Panzer III STGB Chat

[Foxbat]

7 minutes ago, JackG said:

Wire cutters are bit more detailed, with handles encased in paper with a topcoat of red brown, and the end caps are bakelite material in a very dark colour;

Great, I got mine the right colour accidentally 😊

 

Andy

[Retired Bob]

A question while the subject is on stowage equipment, the wooden jack block, most modellers, myself included paint a nice wood colour with grain effect but on another modelling site was a photo of a  real jack block and it was painted black, any further information on jack blocks out there?

[JackG]

Searches on the discussion gives a few choices, as no official documentation on the jack block maintenance and stowage is as yet uncovered?  So the matter is left to observing period photos,  existing examples, as well as a common sense.

 

Bare wood is probably least common.  as it would dry out and splinter.   The black finish was identified by some as creosote, a protective barrier for wood.   Another option was to paint the block the same as the vehicle colour.   Use of the block would of course disrupt any surface coating, so a scuffed up appearance would probably look best.

 

regards,

Jack

[WarhammerAdjacent]

Not hugely relevant but the last real wooden jack block I’ve seen was for a modern British vehicle, was bare wood, kept lightly oiled and wrapped in layers of bubble wrap as though it were the most precious thing on the vehicle.

 

I’m not sure I’m convinced by the drying and splintering issue, I mean sure, over a period of years, but given the life expectancy of the vehicle and the kind of use the block is likely to get I can’t see that being a major factor.

[Retired Bob]

On 03/04/2021 at 19:47, WarhammerAdjacent said:

I’m not sure I’m convinced by the drying and splintering issue, I mean sure, over a period of years, but given the life expectancy of the vehicle and the kind of use the block is likely to get I can’t see that being a major factor.

I thought the same about the drying and splintering issue, the photo of a real one looked as though it had either black paint or tar applied to prevent water affecting it, but was was that a standard for all jack blocks throughout the war?

The usual problem of surviving equipment from WW2, is it in original finish?  A photo of original German equipment in one of my books shows the 200 litre fuel drums as black painted but I have found this photo on Flickr dated from 1943.  Blue fuel drums?

 

[JackG]

From a recent past discussion elsewhere, those fuel drums were determined to be just galvanized steel - unpainted, but the rims and embossed ribs do appear to be painted a dark colour.

 

regards,

Jack

[Retired Bob]

5 hours ago, JackG said:

From a recent past discussion elsewhere, those fuel drums were determined to be just galvanized steel - unpainted, but the rims and embossed ribs do appear to be painted a dark colour.

Thanks Jack, silvery grey galvanized drums with black rims and ribs. 

[JackG]

Still not sure if the 'trimming' on the fuel drums is paint, or just bare metal that is dark.  

 

Anyhow, another colour photo:

 

 

 

Apparently galvanized drums were the norm, until zinc shortages of late 1944, then drums could be found painted. 

 

 

regards,

Jack

[witjas4]

Hello modellers. Could anyone tell me please when finally this STGB ends ? I haven't read any post and maybe I missed something, in "welcome and rules" i can read this "Duration:  6th February to 30th May 2021" but in Chat section I see the previous date - 9th May 2021. I'm confused now.

 

Cheers

W

[Ozzy]

5 hours ago, witjas4 said:

Hello modellers. Could anyone tell me please when finally this STGB ends ? I haven't read any post and maybe I missed something, in "welcome and rules" i can read this "Duration:  6th February to 30th May 2021" but in Chat section I see the previous date - 9th May 2021. I'm confused now.

 

Cheers

W

W,

 

the Banner date of the 30 May is the date to go by as its set by Enzo the GB coordinator. It is not uncommon for builds to be extended. 

[Corsairfoxfouruncle]

8 hours ago, witjas4 said:

Hello modellers. Could anyone tell me please when finally this STGB ends ? I haven't read any post and maybe I missed something, in "welcome and rules" i can read this "Duration:  6th February to 30th May 2021" but in Chat section I see the previous date - 9th May 2021. I'm confused now.

 

Cheers

W

Originally was the 9th, it looks as if its been extended to the 30th. 

[Badder]

Hi peeps,

 

Dunno if anyone has  mentioned it but there's a new Russian film out called 'The final stand', or 'The last frontier', depending on which country you live in. It's WWII with English subtitles and is based on a true story where Russian military cadets are sent to hold back advancing battalions of German armour whilst reinforcements are readied. Only the reinforcements never arrive.

There's a lot of German armour on display, Pz I, 2 and 3's, Sd.Kfz 251's as well as T34's, most of them real with some CGI'd in, like The Stug III at the end of the film.

The bombing, rocketing and shelling scenes are quite spectacular, some truly enormous, although the use of multi-camera views, and more slo-mo could and should have been used.

 

Badder

[Ozzy]

Thanks Badder, I’ll take a look.

[Badder]

3 hours ago, Ozzy said:

Thanks Badder, I’ll take a look.

Let me know what you think.

B.

[Ozzy]

1 hour ago, Badder said:

Let me know what you think.

B.

Will do.

[PlaStix]

On 20/04/2021 at 12:23, witjas4 said:

Hello modellers. Could anyone tell me please when finally this STGB ends ? I haven't read any post and maybe I missed something, in "welcome and rules" i can read this "Duration:  6th February to 30th May 2021" but in Chat section I see the previous date - 9th May 2021. I'm confused now.

 

Cheers

W

Hi W. When Enzo set up the GB he must have extended the finish date. The Gallery will close at 23.59 on Sunday May 30th.

Kind regards,

Stix

[Churchill]

I'm a little late to the party, but just posted this and only then realised there's a Pz III group build. I do have two more ready to start though, so is it too late for me to jump in with those?

[Corsairfoxfouruncle]

1 hour ago, Churchill said:

I'm a little late to the party, but just posted this and only then realised there's a Pz III group build. I do have two more ready to start though, so is it too late for me to jump in with those?

Im pretty sure Stix wont mind you joining, and we have 30days left so if you can do it id say go for it. 

[Churchill]

I'm having difficulty sourcing 15mm scale 1/100 Afrika Korps turret number decals in red or red with white outline. I could always freehand the numbers as I did with the last model, but I do have some red turret numbers with black outline. 

Does anyone know where and when the Germans used those colours?

 

 

[JackG]

I've checked my references, but unfortunately nothing about that particular colour combination.  White outlined numbers were standard for easier spotting.  The only black outlines I've seen were without coloured centers, that is base vehicle colour.

 

https://panzerworld.com/german-armor-balkenkreuz-tactical-numbers

https://www.flamesofwar.com/hobby.aspx?art_id=287

http://bunker3030.blogspot.com/2011/06/beginners-guide-to-german-3-digit.html

 

 

regards,

Jack

[PlaStix]

On 30/04/2021 at 18:48, Churchill said:

I'm a little late to the party, but just posted this and only then realised there's a Pz III group build. I do have two more ready to start though, so is it too late for me to jump in with those?

Hi Churchill. As @Corsairfoxfouruncle said - you are more than welcome to take part in this STGB and I'm pleased to see you have started a thread.

Kind regards,

Stix

[PlaStix]

Hi all. For anyone still building their models for this STGB - you now have 4 weeks until the Gallery closes at 23.59 on Sunday 30th May.

We already have 11 superb completed builds in the Gallery and, hopefully, we'll have a few more before the Gallery closes.

Good luck to everyone still building!

Kind regards,

Stix

[Tim R-T-C]

I hope its not too late for a quick Stug quintet?

 

[PlaStix]

On 08/05/2021 at 12:58, Tim R-T-C said:

I hope its not too late for a quick Stug quintet?

Hi Tim. Certainly not too late! Welcome.

Kind regards,

Stix

[Churchill]

Seeking the wisdom of more experienced modellers here:

 

On the subject of paint, I am becoming increasingly disappointed with and frustrated by the Mig Ammo paints I've been using. I've acquired about twenty bottles over the last couple of builds and I find that many of them have a serious problem with very poor 'wetability'. I'm not sure if it's the paint I'm applying, or the paint I'm applying it to, but it acts like I'm trying to paint it over a layer of silicone polish. It just pulls together under its own surface tension and beads up, sometimes leaving no trace that it was ever on the parts of the surface it's just pulled away from. I know this can happen when painting bare plastic, and I know it can happen when the model has been handled too much and there's oils from your skin on the paint surface. But this happens even when putting a Mig Ammo paint on a fresh surface of Mig Ammo primer. In the worst cases, it renders the paint effectively unusable. The problem occurs no matter how carefully the paint has been stirred (I'll pull the spouts off the dropper bottles and get in there with a mixing rod) and regardless of whether the paint is diluted with water, acrylic thinners, or used straight from the bottle. 

 

Here's undiluted Mig 122 'bone' painted on a fresh layer of Mig one-shot grey primer:

 

2021-05-08_08-23-32 by Rob Churchill, on Flickr

 

That's not by any means the worst, at least here the paint has kept up to the outline of the brush-stokes instead of beading up completely. If anyone has any suggestions, I'd appreciate it. My local model shop sells only Mig and Tamiya and I feel like chucking all my Mig in the bin and replacing it with Tamiya.