The first kit I bought was a combined set from a local hobby store; a 1/35 scale Tamiya BMW R75 WW2 German motorcycle and an accompanying 1/35 scale Italeri German Fallschrimjäger unit.
For some reason, I don't recall the box art on MY version of the Italeri paratroopers being so colorful. I'll have to check and see if I still have the box laying around somewhere. Anyways though, I made mention of piecing them together... Let's just say that for the paratroopers, the picture didn't nearly offer enough angles for young me to safely assume where to put all the details. So, as any 10-year old would do, I got the super glue and went to town. Suffice to say though, once they were built and I had had my fun, I cast them aside into a box in my closet, and more or less forgot about them.
My parents are currently in the process of moving houses, now that retirement is fast approaching for my father. Last time I was home, which seems like quite a long time ago, I was cleaning out my closet and stumbled back upon them. With over a decade of experience now under my belt, I took it upon myself to do my first model kit justice and painted them up.
(Sorry the pictures aren't great. It's kind of overcast outside today.)
Its important to note that these six gentlemen were, in fact, pieced together by my 10-year old hands, although in retrospect with the exception of one I at least assembled them along believable lines. Seeing as I discarded the original base plates as trash, I had to fashion new ones from plasticard. Their helmets are a bit mismatched, as should be somewhat obvious, but from what I can tell it doesn't really detract from the overall look of the models.
When I approached painting these guys, I had two options. I could have gone with the basic uniform inherent to the early war, specifically German para-drops across Crete through mid-war Italy. These were a mix of blue trousers with a green jumpsuit over top. While simple and easy, I wanted something a bit more challenging. The alternative was a camouflage smock, worn towards the later part of the war and immediately after the Normandy landings in 1944. It contained a mixture of green, brown, and tan-beige flecks combined with a field green uniform underneath. As you can probably see above, I went this route.
Somewhere written down I have a complete step-by-step list of the paints I used to achieve this look, so if anyone is interested I'd be happy to scan and upload it as part of a gallery.
While researching, I was fascinated to learn that unlike their American or British counterparts, German Fallschrimjäger did not jump with their weapons in tow. Instead, they had to land first and then acquire their gear from an independently dropped canister. I'm not military strategist, but to me this sounds like a recipe for severe casualties when dropping into a firestorm. Another interesting thing I learned was that their camo smock was disposable, so far as to protect their torso and gear while jumping. Upon landing, they would strip out of it in favor of their lighter under-uniform.
Earlier this year, I dog-sat a friend's dog. While she told me her dog was friendly and all of that, I quickly learned that for what reason this poor animal was terrified of me. I don't think it was me particularly so much as it was the new environment and surroundings, but the short of the matter is that he ended up redecorating my apartment. I know what you're thinking though. Where am I going with this story? If you take a look at the guy on the left, immediately above, you'll notice he's missing a boot. I have yet to find this boot, and I have turned my apartment upside down in my quest for it. Therefore, the only other possible alternative is that his foot met with a particularly delicious end as a late-night appetizer for Mr. Dog.
The camo itself looks really dark in these pictures, but this is more a result of the fact its been overcast all afternoon. Floating clouds make taking high quality pictures hard, especially when you cannot predict when one is going to float in front of the sun and block out your light.
As should be apparent with the webbing on the back, 10 year old me threw stuff on that "looked right." Granted, at least years down the line I can congratulate younger me on doing a good job keeping things accurate, although for the life of me I don't understand why any guy would want to get his extra rifle rounds attached to the small of his back. Oh well, I'll just chalk it up to youthful ambition.
I know I also made mention of the BMW R75, which I also have down with me. I'll post up some pictures in the next few days so that you all can see it. This one is particularly special to me, although for different reasons.
-Hands
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