Tom Cole – författare

Aimed at military model makers and wargamers who are interested in the armoured fighting vehicles of the United States as used throughout World War II, this book follows on from Modelling British World War II Armoured Vehicles by the same author. The book places its emphasis on US Army and US Marine Corps AFVs modelled mainly in 1/72 and 1/48 scales, in a deliberate departure from the more popular 1/35 scale, to encourage and inspire model makers who are new to or less familiar with these scales. Illustrated with over 270 colour photos this book features every major US AFV used in World War II, with many models shown in various stages of construction and paintings. It presents step-by-step guides demonstrating the painting techniques appropriate for different scales and includes an additional section showing how to paint wargames models. There is also a review of how the USA developed tanks and other armoured vehicles from the interwar period through to the end of World War II. This fascinating story will help model makers and wargamers give the vehicles they build an historical context.

In 1961 the first Armoured Fighting Vehicles appeared in the ever-expanding range of Airfix kits. The 1960s and 1970s are considered by many as the golden age of kit building and the enthusiastic schoolboys and young men building these kits became known as the Airfix Generation. The hobby went into decline in the 1990s as plastic kits gave way to video games, but the hobby has recently undergone a revival as the original members of the Airfix Generation, now at the end of careers and family commitments, take a nostalgic look back at their childhoods. Some, like the author, will become once again absorbed by the hobby, but many will be content to buy a few old kits – others are coming to the hobby from an entirely new perspective. All will be delighted to find a new book that tells the early days of the hobby from a model tank perspective. Here, Tom Cole concentrates on the kits from Britain’s Airfix and Matchbox and looks at the early imports from Japan, in the form of Fujimi and Nitto, and the European Esci.

This is the story of San Francisco, a unique and rowdy tale with a legendary cast of characters. It tells of the Indians and the Spanish missions, the arrival of thousands of gold seekers and gamblers, crackbrains and dreamers, the building of the transcontinental railroad and the cable car, labor strife and political shenanigans, the 1906 earthquake and fire, two World Wars, two World's Fairs, two great bridges, the beatniks and hippies and New Left—a story that is so marvelous and wild that it must be true. A new afterword from the author brings The City into the twenty-first century: a time just as hectic, experimental, and opportunistic as its rambunctious past.

This new book will be an essential reference for modellers and wargamers who build and paint World War II British armoured fighting vehicles. It provides extensive information on different types of vehicles, describing when they were used, by whom and for what purpose. In addition, the many modifications made to vehicles during the war are included, with guidance on how to create these for models. Step-by-step building and painting guides illustrate vehicles in 1/35, 1/72 and 1/76 scale. This book features models, often with a comparison of models from different manufacturers, for the following: M3 Grant Mk1, including a North African version; Cromwell Mk IV; Royal Marine Centaur; Cavalier Observation Post; Sherman M4A1 and Crab; Crusader III AA Mk 1; Matilda; Morris and Guy Quads; Bedford QLs; Scammell Pioneer Heavy Artillery tractor conversion; Anti-tank guns, e.g. the 'Pheasant', field guns, anti-aircraft guns, etc and, finally, figures which include uniform painting guides.