"1st Gen Airfix marines + Tunisia Brit oaras" Topic

Hi guys

I have done the head swap portion of this Brit para in Tunisia project, still need to putty the joins and add some details, this will be the bulk of the project, there's a mortar team to add, and I will add 3 more ammo guys to the vickers team to fit it into the CoC rules, I might add an FO team, and a sniper, and maybe an engineer team (I have a flamethrower there) I've got a handful of figures in denisons, becuase they are to cool to leave out all together, and they undoubtedly did wear them in Tunisia, 2 of the AB secos have Mk V stens, I'm either going to cut them off and replace with Mk IIIs from a Revell Brit para box I have coming in the mail, or I will convert 2 NCOs from that box when it arrives.

I recently bought a job lot of 2nd hand (cut from the sprue but not painted) matchbox figures to add to my Nostalgic project, mostly matchbox US and German infantry, there's a lot of US infantry, maybe 5-6 boxes worth, but there was also 1st generation Airfix US marines, I was quite surprised, I have been in this hobby for nearly 50 years, and I thought I had owned every plastic set as a kid at one time or another, but I have never even seen this set and didn't know what they were at first, but there are a few classic Airfix poses that pointed me in the right direction, and after a bit of google searching I found 1 picture of the set, they aren't even on Plastic soldier review, so my question, how rare is this set? It's very rare to see any of the other 1st gen sets nowadays, I've never seen them advertised for sale, the figures are quite nice and the plastic is good, no brittleness, I haven't counted them yet, but there's are a fare few, might even be more than 1 box worth.
link

Hi Dan

I remember the rubber dinghy and paddlers, so I must have had a set back in the day.

I had the V1 Marines. One of the things I really liked was the Bazooka loader (even though the round was far too big to possibly stuff into the Bazooka!).

Looking at PSR, I couldn't see anything on there about the Airfix 1st Generation 8th Army, Afrika Korps or German infantry either. Probably a stretch to even count the Combat Group or whatever they were called as a 'generation' of the WWII British infantry :o)

A classic set, got some off ebay a while ago, but remember the set as a youngster back in the 70s, mainly because of the dingy!

Tally Ho!

Ah, such memories! My Airfix Marines stormed many a beach, suffering tremendous casualties against my Airfix Japanese and always achieving their objectives.

Thanks!

Now what to do with the 1000s of old Airfix soldiers I still have?

Hi Dan,

I thought I had both versions of the Airfix marines but there are several poses in your images that I have no recollection of, including that bazooka loader. I do remember trying to get that rubber dinghy to actually float.

My best guess is that sites like plastic soldier review can't find someone with the original sets willing to write a review.

Guys. The reviews are on PSR. There is a hyper link embedded in the text for the various second edition sets. If this link works it's the Afrika Korp set. But if not – just look for the link in the first para of each set.

link

The US Marines formed the bulk of the figures for my Charles Grants "Battle" US Army back in the day. They actually had bazooka figures I didn't have to convert!

For what it is worth I had this set as a kid and clearly remember all of the poses in your picture including the bazooka loader guy! I think I was like five or six years old when I got them so around 1968 or 1969. I was warmonger from birth I guess. Here is the review from PSR
link

As an aside your Marine figures look brand new. I wonder if they were pirate figures from a more recent casting batch? The new generation Marines supplanted the old ones in 1975.

Signs you are part of the graying of the hobby. You recognize the Airfix marines. Extra points if you ask the question – There is a new set?

Oh yes, and I only know by going to Plastic Model Soldiers Review;

link

at just a glance, i prefer the ones I knew. For a decade or so the original US Marines were the only 1/72 scale gents in US helmets who could pass for ETO. Even back, as a kid, then I thought that commercially insane.

Those conversions to paras in Tunisia are inspired and, for me anyway, totally unique. I have never seen British airborne figures shown in shirt sleeves and it looks so right. OK, it may be wrong, as folk argue from contemporary photos, but it places them in Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria and is a great effect.

" Those conversions to paras in Tunisia are inspired and, for me anyway, totally unique. I have never seen British airborne figures shown in shirt sleeves and it looks so right. OK, it may be wrong, as folk argue from contemporary photos, but it places them in Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria and is a great effect."

Some people insist they wore the Denison, and they attribute the below pic to it being a staged propaganda photo,, which actually supports my position, I assume they get their beliefs from a book, I like to throw in some common sense and experience into the question, as a former soldier I have learned a few things, the first being that in the field you do what you can to be comfortable, if youre wearing a jacket, and you're hot, you take it off, secondly, if there is a staged photoshoot going on, the RSM is stalking around making sure you're dressed according to the dress of the day, those pictures are capturing his unit in history, heaven forbid the man who makes his unit look like a bag of d@#$&, so that tells me this was acceptable dress.

Seem to remember these things went behind the rhs front pouch:

Wiki – Toggle ropesubheading FlyXwire 

I don't recall calling the above photo propaganda, but it is dated from a training exercise months after the campaigning for Tunisia was over.

After that campaign Major-General Browning issued a report, containing an appendix with comments on equipment and weapons used in combat -

"12. Camouflage smocks. Have been an outstanding success and are much envied by the rest of the Army. They would be better if more waterproofing is possible. They require a belt of some kind if worn without equipment on patrol as they are loose-fitting but string tied round the waist is good enough. Elastic at waist stretches a lot and becomes very loose, so strap of some kind should be added."

The source for this information was provided in a previous thread.

TMP link

There's no dispute that the 1st Parachute Brigade wore their smocks in Tunisia during the winter fighting of 1942-43, and a short-sleeves look would not have been typical for that combat appearance.

Post-combat in Tunisia, lookin' good.

" Seem to remember these things went behind the rhs front pouch:"
The toggle rope was still standard issue through the 90s in the Australian army, not sure about now.
" I don't recall calling the above photo propaganda"
Didn't say you did, I post across a lot of forums and FB pages, I get a lot of different comments, can hardly remember who says what where.but I stand by my comment that soldiers do whatever they can to be comfortable, I've taken rain gear off when patrolling in the rain, seems counter productive, but I sweat less with it off, when you are working hard and it's cold you will still take cold weather gear off to cool down, it's just the reality of life in the field, I've got no doubt they would often hav3 worn them, my point is there's no absolutes when in the field, it's very different when in barracks or doing ceremonial duties.

I had USM in the late 60's, I was born in '63, and there is one pose there I don't recall, specifically the guy with his right arm outstretched holding his rifle, but I suppose it's just old age and poor memory. I remember wondering aged 9 if the guy with the pistol was shooting at someone lying down as his aim is a little droopy.
I recall them storming a hearth rug with some books underneath to create hills full of Japs well pressed into the tufts, at a friend's house where we used a Britain's 25dr firing matches to inflict casualties, and my Japs slaughtered the Marines who were woefully exposed as they crossed the beach (carpet) with no cover to speak of. The Marine commander also aged 9 wasn't amused.

There's probably no absolutes in the field at any time, or under any conditions, and combat in Tunisia wouldn't be considered barracks or ceremonial duty.

Certainly would agree, social media does uncover lots of different comments.

I particularly remember the flamethrower guy from the V1 Airfix set – a stand out dynamic pose in a frankly pretty bland set. I can't see it in your photos but it is the first figure in the first row in the PSR review.

Looking at PSR, I couldn't see anything on there about the Airfix 1st Generation 8th Army, Afrika Korps or German infantry either. Probably a stretch to even count the Combat Group or whatever they were called as a 'generation' of the WWII British infantry.

The reviews are there.

As Marc the Plastics Fan says above:
"Guys. The reviews are on PSR. There is a hyper link embedded in the text for the various second edition sets. If this link works it's the Afrika Korps set. But if not – just look for the link in the first para of each set." (He provides a hyperlink.)

The same is true for the German Infantry. Just look for the link to Generation One.

The Infantry Combat Group is found through a similar hyperlink from one of the several reviews for British Infantry, and the link for Type 1 8th Army is in the review of the second version. The Infantry Combat Group radioman, among others, still serves in my armies.