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My figure portrays a member of the 27th Fusilier Regiment, 12th Volksgrenadier Division during the waning days of the Battle for the Ardennes. I named him Anton Weber, and he is based on a real life Volksgrenadier whose biography I read on the web site Der Erste Zug. He portrays one of the thousands of young men that served in the Wehrmacht after being drafted at the tender age of 17.
I based his uniform and appearance on the many photos of this time period.
View from the rear- a lot of time went into making this accurate. The straps with roller buckles are scratch made, the entrenching tool cover (DiD) was re-worked and his bayonet frog was made from scratch. His gear was given an overhaul with leather tabs added, working buttonholes on the bread-bag- it was labor intensive. I made it a point to show this view as this is where the make-or-break details are evaluated, determining if I did it right.
Since this is my very first German soldier, I ended up doing a lot of research into the uniform and equipment. I did my best to portray the various items accurately. His equipment belt and "Y" straps are scratch made, and I even painted the hardware grey. The zeltbahn was heavily tailored, I had to move the neck opening two centimeters, and the button holes are functional so he is wearing it properly fastened.
The Kar98K is by DML, heavily re-worked. I was surprised at how light a finish was on the war-time Kar98K. It was a challenge trying to make it accurate. The "Haltestück" for the sling is scratch-made using leather and metal.
The sling is scratch-made- hopefully you can make out the distinctive cross-hatch pattern. The sling buckle is the original DML version.
Anton with the faust-patrone. The faust-patrone is by DML.
Bits and Pieces:
M42 Helmet- Shell by Troitskaya28. The liner is DML's, the chinstrap is scratch made, the buckle is DMLs which is a really good representation of the 1:1 buckle. I added the buckle tongue and the chinstrap has the required 13 holes!
Head sculpt- Tony Barton's no# 49, which actually based on a photo of a young member of the Luftwaffe. The head is mounted on one of my hybrid Hot Toys-DML bodies.
Uniform- Greatcoat, DML- tailored and accurized, Zeltbahn- DML heavily re-worked and tailored, trousers-DML, gloves-DiD, the toque is by DML
Equipment- Newline Miniatures- Kar98K ammo pouches, Gamaschen- Newling miniatures- replaced the buckles. Low boots- an older version from Battle Gear Toys (thanks Andy) Entrenching tool, bayonet and water bottle are by DiD, the mess kit is by DML, repainted and weathered.
Thank you for looking..............Jim
