Late Soviet/Early Post-Cold War Russian Mech Infantry Platoon

Figured I'd post progress of my first 15mm historical force. 

These are those BMP-1 dismounts I might have mentioned earlier.  I painted them using references from a late "Soviet Military Power Power" (1990, US DoD publication) an article on Turkmenistan in the mid-90's.  About that timeframe, the Late-Soviet/Early Russian Federation forces were fielding a camoflauge uniform similar to BDU to replace the aging khaki green based uniforms they had worn since about World War II. 

Clearly, I'm taking liberties.  By this time, the late 1980's to mid/late 1990's, Russian forces were more likely to be in BMP-2 or BMP-3 wearing this uniform instead of BMP-1. 

Artistic license on my part.  It's wargaming, not history.  Sure, the hobby mixes the two and strives for both in accuracy, but there is some give and take for flexibility of play.  Those BMP-1's can be used in lieu of BMP-2/3's even if they are visually different.  The same could be said of the infantry.  Part of why I enjoy Ambush Alley's Force on Force is it doesn't matter so much if these dismounts are armed with AK-47's or AK-74's.  They operate on the same principles.  Troop quality and morale matter more than the guns they carry. 

Game theroy aside, I enjoyed painting and basing these guys.  Both the vehicles and dismounts are Khurasan miniatures.  I'm very happy with the quality of their product, and continue to purchase items from them.  Being an American gamer, I appreciate the American (or at least North American) supplier of fine historical and science fiction/fantasy 15mm miniatures!

BMP-1's and Mech/Motorized Dismounts: http://khurasanminiatures.tripod.com/modern-russian.html 

Sadly, I missed the fact that Khurasan has BMP-2's under a different area along with T-72's... 

07JUL2015 "BIMP" spotted...

Soviet designed, and very first, Mechanized Infantry Fighting Vehicle (MICV) BMP-1 that is.  This one is a Khurasan Miniatures  15mm/1:100 scale version.  I ordered these back in May, and they were worth the wait.  Khurasan is a small miniature company based out of New York (the state, not  the city).  While small in corporate footprint, their work is nothing less than spectacular in the world of 15mm wargaming on this side of the pond (as the majority of the hobby is produced in merry ol' England).

Being a fan of Osprey's publication of Ambush Alley Games "Force on Force" and "Tomorrows War" I jumped at the chance to spend my tax return money (thankfully I got one this year...) on a good force.  Having spent some time in service in the USAF TACP training to hunt Soviet trained and equipped forces (no matter how long the Cold War ended, American and Soviet methods and equipment are still the two most proliferated in the world, even with local modifications and upgrades), I decided to dig up some TO&E from an old manual (FM-100-2-3) and make a Mechanized Rifle Regiment (MRR) rifle company.  Another good reference is the suggested force list in the back of "Force on Force".  I like the FM reference a bit more, with some added information from sources that have come forward since the end of the Cold War.  I've read about extra machine gunners attached to platoons, and in the Warsaw Pact Forward Area MRRs facing NATO, a couple of extra BMPs at the company level carrying laser/optic jamming gear.   Such variations are to be expected, as any good military organization can be that flexible.

Good cast parts on the BMP, with some 15mm QRF Strykers
in the background...

I ordered three BMP-1s from Khurasan along with their Motorized Rifle Platoon set of miniatures.  I look forward to getting the miniatures done next.  Today I'm going to discuss my building of the first BMP.  Upon opening the plastic bag and pouring out the parts, I must say I'm very impressed by the quality of the resin casting from this small company.  Very little cleanup was needed compared to other resin parts I've worked with from bigger manufacturers.  Just some slight mold lines here and there to tidy up, and the mold sprue lines were sized just right to make them easy to remove with just a No. 11 hobby blade and not have to grind with a rotary tool.  Mold lines were so well chosen on all the parts, including the pewter, that I hardly spent any time scraping or filing.  I did have to clean a bit of the sprue from the rear of the vehicle to make room for the doors.  If you look closely enough, you will see that Khurasan made the master with a very good 3D print.  This does not effect the detail in any way, as being familiar with armored vehicles, slight imperfections are only going to add to the realism when they are painted.

A close inspection of the deck shows the 3D printed pattern of the master, dwarfed by many fine details
including the drivers periscopes and screws holding the vents and other panels in place.

Only a little cleanup needed here.

Assembly was pretty easy.  I did have to reference some photos of BMPs to ensure I got the right door in the right spot.  I thought about making the doors open and getting some crew figures, but the rigors of handling during a game would make that a bit labor intensive on the constant repair side.  Last thing I want to do in a game is fix a miniature or lose a part.  I am only worried about the the AT-3 on the turret over the barrel.  In 15mm, these are TINY and don't have a lot of surface area for glue to form a bead and hold it in place.  Caution will need to be exercised when handling this piece!  Keep the super glue solvent handy along with tweezers, this is a part you will likely glue to Mr. Hand during assembly.  For once, luck was with me and I did not glue myself to the project leaving 1:1 scale finger prints.

Assembly went well with the tracks fitting the body of the BMP with a tighter tolerance than some more expensive plastic kits I've built in the past.  The only gaps were the along seams that exist on the real vehicle.  No filler putty was required.  Each of the road wheels could be glued into place along the bottom of the body, however I like the way the tracks were flexed slightly on the bottom.  This can add to the model when based on the appropriate terrain, as few armored vehicles I've ever seen have perfectly level tracks in contact with the earth.

Pewter parts attached to resin with good points of contact along hatch edges and hinge points.  Troop commanders door was a bit rough though, being a half moon shape, it fell into the hatch a few times.  Good candidate for gluing open for those who choose to do so.

I look forward to priming and painting this kit.  Khurasan Miniatures are well worth every penny and any wait to receive.

BMP-1 from Khurasan completed

BMP-1 from Khurasan, rear troop doors.

28AUG10 N-scale/10mm vehicle discussion

I've recently discovered that N-scale works great for the 10mm wargamer in some respects, and vice versa; depending on the company making the product! However, I obtained these N-scale 1:160th scale vehicles due to my wife and father in law being into N-scale layouts (which also make good wargame tables... or wargames tables make good places to set up N-scale layouts... Good justification to the wife for setting up a 10mm armor collection and playing surfaces!). Besides, thats been a dichotomy between two hobbies for decades. I'm behind the times in learning these little tricks! For more on scale, check out the Wikipedia article about wargaming and hobby scales! I know I've got to put a bookmark there myself...

First off, lets knock out vehicles that are okay for wargaming, but really, really, really would piss off the most precise type A personality realism N-scale hobbyist! Noble Miniatures makes some N-scale "Trackside Treasures" vehicles of which my wife purchased me the WWII US Jeeps (TT-2101) and 1940's Studabaker 2 1/2 Ton Trucks (TT-2117).




What I like about these, is that they are durable enough that I can probably transport them and play games with them without concern about anything breaking. For the N-scale model railroader, the molding will drive you insane! I had a mold mark 1/16 of an inch halfway up the canvas cover on the back of the deuce and a half i assembled! However, for the wargamer, this is a minor problem. We like realism and quality molds too, but its not as critical to wargaming as it is to realistic model railroading. Both of these vehicles took me only a few minutes to clean up and assemble with some CA glue. Do be aware, they do contain lead. Don't let your kids play with them like toys, and take precautions you always take with lead (though I'm sure the EPA will ban these figures someday...). You'll best find these kits at your local model retailer as if you go to the manufacturers website, its not entirely user friendly and geared toward the dealer and not the modeler... Not a bad thing as its intended to give your local dealer your business!

Finally, we come to the masterpiece. I doubt there is a more experienced company producing high quality kits and accessories for both wargamers and model railroaders than GHQ! While I know them best for their Microarmor, I was pleasantly surprised when I ran across their M1A2 kit (GHQ Stock # 58003) at my father in laws favorite train store in Omaha NE. I've known about the kit, just didn't see it until I was there. My jaw just about hit the floor, and I had to buy two kits... and a flat car... and some chain... And I had the intention of mounting them to said flat car for my wife's train. Until I assembled one!

Now I think I'll need to get a few more... At least to start an Armor Company, and get some Bradley IFV's and Modern US Infantry to go with them! Then I'll make a flat car load...

The stainless steel photo etched racks were intimidating to me at first, mainly because I've got very limited experience with photo etched parts (see my Stryker article for my first experiences!). However, for as small as they were, they went together VERY WELL, and were indeed pre-scored at the fold points where required for ease of construction. The casting on the turret was darn near perfect and required little clean-up. I had no problem finding the small holes for the photo etched parts to be glued to!

I'll take the GHQ vehicles on and off the wargames table any day! The detail they can pack into that small package, and the fact that the PE parts are stainless, makes it both highly realistic and durable for the wargamer. Obviously, the most type-A realism model railroader would be exceedingly happy with the minimal work they will have to put into super detailing these tanks for their railroad!

Here are all of the vehicles for a good realistic size comparison. Each square of the cutting mat is 1/2".

Not bad, obviously the Abrams dwarfs them both! I remember my days as a 'crunchy' as the tankers would call anyone not in an Abrams! Anytime I was out in the field at Ft. Riley or the National Training Center and heard the sound of an Abrams approach, I'd wake from a dead slumber and ensure that they weren't coming at my humvee without noticing I was there!

28AUG10 Appendectomy, good for my quieter indoor habits, like gaming!

Koldfoot from &Games can attest the fact that summers up here are busy. So busy in fact that we all feel compelled to keep moving and not sit down for long. Well, with only about three, maybe four months tops, of good weather can you blame us? We've got to get the entire outdoors in beautiful weather knocked out! Which leads to my biggest gaming downtime of all... It all culminates in the Moose season (opens next month!) and then slows down a bit as we are forced inside by the elements more and more (even the trappers spend more time inside cabins along the trap lines!). Winter comes, and the board game, table top, and computer games (due to lack of opponents during the exact hours of my toddlers nap times...) come to the forefront more.

However, this summer, I got hit hard and have to stay inside more. At the moment, I'm recovering from an appendectomy. Last Sunday I started with a sore stomach that led into going to the Emergency Room and then under the knife to have it removed. BAM! There goes a week of high intensity outdoor time! Not to worry, it game me some endless hours of reading contemplation (when I wasn't acting as conflict management for toddlers...) for several game related activities!

First, I'll publish the game table pictures. BEFORE I got sick, I was actually actively working on a game table for my miniatures. Then I'll publish some miniature stuff for 10mm/N-Scale vehicles from some kits my wife and I found in Omaha NE at a model train store. Finally, I'll get some pictures of some nice print and play free sample modules from Amarillo Design Bureau who took over the license for Star Fleet Battles after Task Force Games went under!

I'll get this blog updated! Hopefully I'll get some games action in this fall and winter!