Don: Magnificent work! I love everything about yuor Pz.III. The weathering is simply amazing!

Mike: Coming along nicely!

Bish

.SMJ, so far I have only used the streaking grime from AK, I have never thinned them, I have not read that you need to. I'm about to use the DAK wash and filters, I was planning on using them as they come. Would you suggest thinning those.

Bish: YES,  I would thin them.  For a filter effect (using AK's many wash products/colors) I thin to about 1:6 ratio, using mineral spirits.  For an overall wash I go about 1:4.  For a pin wash, at a blot/ rivet for example,  I'll dab on a tiny bit un-diluted.

AK filter effects may already be thinner than their wash effects...but I'd still err on the side of caution and dilute it.  You can always re-mix and reapply

Thanks for the advice. I was planning on adding the filter neat, and then going over it with white spirits to remove excess. I am doing a large scale 88 and there's some un seen areas I can use to test it on, I think I might go for my original idea and what you just suggested. This will all be good practice for when I get to my Pz III.

Thunderbolt379

The third pic didn't post -- that's been happening a bit lately...

M/TB379

Now that  is looking really sharp!

An extra detail you can add is whitewalls to the tires.  This was done out in the field, to protect the rubber from the blazing sun.    Depending on your taste for historical accuracy, check references though for your particular aircraft.

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Don, Pz III looks awesome!  Will you be doing anything extra to the sandbag colour to make them stand out from the vehicle?

regards,

Jack

SMJmodeler

pordoi:  She's looking good to me!...I don't think the finish is too dark, did you end up trying to lighten it up with washes?  BTW:  I gotta' try that pre-shading technique!

Sorry, I neglected to say how I did the weathering.  First step was to blend in the camo and try to lighten the overall tone of the model.  This was done with a mist coat of diluted Tamiya Buff (XF-57) with a few drops of the base coat added in.  Base coat was a mix of Tamiya Dark Yellow (XF-60), Desert Yellow (XF-59), and Deck Tan (XF-55) mixed at a ratio of 4:4:3 based on an online recipe to make RAL8020 from Tamiya acrylics.  Since Buff is lighter than the base coat, the overall effect of the mist coat was to slightly lighten the base.  It also creates a look of a dusty surface.  Additional wear/chipping was done by dabbing Panzer Gray with a stiff short bristle brush on areas that would be most exposed.  Final step was to weather with MIG Gulf War Sand pigment suspended in water and brushed on.  Once dry, excess pigment was brushed off then fixed with a light misting of Mig's Pigment Fixer.

Don

working on the winch cable using cable i got from parts box. i fit the 6lb at gun on the bed where it fit before everything was glued and painted and now it doesn't. i am debating breaking and moving some mounts or may just have it have winched off the back in a little being overrun vingnette. so decided to get first wash on gun. going to powder it now and call it done then look at cargo bed and decide.

well that was fun.finally got the cab and cargo bed secured. only broke the same drive shaft for the 4th time, knocked off 2 storage boxes and a front tire oh and broke the tierod and inhaled to much cya fumes.  did finacle the gun onto the cargo bed. now to decide if i want it there or in a frantic part way off the truck abandoned position which may be more of a story though i may need a body or a couple of DAK figures

jgeratic

Don, Pz III looks awesome!  Will you be doing anything extra to the sandbag colour to make them stand out from the vehicle?

Jack, I hadn't planned on it.   I attempted to depict a burlap-like color and am happy with the result.  But I do see your point that everything seems a bit monotone in some of the photos.  I think that in part, the photos don't show the range of color that is evident by the eye.  The pigment weathering for example is more obvious to me than it is in the images.  But then, monotone probably wasn't a bad thing for these vehicles in the desert. 

Wayne:  looks like you having fun!!  Sounds like a faulty drive shaft to me; probably the subject of a future recall.    If I was in your position, I would need to step back and take a few deep breaths.  But soldier on and keep up the good work.

TB379:  awesome work  Wish that I could get panel lines like that...

Don

Thanks, pordoi -- they're a combination of Flory washes, Dark Dirt for the underside, Black for the top, over/sealed with Microscale Satincoat.

The 109 is in final stages right now, The prop is on, I just did the MiG pigments work for dust on the tires and the exhaust/gun staining. next up, pitot and radio mast, then fabricate the wire using Ezy-line (not that I find it easy!)

Gallery pics hopefully later today/

M/TB379

Oh, Jack -- re the whitewalls. The Eduard set has masks for them but my research suggests Shroer's plane didn't have those tyres (Marseilles' did.) Similarly, there are four tiny intakes around the nose end and it seems some production blocks had them and others didn't, and from what I've seen so far Shroer's didn't -- so I left them off. I might be wrong on both counts, of course!

M/TB379

Right, guys, I'm calling her done, sure there's places where she's a tad below par, and a few tiny jobs I might have got to, but at this point she's ready for the display case. The dusty landing gear doesn't show through all that much...  Hasegawa 1:48 Bf 109 F-4, Hauptman Werner Shroer, JG-27, 1942. Here's the evidence -- all comments welcome!

Mike, this is a fine study of the Friedrich in desert colours.  I can't see anything specific that needs further tending to - well done!

regards,

Jack

Wayne: The gun looks great! Hate to hear that you ended up damaging the lorry mounting it though. Looking forward to photos when you get her repaired.

Don: Thanks for the write-up on how you weathered your panzer. I need to file that away for when I do another desert camo vehicle.

Mike: Beautiful work there! If there is anything off I don't see it, great job on the paint, decals, weathering, just superb job all around!  

none of the damage was severe on the BEDFORD and it's already repaired. more lessons learned on doing wheels over tracks such as leave whhels off until the end and really study the instructions to see what hangs on cargo and can beds and what hangs on outside of frame. of course now one wheel doesn't sit with the other 3 but i was going to put t on a base anyway so i can "fix" that. lots of touch up painting but getting better at sanding down runs w/o having to repaint. hope to have most of the truck together today and sketch oyt vingnette. Lord knows i have enough scrap wood for bases for the next 20 years.

Mike thats just a beautiful job all the way around. I especially love the desert brown with the pre shading.

Just awesome.  

Mike, now that's a sweet looking 109. Great work.

Thanks, guys! It was a lot of fun to start and finish a project in just 18 days, and great to see it come together more or less as intended. She looks proud in the display case!

Eric, thanks for letting wings into a tracks GB!

Cheers, Mike/TB379

Thunderbolt379:  That is one sweeeeeeeeeeet looking airplane!  I love the custom color blend, I'd describe her as "crisp" and or "tight".  Well done!!!!

...but I have to say, the dirty wheels look a bit "off"....and I can't quite figure out why...hmmm...maybe it's the color...a bit too brownish?.   How about a black/graphite wash...brake dust???  Drybrush on the rubber?

take a second look......maybe it's just me.

Thanks SMJ! The idea with dusting the wheels is to reflect the terrain they're operating from, so desert dust was the brief -- to me they don't look quite sandy enough!

M/Tb379

Thunderbolt, that's truly beautiful work!  You achieved magnificence.  It looks REAL!

Mike, thanks for the addition of a 109 in desert scheme. A nice change of pace to the GB and quite appropriate. Well done sir.

Many thanks, Valkyrie and Tigerman! I had a blast!

M/TB379

TB/379

Very nice work on the trop 109.  Comforting to know that all of the 4-, 6-, 8-rad and tracked vehicles being built have some air support!

Here is my completed PzIIIJ...., just pics with little commentary.

Still deciding whether to mount this on a base with a figure or two, so maybe not really completed...

... modeled as one of the early 50mm L/60 tanks delivered to Rommel;  didn't last too long since this is apparently how she ended up at Tobruk in 1942...

Don

nice work on the PZ-III and the 109 guys.

my truck is at the fiddley pieces stage; doing the weapons and tools and various little pieces i always leave off until the very end such as MIRRORS. also haven't decided on windshiel up with top or folded doen and top rolled up. for the cargo bed may make a tissue tarp or try another draped camp netwill have pics later. life caught up with me the past couple of days plus i will need some advice on how this is going to sit finished. it will be on a base as one wheel is 1mm too high unless i weigh down the vehicle and it will probably have to go in IPMS vignette, not guns as the base will be more than a piece of wood and a bit of sand. my 2 options (it is a portee) are

1. gun is loaded so everything is within the truck or

2. gun is 3/4 off the rear ramps, equipment strewn around like it was hastily abandoned or overrun. may add a body and a dak soldier or 2 depending on what is oin the stash.

Don, that looks great. Defiantly deserves a base.

Ok, I got my Commando Carro back on the workbench again today. Since I was having such problems with my Polly Scale Italian Sand Yellow, I decided to try a new approach. I airbrushed the whole thing with Humbrol Light Yellow, a VERY smililar color.  After it has dried I will give a top coat of teh Polly Scale color to get the right shade in a much easier manner. Photos in the next few days.

i have crossed over into anal. was looking at the load plan, which is for the truck BIT NOT the portee version, imagining me as the gun crew chief in an army that probably allows more "creativity" than the british army back home and i said to myself "self we need more water and a spare tire would be nice especially if i am swanning around in the desert.. given i have a gun in the cargo bed that has to be unloaded and i am in good with the RSM what would i do?"

so now i am building racks for additional 5gal water cans, perhaps stolen from jerry, a spare tire and personal weapons

so i just build and primed racks for all of that

Don (pordoi) - a real fine job on the pz.III

The sandbags seem to stand out a bit more, did you do something extra since your last set of in progress pics?  It would be great to see this on a base, and maybe even a figure or two if you've the time.

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Wayne - came across this, special just for you:

Note the mention of the locker underneath the body, more scratch building for you?

regards,

Jack

hey jack

(note never say Hi Jack in an airport. bah dum dum). cool thanks

this is the portee kit sans gun (vendor buy) so one would think it would have the storage lockers but alas no. just went to the bunker and checked. i could do it but it would be tight, partially sticking out the back, and i would probably break something. plus there is no room for the "ladder" between the 2 ramps (which i could tie to the sides).

just tried putting the gun shooting off the back. i could do that but the 2 parts for the trail when shooting forward would have to be removed. and it's tto late for that. only 2 seats in back but 2 in cab so that's good.

there is a chain  by the trails so i could put the gun in travel and twrap the chain around it. have the winch handles and haven't decided but leaning towards windscreen folded down and wrapped in canvas and cab top rolled up and stuffed behind. and there are only 2 ammo boxes thoiugh i could fit a couple more in if i wanted.

the only difficulty with the gun partially of is attaching the hook to the cable.

my friend yhinks thinking of a real load plan and all this extra work is "amazing." i told him it's just normal modeling, at least for the guys i hang out with.

jgeratic

Don (pordoi) - a real fine job on the pz.III

The sandbags seem to stand out a bit more, did you do something extra since your last set of in progress pics?  It would be great to see this on a base, and maybe even a figure or two if you've the time.

Something different?  Yes, I added a third light at camera level  when I photographed the finished model.  The more uniform lighting probably shows the model more like it really looks to the eye.  And you and Bish have twisted my arm to mount this on a base with a fig or two, not that I really needed that much convincing.  Might be a while though, since I'm off to Poland on business for a week or two.  Leaving this week and will try to keep current on the GB.

Wayne:  We need pics, buddy!  Take some shots and post them

Don