DANGEROUS DAME (with Lewis Gun)

The Lewis Gun was the quintessential Light Machine Gun of the Herefordshire VBCW, especially deadly in the hands of spirited ladies, most notably the Pontrilas Women's Institute.

In THIS CLIP, a modern day Hereford VBCW lady re-enactor demonstrates the power of the Lewis MG. The clip is only slight disfigured by (1). the first 30 seconds being taken up by the loading of the instantly identifiable circular Lewis magazine (yawn!); and (2). the bearded American "crashing the party" towards the end. It is unclear whether his re-enactment interests lie with the Benedict Arnold Legion or the George Washington Battalion, both of whom are known to have used the Lewis Gun extensively within Herefordshire.

SPANISH CIVIL WAR - IN CARD!

For those who disdain Chinese plastic as simply too expensive a medium for VBCW modelling, try this HUGE THREAD titled "Paper Models as Propaganda During the Spanish Civil War".

Spanish Bi-Plane Competition for Elstree Aeronautics

New "Light Tank"

Just a couple of examples of paper/card models on the thread, produced in the Republican sector as minor "pieces of propaganda" during the war itself, and therefore more or less contemporaneously with the VBCW. You will need to sign in to the "Papermodellers" forum to be able to access (or simply view for historical interest) all the designs, but this is simple and takes only a minute or so. And for those brave enough to try this new form of VBCW modelling, you will probably need to resize the models a bit to your preferred "28mm scale", which may take a bit of Photoshop/Paint technique before you hit "Print" and seize your scissors....

AIRFIX MAGAZINE GOODNESS

If you're short of something to read in present circumstances, try HERE - an internet archive of classic Airfix Magazines, mostly from the late 1960s through the 1970s [note1]. Articles by Featherstone, Wise, Gush, converting methods (for the limited variety of Airfix 1/72 vehicles and figures then available, but just as applicable for modelling challenges), plus lots of historical information on WW2 and earlier planes, etc. If nothing else, enjoy the prices (in shillings) in the adverts!

[Note1] This treasure trove was discovered by "Mark, Man of TIN" but posted on the Duchy of Tragardland blog. The Tragardland blog is a splendid "18th Century Imagi-Nation" site, while "Mark, Man of TIN"'s own blog has lots of general wargaming nostalgia and Peter Laing 15mm armies. More importantly for the VBCW and our "cheep Chinese plastic" challenges, his alternative "Pound Store Plastic Warriors" blog is without parallel for devotees of wargaming "cheepness"!

REAL TIME HUMOUR

We interrupt our usual VBCW programming to bring you two pieces of gaming related "real time" humour, shamelessly lifted from the Tin Soldiering On blog, in turn "shamelessly plundered" from Facebook. We may well be able to survive the present Government rules:

just as long as the Government doesn't introduce any new ones:

AIRCRAFT (4) : PATHE NEWS AND ELSTREE AERONAUTICS

A link to the Pathe newsreel recording of the 1937 RAF Airshow at Hendon - but what aircraft appears so briefly at about 3.44, just after the prototype Spitfire [note1]? Could it perhaps be our own Elstree Aeronautics prototype, caught on contemporary camera?

See HERE

[Note 1] The first flight of the Spitfire was on 5th March 1936, but it was not introduced into service until 4th August 1938. The 1937 Hendon Airshow took place in May 1937.

AIRCRAFT (3) MORE COLOURFUL INTERWAR TYPES

Continuing our look at interwar types (and colourful camouflage schemes) to inspire conversion and painting of our "piece of cheep Chinese plastic":

The Amerikanskis must not be allowed to have all the
best camouflage schemes! A Polikarpov I-15bis in the
service of Comrade Colonel Professor Winters taxis
into the wind at Shobdon Airfield....

...while this Polikarpov I-16 Rata is preparing to land, fresh from combat in the skies of Spain.
A retractable undercarriage (the first in operational service) solves any undercarriage
problems for the modeller!

The Henschel 123B is the German effort, retaining a biplane configuration but
with a 'big radial engine'

while the Gloucester Gauntlet might be the choice for the Royalist faction looking
for a top "Interceptor Fighter". The Gauntlet was the fastest aircraft in the RAF
from 1935 to 1937 (top speed 229 mph - compared to the slightly later Spitfire Mk.1's
top speed of 355mph!!) and the chequerboard patterns are an open invitation
to a courageous modeller with too much time on his hands...

whatever the choice of type and camouflage, completion of the 2020 Modelling Challenge ("Aircraft and Anti-Everything") by Ebay purchase of our piece of "cheep Chinese plastic" should give the VBCW
modeller enough planes for "full Squadron manoeuvres" over the battlefield!

AIRCRAFT (2) "COLOURFUL INTERWAR TYPES"

A brief pictorial of a few interwar aeroplanes that the "Elstree Aeronautics" (piece of cheep Chinese plastic) plane, the subject of the Modelling Challenge 2020, might be slightly converted or simply painted to represent (before you visit Specsavers, of course):

An Elstree Aeronautics Biplane lands on the deck of HMS Argos somewhere in the Irish Sea, in 1938.
. Or a Blackburn Shark lands on the deck of HMS Illustrious sometime in the late 1920s. Only
careful photo analysis can tell the difference...... 

A Severesky P35 in American service. A classic "silver wing". It is possible that some of these made
 their way to the Herefordshire VBCW - or that Elstree Aeronautics had the design "in mind"
when producing their own monoplane air superiority fighter. A simple colour
scheme, nonetheless.

The venerable Airfix kit of the Brewster Buffalo. First released in 1972 (retailing at 19p!),
this was not one of Airfix's better efforts. Indeed, working on a modern piece of
cheep Chinese plastic may very well be preferable, and could even produce a
 result somewhat closer to the historic "Buffalo". A classic WW2 RAF camouflage scheme.

The same monoplane in US Navy service - a classic "yellow wing".
The Hereford Automobile Association might be fond of these...

US Army interwar "camouflage scheme"(??) on a Boeing P-26 Peashooter.
With the big radial engine and a minimum of "upper fuselage work", a reasonable
representation of this could be made from your "cheep Chinese plastic" order.
As previously noted, it is very easy to convert it from biplane configuration
to monoplane configuration, and the "bubbletop cockpit canopy" could
be easily cut and/or filed down. The only problem might be the fixed
landing gear (in spats) on the Peashooter........ 

....so you could keep the biplane configuration and go for an early Curtiss Helldiver instead
 (wheels retracting into the fuselage, requiring only to be painted on the model)

or, still with the biplane, one of these colourful Boeing F4Bs...

AIRCRAFT (1) - REACH FOR THE VBCW SKY

A consequence of (1). the cancellation of the Spring Big Game 2020 by reason of Covid-19 and (2). the substitution of the Autumn Big Game 2020 by our "Away Team" support for Tym and Tom's "Evesham Remembered"October VBCW extravaganza in Shrewsbury is that there will (we now realise) be no opportunity for distribution of this year's piece of "cheep Chinese plastic" as part of the 2020 Modelling Challenge - "Aircraft and Anti-Everything"

So, in the best VBCW manner, private initative and self help will have to suffice! Here is the latest Chinese plastic find, still available very cheeply on Ebay:

A vaguely 1930s looking bi-plane, one of a pack of six (yes, six), this
one having the most military colour (a truly puce green)

Same style of plane, different angle and colour scheme.
Clearly one of the "aircraft of the aces". 

Same style of plane again, but this one has to be turned
over as the luminescent yellow is just so ghastly. Still,
a decent shot of the underside. Note the too thick "sub-
Matchbox" wheels that will have to be removed (at least
IMHO) and substituted with something from the Bitzbox.
Ideally, the whole plane should be disassembled to remove
the clockwork-like gubbins within that drive the
same wheels (and incidentally makes a useful basis for
an Anti Tank Gun chassis or similar, but that's a different
modelling challenge). Starting dis-assembly requires
removing the small "nosecone", taking off the
propellor, and then prising the fuselage halves apart -
pretty simple stuff.. The plane is made of 'hard' plastic
rather than the soft 'rubbery' stuff which is the death
of so many 'cheep' projects.

The full squadron of six in all their multi-coloured glory.
Dimensions are as given, which scales the plane nicely
with various 1/72 "historical" types.

Such cheep plastic biplanes are all over Ebay right now (and have been for at least a year) - just search against "plastic toy plane" and seek out your preferred supplier of a squadron (the Chinese suppliers are markedly the cheapest, but delivery is not always guaranteed via the postal service; UK suppliers will be more expensive, sometimes markedly so. Make sure you're buying six and not just one, at least for the best deal per unit).

The really good news is that it is really easy to convert the biplane into a monoplane - the top wing simply lifts off, and the locating pegs on the lower wing are easy enough to cut/grind/sand down. With a bit of sanding and cutting, suitable camouflage painting and, well, squinting, your modelling result should resemble something that could have been used in the VBCW, say a Blackburn Shark (if in biplane configuration), or a cross between a Boeing P26A Peashooter/Severesky P-35/Brewster Buffalo (if in monoplane configuration). Anything with a big radial engine at the front, really. Order and enjoy!

PARLIAMO COMMUNIST?

Comrade Colonel Professor Winters, Leader of the County Communist Front (formerly the "Broad Left Front", but we don't talk about that), has recently been doing rather well in the Herefordshire VBCW (see blogposts passim). With their recent and significant acquisition of territory and population, the Communists have now produced a handy cut-out-and-keep guide for those who find themselves linguistically-challenged:

Personal Insult Generator (Communists, for the use of, throw 2D6 for each column)

Dice Throw (2D6)	Descriptor	Adjective	Noun	Geographical Location
2.	Rabid	Fascist	Running Dog/   Hyena/Beast	from Hereford
3.	Despicable	Capitalist	Lickspittle	of the Forest
4.	Contemptible	Imperialist	Wrecker/Saboteur	from Leominster
5.	Degenerate/    Corrupt	Crypto-      Fascist	Zealot	from Ross on Wye
6.	Grovelling	Revisionist	Oppressor/       Parasite	from Ledbury
7.	Renegade	Counter- Revolutionary	Conspirator	of the Malverns
8.	Vile	Bourgeois/Nationalist	Class-          Traitor	from Burley Gate
9.	Stinking/ Blood-Sucking	Renegade	Scum /Vermin	from Shobdon
10.	Accursed	Reactionary	Splitter	of Kingsland
11.	Traitorous	Petit-            Bourgeois	Speculator	of Ewyas Harold
12.	Snivelling	Deviationist	Opportunist/       Provocateur	from Goodrich

 Note (1) : based on an idea from the AK47 Ruleset (Version 1)

 Note (2) : to see variants of 1930s Soviet insults in full use, see THIS LINK documenting the language of Vyshinsky during the 1936-1938 show trials. The extracts from the speeches of the defence lawyers are also worth a look.......