Obsessed with Osprey

Started by Jarhead0331, January 09, 2020, 11:11:14 AM

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Jarhead0331

I always liked the Osprey series of books, but never went out of my way to acquire them. Over the last few years, I've been picking more and more of them up from local used book store, where they frequently show up at a steep discount.

Recently, I've had a compulsion to fill in some gaps in the Campaign, Air Campaign, Combat Aircraft, Elite and Men at Arms series. I went crazy on some online thrift stores and recently bought like 3 or 4 dozen of them. Still have a long way to go.

Once they arrive, I'll post a complete list of my collection.

Anybody else into these? 
Grogheads Uber Alles
Semper Grog
"No beast is more alpha than JH." Gusington, 10/23/18


Dammit Carl!

I would be if the Mrs. wouldn't be there all, "WHY IN THE NAME OF GOD DO YOU HAVE ALL OF THESE BOOKS?"

Gusington

^We must be married to the same woman.

I love Osprey books an ancients and lesser known WWI and WWII vehicles and equipment, and I'm interested on getting some of their books on modern Ukraine and Russia.

There are some competitors to Osprey that do a really great job too. The names of those publishers escape me but I have a really thick, Osprey-like book on Byzantine armies that is just beautiful. And I'm about to buy one of those 'vs.' books (Duel series, maybe?) on the Chinese vs. the Japanese Navy during the Sino Japanese War (1890s)...but the name of the publisher escapes me.

Just looked online. The Duel series is indeed Osprey. The look of that series of books is more modern than the traditional Osprey that we have all grown to know and love.


слава Україна!

We can't live under the threat of a c*nt because he's threatening nuclear Armageddon.

-JudgeDredd

ArizonaTank

Years ago, I was a huge Nappy fan.

Spent my spare time painting piles of lead.

Osprey, along with some other books by the Funckens and Knotel, were essential to make certain the uniforms were painted correctly. Osprey also have essential info on tactics and evolutions...great stuff when you are a mini gamer.

I have almost a complete set of the Osprey's Nappy titles and 10 pounds of lead waiting in the garage for my retirement. Sadly the retirement is still many years off...
Johannes "Honus" Wagner
"The Flying Dutchman"
Shortstop: Pittsburgh Pirates 1900-1917
Rated as the 2nd most valuable player of all time by Bill James.

Silent Disapproval Robot

I have a bunch on WWII air stuff and some of their duel books.  Some are great and full of interesting/useful info.  Others are a lot less so.  I recently picked up USN vs IJN Carriers (not so good), Rabaul 1943-44 (very good so far), and Battle of Berlin 1943-44 (Haven't started it yet). 

I think the two best I've bought so far are Avro Lancaster and Lancaster vs Bf110.  Lots of good info, maps, diagrams, and art.


The worst is Canadian Forces in WWII.  Very light on detail overall and it was mainly focused on generalities such as uniform colours of the various branches as the war progressed with almost nothing on TO&E, deployments, OOBs, unit histories, etc.


Jarhead0331

I guess a lot of them are hit or miss, depending on author?

I definitely like these series for the maps, tactics, photos and tables. I find they make great supplements for gaming, particularly when I am working on an AAR.
Grogheads Uber Alles
Semper Grog
"No beast is more alpha than JH." Gusington, 10/23/18


Toonces

I have the two on Navy F-4 Phantoms in the Vietnam War.

The Guadalcanal one was required reading at the War College for one of our classes.

I really enjoy them, but they're expensive new.  Used is definitely the way to go.  Looking forward to seeing your collection, JH.
"If you had a chance, right now, to go back in time and stop Hitler, wouldn't you do it?  I mean, I personally wouldn't stop him because I think he's awesome." - Eric Cartman

"Does a watch list mean you are being watched or is it a come on to Toonces?" - Biggs

WallysWorld

I have about 15 of their books. I check for sales every month and buy then. Their sales are quite good.

When I first starting playing Strike Fighters 2, I bought some of the Duel series books to read up on the Middle Eastern conflicts where the jets were used in the game.
"I used to be with it, but then they changed what *it* was. Now what I'm with isn't *it* and what *it* is seems weird and scary to me." - Abraham Simpson

Jarhead0331

#8
This will be a working list that I will add to as the books come in, but so far, here is what is in my modest collection:

Classic Battles:
El Alamein 1942
Normandy 1944
Bagration 1944
Ardennes 1944
Guadalcanal 1942
Pearl Harbor 1941
Tet Offensive 1968 - arrived 1/11/20
The Alamo 1836 - arrived 1/11/20


Elite:
WWII Street-Fighting Tactics
WWII Combat Reconnaissance Tactics
WWII Airborne Warfare Tactics
WWII Infantry Fire Support Tactics
WWII Infantry Anti-Tank Tactics
WWII Armored Infantry Tactics
WWII Japanese Pacific Island Defenses 1941-45
Vietnam Infantry Tactics
The Crusaders - arrived 1/11/20
Medieval Siege Warfare - arrived 1/15/20
Warsaw Pact Forces - arrived 1/23/20
Inside the Soviet Army Today - arrived 1/23/20
US Army Rangers & LRRP Units 1942-87 - arrived 1/23/20
World Special Forces Insignia - arrived 1/23/20
US Army Airborne 1940-90 - arrived 1/23/20
South-East Asian Special Forces - arrived 1/23/20
Panama 1989-90 - arrived 1/23/20
Elite Forces of India and Pakistan - arrived 1/23/20
Armies of the Gulf War - arrived 1/23/20
US Army Air Force: 2 - arrived 1/23/20
UN Forces 1948-94 - arrived 1/23/20
Marine Recon 1940-90 - arrived 1/23/20
The Royal Marines 1939-93 - arrived 1/23/20
The Guards Divisions 1914-45 - arrived 1/23/20
The Military Sniper Since 1914 - arrived 1/23/20
US Navy SEALs - arrived 1/23/20
Canadian Airborne Forces Since 1942 - arrived 1/23/20
Special Operations Forces in Iraq - arrived 1/23/20
US Marine Infantry Combat Uniforms and Equipment 2000-12 - arrived 1/23/20

Battle Orders:
US Army Infantry Divisions 1942-43
Panzer Divisions: The Blitzkrieg Years 1939-40
Afrika Korps 1941-1943
The Roman Army: the Civil Wars 88-31 BC

Men-at-Arms, Warrior, Elite:
Imperial Roman Naval Forces 31 BC-AD 500
The Conquistadores
Aztec, Mixtec and Zapotec Armies
The Zulus
The Royal Marine Commandos 1950-82
US Marine  Corps Tank Crewman
Highland Clansman 1689-1746 - arrived 1/15/20
The Paras - British Airborne Forces 1940-1984 - arrived 1/21/20
Soviet Bloc Elite Forces - arrived 1/21/20
French Foreign Legion Paratroops - arrived 1/21/20
The Ancient Greeks - arrived 1/21/20
The Praetorian Guard - arrived 1/21/20
Santa Anna's Mexican Army 1821-48 - arrived 1/21/20
The Spartan Army - arrived 1/21/20
Attila and the Nomad Hordes - arrived 1/21/20
Byzantine Armies 886-1118 - arrived 1/21/20
The Roman Army from Hadrian to Constantine - arrived 1/21/20
The Roman Army from Caesar to Trajan - arrived 1/21/20
Samurai Armies 1550-1615 - arrived 1/21/20
The Mexican-American War 1846-1848 - arrived 1/21/20
The Zulu War - arrived 1/21/20
The British Army in North America 1775-1783 - arrived 1/21/20
Wolfe's Army - arrived 1/21/20
Marlborough's Army 1702-11 - arrived 1/21/20
The Boxer Rebellion - arrived 1/21/20
The German Army 1914-18 - arrived 1/21/20
The U.S. Army 1941-45 - arrived 1/21/20
The Waffen-SS - arrived 1/21/20
The Panzer Divisions - arrived 1/21/20
Napoleon's German Allies - Saxony 1806-1815 - arrived 1/21/20
Napoleon's Hussars - arrived 1/21/20
Napoleon's Dragoons and Lancers - arrived 1/21/20
Napoleon's German Allies - Nassau and Oldenburg - arrived 1/21/20
Artillery Equipment of the Napoleonic Wars - arrived 1/21/20
Napoleon's Guard Cavalry - arrived 1/21/20
Napoleon's Marshals - arrived 1/21/20


Campaign:
Poland 1939
Kos and Leros 1943
Operation Neptune 1944
Operation Cobra 1944
Operation Nordwind 1945
Okinawa 1945
Hastings 1066
Rorke's Drift 1879 - arrived 1/11/20
Japan 1945 - arrived 1/11/20
Agincourt 1415 - arrived 1/11/20
Zulu War 1879 - arrived 1/11/20
Tarawa 1943 - arrived 1/15/20
France 1940 - arrived 1/15/20
Culloden 1746 - arrived 1/15/20
The Falklands 1982 - arrived 1/15/20
Peleliu 1944 - arrived 1/15/20
Cannae 216 BC - arrived 1/15/20
Saratoga 1777 - arrived 1/15/20
Kursk 1943 - arrived 1/15/20
The Rhineland 1945 - arrived 1/15/20
Alexander 334-323 BC - arrived 1/15/20
Arnhem 1944 - arrived 1/15/20
Iwo Jima 1945 - arrived 1/15/20
Midway 1942 - arrived 1/18/20
Tobruk 1941 - arrived 1/18/20
The Armada Campaign 1588 - arrived 1/18/20

Air Campaign:
Six-Day War 1967
Japan 1944-45
Battle of Britain 1940
Arab-Israeli Air Wars 1947-82 - arrived 1/15/20

Raid:
Israel's Lightening Strike: The Raid on Entebbe 1976

Combat Aircraft:
Mid-East Aces - The Israeli Air Force Today - arrived 1/11/20
USAF Strike Aircraft - arrived 1/11/20
Electronic Wizards - Crows, Zappers and Weasels - arrived 1/11/20
AH-64 Apache - arrived 1/11/20
Harrier - The V/STOL Warrior - arrived 1/15/20
Seventh Fleet Super Carriers - arrived 1/15/20
Light Strike - Harrier IIs, Hornets and Corsair IIs - arrived 1/15/20
Tornado Pilot - arrived 1/18/20
Modern Soviet Fighters - arrived 1/18/20
F-15 Eagle - arrived 1/18/20
B-52 Stratofortress - arrived 1/18/20
B1B Bomber - arrived 1/18/20
Mig-21 Units of the Vietnam War - arrived 1/21/20
US Navy F-4 Phantom II Mig Killers 1965-70 - arrived 1/21/20
US Navy F-4 Phantom II Mig Killers 1972-73 - arrived 1/21/20
Air War in the Gulf 1991 - arrived 1/21/20
Air War in the Falklands 1982 - arrived 1/21/20
Lancaster Squadrons 1942-43 - arrived 1/21/20
Lancaster Sqaudrons 1944-45 - arrived 1/21/20
B-25 Mitchell Units of the MTO - arrived 1/21/20
B-29 Superfortress Units of World War 2 - arrived 1/21/20
PV Venture/Harpoon Units of World War 2 - arrived 1/21/20
B-17 Flying Fortress Units of the Eighth Air Force (Part 2) - arrived 1/21/20
Iranian F-4 Phantom II Units in Combat - arrived 1/21/20
Grogheads Uber Alles
Semper Grog
"No beast is more alpha than JH." Gusington, 10/23/18


Silent Disapproval Robot

Quote from: Jarhead0331 on January 09, 2020, 02:48:09 PM
I guess a lot of them are hit or miss, depending on author?

I definitely like these series for the maps, tactics, photos and tables. I find they make great supplements for gaming, particularly when I am working on an AAR.

I think some depends on the author and more depends on one's expectations.

Because the books are generally short, I want a lot of detailed technical data and analysis, not general overviews that I can get from a 100 other books on a subject.   

Toonces

Man, that's a nice collection.   \m/
"If you had a chance, right now, to go back in time and stop Hitler, wouldn't you do it?  I mean, I personally wouldn't stop him because I think he's awesome." - Eric Cartman

"Does a watch list mean you are being watched or is it a come on to Toonces?" - Biggs

Dammit Carl!


Yskonyn

Very nice JH. I have several Osprey books on military aircraft from various era's. Several are good, others are very light on technical info.
But as other have stated I also seem to be married to the same wife. She has demanded a stop on hardcopy stuff that -in her opinion- only clutters up the bookshelf and never gets read.

She also veto'd a ban on acquiring any more wargames.
I'll have to lay low for a while.
"Pilots do not get paid for what they do daily, but they get paid for what they are capable of doing.
However, if pilots would need to do daily what they are capable of doing, nobody would dare to fly anymore."

Silent Disapproval Robot

I bought these ones new:

P-38 Lightning vs Ki-61 tony
SBD Dauntless units of WWII
Ki-61 and Ki-100 Aces
Mosquito Aces of WWII
Mosquito Fighter/Fighter-Bomber Units of WWII
Mosquito Bomber/Fighter Bomber Units 1942-45
Halifax Squadrons of WWII
Lancaster Squadrons 1942-43
Lancaster Squadrons 1944-45
Avro Lancaster
Bf110 vs Lancaster
Operation Crossbox 1944
Hitlerjugend Soldier vs Canadian Solder Normandy 1944
Canadian Forces in WWII
Cromwell vs Jagdpanzer IV
USN Carriers vs IJN Carriers
Rabaul 1943-44
Battle of Berlin 1943-44

I've got about 50-60 more that I bought used as a single collection.  They're stuffed in a Rubbermaid and buried under a pile of other crap right now.





Gusington

I also got a bunch of Napoleonic Osprey titles that are between 20-30 years old, some older, from LB years ago.


слава Україна!

We can't live under the threat of a c*nt because he's threatening nuclear Armageddon.

-JudgeDredd