LVT-4 Water Buffalo

Next in the bench is that Water Buffalo I picked up from Crewkerne Models a couple of weeks ago.

Such an unusual vehicle!

It is however another Italeri. Same soft plastic as the ‘Fury’ Sherman, equally erratic instructions and this one needs some SERIOUS tape to mould it into shape! 

Making progress with the LVT-4 Water Buffalo!

The kit itself is is a bit hit and miss for a 2000 tooled mould but I think the main issue for me is Italeri’s softer plastic which seems to suffer from warping, the need to drill out some of the holes and a less accurate fit. Italeri have unusually for them, added large pieces of PE for the machine gun pods. Although these add a bit of crispness, I’m not sure they are really necessary considering the lack of detail elsewhere. 

So, you’ll note that I’ve progressed to that favoured position of having it black primed ready for the Olive Drab and detailing. 

Oh yes, one final observation. This comes with no crew nor even hatch openings for the driver, so having seen archive pictures of them carrying SAS Jeeps across the Elbe in April 1945, I’m going to lay my hands on one of those nice Tamiya Jeeps to add to the finished build 

All now ready for some weathering and that SAS Jeep, which I’m looking forward to picking up from Crewkerne Models on Friday! 

I first primed this in SMS Surfacer Black followed by SMS Premium US Olive Drab. These paints are fantastic to airbrush, if not a bit smelly! Detailing has been completed with my go to Vallejo acrylics.

Tamiya’s SAS Jeep and Gecko Models British drivers (soon to join the SAS) for my Water Buffalo crossing of the Elbe, now acquired from Crewkerne Models and construction under way!

Water Buffalo, SAS Jeep and troops united. Now finally time for that weathering! 

Italeri’s LTV-4 Water Buffalo, Tamiya’s SAS Jeep and a couple of Gecko Models British Army drivers now complete this 1:35 scale ensemble. 

This finished look was inspired by a photograph of an SAS jeep sitting inside a Buffalo amphibious landing craft before the crossing of the Elbe on 29 April 1945.

It’s a shame the Jeep is now hidden in the Buffalo as there’s so much additional detail on it  that we’ll never now see … BUT … I know it’s there.

SMS paints were sprayed for the large areas, including the final mat varnish, Vallejo paints were used for brush painting the figures and detailing and Abteilung 502 oils for the weathering.

British Special Air Services Jeep

Tamiya’s SAS Jeep and Gecko Models British drivers (soon to join the SAS) for my Water Buffalo crossing of the Elbe.

I’ve managed to make a good start on the Tamiya SAS Jeep but won’t quite have it and the Buffalo finished for Sunday’s Yeovil Scale Model Show. 

There are slight changes I’m making to the desert raiding version that I built a few years ago and naturally the SAS troops will have to dress a little differently for the European campaign! 

I’ve loaded it with Jerrycans and ammunition boxes and had a go at adding some home made foil straps for that added detail. 

I then black primed and olive drab base coated it in my new goto SMS paints.  Next up, the fine detailing and SAS driver selection.

Crew and detailing hand painted with Vallejo acrylics ... but I'm not happy with the moulding of that camo net on the front bumper. I could make one from scratch which would be easy enough, but if I'm going to change it, let's try getting closer to the original with boxes. 

I found a couple of box pieces in my stash and using elastic thread as rope I don't think this looks too bad.

And for a comparison with the original photo I spoke of ....

The job is done ....

Jagdpanzer 38(t) Hetzer

Here's my 9th build of 2025, Airfix's 1/35 scale Jagdpanzer 38(t) Hetzer. 

I’m joining Dave from my Seaton Scale Modellers group in this build. Mine is the Airfix, or re-badged Academy kit, which I’m going to finish in the colours and markings of one attached to the Assault Gun Platoon, First Bulgarian Army, Hungary during the spring 1945, which I hope will complement Dave’s German build. 

This Airfix kit builds nicely and even has a little piece of photo etch which adds a quality bit of detail.

This was probably one of the easiest 1:35 AFVs I've built to date, I even think I got away with building it from start to finish and not pre-painting any of the pieces! Everything fits beautifully, there's no flash and the parts cut off the sprue cleanly. I also loved the ideal of being able to complete it in some different colours and this Bulgarian finish will be perfect for my upcoming VE-Day80 displays.

HMS Belfast

Just back from visiting the IWM's HMS Belfast and what a fantastic experience. I wouldn't say it helped a great deal in me finishing my Airfix kit, as the ship on the Thames has been knocked around considerably since it saw action in WW2, but the atmosphere of being on board and tour of engine room was a real highlight!

Where as my previous attempt at building ships have left me thinking when finished, how grey and drab they were, for HMS Belfast I probably went a little bit too far the other way with a full Technicolor paint job! 

Added railings, rigging and a little light weathering to my Airfix 1/600 scale HMS Belfast. 

Looking a little more like the real thing now. 

British Tank Destroyer M10 IIC Achilles

I've decided to kick off my VE-Day80 builds with a kit I purchased on a birthday visit to the Tank Museum way back in 2020 and which has been continually overlooked when I've reached for a 1:35 scale AFV since! This is its time.

This 17 pounder, Self-Propelled, Achilles is a British variant of the American M10 tank destroyer used across the European theatre between 1943 - 1945. Coincidentally, I've just finished reading Anthony Beever's book "Arnem" and the Achilles kept cropping up, so may be I was subliminally steered in this direction as I had originally pulled out the Fury Sherman and a Tiger! 

The build ....

I know it's a cliché, but one can't deny how good Tamyia AFV kits are. This is a 2016 moulding of an M10 with new Achilles parts added in 2019. Everything fits beautifully, the moulds are crisp and detailed and I'm loving it. I've got to the position now where I'm going to black prime ahead of giving it a coat of British Army Khaki Drab. The kit comes with an array of shells, bags and personal arms ... oh yes, and a number of figures to construct and paint. I can start tackling these while the vehicle's paint cures.

Adding some of the detail to my Tamiya M10 Achilles, including a rack of 17pdr shells. I’ve also dug out a couple of reference photos from the Bovington Tank Museum to get the right colours for those tracks. 

My new goto metallic Vallejo Liquid Metal sprays on beautifully. 

The finished model ...

I’ve finished this in the markings of 75th Anti-Tank Regiment, 11th Armoured Division, North West Europe, 1944-1945. The Regiment landed in Normandy shortly after D-Day and were involved in many of the major operations to liberate Europe.

T-34/85 Chinese Volunteer 215

 

Here’s the Rye Field Model (RFM) 1:35 scale T-34/85 finished as Tank No.215, commanded by Yang Aru, 4th Company, 4th Tank Regiment, 2nd Tank Division of the People's Volunteer Army(PVA), in 1953 during the Korean War. 

This has been an enjoyable kit to build albeit RFM’s instructions are a little vague in some areas: with part numbering a bit erratic, instructions to drill holes for bits without locating pins and some parts being missed from the instructions altogether. It kept me on my toes 😂

For the first time I used SMS acrylic lacquer paints which were a real dream and I can’t wait to give them another go. I lightly weathered using Abteilung 502 oils and Flory Models sand which I sprayed to give that dusty look.

F-51D Mustang

My 5th model of 2025 is Airfix’s F-51D Mustang, which I’ve selected to build as part of my current Korean War project. 

I found this a very nice kit to build. Although I had a number of different after market decals for both US and Commonwealth UN markings, I decided to run with the Airfix set and finished it in the colours of Mustang 44-74625/FF-625 of 67th Fighter Bomber Squadron stationed at the forward operating base at Hoengsong, South Korean in 1950.

I used my new favourite silver paint, Vallejo’s Liquid Metal, for most of the aircraft and added Vallejo’s standard aluminium acrylic to provide lowlights to the wings. This was a mistake as not only do I think the effect detracts from the overall finish, subsequent masking of the red wing tips removed some of the aluminium! Time to acquire the rest of the Liquid Metal range. The decals went on very nicely, and to be honest, this was probably what finally swayed me to go with Airfix’s and not the aftermarket ones, you know what you’re getting with the new Airfix kits. In view of my feelings towards the paintwork, I finished the model with a layer of satin varnish.

The aircraft features the nose markings ‘ROTATION BLUES’ on the starboard side cowling, presumably after the record of the same name which was popular in the US at that time.

As a result of the North Korean invasion of South Korea in June 1950, the squadron was moved from the Philippines to Taegu Air Base, South Korea in July. At Taego, the squadron exchanged its Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star jets for propeller-driven North American F-51D Mustangs which were more suited to the ground attack and support role. I thought, therefore, that it would be OK to use one of Academy's standing F-86 pilots with helmet rather than the WW2 dress figure supplied with the kit.

Next up will probably be a Chinese T-34 followed by a North Korean MiG-15 … I fancy a piece of armour!

Fokker D.VIIF

 My 4th build of 2025 is this 1:48 scale Eduard Weekend edition of the Fokker D.VIIF

This is my interpretation of the Fokker biplane flown by Ltn. Ernst Udet, in 1918. It’s a little different from the version in the kit as rather than fitting the lozenge pattern decal to the upper wing I masked and painted the stripes that Udet had on an earlier aircraft and  is believed he went on to add to this one too. I also painted the stripes on the tailplane to match before realising a decal was included. Ernst Udet the most successful surviving fighter aces of WWI, with 62 confirmed kills. He named his aircraft, LO! after his fiancée Eleonore ‘Lo' Zink.

I found this a nice enough kit to build, although as I usually find on biplanes, the holes in the wings had to be drilled out, they are never large enough to hold the struts; the length of the struts are either too long or too short for the gap between upper and lower wings and without a jig, the whole thing can all too easily slip out of shape! The decals look great but I found the amount of carrier film to be excessive and the many additional lozenge decals for the wings with little or no instruction somewhat confusing. Some of the detailing is excellent, especially the engine. I welcomed the addition of harnesses decals, although they look a little unconvincing when applied.

This has been both the first 1:48 scale biplane and the first Eduard kit I’ve built.  I was very impressed with the presentation: the quality of the instructions, the layout of the sprue pieces and the range of decals. I thought this may even have been the start of a WWI aircraft building phase for me, alas no. I’m still not a fan of how biplane kits have to be constructed and I can’t seem to make them look more than just a toy aeroplane.

However, I built this kit to illustrate a popular form of WWI nose art for a talk I’m doing later this week, and for this it’s perfect. It is also because of this that I have omitted the rigging. If, however, the model survives being transported to and from the event, I may have a bash at rigging it.

Curtiss Tomahawk Mk.II

Build No.3 of 2025. This is Airfix's 1/48 scale Airfix P-40 Tomahawk MkIIB. 

I've completed the build in the colours of AK128 BT-H, which was an aircraft of No.1686 Bomber (Defence) Training Flight at RAF Hixon in Staffordshire attached to 30 OTU (Operational Training Unit), in 1942. This is an unusual assignment for a fighter as 30 OTU was part of No. 93 Group RAF Bomber Command.

No.1686 Training Flight were equipped with P-40 Tomahawk aircraft formerly used by No. 112 Squadron in North Africa and it is suggested that this is why they retained their distinctive Sharks Teeth markings. The aircraft of this unit were required to fly simulated fighter attacks against Wellington bombers, of 30 OTU, so that the turret gunners could practice against a fighter attack whilst airborne.

This Tomahawk met its end  in a taxiing accident at RAF Hixon on 23rd December 1943, when RNZAF pilot, F/Lt L.M. Ralph, inadvertently struck a fuel bowser whilst heading either too or from the main runway at the airfield. Whilst he escaped the incident without  serious injury, his aircraft was less fortunate and was immediately scrapped.

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The kit: 

Brand: Airfix

Title: Curtiss Tomahawk Mk.II

Number: A05133A
Scale: 1:48
Released: 2024 New decals

Korean War M4A3E8 Sherman 'Tigerface'

My Korean War M4A3(76)W Sherman is built. 

Although I spent, what seemed a long time, applying oils and pigments to give it a look of wear and use, I haven't really achieved the grimy finish I was expecting. I'm, therefore, assuming this tank represents the time when Lieutenant General Matthew B. Ridgway replaced General Douglas MacArthur in the in April 1951 and I have read that he, amongst other moral boosting actions, got soldiers cleaning their vehicles again!

This is inspired by a tank of C-Company of the 70th Tank Battalion which was one of the first three tank battalions to deploy in the Korean War, where it saw significant action.

From what I understand, as the United Nations forces engaged with the Chinese People's Army along the Han river in Korea in mid-February 1951, several US tank battalions decided to paint their tanks with giant tiger faces, the idea being that they hoped superstitious Chinese infantrymen would be scared by their fearsome faces!

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The kit:

Brand: Airfix

Title: M4A3(76)W Sherman

Number: A1365
Scale: 1:35
Release: 2019 New decals

Republic P-47N Thunderbolt

First build of 2025!

Revell's 1:48 scale Republic P-47N Thunderbolt 44-88835 'Red E Ruth' of 19FS 318FG Le Shima 1945 with Pilot Capt Don Stuck in the cockpit.

This is a Pro Modeler 1997 moulding re-badged and relased by Revell with new Decals in 2012. It was a nice simple build with none of the silly over engineering Airfix have indulged in recently. The figure was brilliant albeit with the canopy closed he's not very visible. Engine detail is likewise very nice, but unlike Andrew's PE2, there's no way to expose this. Overall, a reasonably good kit if you want a P-47 bubble top in your collection.

I actually purchased this for no other reason than it was keenly priced and I thought I could use it as an exhibit for a Nose Art presentation I'm giving to the local u3a Art Appreciation Group later this month.

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The kit:

Brand: Revell

Number: 04867 (80-4867)

Title: Republic P-47N Thunderbolt
Scale: 1:48
Released: 2012 New decals