Hi guys,
Thanks again for all the comments. It's great to be back working on some armor! Sorry that the update has taken so long, but I had some work to do in New York, and was traveling...but I've still been working away.
I started the re-paint by putting down a base coat of flat black. This is to ensure shadows to the final paint finish.
Next, the Panzer Grey from Tamiya was put down in first an un-tinted coat straight from the bottle, and then lightened with both White and a little bit of Flat Blue, and the panels highlighted using masks ad blocks to allow shadows in the lower panels and recesses. All painting was done spraying from "above" so as to leave "shadows".
Now, all of that will next be covered in Dark Yellow, then hair-sprayed to make for a well-abused "top coat" over an old Panzer Grey base. The turret, however, was repainted in Dark Green--Tamiya "JA Green" for a different hue which I imagine would be close to the newly-proposed DG in late 1945. This was also painted in the "Modulation" style, meaning adding lighter tones and airbrushing them onto the higher parts from above to leave shadows. Masking and careful angles also help in this technique.
And speaking of DY--Tamiya's DY, straight from the can...the lower hull was left unpainted, as I wanted to show a field-painted vehicle, on top of the field-applied zimm.
The lightening treatment was given here too, lightened with White and a smidge of Yellow. The sides were not painted, but left in "dark" DY. Again, everything was painted "from above" so as to leave shadows and highlights.
Next, Tamiya's "Field Grey" was used to put down a "Panzer Green" camo pattern. The engine shields were then masked and painted in Steel to set them up for a good rusting. 
Where I was at this point...
OK--skip ahead a bit. Sorry, but I didn't get this on film--trying to make up for time lost..
. But I coated the whole vehicle with hair spray, and then wet the model with water and started to scratch and remove the paint to show a heavily-weathered old vehicle hull brought in from the front to be used as an ersatz carrier for the Coelian turret. I mostly weathered only the tops of the hull panels, as I didn't want to yet "wear through" the sides where the zimm was, because it would be "Grey" and that would look really weird. I'll add "zimm weathering" later.
The turret has not been addressed yet...
The wheels got the same Hairspray treatment.
And here's where I am at this point...I"m starting to see the narrative emerge in the paint now.
Next up--a LOT of subtle and careful oil weathering/tinting ala' Mike Rinaldi, as well as detail painting. I should have that in the next update, and then I'll really start in with the overall weathering--filters and such,...
All comments and queries welcomed!
Thanks for looking in, guys!