I'm at the point of my Lee build that I have to start thinking about what's next off the shelf. I've never done a Panther, and I've never done zimmerit, so I figure I'd take a whack at the Dragon Panther A Early (Italy).

Luckily, I have a few reference pictures from Allied Axis #7.







I have my eye on some Atak zimmerit, but I really think I want to try and do my own, with what I have available, rather than adding to the expense of the model. The reference images are good, but I'm confused as to what pattern is on the tank, which appears to be just a square tile pattern.

These pictures also appear to have some version of camoflauge, where the kit says just dark yellow.

Any advice would help!

Thanks

Rich

Rich,

Have a look at this: http://www.panzerworld.net/zimmerit. Scroll down towards the end, and it has a list of which pattern was applied to what tank. I did small squares on a Jagdpanther using basic tube putty -- applied a thin layer, and scribed the pattern when it was nearly dry. Will try and look for clearer pics you can refer to. Hope this helps.

Cheers,

Tat

Hi Rich ...good eye ..these early Panther A's had a very rough coat with just a square pattern ..easily done but it might be tricky to get the rough look ..

Thanks for the replies!

I'm going to do some experiments with squadron green.

Was it typical for crews to camo their tanks with mud in Italy? there are some changes in color that I can't figure out.

Rich

I suggest you look into using decorators caulk for the Zimm.

Decorators caulk...as in standard latex painters caulk? Now I'm intrigued. are there any examples of how to do this?

Here is the Blog on the BergePanther I am building the Zimmerit on it is my first attempt, and while I have seen better I am happy with it for a first effort. A big plus is that before it sets completly you can impart damage to the finish with ease, and even when dry scraping with the rear of a blade will remove it.

I don't know if "standard latex painters caulk" is the same as Caulk over here but you use it to fill gaps between doorframes and walls before painting. when dry it accepts all paints with ease and is forgiving and cheap if you make a mistake with a reasonable working time.

Thanks for the link Darren!

It appears that decorators caulk and painters caulk are the same thing. I'm not sure that with the tile pattern I plan on doing that it will work as well as another method, but you've done a good job with the standard "rake" pattern on your Bergepanther!

Rich, here are some more pics for your reference. Good luck on your project. Cheers -- Tat