Here's my latest build which took over a month and a half to build. This is the Academy M163 Vulcan SPAAG and in similar fashion, is straight out of the box with no AM parts.

I made so many mistakes on this build that i just had to finish it. Started with me painting the base coat on the completed model only to realise that this version did not come with external fuel cells, that followed by the decals breaking up while applying it, then followed by track links falling off on me.

Was worthwhile in the end i guess. Here's a summary of what i did.

- Base coat of Nato Green
- Applied camo pattern
- Applied a layer of clear gloss coat
- Applied Decals
- Applied a dark wash using black artist oils mized with turpentine
- Applied a light filter
- Dry brush some parts with flat aluminium to give it somewhat of a metallic look.
- Dry brushed other areas with Buff
- Weathered the tracks with Mig Pigments
- Applied a matt clear coat to seal it all in.

The photos still show the kit as somewhat shiny but thats due to the direct lighting i used while taking the photos. Will have to tone down the light with a filter of its own in my next photo shoot.

Will be entering this into the AMoM for fun but also for dexter's Bucket Bonanza campaign.

As always comments welcome.

Dear Jazza
Nice one
Question there is some strange white dust at the rear of the vehicle especially on the hatch.
look real strange to me
thanks for your answers

Cheers
seb

Hi Jeremy !

It´s not that bad !
I like the way how you did the trakcs and the way you painted them.
This white dust at the rear looks a bit strange but i think this was because your lightning wasn´t perfect.
cheers

Looks good...1 question though. I heard of a filter before, is this a modeling technique or what? Sorry for the dumb question.

AJ

My Man:

Nice job on the build, however those are not external fuel cells. They are external floatation devices on the sides an trim vane.

Pretty good! Congrats for finishing your entry for Buket Bonanza, please remember to place the pics in the Official thread to help the final ribbon count (if memory doen´t fail, you´re the first one to finish)

A little comment, the dry brush used to give the metallic look it´s nice, but I think it´s a bit overdone in the rear of the vehicle (I could be wrong, maybe it´s the light.....)

In my opinion the flat aluminium you use it´s too shiny, maybe you can use gun metal drybrushed in those parts in the rear, and it will look even better

Great job, great entry, congrats, cheers

What i meant was i had the external fuel cells on, i have since ripped them out prior to taking this photo. When building M113s, i just like the look of having them at the back so i had assumed it came with it. Took me a few careful jerks to rip it out as it had already been glued on.




heh heh dooh! guess my dry brushing didnt have its desired effect. I had dry brushed bits on the top rear to show wear and tear when the paint fell off...perhaps i should have tried scratching instead. Reference photos showed some of them having this. Hence why you see this white dust.




Point taken. I might try dry brushing over it to see if i can save it, if not, ive got another M113 i could try this on.

Very nice Jazza. I like this vehicle for its aggressive look !

Your model is a bit shiny but maybe this is due to the light conditions. The straps look large to me but at least they are present unlike many models with magnetic or flying gear :-)

Did you modify something to have the gun elevated that way or is an option in the kit ? IIRC, the Italeri kit had two positions only, the gun is not moveable.

Olivier

Its actually part of the kit. You have 2 options to either have the hydraulic arm retracted or extended. Since its an anti aircraft vehicle, i figured it made more sense to point it upwards. Once glued on, its not moveable either.

Thanks for the kind words by the way. Picked up quite a few number of good tips on this thread.

Good work jeremy.
The only prob I see is lighting. Try a little darker and you will see a total different look. Try a lighter background colour and will help enhance your fine product. I aint no photog but seems logical to me.

Overall colours are great and blend in well.

Tracks are supurb. Whats the secret.

I intend to purchase this kit after seeing yours.

Again good work mate

Hey thanks for the tip dan. I think i will try that as i did increase the exposure time by an extra second so reducing that by half might give it a better look.




The tracks came out of the box already in a metallic greyish colour. I re-painted them in metallic grey anyways but realise they look pretty much the same as the unpainted ones. The rubber pads in the middle were painted flat black and MIG powder was placed over it, held on by a little it of turpentine. Once dry, i used a stiffer brush and brushed off a little powder from the pads as they usually are visible even after going through thick mud.




Would definitely recommend it. Its a great kit and best of all, it is reasonably priced compared to Tamiya. From memory, only Italeri and Academy makes the M163 anyway so Tamiya was never an option. Good luck with yours!