Really nice work, congrads!

Congrats on a fine build!  You had fun, you learned new things, and it all came together nicely.  The mark of a good modeler.

Brian

Very nicely done! I do love the lines of the Pershing.

Well, I have finished the model! I took some much better pictures this time, and tweaked them a bit on the computer to really represent what this thing looks like in real life. The last few really didn't do it justice. Many, many thanks to those who helped me with the oil washes, details, and especially picking up that the view ports were olive drab!

Future would do the same as the clear gloss.  I just don't use Future.

Just did a quick pic of what I did. I used flat black, and then mixed in gloss green until it looked just about right, then put a single coat of that in each slot. Next, I will try and use the gloss clear over it. Here's a question: does anyone think that putting Future over the paint would be more effective than a few coats of clear gloss...or would it be too thick?

No need to mask them off.  I just use a small brush and a steady hand.  It really isn't that hard to do.  Good luck with them.

Thanks guys, I think I will try that out with the view ports. I suppose mask off with tape first and all that. I'll also attempt to take some better lit shots that show off the detail better as well.

I do exactly as Gino does for mine as well.  Don't forget to dust them a tiny bit to take the shine off.  But not too much as the TC would have kept his view ports clean

To replicate the armored glass, first paint them black, then a couple coats of clear green, and a couple coats of clear gloss.  They will look great.  I do all my older armored glass periscopes and vision blocks in this manner.  Good luck on them.

Roy,

You are correct. I only realized later on that that is indeed just what happened. Any ideas for making them stand out? The only thing that I thought of is perhaps some bare metal foil over them at this stage.

It's looking really  nice.  Do you have plans to pick out the oval armored glass windows of the commander's cupola?  They look like they've been overpainted in olive drab.

It looks pretty good to me.  I would not really do anything else to the tracks.  There shouldn't really be any sag in them.  They were live track that is kept under tension and they lay pretty flat.

For the tow cable, you can drybrush it with some steel and then some rust brown to make it stand out a bit more.

I can see some of the washes in the wheels, La Porta--it looks good, and an improvement from the previous photos, as you said. It's hard to see the rest of the ones on the hull, but if you're happy with it and you have learned a new technique, that's the whole purpose reason we're here!

After working on some of the pinwash and overall dirtying of the model (Thanks for the tips, Doog), I have come to a spot where I like the model. It is somewhat hard to see the effects in the pictures, but it is more pronounced in real life. Compare it to the previous pictures, and I think that there really is a noticeable difference. All I have left is the rear tail reflector, and soot over the exhaust. Also, I am thinking of gluing down the tracks to the upper return wheels to create a more "sagged" look. I also would appreciate some feedback on how to better make the rear tow cable stand out, if anyone has some suggestions. Comments always appreciated.

I use the circle template. Makes painting wheels a breeze. They are hard to find though.

Nice Tip!

And to add to pin washes, if you do them over gloss coat, the lines will be sharper and cleaner. I do the decals and pin washes over Future then spray clear acrylic flat over and continue  with the dot and overall washes to darken or to tone down the scheme. The flat will give the dot and regular wash more teeth into the finish.

Love the photo with the road wheels all lined up ready for inspection!  Nice work.  Oops, there were two more pages...I hate it when I miss that...did/does anyone experience bleed over when using a circle template to mask road wheels? 

Side note: I used my little taig lathe to true road wheels for my Tamiya M4A3, they're true now, and about 2\3rds the original diameter...what a Homer! Doh!

La Porta

Doog,

 I am very interested in pinwashes, however, I haven't found any great illustrations or instructions as to how to actually do them.

Pin washes are easy. YOu just need a fine brush--like an "00", and some oil or enamel paint and paint thinner.

The process is very simple. Thin your paint until it's the consistency of milk. Take some into the brush, and apply it carefully into all the lines and crevices of your model, as well as around hatches, nut and bolt heads, anywhere that a dark shadow would normally be seen in the tank. Pay attention to any hull lines, around collars like on the gun barrel, etc. See the photo below. And don't worry if the paint gets "outside the lines". Since you're working with paint thinner, just wait for the wash to dry and then use a thinner-soaked brush to gently clean off the dried wash. You can reduce the imparted shadows away to very fine shadows in this manner.

Good luck!

wbill76

Rob's idea is a good one. You can also get a draftsman's circle template and use it to 'mask' the rims and spray the hubs. Think of it as masking in reverse...paint the rubber portions, then use the circle template to expose only the hubs and paint them that way.

Doog,

I appreciate the comments. This has been my first venture with a double action airbrush; on my next armor model (a Sherman), I think that I will be a little more adventurous. I'm still a bit afraid of "overdoing it" with the lighter shading, but perhaps you guys could give me some pointers on it. Also, I am very interested in pinwashes, however, I haven't found any great illustrations or instructions as to how to actually do them. You are correct in that I am basically at that point, so I would appreciate any guidance that you may have in that area.

Real men paint their road wheels one-by-one, with a brush. (joke!!)

Looks great so far--I would recommend painting it with some shading/lightening coats, paying attention to lightening the top portions with lightened base coat color. You'll get a nice graduated paint finish instead of a monotone finish that never looks right to me "in scale".

*EDIT* geez, I didn't realize you'd gotten that far in the latest posts. Oh well, the painting is finished I see. It looks pretty good anyway. Get some pinwashes along the details now to gveit smoe definition. and you should b egood to go.

Looking very good. You can also use a #2 pencil to touch up all the wear points in the track. The graphite gives it a realistic metal shade. You can also dry brush dark steel to simulate the contact areas.

Looking real good!!!

Sorry that it has been a very long time, but it's been very busy here and it has taken me a while to be able to get this far. I used the old dry-brushing technique to highlight detail (first time I have ever done this), and it looks to me like it has worked pretty well. The tracks were done with raw umber paint, burnt sienna oil wash, and various metalizers on the cleats and track ends. In the latter pictures, you can see that I have practically all of the pieces assembled, so now it will be off to weathering and detailing!

Any questions or suggestions, just let me know!

This is The original poster here. I will be using this name from now on (linked to my subscription), but the next post will be from the old name. Stay tuned!

I checked my stash, the Stowage kit was from Trakz-VLS, (TX0021) no pics sorry.  

Couple more pics  

My Mk2 effort below,  sculpting with Plasticine, & plastic strip added round the edge for the poppers strip.

Not happy with it, & hit on idea of foil over the TWS form. Live & learn.

Consider a mantlet cover & stowage.

Most photos of this I've seen have had a mantlet cover, even straight out of the factory.

I bought a TMD one, but that is for the dragon kit only (didn't say so on the pack),

So I used it as a form to drape some aluminium foil from a butter-type spread, then 'fettled 'it to fit.

I also have a resin stowage kit at the UK IPMS Nats in Milton Keynes, for the long roll often seen on the starboard side & to fill the starboard rack on the turret, (wasn't this for the foul weather hood stowage??)

I bought the Aber etch set for this, but as Rob G notes, this is a fine kit, & I didn't see the need to use any of it.

I'll need to check to see if I have pics of my mantlet cover & the mfr of the stowage