"Snooze" or ""To The Front"

In this case if you Snooze you definately Lose.  This guy is on his way to the Russian Front. 

 The Ferdinand is a 1/72 scale Dragon kit.  The Flatcar is a Modelcollect kit.  Both were very nice fitting.  The only isse was the styrene tracks for the Ferdinand were way too long.  I did cut and re-glue, still having enough slack to mount on the travel blocks. I cut these from chunks of bass wood.

               
The Modelcollect Rails are NOT exactly the same as the HobbyBoss rails in 1/72.  There is maybe 2mm difference in spaceing, just enough to screw up when combining kits from both manufacturers.
In this case I did use the Modelcollect rails and the wheels fit perfectly.

 I added a few resin tent rolls from Black Dog.  The other bits and pieces with the figure on the rail car are from Preiser and Armand Bayardi.

OK.  This is my last completion for Feb, but the next one will be posted on Mar 1, which is also a 1/72 rail diorama.

Vince B. 2-25-20

Bandai M61A5 " No Parking"

This is a 1/35 scale Sci Fi Tank associated with the Gundam world. It is a Bandai kit and intended to mostly be assembled without glue, like a Gindam.  Well if you want to to some detail adders, you will need to use glue and paint. I also added some LED lighting.

I wanted to try something different so decuded to do a multi colored digital pattern using measured squares and patterns of tape, adding more after each paint layer.  I think it came out pretty well.

Since it  had such a large stowage rack and this was Sci Fi, I was able to use lots of leftover stowage, some plastic and resin bits.

There was a lot of room in the interior so I modified the rear doors open and aeede an M113 interior kit and detailed the insides of the hull, just enough to be seen. 

Once I had this all going on I deced that it needed a good diorama base.  It is a combination of Old Verlinden and Dioramics Plus products along with scattered debris made up of generig stones and balsa wood.  The figures are a combination of Miniart and Masterbox..After reviewing these test photos I see a few touch ups needed. 

Vince B 2-22-20

NEUBAUFAHRZEUG

This is Amusing Hobby's 1/35 Neubaufahrzeug.

 The kit was built straight from the box with the exception of the metal tracks which are by Fruilmodel.

The kit comes with a fair amount of photoetch, but about 80% of it is optional which is a blessing.

 The kit is well molded with nice detail. There were no fit problems and next to no flash. The instructions were clear and remind the quality of the model is nearly on par with Tamiya.

There is one exception. The stock tracks are a problem on this kit. They links are workable and the Modeler is given a jig to hold the tracks while the pins are pushed in. But it doesn't always work, so I got the Fruilmodel tracks instead.

All in all this kit was a pleasure to build. The modeler is given options for plenty of extra detail and I am looking forward to another Amusing Hobby kit in the future.

The model was weathered with a combination of pin washes, 'dot' streaking, paint destruction, sponge chipping and pigment powders. The mufflers were done exclusively with pigment powders over a brown base coat.

M1117 Guardian

I have just completed this Trumpeter kit provided by Lt. Col.Chris Remy. This is my contribution to the Drone Target Identifiction project that Chris is spearheading.  Since this is for general vehicle recognition, I did NOT go into the minute details for the undercarriage.

My focus was to recreate the proper color and markings as Chris requested. Other than the antennae and tie downs, this was out of the box construction, less a few parts of the drive train. I did some weathering but not as much in the way of dirt and mud as I would normally.

This kit definately has unnecessary fidley bits and photo etc, most of which would generally be unseen so I left them off. General surface detail seemed to match what photos I found on line. There were many configurations of this vehicle used since the late 90s.

Vince B. 2-9-20

An old M-3 build by HAC members

Back in the early 2000s several Houston Armor Club members took an "air brush" class  from our recently departed member, Jon Baker, at Hobby Island.  Jon taught Keith, Tom, Jorge and me how to use an airbrush, clean it, and not be afraid of it.  I constantly hear that so many hobbyist are afraid of an air brush, heck, I was too until this class!  Each of us took part in building this kit and painting it. 

As I was organizing my stash recently, I found the kit in a shoe box, just as we had left it from the class--unfinished.  I decided to finish it; adding decals, painting the tools and adding just a bit of weathering.  My intention was to pretty much leave it as the four of us had finished its assembly and painting.  Here are a few pictures of the M-3 Lee.

RIP Jon.  I will always think of you when I see this model!

Bergepanzer 38T mit 37mm Flak

This is a recent Dragon kit I started a few years ago. Since this was a rare vehicle, not mass produced, I thought it fitting to complete this in honor of Jon Baker. German and unusual.

The kit was typical Dragon, poorly explained instructions.  Fortunately the basic subject mater was simple 38T. It was the mounting of the 37mm Flak that was confusing. There were apparently 2 versions of the internal mounting pedestals of the gun. I just realized I forgot to mount the antenna.

I was unable to find but a few vague photos of this subject, more as bac ground. No details of an interior. There was barely enough room for the driver and a single seat gunner. No room to maneuver inside.

I took my time and learned more about weathering techniques applying washes and flters in layers after chipping and rusting. This is also the first time trying to apply techniques for making more realistic trees.

Vince B.  2-3-20

Automated, High Energy, Air Defense. (AHEAD)

Yeah, well, its Sci Fi, inspired by the new TAKOM kits of Russian Ship Defense Systems. I had always wanted to design Gun Towers, and this put me in the mind set.

Parts is Parts. Its all on here.  Everything from road wheels to sprue.  Not even sure where I got the base gun mounting from. Everyone will have fun picking out the parts at the next meeting. 

I did add a generic 1/48 scale figure for scaling effect.

You probably recognize the  T-34 ?? Tank Turrets. Somehow I had a bunch of these. I guess I will need to do some more of these turrets.

Vince B.  1-15-20.

Polish PL-01 Light Tank

This is the Takom model of the PL-01 light tank proposed by the Polish army in 2013. It is based on the Swedish CV90120-T. The project never got past the concept stage. The model is painted with acrylics and lightly weathered with oils & acrylics.

It assembles relatively easily except I had to putty much of the mating edges of the two turret halves. The tracks are length and link.

The kit instructions show two paint options, a prototype in solid grey or a deployed version in standard NATO camoflage. Neither really appealed to me, so I did my own scheme (it's all conceptual, right?) of black tiger stripes over grey.

The Polish flags on the model are upside down. Arg! That would make it, I believe, Indonesian. I have since corrected the flags on the model.

SADF G6 Rhino

Finally, I'm getting these posted to the blog. These are photos of the Takom G6 Rhino as used by the South African Defense Forces. It is a self-propelled mine-protected 155mm howtizer. The kit is very nice and goes together well. Roof top stowage from Value Gear and my parts box was added. Paint is acrylic with oil washes and then a light dusting of actual earth.

M551 Sheridan

This is the old Academy kit. I really liked the details. It all fit together great. I only had one issue, which I should have noticed earlier.  The small front Mud Flaps can rub the tracks. The angle needs to be adjusted prior to gluing in place. Or you can just tear them off like I did.


I added a lot of stowage, resin and plastic components. I did substitute the Tamiya Length and link tracks for the rubber band type. These fit perfectly on the Academy sprockets.

I used Humbrol enamels and weathered with oils. The jungle mud was created with washes tinted with Mig powders. Overall was dullcoated and drybrushed.

Vince B 1-9-20

M60-A2 Starship

As with all Dragon kits, this one was a pain in the fidley bits. The most difficult area was the assembly of the turret basket with all of the PHOTO ETCH screens which had to be bent to fit the various compartments.

I didnt find a lot of good reference photos to help with details.  I did have to add a lot of individual stowage items, resin and plastic.

 The fun part as always is the weathering. Keeping in mind that much of the mud and muck in the jungle was a reddish clay, hard to distinguish from rust. I used oil washes with Mig powders for the various layers of mud on the lower hull and running gear.

I am satisfied with the overall result of the build which I started 3 years ago.

Vince B 1-8-20

Israeli AMX-13

This is the old Tamiya kit. As usual the fit was great. Since it was intended to be the French version of the AMX, I needed to make some minor adjustments for the Israeli version.

Through its use by Israel, modifications were varied. The addition of the 30 cal mounted on the turret was one feature.

 Of course I needed to use other decals from various bits I had. Stowage was pretty generic and I threw in some items with tarps and ropes.

I painted with Humbrol enamels and weathered with oils. I applied chipping of the paint with a piece scrub pad and tweezers.

Vince B. 1-6-20

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.