jimbot58

Well, I just had an impulse and decided that I wasn't going to use the option of the spare tracks mounted to the sides of the turret. The kit instructions have this version with out them. So it meant cutting and sanding with repainting to follow. I also managed to break off the lift ring on one side, so a repair will need to be made. The kit did have spares though.

Yes, it does look better without them, I agree with you on removing them.

Ken

Jim: Good to hear your ribs are healing up. Bummer about the wrist but it is good they caught it now rather than having it heal possibly out of alignment.

At least you're not  Evel Knievel - is there any bone he didn't break!?!

Gamera

Jim: Yes she looks every inch a Tiger now! Glad to hear you're feeling better.

Ken: Good to see you've got the damaged corners of the lithographs mostly fixed, looks a great deal better.

Dom: HAPPY CANADA DAY!!!!!!!!!

And have a HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!!!

Dom

Glad to see all the work coming together on the Tiger II. I used the same camo pattern on my half track and really liked the result.

Ken, happy that you're getting those lithos in shape; I know how upset you were when they came with those creases. And as far as that video goes......I'd say we're all geniuses here!

Ok...calling the Patton finished. Here are some pics...

I desperately need a new camera....

I lost the tube that runs from the connector on the top of the turret to the infra-red light....I think my wife tossed it by accident while cleaning.... I have to invest in a better camera because the tank looks way better than it does in these pics. I will try to get a better shot for the "Finished" gallery.

Thanks for looking!

Len

Len!

Great weathering!

Glad you hung on!!!

Can smell the iron oxide all the way up here in Canada!

Dom

Look what Buffirn aka Jim Williams found:

******

58-0284/0289 McDonnell F-101B-105-MC Voodoo

0285 on display at Travis AFB museum

0286 to MASDC as FF377 Mar 23, 1978.

0287 to MASDC as FF394.

0288 to MASDC as FF325 Jan 30, 1976.  On display at Air Force Flight Test Center Museum Airpark,  

Edwards AFB, CA.  Still there Oct 2006, freshly painted in its 132nd FS

Maine ANG colors.

0289 (178th FIS, ND ANG) crashed Eagle Mountain, ME Jul 16, 1970 when ran out

of fuel after missing two instrument approaches and crew ejected safely.

******

Every USAF aircraft history by serial number. Link is on the BUFF GB.

Dom

Nice work there Len! Armour is fun isn't it? No clear parts and not much masking!

Nice job Len!  That looks great!      Just post a picture that you like for the front page when you get a chance and I will update it.

So what are you going to build next?

By the way, how is the house financial paper work going?

Ken

Son Of Medicine Man

Nice job Len!  That looks great!      Just post a picture that you like for the front page when you get a chance and I will update it.

So what are you going to build next?

By the way, how is the house financial paper work going?

Ken

As for the flood business...still waiting for money but have made some progress. The SBA loan we were approved for gets held up for every little thing plus they don`t let us know there is a problem!! My wife calls once a week just to make sure things are going smoothly. We finally got our advance money...3 weeks ago..lol...what a disgrace. On the good side, we went to a modular company and settled on a plan, hired an engineer to do all the dirty work for the pilings, etc and started taking bids on the demo of our old house and some of the trade work that has to be done (plumbing, elco..etc). It`s a different kind of anxious feeling now, more like excited to get a new house rather than the hopelessness we were feeling after the flood. We will be busy from now on, have to empty the house into a storage unit to get ready for it`s demise...a blessing in disguise (place needed lots of work)....

Len

Gamera

Nice work there Len! Armour is fun isn't it? No clear parts and not much masking!

Len, nice job on the Patton. I need to learn some of those weathering techniques. As to the wrist, still waiting to hear on the referral to the specialist. Seems there was a delay in the accident report getting to the workman's comp insurance people. I am becoming convinced they may be right, considering how much it aches right now. I'm supposed to be wearing my splint 24/7, but I take it off to shower, do dishes, etc. I dread the idea of having a cast if it comes to that and how it's going to affect my ability to do hobby work, let alone other day to day things. That I won't be able to remove. The last time I had a cast is when I was 15 going on 16 (same arm, . Delayed getting my drivers license by an additional 4 months! At that age, 4 months seems like an eternity! Might try some work on the Tiger tomorrow, as I think I need to put the splint back on. I'm a bit sore after working all day.

I stopped and got one of those foam pads for the bed, as the reason I could not sleep on it was that it is just too firm. I think the ribs have healed enough, that with the pad (and meds) I might be able to sleep on it for the first time in two weeks. Looking forward to that, but there is a delay.... no point in tearing the bed apart and putting the dirty linens back on. Wash time! Good thing I'm off tomorrow!

Ken, I wanted to ask you something so check your PM.

Jim

Just a brief update: a bit more sanding where those nubs came off and started repainting of the turret. Still the dark tan to go.

jimbot58

Just a brief update: a bit more sanding where those nubs came off and started repainting of the turret. Still the dark tan to go.

Great job Jim!      I can't tell that those nubs were ever there! 

Ken

I think I'm ready to wrap up the painting phase here:

It's hard to see, but I did the darker tan, plus touched up some of the green that I wasn't satisfied with. I'll probably throw on a protective coat before moving on to washes and details like that shovel.

I also went cross town, first off to do a dry run to where I have to go Monday for my wrist appointment, and it was very close to my LHS. Unfortunately, something followed me home from the hobby shop:

Figured I needed some type of Panzer to with the King Tiger and the Panther I already built:

And the Tiger I already had:

And the Sherman:

Don't know much about Sherman tanks- is this supposed to me a 105mm Howitzer on this version?

I also ran across this: Testors Enamel Stain? i brought a bottle home to see what it was.

Child safety cap, AND a plastic plug in the mouth of the bottle?

I destroyed the plug removing it, but it seems it is nothing more (to me) than thinned paint you can use as a wash. Comes in 2 colors of rust, black, brown and an oil and grease color. Maybe I should have picked up the brown and black to try out on the Tiger....

Jim

Hi Jim,

Nice job with the darker tan.      You are right, if you hadn't pointed it out, I wouldn't have seen it right off.  Excellent work!

Nice score on the new tank!  After you build your shelf of tanks you will need your tank destroyers to go with them like the Stukas, P-47 Thunderbolts, and Hawker Hurricanes!

Ken

Son Of Medicine Man

Hi Jim,

Nice job with the darker tan.      You are right, if you hadn't pointed it out, I wouldn't have seen it right off.  Excellent work!

Nice score on the new tank!  After you build your shelf of tanks you will need your tank destroyers to go with them like the Stukas, P-47 Thunderbolts, and Hawker Hurricanes!

Ken

Working.....

The P-47D on the left is a Hasegawa kit and the incomplete JU-87 G-1 is an old Fujimi kit. I sort of abandoned it and now the problem is that I used the old Floquil Military paints, now out of production, and I would probably need to repaint to complete it- I'm sure MM paints would not be a exact match. Up close, you would see the P-47 suffers from decal silvering as it was one of my first efforts. (Yes, that is one of the gear doors lying there I need to fix.)

Also in the stash:

I think I picked this up from either SB or Squadron when they had some sort of special on Airfix kits.

My collection is lacking in UK aircraft, and there is but a single Spitfire in the stash.

I did manage some time at the bench. I clear coated the Tiger so I can apply washes and then I plan to paint the details. There are also some other detail parts yet to be installed. Sorry no WIP photo for this.

Since I want it to dry/cure for a few days I turned to the Growler. Added a wash to the wheel bays:

Maybe a bit on the messy side for me, but I guess the idea is that it is not a factory fresh, just off the show room floor and actually in service. Plus a little detail painting here and there still to be done. Couldn't find any good reference photos so I'll just have to wing it.

Also did a bit of painting on the upper surface. I need to get the windscreen mounted, which means I will also need to mount the itty-bitty, teeney-tiny, eensey-weensey, itsy-bitsy, wee little HUD display. I can barely see it as it is...

I better hit it as it's up early to go see the the hand Doctor in the morn. Wish me luck!

Jim

jimbot58

Son Of Medicine Man

Hi Jim,

Nice job with the darker tan.      You are right, if you hadn't pointed it out, I wouldn't have seen it right off.  Excellent work!

Nice score on the new tank!  After you build your shelf of tanks you will need your tank destroyers to go with them like the Stukas, P-47 Thunderbolts, and Hawker Hurricanes!

Ken

Working.....

The P-47D on the left is a Hasegawa kit and the incomplete JU-87 G-1 is an old Fujimi kit. I sort of abandoned it and now the problem is that I used the old Floquil Military paints, now out of production, and I would probably need to repaint to complete it- I'm sure MM paints would not be a exact match. Up close, you would see the P-47 suffers from decal silvering as it was one of my first efforts. (Yes, that is one of the gear doors lying there I need to fix.)

Also in the stash:

I think I picked this up from either SB or Squadron when they had some sort of special on Airfix kits.

My collection is lacking in UK aircraft, and there is but a single Spitfire in the stash.

Nice looking Thunderbolt and Stuka there Jim!

I like the Stuka.  I have one in my stash as well.  It is the Revell 1/48 Junkers Ju 87 D Stuka.  It will be one of those kits I will build strictly out of the box when I build it.

Ken

jimbot58

I did manage some time at the bench. I clear coated the Tiger so I can apply washes and then I plan to paint the details. There are also some other detail parts yet to be installed. Sorry no WIP photo for this.

Since I want it to dry/cure for a few days I turned to the Growler. Added a wash to the wheel bays:

Maybe a bit on the messy side for me, but I guess the idea is that it is not a factory fresh, just off the show room floor and actually in service. Plus a little detail painting here and there still to be done. Couldn't find any good reference photos so I'll just have to wing it.

Also did a bit of painting on the upper surface. I need to get the windscreen mounted, which means I will also need to mount the itty-bitty, teeney-tiny, eensey-weensey, itsy-bitsy, wee little HUD display. I can barely see it as it is...

I better hit it as it's up early to go see the the hand Doctor in the morn. Wish me luck!

Jim

Excellent work on the wheel bays Jim!      I would say it looks just right.  As far as that HUD goes, I don't know how you can do it in 1/72 scale!  You do awesome work for such small work!

Good luck at the doctors today.  I hope you can give us good news tonight!

Ken

Here is a pic for the front page..will have to do for now.

I`m rolling right through my 2nd armor build, a Tamiya Panther Ausf. A. This is a rare Tamiya kit...horrible. The instructions are vague, parts are full of flash and no color call-outs at all. I botched the road wheels so bad that I had to glue them solid...supposed to work but broke the connection points taking the wheels off so many times...had to figure out the "meshed" wheel arrangement on my own. There are gaping holes on the bottom of the hull...looks like for motorization...and no parts to close `em up. Had the same issue on the Patton but didn`t close them on the Panther.

Still...it makes a nice representation, even with all the negative stuff..

Here are some of the "almost" completed model...

Have to finish up with washes and powders and add some fifflies. I used Tamiya OD Green and Flat Brown for the squiggles. Hit it with Future to seal/decal then with flat clear. May do a very limited dot filter too.

Thanks for looking!

Len

Jim: Nice work there on both the Tiger and the Hornet. And yeah the 105mm Sherman is a howitzer version for tossing a low-velocity high explosive shell against infantry and bunkers etc rather than a high-velocity armour piercing anti-tank shell like the 75 and 76mm.

I haven't used the MM wash but I like some of the other brands. I've tried to keep washes around but they always go bad, this pre-mixed stuff is stable so if you just want a little you don't have to mix up an entire batch.

Len: Lol, the Tamiya Panther A is ancient! Dates back to the early '70s I think, their new Panther G is a much, much, much better kit! I built the same Panther A kit  as my second tank  back in the mid '80s- yours looks much better than mine!!!

No news about the wrist. Next stop is an MRI to rule out a fracture. Sure glad this is covered by workmans comp. I'm just getting tired of doctors and nurses....well maybe not the nurses so much...

Hey! I'm in training to be a dirty old man!

Anyway, I tried to relax a bit at  the hobby bench, but this was anything but relaxing, esp. with a bum wrist!

Attached frame for the HUD:

Cut out the clear glass part. Good thing they give you 4 of them: I dropped one, miscut the second, and this is the third, resting on the wing for safe keeping:

In place:

Not perfect, but how much will you see through the windscreen anyway?

I think I strained and sprained several eye muscles putting this together, I better hit the sack!

Hi Len,

The front page has been updated.

Wow, another nice looking tank!  You are really rolling them out!  Almost faster than a regular tank factory!

Ken

jimbot58

No news about the wrist. Next stop is an MRI to rule out a fracture. Sure glad this is covered by workmans comp. I'm just getting tired of doctors and nurses....well maybe not the nurses so much...

Hey! I'm in training to be a dirty old man!

Anyway, I tried to relax a bit at  the hobby bench, but this was anything but relaxing, esp. with a bum wrist!

Attached frame for the HUD:

Cut out the clear glass part. Good thing they give you 4 of them: I dropped one, miscut the second, and this is the third, resting on the wing for safe keeping:

In place:

Not perfect, but how much will you see through the windscreen anyway?

I think I strained and sprained several eye muscles putting this together, I better hit the sack!

Good job Jim on the HUD!  You have great patience and eye sight to get that in there! 

Ken

Yeah, looks good Jim! I usually leave the glass site out to the last thing..... and then lose it too....

HUD looks great in its proper place! It's amazing how much little things like that make a difference. Cliche but true. I agree with Ken on the need for airborne tank killers. My choice would be the Hawker Typhoon, certainly no friend of German panzers!

mikeymize

HUD looks great in its proper place! It's amazing how much little things like that make a difference. Cliche but true. I agree with Ken on the need for airborne tank killers. My choice would be the Hawker Typhoon, certainly no friend of German panzers!

Ok, here is an oddity! I watched "Saving Private Ryan" the other night, and at the end when the advancing tank is destroyed in front of Captain Miller, several things bothered me. First, the tank is hit by something, then a P-51 flies over. Did the bomb arrive before the attacking aircraft? Plus, the soldier attending to Capt. Miller tells him, "They are  P-51 Tank Busters sir!"

P-51 tank busters? Really? First I heard of that! I thought Mustangs were better suited as Bomber escorts and interceptors.  I think Spielberg should have used P-47 Jugs instead...Or perhaps Typhoons as suggested.

jimbot58

mikeymize

HUD looks great in its proper place! It's amazing how much little things like that make a difference. Cliche but true. I agree with Ken on the need for airborne tank killers. My choice would be the Hawker Typhoon, certainly no friend of German panzers!

Ok, here is an oddity! I watched "Saving Private Ryan" the other night, and at the end when the advancing tank is destroyed in front of Captain Miller, several things bothered me. First, the tank is hit by something, then a P-51 flies over. Did the bomb arrive before the attacking aircraft? Plus, the soldier attending to Capt. Miller tells him, "They are  P-51 Tank Busters sir!"

P-51 tank busters? Really? First I heard of that! I thought Mustangs were better suited as Bomber escorts and interceptors.  I think Spielberg should have used P-47 Jugs instead...Or perhaps Typhoons as suggested.

jimbot58

mikeymize

HUD looks great in its proper place! It's amazing how much little things like that make a difference. Cliche but true. I agree with Ken on the need for airborne tank killers. My choice would be the Hawker Typhoon, certainly no friend of German panzers!

Ok, here is an oddity! I watched "Saving Private Ryan" the other night, and at the end when the advancing tank is destroyed in front of Captain Miller, several things bothered me. First, the tank is hit by something, then a P-51 flies over. Did the bomb arrive before the attacking aircraft? Plus, the soldier attending to Capt. Miller tells him, "They are  P-51 Tank Busters sir!"

P-51 tank busters? Really? First I heard of that! I thought Mustangs were better suited as Bomber escorts and interceptors.  I think Spielberg should have used P-47 Jugs instead...Or perhaps Typhoons as suggested.

I have only one answer my friend.  HOLLYWOOD!!  Seldom any research or realism, just make it look good!

Ken