This is my first build log. hope it goes well!!

im building the dml panzer 4 d and the tamiya german tank crew at rest

Just a little update. main hull mostly pieced together and painted,
need to finish the running gear on the other side tho. fitted with little difficulty.
the only trouble i had was removing the road wheels.

Off to a good start jimmy!

the Commander!
really pleased with the result of this one
The shine is from the light i used.


not a great picture, but one of the crewmen

more pics soon

Hi Jimmy

This is a well done work so far, but in that condition you want to do it, I am afraid to tell you it is historical wrong. As this is an early type of the Pz. Kpfw. IV, a basecoat in Dunkelgelb will not fit.
Better you paint it in dark brown fot the Afrika Corps. Also the commander in the late war camoflage tank uniform is not correct.

I hope, you are not mad about it?

But keep up the good work!

Nils

its the added armour variant, just going with the instructions also! no biggy. im getting the basics right before i go for accuracy, and as for the pe spot camo commander, hell i put him in 'cus he looks good. critisism accepted tho and nex time i will bear that in mind
ciao
james

Ah, ok. One of the marking options in the instructions.
Right, first get some basics, is always good.
I think, it is allowed to put figures in vehicles, when they look good, even it is the wrong time period....??


Cheers

well, the instructions do say to paint soft edge brown camo over the top. but my airbrush is broken. so i cant , so i am sticking to the dunkelgelb! i actually ran out of tamiya dark yellow and am using valejjo german ochre mixing with tamiya sky grey to get the right color.

the colour is a bit more orange than the tamiya dark yellow, but it looks better!
still not sure how much to weather it when its done tho. i probably wont do much to it,

new shots of the hull, just finished a side of tracks. all going together quite nicely!!





any comments????

On the figure, paint over the sideburns, he looks like an Elvis impersonator.
Except maybe in U-boat service, Germans kept a pretty high and tight hair style with only the occasional moustache.

um i may mess it up. ill make up a back story, 1941, somwhere in the world, the british struck a fatal blow against the german army. a crippling bomb took out a train load of razor blades, affecting our hero's facial hair!!!

jokes aside i will try me best

Maybe Elvis's grandpa was a tank commander? Your work looks very good and I agree about getting it to look good before historical accuracy. Good luck Bob

thanks!

here are some more pics, does anyone know what colour the fan in the picture below should be?
also, will the tracks on the roof of the turret be correct?



the left hand tracks are almost complete, just debating with myself whether to dirty them more.



--- a bad picture of the interior, in am very pleased with the scratches and dirt you can see, althouigh i neglected to wash the inside walls before i sealed the roof down.


have started adding the tools and such to the fenders.


and i forgot the paint the etch before fitting it on both grilles.
will try to rectify that soon


i didnt use the photo etch tool holders because ithey are too darn fiddly.
i attempted the padlocks on the storage bins and nearly exploded from stress!!!!
how can people work with such tiny pieces

Bump

nearly finished the tranfers/Decals for the turret, im not sure what color to chip with, as primer red wouldnt be very noticable, i was thinking of using a dark green, whats everybodys imput on that, overall there wont be many chips, cus ya cant beat a pretty pristine panzer! do you think the spare track positioning will work. well the long one on the roof will have to as it is glued on! AlaFletch i tried painting over the 'burns but my po0r chap wasn't the same so i quickly wiped the paint off and re throned him as the king of pre- rock and roll. all feedback would be warmly welcomed with an invitation to tea and sticky buns!

you can still se the metal in the grilles Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr


i cut the number 4's where the hatch would open (if it did!!!) after applying them whoops , didnt think of it tbh beforehand!

the tiny dribbles of rust are water soluble oil paint. painted a dot on and wiped it downwards with bog roll

still debating wether to make this a afrika corps vheicle as the figure would definatly not go with the panzer then

would this be useable as spares positioning, (above and the small ones below)

any comments or suggestions or things to point out so far?

Hey Jimmy, looking good so far. Just a few suggestions, on the spare tracks their are raised pin marks on the links, you should be able to swipe them off with a knife or sanding stick.

The rust streaks are well done, just think about starting with a paint chip at the top of the rust. For some subtle paint chips I would probably go with Panzer Grey or something like that, again keep them small and don't overdo it (less is more).

As far as decals go, I use a gloss clear or Future Floor Polish before applying the decal. This helps prevent the silvering of the transfer film. And get yourself some decal setting solution like Solvaset, this will soften the decal and make it conform around raised details, even zimmerit!

TCB

Lookin' real good Jimmy. I didn't see anyone mention it and if they did and I missed it, sorry for the rehash. Shouldn't the commanders shoulder boards have pink piping around them? I thought yellow was for Lufwaffe or signal corps. Just my two cents worth.

Jesse

dont have a pink so ill try a light brown red. and the pin marks. i didnt notice them. they are really obvious!!
nearly finished the beast

how much is solvaset??

thanks for the f/back will try me best to comply

Solvaset is around $5 to $8 dollars a bottle around here, worth every penny.

cheers

I like the sag you have in the tracks. Are those dragon links good? Ive been using the Fruil links just lately but it can add quite a bit to the price tag of the completed model. I did use the Dragon links on a Sherman E8 but still could not get them right even though they are quite large compared to the PzIV links.

Good looking panzer you have there. You cant beat a panzer in panzer grey though in my opinion.

Des