Never be bored as there is always basing to be done ..

My collection will never be finished, I know that, particularly the WWII one. However I do get a buzz from getting various bits to different stages .. basing is one of those stages (see below, Caesar miniatures are beautiful, but the more recent Italeri certainly give them a run for their money, as do Pegasus Hobbies, Plastic Soldier Company):

These dudes are some of my WWII Soviets and they are one stage along the production line. 

Ghosts of the Jungle .. More Nam Figures .. (1/72, 20mm, 1/76)

When you are preparing for a game like "Ghosts of the Jungle" (allegedly a player cooperative play game, which also means you can be left at the mercy of other players "intelligent" decisions), there are always the game "odds and ends" you need to paint up .. just to oil the mechanics and make-up "special events" or have in the "background". They are typically not the sexy, sexy exciting figures that jump onto the painting table, but they have an important game function to do. For example, a VC truck (on loan to North Vietnam from the USSR, via the Plastic Soldier Company WWII Russian transport collection) to terrorise anybody trying to cross a seemingly deserted jungle track in the game, a couple of VC figures who can nicely fit in the back of said truck [of ESCI/Italeri 1/72 VC origins - waiting to be painted for some twenty years], some (as in eight) Platoon 20 Villagers [who under the game the mechanics could turn into VC], eight Platoon 20 SAS LRRP soldiers [OK they are pretty sexy, but were an upgrade from the US LRRP that I was previously using] and finally a downed helicopter pilot, in wounded and walking poses (see below, the primed and Vallejo brown washed ready for the "real" painting to start): 

It is "good for the soul" when you get figures at least to this stage ;) 

ClearFix Tip - When It Goes Yellow Get a New Bottle!

ClearFix is obviously a bit like snow - when it goes yellow beware what you can use it for! To be fair you typically use so little of it at a time, unless you are making a plane per week you may never ever use a whole bottle. In my case, years will go by before you pull it out of the storage tin (which may or may not help being away from direct sunlight). Indeed as I found out to my cost when making my Vietnam helicopters, ditch it if it goes gloopy and yellow. Clearfix (though slow in drying and bonding clear plastic to normal plastic) is however the way to do aircraft canopies .. otherwise the terrible chemical affect that I do not understand ruins the cockpit look. ClearFix is a wonder chemical when clear but buyer beware avoid the yellow (see below, RHS clear and "Good", LHS gloopy-yellow and very bad!):   

I had to resort to covering up a smeared mess on one helicopter's side windscreen [reconnaissance Gun-Ship Loach, if you really wanted to know] with Tamiya X-25 transparent Clear Green. Note, authentically it was used on top horizonal window covers of Vietnam Huey's and Loach's alike to cut down on glare from the sun above [?] I am guessing - but I don't think side windows were typically covered - but I think the "look" seems to work (see below, my Italeri 1/72 "Little Bird" festooned with decals - grinning shark mouth underneath):  

You have to be careful when handling Italeri as they are delicate, but beautifully made!

Holiday Arms Cache in 20mm

A recent visit to Edinburgh saw an opportunity to visit Wonderland and rampage through their 20mm figures selection (nothing beats having things physically in you hands creating budget dilemmas of all sorts). I simply could not resist these US Tank Riders from HaT. I did not "need them" for any particular "order of battle" or troop type but I could just see them enhancing the look and feel of any of the US kit I have with scruffy GI's lounging around (see below, they all have good character features and you get quite a lot too): 

Meanwhile I could not help noticing in the Italeri model section are rather large Italian cannon! Something I had seen before but hadn't picked up and later regretted it. It was a compulsory purchase. I so wished I had picked up a 1/144 scale F22 when I saw one years ago! That will be my HMS Repulse and KGV story all over again, waiting 10+ years for it to reappear (see below, this is part of my slow churn 20mm - 1/72 scale Western Desert force project): 

The figures look great, not much to the build and it looks slightly, dare I say it H.G. Wells "Little Wars"? All I seem to be missing from my Italians is a little transport (you did not walk anywhere in the desert),  a couple of Light Tanks [Fiat L6/40 and L3/33] an earlier Medium Tank [M11/39] and a large car/small truck with a gun in it called a Sahariana (see below, all will come with the passage of time):

Note to self: There is no definitive start/end dates to the above, more growing the collection. I also stocked up on a collection of 15mm WWII Zvezda models, but that is another story. I also noticed a collection of Strelets/Italeri Japanese Infantry kits that had to wait for another time ;)

The Portable Wargame Book WWII Eastern Front Battle (Part 4) - Re-Fight III "End Game Over-run"

Heartened by the destruction of the Panzer IV the Soviets regaled their T-34s to "super human patriotic efforts" and charge and break the German centre. Supported by artillery (it was deemed to be a fresh close combat as the PAK crews had just returned to the fray) and other units the PAK was destroyed. This left a Commander alone in the hex and the T34 mercilessly advanced, tank tracks squealing in "Cross of Iron" fashion (see below): 

We had a brief conversation regarding what to do with a solo command figure alone in close combat and we decided that it was an auto kill - alternatively it could have been roll a "6" for it to hit the T-34, but the latter auto kill seemed more fair (maybe it was getting late). The German Commander went to Valhalla (see below, the Germans are approaching their Exhaustion Limit having lost a Pz IV, a Pak 40 and a Commander - 3 towards their 4 limit, whereas the Russians despite losing three infantry and one tank - are only 4 towards their 7 limit):

The one remaining hope for the Germans was their Mountain Artillery piece, now firing over open sight could brew a T-34 but alas the T34's armour was too strong. Almost inevitably the German front ruptured; Soviet direct fire returned the complement to the German Mountain Artillery and a hit made it retreat (crew not the guns, just like the PAK). This effectively brought the German forces almost to the point of "Exhaustion" - no further movement for offensive action. However the rampant T-34s kept coming (see below, the German artillery crew can just be seen bottom left corner):

The close combat although not killing the Germans (still tenuously hanging above their exhaustion point) hurled them away from the safety of their fortifications and opened up the rearmost T-34 to perform exploitation right into "the enemies backfield" (see below):

The veteran T-34 (veteran as in "model", not as in quality of the unit, as it was painted last century in the 1990's was about to claim it's "wargaming moment") did not need to be asked twice and promptly 'overran' [again I can hear those tank tracks squealing - that remorseless metal on metal sound ] the retreating Mountain Artillery crew. Again after discussion we deemed the German crew were in no position to defend themselves (perhaps "6" to hit would the T-34 have been as appropriate - but what with?) This was sufficient to break the Germans or rather make them reach their Exhaustion Point (see below - no more offensive movement for the Germans from this point on):

With the Russian infantry moving up and two rampant T-34s in the German rear (not forgetting another positioning itself to charge from the front) it was 'game, set and match' to the Soviets. The only question now was, "Could the Germans could get anything off in good order?" or was it a complete rout. Answer: It became a rout as another German Infantry Platoon was eliminated and all the other units forced to retreat "pell-mell" off table (see below, the final position):

This certainly was a comprehensive Russian victory. The game was over in just over an hour, with plenty of time spent in interesting conversation to add to the enjoyment of the proceedings. In fact I have played much longer games of DBA, so it was a quick game for sure - with the previous "run through" and this game done in the same evening. Note: I definitely want to re-run the scenario using Step Points (SPs) instead of the "instant kill" option to see the difference it makes - I expect a prolonged resistance but a Soviet victory.

Thoughts on the rules: Noting we just played the 'basic version' from the Portable Wargames book, not the additional features from the Developing the Portable Wargame. We seemed to get "most" things right, but I think we allowed direct fire (as opposed to close assault) from adjacent hexes at certain points. The more I think about it I am more inclined to prohibit this and force the player to either stand back or go in close and dirty. I am also assuming initiating close combat is "optional in your turn" if you are adjacent to an enemy unit. Regarding weapons characteristics, both the T34 - Pz IV - Pak 40 were OK as they were evenly matched. Throw a Tiger or a JSII into the mix then I think some "relational" modifiers would be appropriate (medium gun versus heavy armour implies a six or the tank could get a saving throw). Likewise for this period of the war, infantry anti-tank weapons justify the danger in T34s or Pz IVs attempting to overrun infantry, early war that would not be teh case. Things I personally want to introduce would be (and these are borrowed from many board game other rule-sets):

• "Pinned Status" for troops that are fired upon and go "hunkered down" [Bob has read my mind with this additional feature in the follow on book: Developing the Portable Wargame].
• An "Over-watch" action [placed defensively on units that don't move/fire that allows them to shoot at enemy that move into LOS/range next turn].
• Playing around with vehicle characteristics to be more historical without becoming a "rivet counter".
• Armour (AFV) attacking infantry in the open - overrun, then moving on after a successful attack.
• Period Adjustments - for example 1940's "tank fright", here the Panzer Leader, Squad Leader and other Avalon Hill/SPI games are fertile sources of rule inspiration.
• Special one-off troop characteristics (Stalingrad Militia high morale for example) 
• Soviet "Tank-Riders"
• Ammunition shortages [probably best dealt with in a scenario briefing]

All-in-all a good rules run out and I look forward to many hours of enjoyment spent tinkering along with these rules. That's the beauty of Bob's system, he doesn't explicitly demand you 'kowtow' to him but rather get started in an interesting conversation and how it could work out. Personally I am particularly looking forward to replaying the Colonial scenario and exploring the Ancients. Bob has also published a naval variant and is currently working on a Napoleonic set.

The Portable Wargame Book WWII Eastern Front Battle (Part 3) - Re-Fight II "Armoured Assault"

The Soviet Commander decided to risk all in an all-out armoured attack. The four active units of T-34s pushed as far forwards as they could. Two of the T-34s halted as they ended "woods" (which stops any further movement but laid down "suppression" fire) and a third T34 aggressively chose to attempt an overrun of the PAK position (see below, the fourth T34 wisely stands off leaving "retreat room" - just in case if the advanced units attack goes badly and they have to retreat (see below, also note the German infantry platoon that has taken up an advanced position in the wood ahead of the PzIV, bottom left): 

The first 'tank-v-tank' engagement of the game started, with the T-34s coming out slightly on top, making the (Elite) German Panzer IV retreat (see below, beaten but not 'worsted'):

The central T-34 close assault was ineffectual, much to the relief of the Soviet Commander as when the odds were calculated the T-34 was in a badly  disadvantaged position (Soviets needed a 6 to hit while the Germans [in a fortification with their commander] needed 4-6 to hit). The close combat would continue but the Russians had "dodged" a bullet this turn (see below, note the "smoke" was a visual just for effect and to signify a unit had fired):

A second round of combat ensued [and in fact I think I let the Russians perform multiple "direct-fires" rather than force them to a close assault again - which seemed fair as a close assault attempt had been attempted] with the result that a "retreat" result enforced on the German PAK . True the winning the Soviet player could  not advance, but that was OK as it would have put him in yet another "disadvantageous close combat, " this time with the German MG team from a 'flank' hex. The German Commander thus elected to stay "in situ" hoping the crew would return rather than rout away with them [we ruled that without a transport the PAK could not rightly be hauled away].

Note: A brief discussion ensued to decide whether the "Commander" was just a DRM or could hold a hex himself - certainly not manning a PAK but could he "close combat"? The mutually agreed  decision being that he was a figurehead and an organiser rather than a combat element (despite what you see in teh war movies).

The Soviet player at this point was more concerned with the 'Elite' German Panzer IVH on his flank (see below, looking promising but still fraught with danger for the Soviets):

The Soviet Commander regrets at not having supporting infantry up with the tanks to take advantage of the heroic T34 and its local success.

Note: Another rule question came about regarding firing at units while in a close assault. It was decided that supporting units could fire at the defenders in advance of the attacker going in (by virtue of firing other units first). However, once in a close combat then it was deemed another matter (confusion and intermingling) and the norm would be to refrain from firing because of the danger of a "blue-on-blue". I think there may be a need for a "locked in melee" close assault marker, to denote when both sides cannot shoot into a close combat hex!

The German PAK crew recovered their composure (automatically - not needing a morale roll) and returned to their PAK (but were deemed unable to fire this turn) and the Panzer IV made a heroic but  desperate counter-attack (see below):

Choosing the rearmost T-34 as the most dangerous (being stacked with a commander and thus gaining to hit benefits) and also the most visible (the two other T-34s were in cover and one dangerously close to the re-manning PAK unit) the Pz IV's main armament barked and a T-34 erupted into a column of fire and brimstone (see below, one of Stalin's best succumbed):

The Soviets were not going to take this tank duel lying down and a fusillade of 76mm AT shots from the two remaining T-34s  with a clear LOS (the other one was back in close combat) crashed into the side of the Panzer IV. This time the Elite Panzer status could not save the Panzer IV (see below, go tell Adolf about the death of another panzer tank): 

Now there was the small matter of a PAK and the fortification line to deal with. It has to be noted at this point that despite firing in every turn both sides artillery had been quite ineffective.

The Portable Wargame Book WWII Eastern Front Battle (Part 2) - Re-Fight I "Opening Moves"

After a brief "commanders/generals" conversion discussing the merits of the quick 'exhibition game' (see previous post), we decided we were keen to move back to the IGOUGO system as we thought the random card mechanism a bit too random (capable of generating too many "flip-flops") for the moment. Likewise we did not favour the positioning of the German AT Pak 40 so we collectively moved it behind the fortifications with the commander, giving it the best offensive and defensive bonuses. Admittedly it would be more exposed to the expected phalanx of T-34s but it seemed teh better option to us (see below, the 'calm before the T-34 storm') :

Given the information gleaned from the last disastrous attack the Russian commander brought the phalanx of T-34s on and parked them menacingly outside of the range of the German Mountain Artillery and PAK unit. This was not going to be a piecemeal attack but a coordinated cut and thrust (see below, famous quote of "a plan not surviving contact with the enemy" comes to mind): 

The "cool-handed and cool-headed" Soviet commander (not me I hasten to add) was not to be rushed and brought in flanking companies of Soviet infantry to push forward either side of his precious T-34 Phalanx (see below, I like the terrain-vehicle-figures visual presentation): 

The German Commander was forced to play the 'waiting game' as the Soviet Commander ran his infantry up to but not into some cover (see below, the Germans now at least have targets to shoot at next go):

Whereas the attackers are hindered by the numbers of units activated (card selected - half to +/- 1 FV) and always making choices of what to move, the defender can pretty much always decide to shoot at "any targets of opportunity" and his artillery. Note: The "two reserve" German infantry platoons have moved up taking firing positions "in the front line" (see below, the three nearest Soviet infantry units are in the line of sight to one or more German "weapon systems"): 

The PAK 40 was the first to speak with a HE shell eliminating a Russian squad/platoon (I am still undecided at what level a basic "manoeuvre unit" is pitched at - platoon is my default assumption) in one fell blow (see below):

A second Soviet infantry platoon is eliminated in quick succession from accurate German Defensive fire by one of the German infantry platoons that had moved up from reserve (see below):

Adding insult to injury a German MG42 section barks and a third Soviet platoon is no more (see below, devastation in a matter of seconds - anybody remember that plan?):

A deep frown is now seen creasing the brow of the Soviet commander. Although his T-34s are still intact the 'first wave' of Soviet infantry has been devastated. After thinking long and hard he decides to act with extreme utility.

The Portable Wargame Book WWII Eastern Front Battle (Part 1) - Example Run Through

This one has been on the bucket list for quite some time. Ideally I wanted to play "The Portable Wargame" well before I went to CoW 2018 earlier this year and met Bob in person. Unfortunately there was too much 'other wargaming stuff' going on at the time to fit in, but when a friend announced he has purchased a set of Kallistra hexagons (envy!) I jumped on the opportunity. The first thing to do was to decamp some of my dust gathering wargame kit from the loft to fulfil its "wargame destiny". To familiarise ourselves with the rules we decided to run through the play test in Bob Cordery's book, The first thing to do was to set up the German defences. I re-used the scenery I had made for the Fire-Move Hex game, fortifications were made-up of random lengths of platic sprue (I have started keeping this with a hope for a "use") and finally added the minefields with wooden counters, recently picked up from "The Works" - I still have the inclination to put skull and cross bones on them. (see below, a PSC Pz IV, two units of four-figure infantry "platoons", two units of two-figure MG "sections", a Pak 40, 105 Howitzer representing the Mountain Artillery):

The attacking Soviets charge on, heavy in armour (the dreaded T-34) and infantry (see below): 

The Soviets rushed the German defences, lead by a phalanx of T-34's and wave of infantry following. The T-34 fell victim to the German Pak 40's opening round (see below):

As Bob was performing more of a"tour de force"of the rules, a second T-34s charged through a minefield to its destruction - minefields being particularly as we were playing the one-hit sudden death variant of the rules (see below):

With 50% of the T-34's down the great patriotic hope shifted to the mass of Soviet infantry following them (see below):

A third T-34 was lost close assaulting a German fortified infantry position. The lack of obvious anti-tank assets is mitigated by the assumption of hand held AT infantry devices in this period of the war are profuse (see below):

As the final T-34 succumbed to the Pak 40 the scripted game came to a close. Another interesting feature had been the card driven sequence of activation as opposed to the more normal IGOUGO system. Again Bob was walking through the various rule mechanisms you could use ratherthan setting up the 'perfect attack' (see below, as the Russians cut their loses and retreated):

Having served its purpose as a bit of "Victorian Theatre" we decided to set up and replay the scenario. We decided to keep the instant kill (as opposed to step loss) rule in play but return to the standard IGOUGO sequence of play. The number of units that can be activated remained decided by an activation card draw (half the force value +/- 1: for the Germans FV: 8 implies [3, 4, 5]; for the Russians FV:13 implies [6, 7, 8].

WW2 German 'very soft' transport

While up in the attic I came across a "plastic mountain" of WW2 figures I had acquired. These seemed to be purchased under the auspicious title of 'other personal infantry transport'. Or: "How to make the German Landser go faster than his two legs". After all it is a long way to Moscow and Tunis (see below, left to right - motorcycle [Italeri], horse [HaT] to bicycle [HaT]):

These were obviously down the priority list to do but I like their eye-candy flavouring, particularly if I am trying to use my toys as higher level markers in Matrix Style (or "operational") games as opposed to 1-for-1 tactical representations (although that is still 'cool' but requires much more painting). I was really pleased with how the HaT plastics took to the "cheap £1 superglue" I used. In addition the riders came with alternate heads which I successfully used. The models above [green ones] are the basic 'out of the box variant' but I found the plastic was amenable to "cutting [like soft butter] and head swapping". The Italeri kit was very nice and fit together well (but as the plastic is much harder it would be a much more difficult [although not impossible] to use for conversions.

Note: I may be moving into an era of customisation of basic figures.

Quick Build Italeri M13/40 (20mm)

Hot on the heels of the "World at War" early German tanks I grabbed for my (dust covered) Italian M13/40 I had packed away in the loft for a rainy day. Previous;y I had agonised over a Italeri standard model of a M13/40 and it was not a pleasant (track assembly horror) experience. This time the all-in-one track made me smile. I had two tanks assembled before I had finished a cup of tea (see below): 

And they were IMHO better (or at least as good as) my earlier model. With the magic number now at three, time to paint them up and put them against my Airfix Crusader II's for a Western Desert game of "What a Tanker"!

20mm American WWII Infantry (Airfix Battles and Chain of Command)

With an eye to playing an American force with the 'Chain of Command' rules and using figures instead of counters in Airfix Battles I gathered together my various "virgin, part painted and fully painted" plastic US Infantry figures. None of the "fully painted" category makes it to the full OrBat as required so some "painting tray" work needs to be done. As it stands I have US Infantry (excluding paratroopers and US Marine Corp) from the following manufacturers:

• Valiant Miniatures (23mm)
• Plastic Soldier Company
• Caesar Miniatures
• Revell
• Italeri (new not old Esci)

Given the OrBat needs of "riflemen" no one manufacturers (with the possible exception of Valiant) packet suffices to make a whole 'Chain of Command Platoon'. However each manufacturer's packet can easily make an individual squad though. Therefore by careful deduction as I need three squads plus a HQ section, multiple manufacturers shall be used:

• Platoon HQ: Lt (Carbine), Sgt (SMG) and Bazooka Team (Bazooka + 2 Crew)
• Squad 1: Corp (SMG),  Rifle Section (8 Rifles) and BAR Section  (BAR + 2 Crew and 1 Rifle)
• Squad 2: Corp (SMG),  Rifle Section (8 Rifles) and BAR Section  (BAR + 2 Crew and 1 Rifle)
• Squad 3: Corp (SMG),  Rifle Section (8 Rifles) and BAR Section  (BAR + 2 Crew and 1 Rifle)

I decided to paint a section from the Plastic Soldier Company, (new) Italeri, Caesar and finish painting up a squad I started a decade ago of Revell 'Ardennes Infantry' which gives me four squads (yes one more than I need, but there are extra things also required from the American "support list" and an extra squad is one of them). They are also all 'size compatible/interchangeable' something that Valiant fails at (it would have to be a full OrBat or nothing). This means the "painting tray" looks rather full (see below):

I am following my preferred painting pattern as of late. Airfix Grey 01 Acrylic primer followed by a Vallejo Wash, in this case Black. The Plastic Soldier Company (PSC) are first up "primed" (see below):

The "washed" Black (see below, though this may not go down in history as the most informative picture I have ever taken!):

Next stepis to follow my old posts on Valiant US Painting instructions.

Big Cat Pair - Panthers in "Ambush Style"

These go back a while, lurking in a 'loft box', in an almost but not quite finished state. I am sure these were ESCI originals, for I was intent on grabbing a third when Italeri briefly re-released them, but "missed" my window of opportunity. Meanwhile what I had got painted in my classic Tamiya paints based "three-tone camo", but as per the cool 'box art' the next step is to polka-dot it "ambush style" (see below):

The general camouflage scheme maybe too broad a swathe, I must have had a bigger brush in those days compared to now, as seen in the more recent Mk IVs but I still like it (see below):

The panzer commander figure is still one of the coolest IMHO and comes from an old ESCI Panzer III.

My 1000th Post is "Pimp my Panzer IVH" (The classic Esci/Italeri 1/72 kit)

In my previous Chain of Command battle AAR I stated that I was slightly embarrassed with the models I put on table for just having the basic paint scheme. Good enough fo the purposes of a tabletop wargame but privately I have always wanted to do justice to the Panzer IVH (an original Esci, but now released by Italeri) as I think of it as the "Normandy Classic", so hot from the tabletop I gave it a basic German late-war "three colour camo" scheme (see below):

Painting Guide Notes: Original base coat Tamiya XF-60 (Desert Yellow), brown patches Anita's Acrylic Earth Brown(11014) and Tamiya XF-61 (Dark Green)

In a parallel build I also primed one of the Plastic Soldier Company Panzer IV H's in my favourite Airfix 01 "Grey Undercoat". I had already assembled some, gulp that is very lazy of me, some year(s!) back. It will be interesting to see them side-by-side for comparison (see below, more of this PSC fun to come in another post):

Meanwhile I toned up the Green, Brown and Sand Yellow patches with lighter hues.

• The Green went from Tamiya XF-61 (Dark Green) mixed with XF-62 Olive Drab, to pure XF-62 then I added XF-3 Yellow to highlight. 
• The Brown went to Tamiya XF-52 (Flat Earth) and as I highlight I mixed in Anita's Acrylic Lemon Yellow (11055) [done more as an experiment rather than plan, my other option was to add white]
• The Sand Yellow XF-60 was repainted to chase away some of the wandering wash errant flood areas then [as it was too hand] Anita's Acrylics Lemon Yellow (11055) to highlight and if memory serves me correct I probably drooped a little White Anita's Acrylic (11001) as a final highlight.

In addition I made plentiful use of Vallejo Wash (73201) Black Shade with a fine brush back into the corners and shadow areas. I used a new trick on the tracks. The tracks got a base coat of Vallejo Game Color [sic] Dark Fleshtone (72044) as the factory 'rust primer'. I then used the Vallejo Black Shade Wash, leaving it to dry before highlighting in Vallejo Model Color Gunmetal Grey (70863). The paint trick in the book was the classic Panzer IV exhaust tube was painted Vallejo Game Color Dark Fleshtone (72044) and highlighted with Tamiya XF-3 Yellow (see end product below):

Panzer IVH "pimped" 360 degree treatment - Facing Left: 

Rear: 

Front:

Side View: 

Quite happy with the results on this 'old timer', no immediate rush to put the decals on (no change there then) especially since it now represents a "wreck marker" in Operation Martlet for the first scenario ;)

Next: By way of comparison the PSC Panzer MkIVH

Soviet 20mm WWII "Chain of Command" Supports: Zis 3 76mm AT Gun

Alongside the Esci/Italeri basic Russian Infantry Rifle Platoon (now complete), the Chain of Command "supports" section lists those "must haves" for any Soviet Platoon Commander. In 1944/45 you need a decent anti-tank deterrent to knock out Pz IV's and at least a Cat (Panther or Tiger). Enter stage left the Zis 3 (76mm) anti tank gun from Italeri (see below):

Even better when you see that you get 'two' to the pack (see below):

It is an absolute hassle free construction and is a perfectly molded kit and superb crew figures. The only thing to note is that the hard plastic gun components beckons super glue rather than poly cement.

Next Stage: A bit of paint ;)