operation unthinkable Archives - Page 2 of 5

Undercoating and painting the Tortoise (A39)

There are 17 tanks, two of which are the Tortoise heavy assault tank. The Tortoise heavy assault tank (A39) was a British heavy assault gun design developed during the Second World War, but never put into mass production. It was developed for the task of clearing heavily fortified areas such as the Siegfried Line and as a result favoured armour protection over mobility.

One I had already constructed, decided to put together the second one as well. The next stage was a white undercoat.

I wanted to add some shadow to the model, so I painted the underneath of the model with a black spray.

After that, I wanted to capture the dark bronze green of the Tortoise prototype that is at the Tank Museum.

So, gave both models a spray of Army Painter Angel Green Spray.

The next stage will be painting the tracks.

Painting 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 decided I would build three at the ISU-152, and two as the ISU-130.

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.

Having constructed the three models, the next step was a white undercoat.

I then sprayed the underneath of the models with a black spray to add shadow and depth.

For the basecoat I used Army Painter Colour Primer: Angel Green.

I do think this might be too dark, so trying something different with other models to see if I need to repaint them.

Painting 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 and I also gave the model a white undercoat.

In order to add shade I sprayed the underneath of the model with a black spray.

I had originally planned to paint the model with Army Painter Colour Primer: Angel Green, but I think it was too dark. So, I used Army Painter Army Green Spray instead.

The next stage will be painting the tracks.

Painting the Tigers

One of the Clash of Steel Starter Sets have been on my wants list ever since I found out about them. I have the Operation Unthinkable boxed set containing the British and German tanks.

Operation Unthinkable was the name given to two related possible future war plans developed by the British Chiefs of Staff Committee against the Soviet Union during 1945.

In the box, as well as the rules, counters, and dice, are seventeen tanks, two of which are Tiger tanks. I had already constructed and undercoated the two Tiger tanks.

Having given the tanks a white undercoat, I then used a brown spray to basecoat the underneath of the models.

The aim of this spray is to add shadow to the model rather than using the same paint across the whole of the model.

The next step was a coat of Army Painter Desert Yellow Spray.

The next stage will be brush painting the camouflage.

Undercoating the T28 Super Heavy Tank

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 both the Operation Unthinkable boxed set containing the British and German tanks and the other Operation Unthinkable set, which contains American and Soviet tanks. In that box there are two T28 Super Heavy Tanks.

The T28 super-heavy tank was an American super-heavy tank/assault gun designed for the United States Army during World War II. It was originally designed to break through German defences of the Siegfried Line and was later considered as a possible participant in the planned invasion of the Japanese mainland.

After constructing the two models, I gave the two tanks a white undercoat.

I then sprayed the underneath of the model with Army Painter Colour Primer: Angel Green. This is to add shade to the model before applying the basecoat.

The next stage will be a green basecoat.

Construction of the T-55

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 T-55 is a series of Soviet-era medium tanks that were introduced shortly after World War II. It is one of the most widely produced tanks in history, with over 100,000 units built in the Soviet Union and under license in Poland and Czechoslovakia. The T-55, along with its predecessor the T-54, became the backbone of armoured forces for the Warsaw Pact and many other nations. The tank featured a low-slung, compact design with a cast, dome-shaped turret and was armed with a 100mm rifled gun. While it was considered advanced for its time, its design was later outmatched by more modern tanks. However, its simple, rugged, and reliable nature has allowed it to remain in service with various armed forces worldwide, often with significant upgrades.

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-55 or one of the other variants. The Operational Unthinkable has instructions for the T-44 and the T-54. The Battlefront website has instructions for the T-55AM but not for the T-55. I did find the T-55 instructions using a bit of Google and Archive.org.

There are different turret components and turrets for all the different versions.

The turret was then completed.

All four completed T-55 tanks.

The next stage was a white undercoat.

In order to add shade I sprayed the underneath of the model with a black spray.

The next stage will be a dark green base coat.

Constructing the two Tigers

Operation Unthinkable was the name given to two related possible future war plans developed by the British Chiefs of Staff Committee against the Soviet Union during 1945.

In the box, as well as the rules, counters, and dice, are seventeen tanks, two of which are Tiger tanks.

Tiger I is the common name of a German heavy tank used in World War II, developed in 1942. The final official German designation was Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf. E, often shortened to Tiger. It was an answer to the unexpectedly formidable Soviet armour encountered in the initial months of Operation Barbarossa, particularly the T-34 and the KV-1. The Tiger I design gave the Wehrmacht its first tank mounting the 88 mm gun, which had previously demonstrated its effectiveness against both air and ground targets. During the course of the war, the Tiger I saw combat on all German battlefronts. It was usually deployed in independent tank battalions, which proved to be quite formidable.

This is the GF9 finished model.

These are the sprues.

The first stage was constructing the hull and tracks, and the turret.

Then the main weaponry was added and the side armour.

With one of the tanks I am going to model it with the hatch in an open position.

With one of the Tiger tanks I added a command figure and some spare track as additional armour.

Next stage was a white undercoat for the two tanks.

Constructing the T29 Heavy Tank

I decided I would add to the game by ordering the other Operation Unthinkable set, which contains American and Soviet tanks. Three of these are the T29 or T30 Heavy Tank.

The T29 Heavy Tank was an American heavy tank project that was started in March 1944 to counter the German Tiger II heavy tank. Although it was not completed in time for use in World War II, the T29 served as a valuable testbed for post-war engineers to apply new concepts to artillery and automotive components. The tank featured a powerful 105 mm T5E1 gun and a massive, heavily armored turret. With a weight of approximately 64 tons, a crew of six, and an upgraded V12 engine, the T29 was a formidable and innovative design for its time.

The instructions allow you to construct either the T30 or T29 Heavy Tank. I had already constructed a T30 tank, so with the other two kits I went with the T29.

This is the GF9 finished model.

This is the sprue.

The kit was relatively easy to construct.

The finished models.

Here are the two models.

Here are the two T29 tanks with the T30 tank.

The next step was a white undercoat.

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.

Construction of the T-44

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.