Mini-Submarine Loading Procedures

The sailors, MPC ring hand figures, prepare to load the minisub onto the converted minisubmarine tender.

The minisubmarine tender gets into position to receive the minisubmarine. Note the sailor with the green helmet with a BAR.

The safety team makes one last check of the systems and moves the minisubmarine to the Mother Ship.

The minisubmarine has been loaded and the Mother Ship is prepared to move off to the site of the B17.

The raft support team crew prepares to cast off, they will be towed behind the Mother Ship. The sun goes down as the team prepares for the short trip to the underwater B17. The sailor in the white hat is armed with a carbine, and the man behind him has an M1 rifle.

HaT PAK 40 75mm ATG

HaT PAK 40 75mm gun lurking inside an anti-tank gun position made by Bresica Miniatures.

Italeri WWII U.S. Army III

The mortar team has two mortarmen, but the weapon suffers from the same problems as the machine gun. The bipod of the mortar should be mounted on part of the same base as the figure. The number two mortarman is a rather odd pose, but when viewed from this side, his pose makes some sense. He is watching the fall of the mortar round. It would have been nice to have a few extra mortar rounds at his side.

A size comparison between the Italeri tanker and the HaT German MP. The Italeri guy is just a little bit larger. Look at the great level of detail on even the boots of the Tanker. I don't feel a need for an entire fleet of tankers with Colt .45 pistols, so I suspect I may use him as a source for some head swaps with other troops. Tankers often dismounted for scouting or if their tank was hit.

Imex WWII US Army paratrooper from the Easy Company set, Italeri WWII US Army and a Revell WWII US Army soldier. I like the size of the Revell figure the best and the color and sculpting of the Italeri figure best.

Esci WWII US Army paratrooper, two Italeri US Army figures and a Revell US Army figure.

The Italeri US Army set is a bit taller and thicker than the Esci, Revell and Imex figures. They are not so large that they can't blend in okay in a group. This includes figures from all three of those companies.

Later this year, Italeri are planning on a second US Army set and an anti-tank set too with US Army and other troops. I hope these two additional sets will fill out some of the missing items in this set. I still plan on getting about a battalions worth of these guys, thats about 16 boxes.

B17 & Mini-Submarine Adventure in 60mm

It never rains in Southern California, except these last two weeks. The garden next to my house floods whenever it rains. My garden has a die cast model B-17 laying in it for years, since my little daughter no longer plays with those kinds of toys.



The Second World War is over, but with Stalin ruling Eastern Europe with an iron fist and threatening his former allies, the defense establishment still needed to be vigilant. While the B-17 Flying Fortress was obsolete the day Japan surrendered, they were still used for many special purposed, even into the 1950s. This one was observing an atomic testing event but due to engine trouble, crashed in this lake. While the small crew was able to bail out and get rescued, there still remained the TOP SECRET Norden Bomb Sight still needed to be recovered.

A converted landing craft will be used to carry a mini-submarine to the crash site where the diver can get the sight out and bring it back safely to the surface. Here the recast 60mm US Navy craft docks just prior to loading the mini-submarine. The area is heavily guarded by MPC US Navy ring hand personnel. The Shore Patrol man in the foreground not only sports an M1 carbine but carries a bully club as well. Even the lab technicians in the background are armed. With the threat of Commie Spy's under every bed, they can't afford to be too careful.

The Mother Ship prepares to cast off to get into position to pick up the mini-submarine. The mini-submarine can be seen in the background, with the diver already in position. Complex high technology like this submarine requires constant attention to insure correct operating. While the lake water is clear, fresh water is less buoyant than salt water, making this a dangerous mission.


Three safety divers will be on station with the mini-submarine diver in case of emergency. The boat commander can be seen near the cannon.

Sailors in the background stand by ready to defend this makeshift Naval base. Heavily armed with even a bazooka and a ray gun rifle. This ray gun technology was only recently declassified and only now being shown to the public. There is a small raft that will provide additional support services to the Mother Ship. More on this exciting adventure will follow soon.