Modern USMC 28mm Generation Kill - Update - Crew hacks 11th May.

[von Lucky]

I agree, watched it for the first time a year or two ago (it's from 2008). At only 7 episodes, it tells a great story.

[6milPhil]

Spent ages faffing around with the canvas roof for V4. Not able to find the great garden wire I have stashed which would have been perfect I tried to build the  frame from quite thick steel wire. It's wonderfully solid which made making small adjustments very difficult so I started again using another garden wire.

I first drilled some holes in some foamex to match the size I wanted it. I bent the wires with a lot of slack material, and then trimmed them to size.


Next on were the horizontals


Lo and behold a finished frame


It fits rather loosely, but that can be tweaked when it's glued into place. There's also a lot of stowage to go on so that will cover any uglies.


Next on with tissue paper with watered down pva glue. This is quite a forgiving technique which can have additional pieces added to get it just right. Again I put on a lot of slack material and once dry trim it down with scissors.


Jobs a good 'un.


I found some MRA pouches and boxes on the web for larger scale modelling, working out that if I output them at 10% they'd work just fine for 28mm. They are a little fiddly though. The MRE pouches are coloured prints, cut and glued with a few lumps inside with pva glue. The boxes come as B&W prints which had to be printed on coloured paper. They're both a box and sleeve, I tried folding and gluing them and that was a headache so I made up a 4x4x7mm lump of plastic and wrapped them around that instead. I used liquid cement to glue it, the capilliary action holds them together beautifully.


You can help yourself to various modern printables, albeit in a massive scale, from: http://ssccprintables.weebly.com/modern-printables.html

[Dr. Zombie]

This is a great project. I like your dedication to keeping it close to the show.

I didn't know the series but watched it one day when I was sick from work. And was plesantly surprised. I had to rewatch it at a later time when I had a clearer head not filled with coldmedicine.

[von Lucky]

I'm happy for you too Phil in seeing an update.

[commissarmoody]

Great idea with the MREs

[6milPhil]

Thanks guys. Would there be any interest in a step by step on the MREs?

[janner]

Cracking project 

[pocoloco]

Great work with both the canvas and MREs Phil 

[6milPhil]

Thanks.

Just in case you haven't already heard me whinge about not being able to go to Salute 2015 - I wasn't able to go this year*
Instead I mucked around making a couple of moulds and MRE boxes and took photos of every step of the latter to thrill you all. You can find the MREs with a pile of other goodies here: http://ssccprintables.weebly.com/modern-printables.html

Printed out the pdf on coloured paper and cut it out.


Scored the flaps


Put a piece of 4x4x7mm plastic onto it with liquid cement, the paper sucks it up along with liquid plastic for a solid hold.


Same with the end tab


Then all the sides


Followed by the flaps


Folded the sleeve at the right place


Attached it to the box, originally I was used liquid cement again but it took too long to soak through, so I used UHU for the rest of the sleeves.


Wrap it all around and jobs a good 'un



Here I'm making recogniton banners from tissue paper and PVA glue. I throw a piece of tisse paper onto a scrap of plasticard and cover it in PVA glue. The crinkles are fine as this is just a base.


Then added another piece of paper with more attention to getting lots of lovely crinkles.


Like this. Once dry the bottom will be nice and smooth which is vital for measuring and cutting.


An hour or so later I've got the panels I want...


cut to fit perfectly.


Then undercoat white and whop on some suitable paint... bish bash bosh.




*Continued on page 96.

[Silent Invader]

Excellent work Phil - I loved Generation Kill. 

[Wyrmalla]

Its been a while since I last popped in here, but you've come along amazingly. Those MREs are great (they're such a small detail, but I think I'll have a go at some myself), heh, and a detail you could hardly miss out now that I'm reminded the book spent at least a couple of paragraphs mulling over the things.

Any plans for how you'll go about painting the Humvees? I don't know how they were presented in the series, but the way the book talked about it by the end of the road they were pretty beat up. The images I posted way back on page two of the actual vehicles look fairly knatty (I wonder if they were taken before or after the whole column was riddled with bullets in one town). I'm not sure if they differ, but I take it you're taking more of a note from the Tv Series than the book (certainly there's more pictures of the series).

[6milPhil]

Yeah after the first one they're neat, so I shared my technique to make it a little simpler for anyone who wants a good. You're quite right about them being an issue, when they abandoned their supply truck they lost everything on it and ended up eating the humanitarian supplies they had instead. I was happy to stumble across them, there's some other neat bits as well.

I'll be aiming to replicate the look of the TV series, especially as I've no way of getting colour photos of each and every vehicle. Even with the TV series it's proved difficult with V-05 as it's rarely in shot, and when it is it's partially obscured by V-04 and it's canvas top.

I'm considering a little bit of beating up, the difficult being they're diecast so not as easy to dent, etc, as plastic, resin or white metal. A few bullet holes too.

One thing I'm not sure about sourcing are the radios and computer screens in the front of V-01. Probably hack it unless someone has any ideas.

[carlos marighela]

Phil,

The Eureka USMC range has a figure with separate radio, they also make laptops in their 28mm modern range. If you ask Nic nicely, he'll usually provide bits and bobs.

[6milPhil]

Nice one Carlos thanks! 

I'll give Nic a few days to recuperate from his long haul home and see if I can't scrounge one up.

[carlos marighela]

Let me know otherwise I can them up for you if you like.