Last stand at Wake Island
Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
KitMaker: 7,941 posts
Armorama: 7,934 posts
Posted: Tuesday, May 31, 2016 - 06:41 PM UTC
Quoted Text
Jerry, you can find springfields in Academy French foreign legion set (one excellent piece). Other than that, ICM makes some in Goumiers, Heller has some awful ones (avoid that), and in USMC set by Masterbox you can find springfields.
Hope this helps,
Marko
Someone else also told me about those sources buddy and I appreciate the tip. I don't want to wait to order those kits and it isn't really too hard to convert a Kar98K to a Springfield. When I am finished you can be the judge! Of course,who knows,it may suck!
J
California, United States
Joined: January 22, 2016
KitMaker: 766 posts
Armorama: 518 posts
Posted: Tuesday, May 31, 2016 - 07:59 PM UTC
Holy cow, Jerry! All this is a week? And you are relaxing? My interest in doing anything remotely outside of grabbing what rest I can (at work because every minute outside work is moving stuff)is zero. I look at the beach dio and keep thinking "tomorrow".
I cannot wait to see where this is going. There are three figures but what will the rest of the scene have in it? Stay tuned for the next episode of "Jerry's World or War"!
Excellent work!
Just completed-
1/24th Tamiya Porsche 956 Skoal Bandit
In the works:
1/12th Protar Ferrari 312T2 (shelved for time being)
ERTL D-8 Caterpillar Bulldozer
Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
KitMaker: 7,941 posts
Armorama: 7,934 posts
Posted: Tuesday, May 31, 2016 - 09:45 PM UTC
Don't worry Pat,
The moving can't last forever,although it may feel like it. It will be over before you know it and then back to life!
J
Colorado, United States
Joined: February 24, 2014
KitMaker: 3,033 posts
Armorama: 2,492 posts
Posted: Wednesday, June 01, 2016 - 03:22 AM UTC
Hi Jerry,
Along with your 'Elbe' WIP, I’ve been following 'Wake' since its start, and it’s looking really good! And as I’ve said in the past, I really fascinated and enjoy the additional history bits. The only problem is … they get me going on tangents and I start Googling all over tarnation and I don’t get any work done … but I am learning a lot!
One question: I've noticed that you often refer to “Epoxy Sculpt” in your blogs … is this the same stuff as 'Apoxie Sculpt' or is it something entirely different? TIA.
—mike
New Jersey, United States
Joined: January 05, 2005
KitMaker: 2,185 posts
Armorama: 1,813 posts
Posted: Wednesday, June 01, 2016 - 03:49 AM UTC
Beautiful work as always Jerry , I'll just go ahead repeat what P atrick said , what kind of base are you going to go with , sandbagged mg position , 3" , 5" gun position , come on man give us a little teaser .
Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
KitMaker: 7,941 posts
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Posted: Wednesday, June 01, 2016 - 06:37 PM UTC
Mike and Cheyenne,thanks for checking in pals!
I am thinking of just sandy ground with some sparse medium tall grass as has been told on this thread from someone who was actually on Wake Island. Maybe the hint of a dug out in front of them? Haven't nailed it down as of yet.
Yes,I think it is apoxy sculpt,sorry. Same thing
J
Washington, United States
Joined: March 15, 2009
KitMaker: 3,670 posts
Armorama: 2,052 posts
Posted: Wednesday, June 01, 2016 - 10:06 PM UTC
Jerry,
Go with sandy terrain, if I'm the guy you're referring to for the medium to tall grass then I've misled you a little and I apologize - the island is more covered in desert scrub, as coral islands don't support a lot of green grass. Check out some of the online photos-- there are few areas on Wake with grass, but mostly scrub. One misconception a lot of folks have of these small atolls in the central Pacific is they are covered with jungle and palms, that's not really true for coral atolls, they usually have a type of tree referred to as "ironwood" which is more like a low pine. There are small areas of palms on Wake, but it's more like a windy desert than many would expect. The air terminal and some of the buildings had some small copses of palms when I visited in 88', but I think these were largely imported. By the way, you got me reading about the history of the island (part of the fun of these things is to revisit some of the history) the final Japanese assault took place during fairly heavy rain (as I mentioned before-- December is in the rainy season in this part of the Pacific). As for the "sleeves down" & "long pants" thing-- that was to prevent sunburn and windburn, That's what we practiced in the 25th ID in 1988 too.
VR Russ
New York, United States
Joined: May 02, 2013
KitMaker: 4,403 posts
Armorama: 4,078 posts
Posted: Thursday, June 02, 2016 - 02:15 PM UTC
Quoted Text
Just something to bear in mind:
USMC and US Navy personnel fought in their shirtsleeves at Wake Island- It was HOT...
Dennis, Jerry,
Your are likely right regarding the temperature, but... I went through Wake in October of 1988 on my way to Sendai Japan, and we got stuck there for about 12 hours during the late morning until just before midnight-- I wouldn't call it hot-- Wake is a very low lying island, and there was a very cool breeze coming from the west. We were in tropical BDU's with jungle boots, sleeves down, and I'd say we were quite comfortable. The Island fell to the Japanese in late December, which is the start of the cool rainy season in that part of the Pacific. So long sleeves might not be improbable at that time of year-- but shorts might also apply, depending on the conditions and what was available. I've been at Pohakaloa training area on the Big Island of Hawaii where the temperature dipped into the upper 30s at night (it is at a much higher altitude though)-- so it could have been moderately cool at that time of year too, and depends on the time of day as well.
VR Russ [/quote]
Hi, Russ- Not to be a wise-guy, I checked on weather patterns at Wake- The battle for Wake was over by December 23, 1941. Average temps in December on Wake Atoll average anywhere between 82F-85F, with the lowest temps occurring in January/February. I would think that 82F-85F should be warm enough for shirtsleeves- The only reason I bring this up is that I noticed that one of the figures was wearing what appears to be a US Army "Parsons" Jacket. I'm pretty sure that USMC Personnel weren't issued these jackets, which would have been considered to be too warm for use in a "tropical" climate. Any thoughts..?
Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
KitMaker: 7,941 posts
Armorama: 7,934 posts
Posted: Thursday, June 02, 2016 - 06:50 PM UTC
Quoted Text
Quoted Text
Just something to bear in mind:
USMC and US Navy personnel fought in their shirtsleeves at Wake Island- It was HOT...
Dennis, Jerry,
Your are likely right regarding the temperature, but... I went through Wake in October of 1988 on my way to Sendai Japan, and we got stuck there for about 12 hours during the late morning until just before midnight-- I wouldn't call it hot-- Wake is a very low lying island, and there was a very cool breeze coming from the west. We were in tropical BDU's with jungle boots, sleeves down, and I'd say we were quite comfortable. The Island fell to the Japanese in late December, which is the start of the cool rainy season in that part of the Pacific. So long sleeves might not be improbable at that time of year-- but shorts might also apply, depending on the conditions and what was available. I've been at Pohakaloa training area on the Big Island of Hawaii where the temperature dipped into the upper 30s at night (it is at a much higher altitude though)-- so it could have been moderately cool at that time of year too, and depends on the time of day as well.
VR Russ
Hi, Russ- Not to be a wise-guy, I checked on weather patterns at Wake- The battle for Wake was over by December 23, 1941. Average temps in December on Wake Atoll average anywhere between 82F-85F, with the lowest temps occurring in January/February. I would think that 82F-85F should be warm enough for shirtsleeves- The only reason I bring this up is that I noticed that one of the figures was wearing what appears to be a US Army "Parsons" Jacket. I'm pretty sure that USMC Personnel weren't issued these jackets, which would have been considered to be too warm for use in a "tropical" climate. Any thoughts..?
[/quote]
Well,since you asked what I think I can tell you that the reason the guy is wearing a Parsons' jacket is because he is only in the basic pose stage (as I pointed out from the get go ) and is still far from finished. The Marine and Navy guy will be wearing more or less the standard uniform which was khaki pants and shirt with two pockets with flaps and button sleeves,leggings,flat helmet,pistol belt,canteen,ammo pouches,first aid pouch.
This is always one of the pitfalls of posting in progress conversion pics.
J
Washington, United States
Joined: March 15, 2009
KitMaker: 3,670 posts
Armorama: 2,052 posts
Posted: Friday, June 03, 2016 - 03:38 AM UTC
Jerry, Dennis,
I don't know how accurate average temps are for a specific few hours of a battle. It can get cold even in the desert sometimes. There's a pretty good history on line for Wake Island, but I was re-reading John Costello's "The Pacific War" and noted the section on Wake on pages 168-170. According to the official histories Costello used, the Japanese invasion started before dawn in "driving rain showers" on December 22nd (Hawaii time, since they are beyond the International Dateline, It was Dec 23rd on Wake). After inflicting more than 800 casualties on the Japanese invasion force, while suffering 120 of their own casualties, Major Devereux surrendered by 0730, although there were many outlying outposts that fought for several more hours. It was pretty savage fighting, hand to hand in some cases. But the Japanese had the Island by noon for sure. One on line account said the Japanese made the survivors huddle in two large bunkers for a couple of days, then gathered them in the hot sun on the airfield without clothing, where they later suffered through "a bone chilling wind" at night. So I think if the battle was fought in the early morning in a rainstorm, and over by noon, long sleeves would be OK for some of the defenders. Like Jerry and I have experienced in the military-- "sleeves down" is sometimes the prescribed uniform" too for lots of reasons (I usually thought it was unreasonable though). I think Jerry can do whatever he wants with the uniforms-- we know it will be a great tribute to the defenders and a great modeling project as all of Jerry's work seems to be! I'm looking forward to how this one will turn out!
VR Russ
New Jersey, United States
Joined: January 05, 2005
KitMaker: 2,185 posts
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Posted: Friday, June 03, 2016 - 03:29 PM UTC
Hiya Jerry , not trying to tell you what to do but ...... as a tribute do you plan on adding maybe a civilian contractor to the mix ?
They did help defend the island and fight along side the Marine force .[ not all of them ] .
I'm sure some/many, if my memory and reading on Wake is correct , good ol cowboy s.o.b. contractors picked up weapons and rocked and rolled with the Marines .
Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
KitMaker: 7,941 posts
Armorama: 7,934 posts
Posted: Friday, June 03, 2016 - 07:26 PM UTC
@Russ-thanks for the detailed info buddy and for taking an interest in this humble endeavor. I think I am safe with my estimate of the uniform thing,going by the average temps and also my knowledge of the militarys' "uniform of the day" thing.
@Cheyenne-yes,the guy on the right of my trio is supposed to be a civilian. Either a construction guy or even a Pan Am guy. Did it actually happen? Who knows but as this is supposed to be a tribute then I feel compelled to include a civvie.
Thanks again guys for keeping up with this build. Things have slowed quite a bit as the 1/1 scale projects around here have picked up tempo since it warmed up! I am freekin TIRED!!!
J
Graywolf
Senior EditorIzmir, Turkey / Türkçe
Joined: December 01, 2001
KitMaker: 6,405 posts
Armorama: 1,850 posts
Posted: Saturday, June 04, 2016 - 12:48 AM UTC
Hi Brother,
I really appreciate and envy
you for handling two superb projects at the same time. very useful photos and texts. Thanks and congrats.
keep safe
Engin
Florida, United States
Joined: May 14, 2012
KitMaker: 730 posts
Armorama: 624 posts
Posted: Saturday, June 04, 2016 - 04:02 AM UTC
Well Jerry, Thank You!
For sharing something which generates discussions here that I find absolutely interesting, and equally fascinating.
Sincerely
Dave
"No beast so fierce but knows some touch of pity.
But I know none, and therefore am no beast."
Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
KitMaker: 7,941 posts
Armorama: 7,934 posts
Posted: Tuesday, June 14, 2016 - 11:49 PM UTC
Engin and Dave,
Thanks for the comments guys and very sorry for the long response time. I am pretty busy.
Here is a small update. You can see I am on the second app of putty. I tend to do one side of a shirt at a time to make it easier on me. Some of the parts are still only tacked on so far.
I have all the mods done on the rifles and have made some nice long early war bayonets to go with them. They will also get slings later. I ripped the one guys shirt sleeve and added a bandage,although it is still not done. But it is starting to come together?
Have a look-see.
Enjoy your day folks,
J
Washington, United States
Joined: March 15, 2009
KitMaker: 3,670 posts
Armorama: 2,052 posts
Posted: Wednesday, June 15, 2016 - 01:19 AM UTC
Jerry,
I think it looks great so far -- the KAR to Springfields has worked out pretty well I think--but the civilian is armed with a flare pistol and garden spade? Hes pretty brave to be making an attack like that!
VR, Russ
Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
KitMaker: 7,941 posts
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Posted: Wednesday, June 15, 2016 - 01:27 AM UTC
Quoted Text
Jerry,
I think it looks great so far -- the KAR to Springfields has worked out pretty well I think--but the civilian is armed with a flare pistol and garden spade? Hes pretty brave to be making an attack like that!
VR, Russ
The spade is a early style e tool but the "t" broke off and I will replace it. The flare pistol will also be converted.
J
New Jersey, United States
Joined: January 05, 2005
KitMaker: 2,185 posts
Armorama: 1,813 posts
Posted: Wednesday, June 15, 2016 - 03:18 AM UTC
Very cool Jerry , the best part is they have a take no prisoner look about them , and are decidedly pissed .
Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
KitMaker: 7,941 posts
Armorama: 7,934 posts
Posted: Wednesday, June 15, 2016 - 06:59 PM UTC
Quoted Text
Very cool Jerry , the best part is they have a take no prisoner look about them , and are decidedly pissed .
If they would have known the fate that awaited them after they surrendered maybe they would have been even MORE pissed off. Especially the civilian,as they were all murdered.
J
Florida, United States
Joined: July 19, 2014
KitMaker: 249 posts
Armorama: 249 posts
Posted: Thursday, June 16, 2016 - 12:33 AM UTC
Hey there Jerry, great work thus far and as always on your figures brother. I really enjoy watching the progress that you deliver with all of your builds. All the modifications to these little figures are excellent and I'm sure very challenging to achieve. Soon I will build a few foot soldiers and I will look hard at some of those injury modifications to try and incorporate it onto a few fallen troops. I am sure that I will mess it up sense it's a first try so I need to buy cheap figures to test this out prior to taking the blade to my new MB kits. Thanks brother for sharing your work and providing inspiration - very appreciative!
Happy modeling!
JGphins
Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
KitMaker: 7,941 posts
Armorama: 7,934 posts
Posted: Thursday, June 16, 2016 - 06:17 PM UTC
Quoted Text
Hey there Jerry, great work thus far and as always on your figures brother. I really enjoy watching the progress that you deliver with all of your builds. All the modifications to these little figures are excellent and I'm sure very challenging to achieve. Soon I will build a few foot soldiers and I will look hard at some of those injury modifications to try and incorporate it onto a few fallen troops. I am sure that I will mess it up sense it's a first try so I need to buy cheap figures to test this out prior to taking the blade to my new MB kits. Thanks brother for sharing your work and providing inspiration - very appreciative!
Happy modeling!
JGphins
Thanks man,for the nice things you typed and for following along here. I am happy to be of any assistance at all so thanks! I also get tips from watching your excellent and huge build.
J
Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
KitMaker: 7,941 posts
Armorama: 7,934 posts
Posted: Saturday, July 16, 2016 - 05:40 AM UTC
Made some progress here. I had not been happy with the figure painting since I started back up a few days ago. I discovered that it helps a lot if you change the batteries in your optivisor!! Wow,what a difference.
Anyway,I did a lot on this guy and attached his arm and rifle tonight. It still has to be puttied in. I also have some stuff to add such as rifle sling,etc. but he has progressed a lot since my last post here.
He kind of looks like my mood over the last few weeks. Have a look-see fellas,
Last post for tonight,out,
J
Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
KitMaker: 7,941 posts
Armorama: 7,934 posts
Posted: Tuesday, July 19, 2016 - 07:05 AM UTC
I added a rifle sling and I tried to make it like the very complicated Marine leather version but I failed. This will have to do. I also added the adjustable site on the rifle. The adjusting knob should be smaller but this is the smallest punch I have left. The smaller ones broke!
Every different angle I take a pic of shows more paint touch ups I will have to attend to.
Oh well,so it goes.
J
Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
KitMaker: 7,941 posts
Armorama: 7,934 posts
Posted: Thursday, July 21, 2016 - 01:59 AM UTC
I am calling this guy done. I added the rest of his wrist wound bandage and the gun sight and sling are all painted up. I will not add a helmet strap as I think it will take away from the drama a bit in this scale.
Maybe a tiny touch up on a few aspects of his face may still be in order though. Have a look-see,
I added some more shoulder to this guys'right arm and I think it looks more anatomically correct now. The basic colors are started.
Anyhoo,that's all for now.
J
Texas, United States
Joined: March 11, 2007
KitMaker: 977 posts
Armorama: 976 posts
Posted: Thursday, July 21, 2016 - 02:30 AM UTC
Gregovich "I paint all my Models in 4BO Green" Beckman
Holder of the Knight's Cross, Hero of the Soviet Union, Dragon Slayer and Slinger of Massive BS.
