1/35 Italeri M108 105mm SP Howitzer, WIP, 05/30/11 Finished

Stucco on a tank?  You can get the Guys at Garden State Brick Face to carve in some mortar lines

Seriously, looks great.  Will it be ready for AMPS? Are you really not coming to MCon?  Won't be the same without you.

Bill - Thanks....slogging...now there is a good term with the mud on this one!!   

From one slog to another..thanks

Rounds Complete!!

Making good progress on this one Mike, just have to keep "slogging" away!

Tet was during the end of the rainy season. So if it's in January you'll see a lot more rain. It stops abruptly in February as far as I have read.

I'm still doing the Hue Dio so I am trying to dial on on a certain phase of the battle during a certain time period that seems to be in the middle/end of February when the rain is stopping. You'll notice when you look at pictures from the battle of Hue some seem like it's a lot of the red and in some pictures it's the sandy color, that later part would be when the rain stopped and the ground dried up.

I would think about lightening the color of the mud on the sides of the vehicle and inside the road wheels a bit. That's what I see in a lot of pictures, unless you are going to do the early part of Tet, then keeping the color more homogeneous would be the way to go IMO.

If anybody is interested in the battle of Hue a book to read is "Phase line green", it was inspiring and disturbing at the same time. It was heart wrenching reading about the Marines begging their commanders to give them fire support which they would not do as they were ordered to make infantry attacks against dug in NVA / VC positions manned with heavy weapons over and over again. A similar thing happened at Monte Cassino in WWII.

Since so many like the stucco, here is the product information

http://www.liquitex.com/Products/texgelmedceramstuc.cfm

I added some burnt umber acrylic paste to give it the reddish orange color. That makes the MIG pigment cover much better. I like the acrylic paste to keep the stucco thick but you could also use the cheap acrylic paint.

Andy – Thanks.  The stucco is clean easy and gives a nice effect. Try it you will like it

Karl – Thanks….glad to bring back good memories.  File the link above for info!

Kevin – Thanks for stopping in.

Steve – Glad you like my mudifications!!

Noah – Thanks for stopping in. Yep, the MIG VN Earth pigment is perfect. The time I am looking for is around Tet. Moving into position with mud but now dried. The stucco give a nice chunky effect and the pigment, laid on heavy gives the dry deep clay red color. I still have to dust the main deck and turret. That will be part of my final weathering along with more chunky in the tracks.

Thanks again

Nate – Tanks for stopping by!

Thanks again everyone

Rounds Complete!!

Looking real good Mike. Looking forward to seeing it finished.

Nate

Man that looks great.

The MIG pigment works extremely well, it really is the only thing that looks correct. I noticed there are different shades of Vietnam dirt depending on how wet it is. Like on the side of the road it is very dry and you get that light color. As it gets more moist it turns redder. When very wet like after a rain it becomes a deep dark clay like texture and red color. This could all be done with the MIG pigment. I have tested it......the more you use the redder it gets. So if you want to get that lighter dust shade just use a bit mixed with a light color paint, if you want that dark red use more.

Most of the vehicles I have seen in pictures have the red color were you have it, fresh from the field. Then it gets the dusty color as it dries, that is usually around the sides of the vehicle or inside the wheels. I guess the heat from the wheels dries it out. But if it's parked in the mud it will stay red. Of course unless it's a real sunny day and it dries it out. I did a lot of research and it also depends on if it's the rainy season or after January when the weather changes.

Some very nice "mudifications" here Mike.

  Keep on chuggin'.....

It's comin' to life now Mike! Lookin' forward to MORE! I too will keep the 'stucco' in mind for the future.

Mike, that loooks awesome!

This brings back fond memories for me. This model was literally one of the first ones I ever built back when I got back into modeling seriously. It's cool to see it coming back to life! You're doing a great job and tribute to this vehicle!

I've filed the "stucco" in my memory for future use!

Mike, looking great!  You are very close to the finish line. Never thought about using stucco...

Mac - Thanks for stopping in. The stucco weathering is a trick from Steve Zaloga. I like the way it looks and it is easy to work with.  As for the MV lenses.....I love the way they look, they have depth. Thanks again

Rounds Complete!!

Coming along nicely sir!  I like the stucco weathering technique.  I would have never thought to use that.  Nice idea!

The MV lenses are a nice touch too.  Keep up the good work!

I had some time this weekend to push this one along. I concentrated on completing the chassis with the exception of the tracks.

For the headlights, I drilled out the kit supplied molded headlights and replaced them with #116 clear and 118 black MV lenses. Also I mounted the kit supplied barrel travel lock.

Then I worked on finishing the track area by weathering with MIG Vietnam Earth pigment. I also worked the side panel bolts and the chassis front with the same pigment mixture. After everything dried here is how things looked

Here is the other side looking from the rear.

Here is an underside view so you can see all that is weathered.

Next were the road wheels. The back of the wheels are easier to weather while off the vehicle.

Once the wheels dried, I assemble the pairs and mounted the main road wheels. The idler and drive will go on with the tracks.

That is it for the chassis except for tracks and final weathering. Next update, on to the turret.

As always thanks for stopping by. Your comments good or bad are always appreciated.

Rounds Complete!!

Gino - Thanks, the stucco is a good 1/35 "chunk" builder. Especially for VN build where the track area always needs a chunk . Now as far as seeing it ina few weeks.........RL is real busy.....I don't think it will make it

Bill - Thanks for stopping in....another stucco fan .I am hoping for a RL break soon....I need a nice full bench day

Rounds Complete!!

on the use of the stucco. Nice to see this one getting some time Mike, I can definitely relate to the RL interference problem.

Great job as usual.  Good idea with the stucco too.  Hope to see this one in person in a few weeks.

Kevin - Thanks for stopping in. Glad you got something out of my build log.

Steve - Thanks for the concern.....just way too many things happening jeeping me away fro the bench at times.....hopefully it will get better after early April

Rounds Complete!!

............ I've been wondering where this had gotten to.

Looking great Mike! The stucco looks like it will blend well. Always learn something from your builds!

Look fwd to next pics!

Kevin

OK…It’s been a couple of weeks. RL has been keeping my weekends busy. Hopefully I can finish this guy up soon though I will have a break when I go to AMPS International.  Nonetheless here is the latest progress

Besides continuing to assemble track (one just about complete) I have been working on the chassis. I applied Archer Transfer Bridge Crossing marker on the front. Next I pin washed the engine grill and air intake grills along with bolts and hatches. Letting that dry for a day, I did some dot filters using White, Sap Green and Flesh Oil paint. Here is a look after the filters

I completed filters on the side and top surfaces. In the track area I used a Ceramic Stucco tinted with Burnt Umber acrylic. This gives a good “chunky” base for a dirty track area. I applied the stucco using random splotching with buildup in areas which would normally hold dirt.

After the stucco dries overnight I will work the areas with Vietnam Earth pigment....next week 

As always thanks for stopping by. Your comments good or bad are always appreciated.

Rounds Complete!!

Gino – Thanks, she should be ready to emplace soon….I hope

Kevin – Nice to have you back, always welcome and thanks

Steve – It is always a pleasure to have you stop by

Rounds Complete!!

 This is lookin' "SO"

Mike,

Glad I got back on the forum and ran across your build. as always it looks great!

Nice work!

Kevin

She is looking great Mike.  The finish is perfect.  Can't wait to see it down on the firing point.

Got those tools, I guess it would help if I didn't have 10 thumbs....

Pat – Thanks, the stencils work out well, especially for the stars. As for the “highlight” it is a way to help break up the mono color look. After some oils with dot filters it will take on a nice effect.

Labour in Vain – Always enjoy my building and sharing. Thanks for the comments

Noah – Thanks for the comments….as far as the details….dental tools and jewelers loops on my eyeglasses

Thanks guys

Rounds Complete!!

It's loooooking great!!!!!!

Can't wait to see it completed.

To my joy I saw one on EBay.......the first day and it's up to $70......I hope it gets over $100. Maybe then some will come out of the woodworks. Looks like I should have went for the $50 when they had a few a while back.

How do you do all those little details without getting your fingers stuck together.....

You are taking this kit on a promotion ride
Great finnish!

As always
Boarder

Wow, really moving along on this build!  Neat idea about the sprayed on highlights and the stencils are first rate.

                                                                                   Pat.