Progress has been slow due to a variety of non-model related activities/events interfering with my bench time but I was able to get in more time this weekend and keep this one moving forward. Life has a tendency to do that from time to time!
Picking up from the last installment, I worked on the lower hull weathering first. I added some chipping/scuffing/wear to the lower hull, road wheels, idlers, and sprockets by taking a round 0 sable brush and stippled some MM enamel Burnt Umber onto the desired surfaces. The key with this technique is to treat the brush as if you were going to dry-brush with it and instead of using flat strokes, use a stippling/stabbing motion and let the randomness of the bristles create the desired pattern. This was followed by an overall MM enamel Raw Umber wash to blend it in with the base color and also to tone down the bare metal surfaces I'd created earlier. Since the base coat had cured thoroughly over the last couple of weeks, there was no need to seal the surfaces prior to applying the wash although I did have to exercise care in terms of not letting it build up too heavily in the process. All of this creates a foundation for additional weathering still to come in the form of pigments down the road.
With that out of the way, it was time to seal in the rest of the base coat with an overall coat of acrylic Future floor polish. Even though the enamel work there has thoroughly cured just like the lower hull, the application of filters/washes still to come will be more aggressive in terms of the use of thinner and scrubbing so the paint still needs protection against that. While many often describe Future as a gloss coat, it's actually not a true gloss as it creates it's own tooth/texture when applied in light mist coats vs. heavy wet coats.
The kit decal markings were applied to create # 323 with the sHPzJgAbt 654 as per the instruction marking sheet. The decals were treated with Walther's Solvaset solution to insure they snugged down tight. Once the decals were thoroughly dry, a 2nd coat of Future was applied to seal and protect them as well from the follow-on weathering process.
Time didn't permit me to get to the weathering stages just yet but I did work on one of the other remaining details, the tow cables and the small track changing cable. The kit supplies braided steel wire of different diameters for both of these items but it's got a lot of tension in it and is very "springy" as a result. Braided copper would be a better option IMHO but DML insists on using steel for some reason. The kit instructions in Step 17 show how the large tow cables should be positioned but doesn't provide any guidance as to the needed length, so I had to test fit multiple times to figure it out. You get a good bit more wire than you need to create both cables which is good as it's tough to cut the stuff cleanly and still be able to fit it into the styrene cable ends. I used CA gel to insure they wouldn't separate and, due to the tension, it's again critical that you not make the mistake of attaching both ends the same way...you need to orient the ends so that they will lay properly with one vertical for the hull side end and one horizontal for the rear deck end.
The smaller diameter wire provided for the track changing cable is totally inadequate. It has a lot more spring to it and doesn't take kindly to being wound tightly like you need for this one to be mounted properly on the hull side holder/rack. I decided to replace it entirely with 0.010" waxed ship rigging thread which is a perfect match for the diameter of the holes on the kit-provided cable ends for this item.
While I'm not permanently installing the tow cables or track-change cable until after the weathering is done, it was necessary to tweak them to insure they could install properly when the time comes. I used small amounts of blue-tack putty to hold the ends in place on the rear engine deck and used a combination of tweezers and needle nose pliers to gently shape/curve the cables into the desired position and orientation. Here again the choice of steel vs. a more malleable/adjustable material like copper made things a challenge but eventually I got it done.
The cables will get removed and painted separately now that they are in the proper shape and installation will come after the weathering to allow for easier access to the hull side and engine deck areas for that process.