Painting the Perry Desert Rats - half a box painted

Like many other people I succumbed to a box of the lovely new Perry Miniatures Desert Rats at Salute 2013. However, being quite busy with preparing for the Battle Meiktilla game that we put on at  Partizan I was not really able to get my teeth stuck into these.

I had my first break on the first weekend in May. My daughter was doing a vintage fare near to where she lives in Hereford and my wife and I would pop along to see them and to also take out her boyfriend for a while as it could not be that exciting for him sitting there at a vintage fare. So after a morning in the tea rooms at Goodrich castle with Victoria and an afternoon in a pub beer garden with George I had stuck all 38 figures together.

The following day was a Bank Holiday Monday so I gave them a good spray with Army Painter Desert Yellow. The figures were then put in a box and left well to one side while I finished off the preparations for the Battle of Meiktila game.

Last Sunday evening, Partizan was over and my itch could be scratched. I grabbed 19 of the figures and made a start on painting them. The formula used was as follows (all Vallejo Model Colour paints unless noted otherwise):

• US Tan Earth/Dark Sand (50/50): Helmets without covers, radio equipment, 2" mortar
• Stone Grey: Some shirts, some socks
• Khaki: Some shirts, some socks, covered helmets, gaiters, rifle slings
• Buff: Some shirts, some socks
• Iraqi Sand: Shorts
• Saddle Brown: Rifle stocks, helmet straps, bayonet handles, some boots
• Black: Some boots, rifle fittings, bayonet fittings, soles,
• Beige Brown: Flesh
• Brass: Rifle butt plates
• Gunmetal Grey: Bayonets

Once the figures were base-coated they were given a wash with Vallejo Sepia Wash
I then went on to apply the highlights:

• Dark Sand: Dark Sand, then Dark Sand mixed with Pale Sand
• Khaki: Khaki, then Khaki mixed with Pale Sand
• Buff: Buff then Buff mixed with Pale Sand
• Stone Grey: Stone Grey then Stone Grey mixed with Ivory
• Iraqi Sand: Iraqi Sand then Iraqi Sand mixed with Pale Sand
• Saddle Brown: Saddle Brown then Saddle Brown mixed with Dark Sand
• Black: Black Grey
• Metallic Black: Black mixed with Gunmetal Grey
• Beige Brown: Beige Brown then Beige Brown mixed with Medium Flesh-tone
• Brass: Brass
• Gunmetal Grey: Gunmetal Grey then Silver

Paint the bases Yellow Ochre, dry-brush with Yellow Ochre and Pale Sand, then Pale Sand. I am still thinking about what I want to do with the prone figures, the 40mm x 40mm bases supplied are a bit too small, I think they will be based on bases with rounded corners.

Here is the finished result so far: