Well my first ever done build. Tinkering if I should add 2 crewmen next to the tank and a motorcycle...Fun build overall and I learned alot from it.

Thanks

A couple of crewmen trying to build and light a fire under the tank to warm it up to get it running and one or two trying to chip the ice off the turret with a sledge hammer to let it turn might be nice!

I dare say they got caught out by deep freezes that would have stuck these beasts hard in their tracks.

The crew would have to be in full winter gear or a mixture of improvised gear and blankets to keep them warm while they were working the way that tank looks chilled out.

Very nice

Nige

Whoa, great idea! I got 2 crewmembers from Tamiyas Wespe which is in winter gear...Maybe try to find some more, Thank you for the freat ideas!

Gives me the chills to look at it.
That is one cold looking tank partner.
Somebody did a Frozen T-55 years ago in a Tamiya or AFV mag but they added clear plastic Icicles looked pretty cool but tank was moving.

Wow!
I guess you have to keep it in your fridge in order not to ruin the weathering!
Nice job!

Maybe need to get some ideas on winter follage though as the grass looks a bit out of place with the tank, snow and ice. looks just a bit too clumped together with long fresh grass. Worth looking over some winter photos to get ideas of grass caught by sharp frosts and snow falls.

Glad you like the fire idea. Will look in on progress. Good luck.

Nige

It really does look cold.

I think it looks like it was abbandoned. If the tank was operational, the crew would be running it almost constantly, or they would not be able to start it up. If there was a crew, and the tank was operating, the ice/snow on the engine deck would be melted. You might have the crew returning to recover the vehicle, that ran out of gas.

It really looks great.

Operation Barbarossa
From Wikipedia,
German troops were mostly unprepared for the harsh weather changes in the autumn and winter of 1941. Equipment had been prepared for such winter conditions, but the ability to move it up front over the severely overstrained transport network did not exist. Consequently, the troops were not equipped with adequate cold-weather gear, and some soldiers had to pack newspapers into their jackets to stay warm while temperatures dropped to record levels of at least -30 °C (-22 °F). To operate furnaces and heaters, the Germans also burned precious fuel that was difficult to re-supply. Soviet soldiers often had warm, quilted uniforms, felt-lined boots, and fur hats.

Some German weapons malfunctioned in the cold. Lubricating oils were unsuitable for extreme cold, resulting in engine malfunction and misfiring weapons. To load shells into a tank’s main gun, frozen grease had to be chipped off with a knife. Soviet units faced less severe problems due to their experience with cold weather. Aircraft were supplied with insulating blankets to keep their engines warm while parked. Lighter-weight oil was used.

It could just have been a pure b****** to start (a bit like my car was over xmas) and not having the regular fuel to keep tanks running long periods.

Lots of food for thought in this quote Ragnar.

Good luck

Nige

I don't mean to be the voice of dissent but frankly I think your snow looks more like laundry soap suds and is over done. Sound idea but the snow needs work.

Thanks for the great comments...Maybe I should work more on building up snow and leave it as a abandoded panther?

Heres how it looks completely dry:

Naaaaaaaaa,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, Go for it bud!!!!!!

A couple of figures gathering wood under the engine to heat the engine bay up to bring this beast into life again would be worth it. I remember seeing pics of both sides having to do that to get their vehicles going. Look how brutal the ice storms in Canada and America were just recently and how vehicles were totally encased in ice.

Add mud to the scene and it fits your scenario. Even the best prepared Army gets caught out. Even the super efficient Germans! After all they did lose in Russia.

The dio would look to bare if you did not get a wee bit of work going on the tank.

JMHO

Nige

Then its written in stone!

Thanks for the great mindstorming and baring out with me!

Thanks once again, it really keeps me going!

It looks a lot better now than it did at the start. The only part that catches my attention is the snow on the gun mantle looks off and the grass is a little on the tall side. All in all it’s looking promising.

Still gives me the shivers looking at it. You really captured the "ice block" look like I find when I go out to my car in the winter.

If you can find a picture of an old style sled or sledge as we call it you could scratch build one and have that stacked with bits of wood and rough branches that some poor sod has pulled from the nearest woods and make the grooves in the snow along with footprints going to and from the sled.

Maybe a couple of jerry cans to give a helping hand to start the fire. I accidently let a bottle of Zap-a-gap glue go off and was trying to see if there was any runny glue for the job in hand. It had gone off so bad that it became stringy and when pulled using a tooth pic, it stretched out as a clear stream that could be cut and formed into fuel being poured from a jerry can and splashing onto the logs.

Nige

I like Nige's idea of lighting a fire below to get that beast going. The thought of lighting a fire under a vehicle know for fuel leaks makes me shudder. Fire in the hole!
Looking at your Panther makes me cold. Looking forward to seeing your progress.

Cheers
Dave

I have seen the russians doing it with their madern trucks too in Siberia. It makes you wonder about brake pipes and oil lines, etc. But I suppose these guys are experts at this sort of thing cause they have to put up with the worst of conditions.

It is a howling gale here in Scotland tonight, but I will be lucky if we get below 2 degrees. The thought of -50 degrees below sends chills.

Anybody been watching that Ice Road Truckers on Channel 5 or History Channel?

Nige

Wow...looks pretty good to me, sets a cold/bitter image of the battle field. Thanks, for sharing your work.

Cheers!
Tim

Thanks for the great comments.

I have this build on hold at the moment, want to finish my wespe first.

Thanks once again!

I encourage you to add figures. Figures bring a build to life if they are consistent with the theme you are presenting.

Tankers starting a fire would work nice, if you could find them. Tankers carrying jerry cans of fuel would also work.