I'm sick of this cold weather now, so I have decided to go somewhere nice and warm, so what about a Pacific island with clear blue skies, warm seas and a gentle breeze.........Iwo Jima.
I'm reasonably well read on WW2, but I have a fascination for the U.S. Marines in the Pacific. I know all wars can be brutal but this campaign was especially so. The Marines were up against Japanese defenders well dug in, in bunkers, tunnels and caves and who fought to the death rather than surrender.
The casualty rate on both sides was horrendous. Even the smallest of islands had to be taken inch by inch.
I wanted to make a diorama of Tarawa, which is liitle more than a 2ml atoll with a few trees, but when I looked at photos one thing stood out, the naval bombardment had flattened the place, with only a few stumps of palm trees left standing. Very much like WW1 battlefields, without the mud!
Iwo Jima has no sandy beaches only volcanic ash, inland it has a very diverse, 'jungly' landscape with caves and undergrowth.......This is the theme for my diorama.
O.K. this will be my 5th effort. I have never done this kind of thing before, just dirt roads and a few bushes so I am looking forward, with a bit of trepidation, to this build. All I have in my head at the moment is a cave!
I have skipped the build up to this stage because my construction method is always the same (See my 'Building a 1/35 diorama' in under construction) so it seemed pointless going over the first stage again.
The base is about 20" X 15". The photos show the rough build of the cave and surrounds. I wanted a bit of a cliff behind the cave so I built up the back of the dio. with 1/4" ply. I added the rocks whilst the cement was still soft so they are well stuck down!
Now is the time to 'ave a beer, sit back and think what to do next. I find this works best for me in as much as I never have a set plan just a basic idea then come up with things as I go along, so where's that beer?
As I have said this is new territory for me, so let's learn together!
....and watch out for snipers!
Ron
[ATTACH]20877.IPB[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH]20878.IPB[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH]20879.IPB[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH]20880.IPB[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH]20881.IPB[/ATTACH]
I'm reasonably well read on WW2, but I have a fascination for the U.S. Marines in the Pacific. I know all wars can be brutal but this campaign was especially so. The Marines were up against Japanese defenders well dug in, in bunkers, tunnels and caves and who fought to the death rather than surrender.
The casualty rate on both sides was horrendous. Even the smallest of islands had to be taken inch by inch.
I wanted to make a diorama of Tarawa, which is liitle more than a 2ml atoll with a few trees, but when I looked at photos one thing stood out, the naval bombardment had flattened the place, with only a few stumps of palm trees left standing. Very much like WW1 battlefields, without the mud!
Iwo Jima has no sandy beaches only volcanic ash, inland it has a very diverse, 'jungly' landscape with caves and undergrowth.......This is the theme for my diorama.
O.K. this will be my 5th effort. I have never done this kind of thing before, just dirt roads and a few bushes so I am looking forward, with a bit of trepidation, to this build. All I have in my head at the moment is a cave!
I have skipped the build up to this stage because my construction method is always the same (See my 'Building a 1/35 diorama' in under construction) so it seemed pointless going over the first stage again.
The base is about 20" X 15". The photos show the rough build of the cave and surrounds. I wanted a bit of a cliff behind the cave so I built up the back of the dio. with 1/4" ply. I added the rocks whilst the cement was still soft so they are well stuck down!
Now is the time to 'ave a beer, sit back and think what to do next. I find this works best for me in as much as I never have a set plan just a basic idea then come up with things as I go along, so where's that beer?
As I have said this is new territory for me, so let's learn together!
....and watch out for snipers!
Ron
[ATTACH]20877.IPB[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH]20878.IPB[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH]20879.IPB[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH]20880.IPB[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH]20881.IPB[/ATTACH]
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