1/48 Hobby Boss T-34/85

[Calum]

Need a bit of break from aircraft, especially WW2 ones so thought I'd tackle this.

I like 48th scale armour as it's big enough to do a bit of detailing but not big that takes up to much time and space. Plus it goes with my aircraft

This thing has an insane amount of parts. More than the average 48 scale jet

Spent abut 3 hours building the "cockpit" I'm going to paint it but I'm not to worried about accurate colours or getting rid of seam/mould lines

There'ss still a full engine to go and when it's in you won't see any of it :hmmmm: Still it is a shame to waste it as the detail is quite nice

[Paul A H]

I've got this kit half finished somewhere. The build thread is here if you're interested. I stalled on the tracks and never got started again. It's a wonderful kit though

[Calum]

I've got this kit half finished somewhere. The build thread is here if you're interested. I stalled on the tracks and never got started again. It's a wonderful kit though

Cheers Paul, that'll come in handy. Can you get back on it so I can follow your thread and get some more tips

[Calum]

Bit more construction.

The engine parts

More work on the Hull including the engine mounts

And everything together

Bit more progress. Pretty much finished the interior except for the gun. Bear in mind none of this will be seen

Turret top

These ones give you an indication of the size

Turret Bottom

Front Hull - Crew compartment

Rear Hull - Engine Compartment

The whole hull

The gun is made up of about 20 pieces

[T-Tango]

Thats looking very nice indeed, lovely job so far.

[denstore]

Looking really nice. I must buy me one of these.

[Paul A H]

Cheers Paul, that'll come in handy. Can you get back on it so I can follow your thread and get some more tips

I might just do that. I've got some time off work and having got a few more armour builds under my belt over the past 18 months, I feel ready to tackle the tracks...

[Calum]

I might just do that. I've got some time off work and having got a few more armour builds under my belt over the past 18 months, I feel ready to tackle the tracks...

Must admit I'm leaving the tracks til last :-)

[AnonymousDFB1]

Impressive kit and looking good

[Paul A H]

Must admit I'm leaving the tracks til last :-)

I remember why I stalled on mine now; they don't fit very well. The interlacing links require a little cleaning up before they'll fit together properly. A bit of a tedious job, but I reckon I've got the hang of it now. In fairness it's probably the only weakness in an otherwise outstanding kit.

[whitestar]

I Have one of these In My Small Stash So will be watching this with interest, nice Job So Far

[Calum]

Another update.

Here's the gun, all 20 plus pieces complete. I've gone with a gunmetal for the guns. Not green as in my reference. just coz I can

[AnonymousDFB1]

Wonderful, I could be tempted to buy this kit

[robw_uk]

neat work there Calum... not built armout for 20+ years.... might be tempted tho.....

[Calum]

Another update. Bit further on this than here but I'll post those shots later.

Here's the Gun fitted to the turret

I wanted to rough up the surface a bit so I stippled on Mr Surfacers 1200 with a stiff brush. I started on the underside to see if I liked it the effect, and to figure out how to do it. Doing it here would mean I could remove it if I didn't like it.

The results were probably a little out of scale but under some paint may tone it down a bit. I quite like the effect.

One of the worst fitting bits was the mantlet. It, and the mating surfaces required a bit of sanding to get it to fit

[Calum]

Was quite happy with the stippled Mr Surfacer 1200 so applied it to the rest of the model in places where I think it would be appropriate.

I know Paul said that the Turret seam was actually a casting seam left behind by gaps in the alignment of the casting blocks rather than welding.But I wanted to try out some Welding techniques so I chose to simulate welding. I used 20 thou styrene and glue it in. I then tried applying weld marks with a heated No 11 blade. This was taking to long so after trying various other things like files, razor saws I settled on the 10 cent piece. I heated this in a flame and whilst holding it in a set of pliers rolled it over the rod.

It looks ok to my untrained eyes but not the easiest technique. I'm also unconvinced with size of the seam at the back of the turret. Seams a little overdone

As I was considering having a few hatches open I decided I'd wire the engine injector lines. I very used fine copper wire that I found at work. I think this stuff was used to rewire transformers way back in the olden days. I could have got the whole 2000m roll but figure I didn't need that much.

Finally I figured I might have the engine panels open so I'd better wire the engine. I've got to put the piece that goes between the 2 engine block back in

[mrcooljules]

i stalled on this kit to, well the other version..

yeah i agree, so much detail you cant see!!

i need to get mine done for next year as its a gift for a German ex of mine

[Francisco Guedes]

Looking very good!! A very nice job indeed with a great detail for 1:48!!!!

[AnonymousDFB1]

Nice work and that is one impressive kit

[Calum]

Thanks gents. Wish the Hobby Boss armour guys would give the aircraft guys some hints

[Calum]

Ok a bit more

Pre shaded black using Gunze Acrylics

next day I painted it using Mr Color Lacquer No 303 ( FS34102) After that I added some Mr Color hemp to the green and sprayed same random patches,I repeated a couple of times this using slightly more hemp each time. Not sure if I've over done but I figure some washes might make it a bit darker

I'm quite happy with the finish at the moment.

But this is where the wheels fall off. I'm a real novice at weathering armour so I'm waiting for book to turn up. Plus I've been hitting some forums and youtube for some tips.

[Mike]

Looks good so far Calum. While it's still shiny, you should do a "pin wash" to highlight bolt heads and recesses etc. If your Gunze is acrylic, use some enamels or oils thinned with a mild thinners, and a fine brush to dot the mixture in and let capillary action do the rest. Once it's had chance to dry (say 15 minutes), remove any excess with a brush moistened in the same thinners. Mig Productions do pre-mixed washes if you don't feel like making your own

After that, give it a matt varnish, consider using some filters to enrich the tones, and then maybe add some rust streaks using oil dabs drawn down with a moistened flat brush. Chipping could be done next if you feel like it. Dark grey for older chips, lighter green for newer ones. After that, a light overspray of the tank's nether regions with a buff color for dusting, and then use some pigments to give it some proper dirt around the wheels, skirts and underside.

Just a quick list with a few stages missing (knowing my memory), but HTH

[AnonymousDFB1]

Nice work Calum

[Calum]

Looks good so far Calum. While it's still shiny, you should do a "pin wash" to highlight bolt heads and recesses etc. If your Gunze is acrylic, use some enamels or oils thinned with a mild thinners, and a fine brush to dot the mixture in and let capillary action do the rest. Once it's had chance to dry (say 15 minutes), remove any excess with a brush moistened in the same thinners. Mig Productions do pre-mixed washes if you don't feel like making your own

After that, give it a matt varnish, consider using some filters to enrich the tones, and then maybe add some rust streaks using oil dabs drawn down with a moistened flat brush. Chipping could be done next if you feel like it. Dark grey for older chips, lighter green for newer ones. After that, a light overspray of the tank's nether regions with a buff color for dusting, and then use some pigments to give it some proper dirt around the wheels, skirts and underside.

Just a quick list with a few stages missing (knowing my memory), but HTH

Thanks Mike I'll be giving some of those a try.

[Paul A H]

Looking good there! I've got the tracks on mine now. Just want to touch up the paintwork and I'll post some pics on my thread. I've got some pictures of the T34-85 at the Cobbaton Combat Collection I can post too if you're interested. Their example is in full working order, so all the mud splatters and exhaust staining are the genuine article!