nightshiftmodeller

Markings

My friends, it's a proper Heiland now! 

First I added the black outlines with a paintbrush, then gave the sides one extra layer of higlights using very diluted Deck Tan. 

Then it was stencil time... I've had these stencils for the longest time! They were made by another modeler for me and some of them were quite complex, for example, the cross on the back consisted of 4 individual stencils. Having 2 airbrushes came in very handy here because I could have one loaded with ...

Early video

Diorama time! 

Four-tone post shading!

My friends, here's the basic coloring done! It might not look like it, but this was in all seriousness a matter of two afternoons and evenings! The shading isn't finished yet though, I need to add the black outlines, markings, and then give it a good Ammo Shader treatment! 

Pictures are in reverse order, as usual. So how did I approach it?

Well, I started with a black primer. As you can see in the last 3 photos, I sprayed each camouflage patch individually, masked it, and add...

HD photos

Off to the painting booth! 

Ready for the painting booth

My friends, here are some phone pictures taken on a white background since I already prepared it for a proper photo shoot with a DSLR, and also so you can see the details more clearly. 

I added a ton of mess on the ground according to the original inspiration photo. Here's something I tried keeping in mind: placing some of the broken pieces of wood so they'd hang out of the scene. Once the glue dried, I cut them flush with the sides. The point of this? So it doesn't look like every...

Gettin' there!

My friends, the trench is finished (quite literally!) and I've got the basic ground texture down. 

Making the destroyed trench section was heaps of fun compared to the intact portions, although it required a lot of planning. I'm super stoked to have that crazy shape cut into the veneer! 

Also, the VMS smart mud feels almost like moist peat. It also behaves in the same way. What I find interesting is how it's not sticky at all, but after a few minutes, even random loose b...

Early video

Interior... when it's worth the effort and when it's not :) 

Some serious work has been done here

My friends, here's finally some share-worthy progress. Let's start from the end of the gallery! 

The cross idea seemed a tiny bit far-fetched to me, but a quick Google search has proven me wrong (or correct). A cross on a battlefield in two different times - check out the bombed and then completely levelled monastery behind it. So I'm totally going with it! 

In other news, I laminated the sides with 0.4mm veneer instead of balsa. This thing is super duper hard to cut, bu...

Diorama sketch!

My friends, this diorama will be called "Savior". Or maybe "Fallen Savior"? My original idea was "Big Game Hunting", but because the A7V was nicknamed Heiland, it all makes better sense! But hey, here's the important stuff... 

These photos show how the composition evolved, from the final form to the initial sketch roughly based on the inspirational photo. I kept messing around with angles, trying to show as much of the tank as possible, reducing the size of the base, keeping it rec...

HD pictures

The interior, before it's gone forever 🥲

It's ready for some closure

My friends, I can close the interior so all of this will never be seen again🤣 

Before the weathering commenced, I divided it into sections depending on how visible they were going to be. The front section with the cannon has been left in basic colors and a pin wash. The missing side armor doesn't even have a pin wash. The roof has some washes and details picked out in a lighter color. The rest... well, it was weathered in a simplified manner, but I still wanted to make it look s...

Early video

We're back, let's go! 

Details and pin wash

My friends, everything is painted in its respective colors and outlined with a pin wash. I used enamel this time, mostly because I wanted to proceed swiftly and there was no time to wait for oils to drain! 

I used the AK Interiors Wash for the white parts and Dark Streaking Grime for the rest. I really appreciated how the streaking grime flowed nicely around everything and how I could add some basic staining here and there. 

Sadly, there's not much else to report at this...

Interior mottling

Well, this was interesting! At least I finally learned (hopefully I'll remember it) how to properly spray white without the initial sputter that's oh-so-common with this color. As usual, I have no idea about thinning ratios, just experimenting and adding more thinner until it sprays smoothly! 🤣

My impression is that the interior most likely wasn't painted in pure white, rather the more usual ivory color. But because everything is going to be covered in shadow, I went with a less satu...

Started on the insides!

My friends, after tediously putting the tank together it was time to break it apart for interior painting! 

First was the obligatory coat of black Surfacer (this took quite a lot of time!) and then the base color for the floor and some other components. There's not much info on the correct paint here, some sources say grey, others white, others green. I went with something in between, quite desaturated but still green... -ish. Of course, mixed without any ratios! 

My thi...

HD photos

Held together by tape and covered in dust...

Not the A7V we deserve, but the best A7V we're getting for now 🤣

Some context for this model

My friends, just so you all know what to look (or not) forward to 🤣 This is the specific A7V that I'm building, hull Nr. 540 "Heiland". 

I tried to reconstruct the camouflage as closely as possible, and where it wasn't possible, I tried to make it somewhat aesthetically pleasing, because in reality the paint job must've been a huge mess! 

And yes, it will be part of a trench diorama based on the third picture. The irony is that this photo is a montage of the tank from...

And we're ready! Phew!

My friends, this model took WAY longer than I anticipated! It felt a bit frustrating at times, because at the end of the day it's just a "simple" out of the box build! But it's an interior kit, and a riveted tank that needed some modifications... and working with a riveted tank is very different compared to a regular, welded model. The overall workmanship has to be more precise, there's very little room for error and you gotta work "clean" so to say. 

The driver's observation cabin...

Gettin' close!

My friends, the construction is nearing the finish line, but the worst part is still ahead - the driver's cabin! Meng has the additional armor plates molded on these parts, but the tank I'm modelling was running around without them. I'll have to sand them all down and then replace the hinges, bolts and rivets 🥲

In other news, I completed the sides. This required texturing, adding the remaining panels and details, texturing those as well, and removing a few bolts and rivets to give it...

Moving out

My friends, I've got most of the interior done, just the roof details remain. So far I followed the instructions to the dot because there was no legit reason to do it "my way", lol. 

It's getting time to move outside of the tank and focus on the exterior. So far I've modified the front plate where only one hatch is supposed to be. Meng kit reproduces the tank called "Schnuck" with two vision slots at the front, while I'm building the Nr. 540 "Heiland". This tank had also a slightly...

It's growing... slowly

My friends, something I didn't anticipate about building a full interior kit is the amount of tiny, weird-ass shaped parts. And the amount of cleanup... the horror! Especially those uncomfy chairs for MG gunners... those cursed chairs, each consisting of 5 parts! 

Also, unlike other interior models (I presume), there will be a ton of parts left for separate painting. I think that will be quite interesting, but at least fresh! Can't wait to start weathering the worn floor, the walls...

What's next?

New projecto starto! 

At first I wanted to be very mysterious, but at this point it's pretty obvious what is it 😁 

Yes, another WW1 subject, but this time with full interior. And the diorama will feature an abandoned trench. 

The inspirational photo is actually photoshopped and totally fake, but it makes for a very nice diorama subject! 

Early video

Epoxy resiiiiin!!! 

Success!

My friends, I managed to finish the diorama without any major accidents! 

I started by scraping off the raised lip left by the masking tape, quickly covering it with a coat of Tamiya clear varnish. Then I started creating the water ripples using AK Transparent Water Gel. This gel is very thick and dries relatively quickly, it becomes hard to manipulate in roughly 5 minutes depending on its thickness. It's hard to create a homogeneous effect if the surface is too large and you're fo...

HD photos

Mark IV in all its watery beauty, enjoy!

Resin water was a success!

My friends, yesterday I poured a second layer and left it in a box until today morning. The second pour was the same as the first one, I used the other half of the AK resin (the entire scene swallowed up 180ml of epoxy), but instead of 7 drops of Khaki, I added 6. Yeah, pointless science 😅

The first thing today was removing the tape and I immediately snapped these pictures. Then I sheered off the raised lip of the water where the resin creeped up on the tape and fixed those areas wit...

First layer is ON!

My friends, today is the day when we write history! 😆 My first pour of epoxy water was a (partial) success (for the most part).

Let me start with the most obvious mistake. I was too afraid to tint the resin too much and make it overly opaque. This turned out to be my downfall, because you can still see where the tank was cut in half. I'm not 100% desperate at the moment because I still gotta pour a second layer that will make the water deeper and thus, more opaque... hopefully? Needl...

Ready for resin!

My friends, I've got the base ready over the weekend. First thing was to create a dam from Tamiya masking tape. I was worried the adhesive wouldn't create a bond that would be waterproof enough, so I heated it up with a small blowtorch and pressed firmly against the wood. The tape was a bit flimsy, so I gave it another layer with a double sided tape to make the dam thicker and more durable. 

Next was waterproofing the bottom of the crater and gluing the tank in place. This was carr...

Early video

Not even the power outage on my street could stop an early video! 

HD photos

The last moment before it all gets ruined by failed epoxy resin water (hopefully not)!