Hobbyboss 1/35 Panhard EBR FL-10

Yes, this is one of the last few models I finished before I had to leave the UK and return to this god forsaken country called Burma which I am still stuck even until now as I am figuring out my next move as in where to go and how to go so ( go as in migrate ).

This is a kit that I bought on impulse. I was buying some supplies and paints from Creative Models (UK) and they have this fantastic deals plus a free delivery for 30 quids and over so .. yeah.. :P 

I cannot remember the exact shade of green but I'm very sure I used Nato Green as a base and work on it for the darker and lighter tones. Yes, I did the highlights and shadows ( no, not full modulation as I don't really like it that much) but the nicely contrasted colours were buried under my dust effects.

The dusts effects were two fold, the first step was oil-wash, dust colour ( napels yellow ) all around the nook and cranies and on top it, pigments were simply scattered, pushed into place with a soft brush and fixed with white spirit. Using white spirit is perfect if you don't want the pigments to be dissolved. Then the dust pigments were brushed on the other parts of the vehicles. I choose to leave the bag over the turret gap off. Hate that look.

The kit itself is a very nice kit and the build was fun. The photo-etch fret is well done, with clean, crisp parts and small attachment points to the sprues. The tires have well made tread pattern and nicely raised Michelin markings on the side(which you can see on the photos). The inner "auxiliary" wheels have a non centered seam that may be diffiuclt to deal with. The decals look nice, with colors being registered well. The instructions are clearly drawn and laid out in an easily followed, non-crowded manner. A one page markings and painting guide is included, with paint / markings shown for a single olive green French vehicle.

This model went together like a dream, smoothly and without any major issues. I genuinely enjoyed building this kit, and doing a little research on it, as I had exactly zero prior knowledge regarding it.

This is one of the few kits that I am absolutely happy with what I did. I did have to nitpick about some boo-boos but the enjoyment and seeing it finished far weight the boo-boos

It's time for the photos - 
(Just click on the smaller ones and they will pop out )

The running gears -

Some random close ups -

And as usual, my show case photos from various angles -

And as usual from me -

I couldn't keep building if not for my supporting friends and comrades. Thank you guys for always supporting me. Thank you dear readers for your patronage as well.

Until Next time.

Read more >>

7TP in September Campaign - 3rd Diorama in Life

Quite some times ago ( probably back in 2013 ), I sent my good friend and a very talented modeller Thanos [check out his Youtube channel] two copies ( or was it one? I cannot remember well) of extra weathering magazines I had lying around. Thanos was starting into weathering and I sent him the books so as to help him with weathering.

It was a very small gesture but Thanos was over-whelmed by it and he sent me a back a rather unique tank model. I call it unique because it's a kind of vehicle I would never buy by myself.

Thanos sent me a 1/35 Polish 7TP light tank with the twin turret from Mirage Hobby. I admit I am not into light tanks but since Thanos was kind enough to send me this, I decided to give this my best and decided to make a diorama out of it.

Yes, this is one of the last few models I finished before I had to leave the UK and return to this god forsaken country called Burma which I am still stuck even until now as I am figuring out my next move as in where to go and how to go so ( go as in migrate ).

This quite old yet lovely model was painted by a variety of paints and paint brands. I cannot remember exactly which paint exactly but here is a break down as much as I can remember, 
I used Olive Green mixed with a very small amount of tan to get a very light olive green. I also put on thin clear green on top once dried for some tonal variety. 
I used Red brown but I mixed with something which I cannot remember to get a different tone from the German three tone.
For the dark yellow base, I used Dark yellow BUT i put on a layer of thin Clear Yellow on top to give it more richness and make the colours more yellow.

For the weathering, I tried my best to keep with the summer period of Europe, a dry and dusty look with grasses and flowers. The dio idea is that the 7TP is coming up on an embankment to a forest road/path. I don't know if that even looks like that LOL. 

This is one of the few kits that I am absolutely happy with what I did. I did have to nitpick about some boo-boos but the enjoyment and seeing it finished far weight the boo-boos

It's time for the photos - 
(Just click on the smaller ones and they will pop out )

Some close ups on the vehicle itself -

Some close ups on the ground work -

And as usual, my show case photos from various angles -

 

Since this is a vehicle with two turrents and two guns, I cannot do my signature Gary Wintin shot ... how sad :(.....

The vehicle itself just looks lovely and I'm really happy with how this turns out. The only thing I am not happy about this build is the lack of track marks on the ground. I tried to make track marks but subsequent ground works and stuffs has rendered my works on the track marks null. I need to practice more.

 This is another milestone in my skills, especially in  making diorama and bases. 

This is one baby I will be proud to have on my shelf as this is a dear gift from Thanos and I will never sell any gift kits from my friends. Plus, this is one of the few kits I managed to finished before leaving the United Kingdom so this baby hold a special meaning to my heart. 

If you guys see anything that I need to improve with my diorama building skills, Please do leave some C&C. Thank you very much. 

Until next time. 

Read more >>