Matilda II Tamiya 1/35 - Ring in the Bling! ... 3-19-16

[afvfan]

...And here we go again.... Next up is the older Tamiya Matilda II kit. I've done a bit of additional work to her filling in some of the omitted parts and redoing others that were wrong. Now, while I didn't go all out with the renovations, I did bring it a lot closer than what it would have been out of the box. I've still got a few minor things to do, but the build phase is nearly complete.

[Leon]

WOW...That was fast! Nice work on the additions Bob.

[afvfan]

Mar 1, 2016 17:05:13 GMT -5 Leon said:

WOW...That was fast! Nice work on the additions Bob.

Not as fast as you might think, Leon. I try to keep 3 or 4 on the burner at the same time. It gives me the chance to keep working on something while things are setting up or drying on the others. The rotation comes in handy, especially when you're getting into the painting stages where you have a lot of time on your hands in between coats. Currently, I have this, a StuG III, a Maus, and a 1/48 Sturmtiger on the bench.

[wbill76]

Nice work so far on the Matty there Bob, looking forward to seeing it get its turn in the build-a-thon!

[TRM]

Some nice work there Bob!! Looking forward to seeing you hit the color on this one!!

[afvfan]

Bill and T - Thanks guys. I hit it with a coat of primer tonight and did the preshading.





This brought out a few issues that need to be dealt with. There's a few areas in the construction I want to clean up, and I also realized that I had inadvertently left some small parts off that should have been mounted beforehand.

The primer is by Stynlrez. It's an acrylic primer made by the Badger Airbrush company. My guy at the LHS talked me into trying it. I had some reservations, but it seems to do a pretty good job. It'd got good coverage and flattens out nicely. He said that he sprays it right out of the bottle, but I found I had to thin it a bit - differences in airbrushes, I guess. If you need an acrylic primer, and it's available, don't be afraid to buy it.

more in a couple days....

[dierk]

Nice work on the Matilda!

[afvfan]

Thanks Dierk. Most of the work done was just basic additions that would probably be included if the kit were released today. The only thing that was a "must do" was rebuilding the loaders hatch. The original part was actually too small, width-wise.

[Deleted]

She's looking good!

[afvfan]

Thanks Bruce. Appreciate the comment.

Just realized I didn't update the thread title when I posted the primed pics. Oops! Well, too late to worry with it now 'cause here's the base coat pics. Pulled a late night last night to get the small items on and primed. She was ready for the base this afternoon.





Need to let it dry for a day or two, then I'll clear coat it with Future and begin the second round.

[Leon]

Base coat looks great Bob!

[TRM]

Woo Hoo....primer and color!! Looking good there Bob! Going camo (not cammando as my auto correct suggested Completely different scheme there) or straight up paint?

[afvfan]

Thanks Leon.

T, if you think of primer as underwear, I guess it won't be "going commando"! But yes, there is a camo plan in mind.

[wing_nut]

I'll be keeping an eye on this one.. Nice.

[modsrule1976]

Coming along nicely. There is just a 'something' about the older kits!

[wbill76]

Looking forward to seeing what you do with this one Bob. Judging by that stone basecoat, I'm guessing either a Malta 'rock wall' or Libya desert scheme is forthcoming.

[afvfan]

Thanks guys!

The 'something' I've found about older kits is that most can built built to look as good as modern kits, but at a substantial savings in cost.

[afvfan]

Mar 4, 2016 12:49:08 GMT -5 wbill76 said:

... I'm guessing either a Malta 'rock wall' or Libya desert scheme is forthcoming.

uuuhh, you're just too smart! Malta, it is....I hope.

[wouter]

Hi Bob, like what I'm seeing here chap, nice Mathilda!

Cheers

[afvfan]

Thanks Wouts. I'm hoping to have another update on this thing tonight or tomorrow.

[afvfan]

After my last venture into camouflage (the Char B1), I decided to ease off a bit by going back to a "basic" 2 color scheme. I've still got to go back and touch up some areas before I get to the weathering. Here's the results:







This scheme was used by the British garrison stationed on Malta in 1942. There was no set pattern so every vehicle done was unique. There was never any ground fighting on Malta. As seen in existing photos, the tanks were kept in good condition. Because of this, the weathering on the model will be mainly some dirt and dust.

More to come ......

[Leon]

WOW.....Awesome job on the camo Bob!

Just one question! Airbrush or paint brush?

[wbill76]

Definitely breaks up the outlines nicely Bob! Good work on the mobile rock wall.

[afvfan]

Leon - I thought about masking it off for the airbrush, then came to my senses. It hit me that I could probably hand paint it faster. Things went pretty smooth until I hit that rear engine deck. Working with all those contours was a real pain.

Bill - It does do a job on the silhouette. Like the "Fantasque" scheme though, there are areas on this I'm not happy with, but it's not bad for a first attempt. I discovered there's a fine line between the brush strokes being too fluid and being too jig saw puzzley. If I ever do another, I'll know what to avoid.

[dierk]

Looking good Bob! Apologies for missing a couple of updates.
Heard a good one yesterday that goes with your 'there are areas on this I'm not happy with': "if you're satisfied with what you've achieved, you haven't set the bar high enough."

[jsteinman]

Very brave to do a Malta pattern - looks good.

[afvfan]

Oh, the bar was set high enough, Dierk, I just screwed up and didn't get completely over it.

Thanks John. I don't know about being brave, but I am glad to finally find a scheme where shakey hands are actually a benefit.

[deafpanzer]

WHOA! I blinked and it is already painted. God, I wish I have your speed and mojo! Loving the camo... looking forward to more!

[modsrule1976]

Looking very nice indeed afv....very nice indeed.

Just an idea....as they were hand painted and not used in action; could you consider some 'paint runs'. Depicting mistakes by the crew etc....

[desertrat]

loving the camo on this,