Dan Drake, Roanoke, Indiana
Dan writes: “My diorama ‘Forgotten Warrior’ represents Iwo Jima some 20 years after that bloody battle. I used a Tamiya 1/35 scale Chi-Ha Type 97 tank with an Eduard photoetched-metal detail set. I damaged the grilles, added the shell hole and blast damage to the side of the hull, and gave the tank a heavily rusted look with a combination of Testors Model Masters rust acrylic paint, Rustall, Micro-Mark Rust n Dust, and fine sand mixed in to give the rust some thickness. I used Woodland Scenics fine cinder ballast sand to recreate the black volcanic sand of Iwo Jima. The black stone in my back yard rock garden looked slightly volcanic, so I used it to add some height.”