Mad Allied Day -- build a Braille-scale Allied tank in 24 hours

QUOTE: War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks nothing is worth war is much worse. A man who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing he cares more about than his own personal safety is a miserable creature who has no chance of being free, unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself. -John Stuart Mill

Spoken like the chickenhawk he was!

Sorry, couldn't resist!

Glad you guys enjoyed the build. I will se eif I can put together a master posting tonight of all the pics that were posted by Sunday night so that we can see the results. Thanks to all for your involvement.

Finished the wash and top coat and added a little more detail painting and the antenae. Thought you would like to see the finished product. Its a great model dj, the only problem I had was the vinyl tracks were too long but luckily I was able to hide the joint behind the side skirt at the front. I also missed a sink hole(s) behind the commanders hatch. Didn't notice it until it was too late. Still waiting to see theat valentine hope you havn't given up on it gderue.



Dave

congrats everyone!! builds look great. cant wait for the next one!

I wanted to write more about my build, but my computer has been down for two days...

As I said, I got a late start on Mad Allied Day. Had a little emotional crisis with the pregnant wife. Did not actually get to start until about 9:00 pm. For that reason, and because I did not have a chance to get a cooler kit (I really wanted to try one of Dragon's new 1/72 scale kits... Oh well, next braille scale build) I chose to do a Hasagawa Sherman tank that has been in my collection for awhile.

Anyone who has done this kit knows that it is OK. Pretty basic detail, a fair amount of flash and seams, but no major flaws or defects that required a lot of fixing. Again, because I got such a late start, I built it straight from the box, no modifications or anything. By about 4:00 am on Monday I had the basic build done - then it was off to bed.

Monday afternoon I put on a coat of OD and a light wash. Followed that with some drybrushing for weathering and called it done.

I have to say, the mad build was lots of fun, despite me starting in a different time zone than everyone else. I'd definately like to do more of these. And, of course, now that this one is over I might figure out what to do with this Sherman. Probably add it to some small dio or something in the near future.

Sorry I don't have pics - I have not reached that plain of technological innovation yet . I'll try to beg, borrow or steal a camera for a couple hours to post some pics.

Everyone else's work looks great - thanks for letting me play

Gotta go - dinner time...

QUOTE: Originally posted by Larry_Dunn Frostygirl is really a girl? I thought that was just a handle. It's great that female modelers are involved here too -- this hobby is so gender based, but there's no particular reason for that.

LOL !!!!
last time i checked....
nothing gender-based about modeling itself that i can think of., really...
glad 2 b representing, tho' !

frosty

QUOTE: Originally posted by djmodels1999 Frosty, for instance, seems to do most of her posting from school or college (!) so I'd expect her update sometimes tonight (as far as UK time is concerned)... In any case, Larry, first of all a BIG 'THANK YOU' for 'hosting' this MAD build. Not only you did a great job on running it, but your Grant looks superb! 2 months to Mad Komet Day... It's a loooong time to wait..

yep....
ditto... big thanks 2 Larry Dunn !!!
true that ... great Komet article in current FSM, tho' !

frosty

hey t34, sorry but i'll have to tempt you with this one. How about a mad t-34 day!

Hey everyone,

My Mad Allied Day plans got a little screwed up, so I did not start until 9:00 pm last night - so I am giving myself until 9:00 pm tonight to finish (I have a good excuse - I too have pregnant wife....).

I am building Hasagawa's M-4 Sherman kit - sorry I can't post photos but I no longer have a digital camera... It is an OK kit, but I had hoped to get something a little different/better. Oh well, it'll do...

All the pics that have been posted look great - nice job everyone!!

congrats 2 all of u, those r some fine looking builds on display !
i did manage 2 do some building 4 this challenge,
i picked the simplest kit i could find, an armourfast M10
will show pix in a few...

altho' this is a simple kit w/o too many parts, it can b used as the basis
4 more involved detail work now that the MAD build is over,
here's another armourfast kit i've been working on 4 awhile now
just so u can see where this build is going eventually...


i don't know whether i earned my badge this time or not...

frosty

You guys are insane, great job everyone.

QUOTE: Originally posted by rebelreenactor Hey, do you think that tommorrow or tuesday we could get one post with all of our build on them? like 1 or 2 pics on one post? I remember Ausf did this for the Mad Tiger GB.

Sure Reb, as long as everyone keeps hosting those images wherever they have them hosted, I'll cobble something together, let's say Tuesday night. That gives everyone a chance to post their results.

Frostygirl is really a girl? I thought that was just a handle. It's great that female modelers are involved here too -- this hobby is so gender based, but there's no particular reason for that.

QUOTE: Originally posted by djmodels1999 T34, I'm a bit disappointed.. 5 hours to spare..? You could have built a third one in that time... LOL..! Both your Sherman and Churchill look great. I like the Churchill in particular. Reminds me that I've never built a Churchill tank ever... Mmmm, maybe the subject of a future MAD..? There had been a proposal for a MAD T-34 not too long ago... Maybe we can resurrect that for the festive season...?

i even stopped to go and buy paint! i opened my white and it was all dryed out[:0] remind me never to go to a craft store on a sunday, the place was blocked, took me over 10 mins to get out of there.

i was going to build my universal carrier for this mad day, but i thought i wouldn't have enough time and i really wanted to build something at that time.

i wont be participating in another mad build. this was fun, but i'm low on money, and space for all these models

Great builds everyone!

How did I miss this?

Congratulations to all, Beautiul job guys!
Some really nice builds under less than ideal circumstances.
Great job Larry in getting this going. I'd love to seee them all lined up...

Everyone, this was really fun. I will have to do this again someday. A wash was applied last night, but it just didn't have time to dry so that I could drybrush it. I will post a pic when I get the weathering finished. Y'all did fantastic work. Braille Scale is a new thing for me, but may consider a more relaxed pace next go around. I like that Grant kit Larry, may have to give it a go soon. BTw, thanks Larry for putting this thing on. It was fun.

Ted

Great work, Guys! Larry, there will be a few more joining in with updates over the next few hours. Frosty, for instance, seems to do most of her posting from school or college (!) so I'd expect her update sometimes tonight (as far as UK time is concerned)...

In any case, Larry, first of all a BIG 'THANK YOU' for 'hosting' this MAD build. It was mad, but that's the idea, isn't it..!? Not only you did a great job on running it, but your Grant looks superb!

Ted, that M3 Half-track looks really good too! You should consider more small scale armor stuff!

T34, I'm a bit disappointed.. 5 hours to spare..? You could have built a third one in that time... LOL..! Both your Sherman and Churchill look great. I like the Churchill in particular. Reminds me that I've never built a Churchill tank ever... Mmmm, maybe the subject of a future MAD..?

John, your Sherman looks great too! It's a beautiful little kit, I think... I still have to finish mine, started during the original Sherman Group Built. I now have all the info to complete my Ambutank conversion, so what's keeping me... I may need a MAD Sherman...!

Josh, good to see you back in. Indeed, sometimes, one need a good model to help going over difficult times... Looking forward to seeing this Lee and the definitive diorama completed!

Balta, good start on that Stuart.. Keep up the good work.

Razor, I really like that Crusader. I've got one to build too, which I might superdetail, cause I've found a good article about doing the inside from scratch... Yous model looks gorgeous! Yes, 2 months to Mad Komet Day... It's a loooong time to wait.. There had been a proposal for a MAD T-34 not too long ago... Maybe we can resurrect that for the festive season...?

I just took a look through all the other posts that I missed while I was busy working. They all look great and I hope those that didn't finish keep at it and posts their finished models. Putting them in a scrap book somewhere sounds like a great idea.

T34... I can't believe you did two!!

Josh... Modeling is the best therapy I ever paid for. Much cheaper than a shrink too. Glad you joined us.

Now, Mad Comet day isn't for another 2 months... What am I going to do until then?

Whew, still needs a good wash and top coat but here it is. Just under the wire too.


That was a lot of fun, lets do it again next week!
PS: The exhaus really aren't that bright red, bad lighting!

Well I'm done painting but won't get to weathering or decals til tomorrow. It was alot of fun! Great job everyone!!!



This was the first time I used Vallejo paints and I really liked them. Once you figure out what thinnning ratios work for you it's pretty easy. Well now it's time to get ready for the komet build.

Hey, do you think that tommorrow or tuesday we could get one post with all of our build on them? like 1 or 2 pics on one post? I remember Ausf did this for the Mad Tiger GB.

I'm about done -- the kit isn't quite where I want it to be, because I tried another wash and the previous wash bled through it, which made me backtrack a bit. But here's a dusty Grant:





It was fun, and it's another kit built! Thanks to all who participated -- I'll look at the other posts in the morning.

By the way, except for the barrel disaster, I recommend this kit highly. It's a good fit, a good build, and a handsome if rather unlikely vehicle.

Ok, bad pics, i'll get some better ones when i can.






the kit came with the option of vynl or link and lenght tracks, so i chose the vynl to save up some time for this build. I was able to use the link and length pieces for spare track. The kit also came with to extra road wheels so I was able to get the look of a real sherman using spare stuff for extrea armor. The kit also came with a rolled up tarp, that was very hard to find on the sprue because it was molded as part of the sprue. I mounted that on the back of the turret. I like this kit alot, except that the little pieces like tools etc. broke of when I cut them. When i get better pics you'll be able to notice that the right light is missing. well, it broke when i cut it off, and then what was left of it tweezer snaped...
Its very interesting since this was the very first kit I ever built, and now its the last kit i have built. Ill get apic of them together tommorrow. Well, off to do homework that I have had 4 days to do!

[EDIT----- I forgot to mention I finished around 8:00 Pm Pacific Time.]

Well I just finished! I am very happy with the results. Right now I am trying to get a good pic on my camera phone. I should be able to get a few good ones tommorow if i can ge the camera. I am glad I used tamiya, was easy to clean up and turned out really good.
i'll try to get a good pic to post.

You all are my heros. My mad armor day was condensed into 6 hours, and there is no way to finish. I'll post the Valentine in a few days. It needs final assembly, decals, and weathering. The base coat(s) are finished.

i'm done!! 2 models in 24 hours with 5 hours for spare!

heres my churchill:


and both of them:

i decided to go ahead and built my hasegawa m3 lee



i plan to weather it later and place it in a huge diorama project i plan to start
thanks to everyone for the condolences.

Hey tediam you never should have pointed that out! It's the kind of thing nobody but you would notice. Looks great. Your Sherman looks good too, t34, and I'm looking forward to seeing rebel's sherman too. I'm surprised so many of us decided to go with the Britih tanks. Then again, most of the really good 1/72nd scale armour kits are of British vehicles.

I'm done with all construction on my kit, treads are on, as are sand shields, tools on the tank are painted. Once that's dried up, I'm going to put a wash on. Then if time permits, an airbrush coat of dust.

Egads my star is crooked on the hood. You will have to give me a pass on that one. Sorry.

Ted

Wow, I'm getting behind. I was able to get a coat of paint on this morning but that was it. I have 3 kids, and I use them as an excuse for not getting things done all the time. After supper things should settle down and I can get back at it. Should be plenty of time to get it done though.

Where's that Valentine? That's one i wanted to see.

All the builds look fantastic. Here is my Half Track complete without weathering. I am afraid a wash will peal the paint right off of it, but I will try. Is weathering required for the build? Either way, this has been really fun. Let me know how I did on my first braille scale.