Work In Progress.....September 2013

Right until the last bit of the month I didn’t really do much, but having managed to get some paint on a band of 6mm American Civil War troops while on holiday I came back and pressed through with the basing of all the Union troops I had done so far.  This turned out to be a grand total of 74 models (1 equalling; a strip of 4 infantry, a strip of 3 cavalry, or 1 cannon and crew).  A nice ending to what has been probably my most productive year of painting models.  This also enables me, after borrowing a few models from Andy, to claim to have an ACW force capable of taking to the field – post coming soon.

With a Flames Of War game against James coming up, and a bigger game in October to look at I also gained some added enthusiasm for painting a few bits of scenery, and the big Hovels resin bridge that has been sitting in the garage (thanks Dave!) has gained a few different colours, and I’m pleased with the overall effect.  It should be good for a couple of different scales as well, with Flames of War and 28mm English Civil War the big contenders. 

My old Airfix farm also gained a new lease of life.  Originally a 1/72 model of La Haye Sainte I had found it in my Airfix bits box and put it back together incorrectly, due to a few missing parts, and based it on a wooden board so that it looked like a farm once again.  I painted it in very basic colours for use in Flames of War games, and it did look the part, but I always felt it was missing some colour.  I’ve filled in the cracks between the bricks with Iraqi Sand (an excellent tip from Red) and followed up with a brown wash to give it a weathered look.  A drybrush of the same sand had a decent effect on the rest, and some flock gave it a bit more green.

Farm in 1/72 with a 15mm Battlefront german car to demonstrate scale.

The bridge, minus the toll hut, should also be fine for 15mm, but perfect for 28mm as the Royalist horse demonstrate.

The farm from another angle, the roofs are removable.

For the Painted/Purchased lark I did make a last minute mistake and bought the Battlefront Open Fire boxed set for Flames of War; at £28 (£22 + postage) on Amazon it was a bargain, but did add an additional 33 models (1 model per team) to my purchased side:

Painted: 385

Purchased: 474

Plans for October: In the next few months I’m (hopefully) running a Flames of War campaign, so I may turn back to that and paint a few of the unfinished figures for use in the Race for the Rhine.  I also have my ACW command and a cavalry regiment waiting beside the painting table for a space, and I’ve just finished reading another Wars of the Roses book, so maybe the numerous models I’ve got for that will actually get some paint too!  Finally my improving scenery collection is making my hills look a bit out of place, so I might return to those and redo them in a brighter colour. It is also the end of my painting year, so a ‘Wargaming Review – 2013’ might be in the offing.

Or I might just play more football manager: Season 3 with Liverpool and I’ve been headhunted by Internazionale!