NEW THIS WEEK – MONDAY 2 NOVEMBER 2009

Hi and welcome to another newsletter on what’s new on Miliblog this week.

Well Miliblog had a great day out at the IPMS, that’s the International Plastic Modellers Society, show at the International Centre in Telford, Shropshire. Set over two days, it was the who’s who of the scale model scene. The major kit manufacturers were there such as Airfix, Revell, Tamiya, Fujimi and Hasagawa while most of the British specialist manufacturers such as Cronwell, Sovereign 2000, MMS Models, BW Models, Accurate Armour, Milicast and Matador Models were also there in force. Most if not all area clubs that make up the IPMS were there displaying their finest models of aircraft, tanks, ships, cars etc as well as many specialist interests such as the USAF or Landing Craft sections.

The Airfix Tribute Forum had a superb stand dedicated to the history of Airfix models over the years. Lets face it, how many of us as children didn’t get our first taste of military vehicles by making some of the magnificent models over the years. Chatted to a really nice chap who told us they had one of the earliest Airfix models on the stand in the form of a Ferguson TE20 tractor, or the ‘Little Grey Fergie’ as it was known. A rare model that had been stripped down to it’s parts and then rebuilt in a better way especially for the show.

However the best model at the show, and indeed probably the best model I have ever seen in my life was a 1/35 scale model of an LST, Landing Ship Tank. Nearly 8 feet long it was an absolute masterpiece complete in detail to the anti-aircraft guns and Royal Navy crew in lifejackets. Have a look at the photos below to see how excited we all got !

We’ve also added a few more to our ‘Tanks Collection’ feature with some more colour photos from WW2 which are pretty unusual.  I’ve shown a couple of samples below to tempt you to visit this area of the website, under ‘Gallery of Photo Collection’.

We’ll soon be bringing another new exciting area to Miliblog. This is a huge collection of photos from the  Miliblog files of German forces on the Eastern Front or Ost Front in the campaigns of 1941 and 1942, as the German forces invaded Russia. Another area will feature studio photos of German servicemen, which will appeal not only to those who collect uniforms, but those interested in the homefront as well.

I think it is important once more to remind our readers, Miliblog is NOT a political website at all. It is interested in the armed forces and their equipment, vehicles and aircraft. How technology was, and still is, advanced through the development of military equipment. This has improved our home lives as well as the technology has been rolled out to products for ‘civilian consumption’. It is also intrested in the human side and how people lived under wartime conditions, whether it be on the battleground or indeed at the home front, which could be more stressful. Hopefully, without being political, we all learn in life through our mistakes. Maybe Mankind can look at history and certain images and experiences, and say let’s find a better way to a solution. I think with today, November 8, being Rememberance Sunday here in the UK, this makes us all think of relatives and friends lost in conflicts old and current.       

So, after my little lecture, I’ll get back to my scanner for next week’s new items for you.

Have a great week !

Cheerio !

Simon

NEW THIS WEEK – MONDAY 26 OCTOBER 2009

Hello and welcome to the newsletter of what’s new on Miliblog this week. As we write this, it’s Sunday November 1st and Haloween is over for another year. Hope you didn’t get tricked last night !

Following on from last week’s 120 e-photos, we have a further 70 of them added this week to The Tank Collection and I’ve got some samples below to tempt you have a look at the Collection. As we said last week they are far from perfect, but being slightly grainy and a little out of focus, I think it brings some atmosphere to them. As always we love to receive your emails about all sorts of items, so we will wait and see if we get any feedback. The first one is a nice photo of a Valentine Tank in Malta and the reason we are sure it’s taken in Malta is because of the camouflage pattern. If you have ever visited Malta, you will see many dry stone walls separating the fields and the army adopted a similar style of camouflage to the walls. Have a look at the picture and you will see what we mean. The next British smple is a nice little Light Tank MkVIA taken in North Africa with the commander standing on the turret with his binoculars. The last British sample this week is a lovely Churchill Recovery Tank complete with what looks to be twin-Bren guns as armament. Look at the Canadian Ram Tank in the background, which is a rare beast indeed.  

Our sample US Tank featured this week is a nice M4 Sherman with a Cullin devise fitted on the front. The big problem for troops in the Normandy campaign both for US and British troops was the Bocage countryside, which featured many fields edged with thick hedges and then sunken roads between them. The problem was when an Allied tank went up and over the hedge, it revealed the soft under-belly which was an easy target for enemy bazookas or panzerfausts. It was solved by a Sergeant Bill Cullin of the US Engineers who came up with the idea of chopping down the German anti-invasion metalwork on the beaches and attaching pieces to the front of a tank. This way the tank went through the hedge and so saved many tanks from being hit.  

From our German section we have a nice Panzer IV at speed on the Russian Steppes. Next is a Jagd Tiger, here seen in Bovington Tank Museum in Dorset, UK. Just look at the size of this animal compared to the people standing by it. What a monster ! How would you stop that thing if it was coming at you ! Then we have a really atmospheric photo of a Panzer III motoring along in the desert in North Africa. This is an example of where despite the photo being grainy and not in much detail, I just had to include it in the collection.  We have 5 Stug III photos this week and my favourite is the one below, which is in colour. Last sample this week from the German section must show an excellent idea for all our modellers amongst us. Although not strictly not a tank, it’s an Sd Kfz 7 Half Track towing a nice piece of artillery over a bridge.   

We are still amazed here at Miliblog when we look at out website statistics. October was the best month since we started, with just under 7,500 visitors in the month resulting in over 600,000 hits, so a big ‘Thank You’ to you all. This means that the average visitor looks at around 80 pages per visit, so we must be doing something right for our fellow enthusiasts come back to have another look !

Next weekend on November 7/8, we have the IPMS (international Plastic Modellers Society) ‘Scale Model World 2009′ Exhibition at the International Centre in Telford, Shropshire. With over 270 trade stands it’s going to be a cracker of a show and Miliblog will be visiting and reporting back to you. Hopefully we may be able to take some photos as well ! I’ll be wearing a Miliblog badge so if any one of you are there and spot me, then please stop me and say ‘hello !’

So without further delay, I’ll get back to the scanner and conjure up some nice new photos for next week.

Cheerio !

Simon

NEW THIS WEEK – MONDAY 19 OCTOBER 2009

Hello to you all and welcome once again to Miliblog. This week we’ve started an exciting new section which I think will be very useful especially to model makers. Over the years I have accumulated many different photos and in different forms, whether it be digital, slides or even the glossy photos that came in a packet from the photo shop after developing. But part of the collection that is really interesting are the digital e-photos that were available on cd’s or donated from fellow enthusiasts. Some have a copyright attached to them and these we won’t be adding to Miliblog. The others that have no copyright or are so old that under International law the copyright has expired, we shall be adding to Miliblog for your enjoyment.

This week we’ve added nearly 130 photos and have set up this new section called ‘The Tank Collection’.  Ok some of the photos are a little grainy and we can’t get them to explode to a full screen, but I think they are really good and provide more detail and close ups of the tanks. So far we have 3 sections, WW2 British, WW2 German and WW2 American, each with many exciting photos to view. I’ve shown some sample below.  Who can’t resist looking at them and remember that early Tamiya or Esci model that many of us made back in the 1980′s !!!    Have a look at the Panzer 35t or the Sherman Rocket launcher which were both early Esci models in 1/72 scale. There’s nothing like a bit of nostalgia, but as someone recently said ‘Nostalgia isn’t what it used to be !!!’

Don’t forget, we have the search tab at the top if there’s a particular vehicle or registration number of an old vehicle you once owned or you’re interested in. Just pop the details into the box and search.  

So back to the scanner and find some more stuff for next week !

Cheerio !

Simon 

NEW THIS WEEK – MONDAY 12 OCTOBER 2009

Hi everyone and welcome to this week’s newsletter.

Well we’re very excited here at Miliblog this week. One of our favourite Military Vehicle publications, Military Machines International recently published issue No 100 and we sent their editor Ian Young a congratulations email wishing him all the best for the next 100 issues. Well we just bought issue 101 this weekend and our jaws dropped open to read a lovely response from Ian. To quote, he said ‘I took a look and found it to be packed with information and photos and is definitely worth a look. It’s easy to navigate and features loads of photos and military vehicles of all types that are sure to be of interest to readers’. Similar to say, we also enjoy reading Ian’s magazine and highly recommend people to source it out if they are not already readers. Also their website is www.militarymachinesintl.com if you’d like further info.

OK, that’s got the back slapping done and onto what new photos we have for you this week. We start with a selection of old Bedfords and AEC’s of the 1960′s & 1970′s and two samples are shown below. Firstly a Bedford J Series Luton Van in camouflage, and then an unusual Mandator 4×2 Tractor in use at the HM Dockyards in Portsmouth. Must have been pretty powerful looking at the size of the trailer.

Next for you we have some Unipower BR90 8×8 Bridging System Vehicles. I believe they were made in Birmingham, someone told me and unusual as they weren’t actually given full MoD registration numbers, Rather they were issued with ‘CP’ numbers which stood for ‘Civilian Plant’. Perhaps someone out there may be able to help with some more information on them.

Next is one for our friends in The Netherlands. A nice Marirus Deutz S3500 Fire Rescue, which we are pretty certain is an ex-military fire engine.

And next to keep our friends across the pond happy are two photos of the twenty or so illustrating a junk yard on the I1 or Interstate 10 in the USA. Below are two examples, a US Marine Corps Dodge M37 Cargo and a US Army Kaiser Jeep M715 Cargo. Hopefully someone will rescue these trucks and give them a good home.

So that about wraps up this week’s newsletter. Next week we’ll be digging into our collection of e-photos built up over the years from a number of sources. Not as good as digital or scanned photos, they are very interesting to look at and see the details. Especially useful to those amongst us who make scale models of military vehicles. Whether straight out of the box or some good ideas for conversions. You never know, perhaps amongst us are the guys who work for the actual companies making the models and they might find some ideas for new models for next year. Enough rambling, Simon !

Cheerio !

Simon 

NEW THIS WEEK – MONDAY 5 OCTOBER 2009

Hello and welcome to what’s new on Miliblog this week. Well I’m still as always searching out for new stuff for the website to share with you, my fellow MV enthusiasts. We now have over 3,600 photos on Miliblog to date and adding new items each week. We start with an unusual photo of a Warrior APC which appears a normal standard vehicle, until you look closer  to see it’s a sort of recovery vehicle without a turret and some sort of spade device at the back. Anyone got any suggestions ? Some more 1970′s British Army stuff added this week including this lovely M109 155mm SPG, lovely that is if you’re not on the receiving end. Next we have started the Japanese vehicle section with a couple of vehicles, one being the Hino Tractor featured below, which is a very close copy of US WW2 Autocar U-7144T 4×4 Tractor. Also we have added over 20 1980′s modern US vehicles, mainly M35A2 2.5 Ton Cargos and some nice Station Wagons, including the two featured below. The Ford F-100 Pick-Up has a ‘SAC OPS’ sign on the top, which stands for of course ‘Strategic Air Command’ . The other is a Chevrolet Custom Deluxe with a sign saying ‘RAF Bentwaters Fire Chief’ which I think is another photo out of the history books. Next is a cute Austin K2 which I couldn’t resist sharing with you.

Finally on the photograph section, we’ve had a couple of e-mails in asking if we had any aircraft in the collection and to keep our customers happy, we’ve added some nice ones of Avro Vulcan V-Bombers and also some good looking Jet Provost Trainers. Have a look also under the WW2 Original photos and we have a great shot of three Bristol Blenheim Mk1 Bombers in flight, in very early wartime markings.

So my friends I wish you another great week wherever you are in the world.

Cheerio !

Simon

NEW THIS WEEK – MONDAY 28 SEPTEMBER 2009

Hi and welcome to this week’s newsletter and again I’m sorry a little late. However I’ll start you off with a brilliant video I found on You Tube. If you are easily offended by bad language, then don’t watch it ! A lovely old Spitfire flown by the late and great Ray Hanna, giving racing driver Aln de Cadenet a haircut, will certainly bring a smile to you face !

SPITFIRE LOW PASS !

Just a few new photos this week and below we’re featuring three of them. Two are Morris MRA1 1 Tonners, with the first being a Water Tanker version probably in an ex-military auction with Lot No 1185. The other is srill in military service and is the GS or General Service version. Look how tiny the door mirrors are. Next is a nice Austin K2 Fire Tender in RAF colours. We’ve recently bought a collection of photos which includes some more WW2 RAF and civilian fire engines or tenders to give them their official title andwe’ll be bringing them to you in the next few weeks.

So sorry if this week is short and sweet but must get back to the albums  !

Cheerio !

Simon     

NEW THIS WEEK – MONDAY 21 SEPTEMBER 2009

Hello again and welcome to this week’s new items. A little late I’m afraid, as work is taking over my private time at the moment ! Straight down to some of the new photos, but remember by clicking on the ‘Latest Images’ tab at the top, it brings up all the new pictures that have been recently added to Miliblog.

I’ve picked out 6 of the new ones this week to highlight to you a selection of the range of military vehicles available on Miliblog, for you to pass away a sunday afternoon or the lunchbreak in the office. To start with we have a Vixen Armoured Car, which you can see if very similar to the Fox Armoured Car, but without a turret. I think they only got to prototype stage with only a few being made for assessment. The ‘SP’ number plate suggests this, as a Special. I think with the small lights and the high sides it looks a little like a turtle !

Next we have a Standard 10hp Light Utility, but something about it isn’t quite right, and that’s the radiator grill and bonnet, or hood ! The one’s I’ve seen in the past have a flat radiator grill, so whether this was a genuine one or a canibalised one I’m not sure, maybe someone out there can help ? The photo shows it was entrant number J285 on the 1978 National Benzole ( a petrol company, now long gone) Historic Commercial Vehicle Run, with a Canadian Chevvy parked behind it.

To follow is a nice old Fordson 6×4 Signals Truck used by the RAF, and looks like it’s seen better days. Then we have a Commer BF Van, again an example of often long-overlooked support vehicles that work hard behind the scenes in keeping the military machine working.

Finally we come to a pair of Chieftain tanks which need no introduction. Who would believe it all those years ago when like many others heading across Salisbury Plain in the 1970′s and seeing these beauties on exercise that one day we were all able – money permitting –  to buy one of these for about £25,000 !

So I wish you all a good week and I’m back to the albums and see what we can muster for next week’s additions for your entertainment !

Cheerio !

Simon   

NEW THIS WEEK – MONDAY 14 SEPTEMBER 2009

Welcome to this week’s newsletter with an update on new items this week on Miliblog

After last week’s busy week, we raided the collection and concentrated on two main areas that are always popular. 15 photos of Land Rovers and over 20 photos of Diamond T 980 M20 Prime Movers ! Lovely ! So the question for the day is which category should the Dizzy T M20 go in ? It’s from the US and it’s wartime, so that should be easy. But I hear you say, it seved with the British Forces in WW2 ……. and it was fitted with a Rolls Royce engine and served well into the 1950′s and 1960′s !!!! Well not an easy question, but we decided to put all the M20′s under US WW2 Heavyweight vehicles. So that’s where you will find the YZ registed ones. Anyone know if the Dizzy T below is still at Heybeck Garage in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire ?

The Landies are mainly in RAF service and I really like to see what else is going on in the photo, don’t you ? Have a look at the photos below with the old VC-10 aircraft in the backgound. Maybe taken at RAF Brize Norton ? Finally, a nice photo of a Austin Metro Van in RAF colours to show the military uses all sorts of vehicles, even a humble Metro Van.

So back to the albums for a good mixed bag selection next week including some tanks !

Cheerio !

Simon

NEW THIS WEEK – MONDAY 7 SEPTEMBER 2009

Hi and welcome to this week’s newsletter !

Well I am sorry to say not many new photos on this week as work has been very busy. However we have been going through the albums to find some nice ones to be scanned in over the next few weeks. Also we have been able to buy some more photos from a number of sellers across the world, which we hope to bring to you soon.

So what do you have this week then ? To start with some nice Albion CX22S Gun Tractors, some preserved and some at work in the 1950′s. Does anyone know if the Amusements company in Salford and Oldham is still in business ? I’ve added a couple of them below. Next we have a rare Dennis Max 6 Tonner in RAF colours. Introduced in 1944, it had a diesel 4 cylinder engine developing 77 bhp mated to a five-speed gearbox. Finally some more of our old favourites, the AEC Matador Gun Tractors have been added.

Well back to the spreadsheet for work !

Cheerio !

Simon

NEW THIS WEEK – MONDAY 31 AUGUST 2009

Hi there and welcome once again to the Miliblog newsletter of what’s new this week.

Well we have been pretty busy this week with lots of new stuff to whet your appetite with military vehicles and more items form the 1940′s Home Front. On the outskirts of Wolverhampton, a city in the Midlands of the UK, is Bantock Park which includes a lovely old house called Bantock House. Owned by Wolverhampton Council, it is a marvellous museum of all sorts of items from the local area. Every year they hold a 1940′s theme month and one of the highlights is the 1940′s weekend. Miliblog was there and you can see a full report with lots of photos on our ‘Shows’ tab. Have a look as it really was an atmospheric event with a few wartime vehicles and people dressed up in 1940′s clothes.

A few years ago I worked with a chap called Norman who had been in the Army and done his National Service. He’d lent me some photos to copy of the vehicles he had and these can now be found under ‘Original Postwar Photos’ then ‘British National Service’ and then ‘Norman Yeomans Collection’ . Very interesting and although they were taken with a basic camera at the time, with the clarity not upto what we get now, they still give a good insight into early postwar vehicles and surroundings in Germany 1946.

Staying with the British Army National Service days, we have some more Scammell Explorer heavy breakdowns for you along with some nice Thornycroft ‘Big Ben’ 10 Tonners. I’ve put a sample below for you to see. Similarly, we have now added some more 1960′s/1970′s German items with some Unimog S404′s as well as a few other types too.

We have a nice shot of a captured Goering’s Mercedes being loaded onto a lorry to go to who knows ! I wonder what became of it ? Does anyone know ? Also we have a shot of a captured ‘super-tank’ as it was labelled. Again another photo that’s well worth some more investigation. Whay price would you put on this pile of Goliath mini-tanks that this US Army soldier is checking over ?  

Finally, our website designer has changed the software for the Forum on Miliblog to make it more user friendly. We’ve already got our first posting there thanks to Hugo and would love to hear from you anywhere in the world with your comments on our little website and even with what things you would like to see on Miliblog.

Have a great week !

Cheerio !

Simon