Very nicely done, Richard!

I might have to add one of those to my stash.


I finished my M1117 Guardian today; but I'm waiting for the dull coat to dry before I shoot my last pics of it.

I'm using some older Testor's rattle can Dull Cote; but it doesn't seem to be drying very flat. I've heard that pigment fixer (AK Interactive) dries flat too. Can anyone confirm that? If push comes to shove I'll just give it a couple coats of that.

Excellent Richard. Love the final finish looks great.


Richard err.... Richard 2... ...looking forward to the pics. I stopped using Dullcoat many years ago after a disaster with it. I can't comment on the AK sorry.


Well time to put the pics where my mouth is. Finally have construction complete and ready for some paint. Be kind, these pics show the vehicle twice rear size!

Rear end. Stripped off all the location parts for the kit's way undersized tools. All scratch built using styrene and etch scrap. The pry bar is brass rod suitably flattened and split at one end and sharpened at the other. Added the rear lights and cabling behind the fenders. The kit lights are post war Dutch modifications... as were some of the other details.



Spring added for the aerial and handles, etc.


Chassis got some basic work too, brake lines, bump stops, missing chassis crossmember (there is one right at the rear that should not be there, but you do not see it)


Work done to the door insides and corrected wheel hubs. The grey ones are the kit - no idea where they got those from - the tan ones are castings of Mirror Models hubs.




I forgot to take pics of the remaining interior bits, but here you see the cast radio switch boxes and Headphone jacks hanging down. The wiring is visible in real life, but not in pics.

Onward for paint

It looks really good Peter. Seems like adding details is your favourite part of modelling.

Thanks for the compliments guys.

Truly admire the attention to details Peter. Seems such a shame to put a roof on after all the effort for the interior.

I took a chance and went ahead and brush coated some figment fixer onto the turretto see how it worked. It did OK. It’s not totally flat; but it’s better than nothing. I’m going to run some through my airbrush tonight on the lower hull so I can stick a fork in this one!

Thanks guys.





The build has always been my favourite part and detailing where it is needed expands the building skills. The downside is you can get to a stage where you just want to see it finished... or lose interest. A fine line to walk.


One thing I like about this vehicle is it is so rudimentary compared to German precision. This has rough prominent weld beads, the frames on the inside of the doors are rough and not perfectly square, etc. All little things that add interest, but a modelling judge would likely ping at a comp.....

Keep building guys, we are coming up to "pencils down, hands away" time...

This one's not for the campaign, just the Lot as I had some modelling time on my hands:

Revell's old rebox of an old Dragon kit





This is much simplified, I have a Trumpeter BRDM-2 Spandrel in the stash and the difference in detail is staggering.





The decals are a bit thick, but my main gripe is that the tyres are too wide for the wheel hubs and the hole is too small so stretching them over the hubs exacerbates the waist in the tyre opposite the pouring hole.
My question for you wonderful experts is on the colour. I've used Revell 67 - equivalent to Humbrol 116 (US Dark Green), although advised colour is Humbrol 117 (US Light Green). Any comments on the shade would be much appreciated as I see several NVA vehicles in the near future.

I like it! Very evenly applied.

The only thing I'd say and I'm sure you already know it is to gloss coat it before putting the decals on. You've got some silvering around the numbers and on the NVA roundel.

As far as finish and construction go I think you did pretty good.

I don't want to sound like I'm busting your chops! God knows that my M1117 Guardian I'll be posting tonight or tomorrow is hardly a masterpiece. It's just the first one I've actually completed after a loooooooong hiatus.

OK. The M1117 Guardian is done. It's the first one I've been able to complete in over four years. I still need to give it some love with some flat coat; but since I don't have any right now....









I've uploaded the picks (or is it pics) of the litter to the campaign gallery. On to the next one.

Excellent Richard. Fantastic build. Lets hope it is the start of many more and no more long breaks. Thanks for joining in. See you in the next build.

Oh yeah! I'm already in the Launchers campaign that starts on Saturday and will probably join the Logistics one too.

I'm even thinking about submitting a proposal for a campaign myself. More info to come.

Aloha All,

Richard L: well done on the Boxer. the Camo turned out great. Also the BRDM looks the part. As to color, I'm no expert but seem to recall what I've seen of the NVA armor it tends towards a more green appearance, where this one looks a little grey-ish. But then again, I recently saw a Facebook post about the "true Russian green" and it showed a field of defunct Russian armor in just about every shade of green imaginable.

Pete: Wow!! Superb detailing. Looks fantastic. Like you, I prefer the build, but keep my scratching fairly minimal so far.

Richard S: Great looking Guardian. I don't have any advice on the dull coat as I've been struggling with them myself. For the LAV below, I used Vallejo Matte Varnish, which seemed to work pretty well, but if you get the light just wrong, still has some sheen to it. Not sure if I didn't do a good job or if that's just how it is. Always heard good things about Testors Dull Coat, but hard to get here, so I don't have any direct experience with it.

Well, my turn. After making a right mess out of my gloss coat, I stripped the whole thing back to bare plastic and started over. Still had a bit of a fuss with the gloss coat the second time around, but not nearly as bad.

Here's the repainted vehicle with the decals applied.




And here is the final. I only did a light wash without any weathering. It seems to me the Japanese keep their kit pretty tidy. Tamiya 1/48th JGSDF Light Armored Vehicle.














Overall a fun build and I'm pretty happy with it. I really love the vehicle itself and feel I did a decent enough job.

Happy Modeling,
Zon

Good to see Richard. I have enlisted on a couple of those. Will see you there.

Fantastic Zon. It has turned out exceptional. The detail on the lights is amazing.


Well best laid plans for me. Hoped to have the Otter completely finished, but wife and a washing machine that needed repairs had other plans. I have painted it, so under the rules, painted is finished!!! ahem...

Will still give it some wash and weathering, and some more detail painting as well over the next few days, so keep an eye out here if you want to see the second final finish..

Nice job Peter. Waiting to see it finished...

Pete: Looks great! Your scratching really payed off. I’ll keep my eye out for the update.

Happy Modeling,
Zon

Has anyone seen their ribbon posted for this campaign? This will be my first successful campaign completion.

I know there's probably a volunteer who needs to do it and is working it into his/her other duties. I'd be glad to volunteer for to help out with that if someone can show me how it needs to be done.

Ribbons usually take a little while to be allocated as the moderators don't always have time to pounce when the end date hits.

I have sent a polite PM off and I know it will be responded to as soon as they can. Keep an eye on this thread as confirmation they have been awarded will be posted here.

On a personal note, thanks to everyone who participated. It was a great build with a lot of excellent skills put on display. I also appreciate the feedback and support you gave each other - that is what these builds are all about. It was a pleasure building with you all.

Thanks also to Clayton for suggesting the theme, but unfortunately had to bow out for personal reasons. He has been a lurker on occasion, so good to see him getting back on the forum.


Back to the weathering on the Otter for me...

Ribbons sent fellas.

Sorry for the delay.

Hope everyone had fun on this one !!

Thanks John. Ribbon looks pretty good up there. Thanks guys, it was a fun build, I learned a lot and tried some stuff I'd never done before. Even started picking up a few AFVs to work on. See you next time.

WooHoo!! I feel like I did when I was a budding young Private and got my first ribbon!

Of course we want to see the Otter with all the trim and detail. A great subject and something to look forward to.

Great campaign!

Thanks John!

Thank you All!
This campaign was a real pleasure to participate.