Forgotten Steel

It's been very quiet on here lately, due to me being busy with various things, but rest assured that I intend to continue adding material to this website as soon as I can get it in a readable format...

In the meantime, check out my independent Wordpress blog, Forgotten Steel, named after the site, which will have posts on my ongoing research and other interests. I'll leave this blog for posts relating to the website only. However, I will be going on the Exercise Tiger March this weekend (see the post below) so I will post material from that and other relevant WW2 or Academic events.

Stay tuned,

-J

On May 29th 2010, I will be joining a group of local historians and re-enactors on the Exercise Tiger Commemorative March, which will be taking place in Devon. This walk is raising money for BLESMA, the British Limbless Ex-Servicemans Association.

The walk takes place along Slapton Sands, where the ill-fated Exercise Tiger took place in April 1944. During this amphibious exercise, in which troops of the US 4th Infantry Division were preparing for D-Day, a group of German E-Boats infiltrated the line of troopships and attacked them, sinking several and causing the deaths of hundreds of American servicemen.

The walk commences at the Sherman Tank Memorial at Torcross in Devon, follows a route along Slapton Sands, and ends 12 miles further up the coast at Dartmouth, where the team will board a Fairmile Motor Launch and sail out to the location of the German attack.

Please help us to support our wounded heroes of past and present by donating at http://www.justgiving.com/Exercise-Tiger

You can find out more about the walk by clicking on the poster below:

Well, the first unit of my armoured offensive project is now fully painted and ready for battle. Tonight I put the finishing touches to my 3 M10 Achilles SP Anti-Tank Guns. Strictly speaking there should be four, and I've procured another one which I'll do later on, but the platoon is largely ready.

My completed M10 Platoon

The M10s were a joy to make and to paint. I'm really pleased with the results of the War Paint spray. The paint coat is more even than I could ever make it appear by hand, as well as offering a good rust effect in places. There are some black spots on the model that can be seen in the images, where the paint missed a spot, particularly under the turret. I left that area black deliberately as, should the unfortunate happen and my M10s get "brewed up" on the miniature battlefield, I can remove the turrets and have a decently battle-damaged model with scorch marks! I may do some cleaning up later on to minimise the missed spots however.

One of the completed M10s. The vehicle commander (on right) has a khaki-coloured beret as the M10s came under the control of the Royal Artillery, hence he would be wearing the ordinary GS beret as opposed to the black beret of the tankers. It gives me the excuse to make the crew look slightly different!

All that remains now is to get the Cromwells done, and then onto the Germans...

More to come,

-J 

After finally purchasing some terrain I am now able to play some small Flames of War games in the comfort of my own home, which at least enables me to get some practise in before I go out to my local gaming establishments and get hammered. At least, that's the theory!

Tonight, I set up a hasty and small-sized  1v1 battle with on my new marshy terrain board (2'x2'). As I had a small playing space I only plonked a few mixed German and British units on the board, along with my unpainted hegerows to separate the two front lines. The biggest problem was that I didn't really bother about having a "point-sized" force, so I think I gave the Germans too many tanks, while I was left playing with a largely infantry-based British force! Picking the "roadblock" game-type, I went to action. As I'm still quite new to FoW, the game was played very loosely as we tried to learn the rules. The forces were based on the lists in the Monty's Meatgrinder supplement. The after action report below is written to make the action a bit more immediate.

Forces:

British

1x Sherman Armoured Platoon (3x Sherman V, 1x Firefly)

1x Infantry Platoon (1x Command Team, 3x Rifle Team)

1x Company Command (1x Command Team, 1x PIAT Team, 1x Light Mortar Team)

1x 25pdr Battery (2x 25pdr, 1x Command Team, 1x Staff Team, 1x Observer Team)

German

2x "Becker" SP Gun Platoon (2x (Sf)39H 75mm SP, 4x (Sf)39H 105mm SP)

1x "Becker" SP Artillery Platoon (2x (Sf) 105mm Lorraine Schlepper, 1x (Sf) Lorraine Schlepper Command/OP Vehicle)

1x Armoured Car Platoon (1xSd Kfz 231 8-Rad, 2x Sd Kfz 222)

Turn 1:

With the Germans in good defensive positions they didn't really need to move much this turn. Their artillery spotter vehicle pushed forward but couldn't get a good view over the hedgerows (even there weren't any actual hedgerows on the board, only the unpainted bases I had for them, we agreed that they existed).  The leading 105mm SP gun in the village mover to cover the left hedgerow entrance and fired at one of my Shermans as it appeared through the hedgerow, but the shot missed. I fired a responding shot but missed also. However, with my observer team peeking through the hedgerows, I was able to range in on one of the 222's that was being held at the centre of the German line and hit him with a 25pdr barrage. With no armour on top, the car was destroyed.

Turn 2:

This time the Germans stayed put as I got my assault into gear. I got my infantry to dig in and defend the right hedgerow gap, intending to get them out of their trenches and through once the left flank was secured. The Sherman platoon pushed through with a leading vehicle and fired at the SP gun that hadn't moved from the previous turn. This time I hit, but the shot glanced off the armour. The German vehicle returned fire and bailed the Sherman. However, I ranged in with my artillery and took out the SP gun that had claimed one of my Shermans.

Turn 3:

Again, the Germans didn't move. However, the German player had brought up a second gun, which fired at the Firefly I was trying to bring behind the burning tank wreck. The Firefly was destroyed outright. As the Sherman platoon was down to half strength I was forced to take a motivation test for them, which fortunately they passed and the remaining Shermans stayed on the field. The Germans were still holding onto their position, refusing to move and keeping the right flank covered with their second SP platoon. Their artillery spotter vehicle posed a serious threat to me now, even though it had become bogged down in the marsh, so I managed to range in and destroy it with the 25-pdrs, rendering the German artillery almost useless until my forces emerged from behind the hedgerows.

Turn 4:

With the left flank effectively blocked by wrecks, and in the hope that the threat of an artillery barrage in that sector would keep the Germans away, I decided to switch my main effort to the right flank. I moved the Shermans over and waited for the Germans to move. They did, pushing their 2nd SP platoon right up to the gap in the hedgerow. Both Shermans had angles on the leading SP gun but their shells bounced off the armour. The SP gun returned fire and destroyed one Sherman. The remaining vehicle passed the motivation test, but it was on its own.

Turn 5:

The battlefield had now degenerated into chaos. While I was supposed to be attacking, I was now actually having to defend! The German SP platoon on the left flank tried to close up to the hedgerow gap and work around the vehicles, but I destroyed the leading vehicle with a 25-pdr barrage when it nosed through the gap. Unfortunately the surviving member of that platoon passed his motivation test and stayed on the field. On the right flank the remaining Sherman fired again at the SP gun, and again its shot bounced off. I had ordered my infantry to move out of cover in the last turn and had my PIAT team fire at the flank of the SP gun, but again the round bounced off the thick armour. The dice were not in my favour! In a moment of desperation I ordered the closest rifle team to charge the SP gun in the hedgerow gap. They failed to knock it out and had to flee for cover. The SP gun targeted the remaining Sherman and destroyed it. No more armour support for me then...

Turn 6:

The Germans had been scared off by the intensity of the fire on the right flank and began to withdraw. I managed to knock out one of the SP guns with a 25-pdr barrage as it pulled back. Unfortunately, I had not been watching the left flank closely enough. The remaining SP gun from the 1st platoon had managed to get into the British side of the field! It fired at one of the exposed 25-pdrs and took it out. Things were getting bad.

Turn 7:

The German SP guns began to move around to the left flank, scenting victory. I moved my infantry over to try and defend the 25pdrs. Thankfully, I was able to drop the remaining gun to fire over open sights and destroy the SP gun that had penetrated my line, but the armoured car platoon which the Germans had stealthily kept in reserve also began to nose towards the left flank.

Turn 8:

The Germans concentrated on moving their forces to the left flank. With only one 25pdr able to engage them I was forced to concentrate on the armoured cars as they appeared through the hedgerow gap. I knocked out the remaining 222 as it appeared with the 25pdr, although the surviving vehicle again passed its motivation test. My infantry got into position to cover both flanks as best they could.

Turn 9:

The second German SP gun platoon emerged from the left flank, one 75mm piece getting in view of the 25pdr but missing its first shot. The 25pdr responded and, unbelievably, missed! The PIAT team was in position by now and fired at the SP gun but the round again bounced off the thick armour.

Turn 10:

The battle was all but over, the British nearly down to half strength. The 75mm SP gun again fired at the remaining 25pdr and this time destroyed it. Again, the PIAT team fired and failed to penetrate, but one rifle team was close enough to assault the gun and this time, I got lucky. They passed the assault and clambered onto the enemy vehicle, killing the crew. By now though, it was clear I would not win. The German vehicles were forming up to push through the left flank, and my only anti-armour weapon was the PIAT. I ordered my men to surrender (or, more accurately, I admitted defeat to my opponent!) At least they ended the battle fighting.

Overall, it was a good game, but again reveals how desperately I need to get my British armour finished as soon as possible, as well as get some German infantry painted so I'm not just facing armour! German armoured vehicles are sods to kill, but that said the 25pdrs more than proved their worth. Maybe next time I'll be the one who is victorious!

More to come,

-J

I decide during this night's modelling to make things a bit more "Challenging". More specifically, I finally recieved in the post my A30 Challenger, which must be popular as it had sold out when I initially ordered it! The Challenger replaces the Sherman Firefly in Cromwell platoons during the Operation Market Garden scenarios, which feature in the new intelligence book, "Hell's Highway". I also used the build as an excuse to finally get my "cutting mat" out of its packaging and use it for the first time. I've had it for ages but keep forgetting to use it!

The parts that come in the Challenger blister pack.

The Challenger was an unusual tank that bears no real relation to the modern and highly successful machine that bears its name and currently forms the backbone of the modern Royal Tank Regiment. Indeed, it was something of a compromise. When the Cromwell was being developed it was hoped that it could be fitted with a new high-powered "77mm" gun built by Vickers-Armstrong. However, in typical wartime fashion, neither the War Office, the Cromwell designers or Vickers-Armstrong actually worked really closely together, with the result that the projects went on separately from each other. When the time came to mount the "77mm" in the Cromwell...the turret was found to be too small to accomodate the gun. Consequently, the Cromwells had to make do with a underpowered 75mm gun, making it just as vulnerable in tank vs tank engagements as the Sherman and the Churchill. However, attempts were made to upgun the Cromwell with the 17pdr as had been done successfully with the Sherman firefly. Unfortunately, the 17pdr was also too large to fit into the exisiting Cromwell turret, so a new one had to be designed. It was very large, almost slab-sided, making it an easy target for German gunners. However, it did mean that Cromwell platoons did have an additional advantage in firepower, and the Challenger saw service with Cromwell-equipped units in late 1944. It was soon phased out when both it and the Cromwell were replaced with the far superior A34 Comet.

A shot of a real A30 Challenger, showing its high-sided turret.

Flames of War's model of the Challenger is excellent, well designed and very easy to build. As the photo at the top of the entry shows, there are not too many parts and its actually easier to build than the Cromwells. Perhaps the only fiddly bit was attaching the gun to the turret, but it's quite easy overall. The tracks have "grooves" cut for them in the sides of the hull so they fit in snugly, and while there were separate mudguards for the Challenger tracks like those for the Cromwell, they were much easier to fit, certainly on my model. The Challenger is so simple to build I had it done in 15 minutes. This now means I can field Cromwell platoons for Normandy or Holland scenarios. All that's left now is to paint it up ready for battle!

The finished, albeit unpainted, Flames of War Challenger model.

More to come,

-J

Finally, after so much waiting, today was the day in which I got around to using the new War Paint on some of my constructed and undercoated vehicles. Flames of War's War Paint range are essentially cans of spray paint in the appropriate colours for particular types of vehicle - such as early/late war German armour and British armour. The paint colour is identical to the Vallejo bottled paint that comes in the paint sets. Overall, I was rather pleased with it, , but with a couple of points that I'll add below:

One of my undercoated M10s, awaiting its turn to be spray-painted. I use black Vallejo paint to undercoat.

The first vehicle on which I tested the new spray paint was an M10, simply because it was the first one I picked out of the box. It was here that I met my first hurdle. On opening the new War Paint can (British Armour) I found that the spray head was loose. Simple, I thought, simply push the prong at the bottom of the head into the can and then aim and test it. So I duly pushed the prong into the can...and the spray went off. Fortunately, all it expelled was air, and nobody was standing in front of it, but a word of caution to those who use new War Paint cans - don't point them at your face when you attach the spray head!

With that done, I aimed the can, tried to keep it at the right distance above the model (the instructions say 25-35cm, but that's not always possible) and fired. Nothing happened at first, except the newspaper underneath got wet. So I tried again, and some blotchy bits of paint suddenly appeared. Thinking that the can must be faulty, I checked the instructions again and realised what a dolt I had been. You're supposed to shake the can first! So I did, aimed again, and this time an even coat of paint, in a nice tight spray was plastered over the top of the tank.

The models after the first spray, with only the tops painted and still drying.

The process was repeated for the other vehicles I was doing, but the process was strangely time consuming. Because of the fumes (see below) I had to leave the room in between each spray to allow the paint time to dry. I then had to gentle move the vehicles to spray the sides, underneath and the turrets. The Lloyd Carriers in particular were quite tricky as I had to get the can really close to get the paint into the undersections of the carrier, and likewise for some of the tank tracks. Keeping the can at 25-35cm distant from the model is fine when you're just spraying the body, but when the paint misses areas as it inevitably does you have to get closer. I think an airbrush would offer far greater control in this area, but they are expensive. Nevertheless, I finished painting and left the room for the final time to give the models the requisite 15 minutes to dry off.

It was during this waiting that I polished off one of the boxes of Ferrero Rocher I recieved for Christmas. Aside from loving the chocolates, I love the boxes as well, for they are just the right shape for storing all kings of things relating to modelling. The taller, smaller boxes I have used in the past to store spare parts from 1/6 Dragon-type figurines, the larger ones to store models while I'm painting them. Stick in a bit of old paper and the models have somewhere they can be kept to dry off in between building and/or painting sessions and which keeps them quite secure. So, if you need somewhere to store miniature models, treat yourself to a box of Ferrero Rocher...

An empty box of Ferrero Rocher before...

...And a useful parts box after!

When I came back, I was chuffed. The paint had dried really nicely and the models looked great. In total it took about an hour to do all the models, a lot less than if I had painted them all individually by hand. There's still a lot of work required on them however - the spray paint naturally missed the areas underneath the turrets and in some smaller areas like under engine cowlings or mudguards - particularly in terms of "detail painting" like adding colour to the stowage, tracks, crew members and weaponry. Still, it's taken me a lot less time than normal, and for that I'm very happy.

A completed M10. The paint looks nice and even, far better than when I paint it and the consistency ends up varying. Only the detail painting left to do.

However, some points did arise. On the can it says that you should use the War Paint in a well ventilated area, and while I hardly did it in a cupboard, I did use my medium-sized kitchen with the windows all open and all doors and smaller windows open throughout the house. Even then, the smell of the paint was extremely powerful (indeed I can still smell it now) and I think that the best place to use the spray cans is either outside, or in a very large room (possibly even a garage with the door wide open) in order to dissipate the fumes. A face mask is also required as at close range the fumes can sting the eyes and you can almost taste them. Admittedly, this was my first time using spray paint of any type, so these were basic mistakes that I'm sure experienced modellers will easily avoid. However,, because you will need to leave gaps in between painting the various sides of the vehicles in order to give the paint time to dry, you must remember to shake the can each time you return as the paint begins to settle again inside the can in the interim, and so when sprayed it can become blotchy on the model.

Otherwise, I was very impressed, and will use the War Paint again for my remaining Cromwells and future British models.

More to come,

-J

The next step in my armoured building program was to construct a platoon of M10 Achilles SP anti-tank guns. Unfortunately, having not looked properly at the relevant sourcebooks, I didn't realise I needed four instead of three guns to complete the platoon, but getting another one should be easy enough.

The contents of the British M10 blister pack.

The M10s are suprisingly easy to put together. The construction is very straightforward - after cleaning the various parts up simply attach the tracks from the spindle mounting and attach the cannon and, if desired, the machine gun. Et voila, the basic M10 model is complete. The crewmembers have small spindles inside the turret on which they can be attached, but I'll paint them up separately before I do that. My first M10 was built and ready within 15 minutes.

The first completed M10, awaiting undercoating.

However, as I moved on, a few small niggles began to emerge. For some inexplicable reason the second of my three M10s came with a separate attachment for the ammunition bins at the rear of the turret - despite the other two having them already attached as part of the model. It's easy enough to do and little hassle, but it seems peculiar.

The M10 model with the separate ammunition bins. I can't see someone not wanting to attach them.

That problem was straightforward enough, but when it came time to mount the machine-gun at the rear of the turret, my dislike of spindle-mounted model parts was justified. The MG was firmly attached to the spindle and very difficult to remove. The first one had come off after very gentle fiddling, but when I tried it for the second model, I applied just a little too much pressure...and snapped off the barrel of the gun. Not happy. Exactly the same thing happened when I constructed the third model. At least one of the M10s has a rear-mounted MG, which marks it out as the platoon commander. The others will be in trouble if any German infantry get close....

The "bulge" underneath one of the M10s mudguards.

The final issue, as shown above, came with the last model. As I inspected it I found a large bulge just underneath the left front mudguard which prevented the track from being attached. I started to file it down but as I did so, I realised I was getting dangerously close to filing down the mudguard itself. I took it as close as I could, but feared doing any more would damage the model, and so attached the track which had only a very slightly gap between it and the model, hardly noticeable. A more experienced modeller, I'm sure, could clear up the problem easily, but I was a bit irritated by it. Still, only a year on I'm still pleased with the M10s. After completing a pair of Lloyd Carriers which would transport my fully-painted 6-pounder anti-tank platoon, I put them with the Cromwells to await undercoating and the first test of the new War Paint.

Another unit completed and ready for painting. I attach the crewmember figures to cardboard bases with blue-tak to paint them separately and then place them in the models when everything is ready.

More to come on site and blog,

-J

With the current snowy weather keeping everyone indoors, I decided to use some of my extra bits of free time to get to work on the Flames of War armoured vehicles I've had for a while and the new batch I recieved for Christmas. For those unaware of Flames of War (link in the "links" section), it is a wargaming system for the Second World War which is constantly expanding and already covers an extensive range of theatres currently starting in North Africa and ending at Operation Market Garden. Created by Battlefront in New Zealand, there is a very large selection of miniatures in 15mm scale with which to play the game, which is mainly based on company-sized units of 150-or so individual little riflemen or 15 tanks (at the most basic level). I've only been mucking about with it for a year, having never done any wargaming or real model-making before, but it's good fun and painting is quite relaxing.

I had a varied mix of stuff lying around but decided to start work on the Cromwell Armoured Platoon boxset. Inside are 4 late-war Cromwell VIIs and a Sherman Firefly VC. The Firefly is fairly easy to construct as only the tracks, gun and hatches require attachment, and none of them needed much cleaning up. I decided to add a .30cal machine-gun above the gunner/loader's hatch as I've already got one Firefly, so the gun would differentiate between the two vehicles on the miniature battlefield.

A close-up of part of the constructed platoon with the completed Firefly and two Cromwells.

The Cromwells were another matter. I'd not built any before, and unlike the Shermans their tracks do not attach into convenient grooves, so the positioning was tricky. Attaching the gun, hatches and commanders was a bit more straightforward, but it was when it came to the mudguards that I began to swear. The construction diagram on the box shows them already attached to the tracks, but they come seperately, 4 per tank, a pair for the front and a pair for the rear. Getting them on properly was a right swine and required an awful lot of filing and careful positioning to keep them affixed. Even then, I'm not 100% happy with them, but I got the buggers on and the entire platoon was constructed in roughly 1 hour.

Before I get on to undercoating them I want to get all my other vehicles ready. This includes 3 M10 Achilles, 2 Lloyd Carriers and 7 StuG G self-propelled guns. Once undercoated I plan to use the new "War Paint" spray cans on the vehicles to see what they come out like, as I normally hand-paint everything. Given that the snow looks set to continue, there seems to be plenty of time to get on with it!

The complete Cromwell platoon, constructed and waiting to be painted.

More new site information and wargaming posts to come over the next few weeks. Stay warm!

-J

I've started work on the "Timeline" section, the basic Normandy section of which is up now. Equally, the "Glossary" section has begun, although only with an incomplete list of operational names. The upcoming festive festivities will prevent updates for a little while, but I'll try and do a bit more while the mince pies go down between Christmas and New Year.

Merry Christmas and Happy 2010.

-J

The Normandy section of the site is now basically complete, although that is not to say it won't be expanded at some later date. The articles on the specific independent armour brigade operations cited in that section have yet to be written as well, although it will be a little while yet before they are ready.

For various technical reasons, visiting multiple pages in the campaign sections or the operational articles will now take you to the "PAGE STORE" website, which is identical to this one, except that its content consists entirely of the second or third or fourth etc pages of the campaign sections and the operational articles. You will notice that when you visit the page store only "Home" appears in the navigation bar at the top. Clicking on this will take you to a link to get back to the main site, or you can simply click "previous page" on the page you are viewing to get back there as well. Its admittedly a bit convoluted, and hopefully will be streamlined in the future.

Enjoy the Normandy section. More material is coming.

-J