Detailing the Land Raider

I have on my workbench a standard Land Raider. For the basecoat I used Tausept Ochre. I lost interest in the model, so, it got put into storage. However having liked the paint scheme I was using on my Deimos-pattern Rhino, I decided that I would find the model and paint this Land Raider in the same scheme. The first thing I did was spray the underneath of the model with Citadel Zandri Dust. I gave the model a couple of light sprays of Army Painter Daemonic Yellow. I also painted the weapon sub-assemblies.

I painted the lascannons with Citadel Leadbelcher.

This how they look attached the Land Raider.

I have also painted the exhausts and other weapons.

This is the Land Raider with an alternate hull frontal weapon, twin linked bolters.

Next stage will be the icongraphy.

Heinkel He111H-20

The Heinkel He111 provided the Luftwaffe with a fast, manoeuvrable medium bomber which it used as a spearhead for the Blitzkrieg tactics so successfully employed during the early campaigns of World War Two. The He111’s defensive shortcomings were harshly demonstrated in 1940 and 1941, but the Germans had little alternative than to continue production of an ageing and inadequate aircraft.

The Heinkel He 111 was designed in 1934. Through development, it was described as a “wolf in sheep’s clothing”. Due to restrictions placed on Germany after the First World War prohibiting bombers, it was presented solely as a civil airliner, although from conception the design was intended to provide the nascent Luftwaffe with a heavy bomber.

The first bomber deliveries were made in 1936 and a number were sent to Spain the following year. By providing support for the Spanish Nationalist forces the Germans could test their new equipment and tactics under operational conditions.

American forces captured this aircraft, on display at RAF London, in May 1945, in the final days of the war. It was flown to Cherbourg on the French coast for shipment to the USA for evaluation. Due to the lack of space on the allocated vesse this did not occur. A three-man American crew of the 56th USAAF Fighter Group took the decision to fly the abandoned aircraft to their base in Boxted, Essex.

At dawn on the morning of 12 September 1945, Major Carter (one of the original American crew) took off from Boxted and landed at RAF North Weald, parked the Heinkel near the watch tower and was immediately collected by Captain Cole, flying a 56th Group’s transport aircraft, and returned to Boxted. It must have been quite a sight for the people at RAF North Weald to suddenly wake up and see a German bomber parked near the watch tower!

It was also used in the Battle of Britain film.

In 1978, it was moved to the RAF Museum in London.

Detailing the Razorback

One model I got many years ago, well in 2006, was a Forgeworld Razorback the one with the much bigger turret, which I much prefer over the plastic kit version that you could get in the shops back then. I actually started this model back then, I recently retrieved it from storage and decided that I would try and finish painting it.

I was using Tausept Ochre as the base coat, however having liked the paint scheme I was using on my Deimos-pattern Rhino, I decided that I would paint the Razorback in the same scheme.

Having sprayed the underneath of the model with Citadel Zandri Dust. I gave the model a basecoat of Army Painter Daemonic Yellow.

The next stage was to paint the exhausts and weaponry.

The lascannons on the top turret were painted with Citadel Leadbelcher.

Another view.

The rear view.

The next stage will be the iconography.

Well, I couldn’t resist…

Back in April I picked up a copy of Warhammer Imperium which had a free building sprue with it, a Ruined Factorum sprue.

I have picked up some more of the scenery items, so when issue 48 was released this week, I couldn’t resist, and I bought a copy.

I got another building sprue.

I am planning to use it with the other Ruined Factorum sprue for some additional building conversions.

Reinforcements available on pre-order soon

This Saturday you will be able to pre-order two new tanks for The Horus Heresy, the Spartan and the Sicaran.

The Spartan is a “re-imaginging” of a Rhino Land Raider conversion from the 1980s.

The mighty Land Raider is a design that has stood the test of time ever since Arkhan Land dug it out of the catacombs on Mars – but what’s a Legion Praetor to do when their prized Terminator squads can’t quite squeeze into its armoured hold? They reach for the Spartan Assault Tank – and now, with a stunning new plastic kit, you can too.

Also known as the Land Raider Spartan, this armoured carrier was designed to punch through the most overwhelming enemy defences and deliver a knock-out blow of massed Astartes infantry. It became a common assault vehicle during the Great Crusade, where its nigh-impervious chassis could shrug off regular anti-tank weapons as it ferried up to 26 Legionaries – or 13 Terminators – into the fray, with a surprising turn of speed for its size.

A resin version was available from Forge World, but this is a full plastic kit.

 

This was based on a conversion from White Dwarf 119.

The article in White Dwarf had instructions for the conversion of a Land Raider and a Rhino into two new Imperial vehicles. One was the Spartan, Terminator Battle Tank using the kit parts with the addition of plastic card or cardboard. and an Imperial Tank Hunter utilising the remainder of the parts from the two kits.

The article also had an overview of the Spartan Assault Tank.

Horus had thrown around the captured Adeptus Mechanics city of Aries Primus. This was then the second city of Mars and the largest single source of war munitions in the Imperium. With the city in Horus’ hands, the besieged Earth stood no chance against the forthcoming attack from his Rebel forces. Only by recapturing Aries Primus and its weapons factories could Earth’s hard-pressed forces be resupplied. Horus had ordered a defensive plasma ring to be constructed around the city and called it the Ring pair can shoot against targets on that of Death. Without vehicle transport, even the Terminators were unable to get through. The Imperium had lost most to hit with each pair – so either both of its armoured carriers in the first battle for Aries Primus, and facilities to replace them were meagre. So, taking what spare parts and production facilities were available elsewhere, the Spartan and vehicles much like it were hastily devised. Although many died attempting to cross the Ring of Death, it was eventually penetrated and destroyed, and the city was carried thanks to the devotion and sacrifice of the Terminator Suicide Squads. The Spartan design proved so successful that it was refined and retained as a standard part of Imperial equipment.

The Spartan is a special conversion based on the well known Land Raider. The extra luggage space and open-top main hatch are designed to accommodate the extra bulk of Space Marines wearing Terminator Armour. The Spartan is armed with two sets of twin lascannon, exactly as the standard Land Raider, and it is provided with an additional forward facing heavy bolter and rear facing bolt gun. Both these hull-mounted weapons are designed to be operated by a Terminator standing in the Spartan.

The Sicaran is a more recent model, but before this plastic version, there were multiple resin versions from Forge World.

Of the two I prefer the Spartan.

Both will be available to pre-order this Saturday.

Bedford OXC Tractor with Avro Anson

Bedford OXC Tractor with Avro Anson

The Bedford OXC tractor was developed with the assistance of Scammell, pioneers in the development of articulated lorries, now used extensively for transporting goods by road. The Bedford was one of two tractors used with an articulated aircraft recovery trailer, commonly known as a Queen Mary (after the ship of the same name).

Squadron personnel were considered too busy to repair damaged aircraft so the Civilian Repair Organisation was set up to undertake the role. If an aeroplane could not be repaired on site, it was dismantled and taken on a Queen Mary to workshops for repair.

The Avro Anson was slow, cold and noisy and is the most famous British aircrew trainer of all time. Used in huge numbers, ‘Faithful Annie’ is remembered with affection by most of Royal Air Force-trained multi-engined aircrew of World War Two.

The Anson I began life in the mid-1930s as a coastal reconnaissance aircraft. Although an advanced design at the time, rapid improvements in aircraft performance meant that the Anson was hopelessly outclassed when war broke out in September 1939.

Ansons were also used extensively as light transport and communications aircraft. Development continued during and after the war, culminating in the adaption of the civilian Avro XIX for service use as the Anson C19. With a completely re-designed fuselage, and metal wings and tail plane, this second generation Anson continued in RAF service until 1968.

Land Raider Lascannons

I have on my workbench a standard Land Raider. For the basecoat I used the Foundation Paints from Games Workshop, specifically Tausept Ochre. I lost interest in the model, so, it got put into storage. However having liked the paint scheme I was using on my Deimos-pattern Rhino, I decided that I would find the model and paint this Land Raider in the same scheme. The first thing I did was spray the underneath of the model with Citadel Zandri Dust. I gave the model a couple of light sprays of Army Painter Daemonic Yellow.

Back when I constructed the model, having made the hull I kept the weapons as separate assemblies.  The Lascannons for the Land Raider had been given a black undercoat some time ago when I undercoated the model.

I gave the weapon assemblies a partial basecoat of Citadel Zandri Dust. I then gave the weapon assemblies a couple of light sprays of Army Painter Daemonic Yellow.

This is how the weapons look attached to the Land Raider.

You can also see that I have started detailing the model, painting the flamer and exhausts with Citalde Leadbelcher.

The next stage will be painting the weapons with Leadbelcher.

 

Austin K2 Auxiliary Towing Vehicle

The Austin K2 Auxiliary Towing Vehicle was introduced in 1941 to replace numerous improvised vehicles in service with the Auxiliary Fire Service. Firemen and their equipment were carried inside and a trailer pump was towed behind. The pump could draw water from rivers or hydrants to supply the hoses.

German attacks on London and other towns in the First World War showed the importance of a well-equipped fire service to protect lives. Over 40,000 civilians are estimated to have been killed during the Battle of Britain and subsequent Blitz. This Austin K2 was built in 1944 and displays the markings of the National Fire Service, formed by the merger of the Auxiliary Fire Service and regional brigades in 1941.

Painting the Land Raider basecoat

As well as the Forgeworld MkIIB Land Raider I have on my workbench I also have a standard Land Raider. For the basecoat I used the Foundation Paints from Games Workshop, specifically Tausept Ochre. I lost interest in the model, so, it got put into storage.

However having liked the paint scheme I was using on my Deimos-pattern Rhino, I decided that I would find the model and paint this Land Raider in the same scheme. The first thing I did was spray the underneath of the model with Citadel Zandri Dust.

Games Workshop don’t do a yellow spray and I don’t have an airbrush. I did use a paint comparison site to find a close alternative to Yriel Yellow. The Daemonic Yellow spray from Army Painter seemed like a good choice, and my local FLGS had one in stock, which I bought for the Deimos-pattern Rhino.

I gave the model a couple of light coats of Daemonic Yellow.

The rear view.

The main weapons will be painted separately.

Next stage will be painting the weapons and the exhausts, as well as the iconography.

Handley Page Halifax II

The Handley Page Halifax is a British Royal Air Force (RAF) four-engined heavy bomber of the Second World War. This is an unrestored Handley Page Halifax II at RAF London.

The Halifax shared with the Lancaster the major burden of Bomber Command’s night bombing campaign against Nazi Germany but unlike the Lancaster, which only served as a bomber during the war, the Halifax was used extensively on other duties including glider-tug, agent dropping transport and general reconnaissance aircraft in Coastal Command.

W1048 was built by English Electric. Assigned to 102 Squadron at RAF Topcliffe on 27 March 1942. Sent to 35 Squadron at RAF Linton-on-Ouse on 9 April 1942. On 27 April, it was one of 31 Halifaxes that flew from RAF Kinloss as part of raid on the German battleship Tirpitz. W1048 made her attack at 03:00 hours, during which she was hit by the intense flak which set the starboard outer engine on fire. Pilot Don MacIntyre made a wheels-up landing on frozen Lake Hoklingen in Norway but the aircraft sank 12 hours later. It was discovered by divers in 1971 and recovered on 30 June 1973 by the RAF Sub-Aqua Association. It has been left unrestored.

The Halifax was in the process of being replaced as a front line bomber in 1945 but it continued in service with Coastal and Transport Commands after the war. The last operational flight was made by a Coastal Command Halifax in March 1952 while operating from Gibraltar.