king derelict

There is a lot of that around and this was with both parts from the kit The kit provides black tank track like plastic for the gun wheel rims. It is quite nicely detailed but the strips are too short I tried carefully stretching the track - and it broke without gaining any appreciable length. I glued them on and made up the gap with a piece of card of suitable thickness. Alan

The back of the truck has a canvas cover. I was not very impressed with it and toyed with making my own from wire and tissue paper but at this scale I didn't think I could get it tidy enough. So I worked on making the plastic version look presentable. Eventually I painted a base layer of buff followed by a coat of chipping fluid and then a coat of green khaki. This was then scrubbed and when dry some black wash added in the folds. Its not perfect but it is better than a uniform colour. And now the part of the build I have been getting nervous about - the figures. I bought a set from Hat and a set from Emhar. I expected a lot oof choice for the figures but I only found these two. The poses are all a bit vigorous for what I want. So out came the scalpel This was the first time I had tried anything like this. I tried to angle the heads slightly differently on the walking soldiers. The sitting figure is a Panzer 1 crew man for Flyhawk. He is wearing coveralls unlike the seated figure in the picture I am using for my diorama but we will go with it. Tankies in WW1 did wear coveralls as far as I have seen. Everyone has had a coat of Mig One Shot black primer and they look a bit better now I could do with a few more figures to mill around the gun so i may have to look a bit harder. I had hoped to model a group having a ciggie break but I may have to abandon that bit. The diorama base needs to be planned and a visit online for some Woodland Scenic ground effects> i think I need grass and a few scrubby bushes Thanks for looking in and the likes and comments Alan

Thank you very much OC I think its nearly time to embarrass myself with some figure painting. Alan

Thank you Ken I plan a bit of mud later in the project. Alan

Please excuse the ignorance. Are Wingnut Wings back in business again? The kits look wonderful but daunting Thanks Alan

The Trinity Marine website is fascinating. I browse and lust! Congrats on the porthole Alan

Marvelous work on those holds. The project is really excellent Alan

Coming together well Patrick. An interesting subject and Roden seem to make nice kits if a bit fiddly Alan

I used an enamel black wash to bring out the details. I added the backboard, struts and canopy for the truck cab. I'm trying to get the look of worn canvas. I'm not there yet and some touching up and details to do before starting the weathering. I'm still fiddling with the figures. They ones I ordered are all to energetic I'm not sure if some surgery can improve things. Thanks for looking in and the likes Alan

Thank you Patrick Alan

Thank you for the kind words OC. I do like fiddling with these small kits especially as the newer kits have such nice detail. Alan

My New Years Resolution is to try harder. The wish list for kits is growing Alan

Very nice work Mike Alan

Hi Ian Yep. I used to do a little cave diving years ago and from that experience Rolands's efforts on the net were thoroughly scary Alan

I've found that there are several parts to Roland Hindustan exploits. This one is great insight into operating as an x craft diver. https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/81/a3870281.shtml Alan

Hi Roger No I think they were free divers but without flippers. An exposure suit in effect, hood and mask and a rebreather set for air (well, oxygen really). As far as I know they were not tethered to the sub. It must have been lonely out there. The crew in the sub could not have seen or helped the diver once outside. Good article here https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/41/a3945341.shtml Alan

It must have required steady nerves standing on the foredeck cutting the netting probably in the dark wondering if someone was going to start dropping grenades into the water Alan

Lovely squirrel the impression of depth is very nice. Alan

Well after travel and submarines I am back on this one. I started the detail painting on the cab and gun. The cab and truck body were added to the chassis and it makes an interesting vehicle. I have the fabric cab roof and the cover for the back to add but I was holding off on them to keep better access to the cab. The acetylene lamps came up quite nicely but I see I forgot to paint the horn The gun was fitted to the carriage and makes a quite detailed but fragile piece. Along with the limber these have been given a coat of gloss ready for the washes and weathering. Hopefully I am not going to commit a fox paw here by introducing other elements to the build but I'm introducing a Whippet (Emhar) to the diorama. I haven't put the build details in to the log because I have already made a build log of a previous Whippet by Emhar. This is identical except this one is painted in the (milk chocolate) brown that came into use later in the war. I also cut out the rear hatch and posed it open. The interior is bare - its too dark to see anything. During the earlier Whippet build I was kindly given this image I thought it would make a nice vignette and I plan to use it with the howitzer team hence the open hatch. I will need to make the canvas mudguards and add the clutter. The search for suitable figures will continue. They may not end up as exact poses but hopefully I can capture the overall look. Thanks for looking in Alan

I painted the edges of the base with matt black craft acrylic and then measured and ordered the Perspex panels from TAP Plastics for the case. This build will be on temporary hold until the case materials arrive so I'll be switching back to the WW1 howitzer for a week or so Thanks for looking in and the likes and comments Alan

Hi Ian I was thinking about adding some marine life. A frogman would put the size in context. I'll go and look what is available out there for a 1/35 diver. I think you are right although I think they were not free swimming in the sense of a frogman with fins. One of the four man crew was a diver and there was a wet / dry compartment in the submarine to allow the diver to exit from the forward hatch underwater. He had the delightful job of standing on the fore deck and cutting through the anti=submarine netting while the submarine pressed against the netting to give him a platform to work from. That must have felt extremely exposed; I mean its not as if anything could go wrong! Alan

The idea of being stuck in one of those for a week is pretty scary. Alan

Thank you Mark The weathering was a lot of fun. I have to stop with the dioramas though. They take up too much space. Alan

Well, I looked at the base again this morning and didn't like it. It was too light and bright and the colours didn't blend well enough. So loaded the air brush with a very dilute black wash and worked the base over trying to soften the interface between he rocks and the mud and generally to subdue and darken the base. I'm a lot happier with it now. I had thought of adding the sand powder as I used for the Seehund base but that will lighten things up a bit so I think I will leave well alone. The acrylic rod was cut to length and dry fitted. The model sits nicely on it so this is the intent of the display. The edges of the base need to be painted and a case needs to be made but I think we are getting close to the finish of this one. Thanks for looking in and the likes. Alan

The sub got a matt coat sprayed on and I think that can be considered done so I turned my attention to the base. I am trying a variation on the base I used for the Seehund. So the usual closed cell foam and matt board base with a coat of gesso brushed on. I made some rock outcrops by pouring plaster of Paris into crumpled kitchen foil and then set them on the base with a thin layer of plaster of Paris which also added some undulations to the mud / sand areas. I gave it all another coat of gesso When it had all dried I painted the rocks with very light grey and added white highlights. I'm using craft acrylics for the base. They give good coverage and are much cheaper than the model acrylics. The mud and sand area got painted with a beige / yellow / white mix and some darker shading added in places I'll work up some detail around the rocks once its dry. There is a 1/4 inch hole in the central rock outcrop to accommodate the clear acrylic rod that will support the model. The hole goes down to the bottom of the base and should support the model securely. Thanks for looking in, the likes and the comments. Alan