Agent G

What it is, what it was and what it shall be. G

Good stuff, but I can do the same thing with MM Enamels or oil paint.

Don't know about Ms. Berkley, but my wife knows Ms. Gershon. We'll have her over and ask what she thinks............. G

We have a couple of good ones in Las Vegas. Hobby Town USA is just a few minutes west of the strip at Sahara and Decatur. Across the street from them is another nice shop, Hobby People. Dansey's Hobbies is a few miles east of the strip on Charleston. My favorite closed last year when the owner passed. We have two Hobby Lobby's too. Remember with Vegas, you come on vacation and leave on probation........ G

Must be a car modeller........................ G

That's nice! Who knew? G

The only real difference......... wait for it........ SHOWGURLZ ! Thanks Harry! G

Thank you Harry. I am extremely sorry for allowing my impatient behavior to compromise the integrity of my rivit counting. I should have waited for the delivery of the accurate Libyan soil I ordered. Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. I'm leaving now. G

Hear Hear! G

First car was a '62 Catalina 421 SD. I left it level and box stock underneath. Next was a '68 GS 350 Skylark. It rode so well I left also left it alone. '76 Plymouth Road Runner after returning to the world. This was the 2dr Fury with decals making it a "muscle car". Slowest blanking car I ever had. I mostly played with bikes and only tolerated cars back then. G

THEY ARE HARDER! I stick to tanks and cars, planes and ships scare me. G

G

Thanks David that's good to hear as that was what I've been attempting to accomplish! I raided my stash and added a figure who's pose, I think, suits the mood. This a figure from Master Box painted with Vallejo acrylic and a smattering of oils. G

I worked 15 hours straight yesterday so I'm late to this party. That is exactly what I expect when I hear "Kosovo" and tracked vehicles in the same sentence. This hobby is all about fun. I like it, a lot. G

Allowing sufficient time for curing is key. On this one I just used straight MM enamel thinner from the red can. Normally I try to use Mona Lisa Odorless Thinner with my oils regardless, but on this one I did not. Mona Lisa doesn't work well with enamel in my experience. I have used oils over fully cured enamel with good results by using Mona Lisa thinner. It is so mild it thins the oil and never effects the base coats. My trick is the enviornment here where I live. We average 5% humidity most of the year. Actual painting is difficult at times, but everything dries in seconds! G

I whole heartedly agree. Most recognize that I am first and foremost an armor modeller. The huge international community demands the full attention of the manufacturers. On such company produces so many variants of German armor in the WW II period, they are seperated by dates of manufacture of the real vehicle! Armor modellers buy each and every one, plus the PE to go with it. One point I want to make. While there is some kitbashing that takes place, it is usually only for a specific variant obtainable no other way. The AM scene is so vast with armor and aircraft accessory sets, kitbashing is mostly unnecessary. Again the vast international market allows for this to flourish. In a way we are comparing apples to oranges. G

Tru dat! As modellers we strive for perfection in fit and finish when in reality, after learning the history of the subject, it was far from perfect in any area. I laugh when exact colors are discussed and mulled over by armchair experts, ad nauseum. There is no such thing! All I remember about any of the vehicles I rode in and on were that they were "green". G

I might add that the key is knowing the history of the subject. These lil' beasties were shipped to North Africa in their base coat of dark gray and hastily painted some form of sand/tan in theatre. They were quite dirty by this time already so the finish was, due to this and weather, temporary to say the least. They were gone from service by mid/late 1941. I've seen photos of guys painting these out in the middle of nowhere with a spray gun hooked to the tank's compressor. Little paint cups atop the guns meant the refills were numerous. They literally sprayed over everything. Headlights were removed or painted over. Imagine painting these in 115 degree heat day in and day out as punishment. Gives an insight on the quality of the finish eh? G

Thanks Guys. Edward different types of paint along with sufficient time to cure lets me get away with the weathering. I base coated with Krylon gray and let that sit for a week or so. After masking I sprayed a Tamiya mix of acrylic. Scrubbing that with Windex and water revealed a worn chipped finish that didn't effect the Krylon. I used MM Sand mixed with Burnt Umber oils thinned out to coat the entire tank. It settled in the nooks and crannies. After that set for a week or more I went in with dabs of burnt umber and raw umber oil carefully blending these with a soft wide brush. Again that combo didn't effect the Krylon or the acrylic. I concentrated on high traffic areas and operational wear and tear. This accented panel lines and hatches. You can see the tonal variations in the overhead shots clearly. The mufflers were first given a base of thinned MM Ssand enamel, then a MM Rust enamel, then a dab of burnt umber oil. Aded wet onto wet these blended naturally requiring little brush work. After all this sat for a week or so I spray bombed the whole thing with Dullcoat. Then I added some sand colored pigments for a real dry dusty look. This is the second tank where I went all out with the weathering. I recently purchased "Tank Art" Volumes 1&2 and am awaiting Volume #3. These outline the techinques I used and I must say the author produces brilliant builds. G

Looking good! Take some neutral gray acrylic paint, thin it way out with something like isopropyl alcohol and lightly brush it on. You get a nice gray/tan patina like weathered bare wood. Don't soak the wood, it will prevent warping and dry faster. G

I absolutely love highboys, but that lowboy is looking spectacular. More I say ! G

Thank you Andy. Here's the base. I cheated a bit and added soil from my back yard. When you live in a desert, you might as well use the right material. G

Oh grasshopper, there is quite a bit you are not aware of. G

Love those cars! DTM rocks. G

X2 Nevada Highway Patrol ran these back in the day. I owned a '62 Poncho too. G.