Tamiya 1:25 Centurion mk.III

[Scuff]

So here is the finished 1:25 scale model of the Centurion mk.III British main battle tank. It has been built out of the box with no extras, apart from the camouflage netting around the barrel which I made myself.

The paints used were as follows:

Primer was Vallejo grey polyurethane acrylic. This was also used for all of the interior surfaces. It gives a lovely smooth and resilient surface for the following paints.

The main overall colour was Tamiya Dark Yellow Matt XF-60. This was mixed about 40% paint with 60% Tamiya X-20 thinner.

Panel line preshading was done with Tamiya XF-1 Matt Black and overhead light simulation presahding was done with Tamiya XF-64 Red Brown.

Some weathering effects and shadow areas were done with Tamiya XF-49 Khaki.

The matt finish was thinned Vallejo matt varnish.

Chipping was hand painted with MrMetalColor MC24 Dark Iron. Exhaust and metal tool parts were also airbrushed with this paint as were the tracks and tow cables.

Weathering and rusting was done with a combination of Rust and Sand pigments. Various Tamiya weathering master sets for were used for streaking, rusting and staining effects. Lighter colours from these sets were used for edge highlighting.

Once the track pieces were buffed where the wheels ran and also where the locating lugs rubbed between the wheels, the pieces received a dunking in first rust, then sand pigments, with a good brush scrubbing between the two.

The exhaust parts were treated in the same way.

Although this was an old kit that I picked up from ebay for £30ukp, it went together reasonably well. There were plenty of moulding lines that needed scraping off before painting and the instructions had a couple of anomalies. The old decals were very yellow, so the markings for my choice of variant were spayed using a template that I cut out with a laser cutter, from a CAD drawing that I made.

I learnt a lot from trying various weathering methods on this build and thoroughly enjoyed myself.

As usual, and observations or comments are welcome. Enjoy the images.

[colin]

Simply stunning

[BeeKay]

Stunning finish and superbly shot. A brilliant job all round!

[ModelMonkey]

Awesome finish - fab work! Must be a whopper!

[Spookytooth]

WOW, what more can be said.

I have been following this build and now it`s done.

Great job Scuff, Very subtle weathering and the camo net fits in just right.

[JackG]

Outstanding build!

regards,

Jack

[AngloSaxon]

Lovely work. The sublety of the weathering is spot on and the photography finishes it off. Just one critique - wouldn't the interior of the hatches have been the same colour as the external of the tank?

Mike D.

[nicE1]

That's very nice!

[Mark]

I know nothing about tanks, but I do know modelling skill when I see it and that is in the premier league!

I don't mean this as an afterthought, but the photography is also superb!

[snapper_city]

She looks great. I have enjoyed the wip also. Top stuff.

[OzH]

Fantastic!

Nuff said...!

[HammerUK9]

Insane work Scuff - could well be the best AFV build I've seen yet!

And thank you so much for including a summary of your techniques; a godsend for all those who'd like to have a crack at replicating your work

Tim (who now has to get a Centurion!)

[havoc]

Absolutely stunning, puts mine to shame lol . Cracking piece mate, really very nice indeed.

[robw_uk]

well you know what I think - stunning... but where all the nice interior? its all gone

[Tony C]

Bloody hell

You can go to the top of the class today

[Scuff]

well you know what I think - stunning... but where all the nice interior? its all gone

Thankfully it all pops apart, so I can bore visitors with the internals

[Scuff]

Thanks for your generous comments. Its pleasing to hear them from those who understand the time and effort needed to indulge in our hobby.

I have had many messages asking about how I produce the images of my models, so here is a bit of an insight.

Whilst I have the facilities and specialist lighting and lenses to produce top notch images to paying clients, it may surprise you how little I use for my model shots, so that images can be taken quickly and then I can get back to the business of modelling. I actually use a high quality compact camera as opposed to one of my SLR's. The smaller sensor has the advantage of giving plenty of depth of field so that a lot of the model is in focus.

I use two canon flash guns fired wirelessly with a sender unit on the hot shoe of the camera. One flash gun is fired onto the ceiling in my small modelling room, and the other bounced onto a white door behind me. I choose my required aperture and take a test shot. If needed, I then alter the exposure compensation settings for the flash guns. The bounced light gives good soft and even lighting. The bounced ceiling light gives you a 'what you would expect to see outside' type of effect. The other light fills in the shadows.

Before I get to shoot the actual subject, I photograph a ‘grey balance’ card so that when I get around to editing the shots, I can ensure that the colour balance is spot on. I want the lighting to replicate what you would expect to see if you photographed the real thing outside. It was painted to give that type of graduation from lighter on the top to the more shadowy effect as you look towards the base.

The background is also very important. Coloured backgrounds rarely help, often being distracting and causing a colour shift and thus not displaying the accurate colours that have been carefully chosen and painted. The graduated monochrome coloured background really helps the model stand out and compliments the overhead lighting.

The images were shot in RAW format which allows me to spend some time editing in Lightroom 5.2 to get the absolute best out of the image. But that’s another skill entirely! Everything from my cameras through computer monitors and printers are calibrated to give accurate colours. Composition, viewpoint and perspective are all thought through carefully to make sure the images catch the eye and are pleasing to view - even though the viewer may not be able to put their finger on what actually makes it pleasing.

[Mac the Modelling Knife]

I can put my finger on what makes it pleasing.

1/ It's a spectacular model.

2/ It's out of the box.

3/ It's a Centurion!

But, honestly, thanks for the information.

[Mark]

Thanks for the photography advice! I must admit to having used your shots for inspiration when I took photos and presented them here in my own yearbook. Far fro being to your standard, but I 'stole' the idea for the graduated grey background and creating a frame around the photos.

Which compact do you use? I've used a Nikon D700 for my shots with a Nikkor 105mm macro lens. I've used continuous fluorescent studio lights and a product photo cube / soft box. I have been looking at compacts and did not realise that the smaller sensor gives greater depth of field. If I went down the compact road I was thinking of one of the Fujifilm X-20? Would that be suitable for modelling photography?

[tonyot]

Very nice indeed, lovely finish and build,

I`ve always fancied building this same kit as a British Army tank,

Cheers

Tony

[HL-10]

That's very impressive!

The variation that you have achieved in the monotone paint scheme is very well done.

Great looking Centurion.

[Scuff]

Thanks for the photography advice! I must admit to having used your shots for inspiration when I took photos and presented them here in my own yearbook. Far fro being to your standard, but I 'stole' the idea for the graduated grey background and creating a frame around the photos.

Which compact do you use? I've used a Nikon D700 for my shots with a Nikkor 105mm macro lens. I've used continuous fluorescent studio lights and a product photo cube / soft box. I have been looking at compacts and did not realise that the smaller sensor gives greater depth of field. If I went down the compact road I was thinking of one of the Fujifilm X-20? Would that be suitable for modelling photography?

Hi Mark

I use a Canon G12, but pretty much any high end compact that shoots raw files will do. The X-20 is a great camera but the sensor is 4/3 size I believe, and therefore the depth of field will often be too narrow.

I do use full frame SLR if the quality demands it, but with tilt lenses to better control the plane of focus. But the high end compacts give ample quality if the RAW files are processed correctly.

I hope that helps.

[Steve27752]

When I was a child, I am now 54. I had two favorite tanks. the M4 Sherman and the Centurion.

Yours is a beauty.

[Scuff]

When I was a child, I am now 54. I had two favorite tanks. the M4 Sherman and the Centurion.

Yours is a beauty.

Same here Steve, and thank you for your comments. From one old git to another. :^D are there many under 30's on here.

[burnley63]

Simply stunning - nothing else to be said