GRK

Thanks Neil. I quiet enjoyed the process, always nice to be adding your own little additions to a kit even if the end results aren’t perfect! But thank you for your reassurance!!!

lovely work and great job on the stowage, like Bullbasket said the open turret box is a nice touch

thanks both! The foam has just arrived so on with the brick carving. I tried cutting cork bricks but just too small at 1/48 to make neat cuts without tearing the cork. Plus this way will be much faster!

Hi all I picked up Tamiya's 1/48 Panther D a while back and was looking around for inspiration for a scene to put it in. I was originally looking at Kursk but I wanted to try doing a street scene which brought me to Normandy and this picture of a knocked out Panther A or G in Argentan (picture for info only!): I thought this will certainly be a test so why not share the progress along the way and hopefully pick up a few tips and suggestions from the helpful bunch here!? So i've completed the Panther build but kept the D version and i've also moved the position of the spare tracks and the side skirts in a bit of artistic licence- (mainly so i could see more of the metal tracks that i forked out so much for!) So i haven't quite decided how to tackle the building yet so i started with the fallen telegraph post. All scratch build using evergreen as the main pole, turned sprue for the insulator thingies and a mix of shaped, melted sprue, aluminium from a beer can and copper for the lamp. Here it is all based in Tamiya dark iron: Onto the weathering by a layer of hairspray and a coat of Tamiya German Grey and washes and speckled lifecolour rust (shadow and light): Here it is with the insulators painted and a sponged on layer of dust wash, plus some speckled lichen or maybe just ash flecks: Finally the block of stone it attached to (i assume it was mounted half way up the building as the lamp would only be about head height from looking at the original picture). Block is chipped plaster with a thin wash of dark sand with some copper wire added as re-bars. Phew 4 pictures and all just for a pole! So now i need to decide how i'm going to make the building-can't decide whether to buy some dense foam and carve out the bricks or cut out individual bricks from cork and stick them on...

I think you’ve made a mistake, this is 1/48 isn’t it?! I’m amazed

These are great and not something you see every day, in fact I didn’t realise these things existed! Love the camo on the truck

Thanks very much!

Wow that paintwork looks flawless. What a beauty!

Hi all The latest build is off the block and into the cabinet temporarily un-based as i start on the next phase which is making a bombed out 1944 Argentan street-looking forward to that part! Tamiya's 1/48 Pather D (the panther in Argentan wasn't a D but its what i had so a bit of artistic licence!) with a lot of aftermarket chucked at it. Haulers photo etch set and fruli metal tracks- bit of a luxury in 1/48 scale and with the metal hull in the kit gives it some heft. I'm still surprised when i pick it up how much it weighs! First time using metal tracks but pleased with how they came out, got the brownish look i was after and i had a go at making my own zimmerit. I used milliput, rolled out really thin and then a metal file to stamp in the patter and then the back of a hobby knife to draw the lines. I struggled to get the milliput thin enough so it looks a bit spongy in places and my attempt to draw straight lines is laughable but hey ho! What else can i tell you, a few shell impacts on the front plate and a bit of plaster mixed with lifecolour dust acrylics for the thick dust on the wheels which turned out alright i think. More rubble and dust to be added once its ready to sit amongst the carnage. Thanks for looking

Nice job on the whitewash and the base definitely looks the part-the only thing that looks a bit out to me is the commander looks a little tanned-maybe a recent transfer from the DAK?

Great work on this, the chipping and the camo look great and like Darryl said-the hand chucking out the casing is a great touch

Great models, really look fantastic. Now how did you manage to hang them on the wall like that?

I think it looks great, plenty to look at all over and I think that of all the environments the desert would produce some of the strongest weathering. I do think the tracks look a little loose and you could afford to take one or two links out.

That's a great looking cat! Really like the faded look to the paintwork

Amazing painting! I haven't seen too many models using the B&W technique- there was one of a Spanish civil war BT tank in a ditch that sprung to mind but certainly not a technique you see every day! I wouldn't have the guts or skill to do this- have you done this before?