Tommy Gunn Carl Gustav Anti-tank weapon.

A quick post as an update to a previous item. 

My Tommy Gunn Carl Gustav weapon arrived today. Despite the age it's in decent condition, though missing the support stand. 

The toy represents the M2 version issued to the British Army and used up to the early 1990s. 

As a toy it has a firing mechanism... you pull back on the pistol grip and a spring is released which would send the plastic round firing across the room to wipe out Barbie or Sindy... or your mate's Action Men.  

This will be removed, as will the fore-grip and support for the stand, as neither are particularly accurate in shape.  Moulded loops have to go, and the whole thing tidied up to hide seams, fill holes and repair cracks, of which there are a few.  

It should end up looking like this (from Wiki)...

The sighting mechanism needs some extra details, but is pretty close to the real one.

Overall, I'm very happy, and it's a good starting point for a larger piece of fire power... and again, inspiration from the old 1/32 Airfix box art... the chap nearest to us has he Charlie G ready to be fired at any oncoming Russian or East German armour...

More updates soon.

Royal Engineers - 1972: Mine Detecting

Back in the 1960s one of the Tommy Gunn accessory sets was a mine detector, including a sound box, headphones and some mines.  Unlike the original Action Man (ex GI Joe) one of the same period this was a non-working item... it was also reasonably accurate, being based on the then-current No4C Mine Detector.  Unlike earlier models this did not require a backpack... just the sound box with battery compartment that was worn on a belt.
(Action Man produced a wartime Royal Engineer set with a mine detector, but this was non-functional.)

This is the real 4C detector (photo from ima-usa.com)

The handle is telescopic and extends to roughly 4 feet, although the effective length is possibly only three feet since the arm-rest and handle take up a fair bit of the length.

The device was used by strapping the forearm into the arm rest at the end of the device and then using the folding handle to move the detector from side to side as the operator swept for buried mines.

The Tommy Gunn device wasn't that far off.  Simplified of course, but you can see what it's meant to be.

Sadly the area from the grip back snapped off, making it less than sturdy, so I have decided to rebuild the device and make it more accurate at the same time.

The figure who will be carrying the detector is this chap...

I may remove the kidney pouches, but it depends on where I want to depict him.  As far as the figure himself is concerned I couldn't really be happier... he turned out really well.  Well, he could do with some leather boots, but until New Line see fit to start producing their DMS boots again I have to modify Dragon PVC ones.

A parts breakdown:

Head:          Dragon in Dreams
Body:          Unbranded male
Hands:         Hot Toys

Shirt:            Dragon (Khaki)
Trousers:      Barrack Sergeant
Smock:        Barrack Sergeant
Boots:          Dragon (modified)
Puttees:        Dragon
Beret:           Banjoman (with Tony Barton Royal Engineers metal badge)
Face Veil:     Dragon
Webbing:      Barrack Sergeant

It's worrying how many of these figure projects of mine are being inspired by old Tommy Gunn sets.  Don't be surprised if an MP or a UN peace-keeper creeps into the mix.

(August 2017 edit: while the detector is on the back burner for now the figure has since been re-assigned).

1970s New Look Army

In 1966 the MOD trialled a new combat uniform.  The cut of the tunic was similar to that of the 1960 pattern jacket, but was produced in a new Disruptive Pattern Material (DPM) with matching trousers boasting two thigh patch pockets (later trousers had bellows pockets so the soldier could stuff more in).
In 1968 the jacket received some minor cosmetic changes but was essentially similar to the '66 version.
This uniform, with some minor alterations became the standard No8 Combat Uniform worn by infantrymen up to and including the Falklands War in 1982.

To represent a squaddie of the 1970s takes some planning and sorting out what's available in the 1/6 market.  Barrack Sergeant produced a '66 or '68 jacket in one of their Falklands sets, but no-one has produced correct trousers.  At the moment my squaddie wears later trousers, but as soon as my khaki thread gets here I will alter the pockets and add a field dressing pocket on the upper right front (in a similar location to the WW2 Battledress and 1960 Pattern trousers.

Here are some photos... representing a typical soldier kitted out for exercises either in Germany or in the UK.  His early L1A1 SLR has a Blank Firing Attachment at the tip, as even blanks can cause damage to fellow soldiers.

Parts breakdown as follows...

Figure:          TTL Male Body
Head:           DiD WW1 Tommy head
Hands:          Hot Toys

Shirt:             Dragon (khaki)
Trousers:       Dragon (yet to be corrected)
Smock:         Barrack Sergeant
Puttees:         Dragon
Boots:           New Line Miniatures
Face veil:       Dragon

57 Webbing Set:
                    Dragon
Respirator Pouch:
                    Barrack Sergeant
Shovel:         Dragon
Helmet:         Blue Box (with new chinstrap)
L1A1 Rifle:  RMC (repainted and with Blank Firing Attachment fitted)

I'll update the post when I've made the changes to the trousers.

My inspiration for this figure was the box art on the old Airfix 1/32 Modern British Infantry figures...

(Photo from Airfix Tribute Forum)

I'm trying to get a Tommy Gunn Carl Gustav Anti-Tank weapon to add some oomph to my figures, as SLRs and Stirlings don't add much to the variety of kit our lads carried during the Cold War era.  As a toy it will need some work, but from what I can tell it's essentially accurate as far as the basics go.

*     *     *     *

As an aside, I was also lucky enough to win an Action Man 105mm L118 Light Gun.  While it looks okay at a first glance it has issues - wheels are too small, details are basic at best and, well overall it seems a little small.  It might end up being unused... I'm not sure whether it's worth the effort.

1960s Infantry NCO

In 1950 the British Army adopted a new combat uniform consisting of baggy trousers and a combat jacket in olive green material.  It was meant to be worn over the existing Battledress.
In 1960 a new version was issued, made of thinner material and of a nicer cut and this became the Army's standard combat uniform until the 1966 and 1968 DPM combat suits were developed.

Growing up in the 1970s I saw the uniform nearly every Saturday thanks to Doctor Who, since the troops of the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce (UNIT) wore it, with a khaki beret, '58 webbing and curiously anklets rather than puttees.

In 1/6 scale we have to improvise.  Following the advice of Tony Barton (master 1/6 modeller) I bought a Soldier Story M1951 jacket from the Korean War.  It is similar to the 1960 pattern jacket but not the same.

This is the jacket as sold...

The 1960 pattern jacket required buttons on the pocket flaps and fly front covering the zipper, new pockets added to the lower part of the jacket, and a press stud to keep the lower portion of the jacket closed since the zipper doesn't go all the way down on this one.

This was the result...

Ideally I should have removed the breast pockets and re-attach them at a slight angle.  I didn't trust my own sewing skills with that kind of job.  Maybe next time.

All that was left was to assemble the figure, arm him and add him to my collection.

Here is a parts breakdown:

Head:              Headplay Vinnie Jones
Body:              unbranded
Hands:            Hot Toys

Shirt:               Dragon in Dreams
Face Veil:        Dragon
Trouser:          Barrack Sergeant
Jacket:            Soldier Story (modified)
Puttees:           Dragon
Boots:             Dragon (modified)

'58 Web:        Dragon
Poncho Roll:   Barrack Sergeant
Helmet:           Blue Box (new strap and camo)
Sterling:          Dragon

I'll add sergeant stripes once I find a decent set of fabric ones.