Pulp Wheels!

One of the major parts of a good pulp story is a good old fashioned car chase! Here are a little selection of 'Pulp' style cars, roadsters and trucks...

First up, a simple 'Roadster' by Blue Moon.

A couple of old school motor cars.

A battered old truck, just out of Hicksville, USA.

Tin Tin, Captain Haddock and Snowy in a 'Saloon Car' by 1st Corps.

Thomson and Thompson in a '4-wheel Speedster', also by 1st Corps.

An old Innsmouth Police wagon. Long since abandoned...(Great Escape Games)

Another '4-wheel Speedster' by 1st Corps.

A selection of slightly more traditional 1920's and 1930's, gangster style cars with drivers and passengers.

Pure Pulp but no idea who produces this one...

A couple of 3-wheel Speedsters by 1st Corps.

Something slightly different but still within the Pulp genre was the classic Mark VII tank in Indiana Jones & the Last Crusade. Special effects artist George Gibbs visited a museum to negotiate renting a small French World War I tank for the film but ultimately decided on building one. The Mark VII Tank was a replica vehicle built on an old excavator chassis. It was based on the real-world Tank Mark VIII which possessed no main top turret. The replica measured 36 feet!

This is the HLBS/Copplestone version of the one from the film. It's a beast of a model, as shown by Lottie, who proudly stands next to it in the picture below.

Last up is a classic Sd.Kfz. 221/2 or 'Leichter Panzerspähwagen'. This is probably at the later end of the pulp period I am looking at but they did apparently go into production in 1935 so it still fits.

Models are produced by a variety of companies including 1st Corps, HLBS/Copplestone, Blue Moon, Great Escape Games and Sloppy Jalopy.

Mad Dogs With Guns - Screamin' Wheels!

Picked up a handful of diecast 1910's - 1930's style vehicles for our Mad Dogs With Guns campaign from a recent visit to the Cavalier show. Of course these are also suitable for any games set in a similar period including Pulp Alley.

I have a huge amount of the Lledo "Days Gone" cars and trucks, but most of these are just that little bit too small for a 28mm figure, especially on a plastic slotta-base.

After a bit of research and some really useful pics on Tamsin's "Wargaming Girl" blog I decided that the old Matchbox "Models of Yesteryear" would be a better scale, despite being around the 1/43 mark. Although I understand a lot of these models can vary in size, they tend to 'look right' on the tabletop so I am more than happy with this little selection.

Jenkins the gamekeeper has generously volunteered to model the majority of these vehicles.

First up, we have Jenkins with a 1911 Model T.

Next we have a 1914 Stutz.

Next is a Packard Landaulet.

A resplendent green Benz limousine.

Another Stutz with the canopy up.

A Maxwell Roadster.

A Model T Ford van.

And another one.

A 1927 Talbot van, probably my favourite of the lot.

"Yes officer, of course it's soap in the boxes..."

A Crossley truck.

Next up is a Ford Model A van from about 1930.

A Packard Victoria. Shiny. Just as any self respecting Boss would want.

A 1911 Daimler. Also shiny.

The last two ridiculous gold plated ones were probably ash tray toppers and will definitely need a lick of paint. The rest I could maybe get away with putting straight on the table. Not ideal but when I have so many other things to paint they are hardly a priority!

Pulp - The Big Ship.

After having several salty seadog types painted up I realised they needed a ship to ply their trade.

Spotting the amazing 'Doreen' on the Lead Adventure Forum and another conversion at 'Sir Peters' I decided to track down the huge Playmobil cargo ship.

After an easy (and relatively cheap) find on ebay, here she is in all her glory...

The general scale is actually pretty good for 28mm with a figure on a 2p base just about fitting into the gangway.

The pilothouse / bridge is okay but obviously needs a lot of work to make it 'in scale' and usable.

I am not a particularly skilled (or brave) model maker so I doubt I will do anything anywhere near as incredible as 'Doreen' but hopefully I can make a few modifications and a splash of paint to get it looking 'ship-shape' (groan)

The large central cargo bay can be opened up and is quite deep too so all sorts of things could be placed in here - cargo, troops, or maybe a surprise dinosaur or zombie horde!

There is another opening hatch at the front (forecastle?) and room underneath.

A close up of part of the cargo hold.

 And here are her ruffian crew lined up on the cargo deck.

Captain Oscar Morley and the crew of the 'Harlan Ellison'.

Figures are from Brigade, Statuesque and Artizan.

Doctor Who - Vehicles.

The Doctor & Sarah Jane with Bessie.

Liz & The Doctor show off Bessie.

Rose Tyler / Daisy Taylor and her new Mini.

The Brigadier test drives his new UNIT transport.

Figures are Black Tree and Crooked Dice. Vehicles are Corgi.