Airfix 20mm Japanese to Italian Infantry Conversions

Repeating here some photos from an old post that was wiped out when the site was hacked a few years ago.

The Airfix 20mm WW2 Italian Infantry set was first released by Airfix in the 1980s and there are some beautifully sculpted figures in the set, but with a limited number of poses.



These figures are on the small side and if you mix them in the same unit with other sets of Italian 1:72 scale figures from Esci or Waterloo 1815 they look too small.

You can add more poses to their ranks by using 1:76 scale figures from the Airfix WW2 Japanese Infantry set.

The idea of using Airfix Japanese figures as Italians is an old one. The very first time I read about using them as stand-in Italians was in an old article by Gerald Scarborough when as a kid, long before there were any other 20mm scale Italian Infantry figures available in plastic.



Spare Airfix Italian Infantry figures were used to donate some heads, and some others were given field-caps / bustinas made from epoxy.



The rifles on the Airfix Japanese figures are too thin and are not very well sculpted so they need replacing with weapons taken from other figures.

In the picture above the converted figures were getting a dry-run test using some blu-tac (actually yellow in this case).

Finally after finishing the conversions the figures were all painted and based.

The group also needed some heavy weapon support, so a crude and oversized “representation” of a Breda M37 was made using a Waterloo 1815 Japanese figure with an HMG.

At this point I had no more helmeted Italian heads left, so this Italian sports a head off an old Airfix Russian. I’m pretty sure that veteran plastic enthusiasts will all recognize which set the loader came from too….

The whole new family.

Allied "Funnies"

As a follow up to the "Ersatz" Opel Blitz pictures published on the blog last month,  my miniature allied arsenal also has some "funnies" that were pressed into service many moons ago.

Sherman Jumbo

A repainted Matchbox Battle Kings die-cast toy that a mate of mine Iván gave me when we first met and started gaming together on a regular basis some 20 years ago. 

The Matchbox tracks were missing and were replaced with tracks off a Hasegawa 1/72nd scale M4A3E8 Sherman. 

The tank commander is an Airfix British Paratrooper.

Even though it's oversized and clunky, it's seen some action as a Sherman Jumbo in a couple of games over the years. 

When you compare it with a lovely detailed kit, like the Trumpeter Sherman below, it's toylike appearance is even more evident. Anyhow, even if it raises a few eyebrows when I next get it on the gaming table again I don't mind too much.

Roco M40 155mm / Sherman suspension hybrid

About the same time back in the early 2000's, my tiny, but growing US forces were in urgent need of some mobile artillery. Getting your hands an Esci M12 was difficult, but I had a Roco Minitanks 1/87 155mm M40, but without the HVSS suspension. 

A broken 1/76 scale Sherman came to the rescue and donated its suspension and tracks to the allied cause, giving birth to this strange hybrid.

It's small next to a Matchbox M40 kit, but on the other hand, it's only a little smaller in size to a real Esci M12 - which I now have thankfully through Ebay, (and also now some excellent Altaya M12 diecasts).

Sherman Dozer

The British Shermans below were all made back in the early 2000's.

We were going to game a scenario that needed a Sherman dozer. A few days before the game I managed to get a hot-wheels bulldozer from a toyshop, fixed the blade onto the front of one of the Shermans and hey-presto ! Not very pretty but you can see what its function is.  

I did recently get a real dozer blade for my US forces. The blade came courtesy of a kit from UM Models.  Not sure if my version is comical or just sad in comparison.

Thanks for visiting, hope you enjoyed the pictures. Will be back with some new stuff later in the month.

Cheers, John

1/72 Scale US Navy Landing Party - Dixie Cup Hats

Repeating here some photos from an old post that was wiped out when the site was hacked a few years ago.

We needed a Forward Observer Team to use as regimental support for a WWII Pacific USMC Platoon and using the Iron Ivan Disposable Heroes rules you get the option of either a Marine or Navy FO team.

I decided on a Navy team in white dixie cup hats and some “true-blue” navy gear. 

The hats were made with some thin strands of paper and white-glue wrapped around bare heads taken from other figures.

I wanted to use them in scenarios as a kind of Naval landing party, even for some pulp scenarios, having them stranded on an dinosaur and hostile-native infested island, crazy things like that.

The figures are IMEX, a mixture from the two sets of Korean War figures, all with new heads.

Aug-24, 2010

"Ersatz" Opel Blitz

There was a time 20+ years ago, when it was impossible to get your hands on a 20mm Opel Blitz and inspired by a post on Will's Wargames Blog I thought I'd share a couple of photos of two British vehicles that made their way into the miniature WW2 German arsenal.

This rehashed old Airfix Austin K6 was a solution, and the vehicle is still in my collection today from back then

Nowadays of course you don't need to go to such a ridiculous end as there are so many kits and ready-made options available.

Another "Ersatz" vehicle was this Opel Blitz ambulance bus below. This was a more recent concoction, using a die-cast Bedford OB Utility bus.  There are kits of the Opel Blitz bus available but at the time I thought that from a distance this could make the grade. 

Happy New Year to all you fellow modellers, gamers and toy collectors out there !

Battle of Berlin – Stretcher Bearers Conversions

Repeating here some photos from an old post that was wiped out when the site was hacked a few years ago.

The stretcher bearers are old Esci WW2 French in greatcoats with headswaps, the “Frau Medic” is a hard plastic lady from Dapol, the two walking guys are Airfix WW1 French, the surrendering figure is a Revell Engineer with a headswap and the old guys in caps carrying the stretcher are WW1 Airfix Germans

Helmet Scrim for Smallscale Figures

Ever wanted to add a helmet scrim effect onto your minis ?  I've put together a short video on Youtube showing how I do it with just a little gauze bandage, some nail scissors and a touch of white glue.

 If you click on either of the images below it open up the video in a new window in youtube. 

 

German and American "volunteers" in British colonial service

Feeling nostalgic and working on some British colonial era troops I was inspired by an article by "C. Jones" on modeling the Zulu War with 20mm Airfix figures that I found in an old July 1967 edition of the Airfix magazine.

As per the magazine article I used Airfix WW1 Germans.

I added heads with the pith hemets from the Esci/Italeri British colonial sets, and also used some more recent figures that weren't available when the author wrote his article, a couple of Imex ACW figures and a Revell WW1 German

The cavalry and horse-drawn artillery look like they might be nice future conversions.

Roco Minitanks 1/87 scale Dodge Command Car and Memories of Charles Grant's "Battle"

Possibly Brits, Aussies or Kiwis of a certain age might recognise the setup, it might also ring a bell with miniature gamers from other countries who had access to English publications many many moons ago

The Iron cross looks a bit out of place on the RED battalion commander, and I didn't expect it to show up so much but the final wash brought out a lot of the figure's fine detail.

The figures and vehicles are the same as the ones in the original book, German WW1 officer figure with an Airfix Russian head, accompanying Russian officer and the battalion command car is an old Roco Minitanks Dodge.

Airfix US Paratroops - Some Conversions

When these figures first came out in the mid-seventies I was very disappointed when I eagerly opened the box, only to discover that they were moulded in grey plastic !!  In my mind, they should have been made in the usual Airfix olive green plastic that all my other allied figures came in, I mean grey plastic was reserved for the Germans ....

(one of those original mid 1970s grey impostors in the foreground, and a more recent olive green offering from Heller)

Anyway, my childhood traumas aside, the set really does have some very well sculpted figures, albeit a little on the small side.

I had some pictures of these Airfix figures on the old and now defunct MiniatureZone website but until now I hadn't remembered to upload them here.

So here they are - these figures as you can see were moulded in good old olive green from a more recent offering by Heller - when I say recent, it's relative...... these were probably made about 10 - 12 years ago

The Airfix US paras lack a bit of heavier firepower so these little fellas got a few support weapons added.

Below, the standing figure on the left has had his Thompson replaced with a Bar taken from an old Esci US Para figure, while the MG team has been given a 0.30 cal Browning taken from the Revell US Paras set.

The mortar is from the Pegasus German set

Finally this one below was a complete bodge, it's supposed to be a hand-cart. Not very convincing, but I gave it a try at least.

And the figures once painted.

There are no parachutes in the Airfix set so we got a parachute taken from the Revell German Fallschirmjäger set, and the dropbag came from the Revell US Paras.

No bazookas for the Airfix guys either, the figure on the right had his carbine replaced with something a little more substantial.

And the rest of the gang, just vanilla Airfix US Paras

The figures are a joy to paint and they're well detailed and have stood the test of time, they still look good compared with more modern figures.

Hope you enjoyed the pictures and feel free to comment. Will try to get another update soon, so keep safe and check back in a little while.

WW2 British Motor Gunboat, Würzburg Radar & Sailors

A few years ago our small wargaming group gave a demonstration game of the Operation Biting Bruneval Raid at a local comic / cosplay / gaming event.

The scenario was  designed by one of our fellow gamers Iván, who also built the magnificent terrain board and coastline.

You can see a game report on the link below, which will open up in a new window if you click it. It's in Spanish, but with pictures that speak for themselves

https://wargamestenerife.blogspot.com/2015/03/bruneval-commando-raid-1942.html

For the game we already had plenty of 1/72 scale Germans as the defenders, and also lots of British Paras left over from an Arnhem wargame campaign (albeit in the wrong uniform for this raid, but we could live with that) and more than enough scenery.

What we didn't have were some rescue vessels to to provide covering fire as the paras were picked up from the coastline, and something to represent the Würzburg radar.

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Würzburg Radar

We knocked up a crude representation of the radar just a few days before the game.

Well, I did say crude  ........

It's basically a perspex ball cut off at the top and mounted onto a structure taken off a toy crane, and then fixed onto the base of an Italeri 90/53 Gun.

A good dousing of grey paint and on the day it did its job and nobody mentioned that it bore only a fleeting resemblance to the real thing.

Should also add that nobody mentioned either that the British paras were wearing red berets and were dressed for Arnhem.

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British Motor Gunboat

This was a bit of an invention, made from a modified toy motor launch.

The missile launchers and oversized MG on the the stern were removed and the bridge was taken off and moved forward.

It was also cut down to make it a waterline model and two Bofors were added, one the bow and stern.

Painted grey and with a Royal Navy Ensign flying, it makes a more or less passable MGB.

And here she is, MGB "Conversio" providing covering fire as the Paras made their way down to the beach with a German prisoner and parts taken off the radar. 

The landing craft crashing onto the beach in the foreground is an Airfix LCM with the pilot's house removed and a few other minor conversions. 

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Sailors

The vessels couldn't be complete without crew members, and the sailors are mostly conversions with a mix from various sets.

There are a couple of Airfix civilians and a Dapol railway worker with new heads, plus a few Revell Kriegsmarine figures and some Emhar WW1 British

Quite a few of the sailors have heads taken off the old Airfix British WW1 figures in caps as they make good donors and you just need to slightly trim down the visor at the front and they are perfect for representing the flat visorless hat worn by British sailors. 

The idea for using the WW1 British Infantry heads like this isn't my original idea, I got it from a very old Airfix magazine article back in the 1970s.

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Just to say that I was inspired to finally get around to posting these picture after viewing an excellent post on sailor conversions and a huge WW2 vessel by Simon from the Service Ration Distribution blog which I recommend you visit. You can access his post on the following link (click and it will open in a new window)

https://servicerationdistributionhobby.blogspot.com/2020/05/ships-finishing-touches-lock-down-catch.html

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As always, keep safe and hope that wherever you are the lockdown is easing and that we are all slowly but surely getting over the worst.