Lead Adventure Forum
Miniatures Adventure => Weird Wars => Topic started by: Jakar Nilson on August 30, 2010, 11:13:50 PM
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The British "Bull Ant" mole tank is one of the many strange vehicles that exemplify Gear Krieg. Commissioned by the War Ministry after a daring mine rescue in 1940 via a tracked drilling machine, the "Bull Ant" became a tool to strike at enemy fortifications from below. Soon, the "Bull Ant" was converted into an armoured troop carrier, known as the "Ant", to allow commando units to easily exploit underground breakthroughs. A unit of mole tanks usually consisted of four mole carrier, or three mole tanks and a mole carrier.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v242/Jakar_Nilson/sculpts/15mm052a.jpg)
(15mm Axis & Allies M4Sherman for size comparison)
Some of you might remember my first attempt at building the Ant mole tank a few years ago:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v242/Jakar_Nilson/sculpts/15mm039a.jpg)
The original conversions were based around 15mm Whippet tanks, and featured an assortment of bits to pass as the engine and the drill. Those parts were also a pain to paint. Then, at a convention earlier this year, I stumbled upon a Monsterpocalype unit, the Groundbreaker, which would simplify the process greatly. I spent the summer searching for another one, so that I could finally complete the unit.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v242/Jakar_Nilson/sculpts/15mm048.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v242/Jakar_Nilson/sculpts/15mm048a.jpg)
The bodies were made out of foamcore, and the pair of Groundbreakers were removed from their bases and trimmed of excess rocks.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v242/Jakar_Nilson/sculpts/15mm049.jpg)
I then proceeded to work on the cabin, covering the foamcore up and giving it shape. Hatches on the front and the roof were added for quick access points.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v242/Jakar_Nilson/sculpts/15mm050.jpg)
Then came the engine. I decided to go with a closed engine that would somewhat curb around the drill, similar to the artwork provided in the Allies Sourcebook and Fighting Vehicles of the Modern Age. It was also decided that the top tread would be modelled, and consisted of a slice of foamcore trimmed and covered with thin card. I unfortunately misjudged the length twice, giving meaning to the old adage "third time's the charm!"
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v242/Jakar_Nilson/sculpts/15mm051.jpg)
Finally, you can see what the unpainted models looked like beside the previous version.
All in all, I'm quite happy with these. The front could be angled more to take up as much space as possible (the carriers are supposed to hold ten men, so the more legroom, the better). I left the "shields" on the back the same as the previous version, but on a real kit these would be fleshed out.
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Well...Churchill *did* like the idea of a mole tank!
http://www.armchairgeneral.com/nellie-churchills-mechanical-mole.htm
http://strangevehicles.greyfalcon.us/RITTER%20MIDGARD.htm
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When I did research for making models of both it and the Soviet ZK-1, I did bookmark those pages, and found some Russian pages. I didn't bookmark those, but instead babelfished them and pasted them into my documentation files.