I got in a shipment from one of my usual suppliers the other day. They know me, offer a discount and, like any other addict, I'm good for a nice fat order. This time one of the items was the new Zvezda T-35 with no less than 5 turrets! I already have the Hobby Boss version but thought it unbuildable with my current modest skill level due to crazy amounts of PE.

I can hardly wait to dive into this T-35, it was the height of the Land Ship concept that was widespread in tank thinking before the second world war. I have images in my mind from period cartoons of ships, airplanes & tanks absolutely bristling with turrets and guns. Some of the early British tanks in WW1 actually had His Majesty's Land Ship and a name painted on the side in proper nautical tradition.

I want to build the T-35 but didn't see a campaign that fit the concept very well. So why not have a campaign devoted to the landships or any other tank where the designers thought two (or three or five) heads were better than one?

We could include any tank that featured two or more sponsons or turrets. This would include the WW1 tanks, the light tanks such as the Vickers 6 Ton light tanks and derivatives, the Char & Lee/Grants that featured both turrets and sponsons, the T-28 and Neubau-Fahrzeug and of course, the mighty T-35.

Also, why not add whiffers such as the KV-5? Yes, it was a cancelled paper panzer but there is an excellent new kit of it out that promises to be an easy and enjoyable build.

So -– what do you think? Would anyone care to join in a Landship Campaign?

Would the M48/M60 series count since the commander's MG was in a small turret?

There's also the A9 Cruiser tank, and early Crusader which had a separate MG turret. Also the Char 2C. The Churchill Mk.I and the Japanese Type 5 Medium Tank had guns in both the hull and turret.

I'd be interested. I have a couple of WWI AFVs that would fit the the theme.

Yes, in the case of the M48/M60 they both had stacked wedding cake turrets and ought to fit right in.

As to the others I would say that IF it has separate turrets or sponsons it fit as well. Tanks that just had a MG in the hull or added to a single turret would not. For example, the KVs had a single turret with a MG pointing backwards. That would NOT fit the bill. The A9s with the two turrets are very much in the land ship mode.

There are quite a number of WW1 tanks that would work. I have a TAKOM kit that even has the HMLS decals - perfect!

Count me in for this campaign.

Would this include the M3 Lee, Char bis, and US M6 heavy tank?

Stephen, Paul has the M3 listed above so this should be ok.

On paper panzers, the Ratte comes to mind -- would it qualify as well?

I'd be in with a HobbyBoss Soviet T28E.

I'd be interested. Been meaning to build the shoebox on wheels aka the A7V from Meng.

When is the proposed start and end dates?

Yes, yes & maybe. I had to look up the M6 om Wiki but didn't see more than one turret or sponson. Do you think it should qualify? It certainly has the coolness factor in spades . . .

Wow! A landship if I ever saw one. How many tugs would it need to berth that baby?

Yes, a great choice. I have been fondling one those ever since it arrived . . .

The A7V has been high on my list for a long time. I look at pictures of that landship and expect to see halyards for signal flags . . .

I would like to begin ASAP and let the campaign run for a good while as some of these models may take some time to complete.

What times sound good to you?

Well maybe a better question would be how long will the campaign run for? I can put together an OOB build within a week and another week for painting. I'm just a bit tight on money right now after replacing my phone so I'm holding off buying kits for the time.

But you don't have to delay the campaign on my account. I'm pretty sure I can squeeze in during the final months.

Even though I would like an Oct 1 start date, I doubt it would be approved. The Poland 1939 campaign was assigned a Dec 1 start. This one would probably be something like that too.

Anyone else have any thoughts on start/finish dates?

I'm fine with whatever start date is decided upon. You could ask John about a suggested start date.

I just bought one (Hobby Boss, early version) with Voyager PE and Friul tracks. So count me in
But I need a year to build it so if possible then the campaign should finish at the end of next year. If not possible... well, I'm in anyway Time pressure is the best motivator.

cheers,
Zsolt

Any start date works for me -- as long as we have at least 6 months build time.

For sure, I'm in...

Doing some basic internet searches, it's astounding how many kits that fit the bill for this build are available...I'm not much of a "scratchbuilder"...

Yes! It might be fun to get some pictures of some of the "landships" that were build or dreamed up. If anyone has any good ones please post them!

Here are a few pictures of "landships" to give some ideas:



















Please feel free to post pictures of your own to flesh this campaign idea out some . . .

I might be able to try this if I get a chance to pickup an M60A1 I had my eye on, tomorrow. Granted, with my luck it'll be sold out before I get a chance
Oh well, wish me luck there!
Though, I may have issues actually joining depending on some specifics in the next few months, as I currently dont think I have a way to upload pictures, but I might just borrow a family member or friends PC for that.