i started modeling in january of 2005and mainly did cheap kits aquired off ebay, in fact thats still what i build mostly although i have some of the newer dragon super kits im holding off building them till i feel i can do them full justice the exception was last summer i got a dragon kingtiger kit half price from hobby lobby (and since have gotten all the other ones they stock for half price what a deal) anyway although the build wasnt too bad of a job i wasnt happy with the finished look and havent been ever since so the other day while finishing up a couple of other kits, a m5a1 and a m3a2 a polish armoured car in use by the germans and a marder III m, i decided to give the king some new clothes so i set about stripping all the gear and fenders off him getting him down to the bare essentials and running him through the mill a few times this was the finished produce now i can look at him on the shelf and finally be satisfied with the end result, i may even pull out one of the other super kits now i feel up to the challenge,
sorry for the long winded post i just really dont have much else to do right now heh so anyway heres the king and feel free to comment any way you like and thanks for looking.

Awesome work!
The paint scheme is very nice, and the mud is amazing, Just add some figures and that would be amazing, keep up the great work.

I agre. The mud is very nicely done, as is the cammo. Is there a diorama in its future?

bloody hell Biffa, thats fantastic
the weathing is brilliant, I love the mud and the chipped paint,how did you do that?
Looking forward to seeing more of your work
Andy

That is outstanding!! The mud and the ruin affect makes it look great

Very nice work, the camo is excellent and the weathering is equally as good, nice one

Regards from the Swamp

Hawkeye

Nice work! If I can offer a suggestion about photographing your models. Next time you're at the craft store, get a piece of light blue poster board (the white throws off your balance).

Then use multiple light sources to wash out the hard shadows. Experiment til you're happy.

Hi Ron ...Nice job with the paint and the weathering ...I was sitting here looking at the pictures and asking myself what was different about this KT ...I figured it out !...where are all the tools and brackets? It's the shovel missing that got me thinking ...and how bout the tow cable attachement points and gun cleaning rods? Another little correction to the base kit is the way the side skirts are attached on the later tigers ...there is not supposed to be the hole under the attachement bolt ,this was a feature of the very early KT's.With the mud you have on the wheels I would suggest adding a bit more mud to the tracks but that's just moi!.One last thing that would make this kit look even better would be the addition of the wire from the front headlight .
But all in all a very nice job at bringing one of your earlier kits up to standard ..Keep up the good work..

Rick

I think everyone has said what I would say so rather than echo I'll just make the statement "You are definitely ready for one of those high end Dragon kits!"

As an old tanker, I love your mud effect. Finally someone who throws it around a bit over the fenders.

Those pics were well worth the long winded post :-)

i'de like to thank everyone for the great response im really glad you like it,

hi Rick, you are correct about all the missing tools and brackets , when this was first built it had all the goodies and the kitchen sink strapped on and looked mint, spotless in fact and im not sure but i think that was one of the things that turned me off it besides the crappy paint job and finish. so when i stripped it all off and chopped up the fenders (i never knew about the holes below the hangers but i do now heh) i really just fell in love with the bareness or raw look that it had, knowing this was inaccurate was one reason i didnt put any markings on it also and had a story fabricated that this vehicle was a kind of "what if" made up of scavenged parts from damaged and left over vehicles towards the end of the war :-) truth is i just liked the way it looked.

roy i've been scanning through the photo forum and im working on building a box studio type thing using the blue back ground it sure does make the models look so much better, i was basing it on stickies setup.

i have no dio in mind for this right now maybe just a base perhaps, a muddy one heh

the mud was simple to do its basically nutmeg brown craft paint from walmart but any old craft paint would do, mix in some sand and baking soda lots and then with a stiff brush stipple it on where you want it when its good and dry give it a light dry brush with a lightened brown and a dark wash, i've been real happy the last few times i've used this method got to be careful though its addictive and i dont want all my builds to be mud puppies heh

the chipping was done with oils and a toothpick, i rolled the end in the paint so its just covered then kinda roll it on the edge i want to chip and wipe off what i dont want with a brush dipped in thinner this also give a nice streaking effect.

guys i thank you all again for taking the time to comment it means a lot.

*edit lol shermie you got in while i was writing up this reply if you think the opener was long winded
you aint seen nothing yet :-) :-) :-)

Ron,
I have to agree with everyone, it looks great, but.... the tracks are just too clean. With all that mud on the fron and sides and nothing on the tracks? Dirty those bad boys up and you have got yourself a winner!

Jesse

Ron,
I have to agree with everyone, it looks great, but.... the tracks are just too clean. With all that mud on the fron and sides and nothing on the tracks? Dirty those bad boys up and you have got yourself a winner!

Jesse