MODELLING IS A PERSONAL hobby: all modellers like to add their own mark or style to the work they do. Taking this into account, this book provides a guide to show how to achieve pleasing results. As such, the reader is encouraged to take what they need from it, and to add or adapt the techniques shown to their preferred way of doing things. Good modellers continually develop their practical skills and are not afraid to try new techniques. This is part of the joy of modelling.
Modelling products and materials have changed quite dramatically over the last ten years: there is now a wealth of products available that have changed the hobby for the better. It is now much easier for the newcomer to make a start in modelling with just a few select items that will enable a standard-built model to become unique and something to be proud of.
DO YOUR HOMEWORK
When thinking of modelling a tank that fought in Normandy in June 1944, for example, find out about:
the units that operated it, their uniforms and their kit
where they fought and against whom the time of year and/or the predominant weather conditions at that time
the type of terrain/groundcover
the markings it may have carried, such as the names painted on it by its crew
An important, and sometimes overlooked, aspect of modelling is research. This should be the cornerstone of any modelling project from the very beginning. ‘What?’, ‘where?’ and ‘how?’ are three questions that provide an important starting point and will help to steer further investigation. Background research at this stage could help to avoid a disastrous end result, so time spent checking up on details, via the internet or through relevant books or television programmes, is always time well spent.
During WWII the US armed forces standardized the equipment they used. The term ‘GI’, which is an abbreviation of Government Issue, arose and is still in use today to describe American soldiers during WWII. (By contrast, US soldiers in WWI were nicknamed ‘doughboys’.) Every soldier, sailor and airman was issued with the same kit relevant to their role and location at that time during the war, from the Central Pacific to the freezing cold of the Belgian Ardennes. A paratrooper who landed in Normandy in June 1944 wore a different uniform to one who fought during Operation Market Garden in September 1944, just a few months later. The difference between the uniforms worn by the Marines who fought on Wake Island in 1941 and those who fought on Tarawa in 1944 is vast. The exception to this is the tank crews, who wore more or less the same uniform, with only minor variations, all through the war.
Then there are vehicle markings: the US Army did not always use a white star on their vehicles; in fact, in the early days of WWII they used a yellow star in North Africa.
Following on from the recommendation to undertake research, there is little point in writing this book without providing some historical context to the models. As such, this book is divided into several chapters, each covering a specific theatre of the war in which US forces were involved. Presented in chronological order, the chapters start in the Pacific from 1941 to 1945 and end in war-torn Germany in May 1945. Features specific to each campaign are modelled, such as the relevant uniforms and equipment, and the main supporting vehicles. Where models could potentially have been included in a number of chapters, they appear in the chapter covering the period during which they had the most impact: the models of tracked landing vehicles (LVT), for example, have been included in the Pacific chapter as they were first used in a combat role at the Battle of Tarawa in 1943 and prior to this they were only used to bring supplies from ship to shore. Similarly, although paratroopers were deployed in the Allied invasion of Sicily in 1943, it was in Normandy in 1944 where they had the most significant impact.
This book covers painting and modelling the service personnel of the United States of America, and also extends to the modelling of some of the combat vehicles they used, including the M4 Sherman tank and some of the various tank destroyers that were used from 1942 to 1945. Both vehicles and figures will be covered in 1:56, 1:72 and 1:76 scales.