You scared the crap out of me bro, I'm sitting here doing some weathering and I see the e-mail notification pop up saying it's over. 

espins1 wrote:

Yes, it's the Tamiya kit (StuG III Ausf. G Fruhe).  I painted the jack XF-56 Metallic Gray (Tamiya Acrylic), which is the color specified in every German tank I've built so far, including in these directions.  As far as I know the jacks were never black or gun metal.  They were either steel or over-sprayed in base coat.

That kit is the current front-runner for the "passenger" on my FAMO w/trailer, when and if I ever get going on the thing! 

I questioned the XF-56 color choice because it's so metallic looking.  I know the directions call for this color...it just looks so new that I've been disappointed with my final results after the washes.   I've tried the X-10 route and then added graphite at the VERY end of the process with better results. I also read/ tried painting jacks, tools, machine guns, etc. flat black and then add a good helping of graphite to give it the worn look...good results.  I'm still looking at the way others weather metal...I'll follow along with your build and check it out.  By the way, that wash added a ton to the look!  it still amazes me how a wash or two takes it from that super-clean painted look to a much richer/ deeper look...nice job Scott, keep us posted! 

Oh Well.. My 1/48 M-10 will not be done by tommorow. So guess I'm out.. I will have it complete for an up coming showing this week June 7th.. at the  Pueblo Air Musuem in Pueblo, CO... hint... hint.... So anyway will post some Finished photos once it finished...

 

Seeya

Scott

 

Here is my JT, as a tank, she is done, but still long way to go as a diorama. I took her picture right on the diorama base, as a distroyed tank. 2 more armor and 4 or 5 more figures need to be done... it will be a long time project....

 

 

Well, here I am sliding under the wire again, with 46 minutes to spare according to my clock. Would have posted earlier, but I had to go to a picnic/volleyball game tonight and didn't get time to take good pictures. 

Without further ado, here is my Dragon Jagdpanzer IV A-0, upgunned with the PaK 42 L/70. I'll give my usual historical details in a seperate post once I finish the crew figures and the base.

This is a rather poor quality photo (by my usual standards at least) but will be sufficient to serve as proof of completion
I'll be replacing it with a better one tomorrow, right now a quick picture is all I have time (and energy) for.

Thanks tigerman for another fun GB!

 

 

Is that a ghost commanding that AFV? LOL. I knew the Germans were hard pressed on manpower but I didn't think they were raising the dead!!!!? LOL LOL

 

Seeya

Scott

 

Hi guys,

Here she is in one of about four dozen gallery-type shots: the Tamiya 1:35 StuG III Ausf. G, wearing markings for the Das Reich Division from Echelon of Singapore, and featuring a Tamiya acrylic paintjob overlaid with filter weathering of Rowney oils dissolved in Testor enamel thinner. MiG "Europe Dust" pigment is the final layer, also overlying and toning down the decals.

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There are actually two jobs left to do. The commander's periscopes I completely forgot about until yesterday, and that's a job I'll come back to at a later date when I have time to fiddle with sprayed and razor-cut strips of decal to represent the reflective glass. The other job is the tow cables, and they'll be added when I can a set of Eurekas. I'm looking for their set for the Merkava II for the IDF GB, so I can kill two low-flying bogies with the same round.

I also have photos against white that offer a truer look at the colours, and I'll scale and upload a selection of shots to the finished-builds thread tomorrow.

Tigerman, thanks for a most enjoyable experience! I look forward to your next GB very much. This is my first, so I'm not positive what to do with the badge -- does it go in a footer line, something in my profile settup? Any advice would be most appreciated.

Best wishes, and many thanks,

TB379

My StuG is finished, just waiting for the dust coat to dry then I'll post my finished photos.

Great work on the JagdTiger Frangkly!  I can't wait to see the diorama finished.

Hermisminiatures, love the JagdPanzer IV and the ghost commander.  LOL

And nice job on the StuG TB379!  Great work guys! 

Thunderbolt379 wrote:

Tigerman, thanks for a most enjoyable experience! I look forward to your next GB very much. This is my first, so I'm not positive what to do with the badge -- does it go in a footer line, something in my profile settup? Any advice would be most appreciated. Best wishes, and many thanks, TB379

Thanks T-bolt. I've really learned a lot in this GB and am amazed at the size of thread along of course with the beautiful builds. I'm going to try to complete some in-progress builds before I decide on another. I'm leaning to a Monte Cassino or Italian Campaign GB, but have some other ideas in mind. If this occurs, September would be a perfect start.

BTW, load the badge to a host and then paste into your sig line of your profile.

Frangkly, I love the fading you achieved on the big brute. Well done.

Hermes, I look forward to the write-up on your Jagdpanzer. Love the ghost commander. LOL

T-bolt, the Stug looks very nice. I just now noticed you and Scott had the same markings.

Thanks everyone for an informative and fun GB. Sorry about my pitiful performance, but I vow to try harder next time.

Tigerman, I had a lot of fun on my first GB. Great job.

 

Let's see if we can get more people to post finished pics in the completed builds thread. It's probably on the 2nd page by now. 

Doh!  As I was taking the pics I noticed I had forgotten to paint the convoy light and the lens areas of the perscope thingys (the technical term ).  I'll have pics uploaded shortly.  I want to get them up and posted before my wife and oldest daughter get back from the store.  We're going to BBQ steak and shrimp tonight and sit out on the deck.  mmmmmmmmmmmmmm 

I had to take my finished photos inside and rather rushed as I was pressed for time today and the weather wasn't cooperating. I will be sure to post some better photos next week when I get a chance, but here's the proof that I finished (with two hours to spare):

Trumpeter's 1/35 scale LAV-AT:

I will wait and post the better pics in the "Finished Builds" thread.

Thanks for a fantastic GB Tigerman and for letting me partake in it.

 

Chris,

Well, I busted my buns yesterday and today to finally the Marder done.  I just came up a day late and a dollar short.  The only things I have left to do is glue the side armor assemblies onto the chassis of the marder, touch up the tools, experiment with this rusting stuff for the muffler and put a wash on. 

I went to take pictures, and naturally my batteries are dead.  If only winter wouldn't have gone so long, I'd have had it done a month ago....

Enough excuses, great builds guys!  My hats tipped to you all.

Looking good there Townsy. I love the dusty look that you achieved on the underside of the LAV. Well done.

 

Ok gents, here are the final pictures of my completed 1/35 Tamiya StuG III Ausf. G.  I did mine up as one that served with "Das Reich" during the Kursk offensive.

Paints were exclusively Tamiya Acrylics.  Tamiya Acrylics can be difficult to hand paint with, however they work great of you mix them with a little Tamiya X-20A Thinner.  It gets the paint to a more fluid consistency and has a drying retarder that gives you a lot more time to work with the paint.  I just mix a small batch in a clean beer bottle cap (got plenty of those laying around )

The base coat was a blend of XF-60 Dark Yellow with about 20% XF-57 Tamiya Buff.  I usually thin my Dark Yellow batches at about 70/30 paint to thinner.  I added a bit more XF-57 to lighten it a bit as I sprayed to get some subtle variations in the paint.  Don't worry about making it too contrasty as the oil washes will tone the contrast down nicely and add a lot of warmth.  

I had a tough time deciding on which green to use.  Olive green looked pretty close to the Echelon decal guide for the Das Reich StuG and other profiles I've seen, however from much of my research I had gathered that the green was a bit darker and more "pine" looking to coincide with the type of trees in much of Europe, including European Russia. I never was satisfied with the paint to thinner ratio and had spattering problems.  Perhaps the paint was old or I didn't use enough air pressure.  I ended up patching up the dark yellow to fix overspray, then very carefully touched up the green again with XF-61.

Weathering was done with burnt umber oil washes, as well as some dot washes of red, light green, dark green and a spot of yellow here and there.  Paint chips and scratches were replicated using a piece of foam packing material dipped in a mix of gray with a bit of dark yellow.  It is almost like a dry brushing technique as I just dip a tiny corner of the foam into the paint, then tamp it out on a clean sheet of paper until almost dry.  Then just carefully touch, glide over, pat... whatever it takes to replicate the effect you're looking for at that particular spot.

I'm still experimenting with how I paint and weather wood.  I painted the jack block and tool handles XF-59 Desert Yellow and used light streaking with straight raw umber oil paint.  Just a tiny little touch with the brush in the oil goes a long way. 

The jack, steel tools and tracks were sprayed Metallic Gray, then weathered with the chipping technigue.  Works great for making weathered steel, then just follow up with a black and raw umber wash. 

The lenses of the periscopes were done with just a dab of Tamiya smoke, basically like putting  a drop so it's a bubble on the plastic.  I just kept the StuG verticle while the paint dried.

I finished things off with a final very light dust coat to add a little dustyness from the sunflower fields these things crunched through during Operation Citadel.  It also helps for blending.  That somehow always ties things together and neutralizes any overdone contrasts with the weathering.   

Questions and comments welcome.  The figures will be painted at a later date.  I may just assemble the figues and pop them in to take some ghost panzer trooper pics. 

Thanks for a really fun GB gentlemen, I really enjoyed it!  And don't worry Tigerman, you'll get your mojo back.  Just watch the 2nd Austin Powers movie, then dive into your favorite project.  It will all come back. 

 

Glad to see you earned your badge Scott, that was close. Nice tutorial on all your tricks to making this StuG. Weathering is always a work in progress with me. LOL I wish Tamiya would come out with a StuG III G Late with the suakopf mantel, but oh well.

It looks like you may have missed the periscopes around the cupola. They look base color to me. Could be my tired eyes. We'll have to do another StuG GB someday. So many people like them. Thanks for all your contributions. Onward......

Hi Scott,

Terrific job! Expert build in every way. It's been amazing to compare our renditions of the same subject, the options we've gone with and the finishing techniques employed. I'm impressed by your approach to the jack block and the sighting periscopes, I must give them a try one day soon. I see you also opted to leave the tow cables off -- Tamiya fell down with that string, for sure, one of the few criticisms I can make of the kit.

I take your point about lightening the camo colours verall if following with a filter, the darkening effect of the oils is considerable. I've always been a bit ambivalent about the technique -- first because I didn't trust the enamel thinner not to strip the acrylics (which happened in one small spot on my Type 74, but not at all on the StuG -- musta been drying times to blame), and second because it seems to defy the point of the model paints being expertly matched to the original shades. It takes a bit of thought to get one's head around the fact that apparent colour is almost infinitely variable due to light and environmental factors, in addition to which the original paints themselves varied enormously by thinner and thinning ratio. So the blending and surfacing effect of the filter is entirely appropriate. I must be more adventurous with the colour effects next time, I stuck to Burnt Sienna for a rust/dirt effect on exposed edges and around the roof plate to suggest it had been lifted to pull the gun recently.

On the green shade, a 'pine' green does indeed seem appropriate, certainly for the northern lattitudes.

I agree, this build has been a very positive experience, and I look forward to more meetings of the minds on fascinating projects.

Cheers, and well done,

TB379 (Mike)

tigerman wrote:

Glad to see you earned your badge Scott, that was close. Nice tutorial on all your tricks to making this StuG. Weathering is always a work in progress with me. LOL I wish Tamiya would come out with a StuG III G Late with the suakopf mantel, but oh well. It looks like you may have missed the periscopes around the cupola. They look base color to me. Could be my tired eyes. We'll have to do another StuG GB someday. So many people like them. Thanks for all your contributions. Onward......

Ya, I got sidetracked with some killer BBQ ribeye steaks, shrimp, garlic bread, salad and a great big bottle of Cabernet.  My wife and oldest daughter sure know how to make a killer meal.  We then wound up in front of the big screen to watch DVR'd episodes of Entourage and Family Guy.  I kept saying to myself, I've got to post my pics, I've got to post my pics!  It was hard to tear myself away from the entertainment. 

I painted the periscopes around the cupola with a special expermental paint the Germans developed in 1943 which looks like base coat, but lets you see out.  It's called "ohcrapIforgotallaboutthose".   

Thanks again for another fun GB Tigerman! 

Thanks Mike, I appreciate the comments.  I was debating whether or not to add the tow cables.  The painted string just doesn't look very convincing to my eye because of the "fuzzy" look.  I may detach the cable ends and replace the string with a suitable substitute, may picture wire or something similar. 

The green is always one of the toughest things.  Aesthetically, the lighter green like the one you used looks better than the darker green so I always agonize over which way to go with it. 

Overall, the Tamiya kit was a real joy to build.  No fit issues, good detail, well engineered for easy assembly.  I really enjoyed it.  I have Dragon's StuG III Ausf. G and Dragon's StuH 42 Ausf. G w/zimmerit and am curious how they compare with the Tamiya kit.

By the way, I had a tough time getting the lighting and color cast correct for my final photos.  The background is supposed to be light blue, but everytime I corrected for that it threw the tank colors all out of whack.  I'm going to take some more shots later, and some outside as well. 

Well here's another GB I didn't finish this year....  At least I got to see some great builds!

SCOTT - Well done StuG!  Another fine buld and addition to your growing collection!  You're starting to crank em out like dupes, wbill76 and biffa!  I'd also like to see how this one compares to the new DML StuG with zim!!  Build it bro!!

frangkly - Beautiful Jagdtiger!  I love the camo and the battle damage and definitely want to see the finished dio! 

Townsy11 - Your LAV-AT is definitely not the norm!!  Good to see a different take on a "Hunter" AFV!!  Great job and weathering!  I'd like to see that AFV in action!

Thunderbolt379 - OK, it a toss up on who wins the StuG award, you or Scott!!  Another great StuG! 

Hermes - Your Jagdpanzer looks great, but we want better photos!!  I'm trying to remember what the deal is with the gun barrel and mantlet.  You mentioned it before, but I forgot.  Great weathering!!

Eric, I'm sorry, it looks like I won't be contributing to this GB.  I've been super busy with my two jobs and family reponsibilities.  Been out of town for several days and will be going to Manila soon for a two week business trip (with some pleasure thrown it ).  Very little hobby time last month and that trend will continue this month.  As always, participating in your GBs is a pleasure and I hope to be able to join and contribute in your next GB!  Kudos to all the participants and congrats to everyone who picked up a well deserved badge!

BTW Scott,  I may not have time to post this in the Panzer Aces GB, but I'm most likely out of that GB as well unless it extends to July .  Yeah....I s#ck...

bufflehead wrote:

SCOTT - Well done StuG!  Another fine buld and addition to your growing collection!  You're starting to crank em out like dupes, wbill76 and biffa!  I'd also like to see how this one compares to the new DML StuG with zim!!  Build it bro!! BTW Scott,  I may not have time to post this in the Panzer Aces GB, but I'm most likely out of that GB as well unless it extends to July .  Yeah....I s#ck...

Thanks Ernest!  I made sure to point out to my wife that I'm now building them faster than I am buying them! 

No worries about the Panzer Aces GB.  That was a long term build, focusing on reading and research so just finish up when you can.  As long as you finish, you can keep the badge buddy.  At the rate I'm going I might have the JagdTiger finished some time this month. 

bufflehead wrote:

SCOTT - Well done StuG!  Another fine buld and addition to your growing collection!  You're starting to crank em out like dupes, wbill76 and biffa!  I'd also like to see how this one compares to the new DML StuG with zim!!  Build it bro!!

Hey Buffle - amazed to be included in such esteemed company! I've been in a bit of an armor drought lately, but hopefully I can redeem myself with a slew of builds in the next couple of months.

bufflehead wrote:

Been out of town for several days and will be going to Manila soon for a two week business trip (with some pleasure thrown it ).

Ahhhh, what exaaaaactly are you getting at? 

dupes wrote:

bufflehead wrote: SCOTT - Well done StuG!  Another fine buld and addition to your growing collection!  You're starting to crank em out like dupes, wbill76 and biffa!  I'd also like to see how this one compares to the new DML StuG with zim!!  Build it bro!! Hey Buffle - amazed to be included in such esteemed company! I've been in a bit of an armor drought lately, but hopefully I can redeem myself with a slew of builds in the next couple of months.  bufflehead wrote: Been out of town for several days and will be going to Manila soon for a two week business trip (with some pleasure thrown it ).  Ahhhh, what exaaaaactly are you getting at?

I agree that Fillapino women are pretty hot or are you talking about a styrene buying binge?

Well dupes, Eric, I've never been to Manila before but since I'm going with my stepbrother and brother-in-law, both of whom like to partake of, er....pleasures of the, ummm.....kinder, gentler Filipino gender, I'd say that's a definite possibility!!  Good thing I'm not married!!

Of course when they asked what I wanted to do during the day I gave them the names of two hobby shops in Manila!!!  Yeah Baby Yeah!! (best Austin Powers impression) That's what I'm talking about!  I hope this time I can score on some cheap kits from Asia (my Hong Kong model excursion last year didn't pan out )

Hmmm....models in the day, models at night!   I might just be going to heaven!!  But when will I build them????

OK Scott, I hope I can find some building time when I get back.....I'd really like to finish the KT and earn my Panzer Aces badge!

Haven't decided yet if I'm more excited for you about meeting some Ladies or the possibility of scoring some kits super cheap...

Hi Bufflehead,

"A tossup" between me and Scott for best StuG? I'm flattered, that's a great compliment -- Scott is a modeler who's skills I respect very much indeed, and my entry here is only my seventh finished armor model (with five others in various stages back in their boxes in my stash, and that lot since the mid-90s). I think I'll be building faster in future, though, with a taste for this "Group Build" thing we do! I have commitments to two more tanks at this time, plus two planes, and with options on a halftrack (Dupes' 251 GB) and another plane (Battle of Britain) -- I'll rapidly exhaust my display case room and have to start boxing models again. Waahhh!

Oh, and Scott -- Waddaya know, I painted my commander's periscopes "ohcrapIforgotallaboutthose"  " border="0" width="30" height="20" /> as well! It's an amazing camouflage technique that totally beats the reflection of sunlight from the vision blocks that's otherwise such a giveaway to a concealed vehicle...

I've been looking at the Ausf. B build and I just have to do that one too! I've never done armor interiors, so it'll be a great starting point. I have two more Tamiya StuG III/Gs on their way, and want to do a whole range of markings and options. I've been thinking of combining all the options into one project -- Cavalier waffle zim, skirts, winter cammo with full chipping, and the 105 gun as well (the only question there is whether the StuH. 42 was zimmed and served in Russia!) I'd have to add a figure in winter battledress for good measure and maybe even some snow... Otherwise I'll be building a long line of models illustrating the variations one at a time!

I'm not sure if I'll be able to join the Battle of Berlin GB, I have all those listed above to do, and had been hoping to sneak at least one extra through for the IDF. We'll see -- a Stallin III would be a great subject...

Cheers,

TB379

dupes wrote:

Haven't decided yet if I'm more excited for you about meeting some Ladies or the possibility of scoring some kits super cheap...

You and me both dupes!  Maybe its safer to just stick with styrene though!

Eric, I hope you don't mind if we go OT for a little bit, but does anyone know for sure if kits in the Phillipines ARE cheaper than stateside?

 

Wow. I've been banging my head against the wall trying to find out some info for you Buffle...but coming up with nothing.

Found links to a few hobby stores in Manila (not sure if that's where you're going?) but NONE of them include prices either in Dollars or Philippine Pesos, so I'm unable to do any currency conversion stuff. Lame. Most of the links that I've found do point to JMN's Hobby Square, link here:

http://www.jmn.cjb.net/

I can't imagine that kits wouldn't be at least a bit cheaper due to lower transportation costs...I mean, look at what Luckymodel charges for kits (before shipping).

Hey, so what kind of job do you have that involves shipping you off to the Philippines?

Thanks for the compliments gents, most appreciated.  My StuG is only the 7th armor kit I've built since returning to the hobby after a 25+ hiatus, so I really appreciate the confidence boosters.  

Check out the Dragon StuH 42 Ausf. G w/zimmerit .  I did this review of the kit about 2+ weeks ago.  The StuH 42 Ausf. G was produced by Alkett, which applied waffle pattern zimmerit while zimmerit's application was mandated by the powers that be.  

I have several StuG's in the stash, Tamiya 1/35 Ausf. B, Dragon 1/35 StuG III Ausf. G, Dragon StuH 42 Ausf. G w/zimmerit.  All three look like great kits!  StuG's are just so cool looking.  And they accounted for more tank kills than any other tank! 

I'm going to see if I can tackle those viewing blocks in the cupola tonight.  I can't believe I forgot them!