Dollar Store Cannon

While at my local dollar store recently I found several sets of soldiers with accessories. One of the nice thing about the dollar store is you can buy a set like this even if you only need one part of it because the items are so cheap.

This is the contents of this set. The figures are randomly assorted, but there were four versions of the sets.

The small cannons are similar to some British cannons that were made under contract to the British government in the First World War. Once the US got into the war, the guns were then made for the US Army, but re-chambered for the same ammo as used in the 75mm guns the US was getting from the French.

These guns were used by the US Army at least until 1942. These MPC ring hand figures make a good crew for these guns. I got five of them.

The Tim Mee Jeep can tow these cannons and they look pretty good together.

I have no doubt that these cannons will appear in a future edition of the Atomic Testing Base 60mm adventure.

Caesar Germans

Caesar have done so many WWII German sets I have actually lost count on the number. I will say this may be the best one. While I am a late war guy and these are early war, I am very impressed.


These are the different poses found in this set. There are only 37 figures in the set, but they are all good.

As is typical for Caesar, there is no sprue, just a little nub on the base. I have removed the nub, but not cleaned up the base. The set has two different types of submachine gunner. They usual MP38 is joined by the more unique MP28. The older machine gun was used all during the war, but naturally more common at the beginning.

This figure standing at attention is highly detailed. It is hard to believe how much detail Caesar can get on these one inch tall soldiers.

A front view of the two submachine gunners. Both are excellent figures and the one on the right is a particularly aggressive pose. Good job Caesar. More on these guys later.

More Caesar WWII French

The Caesar WWII French set is in stores now. It is a great set. I plan on getting enough for at least a company, probably a four set minimum.

Troops shooting the MAS 36 rifle. These are great figures with both the great coat and without.

Grenade thrower and 24/29 Chatterault machine gun. Gunner is in a prone firing position.

Soldier with submachine gun and an additional rifleman. Good variety in the set, including an officer, machine gun, submachine gun and a variety of action and static riflemen. Thanks Caesar for a great 1/72nd scale soft plastic set.

VP & Parade 3

Off duty sailor from the Atomic Testing Base views the parade of armored cars.

The armored car is used for police duties on military bases, and also for scouting purposes. Their high speed and armor protection make them excellent for this work.

More troops on the march. The rifle is for long range work and the submachine gun is for close up, inside buildings or dense forests. Their large magazine capacity and big slugs make short work of any Communists unlucky enough to face these weapons.

Many military bases support small towns outside the base that cater to the needs of both locals and the soldiers. In the Western states they often look just like towns Wyatt Earp could have visited.

Caesar WWII French Set

Caesar Miniatures have released their new WWII French Infantry set. This is another great set from Caesar. There are 37 figures in the box, which is a few less than the industry norm, but every one of them is a gem.

These two excellent figures certainly capture the spirit of maneuver demonstrated by the French army when faced with the onslaught of the German blitzkrieg. Hard to believe these are one piece figures.

These are very helpful figures. I like the marching guy, I look forward to seeing other people do dioramas of a large number of these guys in formation. They would be terrific. As usual, these figures are flash free and come with a little nub on them that needs to be trimmed. I pulled them off for the photos but did not trim them yet.

This is a great officer figure. My friend Jim said it looked like the officer can't decide if he wants to shoot the pistol or surrender. More in a couple days.

VP & Parade 2

The Secret Service provides protection for the Vice-President. This Agent is armed with a Thompson submachine gun. The Secret Service has to be ready at any time for an attack on the principal members of the Executive Branch of government.

Marching in formation used to be necessary to conduct combat operations. Back in the American Civil War troops marched in formation to concentrate the firepower of their single shot weapons against the enemy.

Now the ability to march in formation shows troops as well disciplined, and highly trained.

The long straight lines of the two formations is well displayed in this photograph.

The same photo with a different focus shows the detail of these fine soldiers. These are Marx and Tim Mee and MPC figures; a mixture of both original 40- 50 year old soldiers and recasts.

VP & Parade 1

Vice-President Nixon is reviewing the troops at the small town just outside the main gate of the Atomic Testing Base. One of his Secret Service team is visible behind the tent. Military police supplement the Secret Service as they guard the reviewing canopy.

Modern, high technology armored cars participate in the parade. These armored cars are brand new.


The news crew covers this event. Around here, this is a big deal and many people took time off of work to see the soldiers marching, the armored cars and maybe a glimpse of the Vice-President.

Soviet spies are everywhere. Sometimes they are East Germans, or from Poland, or even Bulgaria. The East Germans are the most reliable of Moscow's puppets.


The soldiers march in review past the Vice-President. A visiting General is visible in the lower left corner of the photo.

Armored cars by Tim Mee, Nixon and General and MPs by Marx.

Hobby News

Randy at Fidelis Models tells me he has a big crop of Roco in and that it is selling off fast. If you are interested in Roco HO scale plastic military vehicles, then this could be a bargain for you. He also has a massive collection of Trident civilian HO scale trucks. No two trucks are the same. Most are police and fire department, but many are FEDEX and other civilian companies. He is offering them at a huge discount too.

Fidelis Models has been around for over 10 years, and does a great job. Randy makes his own line of resin HO scale vehicles and sells a huge selection of HO military and civilian vehicles. He tells me he has big plans for expansion in the coming months.

http://www.fidelismodels.com/mm5/

Randy has also upgraded his website to include "content." He has had several noted authors write short articles and reviews for his customers. You may what to check that out when you visit his website.

Larry Pegasus has told me that his new KV tank kits not only have two tanks per box but two different turrets per tank kit. The KV I and II tanks went through several modifications and rather than make two kits of each, he simply gives you both turrets. This is super good news because the KV turrets were also used on railway trains as mobile artillery. So you can build your tank and then scratch build and armored train with little additional work.

The sort version would be to take a gondola car, plate it over with a thick sheet of styrene, and then put a KV turret at each end. Not exactly prototypical, but it would work in a wargame. I think these turrets were also used on river monitors. I know they used T-34 turrets and I think KV turrets too, maybe someone can confirm or deny that rumor on the comments section.

HaT Industrie has announced 15 mm plastic figures. This will be a first for them in that scale and follows on the heels of their recent announcement to make 28 mm figures too. HaT is trying to be innovative despite poor economic conditions. I wish them well in these new plans.

Change of Command Concludes

As the sun rises on a new day the change of command ceremony is concluded.

The troops prepare to march in review for the new Commanding General and his staff.

The Chaplain give a short closing Word as the troops march past in full battle array. Ready to fight the good fight against the Godless Communist Aggressor.

The high technology radio portable systems gives the American Fighting Man a critical advantage in battlefield communication.

The ceremony is concluded and work may resume on the tools needed to keep us all safe and free.

New Pegasus In Stock

I just got an email from Larry Pegasus and he says they just got in their newest Russian WWII model releases. T-34/85, BT-6, BT-7, KV-1 and KV-2 as well as some other items. The KV sets come with two tanks and a choice of two turrets per tanks! So two tanks, and four turrets! Keep those extra turrets handy because the Soviets used KV turrets on armored trains. So the extra ones are still usable.

These are sturdy, easy to build models in plastic in 1/72nd scale.

The arrival at Pegasus means they should appear at a hobby shop near you any day now, along with at three new sets of WWII Soviet soft plastic infantry from Pegasus. There are two sets of Soviet Infantry in glueable plastic and a combination set in soft plastic!

Atomic Testing, New Generals

A special change of command ceremony is taking place at the Atomic Testing base. Three new generals have arrived to take over operations. As the pace of the Soviet Unions atomic programs as accelerated, the President has made atomic testing a higher priority.

The new General officers will be Army General Clay in command, with General O'Donnell from the new Air Force as his second in command. The third general is another Army general, a medical doctor, General Snyder. He will be supervising the medical aspects of exposure to atomic radiation. Most scientists think the danger to troops from radiation is slight, but it does not hurt to study the situation to gather more information.

More troops are being assigned to the base as well. Army and Marines both will now serve here. Special vehicles are being assigned to the base that will serve as extra security.

More speeches have to be made to welcome the generals and the new troops. A large number of civilians employees for both fire prevention and materials handling have also been assigned to the Atomic Testing base. This is big goings on for a usually quite research facility.

The medical staff has been increased too, with a chaplain attached to the base headquarters as well. No godless Communists here.

Wargame Scenarios

People always seem to want wargame scenarios so here are a few tips on how to generate some. There are several classic military maneuvers and wargame scenarios based on them are sure to please. These work for any era, any scale using the figures and terrain you have on hand.

Defend the bridge. Rivers have been barriers to military operations forever. Defending a bridge with whatever scratch force you can put together is always a good game. You can select any variety of troops and vehicles and place them on the "enemy" side of the river. They have to hold out for X number of turns or they lose. Typically such a force is composed of any solders that were able to be scrounged up and told to hold the bridge until some other forces could make their escape, then the holding force could cross over and get away. Attacking force can be any size, the larger they are less time the defenders should have to defend the bridge.

Coup de main, the attacking force is huge and has overwhelming numbers and firepower. They must capture the radio station, the bridge, the power plant, the telephone exchange, the gas works and the presidential palace as rapidly as possible. The game is all about speed. The defending force should be small and scattered all over the playing area in small outposts, but the longer they hold the longer the enemy will have to waste time fighting. Causalities are not relevant, but time is your enemy. Every turn the defenders hold is a loss to the attackers.

Meeting engagement, two sides of equal strength stretched out along a roadway that ends at each end of the board. Who can get their forces on the board and deployed the fastest and then attack the enemy in strength? A double ended meat grinder with forces fed in from each end. Race to the high ground, the bridge over the small stream, the small forest that blocks your view. Husband your forces at the entry point or move to capture key terrain? It is your call.

One Ceremony After Another

The awards ceremony concluded, the troops and civilians are released to their usual job duties.

Sarge, nobody in the Engineers answers the phone, they are all at the awards ceremony. Why all the urgency? Why do we have all the extra security on any way? How cares if a bulldozer sits here for a couple days?

We got all the extra men on duty for security. There is a Top Secret visitor visiting the base, haven't you heard the news?

Sarge, if it was Top Secret, how would I have heard the news?

The base in on special lock up, for one very good reason. We got machine guns and armored cars and streets blocked off for a very important person who is going to visit the base. That's why everything is locked up tight as a drum. That's why I don't want no bulldozer here at the north gate.

As one awards ceremony ends, another formation begins with a benediction from the base chaplain.