Introduction

MrBlack Publications started a new book series - Theme Collection. The new series will bring books with article collections previously published in Figure Modelling Scale Model Handbook editions but including chosen articles to cover a specific theme.

First book is dedicated to World War II German Military Forces.

Review

Book is printed in A4 format high quality paper of 84 pages with digital print and has a matt laminated cover.

Including 10 articles of well known modelers, it provides many different approachs and techniques for sculpting, converting and painting 1/35 scale figures, larger scale figures and busts. Color codes and mixtures for acrylics, enamels and oils to paint different unifoms and camouflage patterns are explained. Authors share their methods by useful hints.

Chapters are as follows;

How to Paint a 90 mm WWII Figure and Dog : Ernesto Reyes Stalhuth paints Pegaso Models 90 mm figure SS Sturmbannführer of Artillery, 2nd Panzer Division - Das Reich, France. He starts with a short review of the figure and tells about his pre-painting process with Dremel tool and Floquil sprey primer. Then shortly describes his painting steps in sequence; face, officers cap, unifom, great coat, details like boots, gloves, holster and insignia, the dog and finally terrain on the figure base. Vallejo paint codes and mixtures are shared in all steps. 32 photos for the paintwork and terrain and 3 full page size photos of the finished figure.

Painting a World War II Figure : A short but well organized step by step article by Artur Miniszewski. He paints Mantis Miniatures 1/35 scale Oberleutnant of the 1st Fallschirmjager Division figure. 22 photos in numerical sequence for painting steps and 6 photos for final. He added a color chart to his article for base colors on Vallejo codes, shadow and highlight colors on Rembrandt oil colors.

German Camouflaged Smock and Fair Complexion to a Larger Scale Figure : 1/9 scale full figure Waffen SS MG42 Gunner is an awesome sculpt by John Rosengrant and Kazufumi Tomori makes a fantastic painting. He teaches how to paint large scale figures life-like instead of making them lifeless big dolls. Besides a detailed text with color codes; 7 big size photos for face and helmet, 14 for parka in Italian camouflage and field gear, 9 photos for assembly of MG42 and 4 full page photos of the finished figure. Really a masterpiece.

Techniques For Combining Acrylic and Oil Colours For Skin Tones & Leather Clothing : Man Jin Kim paints ST Models Claus von Stauffenberg 90 mm figure. He brings us a perfect step-by-step article. The article has 21 photos in numeric sequence for face painting and 47 for the uniform and leather overcoat supported with an explanatory text and 7 photos of the finished product in 10 pages.

How to Paint a Large Scale Bust of WWII Era in Acrylics & Oils : A short article by Christos Panagiotopoulos with color codes and 4 photos for his paintwork on Young Miniatures 180 mm bust U-Boat Crew WWII bust.

How to Sculpt a German Winter Jacket for a 1/35 Figure Using A B Epoxy Putty : One of the best sculpting step-by-steps I’ve ever seen in magazines. Aleksandr Zelenkov teachs how to use epoxy putty, lead foil and plastic accesories when creating a figure. The article is really excellent with an easy to understand and systematic text and 53 photos of every step. Numbers on the photos and text make it a real guide for modelers.

Painting a Large Scale Bust : Ernesto Reyes Stalhuth shares another step-by-step for Pegaso Models 200 mm bust SS-Standartenführer,1944. The article has 13 photos for painting steps and 5 for the painted bust.

Painting a 200 mm Machine Gunner Figure with Acrylics and Oils : Juanma Vergara paints Jeff Shiu’s German Machine Gunner - Maschinengewehrschütze MG34 large scale bust. He starts the article on how to paint the helmet and making chipping effects in 11 photos, then painting face and soldier’s gear giving color codes for each one and finally how to paint the great coat. 25 step-by-step photos and 5 photos for the finished figure.

Painting Cool Flesh Tones and Various Textures with an Eastern Front Theme : Carl Startin shares his painting of award winning bust Life Miniatures LM-B008 180 mm German Soldier MG42 Tripod Carrier Leibstandarte,Kharkov,1943. Text is explanative and photos are numbered to make it easier for the reader. 6 photos for fleshtones, 4 photos for helmet, 11 photos for parka and gear, 7 photos for finished bust. He explains how to use RB Models etch stencil to paint wood grain.

Painting a German Camouflage Pattern and a Fair Complexion on a Large Scale Bust : Another superb painting by Kazufumi Tomori. This time Young Miniatures German Fallschirmjäger 1944 180 mm bust. ‘7 step by step photos with explanatory text and 5 photos for final.

Conclusion

High printing quality, high resolution photos showing close-up details, explanatory texts with acrylic and oil color codes for base colors, shadows and highlights, personal paint recipes , ease on understanding with numeric sequence on photos. This is really a very worthy reference for all modelers that wants to paint World War II German figures and improve their painting quality.

Stelios Demiras always states he will be pleased to hear feedback and suggestions to add new articles due to readers demand on next issues. Please don’t hesitate to send your opinions to him by e-mail to [email protected] or visit at MrBlack Publications –Facebook