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1/35 Stug IV, Eastern Front, Winter '43/44. Finished 10/03.


DaveJL

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Hello all,

 

Late entry from me, but here it is; Tamiya's old 1/35 Sd Kfz 163 Sturmgeschütz IV. I'll be marking it up as a machine from the Eastern Front during the winter of 1943/44 and as such, will have a whitewash paint scheme. I know there are more modern toolings from Dragon of this vehicle, but I always enjoy building these old Tamiya kits, probably more so than any others, as they remind me of how I started into modelling in the first place; weekends spent with my late father building all sorts of 1/35 AFVs (and any 1/72 aircraft I could get my hands on!).

 

Kit:

 

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Extras:

 

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I'll be using a Value Gear storage set along with some brass aerials and a canvas swastika flag draped over the hull somewhere. I'll also be adding some jerry cans from the spares.

 

Looking forward to starting.

 

Dave

 

 

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Good choice Dave,I'M on with this kit for this GB,I suppose these Eastern front Stug's were by 44 in yellow based scheme's I did find a picture of a fully

whitewashed example while trawling for inspiration.

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...

Made a start on this over the last few days. Wheels first:

 

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I've a handy template for painting these that I picked up on eBay for pennies:

 

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Lower hull and running gear:

 

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Upper hull:

 

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Most of the parts are added, just the tools and side armour, which will be added after initial painting. This is how the main lump of Value Gear resin will sit; a few bits of plastic will need trimmed off:

 

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Another eBay find, some accessories taken from this to throw on the hull when it's complete, though some parts will repainted:

 

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More soon.

 

Dave

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36 minutes ago, Ozzy said:

Are you going to build a frame around the stowage?

I’m in two minds, I’ve seen a few pictures of what look like wooden planks around the rear deck, but I think this would hide some of the detail of the equipment. Not even sure the resin would fit in!

 

I wouldn’t have the greatest knowledge of WWII vehicles. Did all Stug IVs have some sort of rack on the rear deck?

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19 hours ago, DaveJL said:

I’m in two minds, I’ve seen a few pictures of what look like wooden planks around the rear deck, but I think this would hide some of the detail of the equipment. Not even sure the resin would fit in!

 

I wouldn’t have the greatest knowledge of WWII vehicles. Did all Stug IVs have some sort of rack on the rear deck? 

Hi Dave,

To answer your question, some did, some didn't. I couldn't say whether some were factory fitted or not, but some were definitely bodged together by the crew.

Personally, I think StuGs look better with them.  The simplest  were just uprights welded/bolted  to the deck ,with planks lashed to them to form sides. Plenty of photos on the web for you to peruse at your leisure!

 

Rearguards,

Badder

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Thanks chaps. I'll have a look into it; the picture I seen with the bits that looks like planks of wood, is refusing to be found! I'll test fit some styrene to see if the value gear piece will still sit in place.

 

Edit:

 

After a quick look on eBay, I've found a few etch sets that include different styles of rear storage rack, though they're for the Dragon kit.

 

Dave

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5 hours ago, PlaStix said:

Hi Dave. Great to see you are underway and it looks like you are making excellent progress! :thumbsup:

Kind regards,

Stix

Thanks Stix.

 

More done today; built up a frame using some lengths of styrene sheet, a few bits of scrap plastic and etch. Not going to win any awards, but looks fine to me:

 

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How the resin equipment will sit:

 

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I also worked on the side armour. I'm leaving a few of the plates off as per some pictures I've seen. All, bar one, have had some bending and damage added and a few have had some 'bullet' strike marks added with a small drill. This is how they look:

 

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Rough placement of a few more extra items on the rear deck:

 

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Hoping to get a coat of black primer on over the weekend and get some of the add-ons painted.

 

More soon.

 

Dave

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Hi Dave,

Coming along nicely. The resin stowage looks even better with the railing around it. I think you'd be right to pack a few more loose items in there as well - but not necessarily a spare wheel. I realise you've probably just put that there for effect. May I suggest a broom and an old bucket, or two which were used to whitewash the StuG?

 

Rearguards,

Badder

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Thanks mate. Yes I have a couple of buckets that I'll be hanging somewhere on the vehicle. I had popped the wheel in to see what it looked like as there were a couple of images online of spare wheels on the rear deck, though don't think I'll be adding it for the finish. I've a number of jerry cans, ration boxes etc that will go on.

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The push bike is the new bucket when it comes to adoring AFB with stowage..

 

Looking good.. I have been looking for this kit or the Academy copy over the last few weeks but one hasn’t surfaced...

 

looking foreword to seeing more as she progresses..

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Always like these Stugs, be interested to see how the resin stowage comes out, i’ve never used them so will watch with interest 🙂

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Hi Dave. Excellent progress again and I think the wonderful stowage and your rail are really going to take this Stug to the next level! :thumbsup:

Kind regards,

Stix

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Thanks Stix.

 

Some more to show. Kit was sprayed black then a few layers of Tamiya 'Dark Yellow' was applied. While that was drying, I painted some of the equipement. Once all was done, I added the exhaust to the hull along with the piece of spare track:

 

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Exhaust was done with a few shades of brown, orange, black and then finally some pigments to finish it off. I painted the concrete blocks light grey then added some of the bits of equipment. There's some overspray on the extra wheels but these will be white washed so I'm not too worried:

 

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With side armour set on:

 

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Some of the spare kit ready to go on once the whitewash is done:

 

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More soon.

 

Dave

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A bit more to show. Decals went on, then sealed in with a flat coat:

 

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One in natural light:

 

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I set that aside and finished the equipment. Once everything was dry, I popped it all on the hull to see how it would sit:

 

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All rough for now but I'm quite happy with the placement. I don't know if I'll keep the flag, which will need manipulating to sit more naturally, on the finished model. I also found a set of these in the stash:

 

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So a few empty shells might find their way onto the storage area. 

 

The model looks a bit bland - Whitewash will be applied tomorrow - so that will liven it up considerably!

 

More soon.

 

Dave

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Hi Dave,

That's some rapid progress! Looking nice and cluttered.

The brass shells are an absolute MUST HAVE in my book. A couple of empties rolled into nooks and crannies will do wonders for the look of the thing - and a few scattered on the ground to the side if you're making a dio/vignette.

 

I'm guessing you're not going to apply a camo before the whitewash?

Personally, I think a bit of colour showing through here and there helps. The good thing about whitewashing is you don't have to worry about the actual camo pattern - just apply the colours in any old patchwork you like, whitewash the lot and only expose small areas.

 

Whatever, I am watching with interest to see how you tackle the whitewash. I've seen some excellent 'freshly whitewashed' AFVs and I really don't know how they do it.  I can't get it to look right! That's why I go for dirt and worn whitewash.

 

Rearguards,

Badder

 

Edited by Badder
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