WWII US Car

Last week I got this nice little HO scale Ford car at my local train shop, for $13 plus tax.

These guys make a large range of cars and trucks. All are painted, assembled and read to go right out of the package.

One of the amazing aspects of this kit is the markings.

I also like the red like on the front.

US Infantry divisions had a sedan on their TO&E so this is an important gap filler.

JSDF

The only drawbacks to these kits is they are sold in blind packages so you don't know what you are getting and they only make three different vehicles.

The instructions are all Japanese but since you only have to place the radar or machine gun, it's not much of a challenge.

$20 Roco?

While the Roco / Herpa apologists tell us that it is necessary to pay $20 or $30 or $40 dollars for a quality HO scale tank model because of the high cost of labor in Europe and the poor value value of the dollar, the Japanese are making excellent HO scale vehicles for only $8.

This HO 1/87th scale Japanese Self Defense Force anti-aircraft gun is only $8 and it comes assembled and painted and decalled.

As you can tell from the photos these are very nice scale models, there is no flash and the paint jobs are good.

This company makes three different model vehicles all modern Japanese.

Oh, and did I mention, they are motorized? They come with a small motor and will drive around on your wargame table. Batteries are included, along with a little bit of chewing gum.

Mike's Workbench, Just Like Santa, but More Military

Some bits and pieces of stuff on the work bench. British Commandos who will probably end up as German sailors. A few head swaps, a nip here and tuck there and it's done.

The with rectangles are mostly cargo loads for Opel Blitz trucks. They include fuel tanks and supplies and tools, all for my NSKK units. Some Airfix Luftwaffe figures, mildly converted to both KM and NSFK figures.

Roco Minitanks Kubelwagens. I am going through a supply battalion and trying to tidy things up a bit. Trimming flash, repairing broken vehicles, and such. Note the VW with no windshield, and Maxim machine gun mounted on the back of one of the others. Both these problems have now been fixed.

Some NSKK AA gun crews look on while I glue a Roco crane together. I am using this US Cold War crane for a WWII German one with a little modification.

Tools of the trade. Sanding stick, knife with snap blade so is is always super sharp, pin vise with bit for drilling tiny holes, great for antennas, and wheel holes for the axle, tweezers for tweezing stuff, make up brush so I not only look good for photos, but I dust the vehicles with it before painting. Long term storage sometimes gets dusty. Wire cutters for cutting wire, hence the name wire cutters. A little flat nosed pliers for holding small items, sort of like tweezers but with a wider gripping area for a stronger hold. All displayed on a cutting mat to keep the work surface free of cuts. The lines are also helpful for making short cuts in plastic and eyeballing the size of the sheet.