1/35 scale figures from different periods.
This is partial text from the full article (usually with photos) at https://armorama.com/news/bravo-6-october-releases
This is partial text from the full article (usually with photos) at https://armorama.com/news/bravo-6-october-releases
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Nice. I really like the Gun Truck Crew. They look really natural. I would like them to have heads w/helmets though too, the ballcaps look more like rear areas than gun truckers in combat.
“They can be used for different periods from Vietnam War to Modern Wars as painted in different uniform colors.”
Also, the above statement from the ad is not really correct as the uniforms are definitely Vietnam Jungle fatigues, which were almost exclusively used only in Vietnam. A few were still worn into the early ‘80s but they were not the norm. Stateside and in Europe the OG-107 fatigue uniform was standard through the ‘70’s and early ‘80s. After that, BDUs and later ACUs were the standard. Basically, they are only appropriate for Vietnam gun truckers
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When I scrolled down and saw the caps I thought perhaps they might be suitable for USAREUR, but of course, as identified above, they’re in jungle kit. A shame; I could really do with some figures like these for say, a M151, or a Gama Goat set in the 70s.
I might have to get some, and then look forward towards the inevitable tedium of sanding, and sanding, and sanding…….
Sigh
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I agree. Why can’t any company make decent Cold War figures in OG-107 fatigues???
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I suspect, that to any other than us on here, not many would buy them!
Even if I wanted combat poses (exercise) such as a Brit section de-bussing from a FV 432, they don’t exist, let alone the much needed “hanging-around-the-tank/gun/vehicle park” type figures.
Apart from my Soviet T-74 project, my last few models have all needed extensive figure conversions: TV-8, RMP Munga, NATO Land Rover; if it’s just say, an MBT or other AFV, then Valkyrie come to the rescue, but they’re becoming increasingly hard to find, and aren’t cheap.
Back to sanding and modifying I guess…..
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I agree it would be nice to have alternate heads, possibly with helmets or boonie caps. Most of the time guys didn’t really like the ball caps, although it is nice to see them showing up more. Wayne
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They are nice figures, look pretty accurate from what I see (not early pattern uniforms). Different headgear would be welcome. Remember, not all units in RVN were authorized to wear Boonie Hats nor were they issued to them. I recall visiting a friend at Long Binh, in his unit baseball hats were the Uniform of the Day and it was enforced. Some people did purchase PX hats but even those were not universally allowed. The “Uniform Police” at some of the bigger bases would occasionally stop us and verify we were from field units authorized to wear them (usually the fact we were carrying M-16’s and bandoliers made it pretty obvious we were from “ out of town”). But I would imagine a Gun Truck crew would be more likely to wear steel pots than baseball hats.
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Agree with you comments on headgear. WE were not allowed to wear boonie caps on Long Binh and as I’ve said before, the guys coming in from the bush couldn’t go to the PX in their ragged gear. MPs were pretty well hated almost as officers and NCOs. As a side tho bare heads might be another option, with various haircuts, with a helmet on the seat. Wayne
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Coming from Cu Chi (25th ID), the PX’s at Bien Hoa and Long Binh were within a short and (relatively) secure drive if we could come up with some military excuse to go there. As you said, the MP’s and “Uniform Police” were everywhere, but I must admit they never denied us access to the buildings. The gate MP’s would check to make sure we had no grenades or claymores in the vehicle and the PX NCO’s made us leave one guy outside with our M-16’s (unit SOP required weapons for each troop in the vehicle). We rarely wore name tags or unit patches, had bush hats, and our boots had never seen polish. But aside from making us roll up our sleeves, the NCO’s didn’t bother us too much (maybe I just caught the good ones). We also didn’t push the issue with head bands, shirts w/sleeves cut off or other “hippie s**t” (as one NCO called it). Years later, when I was a senior NCO, I would think what a suck job being “PX Uniform Checker” must have been😝. So, there is some latitude in uniforms for an RVN scene, maybe someone will do a diorama of a rag tag group from “up country” trying to get their jeep or 3/4 past the MP’s at the gate. Take care…
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I was there at the tail end, Nov 71 to Sep 72 so things were strange with everybody trying to not be the last man out. They made us check out weapons to run back and forth between bases, but you couldn’t find the arms room clerk, so we had a couple of stash guns. MPs stopped the guys and consficated the gun and made them drive back with no weapons. Wayne
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Actually the jungle fatigues were allowed for wear stateside, Hawaii, and Panama until August or September of 87, when the Hot Weather BDUs were finally available at Clothing Sales stores. SF still was allowed to wear them for a couple more years I believe. But the “Beetle Bailey” caps were phased out in fall of 84 when the OG-107 fatigues were no longer authorized.
The RLI guys look great, and the Gun Truck crew do look pretty good. They really have the proper rumpled look the jungle fatigues could get.
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Nice stuff. That gun truck crew looks nice but I’m definitely into the Rhodesian bush war stuff.
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A couple of more notes on Army uniforms/equipment in RVN. In late 1970, I rotated home through Long Binh (90th RPL if my old memory is correct), newly arrived troops were assigned to Bunker Guard Duty there, and they were armed with M-14s, not M-16s…odd. So a dio w/guys in M151 w/jungle fatigues, baseball caps and armed with 14s would not be incorrect. Also, some of us assigned to RVN from Germany still had our original field jackets with full color rank, unit patches and yellow/black US ARMY. I rarely wore mine, but back at Base Camp if I was going to sit on the bunker line on a rainy or “cold” night, I’d drag out the field jacket. So a figure in RVN w/jungle fatigues, jungle boots, and boonie hat wearing a field jacket with full color insignia would not be wrong. Also had an issue OD “Patrol” cap (similar to current issue headgear), but didn’t wear it much because ear flaps were not a high priority in Vietnam.
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I think minor surgeries on the uniform may help to use them for many projects so i edited it as ‘‘ They can be used for different periods from Vietnam War to Modern Wars with some minor changes and as painted in different uniform colors.’’
Best regards
Engin
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Agreed, in late 70’s, early 80’s, just prior to transition to BDU’s, our Battalion Recon Platoon wore cammo pattern fatigues, cut exactly like jungle fatigues (slated pockets, etc..) made of rip stop material. Headgear was cammo hat similar to present day. Also, some SF guys we trained with still wore VN style jungle fatigues. So these figures could be accurate into the early 80’s (with change in headgear) for some units. Our line Infantry units transitioned from OG-107’s straight to BDU’s somewhere in this time period. A real expert in US Army uniforms could probably expand on this.
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Not an expert, but when I went into the US Army in October 1984 we were all issued BDUs. We had steel pot helmets, 1st Gen MREs (which the veterans hated) and M16A1 or 0. There were still green fatigues but they were gone by 1986 sometime. Mechanics had coveralls but I don’t remember much about them.
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That jives, found photo from late 84 or early 85, most guys in BDU’s a couple still in OG’s, steel pots and M-16A1’s. Was a transitional period because if you look at photos of Grenada (83), troops in BDU, OG’s, jungle fatigues, steel pots, Kevlars…a real mix. So those figures could even be used in Grenada diorama.
Agree with your opinion of 1st gen MRE’s, tasted like cardboard.
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I’d like to see ODS-era truck crews in a variety of poses, standing next to, climbing in/out the cab, leaning into the engine bay e.g. Similarly OIF-era crews would be popular I’m sure
Come on Bravo 6, there’s been other conflicts since Vietnam!
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I’m no US Army uniform expert, but I do know a bit about them. The ripstop camo uniforms that you mentioned were the ERDL pattern “jungle cammies”. They came in two styles, with the rounded slanted pockets like the jungle fatigues or with squared pleated pockets , and came in either sand or green base color.
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Thanks, appreciate the info. I wish I’d paid more attention to the details of our uniforms and equipment back then (and taken a lot more photos 
).
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