Stug III - Under New Management

[bbd468]

Hello Dierk,

Really gonna look nice with those figs. Great detail and poses on them.

Andy, the pic....that aint you is it? ;D ;D Nice belt though! ;D

Gary

[Deleted]

And I'm later still, but found it at last!
Shaping up to be a great build this, the figures look real nice.
I'll tag along for the rest if I may?

[dierk]

Sept 10, 2012 8:56:04 GMT -5 modelfreak72 said:

Looking good so far dierk! I if the PE is giving you the jitters, don't worry about it, do what is comfortable for you. As far as the stocks go, they were treated but to get them out quickly it was only one or two coats.

Although I'm not a great fan of working with PE - I do love the results. Some of you may have noticed that I can be somewhat...erm...anal about my modelling, so I'm always pushing for the best results. Also, having bought the PE, I feel I ought to use as much as possible/is needed.
So for the stocks: satin varnish, maybe with worn off areas that are matte?


Robbo and Gary - that depends on how they turn out - figures are my biggest weakness. So they may not make the final edit although I hope they will.

Course you may, Steve, welcome aboard - the more the merrier.

The diy blackening was a resounding...failure - and I found out why: I used brown vinegar and bleach - should've used white vinegar instead. But (finally) having read up on it, I'll just stick with using some rattle-can black, as a) I can do that at home and b) chlorine gas is bad for you - and, more importantly, me!
But I've taken something away from the experience: don't rely on your memory alone, above a certain age...

[spud]

lol at least you had a go

[modelfreak72]

I like working with PE but there somethings I'm still not comfortable doing "ie, tool brackets and light guards" usually send them flying into the unknown or forgetting they are there and flattening them. It's truly how crazy we feel like going on the kit or making ourselves crazy. LOL!

I think you idea with the gun stocks is on the money. Can't wait to see how they turn out!

[dierk]

PE tool-clamps are one of the reasons I rarely build German armour - they have way too many! ;D

"Can't wait to see how they turn out!" - that makes two of us! As I mentioned earlier - there can be a bit of a chasm between my ambition and my abilities

More tomorrow, I hope

[wbill76]

Stick with it dierk! You'll overcome it I'm sure.

[robbo]

Figures are not my greatest bit of modelling too Dierk. Take your time and I'm sure they'll be great mate

[dierk]

Thanks for the kind words friends.
Added the last bits of styrene today - from here on in it's PE all the way...I'll start at the back and work my way to the front.

Despite my well-documented tightfistedness, I splashed out on the AK weathering set for early German armour - looks like I'll have to build more early Krauty AFVs - ah well, the Russians captured lots of them . Talking of splashing: one of the bottles has leaked at bit

I've got some hurray (for me) yet boo (for me and you) news to share: just landed myself a little job for seven days, so there may be a bit of a delay before I get to post my next update. But I'll pop in every evening to make sure none of do something I wouldn't ;D.

Cheers,
Dierk

[bullardino]

Nice progresses dierk

BTW I ordered the aber set for tamiya's stug, so when it will be the right moment, I'll follow your path

[dierk]

Sept 11, 2012 9:36:31 GMT -5 bullardino said:

Nice progresses dierk

BTW I ordered the aber set for tamiya's stug, so when it will be the right moment, I'll follow your path

Hmmm, Aber...nice choice! Can you post some pictures, for comparison?

[bullardino]

Sept 11, 2012 9:40:57 GMT -5 dierk said:

Sept 11, 2012 9:36:31 GMT -5 bullardino said:

Nice progresses dierk

BTW I ordered the aber set for tamiya's stug, so when it will be the right moment, I'll follow your path

Hmmm, Aber...nice choice! Can you post some pictures, for comparison?

I ordered them, so I don't have them yet.

The sets I ordered are these:





There's a third set for the interiors, but I don't need them as I will put the commander in the open hatch so little will be seen.

[406 Silverado]

Nice start of the figs, they will definitely add to the model and show it's size. Man I really need to get to the F8 from Dragon that is in the stash. I'm tuned in here.
Luigi, that a lot of PE bro.

[dierk]

Sept 11, 2012 16:53:56 GMT -5 @dickyf said:

Good news on the job Dierk - don't worry we'll still be here

Looks like you might not have to wait for the next update all that long - most of the way through today's training I find out that it's only for 4-5 days instead of the promised 7 (which had already come down from the initially quoted 14) - should have known...I've worked for that bunch before, and they weren't to be trusted then...rant over, let's get back to the important things in life

Thanks for the pictures Luigi - I'm glad I opted for the (cheaper) Lion roar offering as that comes with individual mudguard sections. It'll mean more work, but the one I'm building has only a few sections of 'guards left.

Better leave it for a bit Rob - forum might collapse under a StuG overload ;D But keep your fingers crossed for the figures - as is usual for me I'm going to try several new things, hoping that they'll all work...no trials on old kits for me (mainly because I don't have any ;D)

Up at 6am so I better go before my better half forgets who I am.

[reserve]

Got here late, sorry, been fiddiling about elsewhere. Soviet weapon stocks came in a variety...some stained and oiled, some laminated, some reddish, some brownish, some semi gloss, some matt. It's a fair bet that whichever way you decide to go you will not be incorrect.

As a side note regarding this, a couple of years back I picked up a Mosin Nagant 91/30 made by the Tula arsenal in 1943. It had been rebarreled at the end of the war, packed with the Soviet equivalent of cosmoline and put in storage for sixty years or so. The stock is original, and a dark walnut brown which was semigloss at first but has turned matt as I keep wiping the preservative goo off it. It's a shooter, I can tell you that.

My dad got one as well, same story, but his has more of a tan/reddish color tone to the stock and it was not glossy at all. Hope this helps you out, good looking build by the way.

Regards,
Mark

[dierk]

Thanks very much for joining Mark! And excellent info on the soviet rifles - just the sort of knowledge I was after. This gives me the freedom to experiment and probably still come up with something accurate
nice one!
cheers,
Dierk

[reserve]

Sometimes I wonder about this thing I put a hat on, it's occurred to me how many times I say a picture's worth a thousand words. Instead I get all yakky. So, here's a couple thousand words I should have done in the first place.







Hope this helps.

Regards,
Mark

[bbd468]

Hey Mark,

Beautiful Mosin Nagant! Is the stock original? Its in wonderful shape. Had a chance to purchase one years ago but instead got a German 8mm mauser.....MISTAKE!!!

Gary

[reserve]

Yessir, full original. Probably did not see much combat, I'd guess.

Regards,
Mark

[dierk]

Thanks very much for the thousand words AND the pictures Mark - very useful indeed, but I'm not sure how close my abilities will allow me to get to the original.

Unfortunately RL has thrown a bit of a spanner in the works - due to some not very good family news I'm going to have to spend the unforeseeable future with my parents abroad - could be weeks, or maybe months. Hopefully I'll get a little update in before we go, but you'll appreciate there's quite a bit of organising to be done.

I should be able to pop in occasionally, as I'll have computer access.

thanks guys,
Dierk

[wbill76]

Sorry to hear about the delay dierk, but family comes first! This one will still be here for you when you get the chance to get back to it.

[deafpanzer]

Hang in there... like Bill said we share same rule family comes first. StuGs are one of my favorites so I am always on look out for StuGs WIPs.

[bbd468]

Hello Dierk,

We all wish you and your family well in troubled times. We will still be here when your ready to hit the work bench my man.

Take care Dierk,
Gary

[bullardino]

Hi Dierk, I wish you and your family well.

[dierk]

Thanks very much for the messages of support - means a lot to me.

I didn't like how Tamiya represented the counter-sunk screws in the superstructure - basically they're just fairly deep dimples, with not even a hint of a slot for the screws. So I pressed some PE screw-heads from ET Model (mistakenly called 'bolts' on the fret) into service:



Also got a bit of work done on the tracks - wash with black oil paint and highlighted the guide-horns, etc with a rotary wire brush.

I'll try and get another update in, before it's time to put my modelling stuff to sleep

Cheers,
Dierk

[robbo]

Nice detail work ther Dierk

[reserve]

I'm sure your abilities will be up to the task when riflestock painting begins as in this scale one does not have to worry about representing wood grain perfectly. A bit of color variation's all that's needed or so I've always thought.

Bum steer news, hope you and family's difficulties prove to be of short duration as well as painless as possible. Drop by and see us occasional 'till ya get back.

Regards,
Mark

[bullardino]

Great job on those rivits, Dierk

Reserve, can I ask you a picture of the mosin nagant that shows the front attachment of the strap?

[dierk]

Sept 27, 2012 9:34:31 GMT -5 bullardino said:

Great job on those rivits, Dierk

Reserve, can I ask you a picture of the mosin nagant that shows the front attachment of the strap?

Forgot I had this link - www.militarymodelling.com/news/article/mosin-nagent-762mm-rifle/8946/ A Mosin Nagant 'walkaround' should prove useful. Noticed how different the wood looks - due to restoration or variation?

Doesn't look like I'll get any more modelling done before we're off on Thursday. But, in the great words of Baldrick: "I have a cunning plan" that should allow me to complete most of the PE work
The thought of having to do without two (modelling and motorbikes) of my three main hobbies was driving me mad - and my powers of of recuperation are not sufficient anymore to make up the short-fall with my third hobby

Cheers,
Dierk

[bullardino]

Quite different, I agree. Thanks for the link, it's very useful. I have to add the belt to the one Pyotr uses.