Great War Workbench

Its been a while since I posted something due to a variety of interruptions - work (the necessary evil), family (what would I do without the blighters?), and a certain amount of lethargy.  Here are a few things that have been sitting on my workbench for a while - a few now finished, and some very near completion.
Firstly despite my best intentions, I didn't quite get around to painting as many figs has I had hoped for the painting challenge late last year.  The Late-War Germans you'll see below were almost done for the competition, but time ran out.  They've remained almost done for a while now, but in the week ahead I think I can finally push through with some finishing touches.  Perhaps the biggest learning I took away from the painting challenge was to do the preparation and priming up front before the countdown begins.  I always tend to underestimate just how much time that takes, and in doing so, I lost some valuable days.

I did however manage to complete a few vehicles - a couple of Foundry Mark IV tanks, an Old Glory A7V, and an Old Glory Lanchester armored car.  Below you'll find an interesting comparison between two versions of the A7V. On the left is Old Glory's version.  On the right what I believe is Brigade Games'.

I painted them based on illustrations from Osprey's book on Great War Panzers.  Of the two models, the Brigade Games' version seems more historically accurate. Note for example the modeling of the shielding around the tracks and also the positioning of the exhaust pipe.  Mephisto has already been featured in one of my earlier blog posts.

Above: "Nixe"  Below: "Mephisto"

I've also spent some time producing a few battlefield accessories, including poison gas markers and barbed wire markers, both with "Through the Mud and the Blood" in mind.  The barbed wire is mounted on round  toothpicks set in pieces of 4" x 4" plastic card, and the base then textured and painted.  I purchased the wire from the local craft chain store, Michaels, in the jewelry-making section.  Its just the right scale for 25-28mm.  Interestingly its called "German Wire"!  The gas markers were produced from round cork coasters, again from Michaels.  Texturing the base tended to warp them slightly, but not too much.  I added in a few spare body parts from a pack of GW Zombies that I'd painted up years back for Hordes of the Things.  I also dug around and found some casualties that the kind people at Wargames Foundry had sent me free of charge when I ordered a couple of Mark IVs.  The gas is made up from white aquarium filter, spray painted with a garish green.  Its possibly too bright for the real thing, but works quite nicely on the tabletop.

Above: Gas clouds and barbed wire

Above: finding a gap

Above: Only the dead have seen the end of war

Above: uncut wire

Above: A7Vs and flame throwers

Finally above you'll see the flame thrower markers I made, using Sidney Roundwood's excellent tutorial on the subject.  Who says gaming the Great War is dull and boring?