you could paint it to look like a french village from the air

I appreciate the thoughts and input regarding the camo scheme. I could go the easy way and do a standard, and therefore simple, 3-tone scheme. Alas, I think it’s just that; too simple. I really like the KT’s scheme above.

@ Blackstoat: I’m thinking if I were to increase the “scale” of the scheme because of the size of this build, that would be like painting a 1/6th KT? I’m not sure that that would look “right.” It IS something to consider though (and I can see how that scheme will look [as above] once I get to that point).

@ MikeyBugs95: Hmmmm….most of what I’ve found, depending on where and timeframe, the turrets were usually two variations of Hellgrau (one darker than the other). IF they had any kind of sea camo, it appears it was the gray with black or dark gray(?). It certainly would be a viable option.

“Viable” meaning that (let us assume) when this thing was built, they used an “off the shelf” battleship turret, “off the shelf” Kugelblitz turrets, “off the shelf” MAUS turrets, etc. I have been seeking camo schemes for the Kugel’s and MAUS’…I’m leaning towards the paint scheme the MAUS’ had when found (like the Dragon box art). The Kugel’s will be a combo of the top scheme above and maybe one in green or dark yellow.

@ kapoybana: French village? LOL, that IS funny!!

@ CMOT: It’ll have a JagdPanzer gun in front and bays for two Flak Wirbelwind walkers. I can see an issue with close in defense. I assume that this would indeed be much like an aircraft carrier with its own battle group with it…consisting of MAUS’, E-100’s, Lowe’s, and support vehicles?? However, I could add another JagdPanzer gun to the rear without much trouble….

Lots to think about.

Mike

Hmmm... If they built it, they'd mostly want to add camo to hide it from air recon - since you'd have to be blind not to spot it lurking in the shrubs if you were up-close on the ground!

"F- me sarge, they got some REALLY big begonias round here!"

And that means some variation on green & earth disruptive pattern on top, with perhaps lighter shades on the lower hull sides to break up the sharp shadows (counter-shading).

BUT, it'd be more fun to do it in a Frankenstein patchwork of "borrowed" colours - Navy grey main turret, camo'd secondary turrets (not matching - these might be recycled from tanks with wildly different schemes), and maybe a primer-red hull? I'd make sure there were lots of scorched weld marks too...

You could even hang some poor squaddie over the side in a boson's chair with a paint roller & bucket!

I am now looking forward to seeing where and how you vent the 2 U-Boat Diesel engines. Why have you not scratch built them as well yet?

Baahahaahaahaaa!! Begonias!!

Yes, it will be a “Frankenstein” mix. I like this one for the Kugels:



Plus one in a solid color – green?.

I like this for the MAUS’:



Regarding the “exhausts”…that and the bottom of the hull are next up. I’m going to cut the back plate today and lay some things out on it (track, road wheels, etc). I figured the exhausts would be much like a Tiger I or II, but larger. Same kind of concept; armored cover (yes, no “u” in there, lol!!) and pipe sticking up with a curve to it. I have a small tubing bender I used for the brake lines on a ’61 Beetle…wonder if I can find it again?

Someone had done an LCT (?) and used thick wire (?) to make small vents. I figured I’d do the same along the engine deck next to the raised portion of the track housings. Six or seven on each side?

Looks like the engine deck will also get a mix of Tiger I or II and Panther vents and the like though I’m still not 100% sold on that…I do want a couple of “armored covers” up there somewhere (where they’d make sense).

Mike

P.S. No interior detail except the Heinrich bay! No, no, no more that that....

Tom, do you have some examples of this?

Mike

How about one of the Panther flak turreted vehicles, after all they never got beyond mocked up vehicles and that kind of fits.

You surprise me on the exhausts as I thought you would have gone for vents rather than exhaust pipes.

I'd look at the navy use of disruptive camo, just replacing the naval colors with army colors.

By venting, you are referring to the rear plate or venting from the top of the engine deck (somewhere towards the rear of the deck)?

Hmmmmm.... ....so, by venting, louvered vents on the rear deck? Possible issues with that: 1) an AT round would go right through them, 2) takes away from the spare track/spare road wheels hangin' space. (oddly enough, the back isn't that large - two road wheels hanging will take up 2/3rds of the width)

Or, from the engines, to the top of the deck, venting back then down. Exhaust comes up, then by duct-work it's moved to the rear, then down and vented? Kind of like the reverse (?) of a Sherman? There is room for that. If an AT round hit the venting, it'll just puncture the thinner metal and be stopped by the armor behind it. (I'm thinking)

I really like the vent idea Darren.




Are you referring to a Flakzwilling (Coelien)? In lieu of the Kugels? If so, no....keeping the Kugels.

Mike

Steve, here are three distinctly different patterns from two ships the turret "could have" come from:




The Tirpitz:



Were I to use this one, I'd use the pattern that covers the gun unit, #2 from the bow.




This one I really, really like:



I'd use the pattern from either gun. And, to my "color-blind" eyes, the colors would fit the Ratte well (and the lighter color I'd leave as is!).




The Bismarck:



This one looks simply like light and dark gray turrets.

Thoughts? Especially the Tirpitz July 1942 version. What are the colors in there??

Mike

Something the size of the beast could be vented out of the top middle or bottom, I know that tankers back then used to place a bucket or sack over the exhausts to prevent the smoke being seen, but if your close enough to see the smoke from this beast you are already looking at the vehicle. I was thinking top as a talking point and armoured louvers would not have to be so heavy on top as the would on the sides. With a couple top front taking in and a couple up back kicking it out.

The only other question would be; would a vehicle with tracks the size that this has carry spares due to the increased weight, they could be carried by a support vehicle that is designed to fit them as well as carry.

Here are some camo ideas I got them here:

https://www.rctankwarfare.co.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=1930&p=39552

Cheers Rob.

Hi Mike,

I don't have any pics to hand, but there are images of things like the M7 "priest" with the lower hull sides painted white to reflect light and thus break up the harsh shadow line often seen in air photos. (The idea was to remove any sharp-lined shadows that tend to draw the eye towards the parked vehicle...) The full countershading technique calls for a dark colour (with added "U"s ) on the roof, extending down over the upper sides to break up any harsh outlines at the joint, then the "medium" colours on the sides, and a light colour near the bottom (the track area on tanks, or around the wheels and under fenders on wheeled stuff). Similar to the way airplanes have dark camo tops and light undersides - it helps them "hide" better when on the ground! (In the air, movement & noise defeat any benefit the camo might give...)

For your beast, that would mean dark-colour decks & turret roofs extending down in irregular patterns onto the sides, mid-tone camo on the sides, and then a light colour on the lower third of the sides, road wheels, and downward-facing panels under the nose & rear. (Look at say the British "Mickey Mouse" camo on trucks, where the dark roof colour extends in irregular circles onto the upper third of the sides...)

Of course, depending on how you run the engine piping, the beast could be shrouded in its own personal dark cloud! Seriously, the prospects of them ever hiding anything this big are so remote that you might as well just have fun with it.

BTW, I just LOVE the mental image of the crew trying to manhandle a replacement track link off of its brackets on the hull side, while somebody jacks up a road wheel...

Hmmm, Micky Mouse camo on the Ratte. That would be interesting to see.

See ya in the funnies..................

Worked on the top, front, and back.

Glacis cut to size. I've added a small angled "box" to allow for the Jagdpanzer mantlet to be "level." It's pretty close to where this one will go (may move it to the left a bit):



Framework for the turret to sit on. There are three pieces on each side that will help keep the sides at the proper angle and add additional support to the turret build (you can see the three pieces laying flat under the round base):



A couple more views:







The rear and engine deck:





Mike

That is really looking awesome Mike!!


Randy

Can you stand a figure in your pictures so we can get some idea of scale? Thanks.

Hi Steve,

You'll have to go back a few pages for that.
Mike's got a figure besides the beast for size ref.

HTH.

See ya in the funnies..............

1/35th.

OFw Eichner reporting:











Mike

You've created a monster, Mike... I christen it "Mike' Monstrous Massive Mouse." lol

That's a point - shouldn't this be part of a diorama, with little Adolph breaking a bottle of champagne over the bow?

Fantastic idea Tom,

Mike, if you really do it, I'll print the picture as a poster on my workbench.

Great job, Mike !

Gotta love the heavy metal.

I've cut out the belly plate for this beastie and scribed the panels that make it up. Each panel is about 3 meters wide (in 1/35th). You won't see it too much once done (and it's no car or bird model, so no mirrors!), but I think the details that'll be added to it will be very much worth it.

I was looking at the underside of a KT, Tiger, Panther and Pz IV...thinking about all the access panels, drain points, et cetera. Going to have to see about those being done via 3D printing (looking at Tom and Matt L, )

I figure the "escape hatches" can be done out of thin stock...but wouldn't that be neat if the 3D did it with armored hinges?

I'm ready for some Bondo on the track housings, but I have to clean off the bench in the garage. Stuff does smell up the area until dry.

Pics to follow soon.

Mike

p.s. Regarding the idea of a dio: If/when I get the Heinrich, I'll have to do something for it. I'm sure I can find a little Hitler, photographer, staff car, and sundry peons as staff. Figures still "trip me out," but... Hmmmm.....

This entire build is just awesome, can't wait to see it finished. If I could suggest a cammo scheme. How about a Luftwaffe fighter scheme with two tone green splinter on all horizontal surfaces and mottled vertical surfaces(you could substitute panzer yellow for the light grey used on the planes to make it more 'Heer')