Reorganization of Forces.

[redleg]

My position on 3D printed vehicles has changed over time. Initially I was just going to print things that GHQ didn't make, like less common support vehicles and trailers. But now I am more open to printing entire units, even if its something that GHQ makes. I still prefer GHQ pewter to resin printed vehicles, and I am definitely spending more money than I should on GHQ stuff, but I have grandiose plans for my micro armor units and I simply can't afford it all in pewter, so I will probably print entire battalions just to satisfy my quest for a massive micro army.

My main effort projects will always be GHQ: DD-214 project, ACR, and the NATO Artillery Regiment.

I got an Elegoo Mars 4 Ultra resin printer and it is pretty easy to use. I can't design my own files yet, but it's easy enough to download an stl file, resize it to the scale I want, and then print, print, print!

[panzergator]

There are always things GHQ just won't make. I had an .stl made for the GM XM1, for instance. And I have .stls for ARSV/XM800 and XM723. A batch of M577s got soaked up pretty quickly, as well as a batch of M113A1s. I know we like the GHQ details, but in reality, at distance, the details are much less prominent. TWO HOURS for an M2 battalion and less than 1/3 of $35 is very hard to pass up. And if you want a transportation battalion... Well, thassalotta TRUCKS! And GOERS, or Davy Crockett, or M103A1s, which was what the heavy tank battalion had in Germany, or that snazzy tracked amphibious vehicle the Marines cancelled a few years back. And churning out all the helicopters you need... It just goes on and on! How about HSTV-L? T95? Our T54 with two a piece turret? Or suppose I want M2s with Dragoon turrets? 3D printing is the answer!

[chrisswim]

My position on 3D printed vehicles has changed over time. Initially I was just going to print things that GHQ didn't make, like less common support vehicles and trailers. But now I am more open to printing entire units, even if its something that GHQ makes. I still prefer GHQ pewter to resin printed vehicles, and I am definitely spending more money than I should on GHQ stuff, but I have grandiose plans for my micro armor units and I simply can't afford it all in pewter, so I will probably print entire battalions just to satisfy my quest for a massive micro army.

My main effort projects will always be GHQ: DD-214 project, ACR, and the NATO Artillery Regiment.

I got an Elegoo Mars 4 Ultra resin printer and it is pretty easy to use. I can't design my own files yet, but it's easy enough to download an stl file, resize it to the scale I want, and then print, print, print!

Thank you for posting.
You guys are crazy, I off-loaded 100+ SADF. lkk 100+ modern Brits. Now I might need to have a recall.
So, while I am in a weakened state, please do not attack. We are a friendly, peaceful loving society. We have NO territorial demands.

[panzergator]

Right, Chris. YOU'RE the reason we maintain a good defense. "If you want peace, prepare for war.". We never know when you will to try to make one is another " dom."

[panzergator]

The D series mech battalion you asked about... I was mistaken. I have one G series mech battalion. The differences visible in my collection are: company and battalion command vehicles are M114s, one in each company, two at battalion. The scout platoon is 10 M114s OR 9 M114s and one M113. The company anti-tank sections are each two jeeps mounting M106 recoilless rifles. There is a battalion assault gun section of two M56 Scorpions. I can't say there is a battalion anti-tank platoon because I don't have one and I have to find that particular ST. Same for ADA platoon. I have 6 M151s and with a Dodge 3/4 ton that LOOKS like A Redeye platoon, but I have to verify. The medical platoon has only two M113A1 ambulances rather than three, as in the H series. So, more to do. Because some of my units were not in Brightroom trays as I was digging down to the G series, they fell over, so now I will be transferring those to the proper lockstacking Brightroom tray.

3AD is my primary division, where I have put in the most effort. 4AD kind of happened as I fleshed out partial companies and battalions. 4AD has two E series mech battalions mounted in M59s (because I wanted them). THOSE are the battalions with Davy Crocketts. The Davy Crocketts are a section of three M59s carrying the tripod launcher and warheads. Lots of fun. But scary, considering some of the battalion commanders I knew.

M59s had two Chevy engines mounted along the sides of the troop compartment. Despite that, the M59 was underpowered, so we have up-engined ours to achieve better performance, added spall liners and some other improvements.

We are also integrating a company of armored infantry in M75s, improving them, as well. They will appear with M47s and early M48s as those come on line.

An M48A5 battalion will round out 4AD when it becomes available. It will be a while, as I am prioritizing artillery and infantry units.

[redleg]

I would like to build a battalion of M48s some day, but I will need your help when the time comes with getting the correct version. Why are there so many versions of the same tank??? LOL

Question for PG, and anyone else who wants to share: when you build a mech infantry battalion, do you include the dismounted infantry, or just the vehicles? For my ACR project I am doing the dismounts, but that is just 2-man scout teams, plus a few sapper squads and Stinger teams. I did 2 air assault infantry battalions for my DD-214 project, but no dismounts for the mech battalions in that project. Now I am on the fence about doing dismounted infantry squads for any new Stryker and mech infantry battalions.

[panzergator]

There are several models of the M48 because it was our medium tank for a long time. It went into service about 1948 and the M60 began to replace it in 1959-60. During b that decade, there were many developments to keep up with driven largely by the fact that the Soviets always seemed to be a step ahead. The Army was looking at heavy tanks, different guns, types of turrets, propulsion, suspensions, and different kinds of armor. But it was difficult to bring it all together. The design of the M48 was a solid one, in fact, basically, lasting through the M60A3. It must have had good bones. Our experience with tanks in WWII demonstrated their utility and provided confidence in its utility in combat. We also were re-formulating what we wanted a tank and our armored units to do.

I don't do people. My collection is all vehicle, with the exception of one company in formation. That's it. Keeps it simple. I also limited myself to mostly the combat and combat support vehicles. Only lately have I been adding trucks. My plan was ONE sample battalion with everything of each type. That was it. It really was prioritizing; how did I want to spend the money? I have other interests: history, my library, 1/35th scale armor. I like vintage stereo - the Sansui quadrophonic I bought in Germany in 1976, which has crossed the Atlantic five times, and the ancillary stuff that goes with it... And the second quad I acquired because the turnaround at the electronic shop for repairs is at least a year. And the Technics system I bought in '94 in Wurzburg; and the Sherwood inherited from a friend, and the Fozi I bought last year; and the Yamaha I just got because it's old enough to have a loudness knob rather than just a button (it's a vintage stereo thing). And ten speakers, all antiques, and turntables, tape decks, and cd players and then the music - I like doo-wop, which you have to dig for. I just can't do people. I do motor pools on a quiet Sunday, filled with concrete pad and armored vehicles falling apart where they stand. In silence.

[redleg]

You have expensive hobbies PG!

On a funny note - my daughter is 16 and she is building an impressive collection of vinyl records. Apparently it's all the rage with teenagers now, and I just laugh when I think of all the records I no longer have because no one listens to vinyl anymore! LOL

[panzergator]

Yeah, well I was in college 1968-72, then the Army. You save some money not doing drugs and then not being married until you're 32! And the Army kept me in the field A LOT. MORE saving! Living like monk is cheap! You shouldda kept that vinyl. NOTHING sounds BETTER than my vinyl played on my dual turntable through my Sansui. I briefly toyed with the quad feature, but found I preferred my music in front of me, two-channel. But I have ALL my vinyl. I used to record each album on cassette tape as soon as I got it to preserve the records, so very few records have been played over 5 times. And if I like music, I like it forever, so there's no getting rid of anything. I like stuff back to the medieval, but draw the line at rap and hiphop. I have Dad's reel to reels and wartime 78s. You have to have a different stylus for those. Stephen Foster, Civil War, Barbershop, '20s, Big Band, Pop 50s, doo-wop, hootenanny,, '60s, early Beatles, German traditional and pop, light French waltz, and so on. Not hard rock. But if I bought it, I still got it. My boys like the music, but they're too busy with other things. I also Bluetooth music through my old stereo. Good stuff on Youtube, even AI. LOTS of it transferred to digital in a couple hard drives now. Yes, it redirects resources away from GHQ. But my parents grew up in the Depression. We keep stuff.

[panzergator]

Not that expensive spread over 50+ years...