Thanks Pyrman and Bish!  And this is my first completed Group Build.  I'm glad I signed up, I can't believe how much I learned from this.  I accidentally pulled the Motor Mac's head off when I was trying to get the dixie cup hat, so I just replaced it.  I'm not sure why I didn't think of doing that with one of the extras in the box the first time...

Bob, excellent work on this, a really nice looking build. And look forward to seeing the finished dio in the 44 GB.

Am I right in thinking this is your first completed GB build.

Bob: Excellent job on the landing craft......which one of those sailors is Lt. Eddie Heimberger?

I found one that I think will fit, I'll get it put on tomorrow when I have a chance.  Thanks for the advice!

Try filing the edges of the top of his head down a bit ;-)

Thanks SP!  I tried getting one of the helmets to fit, but his head is a little too big for them.  I didn't think about raiding a box of spares my dad gave me though...might be something that'll fit in there...

Looks good to me from here ;-) If you're not gonna use the gunners, I might suggest taking one of their steel pots and swapping it out for the motor macs Dixie cup cover.

I'm going to call the LCVP finished for this build.  I don't think I'll be able to get the figures and diorama finished by June, so I'll save that for the 1944 GB since I'll have more time.  Unfortunately, I still could not get the gunners to fit, so I'm leaving them out and will have to settle for the coxswain and Motor Mac.  This is the first sea-going kit I've made since I was in middle school, and I'm mostly pleased with the results.  I also didn't weather the bottom since it will eventually be covered by water effects and won't be seen.

EB, it only takes about 10-15 minutes with an axe for a couple crew members to completely cover an AFV with branches. I have done it many times myself. And you update it every day or two with fresh branches to better blend in, replacing to older dying stuff. There are a few other tricks to the trade as well.

BTW, have you looked in the Bundesarchiv online photo section for reference photos? They have an incredible database full of official military photos in there. Just type in your search keywords and timeframe... In German... And boom, you get some great stuff.

Bish: Very nice dio. Foliage looks quite right. I know that it's a little irritating to paint and weather a tank to a good state and then throw branches on top and hide your work. Think history is on your side in this one. Just checked my "Closing with the Enemy", MIchael Doubler's justly famous book on how the US Army fought the NW European campaign from Normandy to almost Berlin. He emphasizes that the bocage and other forested terrain in Normandy (you would have found a lot of it near Caen also - a likely spot to look for a Panther) created a tactical nightmare because the Germans were almost invisible even up to a couple hundred yards. Any defending unit would have had a sector that would have included many good places to hide and to shoot from - the Normandy battlefield wasn't like Iwo Jima. So any tank near the front would very likely have been carrying foliage to attack advancing allied units and save itself from identification which meant air and artillery attack ASAP. Thus the biggest trouble facing the allies was finding the Germans - something that normally took getting shot at and even then you wouldn't be sure where the shots were from. A favored German tank tactic was to place a tank (very likely one or two - Normandy rarely saw concentrations unless counter attack was ordered) in a place where it could move a few yards and fire right down a road or large path - hence the desire to look like a bush.

I'd guess that it probably only took a few minutes for a crew to disguise a vehicle. So if a AFV was behind the line they might have parked it under trees or netting. After looking at a few zillion German tank photos in Normandy I was struck on how much more often German films show heavy foliage on tanks as opposed to photos. (I get this from my DVD collection on German weapons based on Geobbles' propaganda films. (The fact that the editors were able to cobble together volumes on every major German weapon gives you an idea of the thousands of miles of films that were made and captured by the allies.) The narrators continually contrast a AFV in the East to one in the West because the former wasn't covered with foliage as often. Goebbels' cameramen weren't shy about getting close to the front either. Still photos might be a different story - they were taken by the megaton but would have survived or gotten into print because of clarity etc - and I'm sure the bulk were taken in some place where a cameraman could take a shot without taking a shot.    

Eric

Well it's gonna put to big hits in EB's Destroyer some night if that thing ever shows up off of the beachhead ;)

Great work Stik for such a small scale

A big hit in a small package... 

Thank you guys... it sounds like my little boat is a big hit ;-)

My eyes are too old to work on kits that small. LOL! Very nice build Stik!

Woke up with a moment of clarity this morning.  I'll slide the gun forward on the mount so that both will fit.  Sure the gun will be in the wrong position, but it'll be hard to tell once everything is together.

Hey Stik!  Great looking build!  I think she is awesome!

Eagle90

Thanks Jack! And I originally thought that it would be quick & easy... Lol! This was about 15% build and 85% finishing in a project as far as effort involved here goes...

Stik - the Schnellboot looks really good.    Very brave in working in this small scale.

My only crit would be the photos.  It's such a small model that maybe you got in too close, and the focus could not be adjusted properly?

regards,

Jack

SP: Looks great, esp considering the size and the detail work you put in there!

Bob: I know what you mean, I've tried to fit crew members in tanks in other stuff and wondered if the kit is really off or you had to be super flexible to fit in there!

Well, the Coxswain and Motor Mac are finished, but I am having a heck of a time getting the gunners to fit in their holes with the guns.  I've put one of them on a drastic weight loss program, but so far the results aren't all that encouraging.  So much so that I'm considering leaving the guns off altogether, or just not having the gunners present since according to this thread, many landing craft were unarmed.  It would be disappointing, but still accurate if I had to leave the gunners out.

Stik, I am no ship expert, but that looks just fine to me. Can't wait to see the marauder.

Bish: Your Welcome, and ty

Thank you Bish. I see a lot of flaws in it, but at the same time I am content with the finished build. Now for that Marauder!

68, Gamera, jack, thank you very much. gamera, I know what you mean, the dust effects had covered a lot of it, I guess that's the price of realism. jack, this was another area were I was trying some new things, including paper nettles and small clumps of flowers, and I am really pleased with those. In future I hope to make my own trees, but for now I got this one from MK 35.

Blacksheep, that's for dropping in, looking forward to those.

Ken, no problem, I know its not easy with all these GB's, thanks for letting me know.

Stik, now that's a real beauty. I truly take my hat off to you sir, great work indeed. Will be a pleasure to add it to the pile.

Just want to let everyone know, I need to get some after market landing gear parts for my Jug. But, Its not going to happen anytime soon. So it won't be finished by D-Day.

Ok. I am calling this one done...

I present Bronco's 1/350 S-100 Class Schnellboot

comments and critiques welcome...  

I gotta get back to my Thunderbolt soon or else. Then try and make a scamble on the Hellcat if things go smoothly.

Bish - that is a really super presentation!

All aspects look great, but I'm really, really impressed with the ground work.

regards,

Jack

If I may quote you 68GT - WOW! does seem appropriate!

Maybe a double 'WOW! WOW!'?  

In any case beautiful work Bish! Only complaint I have is the foliage covers up some of the fantastic camo paint scheme you did!