Nenad Ilijic Posted July 26, 2020 Share Posted July 26, 2020 Hi guys, While working on my North Africa themed subjects (currently working on Hobby Boss DAK Panzer IA, WIP soon to come), I did a little detour with this subject. It was a quick-build, straight from the box. I am no expert for French tanks and I decided to keep research to minimum as well. So I am sure there are many inaccuracies. The only change I did compared to the official Tamiya instructions is color scheme. Even though there were all kind of camouflage combinations used on this subject, light green proposed by the instructions was not very convincing to me, as it didn't match any particular paint choice from the official directives. So I just selected colors (from the Hataka French WW2 set) that matched reference photos the best and one of the combinations that was mentioned in the directives. I also did one experiment on this. As I find Hataka lacquers quite durable when fully cured I decided to do the paint job without any primer and without any clear coats. No primer was not that good idea (I had some minor chipping when pulling masking tape), but I was quite happy with the decision to not use any clear coats, as I like the Hataka semi-gloss finish, especially for the vehicles that were not exposed too much to the harsh conditions. Anyway, It's painted with Hataka lacquers, weathering was done with a combination of Mig's Europe Earth, Dump Earth and Earth and mix of 2 - 3 pigments. The build itself was super easy (as expected from Tamiya kit). I didn't even had any problems with indy link tracks, there were minimum cleanup involved. The only thing worth mentioning is that I was not able to complete the track with 102 links as recommended and I had o use 104 links. Also, photo-etch straps for stowage and tools would be welcome. Looking forward to your feedback. Cheers. 33 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stef N. Posted July 26, 2020 Share Posted July 26, 2020 I know little of this tank so can't verify accuracy either but it looks great. All the paint effects, camouflage, texture work well and the big, chunky chain finishes it off. Top job.👍 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmoss Posted July 27, 2020 Share Posted July 27, 2020 Very cool. Nice weathering 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flashlight Posted July 27, 2020 Share Posted July 27, 2020 Hi Nenad, although this is not my usual build area I have to say that this is a very impressive work! The paint job and weathering looks great. Did you create the rough skin by some special treatment of the surface or is it already provided with the kit? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kingsman Posted July 27, 2020 Share Posted July 27, 2020 Very nice. French colours and schemes can be a bit obscure as there were so many variations and monochrome photos don't help much. But they make such interesting subjects. An excellent design let down by the one-man turret and hugely over-worked commander. I was intrigued to see a video of Saumur's S35 running around with the entire top removed (it just unbolted) and another with the upper hull being lifted back into place. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasper dog Posted July 28, 2020 Share Posted July 28, 2020 Excellent. Paintwork and weathering first rate, as usual. The French certainly made distinctive tanks. Cheers Darryl 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M3talpig Posted July 28, 2020 Share Posted July 28, 2020 Lovely and unusual subject beautifully photographed built and weathered.......stunning well done. Stand at ease Steve 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevej60 Posted July 28, 2020 Share Posted July 28, 2020 That's a first class build and finish,love it! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nenad Ilijic Posted July 28, 2020 Author Share Posted July 28, 2020 @Stef N. @gmoss @Jasper dog @M3talpig @stevej60 thank you guys! On 7/27/2020 at 10:13 AM, flashlight said: Hi Nenad, although this is not my usual build area I have to say that this is a very impressive work! The paint job and weathering looks great. Did you create the rough skin by some special treatment of the surface or is it already provided with the kit? Thank you Nick. Casting texture was already provided with the kit. One of the best casting textures I've seen. It's not overdone, just like it should look like for 1/35 kit. Tamiya did a great job with this one. 19 hours ago, Das Abteilung said: Very nice. French colours and schemes can be a bit obscure as there were so many variations and monochrome photos don't help much. But they make such interesting subjects. An excellent design let down by the one-man turret and hugely over-worked commander. I was intrigued to see a video of Saumur's S35 running around with the entire top removed (it just unbolted) and another with the upper hull being lifted back into place. Thank you! Yes, it was one of the best tanks at the beginning of WW2. Some say it was used as a role model for M4. But just as you said, crippled by one-man turret and also French armor warfare doctrine and massive lack of radios (just some of them had radios installed, although many of them had aerials in place). Cheers, Nenad 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kingsman Posted July 28, 2020 Share Posted July 28, 2020 The S35 itself was not a role model for the M4, but the idea of cast armour was. Little-known that France had a tank purchasing commission in the USA alongside the better-known British one. France was hoping to persuade US companies to build S35 and Char B1. When France fell they were stranded but found their expertise in demand. The original Sherman T6 concept with the cast hull, which became the M4A1, was certainly influenced by the French liking for cast armour with its ballistic advantages - but production difficulties. Only 9,000 cast M4s vs 40,000 fabricated. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robgizlu Posted July 28, 2020 Share Posted July 28, 2020 Cracking model!! Rob 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4509davidb Posted July 29, 2020 Share Posted July 29, 2020 Fantastic! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nenad Ilijic Posted July 30, 2020 Author Share Posted July 30, 2020 On 7/28/2020 at 11:07 PM, Das Abteilung said: The S35 itself was not a role model for the M4, but the idea of cast armour was. Little-known that France had a tank purchasing commission in the USA alongside the better-known British one. France was hoping to persuade US companies to build S35 and Char B1. When France fell they were stranded but found their expertise in demand. The original Sherman T6 concept with the cast hull, which became the M4A1, was certainly influenced by the French liking for cast armour with its ballistic advantages - but production difficulties. Only 9,000 cast M4s vs 40,000 fabricated. Thank you! Very interesting! On 7/28/2020 at 11:53 PM, robgizlu said: Cracking model!! Rob Thank you Rob. On 7/29/2020 at 10:11 AM, 4509davidb said: Fantastic! Thank you David. Best, Nenad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surgeon01 Posted July 30, 2020 Share Posted July 30, 2020 Hi Nenad, that's a stunning build, really nice paint job and weathering ... greetings ro 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nenad Ilijic Posted August 4, 2020 Author Share Posted August 4, 2020 On 7/30/2020 at 6:04 PM, surgeon01 said: Hi Nenad, that's a stunning build, really nice paint job and weathering ... greetings ro Thank you Robert! Cheers, Nenad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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