Stik: Really nice work on that little boat!

Bob: She's coming along nicely!

Eric: Great start! I have to build a Cromwell as well at some point...

Bish: Well, I do hope we have a 1945 build. It would be a shame to end the series with the '44 one.

Stik, nice work there, that loks a nice little boat. I got the Revell 2nd S-100 last year, thinking of entering that for a 1945 GB if we have one, its nice to this little one go together.

So, is this being entered into this and the 44 GB.

Eric, nice start.

Looks good Stik. When I get to my US contribution to screw the Reich Day it will be a Gleaves class DD which engaged Schnellboats among a long list of duties in the first three weeks of the campaign.

But first we must give a nod to our "cousins." I did a P51 MKIII but it was Polish in spirit if not country of origin. So I'm well into Tamiya's 1/48 Cromwell IV which debuted on the beaches of Normandy to honor Churchill and Montgomery's formidable ground forces.

Cromwells served as recon for the three D-Day UK armored division and made up all of the tanks of the 7th AD (Desert Rats). That meant they were up close and personal to the very ugly battles fought around Caen throughout June. So the history is good. And if you look through the photos of the period - a lot of them are around - it's very clear that Brit tanks were making very wide use of netting and foliage from a very early date. I've never tried to replicate that effect and we'll see how it goes.

Will report in later.

Well I decided to take a left turn on my Longest Day build and add another here. While my workbench was down, I was doing research for my 1944 GB project and decided to pull that kit out of my stash. Well that kit just so happens to be a ship and I had many other ships in that stash box and during my research I went off on a side tangent last night and early this morning. Aside from "Pips" Priller's sortie over the beachhead on June 6, there was an equally daring and slightly more successful sortie by the Deutsches Kriegsmarine. The 5th Torpedo Boat Flotilla from LeHavre under the command of one Lt Cdr Heinrich Hoffman led three Schnellboote on a daring attack on the Eastern flank of the Allied naval force. The three boats launched their torpedoes at the Allied armada and succeeded in sinking HMNoS Svenner, a Norweigen destroyer. I had a 1/350 Bronco kit if a S-Boat in my stash and decided that it would be a good afternoon project today. A low parts count but many are quite small, and a lot of tiny PE as well

the kit

step 1 & 2, assemble the lower and upper hull. For building and painting purposes, I decided to leave the lower hull seperate until after the base colors are painted.

step 3 add partial weapons: depth charges, reload torpedoes, and bow 20mm gun, along with a few small other fittings

step 4, add the rudders and props to the lower hull. I accidentaly broke the center prop shaft while attempting to add the PE screw so I made a new one from thin brass rod

step 5 add PE to the midship twin 20mm and aft 37mm guns, railings around the gun mounts, and PE to the bridge area

step 6 was add the final PE to the bridge area

step 7 is adding the after PE railings, which I will leave off until after painting. Here are some close up photos of the PE work

Now suprisingly the kit came with no display stand of any sort, so I scratch built one

Not a bad way to spend the afternoon...

I'm going with Capt. Pugh's Geronimo cause it has full invasion stripes.  Couldn't find a picture of the wings of the Berlin Express 43-24283 with full stripes on them.

Looking good Ed.  Did you decide yet who's ride your going to model it afer?

Got a bit of time to do some work tonight. Got those pesky ropes scraped off and added some details.  Would anyone know what, if any, kind of instrument panels there are on an LCVP? I've tried looking, but I'm not having any luck.

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Been pretty busy here too. Tore down my workbench last Wednesday for a home project that was done yesterday and I set it all back up again today... I can get back to work now... after dinner and drinks of course ;-)

Thanks Everyone

Looks good Ken! I'd toss in maybe just a piece of white or light blue poster board, stiffer than paper and it's pretty cheap.

Thanks Ken. A plain background is handy if you can rig one up, but just have a pic without all the distractions makes a world of difference. Nice to see this on the front page.

The front page is looking good guys, a nice bunch of completed builds. I know we have a few more on going, and I should be starting on the Panther today or tomorrow. Just short of 3 months left, so keep going guys.

Thanks Ken. A plain background is handy if you can rig one up, but just have a pic without all the distractions makes a world of difference. Nice to see this on the front page.

The front page is looking good guys, a nice bunch of completed builds. I know we have a few more on going, and I should be starting on the Panther today or tomorrow. Just short of 3 months left, so keep going guys.

Yes those are better photos. It is very easy to rig up a plain background using a bed sheet or some pieces of plain paper.

Bish

Ken, that look really nice, looks done to me.

Can't you get any more pics, maybe with a plain back ground, for the front page.

Yep I can and did It doesn't have the plain back ground, but it's still alot better.

Here's my latest progress.  I had a few little things to wrap up painting on, and I think I am now ready for decals.

I learned a lot while painting.  I am brush painting and learned that thin paint and patience are key.  I didn't always do both of those things, (sometimes neither one)so the paint job isn't near as nice as I had hoped.  But, from here on out things will be better!

If anyone has any advice on brush painting, I'm all ears.  I want to master the brush before i move on to air brushing.

Nice to see that back Greg, looking good.

Ken: That's one beautiful P-38- love the red spinners and the invasion stripes.

Greg: She is looking good!

I finally got motivated enough to work on the Stummel.... 

Here's a couple of interior shots showing the radio and seats  

I have the wheels, drive sprocket and road wheels done, but I have to weather the undercarriage before I can install them.  Hopefully, I can get to that overnight tonight.

Ken: that P-38's nicely done.

Bob: your welcome....I wish some model company would mold that style of Higgins boat, without the gun tubs.

Ken: Very nicely done! I'm looking forward to some better pics

Thanks for the link pyrman, there's some details I was thinking of adding because I've seen them on some LCVPs and on the Italeri kit but I don't see them on that boat.  That might save me some time and sanity.  

I wish I could take credit for all that framing work, but it came as a single molded piece.  But the clean-up on all those edges took forever.

Bish

Ken, that look really nice, looks done to me.

Can't you get any more pics, maybe with a plain back ground, for the front page.

I'll get a different later today after I get home from the model club meeting. I'm thinking about  an out door shot; Maybe at the meeting,

Thanks guys

Ken, that look really nice, looks done to me.

Can't you get any more pics, maybe with a plain back ground, for the front page.

I'd say that it looks done ;-) very nicely I might add!

Okay, How does this look? I think I can call it done. I'm calling it done. I have a model club meeting tomorrow. We'll see what they think

I see that I am not alone... Again

or do a 2014 shelf queen build. i could do one of those for the next 10 years

I'm thinking of pulling the trigger and having a "No excuses III GB"  I have some from part 2 that I never got around to plus some additions.

waynec

that they are and i have, once again, overcommitted. i have to either build a lot more or refocus on my root building, which right now is warwheels and trucks, mostly 1/35 and modern, but some ww2 and big 1/72 kits and a few tracks. and commercial trucks, mostly firetrucks.i may have to forego airplanes and boats for a while except the in progress 1/35 stuff.

Yes I am in the same boat. I have many builds started for GBs that have yet to be finished before the GBs ended from the past several years. I am trying to finish those and commit to fewer new GBs to clear out the backlog.