All,

I was woundering would you all like to do a new zealand GB any size any time in ww2?? If so then mabey at the end we could all juge on whos is the best and maybe a prize could be given to the winner
cheers,
-SSpanzer.

Forgive my ignorance but what do you mean by GB?

Jeremy I think Daniel means a group build.
Daniel, I think thats a good idea but if we want to get maximum particapation we need to make it official. But there are no more group builds being approved for the rest of 2005 so we would have to wait til next year.

Hi

Sounds like a great idea I haven't done a group build before but provided someone was good enough to explain it to me I would be real keen.

Regards

Fordboy

I'd be keen, but maybe not to limit it to just WW2. Would you want it to be figures, vehicles, aircraft?

I have an LRDG Chev that's waiting to be built (along with everything else) and I have a 120mm ANZAC from Vietnam. Plenty of RNZAF aircraft in my stash too.

I've always wanted to do a modern 120mm figure with a steyr, current webbing or vest etc. They steyr would have to be scratch built, and it's not the easiest shaped weapon in the world! There is a C9 made by verlinden that's the same as ours (the old Mk 1 version of the Minimi), and that might be a better option.

As for making it official, there aren't exactly a lot of us Kiwis on Armorama, I'm sure we could just do it by ourselves 'unnoficially'. We would get a better response from everyone else if we held it as an official GB though. Perhaps we could widen it to an ANZAC group build in one of the catagories, and have it run from Jan to Apr 25 2006?

I also have a LRDG Chev in my stash, sounds like a good idea.
You'll be suprised how many NZ members the big A has, its just not that many post, maybe a bit daunting.

Good ideas guys,



I like this idea Phil I think if we could limit it to ANZAC we may get a good response. Unfortunatly I probably won't be able to participate as I will be overseas.

Another idear is any war that the anzac fought in, and the dio has to be anzac's in one of those war/battes,End date could be on anzac day.
-SSpanzer.

All,

I'd be a starter for an NZ or ANZAC themed session, either an official Armorama campaign (means y'd collect a ribbon, woo-hoo...) or group build.

I think a group build is more restrictive, being based around building one or two types of kit (eg, an NZ Sherman or a Corsair ,{it's a plane, apparently}...)

But I'd welcome any chance to broaden the wider world's appreciation of the sacrifices our small nation has made - oh, and West Island too.

I think there should be extra kudos for modelling one of the more obscure actions or campaigns the Kiwis or ANZACs fought in - Green Island anyone?

kia kaha

acav out

i would be keen on this but i think it would be hard pressed to find any models that would accurately reflect the vehicles used by the ANZACs.

Are there after market decals out there specific to NZ?

This is an issue to be sure - but not an insurmountable one.

I've been looking for a bureau which might make rub-down (dry) transfers in Auckland - so far, no luck.

If anybody out there knows of such a place (doesn't have to be in Auckland, heck, it can even be in the South island...), please PM me hastily!

As a graphic designer, I'd really like to get into making customised and accurate transfers for my models and would enjoy helping out on other prohjects too.

$0.02

acav out

Sounds like a good plan ACAV,
Jeremy on accurate NZ kits, During WWII NZ used alot of lend lease type stuff mainly from the UK. An example of this is the Shermans we used in Italy the main one M4A2 early there is no plastic kit version but The Firefly VC there is a kit.

That is what I was referring to, not just limiting it to the Gallipoli campaign, but using the term Anzac in it's now accepted term to refer to Kiwi and Aussie military forces, either together or individually.

Since both nations have been involved in most conflicts you could have :

Op Bastille, Op Falconer ( Aussie Gulf war missions in '03), Op Rake (kiwis in Iraq '03-'04), Op Crib (kiwis in Afghanistan right now), the P3k deployment to the gulf (ongoing), Op Teal (support by C-130 to the war in Afghanistan, also ongoing). RAMSI - this was the Solomons, Timor, Op Belisi in Bougainville (a nice orange Iroquois anyone? Or troops with bright yellow hats?) and that's just some of the more recent ones. There's obviously a lot more if you want to go back to the Boer war, WW1, WW2, Korea, Malaya (both soldiers and RNZAF Canberras and Vampires), Borneo, Vietnam, the first Gulf war, Somalia (our Andovers, Aussie M113s), and an uncountable number of UN missions that we've had, or have, observers on (Sinai, Angola, Mozambique, Sudan, Bosnia, de-mining ops in Cambodia).

Plenty of opportunity for scratch building/modifying figures, M113s, Landrovers, Iroquois and LAVs (Aussies have them in Iraq right now), F/A-18s in DG, or A4Ks in Darwin/Butterworth/Kuantan/Tindal etc etc.

Plenty of scope for a nice little diorama of troops with a M113 in Waiouru? Or a DUMVEE with NZSAS in Afghanistan (might be hard to get photos for that one though...)

That's probably enough to be going on with, it's not an exhaustive list but gives you some ideas.

My preference would obviously lean more towards building something that the kiwis used and scratch building may be a little out of my reach in terms of cost etc.

How easy is it to find either models or decals for the Aussie troops?

Not sure I understand how scratch building can be out of your reach due to cost? It doesn't cost much for plastic card and milliput etc. Different story if your using some kind of PE or resin set to convert something of course.

There are a few different M113 kits around by various makers that can be used for both Kiwi and Aussies, AVF club (I think) make an Aussie version called the FSV (fire support vehicle), which is basically an M113 with what looks like a scorpion turret with a 76mm gun. If you can track down the Cadillac gage turret set from verlinden it has the correct model of small turret that both us and the Aussies use, the one with the 50 cal and gimpy side by side.

AFV club make a CVR(T) Scorpion, and there is a new LAV kit just out, but I'm not sure what would need doing to it to make it into an NZLAV. Italeri made a landrover if I remember correctly, although I think it had the hard top so you'd need to scratch build a canvas top for it. I doubt there is a kit of the 6 wheeled Pinzgauer yet.

For WW2 stuff, plenty of options with Shermans, you just need to do a bit of research to work out which kit is correct for the type used by Kiwi troops in Italy, there is a book on the subject.

We also used M3 Stuarts (Academy and Tamiya make these) and Valentines, Matildas (?), Universal Carriers, Jeeps etc.

There is a set of resin 1/35 Steyrs available, can't remember the name of the manufacturer, but I got mine from Modelcrafts and Hobbies, and I'm pretty sure Firestorm have them (or maybe even make them?). The early C9 Minimis with the tubular stocks that come in most Dragon US figure sets are also correct for kiwi troops.

Combine these with a bit if kit bashing between some modern Brit figures (ie Dragons desert rats) for the webbing, and modern US figures for the helmets, or J hats if you prefer, and you have reasonable representation of modern NZ troops. If you use the American legs you'll need to fill the pleats in the pockets. The Dragon Desert rats are wearing NBC suits, but the top half looks enough like a smock to be close enough. Our webbing is a cheap nasty copy of the Brit PLCE so they are fine for the equipment. We wear a pretty casual array of equipment in the field, so you can use heads wearing woollen beanies, wide or narrow brimmed J hats, or bare heads. If you want to have a bayonet on the figure, the most common type if worn (and usually only by infantry) is the M7 in an M8A1 or M10 scabbard. Any Vietnam era figure will be able to donate one of these.

Firestorm have various Vietnam era figures.

http://firestorm1.topcities.com

If it's aircraft that take your fancy, there is just about everything ever flown by the RNZAF avalable.

You hit the nail on the head with this one. I was thinking about using a resin set to convert to something else and then improvising from there. It will hit me in terms of cost as i would have to go out and buy the materials, this is in addition to the $150 i recently spent at Hobby Direct when they had their 50% sale. Spending any more would just be inviting a slappin from SWMBO.

I will run through the store in Hobby City and see what they have and report back if i find anything.

Awesome suggestions Phil, Thank you for that.
Heres a great site for NZ armour Kiwi armour

Thats a great site Andy. I guess we could still construct the usual sherman and spray the insignias by cutting up paper to make it more NZ related. Based on some of the photos in there, the sherman tanks used by the kiwis didnt seem to differentiate themselves much from the rest of the US shermans.

In case any one missed this, it was posted by a guy over the Armor forum, it is a really handy site for the LRDG.

http://blindkat.hegewisch.net/lrdg/lrdgpatrol.html

Jeremy to the naked eye they look very similar but in fact they are quite different. The front hull angle is different and the rear deck is different too. As I said earlier there is no plastic version of the Sherman III but formations does a resin conversion that runs at about $55 USD plus the donor kit.

hey

I think doing a group build would be great but im not to kean on the ANZAC theme as i only do WW2 American/German/Brishish figures,planes,armour e.t.c. but i would be keen for a WW2 one tho.

I personally have a general preference for the allied arsenals but if we go down this track, it wouldnt be a GB specific to us kiwis and thus lose its uniqueness.

I Agree........
-SSpanzer

If the theme was WW2 I don't think it would qualify as a group build since it would be a bit wide ranging. The point of a GB is to have a specific theme, hence the ANZAC or Kiwi theme that makes it relevent to our Kiwi group here at Armorama.

Since you make American/British armour, why not make some with Kiwi markings? Afterall, all our armour was supplied by either the US or the UK during the war.

we could try. I will probably get a cheap sherman model for this one as it would be my first time spraying on my own markings.

Dont mind giving it a go i guess. Are we making it official?