I have had a couple of orders en route since late October - WW2 Red Army 3d prints - some from Poland (not yet here) and the other from Australia (arrived a couple of days ago)
The Australian order was fortuitous - I just happened to be browsing on Saturday and noticed the seller had everything marked at 50% off (he still does).
The Polish one I have been planning for a while - when I bought the 85mm AA gun early in the year, I received a discount card to use before the end of 2025 - 15% off all models purchased PLUS free postage - the latter not to be sniffed at when one resides in New Zealand
I was surprised how small the carton was
But the contents were all present
Unfortunately, despite the extremely robust packaging, there were a few damages inflicted
Mainly missing SMG barrels, but the kneeling guy was minus one of his feet - most of the parts were in the bag though and I was able to fix everything up ok.
This was the piece de resistance - down from $NZ48 to $27 (basically halve that again for US of GBP) Following lifted directly from Wikipedia!
203 mm howitzer M1931 (B-4) (Russian: 203-мм гаубица обр. 1931 г. (Б-4), GRAU index: 52-G-625) was a 203 mm (8 inch) Soviet high-power heavy howitzer. During the Second World War, it was under the command of the Stavka's strategic reserve. It was nicknamed "Stalin's sledgehammer" by German soldiers. These guns were used with success against Finnish pillboxes at the Mannerheim Line, heavy German fortifications and in urban combat for destroying protected buildings and bunkers. These guns were used until the end of the war in the Battle of Berlin, during which the Red Army used them to smash German fortifications at point blank range with their heavy 203mm shells. In the spring of 1944, a KV-1S tank chassis was used to create a self-propelled variant, the S-51. The heavy recoil from the muzzle blast threw the crew off their seats and damaged the transmission, and so it was cancelled.
With an elevation angle of up to 60 degrees and 12 propellant loads to choose from, the B-4 virtually met all the expectations it was given, capable of crushing its targets via an optimal projectile trajectory.
There follow probably far too many images of the same gun and crew!
I also grabbed this Komsolet to act as the tow vehicle for the gun - NZ$12 including two crew men!
I also have Scouts, Engineers, Riflemen and an MMG crew - but I will save them for another post!
They look nice casts, no wonder your mojo awakens :-) You order quite a bit from overseas that can have a long lead time to delivery, do you keep a list of all the things that you are expecting so that nothing disappears into the ether?
ReplyDeleteOr that you don’t buy again before the first order arrives?
DeleteNorm, living in NZ, we have little option but to buy almost everything from overseas! I usually only have one or two orders at any one time, so I don't find it hard to keep track.
DeleteJon, I am far too mean to accidentally reorder the same product...remember my Brigade Games saga!
Neat vehicle and artillery piece. That is some rough handling. Will these models be able to withstand the rigors of game play?
ReplyDeleteIt was annoying but not surprising to me that some minor damage occurred....I know how courier companies handle freight, after all!
DeleteI think they will be fine but I would be a bit nervous if someone else was using them....you do have to be a bit careful when handling them.
Nice looking models. Roughly handled or weak casting/material?
ReplyDeleteThanks Richard. A bit of both I guess. The bits that snapped off are hard plastic type resin...they are probably half a millimeter in thickness, so it wouldn't take much for them to snap off, really.
DeleteReally nice looking stuff sir 👌
ReplyDeleteThanks Michal....I was slightly worried they might be poor quality prints, given the price charged, but I have no complaints at all
DeleteVery nice looking models Keith, they look really good and a cracking price for them so you can't really go wrong.
ReplyDeleteThanks Donnie, totally agree, I am very happy with this latest purchase
DeleteFree postage from Poland is a bargain. I ordered some game mats from Lithuania and the postage was as much as the product. Lovely stuff that is sure to get you painting again.
ReplyDeleteThanks Lawrence, yes its a very nice piece!
DeleteI have looked at mats from overseas but the postage is always huge, due to size/weight.
That howitzer is bloody awesome mate. It looks ace even before it gets a lick of paint.
ReplyDeleteThanks JBM....and, I agree! I was slightly concerned the "in the flesh " 3d print might not live up to the image on line, but I was proven wrong, it's as good as it looks!
DeleteGlad your mojo is working Keith! Nice kit. Is the tractor based on the Universal Carrier?
ReplyDeleteThanks Chris.....I just consulted Wikipedia but there is no mention of taking any inspiration from that source, although who knows, Philby or Maclean might have provided them with the blueprints?!
DeleteCertainly some interesting models to get you into the mood for painting.
ReplyDeleteVery much so Peter, and they are already working their magic!
DeleteLovely looking howitzer and tow Keith. Going to use it in the AT role? 😁
ReplyDeleteI hope the Polish order turns up soon so you can put it under your tree.
Thank you Ben....you would imagine even a Tiger might succumb to a 203mm shell?!
DeleteThat's not a bad idea for the Polish order, assuming it arrives before Mr Claus......
Certainly more than a door knocker. Great piece, going to look fantastic on the table.
ReplyDeleteThanks Joe, it sure is...I can see it in a rubble strewn Berlin street......
DeleteNice looking models, hopefully gets you back into painting
ReplyDeleteCheers, Scotty...and it already has!
DeleteNice purchases at least they werent miscast, just broken, so you can glue them together, I think the issue with 3d designs as opposed to plastic or metaltend to be realistically proportioned where as you really need it slightly chunkier in places to withstand gaming?
ReplyDeleteBest Iain
Thanks Iain, yes, that's very true...I think the resin is also more brittle than the hard plastic figures
DeleteSome excellent stuff there Keith and glad to hear that you were able to fix the breakages. I must admit I wish I could get the tracked artillery gun in 10mm, as it does look sooooo cool! I saw one at the Partizan show this year and was immediately hooked;).
ReplyDeleteThank you Steve...it is very cool, isn't it?! It may have limited uses in wargaming, particularly small scale skirmish games like I often do, but when it came up half price, how could I resist?
DeleteNice Keith, the big gun certainly looks the part but perhaps you need a bigger gaming table to get it into action ?
ReplyDeleteThanks Matt - little chance of that in the immediate future - I am thinking a street battle in Berlin against some improvised German bunkers or similar......
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