This year I've had a good few amazon vouchers for Christmas, I prefer these as I can then get what I want and buy books for my kindle almost all year using them. So suitably stuffed with xmas dinner and a few beers I proceeded to spend, spend, spend!
I have had my eye on the forklift for some time as it's an unusual vehicle and I've yet to see one built up so that went in the cart. The two books are also essentials for me as I love Chieftains & I don't have anything about the modern RTR, just the job. The brushes came courtesy of secret santa we do every year with the wife's family. So not a bad haul and I've still got plenty to spend, wait I can almost feel myself getting festive. Glad xmas is over!
The decals are now on the model and here I used a set from Peddinghaus. They are nice and go down with no problems. I didn't spray a gloss coat beforehand as the paintwork is glossy enough. I will however add a gloss once they are dry to seal them in. A bare minimum of chipping will go on after that before the matt coat.
The turret ready rounds have also now been painted up and here I used for the first time some AK interactive true metal brass. This stuff comes in a tube like oil paints and has a waxy smell and texture. It paints on like any normal paint and once dry, I give it about 40 minutes, it can be polished to a high sheen with a cotton bud or soft cloth. Quick and simple just how I like it!
Over the last few days when I could I've been in the cave getting all the details painted on the model. I started off working on the road wheels and tracks then worked my way around the model painting all the tools & packs. I used various vallejo colours for this and tried to vary the tones as well to get some contrast between them.
I'm now very close to finishing that phase of the build with just the ready rounds for the turret to paint up as well as the .50 cal & gun sight. Even with a lot of stowage to paint in 1/48th progress is swift due to the smaller size of the model and accessories.
With a small window of opportunity I managed to get the main colour on the model last night. I used my favourite colour Gunze H52 olive drab No 1 and Tamiya flat flesh to add highlights. Next will be quite a few sessions of detail painting to get the tracks & stowage all done before decals.
Here's the leopard all finished & on a small base. It's been another enjoyable and relatively simple project which brings this years total of completed models to 12. Enjoy!
Here's the M10 with a coat of primer & black on the running gear. As you can see the details have really popped with the primer on. I'm looking forward to painting & weathering this one.
Back on this one now and I've started the mud and grime using various pigments. a bit of mud splatter as well using pigments mixed with water & flicked over the model using a stiff brush. I'll add a little bit more and get on with a small base to finish it off.
Today I've blocked in the main colours on the figures using vallejo. I went for a pale pinkish red for the tunic and a light blue on the trousers. This should help later when the oils go on to show highlights under the darker colours. I used a dark chocolate colour on the Zulu which again is basically one of the highlight colours. The gun, shield & spear have had the undercoat colours painted on for the wood and metalwork. These need to dry thoroughly before I start with the oils.
The figures have now had any flaws dealt with and the soldier has had a blast of white in preparation for blocking in the base colours which I should start doing tomorrow.
I've now sorted out the stowage for the model & also altered the antenna to match my refs for a British vehicle. I used some green stuff putty to sculpt different shaped tarps and rolls then used a bit of gauze and added tape for a rolled up camo net.
Not sure what to do regarding figures for this. I do have some tamiya ones but they look too small so may use a set by dog tag which should work better.
Well another year has flown by and it's the festive period again. Not my favourite time of year as you know but as is tradition it's time to review the year. 2017 has again been a busy one for me not least with the amount of hospital appointments I've had to attend. I'm still at work although on reduced hours due to my ongoing back problems but I don't think I'll be there this time next year, (with any bloody luck!). I've also had another medical issue this year too. Sometimes I ask myself when will it ever end?
The step kids have flown the nest as well this year and it's great to see them getting on with life and flourishing. It's also very nice to have the house to ourselves, cue reduced utility & food bills! Fangus our cat likes the peace and quiet too and has stepped in as a surrogate needy feline who rules the roost.
On the blog and modelling front it's been an absolutely brilliant year. The blog has really gone well as you will have noticed by the amount of posts I've made. With 11 builds completed so far this year I've had plenty to share and have enjoyed it immensely. Stonehenge modellers has also had a great year with the highlight as ever the IPMS Belgium show we attend in October. I'm looking forward to next year as it's their 50th anniversary so the show should be a blinder.
Next year as ever we kick off our show session with the On Track show at Folkestone in February so I'll have plenty of new builds for the tables. I've also got some interesting builds lined up for the blog next year too. With the focus for a change on modern British armour & I will be continuing to do the odd review of anything that really impresses me.
So happy Christmas to you all and thanks for following the blog, oh and here's some festive cheer for you in the form of the lovely Dita!
Well my new regulator & pressure gauge arrived yesterday so now the compressor is running as sweet as a nut. The new part is all metal, much better than the plastic original so it should last forever. I've also got more done on the M10 & have started adding some missing details and stowage.
You get a small sprue of stowage included in the kit which is nice and I've also used some spares from my Humber armoured car build last year. I've got a fair bit more stowage to add & will be using some putty to sculpt some more tarps and packs.
I've also embarked on another project for a workmate. This is totally different for me as it's been a very long time since I painted anything like this. I'm doing a scene from the Zulu wars & the battle of Isandlwana. My mate has been there and even provided me with a piece of rock from the area. Perfect for the small dio I'll build.
The figures are 75mm from Beneito miniatures and are white metal. they took some careful cleaning up before assembly and a first test spraying of primer to check for any flaws. As you can see the soldier needed a bit more attention to one of the arm joints. I'll be painting these mostly with oils so there will be quite a bit of drying time to factor in between colours and blending etc. Looking forwards to this as it's quite a challenge for me.
And this is a rough idea of the scene I will make.
