The Gift of Brotherhood

I don't normally do too many posts, but this felt merited. I had recently gone to a wedding in northern Illinois (not far from Lake Geneva, in fact) for a friend from college, where I saw a bunch of old fraternity brothers (including the groom and his best man). At the reception, the best man and his wife ran into a problem: many of the people who came had come through a shuttle service, and they had barely missed the next-to-last shuttle to their lodging. They had to leave early the next morning and the final bus to their lodgings would be leaving at midnight.

Thankfully, I brought my Terrain with me and drove them back. Stephen, the best man, offered me money, but I turned it down because friendship, brotherhood, yadda yadda yadda. I got an unremarkable text from him asking me what my address was and didn't think about it until this  showed up.

All Things In Moderation

     My tiny little blog has been swamped with spam comments. I apologize to everyone who wishes to post a comment, any and all comments will be cleared through to the blog but I don't want to be seen to be endorsing Pakistani "Escort Services" or Indonesian "Computer Solutions" and such. All other comments (good, bad, or indifferent) WILL be posted, I check several times a day to clear the moderation box out, please don't view this as an attempt to control or limit the discussion.

A Little Something to Distract The Housemartin

 

    and a few other people as well, 

I really like the bald fellow with a cigar

 

Bob Murch has released further miniatures in his Pulp Figures Range among which are these delightfully evocative Mexican Officers. Bob's work just keeps getting better and I was already a big fan! Check out all of his work on his website, oddly enough entitled, Pulp Figures.

Conquest Miniatures Medieval Knights

the front of the box, don't let the box-art fool you, there are real beauties inside!

     Conquest Miniatures has released a new set of knights. These follow on the Norman Knights released some time ago and are of the same stunning quality. Aimed at the period when armored cavalry was just beginning to add heraldry due to the introduction closed helmets. These are perfect for the European wars of the middle 1100s through the middle 1200s as well as the Second and Third Crusades. The models are cast in a hard gray plastic that exhibits superb detail. There is no flash whatsoever and the mold-lines are nearly invisible. Conquest continues to provide sixteen models per box rather than the usual twelve making this kit a significant value as well.

Cold War Workhorse, the PSC M-60A3

 

     Plastic Soldier Company have released another one of the great workhorse tanks of the Cold War era; the U.S. M-60A3. The kit presents the M-60A3 which is probably the most common version of this iconic tank, serving with the U.S. forces from the late seventies until 2005. This kit provides five examples of the standard M-60A3 that served NATO forces and a dozen other countries. 

     The models are molded in hard gray plastic that takes detail well and are devoid of flash and have nearly invisible mold lines. Overall detail is excellent and the models are crisply cast with no sign of warping or shrinkage. The only thing missing (as in all PSC kits) is a set of decals, although this can be forgiven due to the variations in U.S. marking systems over time and the sheer number of countries that the M-60 has served with. 

     While very well detailed these models are intended for wargamers and are very straightforward in regard to assembly with no tiny fiddly parts to attach (and have broken off during play). The finished kits are sturdy and will hold up well during use being considerably less fragile that corresponding lead or epoxy resin kits.

Memorial Day/Retirement Party

28MAY18 at 1300hrs My Place

Join us to celebrate the legions of heroes that have served our country and, as an aside, my retirement. Beer, Brats, Hot Dogs and Burgers will be on the grill. Bring your favorite chunk of meat to toss on the grill or a side dish to pass. If you are bringing something to share please list it the comments section to avoid duplication (unless it is chips or beer-we never have too much of either)

Please no police-themed stuff (I have had three-plus decades of that and now it is behind me- Thank God!). Gifts in the the vein of something we could share with other guests (whiskey, bourbon and rum are MY favorites) are welcomed but in no way required.

Mission Control we have achieved Escape Velocity

 yep, that is me sailing off into the sunset 

(I wish!)

     I am happy to announce that I will be retiring from my job as of 25MAY18. Thirty-two years in the trenches of Law Enforcement have taken their toll and it is time for me to move into greener (and much more relaxing) pastures. As far as what this means for the Blog, and the hobby, I am not sure; I hope to be able to devote much more of my time and energy to recreational pursuits so you are likely to be bombarded with photo essays of my travels and building projects.
       To all my regular wargaming buddies I say thank you  for your patience over the last couple of years as I have hosted far fewer games than usual while I ran up the overtime at work. This sorry situation will be remedied soon and we can return to a far more regular schedule of games.

A Romanesque Shopping Experience

So, as previously warned I was rather completely unhappy with the Lower Class (Low Quality) shops obtained from Sarissa and reviewed previously on this site.  As a result when I noted that Empires at War had added a couple of new buildings to their Spanish/Italian range, one of which looked like it could be modified into a better Roman shop row (Convent/Monastery Dormitory).  I then purchased a pair of these buildings and have completed them.  Herewith the review. 

More Dark Age Cavalry

     I finally finished the rest of my Gripping Beast 28mm plastic cavalry. They turned out rather nicely, if I say so myself.

 

the Big Guy himself inspecting the new recruits,

Arthur reviews his latest additions

Plastic Soldier Company Soviet Cold War Infantry

box art, simple and a good basis for painting

    Plastic Soldier Company has released their long-awaited Soviet Cold War infantry set. These are perfect for the USSR forces and most of the Warsaw Pact troops during the Cold War and right through to the collapse of the Soviet system (they can also be used for some of the more lavishly equipped Soviet proxy forces).

      Inside this box you will find all the weapons integral to Soviet infantry at the platoon and company level including man portable anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles A box or two of these and you will be ready for almost any "Cold War gone hot" scenario that you can imagine. The models are cleanly cast in a hard light gray plastic that shows detail very well, anatomy and posing are excellent. Weapons are realistically sized and delicately cast, none of the over-thick gun barrels that you find on so many metal figures. In the usual workmanlike manner of PSC there are no "dramatic" poses that will end up being left on the sprue; these are all models that you can comfortably include on a wargaming base without looking odd.

     These are an excellent value. They are perfect for Team Yankee and any other Cold War rule set.

Acies Triplex

Now on to the Three story buildings. 


These are the last of the Timber framed set and I will be reviewing two three story buildings, a 'single' and a 'duplex'. 

We're the Knights of the Round Table (We dance when ere we're able)

 

Arthur and the Boys

     Actually, this is a more serious (albeit, only slightly) effort to reproduce what Arthur's "knights" looked like. Constantine III took most of the Roman soldiers stationed in Britain with him when he left to pursue imperial dreams in Gaul.