Andy Moore Posted August 14, 2016 Author Share Posted August 14, 2016 It's probably smaller than my 1/72 T-35. It wouldn't surprise me if it was. This is just under 5" to the back of the tail skid. I'm guessing a T-35 would be just over 5" in 72nd Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Heath Posted August 14, 2016 Share Posted August 14, 2016 They look lovely. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted August 14, 2016 Share Posted August 14, 2016 Looking good Andy, can I ask what lighting you use for your photos 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Moore Posted August 15, 2016 Author Share Posted August 15, 2016 Thanks guys Looking good Andy, can I ask what lighting you use for your photos Thanks Colin. I got my lights from ebay. They're broadly similar to these. Mine are five lamp heads rather than four, and I use higher wattage bulbs but otherwise they're the same. Andy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrancisGL Posted August 15, 2016 Share Posted August 15, 2016 Very nice "bros", don't forget T-18 It is even more armed than the FT-17...with less space... ,cheers Andy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Moore Posted August 22, 2016 Author Share Posted August 22, 2016 Again, apologies for the abysmal lack of updates on this. I've had another project that I needed to get finished, and a pointless summerhouse to build for a friend, both of which are now done. There's been some minor progress on the build, so I'll run through what (little) I've got done. The rear wall for the base has been put together. It comes as two vac-form halves, and I'd initially tried to stick them together with epoxy but, probably because the epoxy was past its best and I hadn't mixed it thoroughly enough, it didn't set properly. In the end I had to prise the two halves apart and scrape out the half cured sticky residue of the epoxy, which got everywhere. I eventually managed to remove it all with hot water and Cif cleaner, and re-stuck the two halves with super glue. There wasn't much rigidity to it, so I opened up some holes in the bottom edge of the wall, and back filled it with plaster, which made the whole thing absolutely rock solid Any gaps in the seam between the halves were filled with Mr Surfacer, and superglue for any hairline gaps, then it was all sanded down. As it's meant to be a rough rendered wall, I didn't have to worry too much about the neatness of the finish, and I left some of the filler unsanded here and there to add extra texture. As it's vac-formed, some of the detailing in the exposed stonework is a bit soft, so some of the point lines were sharpened up with a knife blade, and I added some extra texture to the rendering with a diamond burr in a Dremel The wall was then primed, and stuck to the main base. I'll need to fill some of the gaps around the bottom of it, but a lot of this area will get covered by the ground work. I've got an assorted bunch of grass tufts and other bits and pieces that will cover the non-cobbled areas The T-18 itself has had a little extra weathering on the upper hull, and I've added a couple of folded tarps to the tail skid, made from tissue paper soaked in watered down PVA And this is roughly where it will sit on the base, with the figure standing in front of it The figure itself has been assembled, which essentially meant sticking the arms on, and given a coat of primer. I was very impressed with the quality of the sculpt. There was hardly any clean up required, and the fit of the arms was perfect, with no adjustment or filler needed Hopefully progress from now on will be a little faster than it's been over the last couple of weeks Andy 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrancisGL Posted August 22, 2016 Share Posted August 22, 2016 You'll be a brilliant vignette ... , cheers Andy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt.Squarehead Posted August 22, 2016 Share Posted August 22, 2016 Does 'Tiny-Tank' come with any decals.....It needs a suitably Soviet slogan or something IMHO. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Moore Posted August 22, 2016 Author Share Posted August 22, 2016 Does 'Tiny-Tank' come with any decals.....It needs a suitably Soviet slogan or something IMHO. No, there's no decals with the kit. I have thought about painting a battalion stripe around the top of the turret, and I might still do that. As far as slogans go, I've just ordered a set of printed propaganda posters, and I'll add one of those to the wall. Actually, thinking about it now, it might be fun to add a painted number to the turret, and have the brush and tin of paint sitting on the fender, like he's just painted it then stopped for a fag break. Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt.Squarehead Posted August 22, 2016 Share Posted August 22, 2016 It's very green as it is.....A red star might look good (I'd have thought they were almost compulsory at this stage too). Not sure he looks like the sort of fellow to do his own painting though.....Mebbe having a tab while the driver does it (proletarian comradeship only extends so far after all). PS - Looking at what pictures there are of these vehicles, they do seem to have been singularly plain.....The old model artist's dilemma, accuracy against visual appeal. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Moore Posted August 24, 2016 Author Share Posted August 24, 2016 Not sure he looks like the sort of fellow to do his own painting though.....Mebbe having a tab while the driver does it (proletarian comeradeship only extends so far after all). Not a bad idea. I think that Evolution do a figure that looks like he could represent the oppressed masses, so I think I might order him. I've been getting some base coats on the other figure. These are just base coats, so don't be too critical. Not that he'll necessarily look any better when I'm done. At least I've managed to avoid getting him cross-eyed, which is usually how it turns out when I try to paint eyeballs I've also finished the wooden gate for the wall. It's had some general scraping and gouging to make it look a bit worn and rotten, then given a couple of coats of a grey Vallejo wash, followed by some green and brown here and there. The gate that came with the base had some separate hinges which I'll add later I could leave the gate at that, but I want to try using the Chuck Doan method of paint chipping on wood, which is a kind of variation on hairspray chipping and involves coating the wood with white spirit and pigments to provide an unstable base which is then overcoated with a few layers of acrylic. When the top coat is dry, you use sellotape to lift chips of the acrylic giving, in theory, a worn finish. He's very good at it. Whether I'll manage to avoid making a pigs ear of it remains to be seen. If it doesn't work, I'll just end up making another gate, and leaving it like this one. We'll see what happens. Andy 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrancisGL Posted August 24, 2016 Share Posted August 24, 2016 Look very good for now, seem "Wood", cheers Andy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Moore Posted August 24, 2016 Author Share Posted August 24, 2016 Thanks Francis Well, I thought I'd better test the paint chipping method I'm going to use before doing it on the gate itself. This has been done on a plain piece of wood that's had no staining or weathering and, as both the wood and the paint are quite pale, the effect doesn't stand out that well. That being said, I think I've got the basic principal of doing it, but I want to practice a bit more before I commit to doing it on the gate I think the top coat of paint needs to be a bit thicker to get more pronounced chips, but the chips should stand out more when they're over the darker, weathered wood. I'll try another piece tomorrow and see how I get on with it. I've also painted the tissue paper tarps on the tank's tail skid. There's a few spots I've missed where it's awkward to get a brush in, but I'll add some washes that should take care of that More soon Andy 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madhatter Posted August 25, 2016 Share Posted August 25, 2016 man - I am always in awe of your paint work Andy. I have found myself trying to incorporate some of your techniques into my own builds now and am getting much better results - at least in my own opinion. I have a long way to go yet before I reach your standards mind you Looking forward to seeing more Si 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrancisGL Posted August 25, 2016 Share Posted August 25, 2016 All a "study" on the wood, from here it looks very real. , cheers Andy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Heath Posted August 25, 2016 Share Posted August 25, 2016 Yes, that's a great effect achieved on the wood. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt.Squarehead Posted August 25, 2016 Share Posted August 25, 2016 Looks pretty damned convincing to me too.....Any chance of a step by step (or a link to same)? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Moore Posted August 25, 2016 Author Share Posted August 25, 2016 (edited) Thanks guys Looks pretty damned convincing to me too.....Any chance of a step by step (or a link to same)? Coming right up OK, so this is the second test run of the wood chipping. This time I've stained the wood so the resulting chips will show up a bit better, and I did the chipping sooner after applying the paint, which seemed to work better. Before I run through the steps, I should say again than this isn't my technique. I'm just trying to emulate the amazing work of Chuck Doan, and if you haven't seen his work before you can see his Flickr photostream here So, to start with I gave the wood (a basswood strip in this case) a few coats of Vallejo and Citadel washes to stain it. The darker it is, the more contrast there will be to the paint finish, which seems to work best, unless of course you're going with a dark paint colour, in which case you'll probably want a paler stain on the wood I left the wash to full dry, then brushed some pigment over the surface. You need a good coating, but blow any loose pigment away before continuing. The colour doesn't matter that much, as you don't really see it in the end. It's just there to provide an unstable surface for the paint, in the same way that hairspray does. Just go with something that's tonally similar to the wood colour After the pigment's on, wet the surface with white spirit. You want it fairly damp but not dripping wet Let the white spirit dry for a minute or two, until there's still a bit of sheen to the surface, but it's not noticeably wet, then apply three or four medium-thin coats of acrylic (in whatever colour you want: I think paler colours seem to look best). The paint dries pretty fast on the wood, so leave about 30 seconds to a minute between coats. In theory, the thicker the overall paint layer, the larger the chips will be, as the paint will be more rubbery and lift easier After the final coat is on, leave it to dry for a couple of minutes. You want the paint to be touch dry, but still soft. Take a piece of sellotape (other brands are available), and apply it to the painted surface, then gently pull it back and it will bring small chips of paint with it. The more you press it on, the more paint it will lift, so you can vary the effect the way you want And this is what it looks like when you're done. This and the previous example are the first time I've tried this, so it's still a work in progress, but I really like the effect it gives. You can continue to weather the finish when the paint has fully dried with other washes, rust stains etc. In other news, the figure has had some highlighting on the skin and jacket, although the later needs to be blended a bit better, as it's quite patchy at the moment Andy Edited August 25, 2016 by AndyRM101 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt.Squarehead Posted August 25, 2016 Share Posted August 25, 2016 Andy you are a total star mate.....Really appreciate this! it goes without saying that I'm impressed with the results! PS - Just checked out your link.....Blimey! He's a bit talented that fella! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted August 25, 2016 Share Posted August 25, 2016 Thanks for sharing your techniques and experiments with us Andy, duly filed away for me to attempt at some stage 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt.Squarehead Posted August 25, 2016 Share Posted August 25, 2016 Presumably you could layer this effect with different colours to give the impression of earlier layers of paint. The figure definitely looks even less like the sort of chap who does his own painting.....Indeed I'm starting to fear for the well being of his driver if he goes over the lines! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Vale Posted August 26, 2016 Share Posted August 26, 2016 Great stuff, the figure and chipping look excellent. I love his floppy hair. I was going to grumble that the scribed gate would look better from individual boards (I think you can see the grain run across the scribe lines) but with the paint I think it'll look immaculate. The rotten board ends are amazing. On the earlier question of markings, you may not need them as the base and figure are going to provide a lot of extra colour and contrast to the green anyway. Cheers, Will 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt.Squarehead Posted August 26, 2016 Share Posted August 26, 2016 I reckon Will's right and it would probably be more authentic that way too.....For all I'd like to, I've yet to find one with any patriotic slogans or markings. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrancisGL Posted August 26, 2016 Share Posted August 26, 2016 Very smart trick with wood chipping... nice figure.... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Podmore Posted August 26, 2016 Share Posted August 26, 2016 This is spectacular - I'm learning so much! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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