Trevor L Posted February 13, 2023 Share Posted February 13, 2023 10 hours ago, Ray_W said: For example, what colour grey did I use? I know I liked it. Oh, so many shades of grey To be precise there are, apparently, 50 shades. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted February 15, 2023 Author Share Posted February 15, 2023 The race to the finish line. Unlikely to get my diorama and figures complete but the Minerva has a good chance of sneaking into the gallery. I have been working on part preparation and all is ready for some serious assembly. Firstly though, completed and fitted the exhaust manifold and pipe. Nice detail from CSM. Still a little too clean underneath. I'll add a little more dirt and soot at the end. A mob of pre-painted parts ready to be used. I have worked out my strategy for the tri-colour camouflage. I'll weather and finish the inside of the tub walls then assemble the major components ready for masking. That will be tomorrow evening's job. Also, prepared the wheels and started spraying the spokes and rims. Will mask the centres and spray the lighter grey tyres tomorrow and then some initial weathering. 🤔 Looks like I'm building a locomotive. Not a very exciting post, but good that things are now happening. Ray 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edjbartos Posted February 15, 2023 Share Posted February 15, 2023 looking really good, I hope you get to finish it in time... all the best Ed 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trevor L Posted February 15, 2023 Share Posted February 15, 2023 Yes, looking very nice. I love the tones and textures of the underside. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted February 16, 2023 Author Share Posted February 16, 2023 21 hours ago, edjbartos said: I hope you get to finish it in time... Thanks Ed, It will be close but, even if it goes over a couple of days, I can see it will be finished. 19 hours ago, Trevor L said: I love the tones and textures of the underside Thanks Trevor, trying to replicate the underside of trucks my brother and I use to crawl over as kids. A little more progress this evening. Wheels are ready for weathering. I used Tamiya Deck Tan over a black undercoat and really happy with how they turned out. Photo does make them appear a little more yellowish. There is a nice variation between the grey rims and light grey tyres not captured in this image. Once I get them off the blue cutting mat, the colour may appear a little more natural. Also in the process of closing up the tub and thought a couple of inside shots may be of interest before I do so. Darn a sink mark. I might live with that one. Then again .... You would think a back rest for the driver would of made it a little easier to depress the foot pedals. I'll finish this and onto the camouflage. Ray 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edjbartos Posted February 16, 2023 Share Posted February 16, 2023 This is looking lovely, I really like the weathering that you have done and the engine looks great... Ed 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted February 17, 2023 Author Share Posted February 17, 2023 No doubt the reason why you see this kit usually built in its plain grey scheme is that the tri-colour camo does appear a little daunting. Tight edges, small patches of colour, each lined with black, complicated surfaces and all to be accommodated on a small subject. It is probably a good one to brush paint but I felt like I was up for the challenge, my preference being to spray the three colours and then hand paint the black dividing lines. I considered various masking techniques and then decided to apply a de-tacked kabuki mask, draw the pattern, remove and cut the pieces with a scalpel and then assemble the jigsaw puzzle. Here is the result: I'll then remove and spray each group of colours in turn. Trying to keep some understanding of the replacement order. 🤪 Crazy? I think so. Will it work? Quite possibly. Just to add a little more fun, I used another coat of hairspray on the running boards and storage boxes so I can wear through the camo colours to the grey and wood. Never masked over hairspray so I will be interested to see how it performs. I'll mask these just before I am ready to spray. Colour tomorrow - how exciting. Now the ultimate colour conundrum. What colour for a WW1 Minerva in tri-colour scheme? Did some research - various viewpoints, the usual discussion on pigments, thinning, field application, standards, no standards, in service wear even read about Bulgarian railway colours and decided to cut through all my personal confusion and just match something with the opposition. The IWM has this German helmet sample I also saw a colour image from a private collection that was surprisingly similar so thought good enough for me. Belgium copied Germany or vice versa. Made some mixes using Tamiya paint. Actual paint colour mixed, as usual, does not look right in this image. Yellow is more mustard. Brown more faded, Green less olive. In natural light - still not quite right but closer to what I see. They should turn out nicely faded though the weathering process. Mixes used? Sorry, no science. Just took the first colour and kept adding drops of the second till I was satisfied. Green: Deep Green XF-26 + Deck Tan XF-55 Brown: Flat Brown XF-10 + Flat Yellow XF-3 Yellow: Dark Yellow XF-60 + Flat Yellow XF-3 So tomorrow I'll load up the air brush and we will see what happens. Ray 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trevor L Posted February 18, 2023 Share Posted February 18, 2023 Yep, that colour scheme would certainly put me off! Hats off to you for going for it, and I reckon it will look great. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted February 18, 2023 Author Share Posted February 18, 2023 6 hours ago, Trevor L said: that colour scheme would certainly put me off! Good when it is done though. I took this image in diffuse natural light and finally captured the colours as my eyes see them. Popped the hood into position. It is removable to show off the engine. Now to paint a thin black line dividing all the colours. I weathered the wheels while giving a little time between each of the camo colours. Ray 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edjbartos Posted February 18, 2023 Share Posted February 18, 2023 That looks excellent Ray, very good indeed, will look even better when you put on the black line, well done... Ed 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted February 18, 2023 Author Share Posted February 18, 2023 1 hour ago, edjbartos said: That looks excellent Ray, very good indeed, will look even better when you put on the black line, well done... Ed Thanks Ed. I thought I would put it aside for the evening and then, having had a break, got drawn back to it. Black Vallejo Model Color and a long bristle No.1 Kolinsky Sable and it was done. It was not as onerous as I expected and, yes, looks much better now. Some detail painting to come and then assembly and weathering. Sadly, it will not make the gallery as there is still too much to do. However, I will persevere here in the GB and expect that this week I should be able to at least post it as a RFI. Ray 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trevor L Posted February 18, 2023 Share Posted February 18, 2023 Top job! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jb65rams Posted February 18, 2023 Share Posted February 18, 2023 Nice work. Have this in the stash, would probably have gone grey, but seeing yours I would be tempted with this scheme. It really looks great. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edjbartos Posted February 18, 2023 Share Posted February 18, 2023 That looks excellent, well done... Ed 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted February 19, 2023 Author Share Posted February 19, 2023 Thanks @Trevor L @Jb65rams @edjbartos It's one of those schemes you tend to stay away from and yet exceptionally satisfying when it turns out OK. Breaking the major components down as shown simplified it significantly. Ray 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stef N. Posted February 19, 2023 Share Posted February 19, 2023 Superb paint scheme Ray. Excellently done.👏 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geo1966 Posted February 19, 2023 Share Posted February 19, 2023 Great work with the masking and painting Ray. It looks fantastic. George 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdrianMF Posted February 20, 2023 Share Posted February 20, 2023 Love the colour scheme, and it's beautifully executed. The wheels are pretty sharp too! Looking forward to an Armour WIP/RFI? Regards, Adrian 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted February 20, 2023 Author Share Posted February 20, 2023 @Stef N. @Geo1966 @AdrianMF Thanks for the kind remarks. I'll keep posting here until complete. I have a busy start to the working week so will be away from the bench for a little while and will post more towards the end of the week. Hopefully you can stay tuned. Ray 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted February 24, 2023 Author Share Posted February 24, 2023 I was able to spend a little more time on this kit. I am very impressed by modern kits and what can be achieved with plastic these days. CSM have done a wonderful job with this. I'll have to build more. Everything goes together beautifully and with such fidelity. The fit is so tight that any micro-flash at connection points needs to be removed. Do so and you are rewarded with a kit that is a joy to build. The running boards/guards could be added at the very end although I want to largely complete the weathering without having to touch any oil rendering and pigment applied. So all main components are now in place. The top of the tub provides a nice flat surface when you flip it over to work on the underside without the Hotchkiss MG and mount in place. I have started to do some macro wear and chipping. I used the sponge technique to reveal the original grey and also wear on the wooden side panniers. Even though I did apply hairspray for this effect, I found the sponge better. Just the start of this process and lots more to come. Ray 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted February 25, 2023 Author Share Posted February 25, 2023 Wheels on and the weathering process continues. Still more details to fit, but I can see the finish line. I need to scratch-build a few items - the carbide lamp acetylene generation tank that sits on the front left side pannier (as shown below) and some Hotchkiss MG ammo boxes (any 1/35 aftermarket?). No where to hide with close up photography but it is real good at picking out things to improve. It is getting there. Lovely model and a lot of fun. Next post should be complete. Ray 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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