I am going to do a my first blog for my that I finished a while ago. I don't yet have any pictures of the beast finished, but here's a WIP shot.



My plan for the diorama is as follows:
It will be set in October 1941, near Moscow, and the T-35 crew are resting for the night and having dinner next to the crew of a Zis AT gun doing the same. A passing Cossack catches the attention of the crew, who are greeting him.
A quick plan made on paint...


These are the figures I have:


And I am also planning on getting this set for the project - the T-35 needs more than three tankers by it!



Tell me what you think! How's my layout? Are there any glaring reasons that this cannot be? I'll try to get more pictures up of my work ASAP.

Also, I'm open to suggestions for a title.

SCOTT

Scott

Great work, I have all the figure sets and found the Trumpeter figures are very small.

I need to check your blog, I am Soviet Armor fan and like the look of the T-35

Steve

It's a nice overall idea.
I personally wouldn't put the camp fire in the middle of the ATG's legs. Imagine the spot of trouble they would be in if they had to engage the enemy. I would just move it outside the legs or father back

As Scott points out it might be better to place the fire on the other side of the tank assuming the enemy is in front of the AT gun. This way the tank is used to shield the fire making everybody less visible.

Looking forward to see more

Thanks for the feedback! I will move the fire over to the other side of the tank. Steve, the Trumpeter figures are definitely very small, so I will try to make it less noticeable by having them on top of the tank. We'll see how that works.

Today, I plan on getting the basic framework for the dio done.

SCOTT

Very cool T-35. I like the diorama idea and elements.

With regards to the fire, I doubt the soldiers would build one anywhere the enemy could see it. Mortars , anti-tank guns, and sniper rifles work just fine at night, especially when the target illuminates itself. Maybe the passing Cossack is an officer telling them to put out the fire!

-Doug

Hmm... I like that idea, Doug! Perhaps though, this'll this away from the front, with the Cossack going to the front and the T-35 and AT gun resting for the night? That way I could keep the fire... I'm not yet decided. I'll play around with the layout and give it some thought with regards to the fire tomorrow... or rather later today! Burning the midnight oil! Goodnight everyone, and thanks for the very helpful feedback.

SCOTT

Update! I have got some pictures of my progress. I have made the basic frame for the diorama, and I will soon lay down the Celluclay. Its looking really ugly at this stage, so I didn't take any pictures of it! I also plan to add a two slit trenches to the dio, shown in blue.

Now, the Cossack, Sovietized from a DML German kit. I think this is my favorite part of the diorama.

Here's the Miniart Zis gun. Very nice, well detailed kit. I still have to paint this one.

And here is the crew of the AT gun...part of it anyway.

I'm not quite sure where these two will go, likely somewhere on top of the tank.

And now the star of the show... the T35. Its almost finished, I only need to add mud.



Thanks for looking! All constructive criticism is welcome!

SCOTT

oh dear... It seem Photobucket has rearranged, and now all of the photos are mixed up! I'll delete the old post, and repost here:

Update! I have done some work on the dio. I started by making the basic shape from styrofoam, then I used drywall compound then sand to further refine the shape. I then used Celluclay to create the final texture. Here is everything on as a dry fit. I apologize for the horrendous image quality, these are more quiock shots to give an idea of the layout.







SCOTT

If I may offer a few comments:

1. The Red Army made a change in their uniforms just after the battle of Stalingrad in early 1943, adding standing collars and shoulderboards. Prior to that, no one in the Red Army had either. So, some of your figures are in post-43 uniform - that includes all the Minart guys and most of the Tamiya guys.

2. There is no single focus for your diorama. The long gun tube of the 57mm is a great device for pointing at the main action or story if you want to turn it around. Likewise, the multiple gun turrets of the T-35 can be used to point to the main story if you choose to do that. Just sayin'.

Hope this is helpful.

Thanks Danny! Umm... as for the uniforms... I think I see what you are referring to. It seems to me that I could scrape off the shoulder boards from the Miniart guy in a great coat, and maybe give a few of the ones in the quilted jackets scarves, and give a few major surgery? I think I will turn the 57 mm gun around, as that does look better.

The Cossack is a nice touch, it speaks volumes about where the Russian mindset was and how they dealt with the vast size of the country. Keep up the good work and keep having fun.

Thanks Warren!