Armor Models by Glenn Bartolotti

Armor Models, by and from Glenn Bartolotti, has released yet another modelers finishing guide in the Step-by-Step Finishing German Armor Series with the offering of Volume 43, Sd.Kfz. 171 Panther Ausf. G 5th Panzer Div. 1945.

This Step-by-Step guide is purchased on his Armor Models website for the low price of only $1.95. Once paid for, the article is downloadable to your computer and is yours to save forever. This latest Volume, number 43 on the Panther Ausf. G is fourteen pages in length and comes in a new format; interactive! What I mean by interactive is that Glenn has incorporated not only a one-touch menu located in the top right-hand corner of the pages, when clicked on, will take you to the various chapters of the article, but has supported links on the products and various article related items that will take the reader directly to the item Glenn has showed within the article.
These interactive links are shown in the pages of the article as small, unobtrusive white hand figure pointing to various products Glenn uses throughout the step by step guide. If you are interested in the product or if you wish to learn a bit more about the item, simply click on the small white graphic and you will be taken directly to the manufacturers website.

Volume 43, Sd.Kfz. 171 Panther Ausf. G 5th Panzer Div. 1945

Volume #43
Series – Step-by-Step Finishing German Armor
By Glenn Bartolotti
MSRP – $1.95 US

This latest release from Armor Models is broken down into four complete chapters; The Kit, Painting, Weathering and Final Model. At the beginning of the article is an interactive table of contents that lead to the various section.

This time around in Volume 43 of Armor Model’s Step-by-Step Series, Glenn has his way with Dragon Models’ Smart Kit 6268, Pather G late Production kit. Glenn has the help of Terry Ashley of the Perth Military Modelling Site (PMMS) in his review of the DML kit used for the article. As usual, Terry is spot on in his assessment of the kit.

Moving quickly as not to bog down the article unnecessarily with the building of the model and stick with the premise of the article, Glen gets right into the painting of this beast. He shows all the steps and what he has used to create a fantastic base for the stages to follow…the weathering. We see how Glenn uses acrylic primer and paint to achieve a solid finish to the surface of the model followed with sealing and the application of decals. Not missing a step, he then show his application of a winter white wash to the vehicle and his process for obtaining the weather look to it.

Once through the painting stages of the article, Glenn gives the reader and easy to follow guide to applying weathering effects to the surface of the model. He shows his uses of various washes and pigments to obtain a well-worn battlefield look to this model. This include showing wearing of the white-wash, pin washes and muddy applications as well as adding shiny steel effect to some of the parts.

Conclusion

I feel Glenn Bartolotti consistently hits the mark of an excellent Step by Step guide to painting and weathering of model armor vehicles. This latest Volume – Volume 43, Sd.Kfz. 171 Panther Ausf. G 5th Panzer Div. 1945 is a solid showing of proven techniques to rendering a weathered finish to any model. His step by step instruction is easy to follow and with the added benefit of the interactive pdf format, the model maker reading this article can quickly and simply gain access to the products Glenn uses within. The photographs are of high resolution and quality allowing the reader to zoom in close to Glenn’s work and really see the quality of his applications.


I feel the need to explain a little about the way I see these Step by Step guides from Armor Models. Glenn has been creating these step by step guides for many years now and ALL of his works are offered for purchase through the Armor Models website for the extremely valued low price of $1.95 US and come in a downloadable interactive .pdf format you can save. Glenn has pure love for this hobby of model making and by creating these pdf’s for the modelling community he only looks to share a little of the knowledge that goes into painting and weathering of models as well as basically having fun. I know this to be a labor of love because when I do the math factoring in the $1.95 US pricing, the costs for running a website and PayPal charges he incurs on his end and not adding in the time and effort it takes to make the models and the articles, he probably only clears a quarter of the listed cover price from the sale on the articles for his effort. So in the end, Glenn’s hard work translates into him basically giving back to the hobby from what he actually takes away from it…the sharing of knowledge, satisfaction and pure fun! I highly recommend this release as well as previously released Volumes of the Step-by-Step guides from Armor Models by Glenn Bartolotti. Whether you are a novice to the world of model making, or an old master of the bench, Glenn’s guides are sure to please anyone…if not for the visual content alone, then for the learning experience obtained from reading it.

Highly Recommended!!
This and all of Glenn Bartolotti’s Step by Step gides can be found on the Armor Models Website - http://sbsarmormodels.yolasite.com