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Hi all, I don't normally build AFVs but gave this one a go for the Ground Attack GB here on the forum. The build thread is here but to recap: Kit: Trumpeter 07221 AS-90 SPG Scale: 1/72 Build: Out of box Paints: Halfords plastic primer, Tamiya & Revell acrylics, Klear, Flory Models Wash, Oils, W&N Matt Varnish Extras: Value Gear Details stowage bits donated by good friend Pat. It's a super little kit packed with detail and I think the stowage really helps bring it to life. The only downside are the individual link tracks made out of some kind of soft plastic - there's not enough of them to make up two full tracks so there are gaps hidden by the side skirts. But had lots of fun and great to try out new genres that aren't planes or rotors. 1_72_Trumpeter_AS-90_Done_ (9) by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr 1_72_Trumpeter_AS-90_Done_ (14) by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr 1_72_Trumpeter_AS-90_Done_ (13) by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr 1_72_Trumpeter_AS-90_Done_ (8) by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr 1_72_Trumpeter_AS-90_Done_ (12) by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr 1_72_Trumpeter_AS-90_Done_ (10) by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr Thanks for looking and happy modelling. All the best, Dermot

Good morning. I wanted to reproduce this picture as a diorama: source photos: magazine Normandie 44 Number 20, copyright 2016 This photo was taken on July 31, 1944 at a place called La Lande des morts, between Roncey and Saint Denis le Gast, south of Coutances. I went there to get an idea of the place: The place has changed, and the house has disappeared. here is what the war correspondent photographed with his back to the vehicles: source photos: magazine Normandie 44 Number 20, copyright 2016 and today: The apple trees on the left were replanted at the beginning of the 21st century, and the water from a small spring in the meadow on the right looks red, because there is scrap metal buried in the ground. However, one of my friends brilliantly performed this scene: wonderful, isn't it? I had a Hummel kit, I wanted to reproduce this episode from Roncey's pocket. And I said to myself: what if I represented the scene BEFORE the battle? So I looked for information. This German column was destroyed on the night of July 29 to 30, 1944. At the head there was a StugIII and a Hummel. This photo was taken before the Hummel was pushed to the side of the road after the fighting: source photos: magazine Normandie 44 Number 20 p76, copyright 2016 Here is the story: The Americans launched Operation Cobra on July 25, 1944; A consequent bombardment upset the German lines (The Panzer Lehr Division was wiped out), then the US mechanized units rushed straight ahead. The Germans no longer had a front were partially surrounded to the south of Coutances. The remains of several divisions have clustered around a village called Roncey. During the night of July 29 to 30, three German columns left this village devastated by aerial bombardments. One of them called "Müller" had in mind a Hummel followed by a Sturmgeschutz, and these two tanks were assembled to make a "schwerpunkt". During the night progression, the stug overran the column to bypass a US road block, then resumed the progression by the planned axis. This explains why it was stopped at the head of the column at La Coucourie a few moments later. The story is set, here is the construction. The scene takes place at the end of the afternoon of July 29, 1944; the Germans wait for the night to be able to move without fear of the jabos. I tried to reproduce the camouflage stripes of the Hummel called Klauzewitz: the fern material comes from my garden: bryoflora collected at the foot of a tree. I fix it with white glue and and I paint in Humbrol 80 with an airbrush. Most of the figures are multi poses of Caesar Miniatures. I carve them and modify them with a mixture of cyanoacrylate and talc powder . There are also some Preiser figures, one or two Hasegawa: There are forty figures in all on this diorama. I wanted to represent the crowd of trapped soldiers. And the result: the roads are very narrow in the Normandy countryside. Garden side: there were SS of the Das Reich, paratroopers, soldiers of the Werhmacht, of the anti-air defense of the Luftwaffe... more than 2500 men, hundreds of vehicles. ...But the "elite" troops did not mix with the army! The painting of the figures was a bit repetitive at times, especially the realization of the oak lef pattern camouflages of the SchutzStaffeln. But I'm happy with the result! street side: I "recycled" a Sturmgeschutz III Revell that I had removed from another diorama. The motorcycle is a BMW: this episode of the Battle of Normandy is less well known than that of Falaise, however the entire western German flank collapsed for lack of soldiers and organized units. last for fun: and for those who doubt my sanity, I assure you that my doctor is holding up well! Regards, Eric-Snafu35

The clever lads at OKB Grigorov have just released a brand new injection moulded M24 Chaffee light tank kit in 1/72nd scale - and it's a real gem! All the hatches are separate pieces. The tracks are length-and-link. The mouldings are very cleanly executed and the finesse of the detail is wonderful. This kit blows away the Hasegawa rendering in all measures. Plus, it's very attractively priced. Even just the "basic" version is only 17EU. US Light Tank M24 Chaffee http://shop.okbgrigorov.com/product/639/us-light-tank-m24-chaffee.html The "Mammoth Edition" is also a bargain when you consider all the photo-etch, resin details, and turned metal gun barrel that comes with it. http://shop.okbgrigorov.com/product/641/us-light-tank-m24-chaffee-mammoth-edition-1-0.html