Ist auch ein Weg.

Or as the english reader might understand. "Where there is a will there is a way".

Ola guys

Some time ago I started a diorama. It was called "Barbarossa Blitz". It featured a small river with a demolished bridge. A knocked out T38 M (really really bad simplified resin kit from a Russian company) which is used as a makeshift bridge where a few motorcycleriders are crossing to the other bank.
Here is what it looked like.
The tank (or multicolored piece of crap as I liked to call it) It really was a bad thing.


As you can see the tank was so bad my camera refused to focus on it... Ok.. here a picture of the whole scene as I had in mind at the time


And that is how it stood for a while. I never liked that tank kit. and wasn't sure how to continue. So last week I gave the whole project a good look. And simply loathed my own work. Nothing was right in my mind. The dio was too large. The tank too ugly. The composition too stupid and the tank too ugly. Did I mention the tank was too ugly? Well it was... it was damn ugly. Actually I disliked 90% of the project. But not all was lost as there was a small section that I did like. And that was the motorcycle dispatcher scaling the bank on his BMW R75. So I took out one of those big boxcutters and went to work. Distilling the 10 procent I saw some future in. The T38 M went straight into the "round archive" and the remaining bridgesection will be saved for a future project.

The BMW R75 is from Masterbox spiced up with the old Show Modelling update set for BMW and Zundapp. The handlebars with hands come from Revell from their R75 sidecar. The figure was also from that set with newly sculpted arms and a head from Hornet. Did some modifications to the base. the brige part and the composition and this is what I ended up with.



And after finishing the build of the motorcycle and driver I gave everything a spray of primer and this is how it stands now.





Next up is paint, the wiring of the Motorcycle. And then the groundworks.

As usual very curious to any feedback. More to come.

With friendly greetz

Robert Blokker

Robert,
I really like the idea! What I would say as a rider myself is that he needs to be standing on the footrests more, this gives greater control over the bike when jumping an obstacle and keeps the weight forward - just look at photos of dirt bike riders. It also lessens the shock administered to your rear end when the bike makes contact with the ground again! Also, with the weight off the front of the bike, the tele-forks will extend with the springs.

Ola Steve.
Thanks for the reply. Your points are well noted and you are absolutely right on everything. However the problem is that I had to work with what I had laying around. I'm not planning much changing of the figure now. It was already putting up a fight to get to this point. He is standing up. Albeit it a little. Also the bike itself is a fragile thing. And I fear that I ruin the whole thing when I start to fiddle with the frontend. However.... When I did the covering of the base with spackle this evening I also made ruts and had to place the bike in it as well to get the endspot. And with that I placed the bike at a lower angle. Which made the jump less dramatic but still kept it's impression of speed. In the end it might not be textbook offroad motorcycling but if it contains it's sense of motion I'm more then happy

So Robert, were you drunk when you bought that really ugly tank?

Does this little piece of bridge stay? The white painted. I would damage the planks a bit where they lay on the rock.
The angle of any vehicle or even person stepping on the last part of the plank would certainly crack and break it.

Greets
Claude

Anyone notice how ugly that tank is !

I like the scene as it stands Robert, it is a great action scene and I think the composition really lends itself to lead focus to the rider and the bike. I'm looking forward to seeing this fleshed out.

Well I like it for sure. With all of the bikes used in the war,you really don't see that many modeled really.
This is a nice idea you have and I have to say that I also liked the original idea as well!
The dio is sort of a Steve McQueen in the Great Escape in reverse!
Somebody say something about a tank being something? Ugly? something like that? Hehe
J

@ Claude
:D I might have been. But being dutch it was more a matter of right size and more important... Cheap. But I have to tell you I wasn't ready when I got that box and opened it. Dissapointment is probably the best fitting word. Bad casting. Really bad details horrible tracks which were a recast from one of those rubberband tracks. A hypodermic needle for barrel. Etc. etc. For the same amount of money I could get an equally horrible styrene kit.
I hear you on the broken planks however the Bank itself will be an earthen one and not rock. And the soon not to be white bridge planks are pushed in the bank and for a big part covered in the mud of motorcycles and soldiers driving and walking over it.

@ Karl
Thanks for the compliments. I kinda wanted an image like you could find on propaganda posters. I think It will work out like that. And glad I ditched the ugly A$$ tank.

@ Jerry
LOL I never seen it that way.. It indeed has a Steve McQueenish atmosphere to it in the composition. Glad you like it. Indeed the motorcycle part of the wehrmacht is not very often depicted in scale and on the move is even rarer then that I think. I hope I will create something out of it that I can be happy with. Something that never would have happened had I followed the original idea.

Hi Robert
It looks really cool and original, but with the title in mind, wouldn't it be even cooler if you you depicted the rider comming full speed, just before jumping the "bridge". Sort of Evil Knivel style.
Well, just a thought, I'm sure it'll turn out great either way.
Best regards
Jacob

@ Jacob
Thanks for the compliments. And allthough your idea is cool and it definately fits the title I'm always a bit reluctant to do that kind of works. I'm not a firm believer that ww2 was a string of funny anekdotes tied together in 5 years time. I somehow always like my works to be like they were lifted out news reel or propaganda footage. I think a lot of people might think of my work as boring.

I'm interested in seeing this one come together. Great idea and not overdone. I liked the idea of the "tank bridge" from the original too.

@Bryan

Thanks for the kind words. You will not have to wait long for the next instalment. New update should follow this weekend. Maybe in the near future I will try my hand at a similar tank bridge dio. But for now that one is gone.

Ola People

For those of you interesteds but not following the Motorcycle Mayhem Campaign I have a bit of an update.

Laid down a coat of Plasterboard spackle. Sprinkled birdcage sand over it. Made ruts and tire tracks in it and coated everything in a nice black. I do this actually for the styrene sides of the base because I think it looks nice and it helps pop out the much lighter colored scene on top. But it also works nice as a primer/preshade of the groundworks.
And I got some paint on the motorcyclist. I always start with the flesh tones and they are finished.





Next up. Painting the uniform. The motorcycle and the groundworks.

As always looking forward to any feedback

With friendly greetz

Robert Blokker

Hi Robert. Actually I liked the little tank in the second scene ... it kept it balanced. I agree the original scene didn´t work as well, as it was maybe too symmetrical in composition. The little tank could have be "hidden" somewhat with marshy weeds and small trees/undergrowth ... its the perfect filler and detail, and worked with the little bridge! The little bridge in the third scene doesn´t really give anything extra or add to the story line. Just opinions!! Regardless, the pose of the bike is brilliant. It gives a very dramatic effect as well as highlighting/drawing focus to the bike.

@ Frank
Thanks for your reply and your opinions. Somehow the original scene has more support outside my person. It is not very much visible in the picture I posted here but everything there stands at an angle And the symetry from other angles is not much apparent anymore. But still it never touched the soft spot for me. Therefor I decided to skip it. Maybe some day I will redo it. Probably I won't.

Actually the little bridge serves exactly the same role and pretty much has the same position as it had in the big dio but I agree it looks weird and out of place now all white. When it is painted and tied in with the dio itself it will add to the story I am pretty sure of that. Thanks for the compliments on the bike and the pose of the bike and biker. I'm pretty pleased with that as well.