Im in the middle of a DML Elefant build. Im not going too crazy with the detailing, PE, Frui tracks etc. Just want a decent first attempt at it and will most likely go nuts on another once I get better reference material. What intrigues me is that some people texture the hull that isnt covered with Zimmerit by using a burr tool /dremel. The only picutures I have seen of actual Elefants I dont see that much texture in the cast armor. So, for realism sake, should I do any, some none to the stock model?

Thanks much

Dave

David, I just watched the Tank Overhaul about the Elephant at Aberdeen and there is/was very little to no texture on the hull plates. Most of them are really smooth before and after the overhaul. Here's a picture:



The only textured areas I recall are where armour plates join to each other and even that would be fairly light in 1/35 scale.

Hope this helps,
tread_geek

I've noticed & wondered the same thing. I always figured it was either
A). Battle damage showing hits from smaller calibre weapons that just left small dents, or
B). the builder trying to add visual interest to the Elefant. It's got such large broad areas that create a visual monotone when working on it. I was tempted to do some "roughing up" on my Elefant when I was painting & weathering it. The sides just create a black hole of visual interest (little in the way of markings, no tools or other stuff hanging from it, etc). it's just a smooth featureless plane once the zimmeritt ends, At least in my opinion. But it's a great big beast with a nasty Gun, so it's a great piece to have!

Most of the Ferdinand/Elefant was welded together from rolled plate, rather than castings, but rolled plate, while smoother than cast armor, can have surface imperfections. Texture varies, depending on the manufacturer and apparently, the heaviness of the plate. German rolled plate is quite smooth up to about 80 mm thickness, but above that, you do tend to see small pockmarks and scabs of metal on the surface (though this would be hidden on the plates covered by Zimmerit).
About twenty years ago, Francois Verlinden noticed this, and started adding this texture using a small burr in a Dremel tool, which he would bounce randomly over the surface (sometimes he'd lose control and the bit would skate across the plastic, creating a very unwelcome wiggly groove). This presented two problems: it looked really cool, and it was easy to do. So naturally, it turned into a ghastly fad, and nobody knew when to stop, so for a while, contest models all looked like Swiss cheese. Verlinden even started to add the texture to his resin conversion kits, including vehicles that shouldn't have it, like Shermans. Like all fads, it faded, thankfully (to be replaced by other "cool" but unrealistic effects).
However, the fact is, surface irregularities do occur in heavy rolled plate. I find I can add a few suggestive pockmarks by using a Dremel burr bit in a pin vise, which I twirl by hand. This gives me more control, and I don't go nuts with it. Scabs can be added using small flecks of putty. Best bet is to examine a museum vehicle rather than other models, to see what it should really look like.

Armour texturing, like chipping, are things that only happen in modelling, but not in real life.

That is, to the extent we see it being applied on models.

Is German WWII rolled armour textured? Yes.

Does it have pitting? Yes.

Does this show on a 1:35 scale model? No.

The DML JagdTiger has some very nice extremely subtle texture cast into the plastic.

The bouncing-the-dril over the kit technique is really waaaaay overboard.

I have personally seen , touched, and been inside said elephant and the armor was smooth with a hint of roughness but not enough to model in 1/35. it may be concievable in 1/25 but not any smaller. I wouldn't worry about it
rick