you're right ... and it's my favorite paint for the base coat ...

my progress ...



next ... the interesting part ... weathering ...

Signing up with the venerable 1977 Tamiya Panzer IVD, which my local Hobbycraft appears to think is not a dog. I shall use it as a test bed for painting and weathering techniques before I try them out on real models. Might go for a speed build to see how quickly I can get to the useful stuff.

Monte:The Esci Ti-67 kit is a great build and the link and length track is a good idea.
Tom:The jeeps turned out great, i love the shadow wash too.
Richard: been a while since i worked on a tamiya pzIV, will watch ho it comes along.

The Tamiya Jeep & trailer turned out really well I look forward to seeing more of it as it goes along.

I just mostly finished the Tamiya Panzer IV D. I thought it would not be so great but it really looks good. I had an issue with the tracks, however. I painted them with Tamiya red-brown in a rattle can. They were left out in the sun to dry and when I returned 10 minutes later they had "baconized" shriveled and warped.

I ordered the Fruil 36cm tracks, built them and found they are too narrow to fit the kit sprockets. A second set of Fruils was ordered, this time the 40cm version. These fit fine and are on the model now.

Tamiya got this wrong on the kit. If you use the kit tracks you are fine. If you go AM, get the wider ones.

If one doesn't desire workable tracks, then the Academy Pz IV links set is a cheaper alternative. Just substitute the supplied drive sprocket and it's good to go.

Stephen, thanks a lot. I can't wait to see your completed model ..




thanks Paul ..

ok .. I'm almost done .. almost done ..



last stop .. adding those old school figures ..

Monte, I build that kit a couple of years ago. Absolutely a dog! But can still made into a decent model if accuracy is not your concern

Tom, great result so far! Looking forward to see the figures. Are they the old figures with no neck?

Looking forward to see more

You're not kidding Jesper! This thing is horrible! I'm not really concerned about accuracy. However I think I'm going to have to go out and get an aluminum barrel. When I glued the two halves of the barrel together they matched up so poorly it would take to long to correct.

yes Jesper .. and bad on the details also

completed ...




for the weathering I used crushed black pepper (I've been sneezing more than 5 times just for this part), with 4 Tamiya paints (Flat Earth XF52, Deck Tan XF55, Buff XF57, Red Brown XF64).
no pigments or any weathering products .. all DOG style ..
thanks for this campaign Stephen I really enjoyed it

Tom

Very nice. I'd like to try that black pepper tip. Congrats on your finish!

thanks Tat

Did some work the past couple of days on this dog. I beat up the road wheels to give them some flavor. It's coming along slow but sure.

More work done tonight. This has to be the worst kit I've ever worked on. Instructions are horrible, parts don't fit, ejector pin marks with ejector pin marks on them. With the amount of flash I've scraped off of the parts I could probably mold another kit. I'm almost sorry I spent $14 on the aluminum barrel. Anyway, enough ranting, here's another pic.

Monte, yes, it is a horrible kit, but looks kind of OK when finished. Just to not let it close to measuring tape

For my barrel I used the cheap solution and covered it in camouflage netting.

Looking forward to see more - keep the spirit high

Thanks for the encouragement Jesper. I'm not a rivet counter so I really don't care if someone puts a slide ruler to it. I started it and I just want to finish it for this campaign and move on to something else more worth of my best effort.

I'll be doing Tamiya's M41 Walker Bulldog. I was going to build Revell's old UDT Boat....maybe kitbash it as something else liek a civilian salvage boat or a patrol gun boat.

For full disclosure I was originally going to build the Walker Bulldog for the Tamiya Campaign. I even posted a starter picture. We had a death in the family and I never started on the build. I picked up a Tamiya SU-76m kit and decided to build it for the Tamiya Campaign instead.

If there are any concerns over this submission, I understand. I'm sure I can find something else.

Monte, looking forward to see the finished result. Sometimes it is fun with a build where it can only be improved no batter what one does to it

Alex, the M41 is clearly one of the better dogs out there, but still believe it is a dog nonetheless especially considering the figures
I am not the campaign leader so cannot officially comment, but my guess is it is ok for a dog.

Looking forward to see more

Time to get started on this one...Tamiya's M41 Walker Bulldog. As Jesper noted, this really isn't bad for its age....this is a 1970s kit. There's actually some pretty nice detail in this kit. Much of it is very simplified and it's a motorized kit design. My plan is to build this one OOB for this campaign.

Starter picture.


I began with the chassis plate...this actually is part of the motorization and serves as a latch to hold the upper hull down on the lower hull. The suspension is molded on...no assembly required. Considering that, it looks pretty nice. Also added the tow shackles to front and back.


Road-wheels and return rollers. Pretty standard stuff.


Wheels on the chassis and upper hull in place.


The gun assembly is pretty standard. For its age, the fit is really good.


Turret halves clamped and waiting for them to set-up. Again, the fit is pretty good.


Started adding the detail parts to the turret. Commander's hatch and periscope guards. The loader's hatch is molded shut.


The turret's grab handles and .50 cal. The M2 is horrible. I already have a replacement set aside for after the campaign. The handles aren't that great...they look too thick.


Driver's hatch, lights, and guards. Oh...and the travel lock. Not shown are the two jerry cans. These are the old Tamiya practice of having the single handle. I was so close to replacing these but will hold off until after the campaign.


And basic assembly done.



This really has been a weekend build. I'll probably paint it and finish it up next weekend. I'm not sure what paint job I'll go with. I'll probably go with a simple overall green, US Army. After the campaign I might fiddle with it a bit...maybe part of my what-if stuff.

This would be a good starter kit for a novice builder or just a fun no-nonsense build for a rainy weekend. Given its age, the detail is pretty good. The fit would put many newer kits to shame. If I want a focal M41 for my Cold War shelf I would pick up the AFV Club offering...which is my plan actually.

I've been having a look through my stash and have got quite a few older kits that would suit. I'm in with an Italeri Panther ausf A. Quite basic by todays standards but is quite an enjoyable build which is what matters to me. Hope that's okay?

Finally got back to this pig after a couple of weeks. Laid down a base coat of rust over the whole model and then tried my NEW FAVORITE TOOL! AK's chipping fluid. This stuff is great. No more salt technique for me!

Anyway here is the result.

Well here is my Dog for this fight Monograms ancient M48A2 kit which has some of the thinnest plastic I have ever seen can almost see my hand through it if i hold it up to a light

Monte, nice job on the painting! Looking forward to see more.

Casey, looks to be a dog. Please share some sprue shots if you do not mind. I never seen this kit in the flesh.