Tamiya Stug IV by Mincemeat

[mincemeat]

Hey Guys,

I won't run thru the construction bit it's nothing special. This is my first go at a tank and first for color modulation. I used the Mig Ammo Dunkelgelb color modulation set.

Badger primer first off.

Primed and first coat by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Stuff goes on easy peasy.

Primed and first coat by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

I'll admit I'm intimidated by all the wheels.

Modulation by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Dunkelgelb Dark Base. I left the shadow areas a bit darker, i.e. let the primer show thru a bit.

Primed and first coat by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Primed and first coat by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

So many wheels.

Primed and first coat by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Dunkelgelb Base.

Modulation by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Wheels.

Modulation by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Dunkelgelb Light Base.

Modulation by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Modulation by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

The cat got up and knocked the Stug off the table when I wasn't home. The fall broke the front part of the left rail, I decided to mark it up to "field damage" and weathering.

Modulation by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Modulation by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

I used the last color, Dunkelgelb Highlight to pick out the nuts, bolts and things.

Modulation by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Modulation by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Modulation by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

More to come! Thanks for looking.

These pictures too big?

[InitialProduction1]

Really nice build mincemeat, your painting of it is awesome. Looking forward to your next update.

[mincemeat]

Really nice build mincemeat, your painting of it is awesome. Looking forward to your next update.

Thanks for commenting! I'll get to posting the tools and decals soon, then it can all go wrong with weathering!

[SimonV]

That's looking really good. I'm not sure that I'm personally a big fan of modulation, but I can definitely appreciate the skill mvolved and you've done a great job!

I note that you've primed the tracks that hang behind the bar on the front. I'm not sure if it's because I've built it wrong, but you may find those spare tracks don't actually fit in there - it looks like they needed to be added before the bar is fixed in place.

I'm looking forward to watching what you do with the rest of this.

[mincemeat]

That's looking really good. I'm not sure that I'm personally a big fan of modulation, but I can definitely appreciate the skill mvolved and you've done a great job!

I note that you've primed the tracks that hang behind the bar on the front. I'm not sure if it's because I've built it wrong, but you may find those spare tracks don't actually fit in there - it looks like they needed to be added before the bar is fixed in place.

I'm looking forward to watching what you do with the rest of this.

Thanks for commenting Simon. I'm aware of the controversy surrounding modulation. This is my first go at a tank and first attempt at modulation. The concept interested me based on the premise that we do all these things to make a model more visually "interesting". That's why I went with modulation. I bought a color set because I suck at mixing colors due to the fact I don't know what the hell I'm doing as far as what the colors were in real life and what I need to mix to get them there. It eliminates that part of the equation. As far as technique, maybe it's because I'm ham handed that it looks all modulationy?

I suspect the modulation will tone down during weathering, which again I don't really know what I'm doing. I'll be using Coen's guides to lead the way. As a side note, I think the paint job has a greenish tint in real life. I think I want to try this again but on a gray primer base.

Regarding the spare tracks up front, I'm going to venture to say that you may have miscalculated in your build. I just tested it out and with some gentle encouragement and slight wiggling, they go right into place. Did you just glue the smaller spare track to the hood? I can't believe there's no holder brackets. I may leave those off.

[SimonV]

I didn't mean to stir up the modulation debate again! As you say, they're our models, we can build them how we like (colour it in with felt tip if you like!). I certainly respect modulation as a painting technique and my airbrush skills certainly wouldn't let me even attempt it at this stage, so kudos for doing a good job with it. It doesn't look "ham handed" at all.

I'm with you on mixing colours, too - my fear is always running out part way through a job and not being able to match it again.

As for the spare tracks, I'm not at all surprised that I'm the one who's gotten this wrong. As you can see, they're not even close to fitting on mine:



It looks like I've maybe fitted the bar below the bracket, rather than on it in some fashion. Oh well. We live and learn!

I've not fixed the tracks to the top either, as I agree it's odd without something to hold them in place.

Sorry if any offence caused - such is the nature of text without body langauge!

Looking forward to seeing the next stage.

[mincemeat]

No offense taken Simon!

Time to deal with all the wheels.

I picked up the Olfa circle cutting compass for $11 at Amazon. Worked pretty well, although it doesn't cut circles small enough for 1/48 Spitfire wheels.

Modulation by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Modulation by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Ammo's Rubber sprayed on.

Weekend bonanza stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

My best AFV wheels yet!

Weekend bonanza stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Weekend bonanza stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Chipping with Vallejo German Black Brown

Chipping by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Chipping by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Chipping by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Got a little carried away with trying to fix a very "not random" chipping by applying more chipping. "Just a little more fixing......crap."

Weekend bonanza stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Re-sprayed

Weekend bonanza stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Re-chipped

Weekend bonanza stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Detail time!

Weekend bonanza stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Weekend bonanza stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Weekend bonanza stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Weekend bonanza stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Weekend bonanza stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Weekend bonanza stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Weekend bonanza stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

I used the Ammo by Mig Tool set to paint the tools.

Track rust pigment. Just worked it in and applied Ammo's pigment fixer.

Weekend bonanza stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Weekend bonanza stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

I hate rubber band tracks, but it is what I've got. I just rubbed in some Track Rust. I think it may be too red for in action tracks. I'll see what I can do about it at some point.

Weekend bonanza stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Weekend bonanza stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Decal and gloss time! Yay there's only 3!

Decals by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Decals by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Thanks for looking.

[OliveDrab]

Superb Stug, the painting and finishing is looking spectacular! Thanks for posting the circle cutter too, I'll be ordering one on those soon.

[spock1701]

In regards to the circle cutter/wheels thing, I find that one of the best ways to paint wheels is to prime them in black and then paint only the center non rubber part while it is surrounded by one of those green plastic sheets with different size holes in it. Just adding my two cents.

[privatepete]

A brilliant build, hat's off to you, I just got one of those circle cutter's .

[Twokidsnosleep]

Nice demonstration of techniques and skills
Good stuff

[d6mst0]

Really love your work on this model. First rate!

[mincemeat]

Superb Stug, the painting and finishing is looking spectacular! Thanks for posting the circle cutter too, I'll be ordering one on those soon.

A brilliant build, hat's off to you, I just got one of those circle cutter's .

Thanks guys! The circle cutter was cheap enough for me to say "what the heck, I'll give it a shot." I think I'll be using it for trying my hand at RAF Roundels and the Star insignia for my Corsair. Did you also know you could get Tamiya tape in sheets?

http://www.amazon.com/Masking-Sticker-S ... ge_o03_s00

[mincemeat]

Nice demonstration of techniques and skills
Good stuff

Really love your work on this model. First rate!

Thanks a lot for your comments! I will definitely be trying this again, but as I've been thinking about it, if one does color modulation, I would do it on a gray primer base next time. I think the black has too much impact on the modulation. If you're using 1-2 colors for the model, then I think a black primer is the way to go.

[demarcation]

Beautiful Stug mate, looks superb!

[psydeviant]

sweeet this is looking great

[Coen]

That's looking the bee's knees bud.
I like the paint fading and the chipping.
I'm not much of a fan of tamiya's rubber bands either, but it looks as though you've kicked them into shape.

[mincemeat]

sweeet this is looking great

That's looking the bee's knees bud.
I like the paint fading and the chipping.
I'm not much of a fan of tamiya's rubber bands either, but it looks as though you've kicked them into shape.

Beautiful Stug mate, looks superb!

Thanks a lot fellas! The final installment is here! Brace yourselves!

All glossed and ready for weathering.

Decals by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Decals by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Dark dirt wash stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Used Ultimate Dark Dirt. Dribbled right down the neck and the side. Got more on the table than the cup! I kept from wiping it up and used it straight from the table. Some dents in the table weathered nicely.

Dark dirt wash stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

I'll admit, this is my first piece of armor (I don't think the Hanomag counts), so weathering is quite daunting and it may not turn out that great. You have to start somewhere though!

Dark dirt wash stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Dark dirt wash stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

A couple of lives and several Q-tips later.

Dark dirt wash stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Dark dirt wash stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Dark dirt wash stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Dark dirt wash stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Dark dirt wash stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Dark dirt wash stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Dark dirt wash stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Dark dirt wash stug by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Dull coat and on to the filter. I put it on WAYYYYY TOOO THICK. It took some cleaning up. I don't know if you'll even see a difference.

Brown filter by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Brown filter by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Brown filter by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

I realized I missed the part that hold the spare road wheels in the "spares bin". There's always something, isn't there? Andddddd.....I broke it...

Final details wheels and tracks by Iggy Pants, on Flickr


Stretched sprue to the rescue!

Final details wheels and tracks by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

I thought my tracks were too red with the rust pigment. So I gave them a coat of dark tracks.

Final details wheels and tracks by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Worked in some pigment, I tried not to be uniform.

Final details wheels and tracks by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Gave Mig's Gun Metal pigment a go. Makes your finger nice and shiny!

Final details wheels and tracks by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

A bit on the sprockets.

Final details wheels and tracks by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

And on the idler wheels.

Final details wheels and tracks by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

The track are much easier to put on when the sprockets are removed.

Final details wheels and tracks by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

It looks like a tank now! See something missing? I broke the jack off and had to glue it back on.

Final details wheels and tracks by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Other side....And I broke one of the hooks. Some real meat hooks I got.

Final details wheels and tracks by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

With my Milliput tarp. Or scaled up, my Milliput blanket. Next time I'll try thinned PVA and facial tissue.

Final details wheels and tracks by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Final details wheels and tracks by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

See the spare track fits right in! I just didn't push it down and didn't notice until after.

Final details wheels and tracks by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Time to try a go at dried mud. Here's the stuff. Another first.

Dried mud by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Splattered with the airbrush and cleaned up a bit. I think I'll try a thinner mixture next time.

Dried mud by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Dried mud by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Dried mud by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

Dried mud by Iggy Pants, on Flickr


Final Pictures. I need to get that cheap light booth built! Maybe there's too much white? Antennas are stretched sprue and black primer.


0424161313 by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

0424161313b by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

0424161314 by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

0424161314a by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

0424161315a by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

0424161315b by Iggy Pants, on Flickr

0424161315 by Iggy Pants, on Flickr


Thanks for looking and commenting!

[Madmattmodels89]

Superb work buddy really nice technique for painting!

[OneSmallStep1966]

You done a great job detailing the build in this thread and ended up with a great looking Stug too. Well done

[InitialProduction1]

Great build all the way around Mincemeat, amazing weathering work.

[Plukenstein]

Stunning great work I learned a lot looking at your work!!

[demarcation]

Awesome looking Stug!!!

[NorthernModeller]

Looking great

[mincemeat]

Thanks a lot for commenting everyone and the kind words! At the end of every build I do a quick lessons learned because I'm always trying new things, and some things don't work out as well as others. Here it is.

• I think I officially like armor model building.
  I don't look forward to the weathering stage though.
  I will try color modulation on armor again, as I think I quite like the effect. However, I will be using a gray primer base instead. I think the modulation effect is there to build shadows and light with the color palette. Using a black base makes it too dark to start. If you are using 1 or 2 colors then the black base will assist with the shadows.
  I'll probably glue the tools to the hull before painting again. It worked out just fine.
  Filters are meant to be put on in VERY thin layers.
  I'm still not completely sold on clay based washes.
  It takes several coats of Alclad Aqua Gloss to get a nice smooth coat.
  Rubber band tracks aren't too bad. Just spray with Dark Tracks paint, apply pigments, pigment fixer and call it a day. Don't fuss about too much.
  It's easier to put tracks on when they are glued together and you take the drive sprockets off.
  Stretched sprue makes great antennas.
  If you scale up the tarp I made, it would probably be a thick blanket. Next time I'll be trying a thinned PVA glue and facial tissue.
  Melted sprue takes a REALLY long time to cure, at least a week. I don't think I'll be using this method for hole filling in the future. I'll be using Milliput more. It's a bit of a pain to prepare, but it doesn't shrink and can be cleaned up with water before it sets.
  I really need to get some good lights and a build that light booth for completion pictures.

[SimonV]

This turned out really great!

Despite my earlier comments I think the modulation looks pretty good under the weathering. It really blends it down a lot and makes it much less stark whilst still giving the intended effect. The rest of the weathering is fantastic too.

Glad to see your spare tracks fit - think I've just placed the bracket in the wrong place on mine.

[mincemeat]

This turned out really great!

Despite my earlier comments I think the modulation looks pretty good under the weathering. It really blends it down a lot and makes it much less stark whilst still giving the intended effect. The rest of the weathering is fantastic too.

Glad to see your spare tracks fit - think I've just placed the bracket in the wrong place on mine.

Thanks Simon! I do think I like the effect as well. When will we see an update to your Stug?

[Bissyboat]

That Stug looks the business.

[mincemeat]

That Stug looks the business.

Thanks for looking and commenting Bissy!

[Bissyboat]

My pleasure mate.