QRF 15mm "Old" Modern US Infantry

All,

I knocked out another modern 15mm force, this time some US troops from the Desert Storm/Somalia era, and I did them up in a very simple rendition of the old 'chocolate chip' pattern, to include the flak jacket covers and ruck sack covers.  These guys are from QRF, and they're some pretty old models, discontinued as a matter of fact; if anyone knows a way, I'd love to get my hands on about another thirty of them in a mix of rifles, SAWs, and 203s.

If we're honest, the figures are not the best, most crisp sculpts around, but they are favorites of mine.  Why?  Because the poses have a lot of character, and they have 'The Look.'  What look?  Well, I was in the US Marines from 94-04, and later we got the MARPAT uniforms with MOLLE gear, but up until about 2001 we looked just like these guys.  I love the giant packs, the bulky gear, the bulky uniforms; every time I see these guys I can picture us coming off a -53 of out of a track, humping all out crap in some foreign land (or even some domestic training area!).  So I really love these QRF "Old" Modern US Infantry, and would love to get enough to do up a force in woodland camo.

The whole force, 27 badasses looking to rock and roll.  I only have enough of these guys to do up one force, and I was really torn whether to go desert or woodland; ultimately I went desert, figuring I'd get more use out of them with all the modern-ish stuff going on in desert climes.

Another look at the whole force.  I think I've got three M-203s, four SAWs, and the rest have M-16A2s.  Most of them are wearing packs, which I love; wish all of them were.

First up are the NCOs with M-203s, kneeling, signalling with one arm and holding binos in the other hand.  Good character, and you can see I did my now usual variations on skin tone.

Reverse, plus some side shots.  Note the big, bulky packs.  Now, for the keen-eyed amongst you, you may notice that these guys don't have the correct gear for the time period I painted them up for.  These guys actually have the Vector (vice ALICE) packs and LBVs (vice H-harnesses).  But I'll get over it; in C/1/2 we got the Vector packs and LBVs in 96 or 97; they didn't last long.  I actually went back to the ALICE pack and H-harness, taking them both with me to Afghanistan and Iraq (in 2004! Because of multiple deployments and the transition to the 'career issue' I missed the bulk issue of the MOLLE gear.

Three more NCO types, this time with M-16s.  Here you get a better look at the LBVs (sorry, Load Bearing Vests), as well as the gas mask carrier on the left hip.

Reverse, plus some side shots.  Look at the bulk, I love it!  That's what we looked like, loaded down like sherpas.  I can't put it any other way than to say the poses have 'the look.'

Two of the SAW gunners.

Looking fore and aft.  You can also see I painted these guys up as Marines; that is, they're still wearing black boots, rather than the desert jungle boots.

The other two SAW gunners.  Guess I didn't do a fore and aft pose...

Two riflemen in a good kneeling position, though the guy on the right's muzzle is a bit clipped.

Fore and aft.

Two more rifleman, this time off-hand.  Now, these guys have something under the muzzle, and I'm not sure what it is.  It doesn't go far enough back (along the upper receiver) to be an M-203, but flashlight attachments back then were very rare (I only remember seeing the Force guys with them, and even then I think those were on carbines).

Fore and aft.

Two riflemen with their weapons slung.

Reverse and side.

Two more riflemen, with weapons at the alert (sort of), and the right guy's muzzle is clipped.

Fore and aft.

Three more riflemen, with something in his left hand.  I can't really tell what it is, but with the way he's standing, my guess would be he's using a compass to shoot an azimuth (yes, we didn't have GPSs back then, and had to do land nav with maps and compasses!).

Reverse and sides; one of the few guys without a pack.

Three more riflemen; they look pretty close to a pose seen already, but they are a little different.

Reverse/sides.

Another set of riflemen, guy on left's muzzle is clipped.  You can see these guys also don't have packs, though on the guy on the left you can see he's got his E-tool on his utility belt (the case on his butt).  That kinda cracked me up, as the only time I recall doing that or even seeing it was in Boot Camp.  After that it always went on the outside (right side, high) of our packs.

Fore and aft.

Well, that's the whole force, really wish I had enough for a woodland camo version.  I've got some more forces that I've finished and need to photo/post, and my son and I played two games this past weekend, so stay tuned.

V/R,
Jack