I can see that lol! There are some track marks behind it.  When I found the base in a box there was a broken Panzer II sitting on it.  I figured since the Marder II and Panzer II had the same chassis it would work out.

Bob, that's looking good. Those front two wheels are the drive sprockets. That's god advice from gamera given the images of the real thing. But keep in mind for future builds that AFV's don't always sink into the ground, if its dry and hard they indeed sit on it rather than in it.

Gamera

Ahhh ok!!! Yeah maybe a little mud under the tracks would work, don't worry too much about it.

I just remember getting made fun of for having a thirty ton tank with no track marks behind it!

Problem is those people laughing have probably never been anywhere near a real piece of armour other than in a museum. In grass for example, you will have the flattened grass, but not always track makes in the ground. And the key is not the weight but the ground pressure it exerts. A 56 ton Tiger would leave less of a mark than a 30 ton M4 Sherman.

Thanks Bish.  I'll have to keep that in mind when I'm planning out scenes, and take the weather for the time into consideration as well.  It would be much muddier during the spring thaw or during rain like the time around the Normandy landings.  There are so many details to think about that it would be easy to make a simple mistake.

There are indeed. But as well as thinking about where the scene is set, I believe you also have to consider where it may have been. There is a rule that a vehicles weathering should match its base. But this ignore the fact that vehicles move into different terrain and carry what ever mud/dirt etc is on them with them. A vehicle entering a town doesn't suddenly shed the mud and get covered in brick dust.

For me this all adds to the enjoyment, and it does mean you can use your imagination. I think the weathering all helps tell the story you are trying to tell.

That's exactly what I was thinking Bish.  For the D-Day to Berlin GB, I have a Hellcat with markings for a unit in France in September 1944.  I need to sit down and try to figure out the unit and where they were, but it seems that it could be in just about any kind of French environment based on the pace the Allies were keeping at that time.

You should also keep in mind that many vehicles may have only survived a matter of weeks once at the front. But of course it would be very difficult, if not impossible, to determine the exact life of a vehicle. So I would just find out what you can without spending months researching it, other wise you get no time to build it. Unless I can find exact reference to the weather at the time, I just take a best guess. Summer warm and dry autumn cold and wet for example. Of course, there are always exceptions, June 44 in Normandy is one, but things like that are well documented.

Ah you're right there Bish, I guess I was over-simplifying things. The model I had was kinda set down with no tracks or crushed grass or anything- you know the 'AFV dropped from a helicopter' look!

Bob: Yeah, if the tracks are there already from the Panzer II it should be perfect.  

waynec

given this ends the end of the year as does another GB i will change my entry to the dragon 1/72 JAGDTIGER. hopefully i can get it done. i haven't been here for months but that has never kept me from being verbose.

and here it is

I think I'm finished with the Marder II.  I had a couple of problems finishing up.  First, no matter what I did, my drive sprockets tilt in when I put the tracks on.  I tried everything I could think of to try to keep them straight, but I eventually gave up since my wife didn't notice it until I pointed it out to her.  Problem 2 came about when I was taking the tracks on and off trying to fix the sprocket issue and the track broke.  I tried to super glue it back together, and that sort of melted the track instead of sticking it back together.  So I grabbed some thread, fed it through the holes in the track, pulled it taught and tied a knot then applied super glue to the thread.  The last major issue I had was getting the upper and lower hulls to sit flush when I glued them together.  The biggest clamps I have are clothespins, so I had to hold it together until the glue dried.  But now it's all together.  I don't think it looks too bad for my first serious attempt at armor, and I learned a lot building it.  Thanks to everyone for your help and for putting up with all my beginner questions.

Bob, it looks absolutely terrific! Just right in every way, the base sets it off wonderfully -- will there be figures, some action in the foreground? I only hope mine looks half as good!

M/TB379

Thanks Thunderbolt! I keep going back and forth about the figures in the kit. The way they are standing in the fighting compartment looks weird if you're looking at it from behind; they both have a foot sticking out onto nothing. I might have to look in my spares to see if I have anything that would work to alter the figures I have, or to replace them. Originally I wasn't going to have a base, but I found it going through some of my dad's old modeling stuff and I couldn't resist the urge to use it for this build.

Bob, that is really really nice. I think you have the look of the real thing down to a tea with the muddy lower hull and clean upper. And the base really sets it off.

Lovely.

Thanks Bish, and thanks for all of your help along the way

WOW!  Bob, I have to agree with everyone...smashing job!  Great detail, and the mud is awesome!  Great build!

Eagle90

Thanks Eagle! I learned a lot from building the Marder. Hopefully I'll be able to put it to good use in your D-Day to Berlin build with my Hellcat. First I'm going back to my comfort zone with a couple of aircraft 

silentbob33

Thanks Eagle! I learned a lot from building the Marder. Hopefully I'll be able to put it to good use in your D-Day to Berlin build with my Hellcat. First I'm going back to my comfort zone with a couple of aircraft 

You're welcome!  And I couldn't agree more with you.  GB's are great ways to try out new genres and try new techniques!  Ahhh, aircraft!  What's on the bench plane wish?

Eagle90

I'm going to do an F-4C Phantom for the Vietnam War GB, then an F-80 for the Dawn of the Jet Age GB. After those I'll tackle the Hellcat

very nice build. i like the base. i have a number of generic bases of various terrains for photographing builds. some of my builds have there own base.

this is simple but nicely unsymmetrical, something i have to work on as i am a technical illustrator by trade. might be a little dry for what appears to be wet mud on the tracks but it could have driven through a mud hole half a klick back. (BISH and i know something about 1-1 scale dirty armor). the flattened grass behind the right track is nice and the few rocks on the left side is a nice touch too. i might have dusted the vehicle a bit more given the nature of the terrain but again that assumes this little base is a small part of a 10km x 10km desert area.i

agree about weathering a vehicle to match the base. GBs are a hoot 

Thanks Wayne!  After seeing some of your builds in other GBs, it means a lot to hear you say that.  I didn't create the base, but I will definitely remember your comments when I do get around to making my own.

Bish: You sure love your PE... The camo looks very, very nice!

Tojo: The Jagdpanzer is coming along nicely!

Bob: Your Marder looks gorgeous! I never would've guessed it's your first attempt at armor! I'd like to mae a mall suggestion though if you don't mind: The model is great as it is, but have you considered giving the entire vehicle (and base) a slight misting with heavily thinned sand paint? It would help a lot with blending the base and the tank together. What pic do you want to see on the front page?

Thanks Clemens! I didn't think about misting paint over everything, that would make it look better.  I'd like the first picture to go on the front page please.

Thanks buddy. Well, I am getting close to completing this. The build seems to have been a bit of a chore. I had hoped to have finished some weeks ago as a complete dio, but for some reason its taken much longer than expected.

So, here my next update, hopefully the second to last one. After the last update, I added a pin wash followed by some dot filtering. Then it was a little streaking with Ak's streaking grime and some light chipping. I then fitted the gun in place. While doing this, I knocked off the two periscope holders on the sides of the hull and lost one some how. So I scratched the mount but left off the rest of the holder as if damaged and lost.

I have also been working on the exhaust and tracks. The exhaust got painted Tamiya flat black and then once dry, I stipple on Burnt Sienna and orange oil and then add use powders using the Tamiya sets.

For the tracks, on this kit I am using Fruils, I first spray on Tamiya NATO black and then give an oil wash, this time raw umber with a touch of yellow ochre.  Here you can see one before and one after the wash.

 And then I add some Xtracolour steel.

So, next up will be to add all the tools which are almost ready. I will be adding some dried mud to the lower hull, I am going to try MiG's Acrylic resin for the first time. Then I can add the wheels and tracks and do the final touches. 

Bob: Looks great, are you sure you're really a beginner here? Looks way better than what I started out on.

Wayne: Looks neat, a big vehicle I'd think in even 1/72nd.

Bish: I think all the work is worth it, she looks fantastic so far.

Gamera: Thanks! I did a Panzer IV a few years ago, but it came out looking pretty awful. Looking at some of the articles in FSM, and mostly asking questions here really helped me out.

Bish: Looking really good!

Hey Tojo looks good!!! And 'Magic Tracks'! They're the only kind of fiddly bit tracks that I don't mind too much!

Bish: The weathiring just blends the camo together perfectly! The tracks look very convincing too!

Tojo: I simply love the look of that improvised Jagdpanzer and you're makin really nice progress on it!

Gamera and Spartan,thank you.Yes I can tolerate the MT,though a bit tedious.

Bish: Wow, somehow I missed you there. Weathering looks great, looking forward to seeing her with some wheels on the bottom!