The National Tank of Norway: Landsverk L-120

 

This week I have something to show that I’m really rather enthused about. I have for the past few weeks been working towards creating a Platoon of Norwegians circa 1940 fighting in the defence of Oslo and/or Narvik against the dastardly Nazi warmachine.  

 

Norway, having not found itself in any sort of conflict for over a century, had little in the way of modern weapons, training or tactical doctrine, yet by little more than determination managed to hold out longer than any other conquered European nation.

I have really rather enjoyed looking into this stage of the World War, a part of the war that I had largely overlooked up till now, and amongst my other research I came across something that I just had to put onto the gaming table as soon as possible – The National Tank.

 

The Landsverk L-120 was acquired by Norway in 1937 and became there first and only tank from then until the outbreak of war. The tank started its life as a test chassis in Sweden. After testing it was purchased by Norway, as being only used test chassis it fell into the price bracket of the Norwegian military. After purchase and transport to Norway it was given a domestically produced turret armed with a 8mm Colt Maxim gun, and in order to save money further still, was also given domestically produced running systems (breaks, steering, ect.) as well as cheaptastic iron armour (the hardened steel armour used on just about every other tank in the world was too expensive). The result was Norway’s first and only tank. The tank, and its accompanying armoured lorries, never saw action in the war. In the immediate build up to the German invasion the Norwegian Armoured Corps (1 ‘tank’ and 2 lorries with metal on) were sent to Oslo to be refitted and readied for action against the Germans, but were still in pieces when they were abandoned by their unit and subsequently captured by the Germans. 

The tank was so unique that I just had to have a model of it. So I did. No model exists for it, so I cobbled one together. The model is from ‘Frontline Wargaming’. It is the chassis and running gear of a Pz.38(t) with a Vickers 6-ton(export) turret. The folks at Frontline were more than happy to help me out and were interested in this little project. The model turned up promptly and was cast absolutely fine. I did a fair bit of chopping and changing and added a maxim gun that a friend gave to me to the turret and added a piece of flash as the drivers hatch on the front. I couldn’t find any colour pictures of the tank and the ‘turn black and white pictures to colour’ program that I tried using failed me horridly, so I painted it in a typical interwar colour scheme. 

A few links;

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landsverk_L-120

http://www.network54.com/Forum/330333/thread/1178380030/Some+Norwegian+weaponry,+1940

 

I’ve also painted my armoured car that I knocked together last week. I’m not all too happy with it so will probably play with the paint work before next week. 

Mr.Marx

Second Weekly Update.

I’ve done a fair bit this week. I’ve been working more on my Russians, but, by a strange turn of fate I am simultaneously working on a Second World War Norwegian platoon. Oddly, the Norwegian uniform and equipment in 1940 was the same as the Russian uniform and equipment in the 1870’s, so by just adding a machine gun and a tank I have an entirely new force for an entirely new period.

Anyway, this is what I’ve been up to this week. 

First off, A Russian/Norwegian Officer

Another Officer

And the last of my painting efforts for the week, three artillerymen.

Next up, I dug around in my garage and found out a few toys. I ended up making this train. It’s supposed to be one of those small narrow-gauge types used in India.

My other scratch building effort for the week, a Norwegian Armoured Car.

Lastly, Whilst looking around in some dusty boxes I found a few cars and things that I'll paint up and scatter around in my ww2 games.

Hope you like it all. Tell me what you think. Next week hopefully a full weeks’ worth of painted stuff.

Marx

First ever 'weekly update'.

Ok. Heres the first of hopefully a long series of weekly updates. Not very much to show for the weeks work, I'll have to get more done for next week.

Here we go then -

First, A gattling gun, still waiting on the crew....and the floor.....


And a Artillary officer.


And here two men with new fangled 'Fire-Guns' and a man reaching into a bag that can be used for anything but being a front line chap...doctors help, arillery man, quatermasters pal.....


And the same but from the rear so you can see the shiny fuel tanks.


And a close up showing the fire-men's mask..


Finaly, a pair of steam lorrys that I got a while ago. I may have posted them up before, I cant remember. But im going to add stoage to them and put some black paint on them then press them into service as the tenders and engines to pull the field peices.


Hopefully more next week. There will be at least details about Norway - 1940.

El Marxo

Something a little more Orthodox….

Anyone who knows me or looks at my blogity-thing will know that I am rather a fan of Victorian Scientific Romance. I’ve ended up doing all sorts of projects, the most considerable of them my 2mm scale adventure with Land Ironclads, and to a lesser extent my ramblings in 1/24^th Victorian Naval wargaming. As much fun as these are, the project that has long held true as the most enjoyable and engaging wargames project that I have ever set to, in absolutely no small part due to the colonial games put on by my dear friend ‘42’ and his wondrous collection of Imperial forces, Land Ironclads, airships, and all sorts.

For a long time, I have tried to join in on the fun of all of this, but I don’t feel that what I came up with ever was ever really right. ‘The League of Anarchy’, my attempt at a clandestine SPECTER-from-James-Bond –style band of anarchists, revolutionary’s and outlawed scientists , never really worked, felt right – or made the slightest bit of sense.

So I am going to try something far more Orthodox, The 1882 Russian Invasion of India, with my aforementioned friend ‘42’ playing the part of The British Empire.

I am already rather waist deep in this project and have  a fair few nice pictures to show, along with a good number more to come in the following few weeks along with backgrounds, setting, and even perhaps a little story that I wrote.

So, on to some pictures…

First up is a unit of Cossacks.

…and a unit of Guard Infantry.

A little close up…

I’m really very happy with how the flags came out. They are just photos of the Romanov flag printed out and PVAed and shaped.

A battery of Russian domestically produced copies of the Krupp 15-Pounder field gun. I’m planning to add a number of steam wagons to haul them along with their ammo ect. Also, I think it would be nice to have the battery command around a table somewhere near.

… and a close up…

The First of my Land Ironclads, an Ironclad Miniatures model, The Armoured-Gun ‘Peter the Great’. I’m really, really happy with how the Black and White with Gold rivets colour shame turned out. It’s based on the colour of Russian naval ships at the time. I am yet to add removable smoke from the stack.

Now, perhaps my favourite model I currently own. The Land Cruiser ‘Catherine the Great’. It’s a Copplestone Castings model of a Vickers Independent tank, a prototype cruiser tank designed with five turrets to and a good turn of speed, intended to get behind the enemy lines and wreak havoc, whilst watching its own back, hence ‘Independent’.  I saw the one existing example of this tank in the flesh at Bovington Tank Museum when I was but a lad, and decided that I wanted a model of it. It was only after I, years later, got the model that I realised that green is a really boring colour and that in this scale I don’t play any wargames set within 50 years of its existence. It then dawned on me it would make just about the best Land Ironclad – ever!

-          Dear god that was a lot of rivets! 2 hours I’m never getting back…

Coming up the rear, the War Car ‘Mir’. It’s another Copplestone castings model, this time of an obscure American lorry armoured and armed by the Russians in the Great War, then used in their Civil War. I thought it looked suitably old worldy, so it got painted the same as the others and got a small piece of copper pipe as a smoke stack. I probably should paint the rivets gold like on the others, but after the independent I think I need a break to recharge my patience.

And finally, leaking over from my past VSF nonsense, two Russian special agents. They tend to go around stirring up local populations, killing people, that sort of thing. Codenames ‘Mr. Anarchy’, and his wife ‘Mrs. Anarchy’.

Hope you like them. Id really like to know what you all think.

Next week expect – lots more Russian infantry and perhaps cavalry, and an Ironclad Monitor, - perhaps even the introduction of Exalted – The Wargame.

Till then, thanks for looking.

Cheerio 

Mr.Marx

An apology, of sorts.

Hello people who read my blog. Sorry for the lack of posts over the last few weeks. I have been really rather unwell and had lots of ‘real life’ stuff get in my way. To cut a long and rather boring story short, I had to drop out of university and relocate 300 miles to rural Somerset for medical reasons. Now here however, I have plenty of time to paint and play little toy soldiers whilst I recover. I plan from now on to try and update this thing every week, most probably on a Friday evening.

Thanks for reading.

 

Mr. A. Marx