British 25pdr Battery Part Two: Crew and Gun Basing

Okay, now that the artillery dudes and their toys are done, it is time to get them on bases.  It felt like the basing took longer than the painting did, but I wasn't keeping track of how long each step took, so who knows.  I was going a little slower than usual, as I was trying out some new materials and techniques, but I like the overall effect, so I suppose it was worth the extra time.  The target deadline is Memorial Day weekend, as a friend of mine needs them for a tournament at Enfilade 2012, so there is plenty of time...the associated vehicles (14 or so tractors and transports) are primed and basecoated, so won't take that long to knock out.

Anyway, let's finally get these guns on the tabletop!

British 25pdr Battery Part One: Artillery Crew

To help a friend of mine get started in Flames of War, I am painting some of the British minis I have had in various stages of assembly for about five years a little while.  Called around to find some folks willing to trade some primed American stuff for primed British, and off we go!

First up is a two-section battery of 25-pounder artillery pieces and assorted staff elements.  I decided to start with the arty crews, as they would be the most time-consuming part of the unit.  He is going for late-war Desert Rats, so brown and brown it is, with a little khaki thrown in for flavor.  He will be using a maxed-out battery, so it will have eight crew teams, three command teams, two observer teams, and a staff team.  There are associated vehicles, but I'll be doing those later, at the same time as the guns themselves.

Flames of War in the South Puget Sound area

So, we have some stuff to put On The Table Top.  Now we need a tabletop!

I keep going through the same routine every time I road-trip in the local area...walk out the door, run back inside to Google "game stores" near the destination while the car warms up, then head out.  To shorten that process, I figured I would have some results staged in advance.  Here are some of the stores within an hour or two of Lacey, WA:

Spray-painting invasion stripes

L4 AOP w/ Invasion Stripes

Used by US forces in the latter part of WWII primarily as an artillery spotter, the L4 Grasshopper Aerial Observation Post was a nifty addition to the arsenal.  Google it for some additional coolness...some nutso pilots decided to arm them with bazookas and go into ground-attack mode!

Now, you could paint it by hand, but I'm going to use some masking techniques and spray paint to get a Grasshopper AOP on the table.

Plastic Soldier Company T-34 conversion: 76mm to 57mm

The Plastic Soldier Company T-34 box comes with the turret and barrel for both the 85mm and 76mm versions; I needed the 57mm version, so time for a scratch-build!  I did not go for exact scale conversion, just a piece of tubing I had on hand that fell between the 76mm barrel size and the 85mm so you can tell the difference on the tabletop (yes, it seems odd that the smaller shell size had a larger barrel, but I believe the barrel was thicker to handle the higher pressure and velocity of the 57mm round).