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Figures
Military figures of all shapes and sizes.
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New Mini Art tank crew
jrutman
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Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
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Posted: Saturday, June 15, 2013 - 10:19 AM UTC
This new set looked pretty good so I thought I'd get one. The poses and subject are very nice. They could always use improvement though.


I decided to get this one done first

These are the tools I use. I have plenty of fresh blades on hand as well

Before and after undercutting and clean up


jrutman
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Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
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Posted: Saturday, June 15, 2013 - 10:20 AM UTC

jrutman
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Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
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Posted: Saturday, June 15, 2013 - 10:24 AM UTC
Put the guy together temporarily to make sure he looks OK.


I scribed and sculpted new folds in his pants to show the attachment points for the suspenders. I think the basic dude is ready. The head is not too good though. Good thing we have Hornet!! Or Alpine.. I think I will re make the suspenders as well. They are too close to the body at the bottom.
Any interest in keeping this blog going?
J
Molentik
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Noord-Brabant, Netherlands
Joined: May 22, 2012
KitMaker: 112 posts
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Posted: Saturday, June 15, 2013 - 10:42 AM UTC
Please do! I've been thinking of using this set for a diorama with German Midget subs, as the clothing is more or less identical.
jrutman
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Pennsylvania, United States
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Posted: Saturday, June 15, 2013 - 10:46 AM UTC
Crappy pics for sure but you can see how far back I was able to undercut the folds in the leather jacket and the panzer wrap.
Next up are the new suspenders,putty in the slits and finding a suitable new head for Panzerstein.
You have to play with the position of both arms to get them to look right. I find the easiest way is to worry about the placement of the hands as it is a lot easier to sand or fill the arms where they attach to the choulders.
All in all I really like these new Mini Art kits. Some of the other heads in the kit are much better then this one.
J
LuckyLuke
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Belgium
Joined: September 18, 2008
KitMaker: 40 posts
Armorama: 34 posts
Posted: Saturday, June 15, 2013 - 11:15 AM UTC

Quoted Text


Any interest in keeping this blog going?
J


Absolutely, Ill be following with great interest.
Good thing you will be going for a new head, it will be a big improvement.
jrutman
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Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
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Posted: Sunday, June 16, 2013 - 05:54 AM UTC
Got some improvements accomplished this morning. Got the left arm settled more and the right arm received a brand new wristwatch. Removed the plastic bottoms for the suspenders and replaced them with brass straps and buttons. And what a difference a new head makes. OK manner,ein solo singen!! Aber mit gusto!!!
Now to ponder what kind of head gear and hair. It may seem like too much work here but the more prep work you do the easier it is to paint.
panzerconor
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Massachusetts, United States
Joined: February 08, 2012
KitMaker: 1,271 posts
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Posted: Sunday, June 16, 2013 - 06:13 AM UTC
He sure does look to be happy about his new suspenders. I'll be watching

-Conor
Plasticbattle
#003
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Donegal, Ireland
Joined: May 14, 2002
KitMaker: 9,763 posts
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Posted: Sunday, June 16, 2013 - 09:28 AM UTC
The bulk of the newer MiniArt figures must have decreased, because on their earlier sets, Hornet heads looked too small on them. This looks great. Nice addition with the etched suspenders Jerry.
jrutman
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Pennsylvania, United States
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Posted: Monday, June 17, 2013 - 01:44 AM UTC
Thanks for your comments Conor and Frank and for taking the time to make them,
J
tmas01
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New York, United States
Joined: October 15, 2008
KitMaker: 115 posts
Armorama: 74 posts
Posted: Monday, June 17, 2013 - 02:11 AM UTC

Quoted Text

The bulk of the newer MiniArt figures must have decreased, because on their earlier sets, Hornet heads looked too small on them. This looks great. Nice addition with the etched suspenders Jerry.


I was thinking the same thing...I usually shy away from their figures for that reason.
jrutman
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Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
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Posted: Monday, June 17, 2013 - 04:21 AM UTC
They are fine if you replace the heads. Here is another one that looks great right out of the box using a Hornet head


Slight variations in size are a good thing as people aren't all the same size either,
J
tmas01
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New York, United States
Joined: October 15, 2008
KitMaker: 115 posts
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Posted: Monday, June 17, 2013 - 04:36 AM UTC

Quoted Text

They are fine if you replace the heads. Here is another one that looks great right out of the box using a Hornet head

Slight variations in size are a good thing as people aren't all the same size either,
J


I agree completely Jerry (about people differing in size)...but as Frank said, Hornet heads looked small on their earlier releases. If you didn't want to replace the heads they were great.
jrutman
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Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
KitMaker: 7,941 posts
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Posted: Monday, June 17, 2013 - 04:44 AM UTC

Quoted Text


Quoted Text

They are fine if you replace the heads. Here is another one that looks great right out of the box using a Hornet head

Slight variations in size are a good thing as people aren't all the same size either,
J


I agree completely Jerry (about people differing in size)...but as Frank said, Hornet heads looked small on their earlier releases. If you didn't want to replace the heads they were great.


I hear you. I just started buying the MiniArt kits recently because I saw how much they had improved. I used to rank them about on line with Zvezda or the early MB stuff. These 2 new sets are quite nice though and the sculpting is commendable. As I tend to replace all the heads with resin anyway,it works for me.
J
tmas01
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New York, United States
Joined: October 15, 2008
KitMaker: 115 posts
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Posted: Monday, June 17, 2013 - 05:00 AM UTC
yeah, these look really nice.
jrutman
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Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: April 10, 2011
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Posted: Wednesday, June 19, 2013 - 03:54 AM UTC
When looking at the last pic I noticed that the head looked a little too well fed. I shaved some pounds off the neck and hopefully this,coupled with a new head will blend it in better? I also adjusted the fingers on the right hand for a better"sit". The coat of primer always helps blend it all together and identify any more problems.
I am loosing confidence after I screwed up my halftrack though.


Does anyone know if the leather trousers had a button at the top of the fly?
J
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