Global Scale Modeller

I started building this diorama for fun, wanting to test my new jars of Vallejo diorama effects on it. The road in the middle turned a bit narrow though, so I couldn't use anything bigger than a Pz IV...so let's build a Pz IV for it! (You can see my other ongoing projects as well.)



I started the build quickly without thinking much about it, so I ended up putting on the spare track brackets on the front way too early in the build.




I had built the diorama road to be rather uneven, so the not-poseable suspension on the kit was a bit of a disappointment. I managed to fix it somewhat by liberally cutting off locating pins.



Here's a photo of the options I chose for the rear wall, with the big flash hiders and a non-standard towing hitch.



I'm thinking of building a combat scene so the tank will be buttoned up, I only built the commander's radio for the inside, and the interior is really rather sparse even compared to Dragon's Stug IIIs. Apparently that floor is supposed to represent a fuel tank?



Here's where I've got so far in the build, I haven't followed the instructions step-by-step, I tend to jump around and build this and that all around.
I also try to not glue the tools on the tanks nowadays because it's just way, way easier to get a clean result when you paint and weather the tools separately.



(Photo courtesy of worldwarphotos.info) Incidentally, this is the only photo of a Stug IV with these weird side skirts on. I wonder if they were a once-in-a-wartime modification? I was considering making this diorama represent a scene in the Ardennes during the battle of the bulge but I've got no idea what time-frame this last production vehicle is supposed to represent.

Thanks for looking, please leave a comment.

You're off to a great start! Kudos for such a detailed thread

Your doing great so far, but when I saw the old pic. I became very interested what are they loading it on to. o you know what it is ?

I have seen the side skirts with rounded bottom edges before. I think that was done to allow the skirts to ride over small obstacle's.

SergioSolo wrote: Mon Oct 02, 2017 9:12 pm You're off to a great start! Kudos for such a detailed thread

Thanks a lot Sergio!

digger303 wrote: Tue Oct 03, 2017 12:47 am Your doing great so far, but when I saw the old pic. I became very interested what are they loading it on to. o you know what it is ?

I have seen the side skirts with rounded bottom edges before. I think that was done to allow the skirts to ride over small obstacle's.

I'm not sure, as the site I got the photo off didn't have info on the place and year. Looks like they're driving the tank on a barge to evacuate.

These skirts are actually pretty interesting, they're only installed on one pivot point which allows them to move.

I wanted to make another updated once I finished the build and before painting, so here it is. I always work on these projects a little at a time, I tend to put my tools down and do something else for a while until I think "Oh hey I could do this and this..." which leads to me forgetting to photograph the progress.



I gave it a little spray of tamiya's metal parts primer. Also showing how I deal with small parts, I tape them on a piece of cardboard. I'm not yet quite certain how I'm gonna paint the camo on these, maybe I'll need to finish one side, put some varnish on it and then complete the other side?



So far I managed to lose one more of those photo-etched track holders from the front.



Here's another shot. I really love this kit, it was easy enough to build and extremely detailed!

Sorry for the slightly shoddy pictures. I built me a lightbox and ran off today to buy two table lamps for it, and I only bloody went and bought wrong bulbs for them!

I've applied the basic paint on the Stug right now. Originally I wanted to paint it in camouflage colours, but after my airbrush started to act up I settled down with just Dunkelgelb.







After that I applied a filter and some washes with Vallejo European Dust and Dark Brown washes.





I haven't even started on the tools yet and I've stripped the damn metal schurtzen twice already.
Trying to paint camouflage on those, I'm just gonna give up and do them up in Dunkelgelb too.
The Diorama base isn't going well too. I wanted to fill the two ditches beside the road with the Still water effect, but it poured over the edges and what remained dried up with cracks. Good grief. I'm starting to lose faith in my modelling abilities.
Speaking of what, do any of you have any ideas for hiding silvering of decals after the decals have already been sealed up?

E: I just noticed the tracks are running the wrong way around. I think I'm gonna cry a little.

Weathering is very nearly done now. This one's turning out a lot better than I felt last time, I feel. I love mud! Products I used were all Vallejo acrylics, European Dust wash, Russian and European Mud, Desert Dust, European Dust, and Ocher pigments, engine oil stains, wet effects, and dark mud wash



Here's progress on the diorama, it's not wet, I just applied a heavy coat of gloss varnish with a brush to seal the Vallejo earth and mud products so I could try to apply muddy water on the ditches.



I'm going to apply at least two of these figures to the diorama, particularly the second-in-command and rifleman. Hoping to get them painted over the weekend. My short review of these Tamiya figures: The details are sharp, the kit is somewhat cheap, but every figure's head looks small and flat compared to their bodies (especially the machine gunner is silly), and even though the soldiers look young in the art, the figures look like they're in their 50s.

Please, give out comments and criticism.

Looks great! I really like ground work.

Regarding figures, if you have time and will you can replace heads with resin heads. I think whole diorama will look much better with more realistic and better looking faces.

very cool!

Thanks for the replies guys! As for resin heads, I already built the whole lot of these figures so it's a bit late for them, and I'm not a very good painter so I'd end up ruining the expensive aftermarket parts, but I'll consider it in the future.



I've almost finished the first figure. I suck at figure painting.
Also, why do all my paints turn glossy when I apply them on figures? Seriously, the first layer of paint usually lays down regular and matte, but as soon as I add a few layers the paint dries glossy! And when I try to apply matt varnish on it, it becomes regular glossy varnish! Here I had to spray the figure with some buff colour to tone the shine down a bit.

from my past experience paint gets glossy when you apply too much

Thanks Vindicare, I did the second figure with much less paint (even though I wasn't using a lot before!) and he turned marginally less shiny. The matt coat still isn't working on them though.

The diorama is almost finished, sans the tools on the tank.





As you can see, the sides look bloody awful. I'm not sure how to smooth them out. I do know I wanna paint them black.





I think the running figure adds a great sense of motion to the diorama





The NCO is taking cover behind some bushes and a blasted tree. I also love the water features here, and they were a bloody nightmare to get working.

Not quite there yet, I wanted to take this to my local hobby store's display case tomorrow but it's gonna take a few more days, especially with the horrible sides of the foam block and the tools on the tank.

hooo great action!!

well done!