It’s fight night! And we have two long-time adversaries (and previously allies) in the diesel locomotive category. Starting in the yellow corner, from America, it’s the EMD GP 38-2! Aaaand in the black corner, from Russia, it’s the TEM-18DM!
Each is pulling the finest hardware from their respective militaries, and you can place your bets courtesy of TLCB debutant Konstantin on Flickr via the link! Let’s get ready to railrooooad!
The world is full of people with strange outlooks. These include those who think melon is an acceptable starter, enthusiasm for the Tesla Cybertruck, and people who put Christmas lights up in October. But right up there with the climate-change denying flat-earthers in the weird stakes are fans of ‘Girls und Panzer’, a Japanese anime in which high school girls compete against one another in World War 2 tanks.
Cue this golden Italian CV-33 tank commanded by a Japanese school girl named after a fish. It’s the work of Flickr’s lavishlump, here making their TLCB debut, and both tank and school girl are brilliantly built, particularly given the limitations of LEGO’s gold piece portfolio.
There’s more to see of lavishlump’s ‘Anchovy & CV-33 Tankette’ at their album of the same name, and you can head to a playing field in Japan for the weirdest school sports day via the link above.
The wonderful thing about the world is that it’s very big and its peoples like all sorts of different things. Which means that even the most niche of interests will exist somewhere.
Cue ‘Girls und Panzer’, a Japanese anime series in which high-school girls compete against one-another in World War II tanks. Because… um, well, the world is very big and its peoples like all sorts of different things.
Today’s creation captures a Type 97 ‘Te-ke’ tank from the anime series, having been faithfully recreated by Flickr’s Zat, and you can join in the tank-based school sports day at their photostream via the link.
He’s back! Yes, at the time of writing it looks like Donald Trump is returning to the White House, and here at The Lego Car Blog we’re delighted. Because we’re going to get four more years of material to make jokes like this. And this. And this. And this.
Admittedly this does mean forfeiting the first woman President in US history (for the first criminal President in US history), environmental regression, and the exacerbation of sensationalist popularism, but easy material is easy material. Plus USA! USA! USA!
Cue today’s creation, America’s brand-new M10 Booker infantry support vehicle, the first units of which were delivered earlier this year.
Designed for The US Army’s ‘Mobile Protected Firepower’ programme, the M10 is “capable of providing mobile, protected, direct fire offensive capability”, with the contract won by General Dynamics Land Systems based in Michigan. USA! USA! USA! …Except the design is actually based on something rather old. And with German roots.
Yes this most modern and American of light tanks is derived from an Austrian-Spanish design from the early ’90s, that was produced by a company formed through the collaboration of Germany and Austria in the 1930s. US-Oh… No matter, a quick Americanised name-change sorted that.
This superb Lego recreation of the M10 Booker MPF is the work of newcomer Thinh Thi, who has both built and presented it beautifully, including a rotating turret, rolling tracks, and even brick-built shovels.
There’s more of the model to see at Thinh’s photostream and you check out something defensive, older than it looks, and actually a bit German via the link above. Or in any number of Trump victory speech videos that will be circulating imminently.
Today’s diorama above is an all-too-familiar scene from current news. A helicopter hovers above, a self-propelled gun lurks below, a rocket-launcher fires from behind a tank-defence, whilst power lines, crops, and a humble home remind us of the daily life upended by the arrival of war. Yet this scene isn’t borne of a maniacal Russian President intent on restoring the Soviet Union, but rather a glimpse into a possible near future, wherein Russia has divided and is fighting itself. Flickr’s PelLego has published this fictional conflict in collaboration with several other builders, and you can take a look into their world-that-might-be via the link above.
Deaths from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine now number several hundred thousand, with many times that number injured. The seemingly random shelling of schools, hospitals, and parks continues, with machines such as this one launching 110kg shells over twenty miles.
Built by Flickr’s Константин Тихомиров, this 2CZM Pion ‘Malka’ self-propelled cannon was introduced in 1975, when Russia and Ukraine formed the two largest republics within the Soviet Union, and stood together against the West.
The machines operated by each now fire upon one another, with this one wearing Russian insignia. This means it’s likely supporting a front-line of conscripts and convicts, disposable to Putin in his bid to return the ‘glory’ days of the Soviet Union.
You can see more of Константин’s creation via the link above. Please note that we’re publishing his creation despite holding views in opposition to his own, as if we were only able to hear the story as told by Russian state-owned media, we might share them also. Fortunately we’re rather freer, and thus – as we often do with creations relating to the Ukraine War – here are some extra links work clicking.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine grinds on, shelling important strategic military targets such as maternity hospitals, apartment buildings, theatres, shopping malls, and schools, at the cost of over 10,000 civilian lives.
Of course Russia has counted its own losses in this tragic conflict, with 315,000 Russian troops killed or seriously injured to date.
Many of these have been in tank divisions, with Russia producing tanks at a rate of up to 100 a month to replace those lost. This is one such ‘Armoured Fighting Vehicle’, the Uralvagonzavod BMPT “Terminator”.
Brilliantly constructed by Flickr’s Константин Тихомиров, these two “Terminator” AFVs are ready to take on a Ukrainian nursing home, kindergarten, or post office, and you can join the effort via the link to Константин’s photostream above.
Humanity still enjoys a good war every now and then. And, because it’s been five minutes since the last conflict in the Middle East, a new one is pulling more and more nations, factions and regions towards it.
Of course for those caught within its gravity the conflict is a necessity, a fight for justice, freedom, and the will of God. Whichever side they are on.
The Second World War was perhaps a clearer fight between, perhaps not Good, but certainly against Evil. The Nazis’ ideology, with all of its death, pain and dehumanisation, was eventually defeated, and – whilst countless nations made enormous sacrifices – had the U.S remained neutral an Allied victory would have been all-but-impossible.
Hitler never sought to invade the Unites States, yet over 16 million Americans served during the conflict, of which 300,000 never returned home, and financing the war cost almost 40% of America’s GDP by 1945.
Capturing one tiny moment amongst the thousands in which the U.S contributed, previous bloggee Nicholas Goodman is here depicting the U.S push across Europe in the summer of 1944. A Willys Jeep, Sherman tank, and custom mini-figures pause to regroup, all carefully and accurately recreated in brick-form.
There’s more of Nicholas’ beautiful wartime builds to see on Flickr; take a look via the link above, and you can click here to see one way you can help today, as war spirals out of control once again.
Does anyone else remember that fiendishly addictive early computer game in which the player was tasked with manoeuvring around a seeming infinite plain populated by the outlines of various 3D shapes, hunting and destroying enemy tanks? Just us? OK.
Anyway, perfect cubes and prisms aside, the concept of hunting tanks was based on reality, with specific machines (themselves looking rather like tanks) designed for their destroy enemy counterparts.
This is one such device, the Sturmgeschütz III tank-hunting assault gun, as deployed by Germany during the Second World War (and Syria until 1973).
Handily known as the STuG III, it saw service on almost every front, from Russia to Europe to Africa, and proved very successful at destroying Allied armour.
This excellent fully remote controlled Lego version of the STuG III comes from TLCB favourite Sariel, who – despite the model measuring just 32cm in length and weighing under 1kg – has packed in drive and steering, fully suspended tracks, and an oscillating and slewing gun barrel, all powered by a LEGO battery and controlled via bluetooth courtesy of a third-party SBrick.
There’s more to see of Sariel’s STuG III at his Flickr album of the same name, plus you can watch the model in action via the video below. Go tank hunting across a plain of cubes via the links!
YouTube Video
This is the ‘Torcher’, a curiously branded steampunk tank arrangement about which we know nothing. However had we not have blogged this giant flamethrower tank thingy, the Elves would’ve have started a riot. Plus, let’s be honest, it is really cool. Previous bloggee Markus Ronge is the owner of this ‘Torcher Octan Heavy Snow Tank’, and you can find out what it’s for (and view some rather stunning imagery) at his Flickr album of the same name. Click the link above to torch some snow or something!
There has been no finer sight in 2022 than that of Ukrainian farmers pulling abandoned Russian tanks out of the mud during the Russian invasion and claiming them for the Ukrainian Army, having been deserted by their crews due to poor logistics, low moral, incompetent navigation, or all of the above.
Unless you’re a viewer of Russia-1 television of course, in which case the story is one of grateful Ukrainians helping the brave Russian tank crews in their noble quest to rid Ukraine of ultra-nationalist Nazis. Or some other bullshit.
Stefan Johansson is the builder behind this wonderful depiction of Russian military ineptitude / Ukrainian ingenuity, and there’s more to see of his creation ‘Spring Harvest in Ukraine’ on Flickr via the link.
You can also help the relief efforts in Ukraine required due to Putin’s war via the Disasters Emergency Committee and many others. Whilst wonderfully brave Ukrainians have indeed pulled abandoned Russian tanks from the mud for repurposing, an estimated twelve million Ukrainians have now fled their homes, or what’s left of them. If you can, help.
Hasbro’s ‘Moveable fighting man’ G.I. Joe wasn’t called that in TLCB’s home nation. He was known as ‘Action Man’, and this Writer’s parents still didn’t let him have one, what with him being ‘too violent’. In hindsight, they may have had a point.
But no matter, because here at TLCB we’re fantastically violent. Probably something to do with not being allowed Action Man toys as children…
Thus today’s creation, in the original American ‘G.I. Joe’ Action Man form, is a giant tracked ‘Wolverine armoured missile vehicle’ that was somehow deemed to be an acceptable toy. Not by this Writer’s parents of course.
Recreated in brick-form by Big Easy Bricks, there’s a rotating rocket launcher, opening ammo store and cockpit, plus authentic-looking G.I. Joe decals, and there’s more to see at Big Easy’s ‘G.I. Joe Wolverine’ album on Flickr.
Click the link above to take a look, whilst this TLCB Writer investigates counselling…
This is a Bateman Assault Bridge Carrier, an experimental tank-bridge-laying-combo based on the excellently-named ‘Medium Dragon’ Mk.1 artillery tractor that was trialled by the British Royal Engineers in 1926.
It’s one of the more obscure vehicles to appear here then, and it’s been recreated brilliantly by Tarix819 of Eurobricks in a colossal 1:8 scale.
Weighing almost 10kgs, Tarix’s creation features two coil-sprung tracks, each with its own mechanical tensioner and independently powered by an SBrick and three XL motors.
A working V8 engine lives within the armour, and a functioning searchlight is able to light up the obstacle ahead in need of crossing.
And cross an obstacle the Bateman can, as Tarix’s model can deploy the huge bridge mounted on the top of machine. The real Assault Bridge Carrier relied on hand-powered winches (which are also recreated here), but Tarix’s build utilises a Power Functions Medium Motor to complete the model’s suite of remote control functionality.
It’s a monumentally impressive piece of Lego engineering and you can see how Tarix has done it at the Eurobricks discussion form here, and via the brilliant video below.
YouTube Video
Designed by Daimler-Benz, this the Panzer III Sd.Kfz 141, the German military’s primary medium battle tank built to take on the formidable Soviet T-34 during the Second World War. It was powered by a 300bhp Maybach V12 giving it a top speed of just over 20mph, which wasn’t fast (but then it did weigh around twenty-two tons), and it was armed with either a 37mm, 50mm, or 75mm gun, depending on specification.
Around 5,700 Panzer IIIs were built between 1939 and 1943, seeing service in Poland, the Soviet Union, France, North Africa, the Netherlands, and Italy – amongst other theatres of war. This superb Lego version of the Sd.Kfz 141 comes from previous bloggee Rebla, who has recreated the design brilliantly, including a rotating turret, elevating cannon, and a crew of custom mini-figures.
Rebla has presented his model beautifully too, and there’s more to see at his photostream – click the link above to make the jump to all the imagery.
It must have been beautiful but bleak navigating the Ardennes in 1944. Nicholas Goodman has depicted the scene beautifully, with his tank advancing through the mud and ice, wonderfully recreated in brick form. Head to Nicholas’ photostream for the full image, and – as we do from time to time – click here for the other side of war.