UVS models: Salute 2021 11/12/2020

[ultravanillasmurf]

Thanks Ripley.

The design of the mantlet does help as there is ample prongs to attach a breech and guard. I would probably cannibalise another spare PSC gun.

The problem is the intended commander has no legs.  I will post a photograph later.

[ripley]

 If you fit the gun guard in  , you can jam a no leg figure in there , the no leg part won't be seen  . There is very little room in that turret in real life ,that gun divides it in half , I think the crew had to squirm out side ways as there is no room between hatch rim and gun guard for the width of  your waist/ shoulders . How the commander was able to hang half out of the turret and still look around the side of that hatch to view the ground ahead , I don't know

[ultravanillasmurf]

Rats, I forgot to photograph the tank commander.

But I still have to build the second turret.




With the exception of the hand rails, it is built out of the box.

Painting is awaiting a change in the weather.

[ripley]

Looks good

[ultravanillasmurf]

Base colours have now been applied.




I went over the turret to add some texture, but it appears to have disappeared under the paint.

[ripley]

I;'ve found  that acrylic paint seems to fill in and smooth out my liquid green stuff texturing ,I've had to go over it 2 or 3 times to finally get the effect I'm trying for . Maybe try another thicker layer ( on a test piece 1st ! ) , then add paint . I think the tow hooks on the front should be base coated steel , if your adding tow cables , they would probably wear away rust to bare metal with all the bouncing around these tanks did when moving  If no tow cables , then yea , rust um

[Pinky]

It's a nice smooth finish.  I agree with Ripley about the effects of acrylic paint - I find that all the nice texturing seems to largely disappear even under a thin coat.  I guess it has to be less subtle (I think I'm still coming to terms with this scale, which is a weird compromise between 1/72 and 1/35).  Maybe it will re-emerge when you add the wash and drybrush the surface.

[ultravanillasmurf]

I think you are right, I got over enthusiastic with the rust paint on the tow hooks and on the shackle. I am going for a newish look to it.

I will probably go back and re-highlight with first Humbrol Dark Green then Vallejo Black Grey for steel, leaving a bit of rusty colour at the bottom.

Humbrol Dark Green is not very dark, similar to Army Painter Army Green (or Citadel snot Womble green). It gets darker with washes.

I have the spare turret (which using the T34/85 sprue's 76mm turret base is only short of the curved bit of the mantlet) to do some tests.  I plan to use it to make a burnt out turret with some interior detail.

[ripley]

It's funny how some colors look blah until you add the shade / wash and then they look fantastic . And other colors look great out of the bottle and then a wash just turns way too dark , . Took me quite a while to get the acrylic paints figured out , I used Humbrol enamels for about 40 years . Finally did a whole bunch of test strips and added both GW  and Army Painter washes in various combos / layers to see how tings ended up . Burned out T-34 sounds cool

[ultravanillasmurf]

So the T34/76 is "finished".










I have still to build the hexagonal turret and the burnt out turret with interior.

[ripley]

Looking good .

[ultravanillasmurf]

Thanks.

@Ripley, did you replace the missing vision slits on your KV2? If so, how?
Sorry, just checked, it is the pistol port that is missing.

I replaced the ones on the T34/85 after some too aggressive filing of the revised turret shape.

[ripley]

Yes , the pistol ports seem to get removed or hidden when roughing up the turret surface with green stuff and a file  . Pictures show some almost flush and others sticking out like large bumps , must be a factory thing . Did you add a vision port to the loaders side on the T-34/85 ? Very 1st version of turret , ( with forward commander hatch ) had vision port on both sides , all others only on loaders side .

[ultravanillasmurf]

I have not (yet).

The one in the IWM has it on one side only.




The one in the Tank Museum has a pistol port on the left side and a vision port on the right side.
http://ultravanillasmurf.blogspot.co.uk/2015/11/compare-t34-85-part-one.html

[ripley]

If you notice the holes for the periscopes in the turret roof , the loaders is way forward , and wouldn't give him a good view of whats to the side , if he could even fit sideways up front with the gun breach and machine gun , hence the vision slit . The gunners periscope was pretty much in line with the pistol port , so vision slit not needed . IRC the early turret with the gunner's vision slit  ( and the forward commander's cupola ) had a 2 man crew - commander/gunner and loader , so it had side vision ports like the smaller 2 man turreted  T-34/76s