Gamera

Nice work, I do think your improvements look better than what you had before. 

 

Yeah the initial weathering on the Hellcat was a real mess....

Nice work, I do think your improvements look better than what you had before. 

Some improvement on both models. Still need to pick out the steel color on the drive wheels, but that's about it, I think.

Time to get on with the diorama base now.

Pawel

Hello Harry!

Looks a lot better now - although I have my problems with it. For me the contrast between the "clean" and the "dusty" areas is too stark, and they are too close to one another. I'd recommend blending them together a bit - with an airbrush or something like that. Other thing - the colour of the dust doesn't match the colour of the groundwork, the tanks look a bit like they just teleported on the spot. I'd recommend "weathering" the base a little with the same pigments - that should blend the tanks right in. Make the grass a little dusty, too. So - good luck with your dio and thanks for sharing, have a nice day

Paweł

 

Hi Pawel,

Sorry but I better clarify; that's just a generic mat I occasionally use for photo's and is simply to add some visual interest -- it's not the diorama base.

Decided last night that for the time being, I'm going to stick with controlled mini-washes for weathering until I get a lot more practice using pigments on old models, because they're simply don't seem to be working for me and I really should have called it a day on the Hellcat around this stage here;

Having said that, I did notice an interesting effect yesterday. Now, I've no idea what caused it; chemical reaction? or just a property of the Scale75 pigments I'm using, but if I took a hairbrush to the M18 to speed things up, the pigments seemed to separate and take on an off-white color which closely resembled "frost" in the thinner regions, and even "frozen snow" where they were in thicker concentrations on the top and sides of the Hellcat.

If I can recreate this effect on some old models later today I'll post the snaps to show exactly what I mean. If it wasn't just a happy accident and I can make it work again, then it might be a useful effect to include on the base of any diorama set during a bitter November such as Western Europe 1944. 

Thanks for your feedback

Hello Harry!

Looks a lot better now - although I have my problems with it. For me the contrast between the "clean" and the "dusty" areas is too stark, and they are too close to one another. I'd recommend blending them together a bit - with an airbrush or something like that. Other thing - the colour of the dust doesn't match the colour of the groundwork, the tanks look a bit like they just teleported on the spot. I'd recommend "weathering" the base a little with the same pigments - that should blend the tanks right in. Make the grass a little dusty, too. So - good luck with your dio and thanks for sharing, have a nice day

Paweł

Nope, I just couldn't leave it alone. That's a lot of the goop removed from the Hellcat and I've also replaced the 30-cal.

Reckon it's looking better already and I'll do some more tidying up on both models tomorrow morning.

I appear to be having problems with using pigments -- like being way too heavy handed with them. Seems to be that I do better with very controlled mini-washes. It'll only improve with practice -- I hope.

FINISHED -- although now I see the photo's it looks like I've gone OTT on the Hellcat and will probably revisit it and tone the weathering down. Still and all though, after that's been done I think they'll look good for an ETO Nov-1944 diorama.

The 30-cal added to the Hellcat came from my spares box, but it looks way over-scale, (probably 1/32). I'm pretty sure I have a better one, somewhere.

Oh yeah, and I forgot about the outside of the M4A1 Commander's hatch....

So, not really finished after all then....

Darn, the more I look at these photo's, the more unhappy I am with the M18 weathering and that 30-cal. So I'll do something about both tomorrow.

Oh well, all constructive critique shall be gratefully received.

Cheers

M1GarandFan

Hmm. Seems like between your travels and adventures with the locals, you have a very exciting life! Does the hobby help keep you calm? Lol

 

Yeah, point taken -- and you're right; time I stopped grumpin' and get back to finishing off these two models....

Hmm. Seems like between your travels and adventures with the locals, you have a very exciting life! Does the hobby help keep you calm? Lol

MrT

Looking good so far!

 

 

Cheers MrT.

I just this minute finished weathering the lower hulls on both models. I'll post a few more snaps in the morning (my time). That'll give it all a chance to dry out and I'll see what needs to be done next.

Looking good so far!

Guess I growled too soon. It's two hours later -- and that's those horrible kit decals on at last, plus I got the weathering started on the M18 as well. And it's beginning to look better already, (I think).

Going to wait a while and then the decals on both AFV's are in for an overnight soak with Micro-Sol -- that'll sort 'em out..!!..

Well, that's the decals onto the Sherman and the first stage begun in the weathering process.

Unfortunately, the kit decals for the Hellcat have proved to be a real bear, but I'll get back to them after a coffee break.

Bish

Well harry, seems like you have more challenger senjoying this hobby than most of us do. I just never imagined it would be that hard. I often buy from Chinese and HK sellers on e-bay and they are always great to deal with.

All the more credit to you for sticking with it and producing some nice builds. Allied armour ain't my thing,but looks like you coming on well with those and getting all the advice you need.

 

Actually, things have eased up over the past 5 or 6 weeks since I presented myself down at the local Customs Office (again).

The two lady officials we saw initially threatened to send three of my international orders back to their point of origin. Why? Well the excuse this time was "too many parcels". This was the same two beauties who sent a US$650 order straight back to the States last year -- cos they told my wife the "box too big", (??????). I was stuck in the Middle East at the time and couldn't do much about it.

They were eventually persuaded to release the three orders on payment of a nominal amount of import duty -- isn't it amazing what a bit of heart-rending pleading and basic grovelling can do? 

To cut a long story short, a small package from Historex Agents had been delivered to our place by Postman Pat earlier that morning -- and on the way home, we stopped off at the Post Office around the corner and picked up a 5th parcel with no problems. Make of that what you will, but it's a true story.

Only way to handle the situation is with a wicked sense of humor; which thank Gawd I do happen to have; in spades at times..!!..

There's been no further problems with any hobby deliveries since that latest farce -- but this happy state of affairs won't last, and then we'll go through it all over again. Sometime I really do think it's just a game. You know? "Yeah, things have been quiet, guess it must be time to play the Let's Bug The Foreigner Game again"....

Well harry, seems like you have more challenger senjoying this hobby than most of us do. I just never imagined it would be that hard. I often buy from Chinese and HK sellers on e-bay and they are always great to deal with.

All the more credit to you for sticking with it and producing some nice builds. Allied armour ain't my thing,but looks like you coming on well with those and getting all the advice you need.

Harrytheheid

Well, that's the best I can do with the gun barrel on the M4A1 so I'm calling it a day. 

I put in another couple of hours on both AFV's tonight. Time to leave them both alone now and begin the weathering tomorrow morning.

Cheers

 

Toshi

Well, that's the best I can do with the gun barrel on the M4A1 so I'm calling it a day. 

Gamera

Oh wow, I had no idea things were that crazy! Thanks for answering my question. I thought about Lucky Model but yes they're out of Hong Kong too... And I didn't know there were vendors who wouldn't ship there, gee whiz.

The M18 and the M4 you have both had a 76mm gun so the barrel should be the same. The muzzle brake might be different, someone else here would probably know more.

 

Well that's what I thought -- both barrels being for a 76mm, but naah, for some reason the spare M18 76mm barrel is too big compared to the M4A1 kit example. That's why I placed it on top of the Sherman turret for the photo's. A bit more work ought to make the original look acceptable though.

Oh yes, I could indeed relate several "fun" stories connected with the pursuit of a relatively harmless hobby here in the Middle Kingdom, but shall leave it at that....

Cheers 

Oh wow, I had no idea things were that crazy! Thanks for answering my question. I thought about Lucky Model but yes they're out of Hong Kong too... And I didn't know there were vendors who wouldn't ship there, gee whiz.

The M18 and the M4 you have both had a 76mm gun so the barrel should be the same. The muzzle brake might be different, someone else here would probably know more.

usmc93

Barrel looks better Harry.  Looking forward to the Diaroma as well.  Thanks for sharing!

 

I'm just on the point of posting a completely different diorama mate. Once that's done and I get my coffee break finished, I'll head back upstairs to getting the M18 completed.

Cheers 

Barrel looks better Harry.  Looking forward to the Diaroma as well.  Thanks for sharing!

Well, the overriding reasons I joined this forum was to seek feedback, improve my modelling skills and act upon good advice. So thanks to all who have offered to help out.

The initial photo here was taken last night. That step on the gun barrel can be clearly seen and to be perfectly honest, the "lazy option" of hiding it under a bit of camo netting simply didn't appeal -- that's not going to improve my modelling skills one little bit, is it?

So having slept on it, the first stunning idea I had this morning was to replace the barrel with the spare one I had left over from the Hellcat build.

Hmm, nope -- that ain't gonna to work. Nothing else for it than a bit of scrub-a-dub-dub with the sanding sticks then. I'm not sure if it's evident in these photo's, especially as the subsequent coat of thinned Mr Surfacer 1200 was still wet when I took them, but it does look like the barrel profile has been improved somewhat. I'll know better after that primer coat has been given time to cure enough so's it'll take another very light sanding session and then get the topcoat of OD back on. (Probably tonight).

Meanwhile, there's still plenty of additional M18 detailing and painting to get on with.

Cheers

Gamera

Cool Harry, looking forward to seeing how they come along.

 

Maybe a stupid question here but Dragon, Hobbyboss, Trumpeter, etc being Chinese companies it just seems odd to me you can't get their stuff there? Do they export almost all of it?

 

I'm sure they exist in Beijing or Shanghai, and I'm certain sure there's a few in Shenzhen, but I don't know of any scale modelling hobby shops outside of Hong Kong, which is around 2,000 miles and an almost 4-hour flight south of my location.

Hong Kong is a Special Administrative Region, which means anything bought there is classed as an international import for Customs purposes, and therefore subject to Customs search and import duty, plus it's a minimum transit time of two weeks to the Chinese mainland -- and there's restrictions on the value of goods that can be imported. Oh, and if they do decide to search through any particular item then believe me, they're not gentle as to how they carry it out -- I've a few horror stories involving hobby items being utterly destroyed, but that can keep for some other occasion I'm feeling grumpy about it. 

I have been able to bypass the situation a couple of times by persuading vendors in Hong Kong to send me stuff direct from Shenzhen -- which means domestic post or courier, and no unwelcome attention from Customs -- but getting around the language barrier can be...."challenging". You'd kind of expect English to be universal in HK, (well I did), but that wasn't the case even as recently as 1996, far less now. I've been able to hit up on two different vendors in HK who have sales people with reasonable English language skills and these are the hobby shops I use for the majority of my orders. If they don't have what I want, then I'll go to Historex Agents, Fields of Glory or Hannants in the UK, or Sprue Brothers Stateside, who all offer excellent customer service -- and keep me relatively sane.

Please be aware that certain UK or USA vendors have a policy of not shipping to China, which just adds to the fun after you've gone and registered on their website, gone through the catalogs, made your choices, gone through the order process -- and then when it comes to payment -- you find out they won't ship your order........and the wife is wondering why you're dancing around the living room with steam blowing out your ears.

I'm being facetious of course, but there's no denying a touch of frustration at times when you have to source and import consumer goods that actually originate from China. 

If anyone knows of any non-Hong Kong-based hobby outlets in mainland China, where communicating with them isn't a thrilling adventure ride complete with unexpected surprises, then I'm all ears....

Cheers

captfue

Looking real good. What are the figures going to be doing?

 

I've got three 1/35 scale WW2 dioramas definitely planned, (along with a few other ideas I'm kicking around), and hope to get them completed over the next few months.

1/ ETO: Outskirts of the Hurtgen Forest Nov-1944

2/ Tunisia: Winter 1942 - 1943

3/ ETO: Based on Band of Brothers episode 4, but not necessarily exactly as depicted in the show. Not sure yet whether it'll be Holland 1944, or Belgium/Germany early-1945.

The figures are the 101st Tank Riders from MB.

Looking real good. What are the figures going to be doing?

Cool Harry, looking forward to seeing how they come along.

Maybe a stupid question here but Dragon, Hobbyboss, Trumpeter, etc being Chinese companies it just seems odd to me you can't get their stuff there? Do they export almost all of it?

Good stuff! I'll  look for these next time. Thanks!

Just my two cents, but I s--tcanned the Italeri tracks for my M4A1 right away. Thru Amazon, I got a set of Bronco T48 tracks. They are a project all unto themselves, but I'm hoping they'll fit. Came from Hong Kong in about two weeks. That is all thanks to the good folks on this forum.

After hearing from others here, I hit the barrel step with sanding sticks and paper. It looks pretty good after that