Mig Eater

The exhaust was a combination of dark brown base colour with rust washes & pigments if I remember correctly. Also of note is the mud effects, which was an experiment using brown coloured acrylic paints mixed with ash from my fireplace to give it texture. I think it worked out quite well & I should probably try using that method again sometime.

I made this model 4 years ago, I didn't post anything online about it at the time but I recently mentioned it on another forum & it was requested that I post some photos, I thought I'd share them here too while I was at it 😛 The kit is from the Polish manufacture RPM models and is a fictional what-if design that combines their Vickers E model kit with the turret from their TKW II kit, you can read more about here. The kit was a fun little project & an intriguing subject, the only issues were the ugly solid headlamps & the rubber tracks not fitting correctly on the sprockets.

@Erwin You can add me to the list.

TNH 57/900 1/35 resin model kit from Stahlhelm Models

I just received the decals set I needed to make the Golden Panzer 38(t) from the anime Girls Und Panzer. Shame I didn't order it sooner, it would have been an interesting addition to the GB 😜

After a last minute setback I finally finished this little tank. It was a fun & simple build that allowed my to try out several new tools & techniques. This is also my first Panzer 38 tank build, it will soon to be joined by several more tho...

It uses a French 90mm CN 90 F1 gun, similar to the CN 105 F1 gun used on the Israeli M51 Sherman.

My love for the obscure & unusual means there was really only one choice for me in this GB 😋 The Bernardini CCL X-1, a Brazilian modernization of the M3 Stuart from the 1970's. There are no model kits of this vehicle available in 1/35 (AFAIK there is only a 1/72 resin kit) so I'll design & 3D print one myself. There were multiple variants of the X-1 (anti-air, missile launcher, mortar carrier, ARV, bridge layer, X-1A1 & X-1A2), so I might build more then one during the GB depending on my time & energy. This build would also qualify for the South American GB, so I could build one in this GB & another variant in that one too...

Good luck, I look forward to see you speed run this build 🤪

I've been slowly working on that Hetzer on the side during this GB. I fitted it with the tracks that were leftover from the TNH 57 kit, I needed to print some new sprockets for the tracks to fit but its good to finally make some progress with the build after so long. There are a few more small details that I need to scratch build, once they are done tho it will be ready for paint. I'll post more photos of this build in the Ready for Inspection forum once it's finished.

With that many spare parts all you could make a basic hull from some plastic card & build another one.

Yes the TNH 57/900 was based on the Panzer 38(t) n.A, in fact CKD started to modify one of the n.A prototypes into the TNH 57 but it was canceled before they could finish. I checked the TNH 57 diagram (in the first post) & the wheel size is the same as the Hetzer (82cm), it's using the smaller Panzer 38(t) tracks & sprockets tho, which made me presume the wheels were the smaller ones too. Well that teaches me that I need to double check every part of a kit before I start printing replacements.

So a bit of a disaster! You remember at the beginning of the build when I was cleaning up the resin parts I damaged two of the wheels & to fix it I 3D printed some replacements? Well just as I'm finishing the last bit of weathering on the build I noticed that the wheels I printed are a different size to the rest of the wheels that came with the kit. The ones I printed were for the Panzer 38(t) but the wheels that came with the kit are the larger ones for the Hetzer. So not only did the kit incorrectly come with Hezter tracks it also has Hetzer wheels 🥴 I cant be bothered to print & paint a whole new set of wheels so I'm just going to replace the two Panzer 38(t) wheels with new Hetzer wheels, so they will at least all match.

I finally added some colour to the tank, in the end I went with a paint scheme similar to the one used on late/post-war Hetzers/ST-1. I painted highlights on raised parts, small light coloured & rusty paint chips/scratches. The exhausts were painted with several different shades of grey & white, in preparation for some rust washes later. Decals were added from an Archer set for Czech T-34 tanks, this was my first time using dry transfers & it was a bit tricky to get them positioned correctly. Everything was then sealed with some gloss varnish in preparation for the next step of filters & washes. I also painted the wheels & sprockets to match the hull. The tracks were also paint with a dark brown primer & then mottled with several dark grey colours.

I'm going to be entering the same model for its 3rd KUTA this year 😆

I should be done with my two builds by the deadline, but I might be able to squeeze in a quick third with an extension...

@Marklo I presume you meant the VK45.01(P) aka the Tiger(P)? The Tiger(P) used a different turret from the production Tiger I, so you can't really kit-bash a Tiger I & Ferdinand together to make a Tiger(P). Amusing Hobby have released two kits of the Tiger(P) tho, one with a full interior & another without.

1. The room temperature/humidity can make the paint dry to quick, I've been getting dry-tip after only a few seconds of use with the heat wave we have been having in Europe. Using a paint retarder helps extend the drying time but it can effect the way the paint sprays in other ways. 2. Check that the rubber washers are still creating a good seal. I currently have this problem with my airbrush too, I added some plumbers tape to the area were the nozzle fits into the washer as a temporary fix until I can get a new washer. 3. This can be caused by the paint constancy, the airbrush pressure being to low or the distance your airbrush is from the model. It's really a mater of trial & error to find the right combination. The dry-tip problem you are having can be a cause of this too, as the paint is drying to quickly & disrupting the paint flow.

I might have a go at making the VK45.02(H), a proposal for an updated Tiger I with sloped hull armour, the Panther's engine deck & the Tiger II "Porsche" turret. It was a backup design in case development of the Tiger II ran into problems, it didn't tho & the VK45.02(H) was never built.

No problem, your health is more important then bits of plastic. I hope you feel better soon 🤒

Have you preformed the ritual sacrifice to summon @Enzo the Magnificent for his blessing..?

Well here we go again, I primed the model with black & then added a white pre-shade. Last time I highlighted the center of each panel, for round two I thought I'd go with gradients across the panels instead 😋

Painting has commenced, black primer with a white pre-shade. Haven't completely decided on the paint scheme yet, I'll apply a green base colour & then see were my airbrush takes me...

I spent £500 on my resin printer (you can get one for a lot less now days tho) & the material cost in resin to print a 1/35 tank is roughly £5-15, depending on size & part count etc. I've now completely stopped buying aftermarket parts such as tracks & tool clamps etc because I can design & print my own for pennies. When it comes to buying new kits I will now weigh up the cost of the kit against the time & effort it would take to design & print my own one. Right now I'm pretty lazy so the kit often wins 😅 As I slowly design more & more parts that can then be kit-bashed or modified into even more parts it will require less & less time to design a new model. Couple that with my ever decreasing savings & I can see a point in the future were I will just 3D print everything myself.

@Corsairfoxfouruncle The kelly’s heroes Tiger might fit better in the book, film or song GB.