Review - JTFM/Die Waffenkammer GMC CCKW 353 "Deuce and a half"

So, here it is, the last unit review for Operation Good Cause! JTFM/Die Waffenkammer did not just give us their Jumbo Sherman, but also another truck, more precisely a GMC CCKW 353 "Deuce and a half". Over half a million of these were built between 1941 and 1945 and they became a very common sight in Western Europe. It is also the base for the famous DUKW.

As always, JTFM kits come very safely packed:

The truck itself comes as a chassis, separate wheels and optional pieces like canvas covers, seating benches and machine gun. This allows a lot of easy customization. The canvas cover for the back can also easily be kept removable.

Although the chassis is one piece the details are top notch as usual for JTFM:

In addition to the amazing truck model you also get a driver, 5 passengers and a good mix of personal items to put on your vehicle.

Again, the quality and details on those miniatures is some of the best you will ever see in resin:

Assembly is very easy due to the limit number of parts and the great quality. Everything fits as it should, and using two-component resin it will stay together forever.

I decided to build the truck as a transport, so I put in the benches in the back. But then again, you just pop on the canvas and it is a supply truck.
I think eventually I'll have to put the driver in the cabin to be able to add the machine gun, but I'll keep the passengers separate so they can be used as crew for the jeeps.

I can just repeat what I always say: JTFM/Die Waffenkammer is my go-to source for high quality resin kits. Highly recommend!

Reminder: How to get your chance

Just a quick reminder how you can get your chance to win the army!

There is a "Contribute" button to the right. Click it and decide how much money you would like to give. We are accepting New Zealand Dollar, since that is where we are base. each $2 (NZ) you contribute will give you one lot in the draw. And multiples give you multiple lots, for exmple 5 lots for $10 (NZ) or 25 lots for $50 (NZ).

Some fineprint can be found here: 

https://goodcause2019.blogspot.com/p/disclaimer-operation-good-cause-2019-is.html

Please make sure that you have read it before contributing money!

Pimp My Rides

I needed a break from painting miniatures (so many faces!) and decided to pack up the Butler's Printed Models vehicles with some leftover JTFM accessories. I hope you like it!

 I also cut out the windscreens of the Jeeps, which was quite a mission. Anyway, they look much better this way!

The HMC M8 Scott got a bunch of sand bags and other baggage, as well as a new .50 cal.

I have one more review to do, and after that we will start to reveal finished units. Exciting!

So, just to give you a new count on army composition:

70 Airborne
41 Army
25 Rangers
1 57mm ATG
1 75mm pack howitzer
2 M3 Halftracks
2 Jeeps

1 Truck
1 M5 Stuart

1 M8 Scott
3 M4A4 Sherman
1 M4A3E2 Jumbo Sherman
1 M10 Wolverine
2 M8/M20 Armored Cars
1 Bolt Action 2nd Edition book

Or in short: 136 infantry, 7 tanks, 2 armored cars, 2 guns, 5 transports and a rulebook!

Review - Butlers' Printed Models M8 Scott

Great Scott! Today we have a closer look at Butlers' Printed Models 75 mm Howitzer Motor Carriage M8.

The M8 Scott was a self-propelled howitzer based on the M5 Stuart light tank. It was used by Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadrons for close support against fortified positions and saw action in Italy, North-West Europe and the Pacific.
Although based on the Stuart it differs from it in many aspects. It uses a new, larger turret and the hull had no hatches for the driver and loader. Instead, all crew had to get in and out of the vehicle through the open-topped turret. It also lacked a hull-mounted machine gun, but had a .50 cal mounted on the back of the turret.

Butlers' Printed Models offers a M8 Scott in different scales, including 28mm and 1/48th. Here, we look at the 28mm version:

While the hull correctly shows the large vision flaps on the glacis and the additional periscopes on the top, it also has a hull MG modeled. I guess I will just remove it.

Overall, the print is okay. Yes, there are visible steps, but this is straight "out of box" and it will be easy to sand the larger areas down. Otherwise, proportions and details look fine.

In comparison to the Rubicon Models the M8 Scott is larger, but the dimensions are almost perfectly 1/56th scale. In reality, the M8 was slightly longer and taller than the M5 Stuart. So if at all, the Rubicon Models M5 is too high.

Overall, a nice model that doesn't require any assembly, but offers a good degree of details. The addition of the hull MG is a weird oversight, but that is easily corrected.

Rounding up Stragglers

Today, I received the last miniatures for the Operation Good Cause army!

These are some Black Tree Design Miniatures sets I bought during one of their regular sales to round out the force.

First, we have a 81mm mortar. I really thought that's something the force is missing:

Next up a communications team, which will make some great Forward Observers:

And last, but very much not least, the big brass:

That's right, Old Blood 'n Guts Patton and Omar Bradley are going to take command. Looking forward to painting them!

Talking about painting, here is a sneak peek at my current work:

I hope that the first units are ready for reveal soon after Easter - stay tuned, we still have a couple of things you haven't even seen yet!

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner!

No worries, we have not forgotten about our March give-away:

The winner of the Minairons Miniatures Henschel truck is:

Christian D. from Germany!

Congratulations, we will have the model shipped to you as soon as possible.

And stay tuned, we hope to be able to announce another additional give-away very soon.

Review - Stoessi's Heroes Airborne Characters

We are very proud to count Stoessi's Heroes among our sponsors. They have an amazing range of miniatures based on real life characters from WW2, and they are doing an amazing job at capturing their essence.

The miniatures are packed in robust blister packs, and I say robust for a reason. Poor Dick Winters had an encounter with a 6 months old boxer mix and came out of it alright:

Although his blister got chewed up quite good, he himself didn't suffer any damage:

Every miniatures comes with a description of its real life equivalent.

So let's have a closer look at the other characters:

US Airborne Technician Fourth Grade Eugene Gilbert Roe
Sr.Roe was one of Easy Company’s medics and by the time they went into Carentan, Roe was already a seasoned veteran, able to patch and diagnose wounds in a methodical way.
Roe participated in Operation Market Garden and jumped into the Netherlands.
He also took part in the Battle of the Bulge at Bastogne. Allied supplies were low and Roe had to go from man to man to get more supplies. In the extreme cold weather, he had to tuck plasma bottles into his armpits to keep them from freezing.

US Airborne Lieutenant Colonel Robert George Cole
On June 11, 1944 LtCol. Robert Cole with the 101st Airborne Division, had the objective to take Carentan. The young commander called in a smoke barrage right in front of the German positions and ordered his men to fix bayonets and charge. Many Americans were killed as they assaulted, but more than 100 of Cole’s men managed to reach the German lines causing the defenders to flee. The attack would go down in history as “Cole’s Charge”. Cole won the Medal of Honor, but got killed in combat before the citation could be presented.

US Airborne Lieutenant Ronald C. Speirs
Lt. Speirs served in the 506th PIR, 101st Airborne. During the battle for Foy in Bastogne, a platoon had been ordered to go on a flanking mission. To countermand this order, Speirs ran through the town and German lines, linked up with the platoon and relayed the order. Having completed this, he then ran back through the German-occupied town.
“At first the Germans didn’t shoot at him. I think they couldn’t quite believe what they were seeing. But that wasn’t the really astounding thing. The astounding thing was that, after he hooked up with I Company, he came back.” – Carwood Lipton

US Airborne First Lieutenant Lynn “Buck” Compton
Lynn Davis “Buck” Compton was a commissioned officer with Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th PIR, in the 101st Airborne Division.
During the company’s action at Brécourt Manor on D-Day, Compton and others, under the leadership of Lieutenant Richard Winters, assaulted a German battery of four 105 mm howitzers firing on Utah Beach, disabling the guns and routing the enemy.
Compton took one of the gun emplacements by himself and was awarded the Silver Star for his actions during the assault.

US Airborne Staff Sergeant “Wild Bill” Guarnere
William J. Guarnere was a US Army soldier who fought in WWII as a non-commissioned officer with Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, in the U.S. Army’s 101st Airborne Division.
The night before the invasion of Normandy, Guarnere found out his brother was killed at Monte Cassino, Italy. He made the parachute drop on D-day. After regrouping with his company, the unit encountered a German patrol and ambushed it, affording Guarnere his revenge for the loss of his brother at Monte Cassino.

The quality of the miniatures is flawless and I appreciate that they come without a base or gate. Poses are very life-like and all the details look right. They also mix very well with other ranges (like this partly painted Warlord Games Paratrooper):

Stoessi's Heroes has a wide range of miniatures, including all major powers and even some iconic movie characters. Definitely worth a look!