JRutman Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 (edited) This past Dec was the 25th Anno of our jump into Panama to handle that pesky Noriega guy. My former Sergeant Major wanted one of my little dudes. He wanted one with beret and one without. We didn't wear berets while jumping as they would be put in the cargo pocket for that occasion. Hornet head,scratchbuilt beret,Dragon torso from the Green Beret set and Corcoran jump boots and legs from the Dragon WWII para set. This is the harness,made out of lead foil from wine bottles. With primer The item under the leg straps is an overseas bag for putting the two chutes in after you jump (assuming you made it) Here is with all of the combat gear and parachutes. The big square case is for the M16(or M60 or SAW) The parachutes and rucksack are all plastic as are the ammo pouches,canteens,etc while all the straps are lead foil again. This is all scratchbuilt. All I need to add are the hands,static line snap hook and the helmet. I should add that no putty has been added yet to fill any mistakes or gaps in so please have mercy!! So,the load out for this jump Boots BDU dog tags underwear helmet webgear with 2 ammo pouches which including the magazine in the weapon,gives you 210 rounds,2 canteens,first aid pouch,bayonet and 4 frag grenades,one on each side of an ammo pouch rucksack with PRC77 radio and accy pack,spare battery for same,2 pair sox,one pair underwear,poncho and poncho liner,25 rounds of 50cal ammo,one claymore and 2 smoke grenades M1950 weapons case with M16A3 inside(including cleaning kit) parachute harness and pack reserve parachute The rucksack for this jump was so heavy I could not lift it one handed. And I used to be pretty stout. J Edited January 13, 2015 by JRutman Bill Cross, Girlscanplay2, Willy_N and 7 others 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSP_K2 Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 Good grief. If somebody strapped all that stuff on me, I'd end up flat on my face. Nice job, Jerry. Daywalker 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Cross Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 (edited) It's a challenge adding equipment to figures in this scale: the equipment is often molded for static or stand-alone use and doesn't "hang" properly on the figure. You've done a marvelous job of doing it without it seeming "stiff" and unnatural. Edited January 13, 2015 by Bill Cross Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barry Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 Sweet!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Out2gtcha Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 That is truly inspirational figgie work Jerry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loic Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 Lovely Jerry. I really like those LC2 webbing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Peterpools Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 J INCREDIBLE and all scratchbuilt - sensational work. I just can't understand how anyone could carry all that equipment. Even in my best days, I wouood have been pinned to the ground. Keep 'em coming Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JRutman Posted January 14, 2015 Author Share Posted January 14, 2015 Thanks guys for all of the positive comments. I always appreciate that. Yes,it was fun carrying 50-60 pounds of "lightweight" equipment while you shambled out to the C-141 doing a peculiar waddle because of the rucksack between your legs. We were alerted for "Just Cause" without warning one day while getting a pep talk by the Bn CSM and 18 hours later had our knees in the breeze over Omar Torrios Airport. Green tracers arcing up into the pre dawn ,after just looking out the open door seconds before at the cruise ship passengers still partying on deck out in the approaches to the canal. Our families had no idea where we were. It was freezing rain at Pope AFB when we suited up and all were shivering in their tropical uniforms until we were JMPI'ed and loaded. The C-141s had to be de-iced so the formation had to linger in the air until all the a/c were assembled. But we did hit the DZ with all the assembled fury of a modern airborne Para Regt all at once in a nice compact drop from only 500ft AGL. Minimal jump injuries. Our company had one KIA and four WIA breaking a PDF roadblock on the road to Panama City though. The KIA was from mg fire and the WIA was when the assault element went to flank the roadblock and waded through a creek that turned out to be filled with battery acid from a nearby battery shop. A friend of mine(fellow PLT SGT) and 3 of his guys had pretty bad chemical burns and had to be evac'ed to Ft Sam Houstons' burn center. 25 years ago,last month. Time flies. J J lawman56, Iain and EmperorKai 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSP_K2 Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 I'm sure your pal will be pleased with this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willy_N Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 Wow, that looks fantastic! It is very rare to see any kind of build with such a personal history behind it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Peterpools Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 J An amazing story and the story behind the figure just makes the build so much more emotional. Keep em' coming Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JRutman Posted January 15, 2015 Author Share Posted January 15, 2015 Thanks guys, I normally don't post comments that long. Must have had too much coffee! J Girlscanplay2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BiggTim Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 Seriously cool, Jerry! Fun to hear the tale, too!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JRutman Posted January 15, 2015 Author Share Posted January 15, 2015 Here is the first(and hopefully last) application of putty. Mostly the arms and a bit on the beret. When it dries I can do the final shaping and then on to paint. The snap link and the helmet will be added after painting. J Next guy up will have no headgear and jungle boots. Way more authentic than the first guy. Tomek, Iain, EmperorKai and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lawman56 Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 I was there with you, my friend. We were alerted at the same time, with wheels up in the wee hours, after a good 20-30 minutes de-icing the aircraft at Green Ramp. I didn't jump, as I was an Air Assault "Leg" in the 108th MP Company, 503rd MP Battalion, 16th MP Brigade. Hit the tarmac at Howard, rolled off the birds "guns up", and headed to downtown Panama City, where we started clearing the city building by building of those pesky PDF fellas. Can't wait to see how this comes out, all of your work is a pleasure to behold, but obviosly this one will be closer to the heart. Maybe someday, I'll actually get to working on that "Just Cause" dio I've been planning for years now. EmperorKai and Girlscanplay2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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