"Good afternoon Vietnam" Topic

My Vietnam collection is growing slowly

I've updated my blog so pop on over and take a look, they are beautiful little figures from Empress Miniatures sculpted by the very talented Paul Hicks and super little characters they are.

I dont know about anyone else but these guys just capture Vietnam as my eyes envision it!

So thanks for looking cheers for now Russ
link

What a great title…

Let me ask, is this purely highlighting or did you use washes?

I ask because I find the latter is so much easier, if lazier.

Some great detail. Facial features, utilities, highlighting is great…..OK, easy with Paul Hicks sculpts I admit as you also say. The K bar knife for example however, nice touch. The M60 standing gunner. I do think it is time you added a radio man! They did have their uses as I understand….

I had never gone beyond Napoleonic (other than a small group of Quantrill guerillas) until recently. It was a toss up between Landing Craft of WWII, Liberation of Paris by 2e DB Free French, Pearl Harbour, Bay of Pigs Aircraft, Finnish Air Force of WWII (a list of my total obsessions…I am serious)

But Tet won out. Not Khe Sanh, not the Embassy in Saigon etc…just Hue. Never been as a tourist and would not go now, as I left it too late. Missed that boat. I would feel I was exploiting the memory of kids who paid the Last Full Measure…how lucky I was…accident of politics and geography

Very nice paint jobs !

… how lucky I was…accident of politics and geography

Had I been born a couple of years earlier and followed my same life path. My name would probably on The Wall. An Honor I'd rather not have earned.

I don't see why you shouldn't visit Vietnam deadhead. I occasionally meet US ex-military types on a tour. They seem to be OK with it and the locals don't bear too many grudges. They understand as 18-2? young boys they mostly had no real choice about it all.

Of course younger people – and Vietnam is a young country with half of the people under 30 – just see it as ancient history – as remote to them as the American Revolution is to US school kids.

Koreans actually are much less welcomed by the older generations and we have a growing South Korean contingent living here now – even to the point of having a small Koreatown!

As for age being a barrier, my friend's father visited from the UK last Xmas and he is in his 80s. He loved it and plans to come back.

The flight is long and may be pricey, but once here your money goes a long way.

Great looking figs, bracken! Empress has a great and varied figure line. I've seen and gamed with their Spanish Civil War figures and they are awesome. Animated, detailed poses with a lot of variety.

Following Skarper's comment. All the Vietnam veterans I have talked to who returned as tourists felt very welcome. Their biggest shock was how much the country had changed in 50 years. There weren't skyscrapers in Da Nang in 68! There is even a Marine Corps League Detachment in Da Nang! Most of the old contested isolated areas were almost unrecognizable from the pictures and stories I have been told. All in all, it is and was a beautiful country. If I were in better health, I would even consider returning to visit.

That is good to hear Bismarck ! Hope you feel better and go yourself.

Vietnam is well worth a visit. Food is amazing & the people charming. There are quite a few museums/displays highlighting The American War & the locals are quietly proud (though not offensive about it) at holding off a super power.

Bracken: lovely figures. Would you consider adding an Australian platoon?

Bracken,

They look awesome. Would you share your color palette with those of us who are thinking of diving in to this era?

Nice job Russ : )

Bismarck summarised why I felt I have left it too late.

It is not the local welcome or possible lack of, perhaps it is almost the opposite. Those I know who have visited recently have been frankly disappointed by the commercialisation surrounding the War. For a dew dollars you can fire an AK, the tunnels have been widened (lit, drained, reinforced, shortened etc) to allow the unhealthiest Westerner to play at Tunnel rat. However unpleasant a bunch they may have been, VC and NVA must have had some overwhelming idealism driving them on. Now it is foreign currency. (As I am sure was the case in Saigon late 60s too)

He said it above. How the country has changed in the last 50 years. Of course it has to, that is their right to develop their economy……but I fear I might be disappointed that they have lost just as much.

The above figures. They have eyes that actually look right. I never even try any more. Lots of dark eye sockets, nothing more, or else mine end up looking like psychos!

It's true about the commercialisation of everything.

The tunnels we can go in are not tunnels from the war years – but copies. They'd have to be or they could contain UXO, human remains etc. And they are wider than the originals.

Still an interesting visit though I'd recommend getting a proper guide – I knew more than ours did!

My friends traveled to areas across RC9 toward Khe Sanh and some others headed south from Hoi An toward the old An Hoa combat base. Lots of the areas were overgrown and even with maps and treading on familiar ground, it was difficult to recognize some of those spots.

No one mentioned commercialism of the war. The museums drew comments, but the common thread was how some of the cities and towns had grown. I saw one pic from Red Beach and it looked like a tourist spot here in the states.

I remember passing through Hue before Tet and being amazed at how historical it felt. The beauty and feeling of a civilization over 1000 years old. Heading southward after Tet and seeing the devastation and destruction left one almost numb.

Legion, thanks for the wish to feel better and be able to make the journey. Limited mobility and issues that will only worsen would prevent me from making the trip. My days of climbing hills have long past. Thankfully, as to food, there is a large Vietnamese population where I live as well as Laotian and Montagnard. So from that standpoint, I can get close.

I understand that Bismarck, I'm only 62 and my legs and feet can't take a lot of walking either. And yes, climbing hills is long gone for me as well. But you did all the humping hills you needed serving in Vietnam !

We have a Vietnamese eatery in town here too. Pretty good ! They do Chinese too.

Thanks guys for the feedback it's much appreciated.

deadhead thank you, I use both washes and layering. I also dift into dry brushing, my painting technique can be a bit unorthodox at times. The eyes took me a while to get right but i still end up doing a few repaints. I have the set with radios so it's just a case of getting it done. I figured I'd start with two 10 men squads, I've always being fascinated by Vietnam and now I have a chance to build a collection that's reflects my fascination. I view Vietnam on par with ww1, the futility of it all, young men bring called to fight! I know all wars are terrible but something resonates about Vietnam. The fact that those who went and did their duty didn't receive the home coming they deserved.

Legion4 thank you, it seems odd that despite it not being my country's history it still resonates.

ochoin thank you also, they are stunning little figures to paint. Yes I would love to add some Australian platoon at some point.

ccmatty thank you, I PMd you hope you got it.

Empress Miniatures thank you, I'm pretty smitten with these figures but I'm sure you've may of already noticed.

It's interesting to read everyone's comments and experiences, I try to treat all projects with the same amount of respect. After all people did thier duty and paid the highest price.

it seems odd that despite it not being my country's history it still resonates.

It really still is a very "tough" subject for many of my countrymen and the Vets that served in SE Asia. I was trained by many of them and served with them. When I started with the Army in '75.

It really was a tragedy albeit like many wars are. But the Vietnam War with the draft, and many realizing it was not being handled well, the losses adding up, etc., etc. With "No light at the end of the tunnel". No path to victory or an end. Seemed to make it that much worse. I have a number of friends who served there. And I am honored to call them comrades and friends.

After all people did thier duty and paid the highest price.

Indeed they did …