other six are half painted unchanged Uragans for the Russians and the last three are these Transporter-loaders.

First you have to take out the full load of the missile system of the Uragan and make a flat bed for a box made out of Evergreen.

After looking for many solutions on how to produce 48 quick missiles I ended by choosing barbecue sticks. After priming they will look much better, believe me, and these models will no long look like log carriers!

Then plenty of details were added in Evergreen plastics. The only non-Evergreen detail is the central box with the big 'X' which is made of a piece of Roofmate carved to shape and painted with acrylics not to be corroded by the agressive spray primer.

This is a truly fun to build model and you can count with some nice reference photos in the internet and even with a nice video of the procedures of charging the missiles of the Uragans from these 9T452's.

Next I'll show you these three together with the parent Uragans everything painted. If not, something else for sure, may be even my first middle eastern houses.

Rapid Fire! Russian Contemporary Wars in 1/72nd scale - Painted 3D printed T-72B's

Last post 3D printed T-72B's painted roaming somewhere in Arnhem 1944... ehhhhr... South Ossetia 2008, I mean.

These models paints easily as the detail Mario Laranja placed is fitted nicely and the most compex parts like the frontal lights are simplified but still making their part. 

After assembling, priming and painting I used a piece of acetate to make the full commander's turret shield. This part had to stay to the end as I wanted the small rectangular visor to show its glass. Green and brown (to simulate the cloth around the bottom part of the shield) was painted around the small rectangular visor.

The turret Mg's are metal Skytrex.

Some seams from the 3D printer can be seen but in some places they even add to the detail!