Hello everyone. I plan on posting a WIP page for Dragons "new" Panzer III w/ winterketten- you know, the one Bill did a few months ago. I picked up this kit from the LHS late August when my girlfriend encouraged me to do a winter tank (I know, shes a keeper!) Anyway, i put the kit away and waited for some snow to fall, as that would give me some insperation. Well, New Jersey has been getting hammered with snow in the past few weeks, so it was time to get to work.
The kit went together like a dream. Anyone familiar with dragon's smart kit panzers should know what i mean. The magic tracks worked very well, and i added the ice cleats in intervals of three as per instructions (i did not, however, add them to the bottom run.) There really isnt much to be said as far as construction goes. The only little tweaks i made was adding some texturing to the front vorpanzer armor with Mr. Surfacer (for some reason i wanted to, i dont know why) and a strip-styrene jack holder after i broke the kit one. Its not perfect, but it was a good enough foundation for paint.
You may notice the ventilator cap on the turret is already painted. I lost the original part and had to rip one off a model that went wrong to replace it. Anywho, The first step of painting was to airbrush the tracks. I used a combination of Vallejo Model Air Burnt Umber and Black in a 70%-30% ratio to get a dark brown color for the tracks. a little of their airbrush thinner and i was good to go:
As you can see, i decided to paint the tracks and wheels on the vehicle fully assembled. I really just find it easier this way, and, when everything is all weathered up, everything blends together. Also not shown in the picture above is Vallejo Matte Varnish, which MUST be added to the Model Air paints for durability. Without adding a few drops into the paint, they are so fragile it can be rubbed off in your fingers!
Up next, it was time to give the tank some color. I made a mix of Model Air German Grey, Matte Varnish, and Vallejo Airbrush Thinner and applied a nice, smooth coat of paint to the tank. I absolutely LOVE these paints!
And thats it for now. currently, i have painted the tools and wheels, and will soon apply a gloss coat of future. As always, any questions or comments are VERY welcome! have a great day guys!
(P.S. I am using an Iwata HP-B Plus airbrush with a Crown Cap, in case you were wondering :))