Here's a shot of an ambitious project I'm doing, the German railhead at Savastopol. I was just about to start the celluclay groungwork but noticed that when I picked up the base from one end, it bowed. So now I will have to build a wooden frame for the bottom to strengthen it. Most of the Armour is finished except for a G10 Boxcar and the weathering and I have yet to start on the 30 or so personel.
I still havn't got a final idea how the ground will look, but I suppose it should be fairly flat being a railyard. I will add a few bomb/shell craters and make the driving tracks muddy, but apart from that, the scenery should be pretty baren.
Comments welcome as to any ideas!
My appologies for the small pic, but I can't work out how to link it to the larger photo.

There you are. One large picture. And very nice to, looks very promising. Is that the resin Munitions Panzer IV, or a scratchbuild?
And why build one Karl, if you can build two.... :-) . Still, there is something missing..I know, lets throw in a BR52... I like it.
How about some close ups of the individual pieces?

Cheers
Henk

Hi, looks really good and you certainly have a lot to do before it is finished.

I think it would be better if you could avoid the straight parallel to the edge layout. At least a slight angle would be good i think.

Cheers
Claude

Looks like you're off to a good start. How many hours do you figure you've put into it already? Can't tell exactly what your base is made out of, but it might be a good idea to seal it before you apply any celluclay to try and avoid warping. I think some kind of a building, would be an interesting addition to the scene, even if it is something small.

Hi Kym,

Well I know that I have had a sneak preview, but all the same this is a very impresive project. I cant wait to see how it all comes together once you start to add the groundwork.

Were the decals ok?

John

Thanks for looking.
some of the kits used so far:
Trumpeter's BR52
Trumpeter's Mauser Karl on carrier
Dragon's Mauser Karl (Loki)
Dragon's Pz.Kpfw IV Aus.f . D
Dragon's German Railway Flatbed Type SSY
CMK's Panzer IV Munitionstrager
Ironside's Reichsbahn Flatcar
Italeri's Kfz. 305 Opel Blitz
Tamiya's 3.7cm Anti - Tank Gun Pak 35/36
Tamiya's Horse drawn field kitchen

Brian M: Base is made out of MDF and has been sealed since the first photo was taken. The building idea is one I've thought of and is still on the drawing board.

Claude Joachim:
I looked at the idea of running the tracks at an angle, but I just didn't think it looked good. I really don't understand why a lot of diorama builders insist on setting their display at an angle on the baseboard. Oh well, each to their own.

Here's a few photos of some of the individual subjects, but remember, most have not been weathered yet.

Hi John,
You wouldn't believe it. I'd just got the first couple of decals on then while reaching across the bench for something, knocked the paint brush jar over, spilling the entire contents of thinners across the cut out decals. I immediately threw them all into the water tray hoping that would help. The first one I tried was fused to the backing and it broke apart. I then left the rest in there for another 5 minutes and presto, they gradually slid off the sheet. I even managed to assemble the broken one. Hell, it's a wonder you didn't hear my cursing from your place.

I wondered what the muffled curses were that I heard, I had put it down to hearing voices. seriously lucky recovery and the close up pictures are much appreciated. You sure are going to go through lots of weathering materials.

Keep well.

John

Wow! That is ambitious!
So far so good it looks like it'll be an amazing dio when complete!
I too would suggest adding a building and putting the tracks at an angle to the base, it really does make a diorama much more natural looking than the uniformity of having everything lining up.
Congratulations so far and good luck with it!

James

Looks good so far. I like the 37-mm sitting on the same flatcar as the spare 54-cm (I think) barrel! Keep us posted on your progress!

Wow, looks even more impressive now. Did not catch everything the first time.

I really like the camouflage paintings you did on the two monsters.

Cheers
Claude

Well, I've taken your suggestions on board and am going to run the tracks at a bit of an angle. The whole layout will now be different. The second Mauser Karl and ammo loader will now be on the other side of the BR52. The buiding I was designing will now have to built cut off at an angle as well. I watched all 3 DVD's of Scorched Earth's "The Werhmacht in Russia" last night for designs of buildings that could appropriatly be used in this scene and I'll tell you's, if I wanted to do burned-out/ blown up architecture, there was plenty of choices. Whole in-use buildings were rare.

Wow, that is one monster.
Can I ask you the overall dimensions of the base-board? I've got something similar in the pipeline, and I need to get a good idea of the size of the base.
Also, which track sections did you use to form the long runs?

zokissima,
The base is 6ft x 3ft and I used the Trumpeter's extra track kit. I lowered the track by cutting off the outside edge.

I've just completed applying about 4lbs of Celluclay for the groundwork and as recommended by some members, I've angled the track. The ground has not been shaped to anything specific yet, (still trying to picture what I want) but I have put in one bomb crater which will be filled with water or ice. It's the first time I've used Celluclay and I now understand why so many people use it, it's a great product. Later, I'll add a thin layer on top of the road surfaces so I can add track and wheel marks.
Any comment, greatly appreciated!