My Civil War Marine

I don’t know the maker of the uniform, or what kit his gear is from, but I’ve had him for over 6 months. I bought him from a guy in France, of all places. He came with an Enfiekd rifle-musket, but I switched it out. The Marines were often used aboard ship, and they tended to like their smoothnores, so I gave him a ‘42 Springfield musket. With the buck and ball round, this thing was wicked at close range. I also figured that since is on campaign, he needed a knapsack. I also switched out his muslin haversack with this tarred canvas one, and gave him a cup. 

I think he looks pretty good. He wasn’t cheap, but if you want quality, you pay for it I guess!

The new home of “The Misfit Squad.”

So, we had a page on Facebook, and it brought about nothing but troubles. I was reported for publishing hate speech, because my WWII story involved German soldiers and the Waffen SS. I had to change the page name, because another page had the same name. Facebook even threatened to shut the page down due to reports it was receiving. 

Well, I beat them to it. I’m tired of their bullshit. Period! Here’s the story, with the photos I want, the name I want, and the story I want to tell. Read, enjoy, and comment. We’re going to have fun with this one. The shackles have been removed, and it’s time to get down to business!

Historical Reenactors

   Here we go! Let the hatred begin. Go for it. I can hack it! I'm going to ramble a bit away from 1/6 Scale and about historical reenactors, and what I say about reenactors won't at all be good. I'm going there anyway. It won't be pretty. 

Let's reference all of this by first saying that I was a reenactor for 20 years. I started doing Civil War reenacting as a Confederate. I also did some Union reenacting. I ventured into the realm of WWII reenacting, and I loved every bit of it. I thought reenacting was great. We could spend ridiculous amounts of money on weapons, uniforms, and gear. We could research the folks we were trying to be, finding out such things as who they were, where they fought, how they fought, and why they fought, and we could justify it all in the name of history, remembrance, education, or whatever the appropriate catch phrase of the day was.

Only at a Civil War reenactment could find groups of men ogling a garment and analyzing stitch count, construction quality, fit, and sizing. Only at a reenactment could one find men spending $100 for a pair of pants because they had "the right look", and then dragging them through the mud to make them look better. 

As I say, I've done it. I was there. I was one of them. I've spent a lot of money on things I didn't need, and I've always wanted more. I've read the books. I've watched the documentaries. I've done the research. I've driven the miles, and have gone to many states doing so. I've read the drill manuals. I've visited the battlefields. I've marched in the ranks and worn the uniforms. I've run out of ammo. I've burned myself on the weapons. I've slept on the ground. I've cooked over the campfire. I've been rained on, snowed on, stormed on, been in the wind, and have been outside in nearly every type of weather imaginable. I've been hot. I've been cold. I've been wet. I've sweated nearly to death, and frozen nearly to death. I've acted skits. I've done scripted events. I've laughed, moaned, groaned, cried, complain, been hurt, helped others who were hurt, ran out of ammo, ran out of water, ruined shoes, torn trousers, and had weapons malfunction. I've been victorious, I've been defeated. I've won tacticals. I've lost tacticals. I've seen fear in the faces of other reenactors who were being flanked. I've shown the same fear when I was flanked. I've slept under cannons, slept in the rain, slept on concrete, slept in frost, and slept in a bush in Gettysburg. 

Does this make me a better person than anyone else? Of course not! Does this mean I've seen the elephant, and know what combat is really like? Not even close! Does this mean I can understand the mindset of the Civil War soldier or WWII GI or paratrooper? Nope!

What then does it mean. It means I've mastered the art of playing army. I've grown up without ever really growing up. I've played an expensive adult version of a childhood game.

Why?

That's what we'll explore in the next post. Bye for now!

Upcoming; "The Misfit Squad."

 

Coming soon will be my online comic called, "The Misfit Squad." It will take place in the days immediately following the Normandy invasion, and will be loosely based on the old "Haunted Tank" comic. There will be ghosts, and a tank haunted by JEB Stuart, but they aren't the main characters. Details will follow here, including photos, pre-production notes, and a background on each of the major characters.

I'm casting, equipping, making sets, and working out story lines. Anyone wishing to loan or to donate figures or gear are quite welcome to do so, and all are appreciated.

"Codename Gravedigger"

 

Gravedigger was the code name given to an African American special operative during WWII in D.C.'s "Men of War" comic book series. Captain Ulysses Hazard became "Gravedigger" after he covertly raided a Joint Chief of Staff meeting in the Pentagon after having his talents wasted on grave detail. Born in Mobile, AL, Hazard suffered polio early in life, but he fought and forced his body to overcome the disease. He had a strict regimen of strength and endurance training, and he became an expert with almost every handheld weapon known to mankind. After convincing the army of his worth as a solo operative, he was sent to war and given only the highest priority and most difficult missions. In an early episode, he was captured by the Germans, tied to the front of a Tiger tank, and used as a human shield. It was during this incident that he suffered the head wound that left him with the distinctive and unique scar, the cross between his eyebrows.

My Gravedigger build was simple. He is a comic book character, so detail and historical accuracy really aren't an issue. His uniform in the comic book appears to benothing more than a t-shirt and a set of HBTs. It was a pretty simple setup to recreate. I gave him a grease gun. I also labeled his helmet with his codename. Though this was never shown in the comic book, I wanted anyone who saw him to recognize that he was supposed to be more than simply an African American GI with a gun. 

For the distinctive scar, I heated a pin with a cigarette lighter, and melted the shape until I was happy with it. I then cleaned up the edges with a hobby knife, colored it with a red magic marker, and wiped away the excess.

I think he turned out pretty good, considering it was in reality a very simple figure. What do you think? Tell me in the comment section, and feel free to send pictures of any similar figures that you may have.

   

I'm back, and it will be better than ever!

   

My 1/6 scale blog is back, and I hope to make it better than ever. It's been a few years, but let the rebuilding begin.

"One motivated Marine, and his rifle!"

Sideshow Toys is known for making quality figures. I have a few of their Civil War commanders series, and they are well done. They are the best Civil War figures available. They also did a series they called "Bayonets and Barbed Wire", which as you can guess was based on WWI, the Great War. Though Sideshow has gotten away from the military figure aspect and instead have begun producing figures based on the movie industry, many of the Sideshow military figures are out there.

I recently purchased one such figure, and he is the basis of this post. He's a Sideshow 5th Marine Regiment WWI figure. Going into the Great War, many politicians and army brass wanted to do away with the Marine Corps and blend it in to the army proper. Marines, both those currently serving and those who had served in the past, of course strongly resisted this idea. They were of the "First to Fight" mentality, and believed the USMC was both a viable and necessary fighting force that had repeatedly proven itself in past conflicts. 

Marine Corps recruitment screening was the strictest in the US Armed Forces. In order to enlist, a recruit had to be at least 5'4", no less than 124 lbs, be able to read and write in English, be at least 18 yrs old, be of sound mind and body, have good hearing and eyesight, and have at least 20 teeth. Thus, prospective Marine candidates were some of the finest and fittest the country had to offer.

At the start of the war, the effort to preserve the Marine Corps was becoming a formidable obstacle. The forest green uniform that made Marines distinguishable at a glance from the soldiers of the Army was being done away with. It came to be that only new recruits fresh from the states wore the Marine green outfit. Much of the replacement gear was being supplied by the French and the British as well. In the wet and moldy environment of the stagnant trench warfare, uniforms and equipment wore out quickly, and oftentimes replacement gear was hard to come by. Marines were given the distinctive British "Brodie" helmet and small box respirator. The respirator, or gas mask as it was called, was the most important piece of gear issued to individual soldiers and Marines, as the threat of German gas attacks was constant, and to be without a respirator meant almost instant, and very painful death. The French "Adrian" helmet, French M-2 gas mask, canteen and boots were also being worn by US troops, and the leather Marine gaiters were quickly replaced by the British puttees.

They may not have been pretty or even uniform in appearance, but after brutal fighting that would have almost surely overwhelmed any other fighting force, the Marine legacy of being the hardest and most tenacious fighters was preserved during the fight in the Battle of Belleau Wood. Belleau Wood was a brutal, 20 day affair that saw some of the most viscous fighting of the entire war. Marines were pinned down, flanked, wandered into areas behind the German lines, and were thought to be in a fight they couldn't win. At the end, however, the Marines, though suffering massive casualties, indisputably held the entire field. They began being called "Teufel Hunden", or "Devil Dogs" by the German soldiers unfortunate enough to get in their way.

The 5th Marine Regiment, one of the participants in the fight in Belleau Wood, was a regiment that came to France in June of 1917. It was comprised of many veteran Marines, and its commander was a Medal of Honor recipient. The 5th and 6th Marine regiments were joined by the 6th Machine Gun battalion to form the 4th Marine Brigade, which became a part of the 2nd Allied Expeditionary Force (AEF) Division.

Even after the fighting in Belleau Wood, there remained the push to do away with the Marine Corps, but the Marines held out and remained separate. They would fight valiantly in such notable battles as St. Mihiel, Champagne, and the Argonne Offensive.

Review of the Sideshow figure to come soon in Part 2.