Bolt Action Hobby Blog #4 - US Mechanised Platoon

[@mikeb4085]

What a great project !! Love it … well done

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Mike, much appreciated! I really enjoyed working on this, especially the individual work on each M10. It's definitely a project that I want to add to but can never decide what additions I want to make to it. Hoping to finally getting it onto the tabletop this year 😃

[@joeokabayashi8669]

The subtle effect of using minimal washes looks great!

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Joe! I'm in the middle of a very similar 11th Armoured Division project and have used the same technique on my British infantry. Definitely the way forward for my painting I think 😀

[@danbuman8422]

Beautiful and characterful Bolt Action army Ste! Love it. Thanks for sharing :)

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Dan, much appreciated! This is definitely one of my favourites completed so far. I think the time and work that I put in definitely made it all worthwhile as it feels like a more personalised project. It's definitely how I'll be working on these in future 😀

[@TheGreatMim]

Brilliant work, really like the look of easing back on the wash, going to try that myself in the future. Thanks for sharing👍🏻

[@OnPointHQ]

Thank you, much appreciated! I wanted to reduce my reliance on heavy washes and so this was a great place to start and I'll definitely be using the more strategic approach moving forward. I feel it gave my miniatures a more crisper look 🙂

[@CaptainVandus]

Really enjoyed this series, and your voice is so calming. You did a fantastic job. Hope to see more!

[@OnPointHQ]

That's great thank you, I'm really glad you enjoyed the series, making them videos certainly kept me motivated to finish the project! And I'm glad my voice was ok, I was decidedly croaky before making the video 😀

[@okabayashijoe]

Love the use of minimal washes for shading.

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers buddy! I think this is definitely going to be my way of using washes forward. It definitely seems to give me more control over the process and the miniatures seem to have a more sharper and crisper look than when they've been completely drowned in a wash 😀

[@lesliebeilby-tipping6854]

This Bolt Action force looks very good. Your change in how you are doing your washes does finish them with some excellent finish. You need to talk to Dom about his over use of Agrax washing! The truck is excellent. Looks much better based, somewhere to create some context. For your M10's if necessary you can find nice cheap in scale chains in the teenage jewellery stores.

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Leslie. I definitely think the less reliance of washes has definitely brought a better quality to my painting, specifically the infantry as the details are much more apparent than they were before. Great idea for the chains, I'll definitely be looking into that 😀

[@andyshaw5378]

Very jealous of your paint pot stand. All mine live in a b&q tool box ☹️

[@OnPointHQ]

This was part of my new desk set up last year. They are two MDF stands by Vallejo and thoroughly recommended. They definitely brought a bit more organisation to my desk 😀

[@oldschoolfrp2326]

Very nice, these guys should be able to hold their own against enemy infantry or armor, and Patton won’t yell at them for having dirty uniforms

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers buddy, much appreciated! I'm hoping they will be able to hold their own but moving forward I may look to add another infantry squad and transport to give me a bit more flexibility in taking and holding objectives 😀

[@basicminiaturepainting]

Ste that is some beautiful work lovely highlights and basing mate

[@OnPointHQ]

That's awesome, cheers Justin! I think the slower approach and switching to a different technique certainly helped. At no point did I feel bored or not want to continue with it. The variety definitely helped 🙂👍

[@BrushQuill]

A brilliant little force Ste, come together really nicely and look ace.

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers Cal, much appreciated! This was definitely the project I needed to get me back into painting Bolt Action. I enjoyed every minute of it. I'm currently working on a very similar British list but I'm flying through the project so a video series wasn't required 😀

[@basement1908]

outstanding work! congratulations 👍 Hope the convention went well!

[@OnPointHQ]

Thank you, much appreciated! Really happy to see the project fully completed and I can't wait to get it on the tabletop soon. The convention was absolutely fantastic thank you, if you search for Crack Con 2 there are already a couple of videos out there about it 😀

[@ChrisS-fh7zt]

I just started a small US force (about 45-55 troops) but I am using a M-36 Jackson TD instead of a M-10. Then I am also doing it as the rare B1 type where they added a M-36 turret onto a M4A3 tank hull and so it has the bow MG for an extra layer of anti infantry protection, got to love Rubicon as I got more of them than Warlord models. The other oddball US vehicle is the M-15 A/A halftrack in fact I don't know anyone else that has and uses it, why it over the more common M-16 is simple it has a heavy autocannon and so can pose a threat to medium tanks DV-9 and anything less if it has a chance to get a flank or rear shot against them. But I got my Germans and Soviets where I have over a dozen vehicles for each and 100+ troops for each.

[@OnPointHQ]

Hey Chris, that sounds like a very interesting force and project! I am glad that I opted for the M10 as that has become one of my favourite plastic Warlord Games kits and a lot of fun to personalise and modify. I shall definitely have to keep a look out for the M-15 as it sounds like it could be pretty useful to run 😀👍

[@pauls3585]

A great looking army.

[@OnPointHQ]

That's awesome, cheers Paul! I'm super happy with the results of this project. It was a little daunting getting back into painting Bolt Action after a little while but the time away has certainly made me reflect on my approach and techniques for painting Bolt Action 🙂

[@MiniatureRealms]

Lovely army mate, really nicely done.

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers dude! Super happy with this. I5 was a really interesting list to work through and definitely got my Bolt Action painting mojo back! It's also given me scope to add more and more over the next few months 😀

[@magila1]

Excellent work as usual and very happy to hear you've got your spark back for Bolt action! I love the game

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers buddy, much appreciated! I'm definitely glad I've got my Bolt Action painting interest back and this was certainly a great project to get me back into. Enjoyed every minute of working on this 😀

[@lionheart3916]

Great work ste that’s a great looking force there 👍

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers mate! I'm very happy with it as it was just the right size and variety to get me back into Bolt Action. Good mix of vehicles and infantry will definitely be the way forward for future projects 😀

[@scalemodelinc.6077]

Ste, these are just very well done. The figures look great, I too now use more targeted applications of washes. Great highlighting etc. Vehicles look great and love the custom crews. Excellent work all around and I look forward to more on your next project 👊👍👊

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers buddy, much appreciated! I'll definitely be using this technique moving forward on future projects. It takes a little bit longer but the results are certainly worth it. Overall this was a hugely enjoyable project to get back onto painting Bolt Action 😀

[@garybramley9868]

Fantastic work.

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers Gary! This was definitely the project that I needed to get me back into painting Bolt Action. It's It's good mix of both infantry and vehicles and allowed me to really spend time on making the tank destroyers look as individual as possible 😀

[@TheRendar]

Beautiful work!

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Matt, much appreciated! I thoroughly enjoyed working on this and it maybe the best Bolt Action project I've completed so far. It certainly helped me getting back into painting Bolt Action anyway! I've almost finished another similar project so a video on that will be coming soon 😀

[@smoothbrush4722]

Love the look on those, way better not washed in agrax earthshade, really like the m10s, especially that one with a road wheel of a panzer, haha, only one small thing i have to object which i sow in my mirkwood rangers and i also sow on your rangers, the cork is a bit too obvious, try to cover it a bit on top and sides wish sand, stirling mud, or other stuff, will look more nice in my humble opinion. Cheers Ste.

[@OnPointHQ]

Thanks Lucian, much appreciated! I've definitely stopped the heavy washing on most things now and I'm much happier with the quality. Yup, the M10 is a lovely kit to build and paint. I'll definitely be adding more. Agree about the cork, sometimes you really can't tell until the drybrush stage. Foliage is good for hiding it though 😀

[@walkaboutgamez2502]

Great looking platoon

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers buddy! I'm very happy with how this turned out after not painting Bolt Action for a little while. I certainly learned some new techniques that I'll be using on future projects 🙂

[@mintymoore6054]

Outstanding

[@OnPointHQ]

That's awesome, thank you 😀

[@rich_john]

Nice little force. Have you got one of the tank destroyers as the HQ for the force....I'm building one around 3 daimler armoured cars, am I correct in thinking you need to pay for the command option for radio network to get the morale bonus.

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers Rich. Yes, the theatre selector requires one of the tank destroyers to be the HQ unit. I believe so yes, from what I remember you pay for the command option and I believe the vehicles may have to be the same type. I'm not near my rulebooks so I could be wrong! Definitely something I'll need to check 😀

[@basement1908]

Hey Ste, if you don't mind a quick follow up question. in your opinion what are Warlord's best plastic kits for building US and German infantry for 1944?

[@OnPointHQ]

Hey no worries, sure thing! For the US you really can't go wrong with the current US Infantry box by Warlord. A fantastic kit, brilliant sculpts and absolutely packed with detail. For the Germans, the Grenadier kit is a great starting point. The great thing about building for 1944 using this kit is that you can pick up individual sprues from both the Winter and DAK kits and mix these in with the Grenadiers to give a real mix of different uniforms and equipment. Hope that helps 😀👍

[@basement1908]

Thanks Brother. I appreciate your input since I consider you the ww2 plastic guru! Enjoy the rest of your weekend 👍

[@bickercity6392]

Brilliant stuff, Ste. I really enjoy these video blogs of projects, watching a project proceed from its conception to its completion. So do you feel like this project has gotten you reinvigorated for more painting/modeling? Are you already thinking about your next project?

[@OnPointHQ]

Cheers Don! Normally I'd just make a showcase video but the blog and approaching the project in four stages definitely kept me motivated. It has absolutely invigorated me yes! The next project is ordered this week - late war 11th Armoured Division 😀👍

[@bickercity6392]

@@OnPointHQ I have thought a few times about doing video logs of some of our projects for Adepticon, but I’ve never gone through with it as I worry that once I get started with the videos it will just become yet another thing that I have to take up my time with