The Ostfront GBII - 2011/12

Sub Revolution,

Could have sworn i replied already... My bad...

Ofcourse you can change your build, i will get right on it! And don't sweat it, i have been postponing and almost completely shelving my Tiger build too and dropped out of a fair amount of GB's myself. It just happens...

The way i see it: This is still a hobby and is supposed to be fun. If for any reason you can't or don't feel like building a model, simply don't. No guns to your head and no pressure!

Richard

Sorry to be gone for so long fellas!  Been quite busy with other things, spring being here and all!  I've got a bit of an update on the BT-5:

Got the weathering done on the lower hull, which had to be done before I installed the tracks.  I used mostly Bragdon "Dust Bowl Brown" pigment for the lighter dust color.  I like this better than most of the MIG pigments as those sometimes look too orange or yellow.  However, I still used the MIG pigments...adding them on top of the Bragdon to impart a gritty, grungy look.  Mostly Russian Earth, Dark Mud and a bit of Europe Dust.  Then topped it all off with some MIG Oil and Grease Stain Mixture in select areas.  I may add a bit more pigments to the wheels before the end....

Remember that curve that developed when building the MasterClub workable tracks?

To fix that I pinned the assembled track runs to a piece of foamboard, keeping them as straight as possible.

Then I just sat them outside in the sun for a couple of hours!  It was pretty warm here last Satuday and I figured the heat would soften the tracks enough to remove the curve.  When done I placed them in the freezer for 5 minutes to make them hold their shape.  When I finally removed them the curve was mostly gone!  Yay!

I sprayed them with Humbrol Metalcote "Gunmetal", which is a buffable metallic enamel, and then gave them a heavy wash with Track Brown MIG pigment.  Then I used a soft brush to remove some of the pigments and followed with some buffing with a stiff bristle brush, using only the side of the bristles to buff the underlying Metalcote to a nice metal sheen. 

I still need to dirty and dust up the tracks, but that's where she stands as of now.

Nice looking tank! Well weathered but looks like it still has many more miles on it.

With my IL-2 about to go to the paint booth (aka the porch) it's about time to start looking at my diminutive P-39. I mentioned before that the kit came with a Soviet option, but...

After a closer look, I'm really not crazy about the markings. Not sure why, they just don't look "right" to me. This criticism has also been made by other people who have built the kit, that I've found. However...

Between the kit-supplied (below) and aftermarket (above) decals sheets for the IL-2, I have enough red stars and other goodies to decal a whole squadron of 1/72 aircraft! So all that being said, Richard i don't know how much of a stickler you are for exact accuracy, but if it's ok with you I would like to use these decals and reference photos to put together a scheme that "looks right" to me. Maybe something more like the second entry here: http://airfixtributeforum.myfastforum.org/archive/hobbyboss-1-72-p-39n-airacobra-80234__o_t__t_15313.html

Anyway, should be getting started soon, and the IL-2 kit makes this one look easy!

Thanks

Nice long weekend here stateside has meant some nice bench time for me. Got the P-39 going, and at this rate, this simple kit might be ready to paint by tuesday!

Pretty sparse cockpit, but I imagine the real thing probably was too!

Lots of pieces lined up like a tiny jigsaw puzzle...

Fuselage is glued up now. Tricky part will be getting those little landing gear doors to stay in place. More later!

Thanks

Hey sub, the P-39 is looking good!  Good luck with the landing gear doors!

Even though its a nice loong weekend, I've been spending all my bench time on a Carro Armato M-13/40 for another GB and the BT-5 is currently on hold.  Sad because its' nearly 95% done!  Ah well.....

Update!

Tiny jigsaw puzzle is put together now. Here's the snuggly nestled cockpit before the canopy went on:

All buttoned up:

This is the second model in a row that I've had trouble with the alignment of all the pieces in the cockpit area. Had to shave a couple parts down a bit, then some gentle wrestling got them all in there. However I did have to flow some clear glue along all the canopy pieces as they had some nasty gaps that would be a big no-no for airbrushing!

Landing gear doors were surprisingly easy! Took some tweezer work on the front ones, and a little creativity with masking tape for the wing wells, but it all worked.

As predicted, looks like I will be able to start throwing paint tomorrow! For those on the 1942 GB, I definitely will NOT be weathering this one as much as the Sturmovik! That was nuts!

Thanks

Sub,

Looking sweet there! I started a promodeler P39 a little while back with the same intention of slapping some red stars on it. It is somewhat small even in 1/48.... But yours looks awesome sofar, love the belts.

Richard

All quiet on the Ostfront?

Paint is on, coat of future is on as well. Going out of town for the weekend, so the future will have plenty of time to dry before I start playing with decals.

Nothing fancy, just "Underside Grey" and "Field Drab." Looks close enough to what I would expect.

Thanks,  -Budd

It seems a bit quiet around these parts for the time being.... But we still got months to go so who knows

I just love that shade of drab! Is that model master paint judging from the background jars? If so, what number is it?

Richard

yeah, it's model master. I had to look up the numbers because I've honestly never used them! Most of the time I will check the name, then flip the jar over to see what the color looks like. Some people say not to do that, but it usually works for me. Anyway...

The gray is 2121 and the drab is 1702

 Just a bump to get some exposure so to speak.

Good bump df!  Reminds me to finish up the BT-5 that's almost complete!  Maybe this weekend??

detailfreak,

Good call. I don't know what happened. Last year was a GB filled with non stop activity...

Richard

                            Busy summer so far my friends,and it seems that there is always another project round the corner.LOL Except that one

Darn, I totally missed this GP and I just primer and pre-shaded Cyber-Hobby's SIG 33. Would have loved to join it. I am going to paint her like a Stalingrad gun and add a few of the figures. I built this assault gun over the last few weeks. Oh well. maybe next year. I have enjoyed looking at the other builds here, very nice.

I'm still here!

In the middle of another transition, so my progress is slow, and my internet abilities are bad at best. But here it is:

Decals are on, as you can see, and I have now given it a wash for panel lines and weather effect. I may not be able to put up another pic for a while, but I will try to at least keep you guys posted! Oh and one thing I noticed, The tail stars don't have a white border like the wing stars, which makes them harder to see. My bad. I think those were painted on first, and the wing stars were added later... Yeah, that's what happened...

Thanks, -Budd

I've got an Italeri 1/72 Me 109G-6, and one of the options is for an aircraft that was based in Pilsen, i nthe now Czech Republic. Is that Eastern Front enough ? If it is, I'd like to go with it for this GB please.

Looks like a nice little kit.

Cheers

Tony

Hey Budd, the P-39 is coming along great!  Luv the red stars on it!  I was wondering what those things were mid-fuselage then realized they are the engine exhausts, the P-39 having a mid engine design!  I was watching "Great Planes" on the Military Channel this morning and noticed a bare metal P-39 in the background and, sure enough, my eyes focused on the mid-fuselage engine exhausts!   BTW, the episode was on the B-29 Super Fortress.

Pretty quiet on the Eastern Front, but I've got some action from my side!  I finally finished the Italeri 1/35 BT-5, done up in early war colors (I think!).  Painted with Tamiya acrylics, washes and filters courtesy of MIG, pigments from Bragdon. 

Here you go:  The Soviet Union's MIGHTY BT-5 fast cavalry tank!   I hope you like it.

I'm going to post these plus a few more photos in the Armor forum, if you're interested.

Up next:  Tamiya 1/35 GAZ67B Russian Field Car

Wow! That BT-5 is gorgeous!

Don't know if anyone here has seen, but some new Chinese kitmaker's just released a Tupolev Tu-2 in 1/48! Quality looks solid, 270 parts, all for a whopping $25.99 on LuckyModel!

I've ordered one because, at that price, hell yes. Options to expose the ASh-82s? Sprue shots that show detail levels on par with Trumpy, Eduard etc (would've give them Tamiya or latest-from-DML grades, but close)? 

Don't know that I'll get to build this bad boy before the GB runs out, but wanted to alert others to it in case anyone else wants to take a chance on what could be one of the best kit bargains in some time.

That BT-5 looks outstanding, I've just spent some time going over the photos again.

The Tu-2 is not the right scale for me, but thanks for the heads up Doogs.

Cheers

Tony

Ernest,

My apologies for not replying sooner. What can i say.... i have been waiting to see your model completed and behold, .... what a whopper!!

I am simply awe struck with it and i am gleaming with pride to see it proudly displayed in the Ostfront GB. Three cheers and a big Hurray for you!

More of that please

Richard

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!! NIce BT-5 man I cant get behind building tanks but sure like seeing well done builds for sure.

Kermit I gotta build something not as intense as what I have going, the B-29 and the house sprint car. I feel overwhelmed by them at the moment. Would Revell's 1/48 Ju-87D Stuka fit in here ?

Randy,

Ofcourse you can do just about anything on my watch LOL. I will list your build ASAP. If you need some good interior shots i could help you out if you want.

I took the revellogram JU87D boxing with me during a visit to the states...kinda scr*wed mine up but its a nice kit for a soft price. Good decompression building material i agree.

Richard

doogs - thanks!  I'm glad you liked the BT-5.  Hopefully I'll have a couple more builds to add to the GB!  The Tu-2 looks great and for only $25.99!! Wow!  I wonder who makes that kit?

Tony - thanks for checking it out and your nice comments. 

Richard - It took a while but I finally got that old kit done!  It turned out almost as I envisioned the completed build from the beginning.  I'm very proud myself to have participated in your GB and to have been able to present something worthy here.  Thanks for hosting the GB and for having me!

Randy - I'm not an AC guy, but I do love a well built and painted aircraft model!  I'm glad you liked my little green tank!

So I've started on the Tamiya 1/35 GAZ67B Russian Field Car:

Lower chassis and suspension consists of only 7 parts!  Detail is very basic and, being an old kit, is laden with mold seams and some pin marks, but nothing that can't be ovecome.

The wheels are also very simple, but detailed enough for me!  Strange that there are none of the usual Tamiya poly caps for the wheels, just plastic inserts that allow the tires to rotate.  Oh well, can't have everything!

When assembled the inner side of the wheels have a gap that I'm sure shouldn't be there.  The gap is where the tire sidewall should be as the hubs are easily discernable in the molding.  I'll have to fill those gaps with either putty or stretched sprue and sand smooth. 

I think I counted a total of 67 parts which is quite a change from most of the kits I've build lately.  Also, I will be doing this mostly OOB with only some light scratchbuilding to either correct mistakes or improve some of the basic detailing.  I have absolutely no AM parts for this kit...mostly because I couldn't find any!!

Kermit thank you sir and for the screen shots too Our host rocks dont he.

Bifflehead looks like I am going to be watching this next build of yours also.

Man, we can't let all those other GBs dominate the GB forums!!   So here's another update on the Tamiya GAZ67B!

Gaps in the wheels filled with stretched sprue (except for one where I used .010 strip styrene) and sanded smooth:

Undercarriage done.  Cleaning up all the mold seams took a while, but otherwise it was pretty easy.

The only improvement I made here was the front bumper.  It was just too basic and clunky looking so I cut it off and replaced it with 1/8" Evergreen channel, which was nearly a perfect fit and then detailed it with some Grandt Line rivets.

The simple interior is done.  I cut off the molded on brake/clutch pedals and replaced with some leftover PE from an SD.KFZ.251 set that I didn't use.  The gas pedal was made with some other PE scraps.  Also, I replaced the stick shift with one made from brass rod and shaped styrene knob.

The hood/grill/fender assembly was built with no modifications.

Major assemblies dryfitted together.  Side panels are also cleaned up and ready to install.

The rear panel is cleaned up.  I cut off the molded on tie downs and wil replace with PE from an Aber tie down set.

Its coming together! 

Nice...

Like the scratchbuilt bumper Ernest.

I'm preparing to kick into this GB with my 109 in the next few days.

Cheers

Tony

Thanks Tony!!  

So I went crazy and decided to have this little guy tow a little guy!  Came across this on EvilBay for pretty cheap and figured it would look good behind the GAZ67B

It just shipped Thursday so I might get it early next week.  If not I won't be able to work on it until late the following week as I'll be out of town.  I planning on building it OOB....but you know how that goes!!

Buffle- That tank is fantastic!! The rust looks perfect and my eyes are just drawn to that chain on the front... It looks so real! And that field car looks like a neat build as well. Wish I had found that when I was looking for a Jeep to get my son...

Doogs- Someday I will do a Tu-2, but in 1/72. In the meantime, I expect some good photos from your trip!

So my P-39 is done. I finally got back to my real home and am getting settled in/caught up on everything. I finished it a while back but couldn't get on the internet. Will post pictures soon.

Thanks, Budd