We recently clocked Richard’s excellent work online, and reached out to him to find out more. As it turns out, he’s a recent convert to the world of Bolt Action, and we think you’ll agree he’s a very welcome recruit! Let’s turn over to the man himself for a look at his first couple of armies.
I was bitten by the Bolt Action bug after a visit to the Hornby Hobbies Warlord Games night in Margate. After watching some battles on their beautiful custom- built tables I resolved to get a 1,250 force painted up in four weeks, ready for the next event. I decided on a late war Heer Panzergrenadier force to give me the ability to paint some Zeltbahn and have access to all the German ‘toys’!
started with filling out my Rifle and Heavy Weapons Platoons and added some armoured transports and a StuG. To get them done quickly and efficiently I applied base coats, shaded with thinned Strong Tone, and applied one to two levels of highlight.
The fun of having a core force painted is then you can go back and add extra units and vehicles to give options to your list. As you can see, I added a Panther, another Hanomag, an Sdkfz 250/3 and a second StuG, plus a captured French Char B1 pressed into service.
I took a bit more time on this second StuG, adding some stowage and netting which I bought from a model shop, dipping it in thinned PVA glue, arranging it on the vehicle and leaving it to set. I also kitbashed a commander using leftover parts from various sprues.
It didn’t seem right to have a Heer force but no Brits to face them, so that very quickly became a second project. To make them play differently to my Panzergrenadiers I decided to base them around a photo I saw of a Stuart light tank leading a couple of Churchill AVREs over a bridge in Normandy. After painting my obligatory Rifle and Heavy Weapons Platoons I added some Engineers with flamethrowers, an AVRE, and a Churchill Crocodile from the 79th Armoured Division. I took a bit more time on this army, using bits from the winter sprues to create some interest and adding an extra level of highlight.
When painting my German vehicles I went for 1944 ‘ambush pattern’ camouflage as befits a late war force. I always undercoat in black as it provides shadow in deeply recessed areas. I use a spray can or my airbrush to lay down a coat of desert yellow and a highlight of a bone colour. After that, I airbrush on the brown and green patterns using Vallejo paints.
A useful tip for the dots is to use AK markers. I bought a set of three in Dunklegelb, Olivegrun and Rottbraun and literally just put the dots over the base colours, it’s so much quicker than using a brush! Then it’s on to the decals and weathering. I lay down a wash of Army Painter Strong Tone, thinned with wash medium, over the whole model, followed by a pin wash of Dark Tone where I need the definition to be more clear. I think I’m most pleased with my Panther in terms of outcome, but I really enjoyed painting the StuG with the netting as a project – I’m all about the StuG life!
I always replace the aerials on my AFVs with bristles from a cheap dustpan brush, it not only looks more ‘in proportion’ but has the added advantage of being much more forgiving when transporting your army.
I am often asked about the faces on my models, particularly how I achieve the stubble. The faces themselves are a simple base coat of Army Painter Agate Skin, a wash of thinned Strong Tone and two highlights made by mixing in Opal Skin to the base colour. I pick out the bottom lip with Wyvern Fury and then glaze a thinned down Uniform Grey over the lower part of the face. I will add more pigment around the base of the jawline, but glazing in this way allows the flesh colour to show through, creating a more realistic look.
I’ll keep adding to both of these forces and already have a Tiger I, Kubelwagen, Sherman, and Humber in process and a small pile of other vehicles and transports in the queue. However, my next big project is a Sicily-themed Italian army, full of light tanks and tankettes backing up a core infantry force of Blackshirts. Again, this should play very differently from both of my other armies. I’ve already painted up a test model and assembled everything apart from the armour, so watch this space…
Want to follow Richard’s example and take your first steps into Bolt Action?
