Action On Bakari Road.

10Jun
by patmcf

Before I get into this one I’ll just let you know that we had to make that awful decision that all pet owners dread, we had to have our old faithful  mate Terry down.  He as he was going downhill very quickly and with the help of our admirable vet we decided it was the only way to go. Strangely I didn’t think his passing would affect me so much, but having the little Aussie battler with us for seventeen years I suppose it’s pretty normal.

Well back to the show, this diorama has been a long time coming.  I first started it about three years ago and is based on a photo of an action by the 4thAnti tank regiment.  It was fought with the Japanese destroying nine Type 95 Ha-Go light tanks.

The reason it took so long to finish was because I had been trying to find the right 2 pounder and a figure for the gunner Sgt Parsons.  I finally found that with some Zvezda brits.  The next hurdle was finding trees to line the sides which were tricky.   After trying numerous things which weren’t right I finally bit the bullet and painted them myself.   These turned out better than I thought they would.

You may wonder why I chose this topic, well it’s because my father was in the 4th Anti-tank, though he wasn’t in this particular action.  The photo always grabbed my attention and having met a lot of these gunners I thought I would give it a try; I’ll leave it up to you folk to see if I did a reasonable job.

A big thank you goes out to other modellers that I looked at for help.  One guy that is worth viewing for his amazing diorama and informative description of the action, go here.

Well enough from me.  Keep fit and I will endeavor to check out your posts, I think I have said this before and failed!  Cheers Pat

32 thoughts on “Action On Bakari Road.”

    1. patmcf

      Thanks Steve, he is still present but we have just got over the habit of stepping over the barricades put up so he didn’t have accidents in the carpeted rooms 😉.
      Took a while but I’m glad that that one is finally finished and not shoved to some dark recess in the over crowded shed.

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  2. John@justneedsvarnish

    So sorry to hear the news about Terry. We’ll be thinking of you all here. I think even after a couple of years pets leave a lasting mark on our lives for the better, so not surprising that you miss him after so long!

    The diorama is excellent Pat and I know the photograph you’re talking about! You’ve captured it very well indeed! 🙂

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    1. patmcf

      Thanks matey, I think it buggered me up more than my others as they died naturally but I had to make the call to put him down, I trust your little mates are keeping well 👍🏻.
      Ah I new you would, thanks mate I’m so glad that I did go through with it in the end and not abandon it as it is a bit personal.

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      1. John@justneedsvarnish

        It’s always a difficult decision to make, Pat, but we tend to know when that time comes! Ours are both fine thanks! We had a difficult decision to make for Midge just over a month ago (whether to go ahead with a dental for her knowing that it was risky because of her heart condition) but she’s done well! Neither Midge nor Dash have a tooth between them now!

        I think the diorama is so good because it captures the photo so well! Very nice! 🙂

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  3. Dave Stone

    So sorry for your loss Pat, I know if our dogs went I would miss them.

    The dio looked excellent, and then you added the backdrop and wow just wow !

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    1. patmcf

      Thanks Dave It was good that we new he was going as I thought he wouldn’t get to Xmas and the vet said to my wife, don’t worry about his diet give him anything he wants! Great folks vets they really made Terry’s last hour so good, I trust your little mates live as long and have a give you as much pleasure and fun as our Terry did 👍🏻
      Thanks mate I was certainly pressed to do that artwork, maybe I’ll try that out again Inwood relying on someone else’s talent .

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    1. patmcf

      Thanks Dave I recon this one took the longest but I had to finish it as I told our 4th Anti tank association family about it and would have looked an egg if I didn’t go through with it 😉. Thanks mate It was good that he went peacefully in the end, the vet was amazing, made it all the more bearable.

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  7. Kuribo

    I’m so sorry to hear about Terry, Pat! It is a decision I fear with Desdemona (she’s 9 so hopefully she’s got quite a few good years left). I’ll be thinking of you and your family in the coming days.

    As for the diorama, I really like how it came out and the horizontal/rectangular design is something I don’t see much which is always good. I think your inspiration for it is very cool as well. When you work on something like this for hours and hours, having some extra meaning behind it takes the project to another level!

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    1. patmcf

      Thanks Jeff, she’s only a pup 😅😅, no we thought he might out do our other old boy who nearly made twenty, but I recon seventeen is long enough. Give her a good pat from me mate.
      Your so right about if it wasn’t for it being a personal one I don’t think it would have ended up in the too hard basket.

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      1. Kuribo

        A dog that lives to 19 or 20 is very unusual, in my experience. Maybe they make ’em a little tougher in Oz!? And will do! Desdemona loves to be around people so she will like that.

        Liked by 1 person

    1. patmcf

      Oh thanks mate it did take a while but persistence paid of in the end.
      Yep as you would know well loosing one of yours not that long ago it does hurt especially as I had to make call to put him down, my other pets all died naturally, but the Vet was great and said it was the right way to go. 👍🏻

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      3. imperialrebelork

        It was tough. Long story but one was a clients dog and she didn’t have the space to bury her so I took her home and buried her. The other was a hit and run. Truck in front of me and the prick didn’t even stop. I carried the poor dog to my car and rushed her to a vet but it was too late. Poor thing was in an awful state but I got a hold of the owner at least.

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      4. patmcf

        Well done mate 👍🏻a lot of arseholes wouldn’t bother going out of their way to do that , I had an aunt who hit one of our dogs on the way to taking us to primary school and wouldn’t stop , even though Dad was working some sheep a hundred yards away 😳, even though we cried out and begged her to stop she just drove on saying that we couldn’t be late for school.
        Fortunately a neighbouring farmer came by soon after and put her out of her misery. We never forgave her as you old imagine, so full marks for doing the right thing.

        Liked by 1 person

  11. lorenzoseventh

    The self painted backdrop is fine and conveys the jungle looming in on all sides. I like the 2 pounder set up at the road side – improvised, not in some well prepared bunker. And it’s good to have a story behind your interest in this diorama. Sorry to hear about your loss. It’s two fold when you have to make the decision as well – remember the days when Terry made you laugh and brought you pleasure.

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    1. patmcf

      Thanks matey, I was happy with my artwork I was hoping to use photos but none appealed so it was a forced issue 😉. There were two guns involved the other was in the jungle further back but as you say both were improvised. So right about the decision making, and yeah mate I still have conversations with him as I’m knocking up the evening meals still blaming him for the bad jokes 😅😉.

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