CapnJim's Modern Stuff - Balczaki-Soviet Bridge Fight Full AAR - Pg 54-10 Aug 25

[Rick]

You see, I'd have suggested the M24 Chaffee instead of the M3 Stuart at this point. It was a very popular tank or at least they managed to sell a lot of them! 

[CapnJim]

All good suggestions.  The current already-in-my- collection candidates are Saladins or a Panhard 90mm.  As for additions, I m leaning toward M24s or M41s. That's for the GNP.  The rebels will likely gave the usual Soviet stuff (supplied by the Cubans).

[carlos marighela]

Hmm not so many M24s in Latin America. Chile bought a few and actually did a cool conversion with an Israeli hyper velocity 60mm gun. Uruguay had them on the books for donkey's years before replacing them with M41 s.

By far the most widespread vehicel in the hemisphere were WW2 surplus M3s. Pretty much everyone who had tanks in Latin America had a collection of M3s at some point and the Bolivian ones even made it into the 21st C. Brazil had hundreds of the damn things. They even found a whole tank company's worth parked up on a farm in São Paulo state about fifteen years ago. Of course Brazil also converted them, not only into the X1 series but also some pretty cool one-off oddities. I've seen the self propelled MRL version in the army museum in Rio.

Shermans were fairly widely spread. By numbers, naturally enough it was the ABC countries that had the most but examples popped up in Cuba and Nicaragua and Paraguay. Paraguay kept some of the ex- Argentine, upgunned ex-British Fireflies running until a few years ago.

The M41 was more limited in terms of Latin American sales. A lot were sold to Brazil and Chile but not many others bought them. Guatemala bought a handful, Uruguay bought some this century as did the Dominican Republic.

AMX-13s sold better in Latin America and the Dominican Republic was an early user, they first purchased them in the late 1950s.

Don't forget the exotica that exists. Colombia famously converted M8 Greyhounds in to TOW toting ATGM vehicles. El Salvador produced a whole range of weird home made APCs during the civil war, the Cashuat. Honduras had a selection of Saladin armoured cars. My fave of the lot though were the Swedish L-60 tanks that the DR bought. Three of these were famously knocked out during the US intervention in 1965 by an M48, an Ontos and a 106mm RCL belonging to the 82nd Airborne respectively. Nobody makes  the L-60 per se but it's an easy enough conversion or bodge up from a Hungarian Toldi of which there are several made in scale.

For the more bland and commonplace remember that things like M3 halftracks and M3 Scout cars soldiered on in Latin America up to the turn of the century. If  El Perdomo is a US client state, you can almost guarantee it will have had some floating about at some point.

[carlos marighela]

By the by, if you are looking for inspiration Jane's published a rather useful tome by Adrian English entitled Armed forces of Latin America. Mine dates to 1984 and it's long out of print but worth picking up second hand. It has a few errors and as with some of his other books I have the odd niggle with some of Mr English's scholarship but overall it's a really useful tome. Goes right down to small arms used and provides dates or date periods  for most of the major equipment items purchased.

[CapnJim]

Hmm.  Thanks for that.  I do have Jane's Armour and Artillery from the 80s.

[Rick]

Argh. It's contagious - I just caught myself thinking "well, I've got a Sherman, M8 and some M3 halftracks I'm not using for Bolt Action, wonder if the Rubicon US vietnam infantry would work with them?" 

Ok so I might be tempted. Might be. What rules are people using?

[CapnJim]

Several.  Between Northern Gambola, Bakczakistan, and what's coming in El Perdomo, we've used/ will use such rules as Wild Geese (and its variants, all by Wayne Bollands), Fistful of Lead and its Bigger Battles brother, Black Ops, and Xenos Rampant.  All have produced good games...

[Rick]

Several.  Between Northern Gambola, Bakczakistan, and what's coming in El Perdomo, we've used/ will use such rules as Wild Geese (and its variants, all by Wayne Bollands), Fistful of Lead and its Bigger Battles brother, Black Ops, and Xenos Rampant.  All have produced good games...

Not tried Ffol, I've got Black Ops but wasn't taken with them, they seem like a computer game simulation more than a wargame. I've got the Chris Peers 'At Close Quarters' and 'A Corner of Hell' I was thinking of using and I've got Xenos Rampant if that doesn't work out.

[CapnJim]

Hmm.  As it turns out, I have At Close Quarters.  Never played it, though.  Methinks I'll take another perusal at it...

[AKULA]

This project just gets better and better 

[Rick]

Hmm.  As it turns out, I have At Close Quarters.  Never played it, though.  Methinks I'll take another perusal at it...

It's not a bad set of rules really - it's very much a cold war set and requires a good set-up or scenario to get the most out of it; a bit of research on appropriate organisations is essential but it has definite potential there. The 'A Corner of Hell' set uses more or less the same rules but for WW2 games so I'm wondering whether to put modern weapons from ACQ into ACoH or some of the WW2 vehicles and set up from ACoH into ACQ - lots and lots of potential!

[CapnJim]

This project just gets better and better 

Thanks AKULA.  Appreciate that.  And fear not - there'll be more.  Much more...

It's not a bad set of rules really - it's very much a cold war set and requires a good set-up or scenario to get the most out of it; a bit of research on appropriate organisations is essential but it has definite potential there. The 'A Corner of Hell' set uses more or less the same rules but for WW2 games so I'm wondering whether to put modern weapons from ACQ into ACoH or some of the WW2 vehicles and set up from ACoH into ACQ - lots and lots of potential!

I've looked at them again.  They may get a play-through at some point.  We'll see what the fellas think.

But, on with today's business.  As previously mentioned, I got Mongrel Miniatures Congo Mercenaries some time ago.  As it turns out, they are kitted out not unlike the Jamaican Defense Force troops deployed to Grenada in 1983.  So, I am painting them up to be troops from an as-yet unnamed Caribbean nation that will support Operation Righteous Thunder - the US-led intervention in our fictional Central American country of El Perdomo in 1988.  I now have half of them painted up.

These chaps are armed with Uzis, and will be the NCOs and an officer.





These chaps are armed with FALs, They are grunts.  And (as you can see) they have helmets and soft caps.





Here are the 8 of them together.



I have 8 more to paint, which should happen this week.  Pics will follow painting.  They are all wearing berets, and are armed with FALs.  More grunts.  I may augment them with Eureka Aden Brits wearing boonie hats.  We'll see.

And, I am doing Flank March Miniatures Reforger Kickstarter (through Ted - he has the 3D printer).  As part of their KS campaign, they offered 2 free sample figures.  One is a bog-standard grunt, with a steel pot an an M16A1.  He has ALICE web gear and a protective mask carrier.  The other figure is the same pose, but without a head.  He comes with 3 heads - a steel pot, a Kevlar, and a patrol cap.  I put the patrol cap on him, a la the Rangers in grenada.  And, I've painted them both up.  The chap with the steel pot I painted with BDUs, while the Ranger got "jungle" fatigues (again a la Grenada).  Please excuse the Ranger's shortened M16 - he suffered some kind of tragic weapon malfunction at some point between printing and delivery to me - but I'll still use him).  Once Ted has the STLs, I plan to (at a minimum) form the 3rd fire teams for each of the 3 squads in my infantry platoon, so they can be marines (using the Kevlar heads).  I will also do up some Dragon and TOW teams (also with Kevlars).  And then a unit (or more) of Rangers (done up like this figure).  All will play a part in Righteous Thunder.





I like these figures.  Can't wait to get some more printed and painted up.  Of course, I'll post pics here as that happens.

That's it for now.  More to follow...painted stuff (mostly for El Perdomo) and battle scenarios and reports (Balczakistan and eventually El Perdomo).  Stay tuned...

[carlos marighela]

Nicely done!.

[Steffan@FlankMarch]

Those Mongrel minis troops are looking really good - might have to look into those!

Great work on the ranger, I think that OG uniform's going to be a godsend for anyone not wanting to paint camo on the REFORGER figs

[carlos marighela]

Those Mongrel minis troops are looking really good - might have to look into those!

Great work on the ranger, I think that OG uniform's going to be a godsend for anyone not wanting to paint camo on the REFORGER figs

Having painted something like 150 + figures  in Woodland and still more to do I heartily concur.

The Mongrel Miniatures are great figures. Just a pity that they are now unaffordable for anyone outside of the Estados Unidos. I'd have used them for my Caribbeans had I not already repurposed them as RAF types and other assorted odds and sods in Berlin.