Churchill Mk.III AFV Club 1/35th

[diablo rsv]

This is the AFV Club 1/35th Churchill Mk.III. 

I based it on an image of a Churchill tank and infantry advancing near Medjez-el-Bab, Tunisia, 8 May 1943.

The model was built as it comes with the exception of AFV club's individual link workable tracks.

I found it quite an enjoyable kit to put together. I did read that some modelers didn't like the way the running gear goes together but I can't say that I found it particularly troublesome.

The base colour is MRP's Khaki Green No3 (MRP-333). The stripes are basically Tamiya's Buff which was applied over a layer of hairspray so that it could be chipped and scratched off to give a worn look.

The idea was to represent a rapidly applied camouflage where they had used locally sourced materials. I hand painted the outline and then filled in the stripes with the airbrush because I really could't be bothered to mask it all. 

Weathering was applied using with my usual mix of pigments, thinned paints, graphite and oils to try and give a dirty dusty appearance.

 

 

This is the photo of the tank that I was trying to represent. I'm not sure which regiment it belonged to as there seems to be conflicting information. Hopefully someone will be able to enlighten me.  @Das Abteilung ?

After looking at the photo of the actual tank in my original post it was very obvious how under nourished AFV's kit barrel is, so I have replaced it with the RB models one. I had also missed what appears to be 

a rolled up dust shield on the glacis plate. 

 

      

 

This is a close-up to show the stowed dust cover. I fabricated it from some photo etch fret and milliput. I'm not sure how accurate it is as my reference photos are limited.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The image below still has AFV Club's original barrel for comparison.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Any advice and critique is welcomed.

 

Regards

Wayne

 

Edited May 2, 2020 by diablo rsv
Change Photos and additional information

[fatfingers]

All round a fantastic job 

 

Regards 

 

Steve 

[Rumblestripe]

Critique?

 

Nope

[Jasper dog]

Smashing Churchill!

Not a scheme you see every day but you've certainly done it justice, really nice work.

 

A much underrepresented machine so it's good to see one, and so well done.

 

Cheers

Darryl 

[Kris B]

Well done.

[GRK]

Crickey Wayne, you’re churning them out at quite a rate! Great looking Churchill and I think the tracks especially are very convincing. 

[diablo rsv]

12 hours ago, fatfingers said:

All round a fantastic job 

 

Regards 

 

Steve 

 

12 hours ago, Rumblestripe said:

Critique?

 

Nope

Thanks guys!

[diablo rsv]

11 hours ago, Jasper dog said:

Smashing Churchill!

Not a scheme you see every day but you've certainly done it justice, really nice work.

 

A much underrepresented machine so it's good to see one, and so well done.

 

Cheers

Darryl 

Thank you Darryl.

 

I set myself the task of building a representation of all of the types of AFV's used by the British in as many varied colour schemes as I can.🤪 This one is quite unusual.

There is something about the Churchill's antiquated but imposing look that has always appealed to me.

 

Cheers

Wayne 

[diablo rsv]

1 hour ago, GRK said:

Crickey Wayne, you’re churning them out at quite a rate! Great looking Churchill and I think the tracks especially are very convincing. 

Thank you!

It does seem that way but in reality this one has been on the bench for about six months. I have a few projects on the go at the same time,

usually starting a new one every other month or so and they can take anywhere from a couple of months to a year for me to complete.

My photography area is also my spray booth so I generally take photos of three or four models at a time. This often shows up a few flaws that will require attention and another photo shoot.

I'm not sure of the forum etiquette regarding posting new topics so I try to keep it at no more than one a month.

I did squeeze in the Whippet though as it was really a repair job on an older build and I wanted some feed back on my use of oils.

 

Cheers

Wayne 

[Lawrence Tierney]

I like the way the weathering "blends" into the camo. Good job

[Bullbasket]

That is a very nice looking Churchill. Well painted and weathered, especially the tracks. Nice one.

 

John.

[Ernst]

Absolutely awesome, as mentioned before those tracks are very convincing. This especially important in this case where the tracks are so prominently visible from all angles. Stunning job on the camo.👍

Cheers,

Ernst

[Buzby061]

Very nicely done. The tracks look good as does the weathering. 
 

AFV Clubs Churchills are nice kits, I did a Carpet Layer version a few years ago & fancy adding a gun tank to the collection. 
 

Pete

[DAG058]

Very nice!

[diablo rsv]

22 hours ago, Lawrence Tierney said:

I like the way the weathering "blends" into the camo. Good job

 

21 hours ago, Bullbasket said:

That is a very nice looking Churchill. Well painted and weathered, especially the tracks. Nice one.

 

John.

 

21 hours ago, Ernst said:

Absolutely awesome, as mentioned before those tracks are very convincing. This especially important in this case where the tracks are so prominently visible from all angles. Stunning job on the camo.👍

Cheers,

Ernst

 

15 hours ago, Buzby061 said:

Very nicely done. The tracks look good as does the weathering. 
 

AFV Clubs Churchills are nice kits, I did a Carpet Layer version a few years ago & fancy adding a gun tank to the collection. 
 

Pete

 

14 hours ago, DAG058 said:

Very nice!

Thank you all very much!

I hadn't done much in the way using the hairspray chipping method before so I am pleased with the results. I just wish I had done more on the turret though.

I enjoyed doing the tracks on this one ( not something I would normally say ) as they went together reasonably well. The only real issue I had with them is what I presume to be ejection pin marks on the inside face of the links.

I got bored of cleaning them all up and thought I would use the ones I hadn't cleaned on the top runs but of course I forgot and they ended up at the bottom. Fortunately they are not too visible.

Painting and weathering them was a joy though, so for my other Churchill build I think I will leave off more of the track guards. 

 

 

Cheers

Wayne

 

[f matthews]

Excellent finish-I particularly like how you modeled the paint scheme of the original so well-that is not an easy task and you pulled it off masterfully.

[Carius]

Great job indeed, I love the paint job

[Retired Bob]

Excellent Churchill Wayne, superb paint finish and weathering.  I agree the suspension is not too bad, but a third hand would have helped.   I too assembled the workable track links, I made four sets, filling all those ejector pin marks, two sets for AFV Churchills and two for Tamiya ones.  I couldn't make my mind up what markings to finish them so they are in primer on my "must finish" shelf.

[Bandit1250]

Brilliant! Love the finishing. I have one in the stash with the intent to build a Kingforce version. If it turns out half as good as yours I'll be pleased.

[diablo rsv]

8 hours ago, f matthews said:

Excellent finish-I particularly like how you modeled the paint scheme of the original so well-that is not an easy task and you pulled it off masterfully.

Thank you very much!

To be honest I found matching the side in the photo was easier than doing the areas that I didn't have a reference for. Trying to figure out how the pattern would have gone over the top and down the back and keep it consistent was a lot harder than it probably should have been.

[diablo rsv]

1 hour ago, Bandit1250 said:

Brilliant! Love the finishing. I have one in the stash with the intent to build a Kingforce version. If it turns out half as good as yours I'll be pleased.

Thank you!

I have no doubt yours will be very good.

I was tempted to do that one as well but after doing a little research I realised it would require making or sourcing some extra parts such as the dust guards and fuel drum. 

[diablo rsv]

2 hours ago, Retired Bob said:

Excellent Churchill Wayne, superb paint finish and weathering.  I agree the suspension is not too bad, but a third hand would have helped.   I too assembled the workable track links, I made four sets, filling all those ejector pin marks, two sets for AFV Churchills and two for Tamiya ones.  I couldn't make my mind up what markings to finish them so they are in primer on my "must finish" shelf.

I admire your patience, that's a lot of holes to fill. I have a set of their Heavy Cast Steel tracks for another AFV Club build but I haven't checked to see if they have the sink marks.

There are a few options of finishes for the Churchill's and they all bring different challenges but I find that's the part I enjoy. I have got the Tamiya one as well that I use to experiment on. It's currently got a winter white wash which is fun to do. 

[Retired Bob]

5 minutes ago, diablo rsv said:

There are a few options of finishes for the Churchill's and they all bring different challenges but I find that's the part I enjoy. I have got the Tamiya one as well that I use to experiment on. It's currently got a winter white wash which is fun to do. 

My research on Churchills in Normandy showed that a lot of them removed the track covers either side of the turret to prevent the turret being jammed if the the covers were damaged.  I removed the top runs on both Tamiya kits, a standard Mk. VII and a Crocodile.  The two main problems with the Tamiya kit is that they were made to be motorised and they used a post war modified tank to obtain their information, so some back dating is required, Eduard did some etched frets to improve the moulded on details and some metal barrels will always look good.

[Kingsman]

A most excellent model indeed.  Nicely captured.

 

It is interesting now you've posed the model and the original one above the other at similar angles.  It shows just how well you've captured the original.  Interestingly it also highlights a few little details that AFV Club haven't got quite right.

 

On the subject of trackguards getting stuffed with debris, the tank in the photo is already sporting a good stuffing of vegitation around the mud chute and idler on this side.

[diablo rsv]

5 hours ago, Das Abteilung said:

A most excellent model indeed.  Nicely captured.

 

It is interesting now you've posed the model and the original one above the other at similar angles.  It shows just how well you've captured the original.  Interestingly it also highlights a few little details that AFV Club haven't got quite right.

 

On the subject of trackguards getting stuffed with debris, the tank in the photo is already sporting a good stuffing of vegitation around the mud chute and idler on this side.

6 hours ago, Retired Bob said:

My research on Churchills in Normandy showed that a lot of them removed the track covers either side of the turret to prevent the turret being jammed if the the covers were damaged.  I removed the top runs on both Tamiya kits, a standard Mk. VII and a Crocodile.  The two main problems with the Tamiya kit is that they were made to be motorised and they used a post war modified tank to obtain their information, so some back dating is required, Eduard did some etched frets to improve the moulded on details and some metal barrels will always look good.

Thank you very much!

I did notice a couple of things on the AFV Club kit but a little too late. The most noticeable one being that the barrel is somewhat undernourished. I have got an RB models one which has more girth to it and seems a lot more accurate than the kit barrel although the bore in the muzzle will need increasing. I obviously intended to use it as it was still in the box.🙄  Now I've seen it I think I will change it.  Also the vision ports guards seem too high but that might not be so easy to change.

In the photo I used and the one below there seems to be some rolled up fabric attached to the glacis plate, I wondered if this is some kind of dust shield such as the ones used on the Kingforce tanks.

This photo also shows the middle track guards removed. I believe this practice did lead to some nasty accidents when riders or crew stepped down when the tank was still moving.