Really nice work. Glad to see that it will be displayed where lots of people can appreciate and enjoy it. Well done.

Nicely done!

I love seeing this have the home it does. Such a great piece of art and appropriately displayed - the small individual scenes adds to the realistic representation of the "big picture" within the full scene

So impressive, congratulations to you and great to know it has a good home – hope it’ll get a Perspex cover or it’ll be the dust-trap from hell! It sure is legitimate visual art and, as you hinted, with significant therapeutic benefits & not only for vets! What's next?

Very nicely done, Sir! I love the sub-vignettes... and it’s obvious why those present would lean in to savor your work.

Cheers!🍺
—mike

Nice job!

That's an impressive amount of work and it looks cold :-)

Some nice "stories withn a story" too.

Excellent stuff.

Cheers

Sean

Thank you for the encouragement! Sorry for the delay, crunch time got crazy but I did finish it in time! I designed and built a table with CAD, then went about actually cutting the wood and building the monster. After that, foam went down followed by AK Resin water and ice.

I graduated with my Bachelors of Fine Arts Degree (Summa cum laude!) and for my capstone exhibition, I included this piece. Modeling is a major creative outlet for many veterans, even if they don´t realize it. I wanted this piece to prove to both the veteran and art communities that it was a legitimate form of visual art.

The past year and over 1000 hours of work culminated in 7 vehicles, 80 figures, an absurd amount of plaster and paint, 1 custom display table, and a diorama that I´m quite proud of.

Before the final pictures are posted, I´d like to thank each one of you who took time out of your day to view my work, those who offered helpful feedback and encouragement, and I´d be remiss without crediting my wonderful wife for her patience and encouragement to see this through. The diorama was a major hit at the reception, with hundreds of people all leaning in to look for small details and stories contained within the larger picture. It is my hope that some of them walked away with a much greater appreciation for the craft.

This piece now belongs to the 3rd Infantry Division museum in Fort Stewart.

Quite the undertaking. I'm enjoying your work

Just had to say I am loving all of this work. I cannot believe how ambitious a project it is with all of the models, the interiors, the figures and of course the landscaping to come.

In the time you have been building, all I have managed to do is get myself psyched for to tackling a single vehicle, without figures and no planned diorama!

Great modelling and enjoyable reading. Keep going!

Actually, you have the commanders hatches on upside down. You have the bottom (inside surface) of the hatch showing. Flip them over and it will look great. Fantastic build so far.

Jesse

Amazing work. I just happened upon this post today. I cannot wait to see the final reveal. 60 figures? Wow! That in itself is a major undertaking. Keep up the great work.

vr

Tim

Stunning painting particularly the weathering, fading, scratching, staining…exceptional & the more I look the more I see. Then there’s the meticulous construction. I don’t know if the camo’s “authentic” – hopefully it is – but I like how much you’re dialling down the tones, looks just right & presumably the KT will get similar treatment. Of all the riches here I have to say – perversely perhaps, in view of how much metalwork you’ve done – that hand-cart is a work of Art.

Hey, everyone. I'm happy to say progress is continuing to be made.

The King Tiger and Panzer IV received their decals and road wheels.





The torsion bars and transmission gearbox for the Panther were painted using a mix of flat black and grey.



The Sdkfz 7 had a few decals added and some weathering done to much of the vehicle. I'm holding off on the wheels until I get the track ready.



I cut down a small balsa strip to create planks which were painted in acrylics and washed with oils and finally brushed with pigments. AK Dark Earth was stippled for a textured mud. Snow microballoons and oregano leaves were placed with a bit of white glue.





A resin cart from Reality in Scale was also on my to-do list. Removing the pieces from the casting block was relatively easy. After a quick filing, the cart went together without any issues.





I primed the cream colored resin with black then airbrushed a dark brown over the entire model. Using a stiff brush, I built up a few layers of brown-grey and light grey over the planks. A dark oil wash followed. After sealing it with Dullcoat, I used Abteilung 502 moss and dark earth pigments on some of the lower areas of the cart. AK splatter effects, Microballoons, and oregano leaves were again used as finishing touches.





A similar process was used for all the stumps and shattered tree trunks which were also from Reality in Scale.



For the halftrack, I added some of the leftover Sdkfz 7 instrument panel decals. As most of the interior compartment would be hidden, I didn't linger too long on the painting of some of these areas.



I used Ammo of Mig chipping color with Abteilung 502 stainless alloy pigment on the tread patterned floor. A tarp from Reality in Scale was painted and placed on the seat and mud, dirty snow, and leaves were added.



With the two halves together, I used Apoxie Sculpt and Perfect Plastic Putty diluted in water to fix the gaps. The pieces did not fit well together so some areas needed quite a substantial bit of putty. The interior compartment was protected with painter's tape before priming and airbrushing.



The painting process was identical to that I did on the King Tiger. Priming was done in black, followed by AK Real Colors Dunkelgelb Aus 44. Ammo of Mig Shadow Rust was used after applying masking putty, and AK Real Color Olivgrun was last.



The acrylic weather pass consisted of using Ammo chipping color and burnt iron. In extreme corners or areas of chipping, I added a small amount of dark steel. I wanted an older, more beat up vehicle to contrast against the newer-looking King Tiger. So I was a bit more heavy handed with the oils and pigments. A few leaves were placed, and I may add more depending on the final overall composition. A bit of snow was placed by the vents with AK Wet Effects around it running down the side to imply the melting of that snow.







Additionally, a few props such as ducks, radio, weapons, drum barrels, and tarps are being worked on. Out of a total of over sixty figures, only three more need to be assembled and about a dozen still need putty and details such as weapon slings.

Thanks for checking out my progress!

Hey, everyone. I've been gathering quite a bit of momentum, and as ever it's very encouraging to return here for feedback. Also, to you Hans, I completely understand - it seems to be a perpetual struggle with artistic creation.

So I happened upon an old Dragon Halftrack for less than $10, so I picked it up. It was a quick build, only a few hours or so with a few trouble spots but after the Sdkfz 7, it felt like a breeze.



I also picked up a Panther A from Takom with interior. Before I get too much flak, I'd like to acknowledge that I'm aware that the Panther A's were covered in zimmerit, something I will be omitting and that during the Ardennes Offensive, the Germans were using Panther Gs. The issue I had to resolve was that I wanted the interior visible through the hatches, and the Takom Panther A was available and the Rye Field G was not. I'm closing in on 5 weeks before this 3 foot by 4 foot diorama needs to be ready to go into the gallery, so time necessitated I sacrifice some more accuracy.



The box is indeed quite massive. My experience in building so far has been positive, though. The Meng interior for the King Tiger did not have so flawless a fit as this Takom Panther. Honestly, the only aspect that really got touchy was lining up all the torsion bars into their respective slots as I fit the hull sides onto the base.



After studying the instructions, I realized my best course of action to effectively represent the interior was to build and paint intermittently. I primed with Chaos Black, followed by Mig RotBraun (I'm finding the AK Real Color Rotbraun to be closer to red-purple than red-brown). My next target for this model is to hand paint the transmission gearbox, brake pads, and torsion bars before continuing the build.



The most progress I've made these past few days is on the external construction of the King Tiger. A majority of said effort was delicately removing the flash and connection points on fragile tow ropes and tools. The commander's machine gun was also a pain. Using sculpting epoxy, super glue, and tweezers, I finally was able to connect a belt of ammunition into the weapon and drape it into an ammo bag, all while on one of the flimsiest styrene pieces I've ever worked with. The Aber side skirts were bent using a photoetch bending tool. They did not take to the solder I have, so I had to turn to super glue. I managed to attach the skirts to the model and the metal brackets to the skirts, but afterwards my fingertips were pretty much one giant dried bit of crust.





The turret basket and hatch openings were then masked with painter's tape. Using AK's Easy Cast Texture, I stippled a cast metal texture across the surface. Though striking against the red plastic, it's actually quite diluted and subtle. The only region where I allowed for a bit more obvious texture was across the sides of the turret.



Primer came next.



Once dry, I airbrushed two coats of AK Real Color Dunkelgelb Aus 44. It dried very quickly to a nice, matte finish.



Now came uncharted territory for me - hard edge camo. I studied up on King Tiger patterns, profiles of specific vehicles, and German stylistic inclinations of the period. I used a can of Mig Masking Putty, and I have to say it's pretty remarkable stuff. It breaks apart with force, yet stretched easily when pulled lightly. It wasn't difficult to create desired masking shapes and there was no residue on my hands or the model.



I sprayed the entire thing once more with Dunkelbraun from Real Colors.



With the initial putty still in place, I set new putty to protect the brown from the next coat. I used Real Color Grun followed by a light misting of Real Color Olivgrun.



I was definitely apprehensive when I started to remove the putty, I really had no idea what to expect. It was a pretty cool experience to see how well the putty had done its job as I peeled away the layers. For my first attempt at hard edged camo, I'm pretty satisfied with the result but I also see the areas on which I need to practice more for the next hard edge attempt.



I've also assembled another 20 resin figures, though those will likely be touched on in my next post. Thanks for checking out my work. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. It's very small - but it's finally in the distance.

Your paintwork is superb!! I can practice for the next 10 years and I know I will not even get close so I did the only thing left to do ;
For Sale : Airbrush and lots of paint. Just send a PM
And how I recognized this ; I really appreciate the feedback. It's pretty great presenting work to such a knowledgeable community that can offer valuable insight versus more traditional art groups whose input amounts to "Yup, that's a tank."
In Holland there is one spot where you might be able to take pictures of sea-eagles.
Went there a dozen times, waited 100+ hours before I finally had a picture of one.
I proudly showed it to one of my boys. His comment....yep, that's a bird....

So after almost 10 years away I pop in here and this is the first thing I see. Wow.

Keep it up.

Very nice work , love the derelict Sherman , beauty job .
Everything else is also inspiring and I am looking forward to more of your build .
Now get back to it ..............

Hey, everyone. I appreciate the words of encouragement and certainly the information. I can easily scale back the chipping, though I didn't realize late war vehicles all utilized the hard-edged schemes. I'll incorporate that into the King Tiger and Panther, for sure. That's also some great info on the Sherman, and it's all things I will fix in my next Sherman build. I'm a bit bummed that I can't adjust it on the current model, but it is what it is.

I really appreciate the feedback. It's pretty great presenting work to such a knowledgeable community that can offer valuable insight versus more traditional art groups whose input amounts to "Yup, that's a tank."

If I had to a identify any kit as being my problem child, it would certainly be the Sdkfz. 7. The instructions were cluttered, some of the pieces did not want to fit together at all, and some fragile components were broken on the sprue before I even had an opportunity to break them myself. I did however, with much swearing and contemplation of smashing, finally get it assembled.





I primed it and gave it a coat of Dunkelgelb Variant from AK's Real Color range. Something I do have to say, and I've come to realize this is somewhat of a controversial topic, but I'm now quite a big fan of Mig's AirCobra. I've had several airbrushes, which have all offered me varying degrees of grief. I haven't had a single issue with this airbrush, so props to the wife who got it for me last Christmas.





The Dunkelgelb Variant seemed a bit too garish for me. Something about the color felt like it would stand out negatively with the other pieces. So I went back over it with a very thin coat of standard Dunkelgelb and it quieted the color down wonderfully.



With the Sdkfz. 7 base coat applied, I turned my attention back to building the King Tiger. As the interior came together, I began to really lament the fact that most of it would end up hidden away. I frequently would dry fit the roof to get a better idea of what would be most visible through the open hatches. The driver and radio operator areas were easily the areas that would get the most attention from anyone who peeks inside. So while almost all of the interior received only the most basic paint job, I put some extra care into those areas.

Now, I'm not sure how I did this, but I somehow spaced on the fact that Meng offered a great decal sheet with their interior kit. Because I forgot that existed, I used the Sdkfz. Instrument panel from Archer to give the impression of the dials if not an accurate depiction. When I found the Meng decal sheet in the box, I felt like a dingus.





After adding some wires to the radio, I finished constructing the turret's interior and gave it a coat of Elfenbein.





It was at this point that I found the Meng decals and applied some of ammunition decals along the casing sides and bottoms for rounds that would be easily visible - like those through the rear turret hatch. These were very fiddly and all I can say is I'm grateful I only had to do a few.





After seeing a better view of the ammunition in the light box for this picture, I went back and did a quick touch up on some of the paint to create a more even separation of color.

As if they knew, I received some mail precisely when I wanted to do some light weathering. Using pigments and oils from Abteilung 502, I gave the interior a bit of use. I tried to keep it rather subtle, since I know these Tigers were delivered to the heavy panzer battalions shortly before the offensive.














It's bittersweet to begin closing all this work into the vehicle, but it's exciting to see a King Tiger actually begin to take form. Particularly because of the countdown clock incessantly ticking in my head.

Thanks for checking out my work and please feel free to educate me on any historical or technical blunders, I'm always receptive to learning more.

Hi,
I'm enjoying your work so far,but I have a couple of comments on the Sherman. The barrel on the co-ax thirty cal. is sticking way to far out of the mantlet. Only the tip of the barrel(about four scale inches)should be visible on the M34A1 mount you have on the tank. The earlier M34 mount had a lot more of the barrel visible,almost as much as you show. Also the periscope mount on the commander's hatch should be flush with the hatch. By the way the commander's hatch ring was rotatable 360 degrees. There is no 'wrong' position for it to be in,only preferred positions!
Hope this helps and keep up the good work.
Regards,Bob

Thoroughly agree. The PzIV also would have the corresponding late war factory applied hard edges cammo pattern. But the OP has decided he is not so much concerned with historical accuracy but rather with telling the story to a more uninitiated audience.
So we should respect his wishes.
J

I'm totally impressed by your output and the effects you are getting. I would make one comment though. If it were me I wouldn't go too over the top with the chipping on the German vehicles. They were all virtually brand new in December 1944. Nearly all the older issued tanks etc had been lost in France and Belgium and the SS units, in particular, had all been re-equipped. If you look at Ron Volstad's box top art for the Pz IV, you will see the paintwork is pretty clean looking, although naturally there would be mud and dirt thrown up from the awful Ardennes "roads". The newness of this equipment would make a nice contrast with the beaten up Sherman.

Well after looking at these exceptional images of exceptional work I’m spaced out too…in fact I need some time to put my brain back in my skull. Phenomenal, you should turn professional immediately

I'd like to first thank everyone who has been following this and responding, it's encouraging and appreciated!

I'm getting down to the wire for my goal to have this project completed by November for my senior exhibition, and I've been able to chip away at it. However, some of my other pieces (chiefly a 6 foot tall oil painting), have demanded a vast majority of my time. The good news is, I have finished most of my pieces and am able to focus much more effort on this diorama.

The Meng King Tiger admittedly has me a bit dejected. The interior is so beautiful and so intricate, yet almost all of the detail is going to end up covered and unseen. As such, I'm deliberately not investing quite the same amount of time on the interior as the exterior.



After getting the sub assemblies together, I airbrushed them cremeweiss and rotbraun respectively.



My initial plan was to have the engine cover lifted and a few crew inspecting the engine, however there was a fit issue between the walls and several small hoses and pieces of the engine snapped and disappeared. So the engine, regrettably, had to be put to the side. I don't think I will have anything beyond the firewall visible at this point, at least for this vehicle. I am considering adding a Takom Panther if time permits, and I'll be sure to have the engine visible on that vehicle if I go that route.

I also did some work on my Sherman. I started with an oil wash with a handful of Abteilung 502 colors. Once that dried, I experimented with AK Interactive's diorama line. The mud textures came out well, though my one complaint is they dry almost completely matte, despite advertising as "wet mud." I'll have to hit it with some gloss once fully dry.



After mud textures to set a baseline of how I envisioned the vehicle, I transitioned to pigments for subtle hue shifts, dirt, and general weathering.



That's when I really hit some uncharted territory. AK's Snow Microballoons come as a super fine, dry powder that even in the jar looks very much like powdered snow. Using some basic PVA glue, I applied the snow to raised edges where it would have accumulated with this knocked out vehicle being at a slight angle. I'm pretty happy with the result, I have to give props to AK. So far, their diorama products are pretty outstanding.







After today's work, the Sherman and Panzer IV are nearing completion. Both vehicles still need their tracks, which are fruilmodel for all my vehicles and I plan to assembly line that tedious endeavor all at once. The Panzer IV's mesh skirts will go on after the tracks are on and finishing touches - footprints, stowage, etc - will go on after that. The Sherman's burnt-out quality is going to get a little tweaking as well, likely tomorrow once the dullcoat has dried.



Thanks for checking out my progress! I know my updates have been sparse and spaced out until this point, but between now and the beginning of November, expect plenty more updates and images as I close in on the finish line.

WOW!! What a great start ! Thanks for sharing.
A suggestion for the engine, Make a crate to fit it with semi-open sides and use it for cargo in a truck. Just a thought.....
Thanks for sharing and PLEASE post more progress photos>
Tom

Great work.
I thought I had some crowds in some of my dios,but this is one big crowd.

Tom