Hi guys,

Paval and Ian, Nice work guys.

Tom, Great stuff.

Mike I think your crew look terrific.

Cheers

Al

Hi everyone!
I am also humbled and marveled at the quality of work I have been looking at tonight. Progress for me has been slow. I got sidetracked by having to recharge my batteries for my digital camara, and then work, and more work.

Again, I started a Flickr account and decided to upgrade to pro. I have 24 pictures on the photostream for this campaign at

http://www.flickr.com/photos/billycash/sets/72157623146582761/

A few highlights. I am behind in my photography-documentation so I made a bit more progress than these pictures show, but I want to get these posted first.

I begain the dio base.



Using foam board (the kind from the Craft store) as a foundation.



Several layers of lightweight hydrocol were added. This is the stuff you find in the Model Railroading section of the Hobby Store. I also took time to add a bit to my dio base for the Bitter Taste of Defeat campaign (many familiar faces here :=)). The wooden frame is made from basswood from the Craftstore with some acrylic primer on one piece.



There are going to be two doorways here. One leading up to the second floor.



Finally, messing around with some straws and cork. Can you tell what I have planned?



Thanks for looking and hopefully I will get some more progress shots posted soon.

Great work everyone!!!

Hi Guys,

Here's my progress on the BEF Infantry. Not to happy with a few of the heads, so some repainting and tidying up to do. Unit and Rank badges to add but a good example of why not to paint in the evening











Al

Hi Guys,

Finished them off as Grenadier Guards:

















Front and Rear













Al

very cool, Alan. Your work is always so inspiring, even when you paint in the evening.

I have been reading up on everyone's techniques and what is most striking to me is the diversity of techniques represented here. I don't think any one of us is doing this exactly like anyone else, so thanks everyone for sharing so much knowledge.

I do have one technique myself that I would like to report on. Actually there are two.

First of all I have been experimenting for a bit using Sepia Gouche paints as a thick wash, then slightly removing the paint from the highlighted areas using just a dab of alcohol. Gouche is a kind of water based paint similar to watercolor but a little thicker and pastier. Not quite a solid as regular acrylic paints. So make sure you get a good layer of acrylic paint, then sort of pin wash around the eyes and dark areas with the gouche. Wait till it dries a bit, then go in with a dap of alcohol on your smallest brush and remove the darker paint from cheeks, forehead, nose tip etc. Sometimes it can be tricky to settle it in properly around the eyes.

Second technique is new. So after the above technique, I choose an appropriate secondary coat in the yellow-brown category. I think Reaper and Citidel, as well as Vallejo have similar lines. Burnt flesh is a favorite. This paints seem a little watery so shake them up good. Then I very carefully apply one drop to the forehead, and less yet to each cheek. Then I wipe the excess paint of on the hands, working as much of the moisture onto the underside of each hand. Now with a dryer brush (wipe on paper towel one more time maybe if needed) go back to the forehead and cheek areas to blend in those original drops.

This is what I have done one the Warrior Russian POWS who happen to be bald, so I am not dealing with hair or helmets either. Most of my pics for these two were blurry, but there are some good shots of them on the sidelines as it were.

Also I have some newish projects to report on for the build.

Here goes. Thanks again for taking a look. Comments welcome. I really want to improve.

This is the current production line with a few more layers of paint than last time. Some have been weeded out since last time, and a few newbies getting added. Note the POWS are in the middle-ish.

Also, Ron. I am trying to use more colors than just brown! It is so addictive though.



Note the best picture, but it does show a little of everything, included the mounted Cossacks (not part of this dio).



THE DUDES.



I am starting to like this guy. He is also from Warrior I believe. I think I am getting better with the resin. Now for more straps and such. POWS are in the bottom right corner. Dio has a little more paint, but rethinking is in order.



I have also been working on gutters. These are for the Bitter Taste of Defeat dio. I am starting to like the one on the right.



And on to two new figures. These two are from Masterbox LTD. Russian Tankers 1943-44. Started the first two, second two are still on the sprues. I have been going slow- no paint and a layer or two of putty so far.

The boxes are a PE set I have been working on. Griffin I think... I am trying to actually follow directions on that last unpainted one. I might make it!







The Kuppelwagon. This is the Bego Scale Model Studio kit. I have been working on this little bugger on and off at night. So far about 5 to 6 hours into in and LOOK MA, no Paint! I am going to add the last details, mask the windows and check out my new fine tip head for my badger. I hope the weather holds, cause that was my project for today to get started on that.

This thing is going in the garage.



So I am leaving these pieces off the model and will place them in the dio instead.



Goggles? the one on the bottom looks broken. Did I do that? Not pictured on the same clear sprue are two glass bottles. killer details!!!



One more shot of the engine back there. Can't wait to paint this lil bugger.



Thanks again. Good luck everyone.

hello

Alan nice work. The difference between resin heads and tamiya one is there. The rest of the tamiya british inf on patrol is not that bad, I have them ready for painting in my draw.

Billy - nice variety you have there. good work.

Mike - love the PzKpfw III crew. good job.

Ian, Tom great job.

i have started few new figures. the paras are from dragon sas set and the bren carrier driver is from sas set too. only the arms on the driver have been positioned slightly different.

Ron I have a queston. it the pic witht the jeep is a tabbaco stand. what are they called in dutch. what would be written above the shopping window. thanks

the scene if i ever make myself to make it should represent an british airborne jeep in arnhem. they stoped to pick up on of the supply containers (represented in the pic by blue paited piece of pencil). parachute will be draped over the tabacco shop. they are very alert thats why they hold their weapons ready.





the bren carrier is a tamiya kit with load of cargo from spare box.






thank you

pav

great work pav , keep it up ,, figures look good cant wait to see it all done

Hi Billy, coming along.

Hi Pav, like you well stocked carrier, but I would change the rope on the front, it looks way too thick and also very loose. It's a pity Tamiya didn't produce good tracks and a decfent rear idler wheel for it.

Great stuff folks.

Al

hello to everyone!

my progress.. front and rear view.












i'm not yet done with this.






excellent work guys!

thank you.

hi jessie ,
some very good work there i love the cam pattern on the smock , you must have a very steady hand , your painting is very acurate . hope you dont mind if i borrow your idea for painting weapons . i never thought of putting them on cocktail sticks through the trigger guard , im gonna try that ,, keep your pics coming ,, figures look great

hi Ian,
thank you for the compliment. yes you can use it.

thanks

Thought I'd join the fray. Building a diorama of Tamiya's old field kitchen with German troops. Nothing fancy. Painting the soldiers at the moment, still in progress. Experimenting with different colours for field gray or green or whatever colour it is. As you can see in the first photo, the first three guys from left to right get the initial coat sprayed on, the next is halfway done; needs more highlighting. The last guy is almost done, needs some touching up and insignia added. The last step will be painting the flesh.

Good Afternoon to all !

I can see this Campaign is running hot, and I´ve finally decided to join it...

This will be my first campaign... so I´m going to try it (at least initially) with a modest couple of guys:

I´ve decided to go on with Verlinden´s "German WWII Radio Team" ...



I´ll paint them with Vallejos, and the idea is to combine this pair of guys with a "Beute" Ford GPA that I´ve been building...

I´m being very conservative with the number of troops painted ´cause I´m a slow modeller...

See you...

hi bret.
i love your shadows and high lights , very good figure painting

hi

nice work bret.

this is my finished bran carrier driver.



i have changed the rope in the front of the carrier and did bit of weathering.



thanks
pav

One comment I have on everyone that is doing eyes. Eye whites (or sclera) aren't white.
Well up close they are but the blood vessel make them look pinkish from distance.
Aas pale as the flesh highlight. Maybe on larger scales white is OK though.

Look at this clip, I picked it because his head is even bigger than a 1/35 figure on my screen

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8421768.stm

The soldiers eyes aren't white and the pupil/iris extends beyond the top and bottom
of the eyelid. Only the edges are a light pink colour with deep shadows in the corners.

When you see white all around the iris, it looks like the eyes are open REALLY wide,
or goggle eyed. Outdoors in daylight, as most dios are, eyes are more closed.

Also if it is not 100% lined up it makes them look cock-eyed.

I'm doing 1/48 figs, so all I'm doing for the eyes is, is a black/brown dot in middle of the eye, and pale highlights at the edges.
The dark shadows I'll do with a wash.

Whether that works for 1/35? I don't know, but the white eye thing I don't think looks realistic and it probably
harder to do technically in any case.

All this is only my opinion but applies to nearly all the figures that have done eyes in this way such as,
Neo, morisoj, etc

Like for example with morisoj (and I only mention you cos you are directly above) the clothes are brilliant and the face too I just think the eyes let it down.

What do you reckon yourselves?

Here are the rest of my figures for the campaign. Except for a final spray of dullcote and some weathering to fit into their eventual destination diorama, these guys are done.








I have them wearing the insignia of the 26th Infantry Division since that fit nicely into the diorama I have planned. I posted two pics of the squad leader because I really like how he turned out, so I decided to show him off. There are four more pics in the campaign gallery, and I plan to post some pics of these guys in their final settings once they're finished. This campaign was a lot a fun and I'm glad to have been able to make some contribution to all the great work here.

I have picked up the final 6 figures of my diorama. I painted them in their basic colours, but put them away once more. They will have to wait untill I have a better "painting"-day...


I think JP has a point there with the whites. In some cases it is too visible.
If you take these faces for example and scale them down to 1/35, the eyes will be barely visible.





@ Billy; nice progress, Billy, but please remember this is a figures only-campaign, so please no pictures of dioramas and such. These are irrelevant here.
@ Jessie; going good! The colours of the weapons look real, but I think you missed a colour in the camouflagesmock, right? It does look perfectly painted, though.
@ Brett; your uniforms look good, but a bit on the greenish side. I really like the smiling guy's paintjob!
@ Roberto; welcome aboard and happy painting!!
@ Pavel; The left arm on the Brendriver looks funny/unnatural. I think it should be moved up and backward. You also would need to adjust the shoulder. Maybe use an arm that is leaning on the Bren's frontal plate?
@ Ed; It looks like you almost completed your "productionline". Don't forget to put pictures of the finished figures in the gallery!

Well done, gentlemen!!
You sure make this campaign worth while!

Thanks.

Hi Guys,

Great stuff,

Well I managed to finally make a start on my Para conversions last night. I have had these chaps sitting around for some time, but just hadn't gottten around to starting them. Thinning out the lower half of the Smocks to fit over Tamiya legs at the moment. Some pics tomorrow all being well. This one is the start:



Hoping to make 2 of them into a PIAT Team and the other into a chap unloading one of the airborne containers. Just need to decide whether to finish them as Paratroopers or Glider borne Infantry.

Hi Pav,

The left arm of the drive looks a bit odd, might need to re-think that one.

Al

Good Morning to You all

I´m getting a little complex to see that many of you are participating in the campaign with so many figures ...

Today´s a cold day here (Olocau "county", Valencia, Spain), near 0ºC (well, a cold day for us spaniards at least , you know... ).

Before I go to the supermarket, as fruit and veggies supplies are runnin´low at home, I have a little time to post some photos. It´s a cold, dark grey & wet day outside there. My four dogs don´t intend to have fun outside today... just like me...

This is what you get with Verlinden´s German WWII Radio Team.



As you can see, it was bought thru Sockelshop. 13+ euros (I think it is expensive, at least for me ... ¿some of you know a cheaper e-store for this kind of products? ).

The kit comes with the two figures and a radio / teletype set. Instructions for this hardware are very simple, and there is no painting guide for the radio devices. For a price of 13 euros, I think that it would have been possible to bring the modeller that info. This problem can be solved searching in the web, but as I´m discovering, Verlinden is a little "special".



The figures and hardware come with the tipical flash. Here you can see how it has been removed employing sharpknife, file, and sandpaper. I think this kit has a good quality in detail (POST EDITING: no, the next photo is not good, I know that it can be difficult to discriminate details for the guys without a sharp sight ---- )



The radio operator has a strange platform beneath him, I suppose to give him some kind of stability... but it´s redundant... at least for me... and I don´t like it...





So I decided to eliminate it, and after a session of "Dremelization", cutting, filing, and sanding, I think I´ve got an acceptable result (at least for me, guys, don´t be hard )







And that´s all for now... next step is to apply primer... ¿Do you think Tamiya Primer (spray) will be adequate? ¿or it would be better to prime spraying with another color -Vallejo are the ones I have- ?

Cheers, guys

good job roberto!that was hard.

anyway i manage to finish my figures.here's the pic.enjoy guys.















thanks.

Hola, Jessie,

So you finished it!

I like very much the camo smock, man... I don´t know how have you done it, but I can see very sharp camo-lines in the smock !

I intend to paint my guys in winter camo ss-44 style (first time for me)... it seems this scheme is called ERBENMUNSTER or commonly "Dot-44".



...and I´m a lil´ "worried" because I think that what I´m going to be able to do resembles more a tutti-frutti than any other serious thing.

And after seeing the quality of works seen here, I´m also thinking that my figures faces will be more on the line of "The Simpsons".

But my first objective is to learn and enjoy !!!!
Cheers

I got my first EVER troops painted and in the gallery

Here is my entry....finally found the time to finish them. The base they are shown on is not finished, but its getting there. I will post two pictures in the gallery too.







Everyone elses figures are looking great!!!!!

Later,
Johnathon

On eyes, someone has just recently asked how to do this on here.
https://aeroscale.kitmaker.net/forums/153497&page=1

Looks great Jonathan love the smock colour, think I'll finish of my flight crew tonight.