The Berlin Project - Land Rovers

It's been a while since I've shown anything for my Berlin Project - not because I've forgotten about it, it's just Project 57 of the 345 projects I seem to currently be doing...

Anyway, I've time for a quick update, showing off a couple of Oxford Diecast Land Rovers I've picked up recently, both in the British Berlin Brigade urban camo pattern.  First up is a Lander Rover 101 FC.

I've now got two of these and I'll be using them to transport a Milan team and a Medium Mortar team.

Next up a 1/2 ton Land Rover

I'm thinking I'll use this to transport my Mortar Fire Controller.

I've actually no idea if the Berlin Brigade painted these vehicles in this fashion as I've only seen pics of more "standard" Land Rovers in the Berlin urban cam scheme.  I'm not even sure if the Brigade used the 1/2 ton Land Rover at all.  But hey, they look pretty good to me and I'm just happy I have another couple of vehicle I don't have to paint in that scheme!

Catch ya soon

Richard

Hjemmeværnet (The Danish Home Guard) Transport Options Part 2

I hadn't planned on splitting this post in two, but have had to now that I didn't get around to finishing the mortar sabot base as shown a couple of posts ago.  So this will be a very small post today.

First up I weathered another Land Rover

This is the ride for the Carl Gustav MAW Team - who are a Infantry Platoon support option in my list

Figures from Wartime & Elhiem, Landie by Oxford Diecast.

Thanks

Richard

Hjemmeværnet (The Danish Home Guard) Transport Options Part 1

OK - so continuing the Hjemmeværnet (The Danish Home Guard) theme - and the Oxford Diecast theme - here are the first three touched up vehicles and their pax.

Starting with the Platoon Commander's ex-farmyard Land Rover:

And now with passengers:

Squad 1's ride:

And now with passengers:

Squad 2's ride:

And now with passengers:

The Land Rover was bashed up with washes and paint - and the canvas cover was completed repainted. The Ford Transit and VW vans were lined with MiG aircraft panel washes and then some Tamiya weathering powders added to the tires.

Support for the small platoon will appear in the next post.

Thanks

Richard

Danish Home Guard Mortar Load - A Work-in-Progress

An odd title for an odd topic.  Back here in February I posed a question on how to treat a range of Oxford Diecasts to be used as Danish Home Guard transport.  I got a fair few comments which covered a broad range from cover them with cam nets (removable if possible) to leave them alone.

I've been striving to "finish" these vehicles, but one thing I wanted to do was to make up a couple of sabot loads to give at least a couple of vehicles a slightly more military look - or at least a used look.

One such vehicle is this VW Combi-Van ute (as we would call it in Oz):

It seems perfectly suited to a sabot load, and I thought it would make a good transport for my Home Guard medium mortar team.  So I made up a quick and dirty load:

Please bear in mind that much of this will be covered by a tarp, so I really just wanted shapes.  On the sabot are a number of boxes, a Panther spare wheel with some plastic rod added so under a trap it will hopefully look like (or at least give a basic outline of) a mortar base plate, some rod used to give the idea of the mortar bipod, and a larger rod for the mortar barrel.  I also glued three rods together and cut it up to give the impression of mortar rounds in a carrying case.  It's a WW2 thing, but witht he Home Guard that kind of makes sense.  Once the tarp is on I'll add a spade and a backpack on top of the tarp.

So here it is fitted onto the ute's load bed:

Hopefully the next time you see this it will be the final product.

Thanks

Richard

News from Oxford Diecast

Some of you may already have seen this but I was so chuffed to see these I had to share them.  As you’ll know I knocked together a couple of old Airfix 1 tonne FC Land Rovers for use by my Royal Marines (amongst others) and in the course of the build I discovered it would be really handy to have a few more.  Problem is the Airfix kits seem to be a rare as hen’s teeth.

Anyway – good old Oxford Diecast have come to the rescue with these bad boys being released soon:

I’ve seen pics of a LWB Land Rover in this cam, but never a 1 tonne Landie – but who am I to complain!  I can see I’ll be adding a few of these to my Berlin list!

Whilst this one comes with African tourist markings, I’ll be repainting these to match my other 1 tonne Landies.

Not sure if I’ll get this one, as I already have one and it will need a repaint.

I love this ½ ton Land Rover and I think I’ll keep it as is for some MPs to use in a game.

I’d get rid of the UN flags on this guy, who could then be used for all manner of things.

So – just when I think “I’ve pretty much got all the Oxford Diecast models I need” – they go and do this to me!  Thanks heaps!!

I'm sure I read somewhere (although I can't find it now) that these will be released in the UK around the middle of the year.

All good

Richard

A question of sorts...

Hi everyone.  Sorry for my lack of posts but I've been quite sick recently and when I was able to get out of my sick bed and do something fun (in a quiet and constrained kind of way of course) I fiddled around with a bit of WW2 stuff for a change.

Now I'm starting to feel slightly human again (although to be honest right now it's ever so slightly) I thought I'd ask you all a question.

I'm sure I've read (or saw) somewhere that during the Cold War, a significant amount of West German civilian infrastructure (and in this case I mean things like trucking and other land vehicles) would have been taken up into service.  Pretty much every truck had a military role pre-assigned to it.  I assume that it would be the same in many of the smaller NATO members (read Denmark), even down to some "Home Guard" units using pressed civilian vehicles as their transport vehicles.

Over time, I've bought quite a few Oxford diecast vehicles, mainly for dressing the table with suitable 1980's era vehicles you might find in North West Europe.  But some of these will also make great rides for my newly finished Danish Home Guard.  Here's some examples:

Now I'm going to dirty these up to make them more lived in, but here's my question:  If a Home Guard type unit had pressed these kind of vehicles into service, do you think they would have repainted them, added cam nets, stowage or other things to make them appear "More military" or do you think they would not have bothered?

I'm torn.  Part of me thinks they'd do something to make them more military and less obvious for detection.  Assuming that a Soviet Hind pilot is likely to light up anything he sees moving in a NATO area.  But I also think you could go with the whole hiding in plain sight option.  Park one of these in a garage or in the street outside a house, and it just looks like another abandoned vehicle.  Travelling together it might look like just another group of refugees moving around behind the combat area...

The other point for not re-painting, camming up etc is that in games where they are not being used as home guard vehicles, they can be used a standard street furniture.

So what do you think?

Thanks

Richard

Berlin Brigade Part 2

I know I'm meant to be posting up Game 3, but these little beauties arrived in the post today and I just had to show them off.  Oh - and a little something I'm working on for a mate is lurking in the background...

Love these Landies - Oxford Diecast - not done a thing to them apart from take them off the stands.

Next post - GAME 3!

I promise...

Thanks

Richard