Felix's Gaming Pages

Building another ISU-130

One of the Clash of Steel Starter Sets have been on my wants list ever since I found out about them at the beginning of the year. I ordered Operation Unthinkable boxed set containing the British and German tanks. I decided I would add to the game by ordering the other Operation Unthinkable set, which contains American and Soviet tanks.

The ISU-130, is a tank destroyer based on the IS-2 chassis armed with an 130mm S-26 gun.

This is the GF9 finished model.

I had already constructed one ISU-130, so it was quite simple to put another one together.

Here are the two ISU-130 tank destroyers together.

The next step was a white undercoat.

The kit also allows you to build the ISU-122 and ISU-152 variants as well.

Hawker Hunter F.4

This Hawker Hunter F.4 was on display at the Musée royal de l’armée et de l’histoire militaire or Royal Museum of the Armed Forces and Military History in Brussels.

The Hawker Hunter stands as a testament to the golden age of British aviation, a sleek and formidable jet fighter that served with distinction for decades. More than just a machine, it was a symbol of a nation’s engineering prowess, a supersonic icon that dominated the skies during the tense years of the Cold War. From its first flight in 1951, the Hunter captured the imagination with its graceful lines and powerful performance, earning its place in history as one of the most successful and enduring combat aircraft of its era.

The Hunter’s evolution was a continuous process of refinement, and the F.4 variant stands out as a significant step forward. While the F.1 and F.2 had been impressive, the F.4 addressed some of their limitations and expanded the Hunter’s capabilities. A key improvement was the adoption of an improved Rolls-Royce Avon engine with a higher thrust rating. This gave the F.4 a noticeable boost in performance, improving its rate of climb and top speed.

The Hawker Hunter’s operational life was remarkably long. It remained in frontline service with some air forces well into the 1990s, and its final military retirement came in 2014 when the Lebanese Air Force retired its last Hunter. Its longevity is a testament to the soundness of its design and the quality of its construction.

Imperial Ogres

These Imperial Ogres from Warhammer: The Old World were on display at Warhammer World.

Construction of the T-44

I have the Operation Unthinkable boxed set containing the American and Soviet tanks. The GF9 Operation Unthinkable boxed set, the American versus Soviet, contains 21 tanks. Six of these are the T-54-1.

What I didn’t realise was that the T-54-1 model can also be made up as a T-44 or a T-55 as the different turrets are included. This gives even more flexibility over just using them as T54-1 tanks.

I decided to make two of the models as the T-44 and the other four as T-55 models. The construction is very simple starting off with the hull of the tank.

The tracks are then added.

The next step is dependent on if you are making the T-44 or one of the other variants.

The next step was a white undercoat.

The T-44 was a medium tank developed by the Soviet Union near the end of World War II as a successor to the highly successful T-34. Its design incorporated significant improvements, including a transverse-mounted engine which allowed for a lower profile and thicker frontal armor on the hull. The T-44 was designed to be a more effective medium tank, offering better armor protection and an improved torsion bar suspension. Although it entered service in 1944 and saw limited use in the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, it did not see widespread combat during World War II due to a combination of production issues and the Soviet high command’s decision to prioritize the continued production of the proven T-34-85. However, the T-44’s design proved to be a crucial stepping stone, heavily influencing the development of the post-war T-54/55 series of tanks, one of the most widely produced tanks in history.

The following video is relevant to the topic because it discusses whether the T-44 was a failure or a wasted opportunity.

Building one more IS-3 tank

I decided I would add to the game by ordering the other Operation Unthinkable set, which contains American and Soviet tanks. There are three IS-3 tanks included in the boxed set.

This is the GF9 finished model.

The IS-3 is a Soviet heavy tank developed in late 1944. Its semi-hemispherical cast turret (resembling that of an upturned soup bowl) became the hallmark of post-war Soviet tanks.

I had already constructed two of the IS-3 tanks, so it was a relatively easy process of constructing another one. This one I added a commander figure to the cupola on the turret.

A view of two of the IS-3 tanks.

The three IS-3 tanks.

The next stage was a white undercoat.

Men of the Empire

These men of the Empire from Warhammer: The Old World were on display at Warhammer World.

Constructing some more Centurion Mk3

One of the Clash of Steel Starter Sets have been on my wants list ever since I found out about them at the beginning of the year. I ordered Operation Unthinkable boxed set containing the British and German tanks. There are 17 tanks in the box, of which four are the Centurion Tanks. They can be constructed as a range of variants.

The Centurion tank was one of the most successful post-war tank designs. It was introduced in 1945, just too late to see combat in the Second World War. However, it went on to serve in a number of conflicts, including the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and the Arab-Israeli wars. The Centurion was a well-balanced tank with a good mix of armament, armour, and mobility. It was armed with a 105mm rifled gun, which was capable of firing both high-explosive and armour-piercing rounds. The Centurion’s armour was also very effective, and it was able to withstand the fire of most enemy tanks. The tank was also highly mobile, and it was able to keep up with the latest advances in tank warfare.

For the first model I put together, I went with the Mk3.

I did think about the Mk1 initially, but I did think I would initially model two Mk3 tanks and two Mk1 tanks, however in the end I decided I would model all four models as Mk3 Centurions.

This is the GF9 finished model.

This is the sprue

There are various parts to the model, however it goes together very easily.

The finished models prior to a white undercoat. This model has damaged skirts.

This version has missing skirts and a commander figure.

This version has skirts.

Two of the tanks.

Constructing more Panzer IV/70

One of the Clash of Steel Starter Sets have been on my wants list ever since I found out about them at the beginning of the year. I ordered Operation Unthinkable boxed set containing the British and German tanks. It contains 17 tanks, three of which are the Panzer IV/70 tank destroyer.

The Panzer IV/70, was a German tank destroyer based on the Panzer IV chassis, it was armed with the 7.5 cm Pak 42 L/70. Officially, only the L/48-armed vehicle was named Jagdpanzer IV. The L/70-armed vehicle was named Panzer IV/70.

This is the GF9 finished model.

This is the sprue. It has the parts to make the L/48-armed vehicle as well.

I had constructed one of the models already. So, the next thing I did was construct the other two.

The first stage was constructing the hull and tracks. Then the main weaponry was added and the side armour. With these models I decided one would have missing skirts, whilst the other one would have damaged skirts.

Here are all three models.

Next stage will be a white undercoat.

Loyd CATI 90

The Belgian Loyd CATI 90 was a unique and resourceful example of post-World War II military engineering. This Loyd CATI 90 was on display at the Musée royal de l’armée et de l’histoire militaire or Royal Museum of the Armed Forces and Military History in Brussels.

Loyd CATI 90

Faced with a large surplus of British-built Loyd Carriers and the need for a cheap and effective anti-tank weapon, the Belgian Army, in collaboration with the company MECAR, developed the Canon Antitank d’Infanterie 90 mm (CATI 90). This light tank destroyer was created by mounting a low-pressure, semi-automatic 90 mm gun onto the chassis of the Loyd Carrier. The gun was specifically designed by MECAR to have low recoil, allowing it to be mounted on such a lightweight vehicle. The resulting vehicle, though only lightly armored and open-topped, provided infantry battalions with a potent, albeit short-ranged, anti-tank capability. Serving from the mid-1950s to the early 1960s, the CATI 90 demonstrated a clever and cost-effective way to modernize a military force using existing assets before being replaced by more advanced platforms like the AMX-VCI armed with ENTAC anti-tank missiles.

Constructing the ISU-152

I decided I would add to the game by ordering the other Operation Unthinkable set, which contains American and Soviet tanks.

The kit also allows you to build the ISU-122 and ISU-152 variants as well. As there are five kits I think I will mix and match the different variants.

The ISU-152, is a tank destroyer based on the IS-2 chassis armed with a 152.4 mm ML-20S gun-howitzer. Since the ISU-152’s gun was mounted in a casemate, aiming it was awkward, and had to be done by repositioning the entire vehicle using the tracks. Therefore, it was used as mobile artillery to support more mobile infantry and armour attacks. It continued service into the 1970s and was used in several campaigns and countries.

The process of constructing the ISU-152 was virtually the same process as building the ISU-130, the main different is the shorter gun barrel.

This is the track sprue.