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Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Wed Apr 06, 2016 12:40 pm
by Coen
This is something that I've had on the docket for a few years now.
I've always had plans to build a diorama or vignette of the picture below...

It's a shot of what some say is the M4A3E8 of lieutenant colonel Creighton Abrams of the 37th Armor Regiment, 4th Armored Division.
Thunderbolt VII.


He was a hell of a fella and a hell of a CO, and someone I've been wanting to build more of for some time.
Here is a link to what wikipedia has on him.. though wikipedia is a terrible resource for research what they have on him seems to be accurate... for now.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creighton_Abrams



Many moons ago I built a few vehicles from Abrams units and I had planned to one day build a diorama for them, but I just never got around to it. Some of the vehicles have now been repurposed or long ago tossed in the bin.
With a couple of recent requests from a few fellas I've decided to start the dio for it.
The hope is to put together a how-to on trees, grass, and ground cover for dioramas and vignettes.
The limits of the scene in the photo make this a bit difficult, but I think that I can get the basics in.
These are the vehicles that I've taken off the shelf, cleaned up and gave a bit of a tune up to.
Firstly there's Creighton's tank itself. An Easy 8 from dragon that was specifically kitted to cover his tank.




Then the jumbo that sits in the forground in the photo...
A superb kit from Tasca. One of my favourite builds to date. I loved this kit.




There's a Jeep or halftrack (depending on who you talk to) in the background as well. I don't have the halftrack anymore and I don't really want to build another one, but I do have a willy's jeep and I also have a M4A3 from Dragon and an AFV Club hellcat from the 4 AD that I will use instead. I'll use these to fill the void that will appear behind Abram's E8.








I've already started building and filming, so I hope that I'll have some video to post soon.

Here is the first of the videos...
[youtube]YmPTnKcgnyg[/youtube]
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Wed Apr 06, 2016 1:02 pm
by OliveDrab
WHOO HOO!!!

ready for this one!
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Wed Apr 06, 2016 1:21 pm
by Darkblade88
Looks this will be a sweet Dio Mike
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Wed Apr 06, 2016 1:47 pm
by privatepete
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Wed Apr 06, 2016 3:23 pm
by privatepete
Who's a clever old stick, very ingenious I like it, that's what it's all about

Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Wed Apr 06, 2016 4:12 pm
by Twokidsnosleep
This will be cool, great surfacing techniques there
It is interesting in the photos that the "Thunderbolt" artwork on the side is obscured/blurred/weathered yet from your build I can easily see where it would be on the real tank. Wonder what was going on there if they actually obscured it purposefully???
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Wed Apr 06, 2016 5:34 pm
by arkbuilder2012
Awesome!!! Glued to this thread. Can't ever have too many Shermans in a diorama

Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Wed Apr 06, 2016 5:35 pm
by OneSmallStep1966
This will be another impressive BIG diorama. I hope you're well stocked with paint

Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Wed Apr 06, 2016 8:22 pm
by Kevthemodeller
Looking forward to seeing it finished
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Wed Apr 06, 2016 9:59 pm
by TheTroyster
Just watch all three of your videos on this build. I like the idea of building dioramas for displaying more stand alone units. Although I never thought about the whole re-use of dioramas - great idea.
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Thu Apr 07, 2016 10:01 am
by CrazyHistorian
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Thu Apr 07, 2016 8:36 pm
by Nige99
Mike you are really spoling us with all the US armour!!

I'm loving this. What a tip for cobble stones

fantastic mate. I want some of that foam, it looks awesome to work with.
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Thu Apr 07, 2016 10:58 pm
by Coen
Nige99 wrote:Mike you are really spoling us with all the US armour!!

I'm loving this. What a tip for cobble stones

fantastic mate. I want some of that foam, it looks awesome to work with.
I want your easy eight Nige

it's much better than mine.
You sure you wouldn't lend it out?
Next to yours, mine looks like hammered poo.

Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Fri Apr 08, 2016 9:48 pm
by Vleugelmoer
Coen,
For a fence made of cocktailsticks and Tin Horton wood stirrers the result isn't half bad to be honest. I always raid my local *bucks for theirs for all sorts of modeling applications. The cocktailsticks look pretty spot-on the pickets do look a bit thick. I would let the PVA or whatever glue you used do its magic and let it cure for a bit. Come back when you feel calmish. Then take out a fine grade sanding block or sponge out of the tool drawer and nock te pickets down a size or two.
P.s. As an alternative to PVA on wood UHU makes a thin woodglue that is not water soluble it called UHU hard
p.p.s. Its Sir Arthur Conan Doyle on the Sherlock Holmes books.
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2016 10:10 pm
by Nige99
Dog poo

no way Mike!!! Yours is stunning mate. Thanks so much for saying that mate but come on!! Your builds are breath taking.

Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Sun Apr 10, 2016 11:59 am
by InitialProduction1
WTF, I leave comments and there gone? Anyway awesome coen, really like the small details like the screw holes in the rear Idler that's on the superstructure, really nice collection of olive drab.
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Sun Apr 10, 2016 3:38 pm
by Coen
Not a whole lot of work done, but a lot has changed.
A little wash can go a long way.
I added the washes to the cobblestones and to the earthen areas yesterday morning and took them off last night.
I didn't need to wait that long at all, only an hour or so, but I was out most of the day.
I feel shame.
So... some Ultimate Earth for the earthen areas, Dark Dirt for the concrete curbs, Concrete for the sidewalk, and a mix of Sand, Light Dirt, and Concrete for the main road.





Next I will add patches of some dark dirt and earth to the main road, some spots of light dirt and dark dirt to the sidewalks and some earth to the gutters of the curbs.
This will break up the homogeneity of the washes and hopefully add some realistic tones to the scene.
Here is the video of the application of the washes so far.
[youtube]fQXJzbNVt14[/youtube]
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Sun Apr 10, 2016 7:08 pm
by ThatTankNerd
Awesome work! Street dioramas are always soo cool

! I really want to do more dioramas but I don't have the space to house them, although I did do a miniart diorama once
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Mon Apr 11, 2016 6:36 pm
by OneSmallStep1966
Looking good

Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Mon Apr 11, 2016 6:48 pm
by Vleugelmoer
Starting to look real nice Coen
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Mon Apr 11, 2016 7:11 pm
by Nige99
The usual stunning work Mike

that picket fence must have been mind numbing mate but looks awesome

Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Mon Apr 11, 2016 10:53 pm
by demarcation
Awesome work so far!

Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Tue Apr 12, 2016 1:27 pm
by spock1701
Great looking dio.
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Tue Apr 12, 2016 2:30 pm
by Coen
Almost near the end... and things always go cock-eyed.
Jonas Coleman and I have been chatting a lot about this diorama and the photo that it's related to and we've made a few discoveries.
When I say we... I mean him. 
When I first did the research for Creighton's Easy 8 many years ago, the photo...
This one...


... was reportedly, being possibly, Creighton's Easy 8 passing by a M4 Jumbo of the same regiment.
It was actually just a common belief at the time, it may still be today, I don't know. I just accepted that and moved on without much more thought on the matter.
It was also research that was obtained on wikipedia, which is a very dubious source for research material. I've long ago stopped using it.
Jonas, however, took a closer look at the photo and decided that something was hokey about it. He did a bit of digging and I agree with what he's found out. That this is a photo not of Abrams' tank but of a replacement group of mixed race members of the volunteers from the 761st.
They aren't a bunch of white fellas, they're African American, Hispanic, and even a possible Asian dude.
If if that isn't completely plausible, that tank that's coming up the street beside the Jumbo is not and M4A3E8. It's an M4A3 76(w) HVSS.
So ... my plan of combining some of my older builds together into a smaller more interesting space seems to have gone array under closer examination of the reference.
The best laid plans of mice and men eh?
In order to make this an accurate representation of the photo, all of the figures would have to have the proper skin tones and the easy 8, hellcat, and the M4A3 would all have to go back on the shelf. I would have to build two willy's jeeps (one for the background and one to park in front of the jumbo) and I would have to build a brand new M4A3 76(w) HVSS.
That totally defeats the purpose of my build, which was to save some space and re-purpose some builds.
SO... I will make some changes.
This will still be a build of Creighton Abrams' Easy 8, but it will be a different scene all together. My wife suggested the changes. 
It will look something like this... I think. There will be some more figures added to the scene and I may build some more life elements to it, but the rough plan is this...




I'm going to add some more colour to the trees and get some figures painted up and we'll see how it looks then.
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Tue Apr 12, 2016 4:48 pm
by OneSmallStep1966
Nothing wrong with plan B when plan A goes tits-up
It's amazing how the tress elevate the diorama to another level. For me, they are the primary focal point that draws me in to the diorama which is odd because I'd have thought the tanks would be? Probably just the way my mind works but I think they're great.
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Tue Apr 12, 2016 5:03 pm
by Vleugelmoer
How a space saving exercise can turn into a fully fledged balls to the wall diorama build... Well That's Murphy For Ya. This will no become a more historically correct representation of the facts surrounding the photo that gave you the inspiration in the first place. This also shows the importance of good research into the subject mater that you want to depict in your diorama. Do you already know which kits you are going to be using for the updated version? ? Happy modeling and keep sticking styreen
Paul
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Wed Apr 13, 2016 11:56 am
by Coen
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Thu Apr 14, 2016 11:46 pm
by Vleugelmoer
Wow these little dudes look breathtaking Coen. Love the green on the tankers goggles, may I ask how you did them?
best regards and happy modeling
Paul
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Fri Apr 15, 2016 12:07 am
by Coen
Vleugelmoer wrote:Wow these little dudes look breathtaking Coen. Love the green on the tankers goggles, may I ask how you did them?
best regards and happy modeling
Paul
A little silver paint and then some of that Ammo crystal clear green over that.
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Fri Apr 15, 2016 6:47 am
by Kevthemodeller
Amazing work Coen absolutely amazing, how did you get the colour on the tank crew goggles?
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Fri Apr 15, 2016 7:03 am
by Schoof
Kevthemodeller wrote:Amazing work Coen absolutely amazing, how did you get the colour on the tank crew goggles?
You are joking right ????
Just look at the post above your question....
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Fri Apr 15, 2016 10:55 am
by Kevthemodeller
Schoof wrote:Kevthemodeller wrote:Amazing work Coen absolutely amazing, how did you get the colour on the tank crew goggles?
You are joking right ????
Just look at the post above your question....
I missed that thanks for pointing that out..................always nice to know someone will

Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Fri Apr 15, 2016 11:08 am
by MarkVerploeg
That is a very nice build so far Coen
I haven't taken the time to watch the videos yet but i think it is easier to follow if i just watch them all at once
But i did see them in the subsription line up on youtube soi have something to do while i am modelling this weekend
Keep up the good work
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Fri Apr 15, 2016 11:57 am
by Coen
MarkVerploeg wrote:That is a very nice build so far Coen
I haven't taken the time to watch the videos yet but i think it is easier to follow if i just watch them all at once
But i did see them in the subsription line up on youtube soi have something to do while i am modelling this weekend
Keep up the good work
That's like 5 hours worth of video Mark :O
It's nothing that you don't already know how to do... hahaha. It's targeted for fellas that are just getting into things.
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Fri Apr 15, 2016 12:08 pm
by MarkVerploeg
Coen wrote:MarkVerploeg wrote:That is a very nice build so far Coen
I haven't taken the time to watch the videos yet but i think it is easier to follow if i just watch them all at once
But i did see them in the subsription line up on youtube soi have something to do while i am modelling this weekend
Keep up the good work
That's like 5 hours worth of video Mark :O
It's nothing that you don't already know how to do... hahaha. It's targeted for fellas that are just getting into things.
You never know ,i might pick up a trick or 2
Besides that i am running out of cd's to play
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Fri Apr 15, 2016 12:27 pm
by Vleugelmoer
MarkVerploeg wrote:Besides that i am running out of cd's to play
There is a little thing called spotify that could solve that problem for you

Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Fri Apr 15, 2016 2:03 pm
by MarkVerploeg
Vleugelmoer wrote:MarkVerploeg wrote:Besides that i am running out of cd's to play
There is a little thing called spotify that could solve that problem for you

I can't stand Spotify ,it slows down each and every device it had it on
Besides that the amount of music i like is kind of limited there
And the continuous barrage of advertising doesn't make it better either
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Fri Apr 15, 2016 2:14 pm
by Vleugelmoer
I hear ya Mark,
That was also why I stopped using it now I have a old desktop confuzer with a 3TB hard drive with the discography's of the band and artist and genre's I like. Which I downloaded and converted to MP3. Make some play lists in VLC and I'm good to go for days on end..
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2016 12:29 am
by Coen
Well it's all done but the buttons as my granny used to say.
There's not much in the way of additions past what I just showed you with the trees.
I've added some mud to the vehicles and I added a little to the road surface to mark the vehicle passage.
Then I jammed the figures in and called it done.
It all ends with a video
There's also the reveal shots, they're the same as what appears in the slide show in the video.
In the video I discuss the rearrangement of the diorama, show the trees getting some foiliage and I show how the mud was added to the road surface. Then there's the final shots.
http://www.intscalemodeller.com/viewtop ... 46&t=17665
[youtube]PTFG1aC-hEI[/youtube]

Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2016 1:36 am
by Vleugelmoer
Dang Coen, for a diorama that sort of went haywire towards the end it turned out pretty sweet if you ask me. Watched the video and love the Walter Cronkite esk reporting in it. Real seat of the pants honest to god blow by blow reporting there absolutely love it.
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2016 4:28 pm
by Coen
Thanks bud. Walter Cronkite... Well I've never been called that before hahahaha!
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2016 4:37 pm
by mannloon
The 37th Armored was not a mix raced unit and this widely regarded to be of that unit. Not Abrams himself but of his unit in Germany in 1945. The 12th and 14th armored were the only US armored units containing black tankers. Mexicans were not only in mixed raced units they were in all armored units as were Chinese Americans. Japanese were in their own units which is well known like the 442/100. I fail to see how it is at all possible to have all of these different races in one unit as there was no way for a black tanker to be in a unit with a Mexican as they didn't serve together. Frankly the image isn't high quality enough to discern the ethnicity of the men in it. It's super high contrast and grainy.
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2016 6:24 pm
by OneSmallStep1966
That's a really nice diorama

Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2016 7:28 pm
by Coen
mannloon wrote:The 37th Armored was not a mix raced unit and this widely regarded to be of that unit. Not Abrams himself but of his unit in Germany in 1945. The 12th and 14th armored were the only US armored units containing black tankers. Mexicans were not only in mixed raced units they were in all armored units as were Chinese Americans. Japanese were in their own units which is well known like the 442/100. I fail to see how it is at all possible to have all of these different races in one unit as there was no way for a black tanker to be in a unit with a Mexican as they didn't serve together. Frankly the image isn't high quality enough to discern the ethnicity of the men in it. It's super high contrast and grainy.
Wow!
I'm really sorry to have offended you so greatly Adam.
I will never again offer any more opinions or wonder anything out loud again.
I will crawl back into my cave of ignorance and say no more in risk of future offence.
Re: Creighton's Run "They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards."
Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2016 10:05 pm
by mannloon
Easy man, I just thought if you were going to spend that amount of time talking about how Wikipedia wasn't accurate you would check your sources and make sure of the information you give out is correct. I was just giving my own opinion based on what I know of photography and my own countries policy at the time on segregation in the US army. There is tons of information available on black army units as they were brought in to do everything towards the end of the war. They weren't however usually mixed with any other races other than their COs. So to say something like "that guy looks black, and that guy looks Hispanic therefore this is a mixed unit" suggests a fundamental misunderstanding of American policy.
Even Fury and Band of Brothers show Mexicans and various other ethnic groups serving in normal front line units. Blacks on the other hand due to America being segregated would never be in a unit with Asian guys.
But that is just a symptom of the problem that brought me here. And I do apologize for being blunt about this. But declaring you have figured out something based on just about no concrete evidence is just careless. If you have discovered new evidence about a photograph then share that evidence, it could change modern understanding of history. But if you just think something looks a certain way then just do whatever it is you're going to do. Don't claim to have knowledge without evidence to back it up.