Since it seems that many of the armor folk don't regularly visit the Group Build forum, I've copied some of the posts describing my build of Italian Panthers for the Big Cats Group Build. If you have followed the Big Cats Group Build, you've already seen the following.
I'm doing a dual build;
It started with just the early G since I was interested in building a Panther from the Italian front and the recently DML release fit the bill. Then I saw that the DML Premium late A kit that was in the stash also had call outs for an Italian Pz.Div 26 Panther, so I decided to do both. It makes an interesting comparison, a late A with zim and an early G without. The G will include additional roof armor and the early Gs of Pz.Rgt26 also had schurzen and additional add on armor over the fans and rear deck. A Gryphon Models PE set will take care of that
Here's construction in the early stages: The early G hull:
late A with Cavalier zim in place:
and both:
Still a little clean up to do and a small gap to fill between the rear plate and the hull. But the real fun has yet to start. I have limited experience with PE and the Gryphon set is comprehensive, to say the least. 7 frets. The PE supplied with the Premium kit is a bit less intimidating. Nonetheless, I've yet to make a convincing tool clasp. At least there's the option of using the molded tools provided in the kits.
Construction continues:
The turret armor on the early G is pretty neat...
..the early G Panthers of Pz.Rgt 26 were a mix. Some had crew a compartment heater and ventilation slats on the starboard side.
Any reason as to why the ventilation slats were only on the right side and not the left?
And the tracks.
Progress on the late A continues:
It's interesting that the metal gun barrels supplied in the Dragon kit and in the Griffon PE set used for the early G are visably different in diameter and taper. I don't know if the photos show it but the barrel supplied by Dragon fits much better into the lock than the Griffon gun and to my eye is more accurate that the Griffon.
Next for both kits is some PE work on the tools, which for me will be a bit of a challenge. So promise me that you won't laugh when I post the next series of pics.. ![Smile,Wink, & Grin [swg]](/emoticons/icon_smile_swg.gif)
Oh and I forgot to mention that the top hull plates of both kits were warped. The late A was bowed side to side while the G had a corkscrew twist down the length of the top plate. Made for interesting (said sarcastically ![Angry [:(!]](/emoticons/icon_smile_angry.gif)
) mates between the upper an lower hulls. Let's just say that some filling was required... What's with quality control these days... ![SoapBox [soapbox]](/emoticons/icon_smile_soapbox.gif)
And the Panther A is almost complete now. Panther 211 from the 26.Pz.Div in Italy is depicted in the kit instructions in dunkelgelb and it looks like some faint brown camo stripes. I decided to go just with dunkelgelb, using Tamiya Dark Yellow (XF-60) over a base coat of Tamiya Flat Earth (XF-52). Highlights were added on the larger panels by a spray of XF-60 lightened with a little flat white, then again after lightening a bit more with another dab of white. Decaling was done by the Doog method, applying the decals on the flat painted surface rather than prepping with future. A healthy dose of solvaset settled them nicely into the zim pattern.
Here's lookin' at you..
An umber oil wash was used to highlight detail and weathering was done with oils, pigments and a light overspray of diluted Tamiya Buff, although maybe not in that order; I just do what seems to be needed at the time.
An interesting field modification that was made to some Italian Panthers was the addition of tool boxes over the rear engine vents. I found a resin set from Mig productions that seemed to fit well.
The kits has gone together pretty well; the only issues are the lack of tow cables and the warped top hull plate that I mentioned earlier that made mating top and bottom hulls a bit of a challenge. The metal barrel also adds weight which can unbalance the turret slightly (have a look back at the first photo in this group to see how it's leaning forward). A fishing sinker glued in the rear of the turret should fix that.
The road wheels and lower hull were dirtied by a mixture of Tamiya flat base, Elmers wood glue and finely ground real dirt. This dries a light tan/brown in color which looks like dried mud. A similar mixture with a little raw umber acrylic added to add some darker dirt chunks. Then raw umber was dry brushed to blend the two.
A few additional shots..
Thanks for looking. Comments, criticisms and suggestions are welcomed. Next up; finishing construction and painting the early Panther G.
Don