Looking better and better! I think I mentioned it before but I'll say again I love the texture there on the turret.

So while KC was puttin' the whup on SF last night, I modeled, listening for the high spots......

I added the rest of the spare track mounts on the turret left side, then, based on a pic I have of T-26E1, serial #1, I put the drivers' hood basket on the turret right side. Still going from pics here.....

I have the bits to make the correct gun travel lock, and if I can find them, the mounts for it I made up last week....

Dan & RBaer: Those look great guys!

Dan, I wonder if Dragon will ever get around to fixing that issue with the final drives. Other than that, they're great kits.

So while I was waiting for paint to dry on a Sherman, I did  a little more work on the "Super".  To finish the hull, I added tow cable brackets, which I now realize may have to come back off, don't have a pic of the Super with a tow cable. Hmmm.  I then went to the turret, and add spare track links as carried by this one-off and a few  other bits and bobs, finished the loader's hatch using Dragon parts, much better that HB here, and a Tasca 50, stowed and locked.

I need to make up a gun travel lock and add the rack on the turret side, and I may be very close to finishing here.

Pics:

Lookin' good there, Dan!

Thanks SchattenSpartan

Thanks jgeratic: Your M5 & Lt. Smith is lookin' good.  Really like the outdoors pose.

Blitzwing: excellent work on your Cromwell!

Modelcrazy: Your sherman looks like it's been through a mud storm, excllent work.

RBaer: Nice work on the M26, been wanting to get one of those. 

shivinigh: Your add on weld seems are interesting, they'll add some good detail.  Nice over all olive drab, I plan to paint in faded olive drab

Had the same problem with my first Sherman kit, the front drive part does not really butt up against the lower hull.  So I used styrene cut to the right length then glued into place with testors cement, then tamiya extra thin.

There's a nice gap all the way around, so I used squadron white putty.

Tools that go on the back have to holes drilled on the inside to drill out, so I made my own.

Then drilled out the holes for the other tools.

Clamped on tamiya's stright guide for glueing tracks up, to hold the end peice stright as the glue was drying.

Have about half the rear end finished.

glad you guys like the Chaffee. I tried fixing the track and found out that the track is sitting right but the sprocket is sitting crooked. tried fixing it and it still looks the same. the back grill I'll have to remember next time about the colour.

Thanks everyone for your input.

Nice Chaffee, and yeah, the tracks should be pretty tight, if you can still do it...

I like the dirt though, and agree with Jack on the engine deck louvers.

Your Chaffee looks really lovely, Shiv! I always had a weakness for that little bugger and you pulled the painting and weathering off perfectly! My only nitpick would be the loose track that Cliff already mentioned.

Shiv - great job with the Chaffee

You really got down the effect of the wet look over dust on the topside of the fenders. 

If I'm allowed to suggest something for the rear deck where the grill work is located.  A much darker wash, even black, would be useful here since it is a shadow/hollow  area.

regards,

Jack

Looks good Shiv!

Shiv: Ohhhh, love how she came out! Love the the faded paint and the mud! If I may nitpick the right side track in the top photo seems to have come up off the drive sprocket. Maybe you could push it back down and glue it?

And I'll admit I did stomp the AT gun carefully though! It was still very good for my stress level....

I would never have though of using a shoe to show something that has been run over. I like it

Well I got my MG mounted and the rest of the weathering done. So here is my M-24 Chaffee done as I hoped it looked in Belgium 1945.

now on to my Stug IV to defend against all this allied armour coming.

Gamera

Felt kinda odd to build a model and then break parts off it and then stomp what's left with my shoe!!!

Now that's an interesting idea to model battle damage!

Shiv: That little Chaffee is coming along nicely!

Raven728

Hi Eagle, I'd like to sign up for this GB if I may. I have an Academy 1/35 M-18 Hellcat that I'm itchin' to get started on.

Hey Raven,

Absolutely you can sign up!  Glad to have you on the GB! 

Eagle90

Hi Eagle, I'd like to sign up for this GB if I may. I have an Academy 1/35 M-18 Hellcat that I'm itchin' to get started on.

Still working on figures and sand bags, here's a photo of the poor Pak 40 AT gun, all smooshed under the Jumbo Sherman. Felt kinda odd to build a model and then break parts off it and then stomp what's left with my shoe!!! 

proceeding with slapping mud on, and getting the fruil tracks ready for some work. I ordered a .50 cal MG from AFV club and hope it arrives in time. Hoping to enter it in a contest just outside of Toronto on the 25 October.

Shiv: Really looks good!

I did get a little work done with the figures on mine done this weekend, not much to photograph though.

Have the base coat and markings on. The star on the back deck I made a mask and airbrushed it. The rest are decals. Also have a couple tarps and a sleeping bag painted.

Now for the fun of weathering.

well I have the majority of the build finished and ready for some paint

after I paint I will put the tools and other goodies on

Shiv, G: thanks.

I've read a little bit about the Super, seems like it only fired it's gun in anger a few times, but with very good results, penetrating it's target at previously unheard-of ranges.  I did read that it took two or three shots at what was probably a Tiger2 before one actually did enough damage to call a kill shot.

Sorry haven't posted in a bit. On my fifth try for the weld seams on my Chaffee. Don't know how you guys make it look so easy but think I finally got it. Using Mr. Surfacer 500 and some masking tape. Liking how it is turning out this time. Will post some pics when finished.

Jack-great job on the stuart. With the landscape photo it is hard to tell that it is a model and not the real thing.

RBaer-your super pershing is coming along nicely. I just watched an episode of greatest tank battles and they showed a super pershing taking on a tiger II. Didn't turn out so well for the tiger.

Dunno know if it's correct or not but it looks pretty darn good from here!

Thanks!

Based on info from another modeler, I've trimmed the front fender braces and shaved off all the air vents on the fender box lids, tiny details but, hey, once I know about it, gotta do it.....

There's just not that much available in the way of pics for this thing, but enough to do a gun cradle, which is next....

Jack: Your Stuart truly is a piece of art! I love how the commander figure adds to an already great build and the grass on the base looks very nice as well!

RBaer: Great progress on the Pershing! Can't wait to see your Sherman!

Thanks, Jack. Beyond my current skill set......

So, I'll be working from a pic in Squadron's Pershing Walk Around book of the Super as it was delivered to the 3rd AD and after they had attached the slab of Panther armor to the mantlet. The pic (Mods, can I post it here if it's for discussion purposes only?) shows the tank without the shroud over the gun equilibirator cylinders, no stowage baskets on the bow or rear fenders, and no bat wing armor on the mantlet.

Here's where I am now:

Welds are from Vallejo putty, easy to do and dries in 20 minutes or so. Also on is the one track tool the Super carried, cupola with vision blocks drilled out and hatch on, and loader's hatch ring.

In some ways, that would be easier, just have to be careful of getting a glare on the background.  You are also limited in adjusting the image size in comparison to the model.  With everything on the computer, it's very easy to shrink or enlarge one or the other.  Actually, my background photo was increase in size by 200%.   I suppose you can print out the background to the required size, but that can eat up a lot of ink.

regards,

Jack

And here I was thinking you put your model and base in front of a poster or something......

Thanks RBaer and silentbob33

To create the first photo, a mask layer was made from one of my Stuart shots.  Basically the photoshop program cuts around the image, which is pretty easy when the background is a single colour, (such as the white here). This tank image was then cut and pasted over top a suitable landscape image. 

There is some manual labour involved with clean up of edges, and I also desaturated the background beforehand, as it was a bit too lively green in the grass areas.

regards,

Jack