Dr. Cranky

Very cool, and the buggy is just perfect, crying out for a little beach sand! Thanks for sharing.

Beautiful build, great execution. Love the paint and the color. Congrats.

I like the way it look so far, please keep it going. Watching this one for sure.

LOL, the fun continues . . . some of you are telling great stories in the background of your builds. That's the extra gravy, my friends. It's turning out to be a sunny day, which means more bench time today!

The other thing I was going to add is that in the last couple of years, I've been using these AK-INTERACTIVE products exclusively because they are safe and fun to use, not to mention they get the builder excellent results.

Pete, you are going to love it here. Just make sure you have a comfy seat from which to watch all the amazing eye candy some of these folks are dishing out. Also, don't be shy about sharing your work or asking questions. This is a pretty diverse group of builders so if one person doesn't come to the rescue, another one will. Enjoy and have fun. Welcome back.

David, you have lost your mind in all the right ways! Love your work. Each build must bring you loads of pride and joy!

Suddenly, the forum is nice and quiet once again, and people seem free to come and go, posting and exchanging ideas without getting attacked or inhibited. Thanks, Gregg.

He's a capitalist, knows the market will bare what people are willing to pay.

Tom, your test of the forum proves what many of us have known for a while and it's why many of us (myself very much included) are here on this FORUM, and not some place else. Here you have a right to exercise your imagination and the discussion is wide open when it comes to weathering topics, or anything that else where would be considered "too dark" and bad for the kids.

Very good conversation going on, folks. Just got home from work. Dave, the above looks excellent. If you want to fix the mig pigments, they have a product called pigment fixer and it works very well, and the stuff won't rub off. I think part of the dynamics of why so many builder--myself definitely included--go over the top with weathering is that lately the military builders have really been inspiring lots of model builders out there to push the limits by doing really nature-beaten vehicles, even burn out specimens. I think part of it has to do with a variety of extremely fun techniques, like hairspray chipping, salting, and using pigments, in particular to do mud, dirt, dust, rain and rust streaks, grime, you name it, they have it out there. Right now AK-INTERACTIVE is putting out some amazing products. This is a new company started by Mig Jimenez who founded MIG PRODUCTIONS, but then left to start AK-INTERACTIVE. The products are easy to use, and overuse without really having adverse effects on the model. Many are oil based so if you don't like it you can wipe it off. Anyway, I am delighted by this topic, and I hope everyone continues to participate.

Rob, thanks buddy, but Jamie's point is really circling inside my head. I almost feel like maybe if the harpoon gun had a bit of color to it, that might do it. I'll mull it over tonight while I work on weathering the chassis, and maybe the light bulb will go off my tomorrow morning. Again, thank you all and stay tuned in for more progress.

Jamie, thanks for speaking your mind. I feel a little bit like you do, but rest assured in person this thing's got lots of color. I was almost tempted to add a different color to a door panel or something, until I realized that this type of vehicle probably would have been cobbled together from all the different parts and THEN painted in camo out on the field. Let me see if i can add more of a hint of color here and there. Again, I appreciate the input.

Chuck, your imagination continues to do wonders for this kit. Keep 'em coming. How many is this now, 4 or 5? Congrats.

Here's a quick video:

Here's the sniping tower:

Some progress: the paint is done, now all I have to do is start in with the washes and the pigments . . . here's the way it looks so far: The blood spatters were done with the airbrush set to stipple:

Remember you have a lot of fans and friends, Bill, so we are always here when you are ready. Take good care.

Thanks for the kind words, folks. Jeff, there you go, these pictures will get you on the right track . . . I love taking photographs of run down places like this but unfortunately all we have left in the Deep South are just foundations, many of the buildings are long gone. No real big abandoned industry the way you still see it up and down the East Coast. I can wait to see you get started, chap, and see what you come up with.

Roger, I feel your pain. I'd love to build one of these and race it but we don't have a track anywhere near. Jairus, you really are crazy about this part of the hobby, and it's infectious. Thanks for the eye candy and the inspiration.

Oh yeah, THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT! Beautiful. The barbwire is an inspired touch, Andy. Beautiful! Okay, I got it copied to the archive. Thank you.

Nice duo, James . . . and they clearly show you are having fun building some cool rides. The skeleton is gravy.

Wow, everyone staking no prisoners here. Great work and the inspiration continues to roll. Hey, Andy, that first picture is a little blurry, my friend, and I really want to enjoy a clear snapshot of that camo paint job. The gun is pure eye candy. Can you post a new pic? Rob, that interior looks perfect and cruddy, just the way we like it!

Looking clean and smooth!

Beautiful and dramatic, John, you are always surprising with your builds and with your imagination.