Thanks, Bish. I hope to get it all wrapped up in a couple of weeks.

I really like the finish on this, the dusty look is very realistic, great work. Look forwrad to seeing it on the finished base.

Thanks, stik, will do.

Your Leo II looks real good! I spent a little time in Kosovo a bit over 10 years ago, and once thing I recall is that the earth tone was much lighter/sandier in color. Lots of grass and low bushes, but no trees in any of the places that I went. The stone wall is a good idea too! The prevelant tone of those was a medium or lighter gray. If you do an image search for Kosovo landscape or Kosovo scenery you can get a good idea of what the place looks like.

Thanks gents.

I agree, I need some more vegetation for sure, and the wall segment is a piece from Armand Bayardi, will get some mortar or something closer to the bottom. It's been laying around in the stash forever, thought this would be a good use for it.

Looks good to me!

I'll agree with Pawel, the wall needs a little something there but the Leopard looks great.

Hello!

It's looking good! Karl-Heinz looks almost like my German work colleague, Marco :-) I only have some objections as to the wall corner - it needs more filling between the stones, and a bush! Other than that its looking great! Thanks for sharing, and have a nice day

Paweł

Aside from possibly adding some camo nets in the turret stowage bins, the model's done. I started on the base as well, nothing fancy, but something more than a wood plaque:

Almost there: Karl-Heinz is painted (excuse the face, I am lousy at faces) most of the small bits are on and antennae have both been broke off twice, so for the moment I drilled the mounts to accept wire until I can shop around and find some replacements.

I like alcohol for a couple of reaseons: It's cheap, it's easy to clean up, and it leaves a dead-flat finish.

So I got up way too early this morning, and instead of planting my butt on the couch, drinking too much coffee and watching the "news", I went to my little room and finished the rear lights, started the front and got some primer on Karl-Heinz:

And because I enjoyed this build so much and have always wanted to do an -A4, grabbed this whil at King's in Austin on Tuesday, for a paltry $20:

I peeked at it, and it looks really nice, but time will tell.

Gamera

Wow, brush painted!?! I have a M60 I want to build in the MERDC scheme and thought about brush painting the small sand and black patches. I have some Vallejo paint in black, I'll have to see about picking up some sand and giving it a whirl! 

 

i've thought of that too. i think i would base coat sand, mask for the green and brown and hand paint the black.

the dust looks really good. anytime i work with powders or pastels i wear latex gloves to keep fingerprints away. i will try mixing some with alcohol on my next weathering.

Hugo, sorry for the late reply, I've been traveling....

I apply the dry pastels with a large brush. My wife's old makeup brushes work great, and she goes through them quickly. For heavier applications, to show build-up or even wet dirt and mud, I'll mix up a slurry using denatured alcohol as a carrier. I then fix it all in place with clear flat. One draw-back is the the clear frequently darkens and blends the different colors of pastels, so the final step is usually a light application of lighter, dry powders over the flat. Once that's done, I generally restrict handling of the model to an absolute minimum, but the finish is surprisingly sturdy.

That dust/mud looks very nice. However is it glued or fixed?.

Im alwasy concer of just powdering pastels or any dust over it, because, over time it will get some real dust from the environment, so how do you keep it "clean"? and also afraid a wind gust may take away the beatiful dust when taking to a show or contest.

Anyway, yours looks fantastic.

Tahnks!

It's just powdered artists' pastels, some dry, some mixed with denatured alcohol.

That mud looks terrific! Wish I could get mine to look half as good. 

Pawel, thanks. I was debating whether or not to make it dirty, but pics of stuff in Kosovo show lots of nastiness, and that's the way I like them, so dirty it is.

SMJ, thanks. It's a great kit, and I've enjoyed building something that doesn't have any obvious errors and that has good parts fit too.

Rbaer: That dirt application REALLY makes me want to build one of these.  I especially like how you varied the amounts on the road wheels, skirts and turret, nicely done!  

I couldn't figure out the Karl-Heinz comment at first because he blended in so well!

Russ, I like that dirt a lot. It got better since the first picture was taken. That Leo looks mighty nice! Tell Karl-Heinz "Moment Mal!"

Good luck with your build and have a nice day

Paweł

Almost there. Karl-Heinz wants to know when he gets painted.

First  dirt application:

Thaks, Karl. I'm copying the Tamiya painting guide, which is amazingly accurate, according to someone on another forum. You're referring to the brown, I'm thinking?

So, pics of a very shiny tank with decals:

Looking nice, Russ; one question about your camo though--shouldn't at least one of those color blobs connect over the turret roof? They just strike me as a bit suspect, all terminating on the top like that. If I'm wrong, correct me-- do you have a diagram that shows that? 

Tigers? What Tigers? Actually, I have built three of the Tamiya KT's: one the ancient original release with a bunch of scratch and Friuls, the other two being the recent release, one Porsche turret, the other from the "Ardennes" boxing. Both were fun, but my general tastes, as you can see, run elsewhere.....

I like the Finnish Leos, and it seems like they're always pretty nasty once they get out on exercise.

And drat, I did the detail painting, gloss and decals last night while the playoffs were on but accidentally deleted the pics before I got them uploaded just now. Argh.

Good, that is looking real nice I lik the cammo. It is always refreshing to see modern tanks.

Rbaer: I know what you mean about the Meng offering taking the spotlight.  I just read a recent build article depicting a Finnish version...that looks like a GREAT kit!  I have the HobbyBoss A4 version in the stash that's about 1/2 done and I was considering giving it to my son (he's been pestering me for it) and then by the Meng.  But $60+ for another kit?!...hmmmm

Your thread has got me thinking about jumping back to it and finishing her up myself!  It's a decent kit with some PE included and I bought an AM barrel so it should turn out to be  a respectable build.  Here's the weathering I was going to do, looks like fun huh?!:

Looking forward to some more progress pic's...keep 'em coming!

Oh yeah, it's Cliff. Does seem a lot less work than all the masking I end up doing everytime I spray something! 

Well,
   I guess all the Tigers are in the other room...... eh?

SMJ, glad to, and it'll be a good kit for him, and yup, $10. I guess it's out of the spotlight now that all the Meng Leos are on the market, but I really like grabbing kits off the vendor tables at contests too. I never had a real urge to build a Leo 'til I saw this kit so cheap.....

G (Cliff?), I currently don't have room to use an airbrush (although I do have one now) so it's either rattle cans or a brush. I really like the Vallejo paints too. Depending on the color and what's underneath it, one coat usually does it.