MiniArt makes some excellent 76 mm ammo (without bin clips) and empty shell casings for action dio's. http://www.miniart-models.com/index.htm?/Catalogue.htm
Are there any weld beads along the armor plate edges, or were they forgotten? I can't see any on the close ups. Do they have to be DIY, or Archer?
Hmmm...the link doesn't take you directly to the item, just to their catalog page. But for anybody interested, they're in the first military miniatures catagory. I have a set and I think they are the best ammo rounds I've seen in plastic!

The weld beads are present but are very fine and scale representative for the thin plates and joins vs the heavier welds you would see on tanks for example.

An afterthought to my previous post...you occasionally see photos of Russian tanks and SPG's with wooden ammo boxes, sometimes just sitting on the fenders. Couldn't a piece of hot shrapnel tear through the wooden box and ignite a round with catastrophic results? (Of course the Russians had lots of tanks and lots of men, so I guess that didn't worry them too much!)

Ammo on the fenders, or anywhere really, is a matter of the threat of danger vs "doing it right". If they were in a low threat area, and probably on the move to keep up with the advancing units, they would take as much ammo as they could and put it anywhere, especially if they did not have attached resupply. Sometimes this would backfire, with predictable results. But it was not a common practice, more of and expedited one.

And 99% of the time they were wired down, I've seen a few pictures with the ammo boxes on the rear deck and on a rare occasion on the fenders, but they were always wired down.

Bill,
Excellent build log. I just picked up this kit over the weekend. Once I complete what is on the bench now, it will probably be next in line. I have been following your build and now I know exactly what to expect.

Thank you,
Stephen

Thanks Stephen! I suspect that you're not alone in tackling this little guy in the next few weeks, it seems to be a popular subject on many builder's list! Glad the blog is helpful.

Today was a 'Darth Vader' day that meant I spent virtually the entire session with the breather mask on. I started in on the weathering process and applied dot filters using a combination of MM enamel Faded Olive Drab and the last 'green' shade that I had mixed up for the hull. The Faded OD was added at about a 2-to-1 ratio so that it would do it's job in terms of fading and adding in some color variation but without going too crazy. It did the trick beautifully and created a nice subtle tonal variation in the process, something that's not so easy to capture in the photos but which should show up a little more pronounced once a flat coat is applied over it.



Next up, I added a pin wash using Ammo's Africa Korps Wash and a 10/0 pointed brush. After the initial application, I used the same brush and clean thinner to tighten it up and make adjustments where necessary.



Here's where it stands now, I'll let it sit overnight and look at it with 'fresh eyes' to see if there are any other adjustments I want to make before moving on to the pigment stage.



One step closer to the finish line!

Lovely subtle finish .......

cheers
Brent

Thanks Brent!

Put the final touches in on this project today. First order of business after making some minor adjustments to the dot filter and pin wash treatment was a dose of MM Lusterless Flat.



The pigment weathering objective was to get the tracks/suspension and hull to match up with the base, so to that end I applied some Mig Dark Mud pigments. I applied it as a wet mix using ordinary tap water as the carrier with a drop of liquid dish soap added to break the surface tension.



After it had air dried, I used a stiff bristled brush to remove the excess. I had to be careful not to be too harsh on the track runs, especially the top portions, and had to reattach a couple spots that came loose in this process.



More adjustments were done with a combination of wet and dry q-tips. For the tight spaces around the road wheels where the q-tip couldn't fit, I used a small round sable brush and clean water to make changes where needed.



The end result looks good, but the ultimate check was with the base.





That meant I could turn to the last couple of details remaining. I used some black artist pastels to add some more exhaust soot and staining to the right side of the hull.



The headlight finally got its clear lens as well. I installed it with liquid glue, then brushed a light coat of Future over the front. Once that was dry and protecting the clear part, I ran some thinned green around its edge so that it would look integrated with the rest of the housing.



That meant it was time for the walkarounds to check for any other small things that I might have missed.













And then the placement on the base!

And barely any modulation in sight

Great stuff matey .....

Brent

Thanks Brent!

That looks great, base is spot on for this little beast. Still waiting my kit to arrive, which is probably good as my bench is booked full atm

Thanks Tomi! I hear you on the full bench, mine is suffering from the same condition!