M4 Sherman Mk V Tulip

This is a 1/72 Dragon kit. The model went together well, but as with all 1/72 Dragon, it has too many tiny fidley bits, many in photo etch. The tracks were the gluable Vinyl / Styrene. I added various resin stowage and wrapped it up in gause for netting. The antenna is a piece of fiber optic cable. The background wall was an Italeri Church ruin.

The subject is the British modification to add  launchers to mount the Typhoon rockets. These had been used successfully from the air and was the only means of taking on a Tiger head on with a Sherman. These guys had to be nuts as by the time the Sherman Tulip got a Tiger in sight, it was too late. Its not a wonder that photos of these Shermans are hard to find.

AMPS Atlanta Show Photos

http://s1189.photobucket.com/albums/z436/GTGaither/AMPS%20Atlanta%202012/

Army’s New Hybrid Tank

Tank Targets Our Enemies and Soaring Oil Prices...

 

http://gizmodo.com/5888644/armys-new-hybrid-tank-targets-our-enemies-and-soaring-oil-prices

Who's birthday is it?

Don't shoot!
;-)

Packing it in

AMPS Atlanta show, Feb 17-19.
The show was great as it was aligned with the Atlanta Model Figure Society. Overall there were about 500 models and figures on display or entered. Since I had to fly up to Atlanta, I needed to pack my models and store in the checked luggage........No, I am dead serious, so much so that I was asked by one of the guys in the AMPS club to write an article and take pictures of how I packed the three models and successfuly transported both ways without incident.

First thing to realize is that this will not work on all models. Plan in advance by making antennae, turrets etc removable. I had to select my Shermans as the antennae are on the turrets which were easily removable and wrapped separately. Using light bubble wrap, I set the turret and made a tent by taping the ends over the antennae.

  

The wrapped turrets were laid sidways in a padded plastic container. Another layer of bubble wrap was laid over them secuting them in place before putting on the lid. As these were light, they had no means of sliding or crashing into each other.

The hulls were permanently attached to bases so had to be extra wrapped. Bubble wrapped in one direction, taped and wrapped 90deg in the next layer. Each layer taped securing the bubble wrap with the excess folds over the hull.

 

These were also laid into a separate plastic padded tub. Several more layers of wrap were packed to keep the bundles from sliding. No room to move once the lid was fastened.

 

These were packed with my clothing so the tubs did not move and could not open. The only unfortunate circumstance was that I didnt have room to bring much back from the show. I did end up wrapping some small items and packed in te tubs along with the turrets and hulls. Dont forget to take the tape with you to re-wrap for the return trip.

 

Vince Barrale  2-22-12

Viet Nam Gun Truck

AFV Club kit, NANCY. This was an experiment in Gun Trucks. In doing the research on these VietNam inovations, I found that many of them were named and some are still existing and restored. The old combat photos I found were mostly worn, but some of the renovated show trucks had good pictures posted.

I found the kit to be challenging as I knew little about the workings of the original 5 ton trucks on which these were based. It has inspired me to design my own version of a converted cargo truck of that era or possibly of those more recently used in Iraq.

 Vince Barrale   Feb 5-2012





Strange...

As anybody seen anything like it?

M1A1 Abrams - Tamiya

Tamiya 1/35 M1A1 Abrams. This may be an older kit as demonstrated by the battery and motor mounts in the lower hull. It was as usual for Tamiya, a relatively simple build. The hardest choice was what paint scheme to follow. I selected the 3 color camo but placed it in the desert as one of the initial unit into Iraq. Normally my weathering depicts grassy or muddy environments, but after studying photos, I realized that I had to wash the surface edges with a Yellow Ocre color to depict dust and sand settlement.

I added a lot of plastic and resin accessories, tents, bedrolls, water cans, gatoraid, straps and antennae.

As you know, the M1A1 is a big tank. Now I have to make room for it in the display case. Now back to some 1/72 armor that I have room for.

Vince Barrale - 1-8-12

Panzer III Ausf L in 1/76 scale.

I completed the 1/76 scale Matchbox salvage job. This 30+ year old kit was partially built when I scavanged it. Poor detail and lack of features allowed me to be creative. With some evergreen strips and other components I scratchbuilt the stowage rack and antenna mount. I added a variety of resin stowage items and the commanders machine gun perch. .

The wall sections are from Armand Bayardi and the figures are from an old Preiser set. Its not perfect but quite an improvement over the initial Matchbox kit.





Vince B. 1-5-12

The secret behind Norway’s massive Nazi coastal cannon

Great article!
http://jalopnik.com/5864615/the-secret-behind-norways-massive-nazi-coastal-cannon

Miniatur Wunderland Hamburg

A must see video!
The largest model railway in the world and one of the most successful permanent exhibitions in Northern Germany. 

http://www.miniatur-wunderland.com/

DIY 3D Printer

A few of us were talking/dreaming about a 3D Printer at a recent buin-in.
The problem with most of them is that they are expensive industrial machine (40K+)

If you haven't heard from MakerBot yet, it's time to listen :-)
These guys offers an affordable DIY kit with an open source software for $1200!
http://www.makerbot.com/

This opens a new world of possibilities. Any ideas? :-)

Drive a tank? Who's in?

The perfect Christmas gift for those who have everything!
Give them memories that will last a lifetime.
Purchase a Drive A Tank Gift voucher.
You will receive a voucher along with an informational DVD
showing a sample of the fun and adventures the participant will experience!

http://www.driveatank.com/index_BGY6.html

Tools used and displayed

Model Photos from the November 2011 Meeting

Here is my latest completion. It was for an IPMS USA Review that will posted there shortly.