FINISHED! Page 7-the doog's BEST? Sdkfz 251/17 Ausf. D w/2cm Schwebelafette

That camouflage....................... is extremely well done doog; good skill here with an airbrush. The wheels turned out equally well too.

 As far as the two links disappearing? Well, it's the darkside working here I guess. 

Hey Karl sorry to chime in late. I got sick after Christmas and January is kinda a blur!  Some Assembly Required (Hans Look a like) Cued me in that your working on this!  I am glad he did! Your rolling right along. I have been working on a 251/10 over yonder so this is right on time!

Up to all the usual tricks and extremely excellent results!  You da man!

What?! Not done yet?! I was gone all weekend I expected you to be onto a new build...

I think this look too realistic... if you put any people in there, they better be able to move around and carry on conversations with eachother in German or it'll ruin the effect.

I think the camo job is my favorite part- thanks for all the info on these 251 patterns, maybe I've just been a really good airbrusher all along and never knew it! haha

Can't wait to see the big gun in there and this thing wrapped up.

Thanks, Geist, Robert, and Steve! I appreciate your comments!

Aaron; I hope you're doing better? Thanks for looking in, and for uyour comments! 

Chris, it'll be another day or so yet--I'm hoping tohave this one wrapped by Thursaday or so...got a little bit o'inspiration the other day....

Thanks again, guys! 

doog: Take a breather MAN!  I thought I was on a building frenzy, you're cranking them out at biffa speed!

Again with the primer red!...perfect this time.  The way that little compartment door is open adds real interest and the red compliments the other colors too...nicely done.  I know you haven't added the chips yet, but make sure to add a few on this same door on the inside edges.

EDIT:  Was that common that the storage boxes were left primered?  I've got a 251 Stuka Zu Fuss on deck and would love to try that!

The back left tail light assembly is a bit clean in comparison to the rest of the vehicle...take another look.

Great camo' scheme doog, look forward to seeing her finished!

Steve, thanks for the voteof confidence! I know you'd tell it like it is for sure! LOL! I'll check that back area; glad you like the red shade this time too! It's my Tamiya acrylic mix, not the MIG oil; I didn't want to paint the whole part there in oil paints!

I would think that since the boxes weren't meant to be left opened, they wouldn't waste paint painting the base color over it? It seems to me that some "hidden" areas of German vehicles were often left in Primer Red. In any case, it adds visual interest like this, IMO--and besides, on some photos where the boxes are opened, it appears to me that they're of a darker color than the base, so....?

Thanks again for your comments!

Andy--thanks, too! If I'm using a method similar to yours, then I know that at least I must be doing something right!

And thanks, too, dupes, and James!

Hey, thanks, Josiah! Nice of you to look in and comment--I don't remember seeing you over here that much; I appreciate you looking in!

Ron, thanks so much! I do appreciate the compliments! (You're no slouch yourself! )

 Doog! she's one rad looking piece of armor! Man you've got guts to put her through the ringer like that! Is she going in a "DIO"? RADICAL!!!

                                                                doc

the doog wrote:

Hey, thanks, Josiah! Nice of you to look in and comment--I don't remember seeing you over here that much; I appreciate you looking in! Ron, thanks so much! I do appreciate the compliments! (You're no slouch yourself! )

Yeah, well, this semester has got me off Finescale for the most part, gotta keep them grades up, lol.

Thanks, doc! No dio, just a display model! I'm runing out of room in my display case!

Well, gentlemen; here it is; I present what I believe is my best work yet. I'm quite happy with the way the finish o this has turned out. For my first halftrack, I'd say it came out pretty well. I also have to add that it has been among the most challenging of builds that I've done! Enough talk---here she is!

First, just to finish the detailing  processes, I added the front track links to the front with woven threads of stretched sprue--this took the better part of three hours.Heat and stretch. Sew. 'SNAP!'...grumble...Heat. Streeeetch. Sew....'SNAP!'.....AAAARGGH!!! Heat. ..strreeeeeetch...LOL!----anyhoo, I finally got it right!

Painted....

And here is the finished product!

Interior details:

Ecki is a old salt; a surviving member of the Blitzkrieg, who has found the Sdkfz251, and has decided to man it as an outpost, choosing to wait for reinforcements (Hans, Franz, and Jens) to man the beast and take it into battle! He holds the MG for insurance against an approching hoard...

"I'm jus' waitin' on a fray-ee-yend!" LOL!

Some of the side panels details...

That's a lantern in there, with a folding shovel..

Ecki contemplates a grim future....

BUT NOT ME!!! Here's what's already up on the bench--a 1/144 dio of the K5E Leopold, with some guarding escorts--a Nashorn, and PzIV-F2. The base is already up on the display case here--this is great, because I can put this somewhere without dust getting in it, and still save space in my display cases! (Uh, obviously, it won't have the "NASCAR" base there! LOL!)

Thanks for everybody's enthusiastic support of this thread! Comments and questions are, as always, welcomed and appreciated!  doog

Karl,

I would have to agree with your assessment, this is your best work yet. Getting stretched sprue to wind/sew like you did must certainly have  been an exercise in patience but it paid off beautifully with the painted result. Love all the little details on the interior...what did you use for the little boxes/cartons? Scratch-built or did you scrounge those from some other source?

wbill76 wrote:

Karl, I would have to agree with your assessment, this is your best work yet. Getting stretched sprue to wind/sew like you did must certainly have  been an exercise in patience but it paid off beautifully with the painted result. Love all the little details on the interior...what did you use for the little boxes/cartons? Scratch-built or did you scrounge those from some other source?

Yeah, I nearly tore my hair out with that sprue-thread! LOL!

Those are a Hudson and Allen product. They come just like Verlinden's venerable "C-Rations boxes" and the like--you cut 'em out, fold 'em up, glue them...They're called "German Ammo and Supply Boxes Set 2".

Extremely well done...Sprue thread? My God...what a cool idea and execution of it...

Turned out top-notch; 5-stars; two thumbs up; etc...Your best? Well, I still feel your "Horny-Z" is your best work to date, with this beast coming in at 2nd...your style has definately solidified and matured over your past few builds, IMO...I think your weathering technique, while heavy, has matured closer to a compromise of artistic interpretation and realism (yes, that is a compliment---lol)...

By the way, your idlers may be a tad too high? I noticed it particularly when you (rightly so) pointed out mine was not off-set enough (too low)...lol...

OUTSTANDING!!! ...great fig as well...

now I can't ever hope to build a halftrack...

This looks unbelievable!! You did such a nice job, even on the figure!

I think your next work has a pretty interesting bit of groundwork

Karl that is Beautiful,Amazing and looks real.WOW and Double Wow!!!!!!!

Youve done it the way i like them

Youve gotta be proud of that

I know i said it before but that is very similler to the finnish i achieved on my Halftrack but also its completely different if that makes sense. Its the sort of build where you can just sit down and stare at it for hours and not get bored, My mrs thinks im mad when i do that

Thanks so much, Manny! I do appreciate your thoughtful comments! I do like the Nashorn as well, but think I outdid myself on this finish--maybe it's just because it's NOT a "tank"?! Something different? In any case, I think you may have a valid point on the idler, but I attached it precisely as it was in the directions--even double-checked it, so I thik that maybe what we see in photos and on vehicles in the field is what happens when the suspension compresses, or the tracks sink into the ground a little bit--I think it would make the idler look like it sits lower? Oh well; can't do anything about it now, but I'll file it away for next time!

Thanks, too, Chris, and psiscw! The new project will indeed be a bit of challenge, to accurately do the groundwork! I appeciate your comments!

*edit*--OOPS, Andy--we posted on top of each other! Thanks for the big "thumbs-up"! Always good to get a ringing endorsement from a felllow "weatherhead"!

Speechless here, just brilliant work Karl. All I can say is " Yes this is your best work yet", congrats on a brilliant job.

I think I read that you were expecting to finish around thursday, I'm glad it was now, Thursday is " Beer Night", I'm delighted you finished early.

Terry.

I'll never get that good if folks keep encourageing you cause you just keep gettin better.

I've one question: Just how did you get that uniform to look like it's really made of wool??????

Tone the Mutt

Pvt Mutt wrote:

I've one question: Just how did you get that uniform to look like it's really made of wool??????

Thanls so much, guys! Terry, Marc, Tony, I genuinely appreciate all your comments!

The figure's clothing was just painted in Tamiya Field Grey (the same used for the camo color) mixed with craft store tan and a dark middle-gray. I added shading or highlights by varying the amount of each, washed it with Raw Umber, and then simply gave it a light dusting of MIG's "Rubbel Dust"--that really gave it the "woolen" appearance. To be honest, it was quite a nice surprise for me--I didn't expect it to turn out that cool! The figure is one of DML's "Artillery crew" set for the big K5E "Leopold". Kinda a rough face, but prefect for a grizzled old coot like Ecki!

Speaking of that Leopold model, Andy; I'd be intimidated by the size too--but I would live to see what a modeler of your calibre could do with it!

Sprue thread and MIG rubble dust.

Amazing                                                                                                                         Tony