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~ ! Clash in Tunisia ! ~ { Final Photos on page 37 }

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  • Member since
    April 2009
  • From: Carmel, IN
Posted by deafpanzer on Tuesday, March 16, 2010 9:08 AM

Oh man, by looking at your diomara, it made me CAN'T WAIT to hit the beach next week in Bahamas for our spring break! Cool The sand looked VERY convincing... really appreciate you taking your time to show us how it can be done.

Andy

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Tuesday, March 16, 2010 12:07 AM

~~Those words greatly appreciated BoB!!

              ~~Please be a believer~~

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

  • Member since
    August 2009
  • From: Cary, North Carolina
Posted by M1Carbine on Monday, March 15, 2010 2:39 PM

WOW!, UNBELIEVABLE!.

Beautiful Indy, just beautiful.

 

Bob

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Monday, March 15, 2010 3:22 AM

Ok Last post for tonight~

~Painted Desert Part II
 

 ~For the sand painting, nothing seemed better than Vallejo #120 Model Color Buff . I suppose I'd use the Model Air stuff if I had more colors here, but as I suspected, thinned properlly the Model Color worked just great. I wanted to spray in several semi-transperent layers, and so  thinned the #120 with 25%  #524 Thinner from Vallejo and 15% Distilled Water as well.
 
 
 
 
You can see how this size Dio base is at about the limits of  my spray booths' use

 
 Following the Buff, but thinned the same, I used #008 Beige, a slightly lighter , similar color
 
 

 And followed that with Biege lightened with #004 Off White, thinned 30% instead of 40%
 

 After  that I took it out into the afternoon sun, to get a good look at what I'd done under natural conditions, the way a desert needs to be viewed.
 

 Some color refinements and variation will be applied by way of powdered pigments next, to impart the powdery feel that's needed as well. One unfortunate effect of painting the sand is that the grains do get coated and become a little bit larger. Next time I may try to do it in less passes!
 

Masking removed from the side-boards and the 1st rock--to see how that looks- but that's a subject for a different post!
 
~~Thanks as always for your interest in following along...................Indy
 

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Monday, March 15, 2010 3:09 AM

Painted Desert

 

Before spraying the sand color, I really needed to mask-off the highly irregular line at it's edge. Next Masking Tip  -- PARAFILM "M"  To my knowledge only available from Micromark
Is an unusual mask that will conform to odd shapes, and is basically designed for aircraft modelers to meet thier needs when painting complex wing to fuselage color changes. Complete instructions are included with it, but basically you take it from the backing sheet and stretch it widely to 'activate' it, then press it into position, lightly burnish, and cut along the area  you need to mask with a fresh blade and a light touch. It's really easy to cut, of course the blades' tip is ground away almost instantly when cutting across sand like this(see my blade above)


Here's the stuff on the roll. I'll say it's really come in handy a few times and works perfect for masking areas I want to hit with my #77 Spray as well. It is one of those products that seems really difficult to use at 1st but later is very easy & helpful. ( One mistake I made was not fully-masking that lower area--even though I didn't hit it directly, some overspray was visable when I was finished and I had to touch-up the base sides)Luckily(The Aged Iron texture paint is very forgiving when touching up--and can even be decanted and brushed without blend issues!)
 


So much faster and easier than trying to mask that with tape!

 


After painting, and removing the masks, it's done it's job.
 
~Continued~

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Monday, March 15, 2010 3:04 AM

~Edmund~ Thanks you sly dog  Stick out tongue Nice going this weekend!

~Bill~  Thank you Buddy---take away everything you can! Any questions about any little part of it? Ask away(my very initials are A.S.K.   BTW !) I supose I go on long enough in my posts to cover most of it, huh? As for attending a show----I will someday  Cool

~Boyyd~  That's plenty--I'm honored by your remark.

~Narayan~  You clearly see what it is I'm getting at. That's very satifying for me. I do like some Dio's done with the "cut-out' approach and others well framed---honestly I went back and forth on this to decide if I wanted a sort of framed-cut-out! I had the 3/16" wide top of the wood surface looking perfectly clean, and even though it goes against my grain a bit to  leave off an opportunity to 'frame'(having spent 12 years doing Custom Picture Framing) I finaly decided to model right to the edge, as the break wouldn't be any kind of real plus, I could use the room around the edge, and it's easier to photo the work later that way.

Base Painting--Preshade

 

I began the painting with a pretty standard pre-shade by way of  Tamiya XF-1 Flat Black thinned 30% with some 70% alcohol. The  pre-shade is largly obfuscated by the opaque paints we modelers tend to prefer...but  I  really needed to get some black  up into the undercuts and holes --before painting surrounding areas in the sand tones.
 

~I followed the black  with  a second, more complete pre-shade using Tamiya XF-52 Flat Earth (increadibly usefull color despite it's out-of-touch sounding name Sad) It's really handy using pre-mixed, potted colors, when possible, for these large projects, as  these colors shouldn't really be too mysterious  or difficult to reproduce.
 
 
 
 
 
 


The brown color is sprayed freehand into pretty much every significant recess, and the  landscapes features start to take shape.
 

~ Continued.....

 

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

  • Member since
    April 2004
  • From: Boston MA
Posted by vespa boy on Sunday, March 14, 2010 4:31 PM

You've got some really nicely observed geological formations. Beatutiful groundwork Indy. I'm a big fan of the unframed "cut out of the ground" edges and you've done a very neat job on your. Well done. I'm looking forward to seeing what paint adds to this.

http://public.fotki.com/nkhandekar

This ain't no Mudd Club, or C.B.G.B.,
I ain't got time for that now

  • Member since
    April 2003
  • From: 41 Degrees 52.4 minutes North; 72 Degrees 7.3 minutes West
Posted by bbrowniii on Sunday, March 14, 2010 2:33 PM

Bow Down - words do not suffice...

'All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing' - Edmund Burke (1770 ??)

 

  • Member since
    January 2012
Posted by I make stuff on Sunday, March 14, 2010 10:21 AM

....Hello?

SPRING FORWARD, ADAM!!!

Wake up sleepy head, I need to see more.  That textured edge is two thing--very well thought out contrast (and compliment) to the sand...and STOLEN.

I WILL use this technique, uh, if I ever do a base, that is.

Keep it coming, I can see the finish line from here.  THe vision clarifies even more, and I really like what I see.  This NEEDS to be brought to Orangecon in October, even if you put it on the display only table, and decide you don't want a medal. 

BIll

 

 

  • Member since
    January 2009
  • From: Everett, WA
Posted by Schnobs on Saturday, March 13, 2010 9:56 PM

 Bravo! Well played SIr!  Well played!!

 

I really like the contrast in the sand effects and the paint for the side of the dio base is an excellent choce as well!

Looks great Adam!

 

 







"There is a principle which is a bar against all information, which is proof against all arguments and which cannot fail to keep a man in everlasting ignorance. That principle is contempt prior to investigation." Herbert Spencer
  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Saturday, March 13, 2010 12:23 PM

Here's the finish I wanted, applied to the side panels of my base. It's Rustoleum's Textured "Aged Iron" #223525  I'm looking for the colour to provide great contrast, and the texture some consistency  and matches another base of a similar size I've already built.
 


I've found that this paint goes alot farther if you use a black base under it, and you don't build-up the texture too heavily trying to get coverage that way. Any black rattlecan at hand will work for this, and you'll notice I've used a temporary mask this time over the groundwork--not so much that I'm worried about having to later paint over the black---but I don't want to impart the larger grain texture to the sand areas of the ground.
 


I love the look of this paint and it hides a multitude of sins too,  if your frame is not cleanly built. This one was in good shape but you can still see a hint of woodgrain, as I stopped short of a heavy application--go thicker if you like and details like the sharp corners will soften.
 

 


I removed the mask right after and you can see roughly the kind of contrast even before painting.   I like how this has conformed to how we are used to seeing the extents of the Diorama edges portayed (usually but not always--with black)  but still it's a little different.
 
 

~~Base finally ready for paint !!    I'm pretty happy about that Big Smile But 1st--before I get some rack-time---I'll need to update this blog---and here I am-
.as always...thanks for allowing me to bring you this build in detail--see you soon!
 

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Saturday, March 13, 2010 12:15 PM

At this point (maybe strangely?) I removed the masking, as it had done the job I wanted, and at this point I wanted to paint and texture the base-sides, before I had any real  nice painting finished to worry about protecting.
 


The masking really did a nice job of defining the works edge    -A Must- in my book..   .and you can see how cleanly you can work with the Elmer's Wood Filler
 

The way you're about to see me painting this base-box is not the norm--two methods are far more popular--#1. to stain or paint the wood and varnish it, let it cure and the mask it off untill the end--a great way to go if you want  a smooth varnished base--#2. simply leave the raw wood masked until the end and finish it last--not a bad way to go either--but I didn't want to use the product I used after all the work has been carefully done--at this point its very safe..
...
 


"Clash" Base 'unmasked'!   When I get a number of spray cans going I like to take the work out onto my deck---it's just too much mess & stink for the modellers' paint booth. Note the use of even the cartons all those stashbuilding kits arrive in !     Re-use trumps recycling!!
 

 


A few light coats of cheap primer to seal the wood so it doesn't soak up the expensive stuff, and for the usual reason of revealing defects or areas needing a bit more sanding. I sprayed freehand here, not worried about any overlap as the groundwork paint will define that edge but I had to be sure to seal all of the wood.
 

 


~You can see some of the wood looked quite rough up close, and it was easy and worthwhile to sand it a little between coats. (You can also see the fossil I added on the back edge Zip it!)
 
~Still more to come~~

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Saturday, March 13, 2010 12:07 PM

~Jetmodeler~Thanks for those comments Buddy!  & thanks for sticking with me...check this out :

Applying  Sand

~~~ After much research and trials to find something aproaching the right size partical for depicting  a sandy desert floor(largely rock covered as well), and having sifted down some beach sand from right here at my beach through a paint seive only to get a small amount, It occured to me I could barrow a cup of very fine silica sand from the bin of a friends sandblaster. While still not 1/35 the size of the average sand bits, it's very fine, and later combined with grainy dry pigment powder, should look the part.
 


Always striving to be different(and avoiding white glue again Indifferent)I used my old favorite 3M #77 Spray Adhesive to coat (1st)some sample pieces of foamcore covered in wood filler to try out the sifted local sand(left) & the silica sand(right) and then used a few light sprays of artists' spray fixitive over it to insure it was sealed.
 


That's the tiniest 5 % of the local beach sand and the silica makes it look big!

 
 


The sample above was re-shot with glue and re-coated on the far right end--a pleasing effect you can use for a variation.
 
 

 


Here's a random 1/35 figure to compare.
 
 

 


~~Applied very thin, I got a nice even granular texture while preserving details pretty well. I kept the layer purposely thin up front, but allowed build-up in some other areas, and even used the beach sand in a couple places for some variety. You can see here also why I masked the rock off--as the effect of evenly coating them isn't too hot.
 

 


~~Once painted, and some even more powdery effects obtained with pigment powders, I can add small stones and rock chips strategicaly where I wish.--As well as a modicum of grasses.
 
More ahead~~

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

  • Member since
    October 2009
  • From: South Carolina
Posted by jetmodeler on Wednesday, March 10, 2010 12:53 PM

Man, this thing is really coming along. I bet the ground work will look just as real as the vehicles.Yes

 

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Wednesday, March 10, 2010 2:20 AM
 
 

Preparations for Paint and Texture
 
This part is not so glamorous, but needed just before I start to model the blown sand and paint the groundwork. I really like the natural look of the real rock I'm using, and don't want to coat it with sand or paint it the same as the ground. The rock with be dealt with with much later.
 

Using a small wire brush and scalpel, I've cleaned up some areas of the rock where some of the filler made thick areas on the rock edges.
 

Next all the rock-faces we're coated with Winsor & Newton Liquid Masking Fluid, as it's form-fitting and will stick to the rock much better than any tape will , and stay in place until I'm ready to weather the rock.
 

just a watery latex, the liquid mask is easy to apply. I put a small amount in a bottle cap for use, so I don't skim-over the entire bottle.
 

A few bits of ballest and kitty litter for texture under the sand...others can be added later topically, along with some small cracked bits of rock like that of the large formations.
 

The thing is ready for paint and texture! believe it or not  .........
 

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Wednesday, March 10, 2010 2:18 AM

Update incoming........

              Please stand by..........

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Tuesday, March 9, 2010 1:07 AM
~~Completing Earthwork & Placement
 

Ok and having some fun with the new moniter and some free desert wallpaper  I've reconstructed the attack with the groundwork underfoot, augmenting it as I go, drilling the recieving holes for the figures' pins and playing around a bit with elevations.
 

Same thing with a view in simulated sun-bleached B & W
 

I've made the 'off-road' area as uneven as possible and tried to use that to advantage.
This is alot of fun to have for something completely unpainted!
 

The moment of the "Clash" It's about to get ugly, yes, .....but at this precise moment no one has a really clear shot-----the least experienced of the Brits in the worst place imaginable.
 

The exact angle of attachment for each figure will be the last thing finished, as that requires precise gluing--but you can see here how the two defenders peel-off to one side or another.
 
 

The 'signature" Tommy for "Clash"
 
 

Making the 'squishy" desert-balloon-tires look soft in the sand. Note in front of it the unexplained addition of the Panzer tracks, to hint at  possible travel of other units up ahead, that perhaps this gun-team is acting as rearguard for.
 

Much of the ground texture is already in place. but a good deal of sand  and grainy layers will go down into place with he paint...in the next chapter 
 

Next thing all the models will be removed, and again drillstock pins placed to mark each spot as the mini-men are picked-up.----THEN I can get on with the paint & texture 
 
I hope to see you on the next episode of ~!Clash in Tunisia!~.........

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Monday, March 8, 2010 2:37 AM

~Thanx RB ~ & right you are my friend Zip it! Right you are..

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

  • Member since
    October 2007
  • From: Willow Oaks Compound / Model Bunker
Posted by razorboy on Sunday, March 7, 2010 4:39 PM

Looking really good Indy, needs some dust though ... don't forget that dust!Wink

rb

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Sunday, March 7, 2010 3:09 PM

~Frank~ Some great words there--from a great ' Dio guy' --I thank you whole-heartly! I'm happy you took an interest to read through the whole long thing(so far  Big Smile)

~Bob~ Well my friend...very nice of you to say, thank you thank you !! It should get even more so.lets see

It is of course a grand adventure !

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

  • Member since
    August 2009
  • From: Cary, North Carolina
Posted by M1Carbine on Sunday, March 7, 2010 2:29 AM

Flawless execution my friend.  Beautiful.

 

Bob

  • Member since
    July 2003
  • From: Piedmont Triad, NC (USA)
Posted by oldhooker on Saturday, March 6, 2010 5:22 PM

Absolutely incredible diorama scene building you are doing here, Indy; Bow Down just spent the last two hours pouring over it, taking notes, and learning as I go, THANK YOU!!      Beautiful work! Yes

Take care,

Frank

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Saturday, March 6, 2010 2:37 PM

jetmodeler

Thats just amazing.Bow Down Texture for the ground work looks great.Toast I never thought about using wood filler for the ground work before.

Thank you Jetman...it's getting there. Yes the Elmers Wood Filler is the bomb--I hadn't heard of using it for Dio's before I started building them either, but I'd worked with it before to patch up some wood carvings back in my Tiki sculpting days, so I knew it would work well. 

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

  • Member since
    October 2009
  • From: South Carolina
Posted by jetmodeler on Saturday, March 6, 2010 1:39 PM

Thats just amazing.Bow Down Texture for the ground work looks great.Toast I never thought about using wood filler for the ground work before.

 

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Saturday, March 6, 2010 1:18 AM

~~Using my original placement photos, which show pretty much the exact placement I want, I returned the vehicle models to thier respective spots(which had now been changed by way of adding un-even road areas) and re-adapted them, taking advantage of the changes I made, but also settling-in  the high wheels somewhat to minimize any ackward angles. This allows some subtle terrain variation and keeps things from looking too 'flat'. Everything is parked ready to withdraw in a big hurry--often enough crews would abandon thier weapons (and often sabotage them) if made to hurriedly retreat
 


Before removing them to the case, the outlines of each model are roughed-out with a pencil( with a special interest in where the wheels sit)This way I have a clear idea where they are placed as I work the ground, although I will not use placement pins at this time but wait until I am ready with the figure placement in the area----
 


~~Next up.....Building up the roadway----I hope to see you there! 
                               Now...I'll get back to work Coffee..................................

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Saturday, March 6, 2010 1:14 AM

Ok, next part~~

~Also at this stage...it's needed that I replace the figures and check thier fit to the earthwork. This is a fiddly job, and it's really best not to have all the nice painting to worry about mucking up-or the most delicate features in place if you can help it


~Each figure has a definate attachment-point provided by way of a  length of drillstock (music-wire) pin, drilled and glued into the sole of one or both boots---and a reciprocating hole drilled into the base. Here's where the fiddling about comes into play...as some adjustments will need to be made to the groundwork or figure stance to obtain a natural-looking "sit"--that's why it's best to have this all worked-out prior to  painting the figures or base.
 
 
In the case of the 2nd Loader(above) the left foot was quite good when I put it at the exact spot I want him--but his right foot floated some, and so a little more filler was added 'underfoot', the figure replaced with a square of plastic-wrap inbetween, everything removed again, and texture added to blend the area---and----there it is.  An effort was made to 'settle ' the ammo crates as well to show them as heavy. (Note: if you are not completely happy with the placement after getting the figure into place--then by all-means re-drill it's hole and try again! Shep Paine was never shy about making errors and drilling again--this is the time for it!)
  

Often figures work best on un-even ground, and so have be test-fitted to work-out thier placement carefully to appear natural. None of the groundwork here is finished of course, so there's still time to re-adjust. Layers of sand will later be strategically placed to make things more convincing Wink


The entire guncrew was test-fit in place and fit-pins made to fit where needed. Afterwards all these models we're pulled-up and put back in the cabinet for the time being.


As the mini-men we're removed, thier placement was marked with a length of drillstock in the unfinished groundwork, so the locations would not be lost by the following layers of sand & paint. The 'dug-outs' are for the 'spades' of the fieldgun's trailing arms.

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Saturday, March 6, 2010 1:07 AM

The EARTHWORK

 
At this point Gents...the  models need to come into play ( not necessarily all painted-up--but you can sure get an idea how cool everything may look all together Zip it! if they are---but not worry about damaging them if they arn't) This placement test is just to make sure the groundwork is being modelled to what's really needed as you go.


This different sort of enbankment(not subject to run-off) is a bit of a pocket, where I'd imagined wind-blown dirt & dust would readily accumulate--and so would need to be dug-out somewhat by the guncrew, so they could get the Pak 40 into position against the rock-wall, upon re-taking this old fire base.


To mimic the work of 1/35 scale shovels I've used a 'round-gouge" sculpting tool, to shave out furrows in the wood filler after its fully dry. This is what I'm working on now.


The Dragon Pak 40 kit handily comes with an extra set of wheels and tires, so I made a makeshift axel, to set them apart the correct span and rolled through the filler to make tracks after it's semi-set, using a small piece of Saran-wrap in-between to keep the wheels clean. The footprints(not wanting them too sharply represented) are made with the boots of spare figures in random places.[I'm using the un-even lighting purposely here so I can  better show the detail in the unpainted material.]
 
The smooth texture of the spatula-spread-out filler will never do, so several things at hand are used to break that up, including this bit of Dio-makers lichen.
 
~Continued~

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Thursday, March 4, 2010 8:37 AM

~Thanx again for that Boydd. I do really appreciate it. I'm sure I'll hear from alot of people who just look in at some point if something goes really right or I just really blow itWinkSadCool

Please stay tuned---updating soon!

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

  • Member since
    April 2003
  • From: 41 Degrees 52.4 minutes North; 72 Degrees 7.3 minutes West
Posted by bbrowniii on Wednesday, March 3, 2010 12:27 PM

*INDY

 

 

~Boydd~ Good to see you pop in--thanks!

Indy,

Believe me, I've been more than popping in.  I've just been too amazed to find words to offer praise and compliment.  This has really, REALLY taken on a life of its own.  Very impressive!

'All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing' - Edmund Burke (1770 ??)

 

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Ventura (at the beach) in California
Posted by *INDY on Wednesday, March 3, 2010 2:20 AM

 

"Balancing Rock" in Giants Playground, Africa (a real place with countless examples of such balancing rocks---imagine any way you tried to model that it would still  look ...wrong!)

~Boydd~ Good to see you pop in--thanks!

~Andy~ Thanks Buddy~ I don't reckon I'll get a Gold~its' the thought that counts thoughZip it!

~Bill~  Thank you for your terrific comments! Thanks for your confirmation that it's making sense and looks the part--thanks too for putting alot of thought into your supportive post--YesCool

~the next update is soon forthcoming~ Indy

"Well...you gunna pull them pistols, or just whistle Dixie?"

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