This is Tamiya’s KV-1B built oob with Model Kasten tracks, simulated fender damage, and Dragon’s Soviet Infantry figs.

This build is dedicated to Bob aka Alpenflage, (aka Lord Hobby Shop) who supplied me with the kit and the MK’s from his great hobby store.

The scene is intended to show the KV-1 moving up a lane, being given directions by the trooper standing near the front of the tank.

The model base is pink construction styrofoam skimmed with drywall mud, finished with various twigs from the garden, and assorted model railroad scenery items.

I am trying to improve on my figure painting. I’ve only done a few, and in this instance, various acrylics paints have been applied, -- but the faces/hands are a struggle, and the overall look appears glossy. Any tips would be sincerely appreciated.

As an aside, Model Kasten links are not the easiest things to work with, requiring quite a bit of clean up and prep time before individual assembly. They are far superior to the kit supplied band tracks however.

Thanks for taking time to look.

Steve

An overhead view of the scene










The Model Kasten's with fender damage


Front fender damage showing the MK's


One of the Dragon fig's near the undtiching beams

Steve, very beautiful model and dio, I love the beat up look you have come up with on the tank. Only thing I can nit pick about, and I am not really sure but that guy sitting on front of the tank is in front of the drivers view port I believe. You might want to move him. Aside from that I love it. Cheers Kevin

Steve,
Way cool!
Your vehicle is excellent. Wear and weathering looks just right, not overdone. Congrats

The only critique I would offer is on the figures. I know you said that you are a bit of a novice with them, but I would not guess that looking at these troops.

The uniform paint job looks great, but just a tad bit shiny. Have you dull-coated (flat or matte clear finish) them at all?

That is about all I see that could be improved. And it is an easy fix at that.

Model on!

Another very nice piece of work Steve.

I know exactly where your coming from with the figures so sorry can't help much there.

Ground work looks great also.

Alpenflage sold me a bunch of T49 tracks for my fleet of Shermans. You'll be seeing a lot more of those tracks in the weeks to come

Nice work, especially the ground. I like the variety of plants and they look natural at the different heights

Steve,
i agree to move the front slope passenger,maybe to his right,to clear the hull mg field of fire.Also ,I would add more mud/dust on the lower front slope and upper slope,tanks run nose first most of the time,and dirt gets deposited there first.
And maybe put a smidge more dirt on the tracks on the bottom,and the roadwheel,considering the terrain it is running through,this would be a natural hitchhiker...
A good job though.
(++) (++) (++) (++) (++) (++) (++) (++) Piggies.

Hi WeWillHold:

Amazing KV 1 you have there. Very well done
I like very much the overall look of the tank and the scene. Like the tracks and the road wheels, look very realistic.

The figures look well painted but I think that the union between the arms and the torso is a bit noticeable. Some days ago here in Armorama I read in apost that for annoying the seams and unions is good to use glue, the glue we use in our plastic kits. I´ll give a try to that tip.

I´m also starting to build figures in 1/35 and have done some Dragon and Academy ones.

For painting the faces I´m using Model Master enamel applied with the airbrush with the heads still in the sprue, then when well dried I aplly a coat of Future with a brush to prepare the face for the oil washes. This is a think the most dificult part of the painting process of a fig. I´m not an expert in this, I´m just trying this technique and have a lot to practice.


Very nice job, congrats.

WOW! I think I will send all my built stuff to you, the master painter, to paint and weather for me.

Fantastic job Steve you should be proud of it and your skills.

Cliff

I wasn't sure at first about the shine, a lot of photos, including mine look shiny sometimes, (even though they are flat in life) so I usually just contribute the shine to the photo. But rereading your post, I see that you also notice the shine.

I simply spray flat coat on my figures after the paint has had time to cure, and then apply with a brush gloss or semi-gloss to the items that need that look. My favorite flat , gloss and semi gloss is Polly S. I find that a few light dust coats brings a good dead flat finish for clothing. Using two of the three, you can mix them, and get the sheen that you want.

When gluing my arms, legs etc together on plastic figures, I simply use Model Masters Plastic Cement, the one that comes with the metal tube. I apply a little to each piece, it softens the plastic, just enough that when you squish the parts together you should get a little bead of melted plastic ozzing out, I simple let this dry and trim it off, and usually have no unsightly seam. BUT remember, and take few minutes to look at the real thing, look at a shirt, and think "can I see this shoulder seam in real life or not, when I look at it across the room?" The same with a light weight jacket, and a winter coat. Usually the heaver the clothing, the more obvious the seams are. Usually the lighter the color of the garment the more obvious the seams are. Take a light beige sport coat, and dark blue sports coat, and hang them up across the room, and get an idea on seams on jackets of that weight. I can see the seams on the beige jacket, but the seams on the dark jacket get lost in the color.

Personally I think you did a great job.

Ciao WeWillHold,
Good grief!! Excellent job on the entire thing. The tank, the figures and the groundwork are really works of art. I commend your dio. Bravo!!
Ciao for now
Rob

Hey there, this is border-line nit-picking, but that is a KV-1E, with the additional armor.

Steve,
loving the dio there. very very cool. I think your figure work is very good too but as you said just a tad shiny. Did my colours workout right?

SteveWWH

Another piece of marvelous kit from you! Your kit is coming alone real nice and the weathering technics are top-notch too.
Are all figures from DML? You have done a great job on the figures, I don't think they are too shiny. I think you should add more shadings on the faces.

Hey Steve ...Nice little scene you got there buddy!..Your figures are much better than mine ..(haven't built any in 5 years) A little flat coat will help.. Other than that ..I think you should bring the tank in a bit more as it seems to be hanging off a bit too much and I'd add more dirt to the tracks as it is running in dirt. Super job! Love the base ...

Rick

WWH, you made those model kasten tracks look nice! What did you do to paint them?

Nice one again Steve. The overall scene is excellent. The ground work looks the part ... the broken twigs look perfect. How do your bases stand the test of time. Do you dry them out or paint the little bushes you use??? I ve looked at little plants like this yesterday when I saw this posted first, and I was wondering what you did to them.
The KV is up to your usual standard and has all your trademarks ... excellently blended fading, melt damge guards, shifting poles. I know you had some issues with the MK tracks, but every bit of patience has paid off ... they look excellent. As somebody has already mentioned, some dust in the threads would be nice. I would even suggest and extra link on each side to increase the sag, to get the full use of workable aftermarkets. The detail on them though is outstanding.
You figures are improving at a serious rate! I can see a lot of improvements in uniforms and especially the skin tones. IMO this is the hardest part to get right, and your well on the way!
Great work Buddy. Whats up next??

Looking Good Steve!... The tracks look really nice! It looks like they were worth the pain... Where was the clean up on the underside? I really love the way KV tanks look with AM tracks (KV tracks are cool looking), those Tamiya tracks just don't cut it.

Again.. Awsome job!

Excellent work Steve ! Your KV-IB M1940 came out fantastic. Dragon Soviet Tank Riders came out nice too !

I really like how those MK tracks came out

Nice looking ground work and overall diorama too.

Thanks for the dedication to my shop. With your permission, I would like to feature your KV-I diorama on my website. I'm planning a customer gallerie in the near future

Cheers !!

Alpen

aka "Lord Hobbyshop"

WWH- I've been following this on from the start & must say the end results are quite worth it. The tank & setting are top-notch, and if these are some of your first figures I'm mightily impressed. I've been working figures on & of for close to 22 yrs, and to be honest I still suck. I won't mention anything that's already been said but one aspect of your figures did catch my overly critical eye- for the most part, they seem to be awkwardly 'perched' on the tank. In some cases, the hans they'd be using to stabilize themselves on the vehicle are just slightly grazing the hull. I realize that this is due to the fact that the figs are posed this way from the manuf., but I believe you could rectify this problem with some very minor surgery. Sanding the rear ends gives a flat contact point to the horizontal plates. Some hot water would soften your figs hands, to get them to conform more naturally to the grab points. The heels of the fellow riding atop the unditching timbers could be put into conact with the fender, but this might require cutting him off at the knees and repositioning. Nothing 'wrong' with what you've done, Just think some minor corrections could make this Outstanding Dio a real Stand Out!
p.s.-Stoopid little nit, & once again I realize this is dictated by the pose of the fig, but if I was the MG gunner on the turret, I'd want the barrel of MY weapon facing "front-towards enemy" shutting up now...

Again, Keegan, Outstanding mono-painted model, the weathering is awesome, and the figures are realistic looking.

The LENS, oh well. still the same as your previous models. :-)