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Miniatures Adventure => The Second World War => Topic started by: randycarter on July 05, 2018, 08:38:41 PM

Title: A 1:72 project
Post by: randycarter on July 05, 2018, 08:38:41 PM
Hi everyone,
it's really a lot of time since I've posted something I did here on LAF. After a lot of lurking I took courage and I finally decided to share some image of the beginning of a 1:72 WWII project: nothing fancy, generic eastern front, and a lot of experiments on painting. Well, so far, my first russian rifle squad in 20 mm!
The idea is to base them for Crossfire rules, keeping them usable for other skirmish rules. A lot of work still to do on flesh...
Hope you like it!

Cheers
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: Tim on July 06, 2018, 04:20:36 AM
I like them very much, but I think you need brighter lighting for your photos. :)

I don’t recognize the figures; what company(ie’s)?

Crossfire is a great game, have you played it yet?  I’ve been playing in 1/72 for a long time.   I personally just use two figures for rifle and SNG squads, partly out of laziness and partly because I find the stands too crowded with three figures.  The latter is just me; I’ve seen great looking theee figure stands in this scale.  I also make my stands a little larger, 1.5” by 1.5” to give a little more room on the base.  That works ok for me as I normally supplybthr figures for our CF games. 

I’d love to see your figures in your “bad game mode” when you get around to it.

All the best and great work from what I can see.  :)
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: randycarter on July 06, 2018, 07:33:37 AM
Hi Tim,
thank you, very kind. I'm a bit of a newbie in making photos: next step improve lighting!  lol

Figures are a mix of Zvezda and ESCI/Italeri: both good ranges IMO, and they blend quite nicely together.

I'v never played Crossfire yet: the goal is to have two basic companies painted and finally play one game, but it will take some time, I'm afraid  ::) I find the system very interesting!

I've made some larger magnetised bases to make room for 3 figures: all in all Flames of War dimensions, 2 x 1.25 (50 mm x 32 mm), and I think they fit quite well: I've made a shot of the based platoon, but inexplicably my tabled refused to upload them correctly. Again, I'm a bit of a newbie!
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: DonFabrizio on July 07, 2018, 08:31:37 AM
lovely painting and terrain!
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: Golgotha on July 07, 2018, 09:28:18 AM
Good to see 1/72 minis especially Esci Russians.
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: randycarter on July 07, 2018, 10:43:06 AM
Thank you both! Photos are very poor, I hope to improve my skills a bit for next shots.

@ Gogotha: yes, the ESCI russian kit contains some really gorgeous models: very dinamic poses, some rifle guy in partcular.
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: randycarter on September 24, 2018, 08:48:05 PM
After some time spent in painting fantasy miniatures I'm back to my soviets. By now just some rapid shots of WIP minis based for Crossfire. The figures will be magnetized to the bases to be playable also with skirmish rule sets.

I'm liking even more ESCI models, safe for that dmn'd guy with both his hands up. I really can't figure out what it's supposing he's doing  o_o. So I went for a simple conversion: a good improvement IMO!
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: Tim on September 28, 2018, 02:11:26 AM
I really, really like the result of your arm twisting of your raving, waving guy.  Where the hell were you two decades ago when I was painting mine up?  :)  I don't mind the figure as is, too much, but your conversion is really an excellent idea.  Did you use pins?  I highly recommend them.  Let me know if you'd like to hear how I did them or you can google around a bit.  I found after years of converting figures - not the waving, raving Soviet guy, unfortunately - that pinning, while a fair bit of extra effort, if the way to go.

 :o   SEE MY NOTE ON ESCI MGs, BELOW!    :o

I've always thought the waving, raving guy was calling troops forward.  :)   So I've used him as a PC figure for a number of my platoons - my Soviet battalion's worth of 4 squad platoons was the first major painting I did specifically for Crossfire back in 1998).  He doesn't look too bad behind his squads, LOL.  Here's a picture of one such PC who is loitering off to the left while his company commander (CC of in my ESCI/Italeri "red" company) leads a close combat assault with the PC's platoon on a German squad.  All the Soviets in this picture are ESCI/Revell. 


(https://i.imgur.com/ny4mmY2.jpg)


Here's a pic from a more recent game (last December at a freind's place using his terrain and my buildings and forces) of a "herd" of Soviets setting up in what is safe ground for them.  You should be able to pick at least one waving raving guy PC in my "black" company of mostly Revell with some ESCI and Svezda (the clear base) in the foreground.


(https://i.imgur.com/TUlXO4I.jpg)


 :o  :o   IMPORTANT NOTE ON ESCI/ESCI MAXIM MG FIGURES!!!!   :o  :o

One thing to be careful of with your ESCI figures is that the machine gun loader - the guy feeding the belt into the Maxim - is ON THE WRONG SIDE.  As I've already mentioned, I did my Soviets stands a century ago, and assumed the belt feed was on the correct side - I didn't even question it.  However, I've found to my absolute display since then that the feed was on the RIGHT side, not the left.

I'd initially planned to correct this, but have not gotten around to it.

Since I use two figures on almost all my stands, I sprinkle cut pieces of thin copper wire around my MGs for spent casings, so not only does the ESCI screw up affect the loader, it affects what side the expended casings lie! :) 

(https://i.imgur.com/M5YmDfm.jpg)

It really sucks golf balls through a hose, but it can be overlooked in the excitement of the game and to be honest all but one, possibly two of my wargaming friends would be able to notice, anyway.



Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: Mr. Peabody on September 28, 2018, 02:22:47 AM
Great stuff. I'll always have s soft spot for 1/72 Soviets.  8)
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: SteveBurt on September 28, 2018, 10:01:59 AM
For the ESCI MGs, just keep a mirror handy near the table, and look at them through the mirror. Then they will be the correct way round.  ;)
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: zirrian on September 28, 2018, 01:37:35 PM
As far as I'm concerned, with some modification, it could take ammo from the other side...or at least a friend, Johan, who has a nice 1:72 topic on this forum but I forgot his username convinced me :P

To be honest I wouldn't worry, or I'd get the Zvezda minikits that contains two MGs on the correct side. The Maxim they have is not as nice as the Esci one (at least the wheels), so the two would work together nicely.

Great thread, keep us posted! You might inspire me to finally get started on Ivan - I have some T-34s and a KV-1 already, so I mostly need just the infantry :)
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: randycarter on September 28, 2018, 07:57:48 PM
Thank you everybody guys, a kind enviroment like this of LEAF is very motivating! Ithink that this second platoon (squad?) will be completed in a couple of weeks: new images will follow for sure. Hopefully a third group will follow, plus CC, FO, HMG and a mortar. Step by step  lol

@Tim: thank you for the advise on Maxim: I'm a very poor military history scholar, so I couldn't even know the issue without some suggestion. I'll look for some solution when the HMG time will come!
How the heel did you manage to put pins in such tiny figures?  :o Your hint will be very welcome! I find converting 1/72 figures very hard in front of "regular" 28mm.
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: randycarter on November 21, 2018, 09:43:15 PM
Ok, not exactly a couple of weeks, I must admit  ::)
Here are some pics of the second squad/platoon painted and ready for action. I spent more time in detailing faces and skin parts, and I made some simpler painting in greens and browns. Some more work still to do, but I think I'm on the right way.
I'm still a bit in doubt with the bases: as you can (maybe) see in the last photo for the second squad I went for a different approach: less texture and darker colours. I think that the definitive version will be with dark colour and a mid-way texture (maybe I will try with a mix of plaster, water and sand), but I'd like to have some of your ever useful suggestion  :)
Than you for reading!
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: randycarter on April 21, 2019, 09:11:31 AM
Ok, just four months without news about this project, that's not so much  ::)
Anyway: I eventually finished the last batch of Russian infantry: now there are three rifle squads/platoons and one SMG squad/platoon completed.
I'm not happy at all about the bases, but I just can't figure out how to change them. The idea is a muddy terrain, but they don't really work. By now I call them finished, then "chi vivrà vedrà".
Now a picture of the SMG squad and a collective shot. Thank you all and have a nice  Heaster day!
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: Donkeymilkman on May 05, 2019, 02:17:48 PM
I really like how you've painted them up and I personally like the bases too. An interesting little project as it's my favourite scale of miniatures. Well done!!!
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: randycarter on May 05, 2019, 03:16:09 PM
I really like how you've painted them up and I personally like the bases too. An interesting little project as it's my favourite scale of miniatures. Well done!!!

Thank you, I'm glad that you like them! Photos are a bit blurry and maybe they conceal some imperfection of the bases, but all in all by now they are OK.
In the future (don't know how far) there will be some upgrade: MMGs, mortar and platoon command are in queue, and some German opponent too.
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: Galland on May 06, 2019, 05:39:21 AM
Nice project you have going here. I wonder, did the miniatures come with the round bases from the start? I am looking for suitable round bases, as I will base my figures individually.
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: randycarter on May 06, 2019, 07:02:38 AM
Nice project you have going here. I wonder, did the miniatures come with the round bases from the start? I am looking for suitable round bases, as I will base my figures individually.

Hi Galland, thank you!
No, the miniatures are "regular" 20 mm in soft plastic, glued on 1 cent euro coins (they are 16 mm diameter, quite good for 1/72 figures IMO).
Otherwise you can produce them by yourself with a compass cutter or something similar: a bit more of work, but it depends on how much figures you have to base.
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: Ultravanillasmurf on May 06, 2019, 07:22:41 AM
No, the miniatures are "regular" 20 mm in soft plastic, glued on 1 cent euro coins (they are 16 mm diameter, quite good for 1/72 figures IMO).
Otherwise you can produce them by yourself with a compass cutter or something similar: a bit more of work, but it depends on how much figures you have to base.
When I ran out of "one shilling" size five pence pieces, I used a piece of conduit pipe sharpened with a file as a biscuit cutter stamp for bases. You might be able to find a suitable sized piece of steel pipe and do the same.
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: randycarter on July 26, 2019, 08:24:33 AM
Hi all,
just a rapid shot of what's on the workbench before start painting: support weapons (three maxim and a mortar) and three snipers. In the end I finished to ignore the "Esci Maxim Issue" for speed sake. All in all I understood that historical adherence is not a major focus in my hobbyshaun  ::)

Thank you for reading
Title: Re: A 1:72 project
Post by: randycarter on September 14, 2019, 01:46:56 PM
I finally put some paint on these guys. I begin to be happy about the result, even the paint job on bases is a bit close to the target.
Next steps are the official stand and a couple of forward observer.

Thank you all