Combat vehicle crew Yes or No?

[whoa Mohamed]

While those of us active and vocal on this forum represent but a small percentage of GHQ's customer base, to deny that we have a major influence on the production of models made would be to deny reality.
So I put it to you my Brothers (and sisters?) crew figures. Yes or No?
As a minimum i'd like to see open hatches for TCs . I figure even I can cut a fig off at the chest and insert as well as a hatch out of styrene. ......Mikey

[kampfgruppe]

yes a set of figures and common hatchs (for common tanks), drill a hole in the turret, place the figures, glue, it will be a good improvment...
i will add, for exemple for german ww2 we will need a panther/tigerII round type hatch (up to now i use panther IR hatch without mg and IR), and at least an other type for stug/pzIV even this one is easy to do in scratch

we need too, tank riders packs like the figures for sdkfz 251.

[AllenRockwell]

Put me down for a Yes

[Paul B]

Yes, both WW2 and Modern please.

[John Secker]

In short, yes!

[Sudwind]

Yes. One pack with Allied crew, one with Axis crew. Another pack with modern Soviet, Chinese and 3rd world crew (especially insurgent Afghan for Technicals) and a final pack with modern crew for U.S., and various Western European crews.

[Mk 1]

Put me down as voting yes for crew figures!

Maybe a mix of mid-chest-busts, shoulder-and-head busts, and full standing figures? Much as with the arty crew figures, two or three headgear styles could probably make useable crews for all major nations. What would we need? I think:
- Beret, with headphones (busts) and without headphones (standing).
- "Pilot" side-cap with headphones (busts) and without headphones (standing).
- Padded helmet with integrated headphones

As a bonus benefit the side-cap (and beret?) figures might also be useable as airfield crew or HQ/maintenance/medical figures.

I think that would cover just about all major nations, wouldn't it?





Oh, and the fact that we do not, so far, have open hatches or crew figures hasn't stopped me. Just slowed me down a bit ...

[BurtWolf]

That would be great, I vote yes!!! Riders as well?!

Also would love an accessories pack for turrets and hulls - packs, tarps, rolls of barb wire, crates, logs etc. I love the gypsy look in photos of the real deal where the tanks have all sorts of gear hanging off of them.

[WargameHub]

I would vote yes that they should be made even though I wouldn't use them. The only thing I hate about gaming is painting so I never crew something that can have hatches closed in any scale if I can help it.

[cabin4clw]

Yes for me as well.

Joe

[pmskaar]

I would also like to see some vehicle crews as well. In addition to tank crews, I would like to see the following.

1. Open topped tank destroyer crews such as Marder II, Marder III, M-10, SU-76 etc. For WWII, you could have German crews in both helmets and felmutz, U.S. crews in tankers helmets and steel pots, British crews in berets, and Russian crews in their unique style tanker's helmets. Some of these would be full figures without bases and others might be half body figures for some of the U.S. type tank destroyers. No bases.

2. Self propelled artillery crews.

3. Modern artillery crews. There are a number of modern towed artillery pieces that could use some crews.

4. WWII "French" artillery crews. Right now the Germans, Americans, British and others are covered. There are no artillery crews in Adrian helmets. These could also be used to represent Polish crews as well. Currently GHQ makes several French artillery pieces but there are no proper crews.

5. WWII "French" AT gun crews. GHQ makes both the 25mm and 47mm AT guns but no crews for either one.

6. Tank riders. I am in agreement with those that want these. If I had to choose, I would go with Russian tank riders for T-34's but would like to see other countries tank riders as well.

7. Maybe some new sculpts on the current AT crews that GHQ does make.

8. New "Panzergrenadier sculpts with a full bodied machine gunner this time. I'm sure the details would be much better now.
All of these would need to be done in true 1/285th scale and not "heroic" size in order to match the vehicles they will be around.

What do you guys think of French artillery crews? How about the other things I mentioned? I would like to know what you think.

Pete

[chrisswim]

I would be in favor of it. Provide Hatch options for the commander: for example, Hatch open with command and Hvy mg, hatch closed with Hvy Mg (one piece), Loader up with LMG or loader down with lmg. Then you would have 4 options on the M1A2: both up; cmdr up and load down, cmdr down with load up, or finally both down.
Not every vehicle would be able to be developed that way probably, some would only have an option for a commander.

[Mk 1]

1. Open topped tank destroyer crews such as Marder II, Marder III, M-10, SU-76 etc. For WWII, you could have German crews in both helmets and felmutz, U.S. crews in tankers helmets and steel pots, British crews in berets, and Russian crews in their unique style tanker's helmets. Some of these would be full figures without bases and others might be half body figures for some of the U.S. type tank destroyers. No bases.

2. Self propelled artillery crews.

...

I would like to know what you think.

I still think the whole gamut could be covered by a set of half-bust, shoulder-bust, and full standing figures, x 3 for the headgear (side-cap, beret, and tanker's helmet). When combined with the existing figures in the arty crew sets, the US Armored Infantry and German PzrGrenadiers, and the Soviet seated riders (from the 45mm/76.2mm IG + tow set), I think all of that would be pretty well covered.














My goal is not to down-play the need for crew figures, but to point out that we have a fair wealth of figures available already, except that they all wear infantry helmets (and are full-sized standing figures). I think it would only take a few non "steel pot" figure sets to really give us all that we need. I'm not even fully convinced about the chest- and shoulder-bust figures ... I can always snip 'em where I want 'em snipped, if it comes to that.

I don't know that my set of 3 headgears is the perfect set. But I think it covers most everything. Brits, Germans and Romanians can be served by Berets. Germans, US and Soviets can be served by side-caps. US, Soviets and French can be served by tanker's crash helmets (at this scale, the differences between tanker helmet styles is probably an unnecessary detail).

What do you guys think? I mean, if a smaller solution set covers what we want, isn't that a better solution?

4. WWII "French" artillery crews. Right now the Germans, Americans, British and others are covered. There are no artillery crews in Adrian helmets. These could also be used to represent Polish crews as well. Currently GHQ makes several French artillery pieces but there are no proper crews.

5. WWII "French" AT gun crews. GHQ makes both the 25mm and 47mm AT guns but no crews for either one.
...

What do you guys think of French artillery crews?

I love the idea of French arty and ATG crews! That way I would not be limited to US style helmets on both my French and Romanian arty crews, nor to "foreign figures" for my AT gun crews!





But that said, ATG crews are needed for more than just the French! Even the existing "en bloc" style ATG crews could be offered in a pack for the nations for which they exist. I am almost fully dependent on foreign-made ATG crew figures, as I have no other means for manning not only my French but my Italian, American and Romanian AT guns!

[6milPhil]

Yes please.