Hello fellow modellers,

I would like to introduce my recently finished project, the M20 Armored Utility Vehicle from Tamiya.

I upgraded the kit with an Eduard PE set. Although that wasn't really nessecary since the kit is very detailed already. It was a first for me to work with PE and I must say that it was a lot of fun despite the hard language while bending the individual parts.

I also scratch built a few parts, like the hjandle bars on the upper hull and the base the siren sits on (PE part broke when I bent it)
I added belts to the Thompson and the springfield rifle. the headphones attached to the radio were made by an excess piece of PE and two thin cslices off a sprue. The cable is copper wire. The Life magazine is an original cover from 1944 which I reduzed in sice until it fit to 1/35th scale.
The chin strap on the helmet was also made by myself.

I used Tamiy paint for the olive drab, several filters and washings were applied to fade the base color. A few dry brushes and pigments gave it the final look.

I am going to put this vehicle on a small vignette at a road junction with teh commander outside checking the surroundings with his binoculars. The driver is going to study a map of the area. Anyhow, those are my plans.

It was fun to build and I learned a lot new techniques (especially in regards of PE sets) all in all a very cool project.

I am hoping for some constructive critisism from all of you.

Thank you!

Cheers,
Heli

Very, very well done.

The only thing that I saw is the strap to the helmet. These were shades of OD green canvas and would be more like the Thompson sling in color. The buckles would be square.

well that is a fantastic model I think the attention to detail is superb, the interior is great nice touch with the timelife magazine

Very nice model, I like all the details on this kit
Nice photos aswell

Greets Martin

Very nice indeed! The only thing I saw were the links on the .50 cal ammo and the tail light. Did they have the cloth loop belt for .50 cal back then, or was it disintegrating link? I don't know. If it was link, they should be black. Is there a red lense on the tail light? I can't tell. Very well done!

Hi guys,

Thanks to all of you for the nice words!
It feels good to hear what other poples's opinions!

The links on the.50cal ammo belts are incorrect! This kind of cloth loop belt was only used on the .30cal belts. I will correct that and repaint them in black. This is something i should have realized from the beginning. The tail lights have not been painted yet, another thing i totally forgot about.

The chin strap on the helmet should also be a khaki color, another thing I have to correct. The buckles though weren't exactly square, they are more like an oval shape, so the buckle could hook up to the knob attached to the strap on the opposite side.

However, this is the kind of feedback i was looking for, since we are all trying to get better in our hobby. These are the things I will pay attention to for ever from now on.

My appreciation goes out to all of you!

I will be updating on the progress of the vignette!

You all have a nice day!

Cheers,
Heli

Proper taillights:

I've always wondered why one was red and the other clear.


Just wondering Steve, how did you make the chin strap on the helmet?

I have a question about the interior color - the front compartment you have as green and the open is OD. Is this standard practice? I have this kit on my bench and am at the paint stage and was curious what you based that decision on.

I like the dusting and subtle color changes throughout - overall a nice build.

Hi guys,

A-train (Scott)
The chin straps were made froma lid off a yoghurt cup. I just cut a piece off bent some 0.3mm copper wire (for the buckle), put that on the strap folded the strap and glued that end. I have tried several different materials for straps and I have come to the conclusion that the cup tea lights sit in is the most satisfying material. It keeps a natural shape and does not misshape when you touch it.


Slodder (Scott)
The outside of the vehicle is standard OD green (Tamiya) I didn't perform a complete wash on the outside. I washed the entire inside though with heavilz thinned burnt sienna oils. That is why the interior looks different from the exterior. The drivers compartement is white, I mixed it with some desert yellow, so it wouldn"t look just white. According to mz research there have been vehicles with a white drivers compartement. I just wanted to do that so there is somewhat of a change in color. Personally I think that gives the model a nice change, other than a monotone OD green shade.

I hope I was able to help.

Cheers,
Heli

Hi Heli. Overall a very nice model. I like the your own personal touches ... leaving off one of the back mudguards, turning the front wheels and the items of stowage. The OD is a little dark IMO, but I guess thats a personal preference. The decals on the bonnet and rear deck sat down well ... any problems here? .... did you use any special setting solutions? Nice one.

Thanks for the update

Frank,

Applying the decals was a mess. The glue on the underside was so thick that once you put the decal down it was stuck in place, when trying to get it off again to reposition it, it would get a tear. Let me tell you it was quite a fight. The air pressure of the front fender tore as you can tell from the pictures. On of those declas ripped into three pieces. I rearranged it in a waz where you almost can't tell they ripped. The quality of teh decals was very poor ad i was surprised about that, thinking the kit id from Tamiya.

Anyhow the only thing I used for applying the decals was Gunzes Mr. Mark Soft. I really was surprised all the decals turned out the way they did.

Cheers,
Heli

I have one of these in my stash to do, but it's the Monogram model.

I like the weathering job done to the tires and rims. It really looks real to me! And the right rear fender assembly being missing and showing off yet more weathering on the undercarriage is great!

I think you pulled off a great job on making it look like it was actually driven and not just a showroom piece!


Jeff

Hi Helli. Thanks for the tips. The decals look quite good in the photos ... thats why I asked. I also have this kit on the "to do" pile. I actually bought the Blast set of stowage for the back to cover most of this area, as I thought that decals would be problematic. Cheers.

Nice job Heli
Tom
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