Major Ballsup's Hobby Shed

Once again it's been a very busy month.  At one stage in the month I really thought I wasn't getting anything done hobby wise and then looking back as I write this I've not done that badly. Completed I spent the first part of the month prepping for a game that I haven't yet had the chance to play.  This involved: Weathering four Red Army Su-76Ms and two ISU-122/152s.  These are all 1/76th SHQ metal models that I made something like 20 years ago.  The ISUs are hefty pieces which you could brain someone with.  Lovely models.  Working on city terrain.  I made a load more rubble/ruin scatter terrain, which you can see all about  here .  I also added more weathering to the buildings and generally dirtied them up and cut out and painted a load of cobblestone sheets.  28mm Second World War German infantry.  I completed a squad of using a mix of Warlord Games Afrika Korps and German Grenadiers that I got free at Salute 2023.  I kept th...

It's been a very busy month all round, and the hobby front has been no exception.  Therefore, this is quite a lengthy update.  Completed I completed the following this month: Verrotwood Cultists.  I really enjoyed doing these, you can see more here including the concept of the Cult. 20mm Second World War Late-War Grenadiers.  There's more of them here .   While doing the above I gave some attention to the rest of my late war winter Eastern Front forces  I've touched up the paintwork where needed and added more texture to the bases of both the Germans and Red Army platoons.   20mm Red Army and Waffen SS I've also weathered and thereby finally completed one of a pair of Jagdpanzer 38s that I built about 20 years ago.  At the time I gave them a very basic finish with the information readily and freely  available being a fraction of what it is now.  I've only done the one as I want to add camo to the other before weathering. ...

While my main focus has been preparing an ALN force, I have managed to do a few French figures over the last couple of weeks. First up is a Battlefield Miniatures WW2 Free French SAS figure repurposed as a French Air Commando for Algeria.  I bought this pack back 2006 but hadn't painted this figure, I think because I was looking for fighting poses.  He's actually a nice little sculpt.  I've painted him as wearing the earlier green M47 tenue de saut uniform and the distinctive black beret.  Such a shame that Battlefield Miniatures are no longer going even if they did reduce their offering over the years.  They did some really different and well researched figures.   Next is a Battlezone Miniatures (ex Sgt, Major Miniatures) USMC figure to be used as a French infantry NCO or officer in Algeria.  I think this is a lovely sculpt.  I used the rest of this pack as ALN and swapped the heads, but this pose meant I couldn't do that.  He work...

I reworked the bases of the Battlefield/Blitz Miniatures Moroccan Goumiers last week.  As explained here although these were WW2 era, they make very good ALN fighters for the Algerian War. Eight were painted up straight out the pack as it were (although that was some 15 years ago if I remember right).   Four had their heads swapped which was their second time, they're the Worzel Gummidge of wargames figures.  I replaced the original cast US M1917A1 helmet head with US M1s to make them suitable for fighting for the French in Indo-China.  They'll see more action as ALN in Algeria though.   The head swaps aren't that great.  I rushed into it a bit and a couple look oversized.  I'll put it down to them having strange genetics.  You can probably spot them in the photos.   All the bases were painted with patches of Dulux Sumatran Sunset dabbed onto the sand mix.  This was then drybrushed with my Dulux colour match of VMC Ir...

Here's the summary of my hobby activity for the last full week of February: Gaming I played a solo game of Ambush Alley in the French Indo-China War.  Read about it here Painting/modelling   Quite busy with a lot of different bits going on: Completed the Battlezone Native raiders detailed here . Completed the old Blitz Miniatures figures that I'd swapped the heads on to make them more suitable for ALN fighters.  Reworked the bases on my old Blitz Miniatures WW2 goumier figures that I'm using for ALN fighters. Completed an old Battlefield Miniatures WW2 French para.  I also reworked the bases on the existing painted  Battlefield Miniatures WW2 French paras  Painted up and based a Battlezone Marine who'll do perfectly as a French officer in Algeria. Nearly completed a Battlezone MG team with just the base to do.  I cleaned up another seven Battlezone US Marines and took their heads off ready for a swap.  I cleaned up the pac...

Third week of Feb and here's the summary of my hobby activity: Painting/modelling   I finished off the Battlezone Miniatures USMC raiders which I'm using as ALN fighters for the Algerian War project.  Have a look here I did some surgery on  a few old Battlefield Miniatures figures and swapped their heads to make them more suitable for ALN.  I cleaned up a pack of Battlezone Native raiders.  These are much bigger figures than the USMC Raiders in a very different style and must have been done by a different sculptor.  Due to the oriental features and clothing I decided to do them for Indo-China rather than Algeria which was their intended purpose. I cleaned up a Battlezone MG team which will do as French conscripts in Algeria. I found an old Battlefield Miniatures WW2 French para which works as well for Indo-China or Algeria so added him to the table while I was in the zone. I cleaned up another few Battlezone US Marines and took their hea...

If you've had the endurance to wade through my previous posts ( here and here ) you'll know I've wanted to game the Algerian War for a long, long time.  The main blocker has been that apart from the Elhiem French paras, there's no specific range of figures, particularly for the Armée de libération nationale (ALN). This year I'm committed to getting on with this project.  I reviewed my books, studied what's online and took a look through my existing 20mm collection and I was pleasantly surprised how much was usable.   First are these Liberation Miniatures Moroccans bought for the French in Indo-China.  They're perfect for ALN, dressed as they are in French M47 uniforms and armed with MAS36 rifles and Thompson M1A1 SMGs.  With their small North African style turbans they don't need any work apart from refinishing the bases. Next up are these Battlefield Miniatures WW2 Moroccan Goums.  These were bought long ago to use as French Moroccan troops for ...