M4A3E8

This is Tamiya's M4A3E8 in 1/35 scale.

This also happens to be my very first Sherman model. Kit was built from the box with the exception of adding a Value Gear Stowage set and a couple of grab irons on the left side of the turret. 

She was painted with Vallejo Olive Brown and then over sprayed with a very thin coat to Tamiya Olive Drab which gave it the color depth I was looking for.

She I added some a small amount of paint chipping and weathered her with a pin wash, some Vallejo Black Mud and some Vallejo pigments.

Kit went together well and painting the stowage was a pain, but it adds significant detail. The figure is stock out of the box and I took the liberty of adding a microphone cord for some additional realism. It is really a nice kit and I am considering building another one to commemorate the 761st Black Panther Tank Battlion.
Happy Holidays!

BA-64(r) w/2.8cm Anti-Tank Gun

I somehow came into possession of this kit, but didn't pay much attention to it as it sat in my closet.  When the idea of a wheeled vehicle club contest for November came about I remembered it.  Upon opening the box I was rather happy it was a pretty simple kit thus giving me more time to focus on the scene.  After initial assembly I was impressed by looks of the kit.  It is more than detailed enough for me and sits well without any modifications.

The scene depicts the German re-purposed BA-64 towing an anti-tank gun in the vicinity of Kursk in the summer of 1943.  I started out building vehicle and I base coated with Model Air RLM71.  I lighted the color a bit with a few drops of white and hit the center of panels and high spots with the lighter shade.  I then built the little AT Gun.  It was in a spares box, so I don't exactly know the origin but I think it came in a Dragon figure kit with a horse.  The figure is from Verlinden and is painted with Vallejo acrylics.

I next used an even lighter color of green and some rust color dabbed in small bits to show subdued chipping.  This was a long tedious process over several evenings.  This method is described in detail on the YouTube channel NIGHT SHIFT.   I moved from here to pin washes and blending of Tamiya's black panel line accent color.  I moved on to rain effects with oil washes on the vertical surfaces.  Lastly I applied a bunch of earth toned pastels and sealed it all with a clear matt varnish.  At the last minute I threw some Verlinden netting over the barrel of the AT Gun and glued it down with some white glue.

I cut the ends off 2 Hobby Lobby bases and glued them together to get the length and width I wanted.  I used some cheap foam board to build up 3 elevations and applied Cellucaly as the base ground work.  I covered part of the ground with static grass and the remaining with gravel from my driveway.  In the back of the scene I placed a tree detailed from the basic Super Tree line of model railroad foliage.

I made the name plate with Microsoft Visio and printed on a bit thicker card stock.  I had to get my wife to  conjure the adjective klein for me (she's German from Garmisch).  Once glued down I hit it with a gloss clear varnish

It was a fun build and took me about 5 weekends to complete (with some work done after I got home during the week).  There is more I'd like to do but I'm going to call it done and claim victory.

Thanks for looking and thanks for a great year with the Club.   Model On...
George.

LECLERC MBT

This is Tamiya's Leclerc in 1/35.

The kit assembled like a typical kit from Tamiya but they did not provide all the glass for the periscopes. The tracks are vinyl but very well detailed.

She was painted with Tamiya acryllics.

I did a gloss coat, a pen wash and then a flat coat. The balance if the weathering was done with Vallejo pigments

M3 Lee Late

This is the recent Takom kit. As with most of the Takom's I have built, this one fits really well. I do like the length and link tracks which are molded to take into account the drive sprockets and rear roller.

This is my first completion toward the club collection of Generals.

I did have to add some stowage to the rear deck as well as an antenna.

Painted with enamels and weathered with oils. 

Vince B. 11-11-19 

The EMPIRE Strikes Back

No, this isn't Star Wars. This is a group of Modelcollect 'Fist of War' series kits. These BLF 100 walkers do remind me of the ATSTs in Star Wars, and Yes, being in an icy snow covered terrain MIGHT be reminiscent of the Planet Hoth, just a different Empire involved.

 The burnt out Sherman I believe is an old Revell kit from my scrap box. The 1/72 figures are from various sources including Preiser and Hasegawa. Stowage for all vehicles is from Black Dog. The bridge is a combination of HO bridge railings with some wood planking from a 1/35 flat bed rail car.

I had fun with various water, snow and Ice techniques using Woodland Scenics products.

Vince B. 10-29-19

Russian KZKT-537L Russian Tractor

My attempt to build one of Takom's 1/72 trucks that come in the Russian Army Tractor Set.  Believe it or not after 30+ years in this hobby, this is my first 1/72 scale kit, and it made my eyes bleed.

It went together well, just a bit of small stuff to fiddle with.  I used Ammo by Mig paints and the salt chipping technique to create the rusty spots.  The load in the bed is a mash up from my spares and a barrel set from Value Gear.  I broke the mirrors of about 4X each and you can imagine the fit I had with the photo-etched wipers.  I hit it with an enamel wash and lightly dusted it with pigments.

I added slapped together a base to show the vehicle setting on a tarmac with some other cargo setting on a concrete slab.

Maybe I've got one more 1/72 scale kit in me, but I got to rest my eyes for a while.

Thanks for looking - George

Panzer Kampfkanone

Yes, this was a  Gundam kit which I modified slightly. Though as a GUNDAM, it was 1/144 scale, I figure it closer to 1/96 for practical purposes.

 The kit itself was simple as a Bandai, it would all plug together. Since I wanted to do some mods, I build it out of sequence and in sections to better paint it as a Nazi vehicle. 

Of course I am still using enamels and lacquers with an oil wash.  I think  I'm going to go back and do some more weathering.

Vince B 10-16-19

SOVIET BTR-70 AFGHANISTAN Version

This is Trumpeters' 1/35 BTR-70 Afghanistan version.

She was painted using Tamiya acrylics. Given a pin wash (which didnt work out so well). And weathered with Vallejo Pigment Powders.

She has a complete interior and nice detail but way too many fiddly bits! This kit has a part count of 520 which is ABSURD for its size.

She came out ok and I am glad she's done.

Testors / Italeri SdKfz 234 / 3

This is the old yellow box kit. As with all of these old Italeri kits, they fit well and the instructions are marginal.

Though this is open top, there was very little interior detail. What was provided doesn't appear to be accurate. Since this wasn't intended as a long term scratch building project, I added a little detail and personal stowage items.

Though the kit provides two generic stowage boxes inside, these were really open shell racks. There were also 2 folding wooden platforms to stand on for the gunners and loader.

I did a base coat of steel and then covered it with a white wash. Using the dabbing sponge, I chipped with Gunmetal before gloss coating several times. Then several washes and wipes. Added dabs of rust over the chipping and washed again to blend.

Vince B      9-21-19

Panzer IV Ausf H Eastern Front

Tamiya 1/48 scale kit with Black Dog Resin stowage.

The weathering was accomplished with several layers of oil wash and wet brush wiping. This helps with the effect of showing several applications of the German's white washing of the vehicle.

  

Not much to say about these Tamiya kits.  They are near perfect to start with.

 I airbrushed some basic primary colors before the overspray winter white wash. Then I streaked the white with a wetted Lacquer brush. Using oils to highlight and show the rust. The scratches and wear marks were done with the sponge dab of gunmetal. 

Vince B. 9-19-19

The Crew @ AMPS

Our club had a good turn out at the AMPS show in Austin on Saturday. The crew was in good spirits when I left at about 1:30 pm, as you can tell from the photo. A few other club members were we not available for the photo shoot as they were helping out with the contest. Tom Moon was running part of model distribution system shuttleing models from the judges area to the tables under the watchful eyes of the builders while Eric Choy was running everything else.

I personally had a good day wining 2 door prizes and picking up some un-needed inventory for my stash. Both 1/35 scale kits (Tamiya's M4A3E8 and Zvezda's new T-90) new in the box with shrink wrap.

Most of the guys had entries on the tables and should have placed well in various categories. I hope to see some of their award winning builds posted here.

It was a nice show and a good way to spend a Saturday.  If you couldn't make this year's event try to make the next one, it was worth it to me.

Model on dudes - George

(PS, If my wife ever asks, I won everything I came home with.  Ya'all have to cover me on this one)

Takom Merkava Mk I

This is thee very detailed Takom Israeli Merkava MK 1. Early 1980s.

 Other than adding stowage and antennae, this kit doesn't need any additional detailing. It is almost set up for adding a rear interior set.

 Th back hatch interior details shouldnt be wasted. I had to leave it open and boxed off a small area inside the doorway.

I used the Legend  Resin Stowage components and added other items. I like to fit the items in and glue in place before starting painting. Then I can go back afterward and detail paint, blend and wash. 

The antennae are actually Fiber Optics. I wrapped wire bases so that I could realistically bend the antennae for being tied down. 

Vince B  9-1-19

Israeli Magach III

This is the Dragon kit labeled 6 Day War series.  In actuality, this M48 was captured from Jordan during the 6 Day War and put into service by the IDF afterward.

 I only managed to find one photo of the M48 in this configuration, with the 50 Cal in the commanders Cupola and the search light still in place.

 The Cupola was later replaced and a separately mounted 30 Cal in its place.  The search light was replaced with the standard 50 Cal that you see on the more modern Israeli tanks in line with the main gun.

Lots of fidley bits in this Dragon kit. I did need to add a LEGEND stowage set which was for the early Magach series.

Vince B 7-29-19

T-14 Armata

This is Takoms 1/35 scale T-14 Armata.

Kit was built right from the box with the exception of the tracks. I put Fruilmodel tracks on her as the plastic tracks required way too much work.

 The only PE were the screens. All in all an excellent offering from Takom.

I used Tamiya Olive Green for the vehicle and she was weathered with pin washes, Vallejo pigments and a light dusting of Tamiya Flat Earth. The ground work is Sand Colored Grout which was airbrushed with Tamiya Flat Earth. Some Woodlands Scenic Turf was added for grass and so forth.