Man, you are doing a great job with those figures.. What brand are they? Tamiya, Dragon ??
Keep those pics coming.
Cheers,

Pablo

You got it on this one. The 4th guy is really good, natural, interactive and a good addition.

Hey Pablo,

Thanks! The figures are combinations of various Tamiya kits (German Field Commander set and German Soldiers on Maneuver) and some Dragon figures from my spares box.

Quintin

Like it
4th figures looks really good

go with that Quintin! that's exactly the way i pictured it add the stowage and this will look awesome. Ant

Thanks guys. It's amazing what a difference the 4th guys makes to the balance of the scene so far!

I hope to have some sketches done on the layout of the diorama. Will post them as soon as they're done.

Once again, thanks for all your inputs!

this last with the fourth crewing the MG... perfect. Looks really good too!

Hey guys,

I'm now planning the layout of the scene. Not really sure of the elements in it yet.

I get the feeling that the SdKfz 251 simply driving across the grass field will leave the scene feeling empty and lacking. So now I'm toying with the idea of adding elements like a white horserail fence and maybe a farm animal or two just to fill the scene. I've made some rough sketches - will scan/photograph them and post as soon as I can.

Comments/suggestions welcome, as always...

Ciao,
Quintin

Not sure what your 4th figure looks like (sitting, standing, inside, outside), but I liked the previous post about putting the 2 sitting figures in the front, looking back, and the standing guy in the rear.

Are the Paras gonna have a bazooka or something? If so, it'd be cool to have some element natural or man-made that they're hiding behind waiting for the halftrack to get to the perfect spot to take a shot. Could be anything.... fence, farm equipment, downed tree, just really high grass, etc. Kinda like the halftrack scene in Saving Private Ryan.

Hey Quintin !
GOOD JOB on the new figure layout !!!! I'll be keeping my eye on your project too . Cheers !
Kenneth .

Hey guys,

Quick question. Would it be realistic to have sunflowers in the diorama, considering the time of year and the scene being set in Normandy?

Will post pics of possible layouts tomorrow.

Quintin

Sunflowers seems realistic to me...... however, I have a bigger Garand thumb, than I do a green thumb!

Hey guys,

OK, after being side-tracked for what seems like a lifetime, here's my completed Sd.Kfz 251 Ausf D, with its occupants.

All comments and criticism welcome, as usual! Please excuse the quality of the pics, they were taken late at night. I'm now planning rest of the diorama, will keep you all posted..

Cheers,
Quintin

Beautiful work. I liked the arrangement of the figures. I also enjoyed the camouflage and weathering in the armor.
Congratulations.

Hi there!

I agree that the camo on that 251 turned out really good, as well as the stowage. Congrats.
I have only a minor nitpick : the figures seems a little glossy, you may want to tone them down with some matt varnish. Perhaps it is only the camera flash.

Congrats on a nice job!!!
Cheers,
Pablo

The figures look great Quinten, I think your poses are great but only if the vehicle is stationary.

I'd reckon that if the vehicle is moving the guy eating would probably wear most of his food, the guy standing should probably be holding onto something and the MP40's rattling around on the floor are pretty dangerous.

For the layout, I always try to set the Dio up so you are looking from the perspective of on of the people involved. I'd be tempted to layout the one you are doing as if I were looking over the shoulder of the Bazooka man.

Your 251 looks great and the positions of the men inside looks just fine. An observation; if I understand your idea correctly, the 251 is about to be ambushed by US paratroops, most likely somewhere in Normandy. From what you've shown, at least three of the figures are wearing the early war style "jackboots." I believe that by mid-44, these would have been replaced by the shorter style combat boots due to material shortages the Wermacht faced. I'm no expert on uniforms by any means, but these "boots" just don't seem right for troops in the field at this time/point in the war. Officers maybe, but not front-line soldiers. Looking forward to seeing your dio progress.

I like it a lot!!! It seems to have worked out!!!

Regards,