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Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/03/24 14:35:13


Post by: oldravenman3025



I wasn't gonna do this, since I'm not the type to show off my hobby related stuff. But a fellow Dakka member, shasolenzabi (a very creative fellow, I might add. I encourage folks to check out his blog and gallery), recommended it. And I figure "what the hell. Why not?"


So here is a documentation of a bored individual who hasn't pick up a brush in a long time.


I got the notion in my head to do something a little different and fun. Seeing that the conversion/kitbash/scratch build/"counts as" crew is still going strong like they were in my Rogue Trader days, I decided to go that route. In order to slowly brush up on long forgotten skills (which were not super great to begin with. I was better with scale aircraft models than minis), I started simple.


I have a shedload of old G.I. Joe toys dating back to 1983. Almost all of them were gifts. Even as I got older, since I went from playing war with younger siblings/relatives to collecting. Sadly, the majority of them were ruined from being in storage for over a decade in various old farm buildings and mobile homes on the property, some of which were damaged by the string of major hurricanes we had back in the late 90's.

So, why not give them new life as 40k custom fluff units, in the Emperor's service? Or (for those too far gone) tabletop terrain even? Maybe even something suitably Orky?


The first project is ultra-simple (no Wardian puns intended). A minor work-over of a 1982-83 vintage G.I. Joe "Motorized Battle Tank" or MOBAT for short.


I don't have pics of the earliest phases of the project, since doing this wasn't on the radar at that point. All I did was remove the rubber tracks (Which were in good shape. Plastic and rubber in toys were tougher back then), removed the little coupla machine gun, and scrubbed it down good with warm soapy water and a toothbrush. The decals were a little tougher to get off the tank, and I managed to get the vast majority of the old adhesive off with peanut butter and a lot of scrubbing with soap and water.

The backstory for the vehicle's paint scheme was that it was hastily applied en-route to an emergency request: Trouble on a mining planet called Karalius III, near the borders of the Segmentum Tempestus and Segmentum Pacificus. It was a dismal twilight world (not unlike Nostromo) with an ashen, grey surface due to vulcanism and odd dust storms. The incident that followed, taking place in 833.M41, would become known to Imperial savants as "The Karalius Debacle" The senseless loss of the 2nd Regiment, Third Brigade would be a sore spot between the Black Watch and Munitorum that continues today. Also lost were a detachment from the Order of the Valorous Heart, A company from the Sky Sentinels Chapter, and two Tallarn Imperial Guard regiments.

Enough with the backstory. On to the project...

I primed it with Krylon Fusion gloss black and based it with Citadel Abbadon Black. The base coat turned out pretty well despite doing it by hand (remember, I'm rusty as hell). I figured I would go with the camo next.

I wanted a lighter shade of grey for the camo, so I used Citadel Administratum Grey. I knew I would have to paint multiple thin layers to get it like I wanted. Here are pics from after the first layer:












The next thing I wanted to do was some touch-ups and further layering of the grey. This is what I ended up with so far:














Based on suggestions and tips, I plan on working on the road wheels to solidify the colors. On some of the wheels, instead of breaking up the colors, I'll probably just go with one solid color. It's also been suggested that I give the vehicle itself another very light coat, which I plan to do. After that, I plan on working on the details.


Stay tuned for further details of my disaster in progress.....


Automatically Appended Next Post:


On "Post Number Two", I wanted to show my second work in progress.


The second project is an old G.I. Joe Wolverine Missile Tank. I also based the outer part of the tread units. More details on that later. For now, here are some pics:





The missiles will get a good priming next. After I assemble the turret unit (lost the connecting piece ages ago. I'm having to use a piece from a G.I. Joe Killer Whale hovercraft), I'll prime it next.






My next projects will be an Equalizer ADV (already dissaembled and cleaned up) and this little beauty:





More to come folks. Peace.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/03/24 16:07:06


Post by: Theophony


Always good to see any toy brought back to life, especially GIJoes. Shaso Is great at getting people to come out of their shell, just watch out you'll end up with a horde of troops like him soon enough .

Welcome to dakka, leave your money at the door


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/03/24 16:53:37


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Theophony wrote:
Always good to see any toy brought back to life, especially GIJoes. Shaso Is great at getting people to come out of their shell, just watch out you'll end up with a horde of troops like him soon enough .

Welcome to dakka, leave your money at the door




If I get too crazy, I'll have to invest in some shelves to line an entire wall. And run some serious Apoc games again. Although, the rest of the household won't appreciate one end of the house to the other scattered with tanks, AFVs, troops, and walkers.


And I am grateful to Shaso for doing just that.


The only downside to what I'm doing is finding parts for some of the toys that I can't substitute. Many of those jacklegs on Ebay are freakin' scalpers. lol.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/03/24 19:23:35


Post by: Theophony


What type of parts are you looking for? 40K or GIJoe?


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/03/24 22:36:20


Post by: shasolenzabi


Ah!, glad to see you are doing this! it will also help others to point out ideas as well that You or I may miss, and Theo has asked a good question as part of it all is tossing in some 40K bits onto a project.

I also recommend if you can afford to, Hoard o' Bitz (I never had any issues with their shipping, but apparently Theo has, as well as Zinge Industries for parts to add to your projects!

And Theo, you collect a horde yourself!



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/03/25 13:50:57


Post by: oldravenman3025


Theophony wrote:What type of parts are you looking for? 40K or GIJoe?



G.I. Joe. Apparently, there is a big collector's market. But you can still find deals for parts, and even complete vehicles, if you're patient.



shasolenzabi wrote:Ah!, glad to see you are doing this! it will also help others to point out ideas as well that You or I may miss, and Theo has asked a good question as part of it all is tossing in some 40K bits onto a project.

I also recommend if you can afford to, Hoard o' Bitz (I never had any issues with their shipping, but apparently Theo has, as well as Zinge Industries for parts to add to your projects!

And Theo, you collect a horde yourself!




Theo certainly has a VERY nice collection of undead. And that Leviathan looks downright terrifying with the red LED lights glaring at you in low light.


Oh, parts for 40k are no problem. I'm already keen on some of the more popular "aftermarket" bit suppliers for GW stuff.


When it comes to how much 40k stuff (besides decals, paint schemes, etc) I add depends on the project. For the "Nightblade" (MOBAT) I'm going light on the 40k stuff, to maintain the realistic military theme shared with the Rhino and modern Land Raider (in the vehicle's background, it's suspected of coming from the same series of STC printouts that led to the aforementioned vehicles). I'm planning on adding a hatch, and a pintel mounted storm bolter facing the rear. That's about it.


For the Wolverine, a hatch, pintle mounted weapon, smoke projectors/canisters, and possibly a small IR spotlight. Hopefully, I can go with all IG issue stuff with that list. It's also gonna get some mud, and more weathering than the MOBAT.


The "Pattern 61" (M61A5) is also going for a modern, minimalist theme, since it's a relic (like the MOBAT/"Nightblade" and Wolverine) dating back to the Great Scouring, and a superheavy gun carriage/tank destroyer.


I haven't made up my mind with the Equalizer yet.


I don't have any new pics yet. But I'll correct that in the next day or too.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/03/25 14:06:02


Post by: shasolenzabi


Looking forwards to the pics. I need to catch back up to my own leviathan, it will have blue eyes and red fusion stacks, as well as a green (or maybe yellow targeter) on the head.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/03/25 16:05:50


Post by: Theophony


There's been a couple old toy shops near me that specialize in GIJoes. The old one has closed and reopened a few times with the same owners, it's a side project of theirs and their day job gets in the way, they also have vintage 80's arcade game consoles. A new one just opened a few blocks from our church, the guy scratch builds terrain for the action figures. He has a pretty nice ice cave of Hoth with the monster and luke suspended from the ceiling. He also has the USS Flagg GIJoe aircraft carrier set up with one of the jets on it and at least one circling suspended from the ceiling.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/03/27 18:02:25


Post by: oldravenman3025




Did some more work on the layering, the road wheels, and some general touch-ups last night on the "Nightblade":












It is a lot better than before. But something is still bugging me about the paint job. Can't put a finger on it.....



I also started working on the inside of the tread units for the Wolverine. But I'm going to have to wait on more paint to come in before I hit it heavy.






Another thing is the Equalizer ADV. I'm planning on sticking with the factory camo pattern that Hasbro slapped on it, just a winter scheme instead of the current scheme. I went ahead and took some pics for use as reference when that time comes, since the priming is going to cover it up.


First, the SAM launch system:














I'll probably take more pics outside on the next clear, sunny day we have. Anyway, the main turret unit for the radar unit, SAM system and "twin-linked accelerator cannons":











The upper hull unit:




















Crew hatches open:






Storage compartments:







Engine hatches removed:








More to come........




Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/03/27 19:20:59


Post by: shasolenzabi


Nice, looking forwards to seeing both machines completed!

the camo for the one seems winter style, the other a blend of woodland/desert(that pinkish color), it reminds me of old desert camo


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/08 06:37:38


Post by: oldravenman3025





Things didn't go as planned in the hobby realm over the last couple of days.



Since my old G.I. Joe F.L.A.K. was damaged beyond repair, I decided to save it for a future terrain project or diorama. I salvaged the seat and legs from it, and wrote it off. Found another one on Ebay, minus the seat, for a fair price, However it was damaged in transit due to piss-poor packaging. That seller sure as hell didn't get positive feedback from me.


On a positive note, I did get some goodies in the other day:






The first thing I did was repair the F.L.A.K. with some good ol' Testor's non-toxic. Did the trick, firmly reattaching the seat support arm to the cannon's main body:







I decided to do some work on the Wolverine. This is where the "fun" started.


I wanted to leave the wheel holes on the bottom of the exterior lower hull open, hoping to find some transfers later on to indicate lift points. So, I carded up the openings from inside. Since I'm a cheap bastard, I cut up an old Walgreen's discount card from ages ago, did a quickie job on it since that patch would be out of sight.







Now for the "fun" (i.e. when things started getting annoying).....


Next up was patching the upper hull operator's portal with some "make-do pasticard". Since there was a slight curve in that general area, and the old card was pretty firm, I had to sit there and keep it pressed with my thumbs longer than normal for the bond to form and hold firm.






It didn't have to be 100% perfect, since I'm going to have to cut another piece and glue it from the outside. But I'm going to wait for some proper plasticard for that job.


I slid the tread units back on after that was done:






.....And slid the rear piece with the tow hitch back on, and snapped the upper hull back onto the lower part. There is a rear prong (on the right) that broke off ages ago. But that just makes for a nice spot for some light battle damage:






All in all, despite the slight aggravation, the quickie job on the driver's portal didn't turn out too bad:











As I mentioned before, I'll cut a thinner piece to install from the top when I get some good plasticard.




After going through all the hassle of making a center piece to secure the launcher units to the turret, I finally found a proper piece on Ebay for a couple of bucks and cheap shipping. It's the little piece between the two launch units on top of the turret:







I ended up having to glue the launchers into a static position because the plastic piece inside the turret unit, that stabilized the launchers when they were elevated or depressed, was another casualty of time and rough kids:






Now we get back to the ol' "Nightblade" aka MOBAT......


And here is where things REALLY didn't go 100% to plan.


I had originally wanted to use the Death Korps superheavy tank commander kit from Forge World. However, apparently it's OOP, since there is a "SOLD OUT-No Longer Available" on the listing. I also wanted to use the Cadian hostile environment upgrade set for any future tank crew, in future projects, since that is the standard kit I envision for Black Watch armor personnel. But it's been "temporarily out of stock" for a while now. So, I decided to order the plastic Citadel accessories from GeeDubs.


When I got it (as shown in the first pic above), I was fairly pleased with the quality of the parts. But looking at the tiny tankers, I finally got an idea on how FREAKIN' HUGE this tank is gonna be. And the "sponson mounted, internally operated, heavy stubber" on top of the main turret just got upgraded to "autocannon".

I had cut up one of my old NRA membership cards from the days before I became a life member (and didn't need a new card every year) into a circular piece, to cover the portal behind the newly designated "autocannon", since I figured that any GW hatch pieces were going to be considerably smaller. The plan was to cut a hole in the middle of the card-disc, and glue down the hatch frame to it.

For some reason, the box cutter with decent blades, that I cut up numerous pieces of plastic before with, suddenly wanted to be a pain in the ass about cutting this hole in this card. I ended up having to split the disc in half with a pair of scissors, before I could out the outlined hole. I finally got it after some effort, but it turned out half-assed. I managed to get the Citadel hatch ring glued to the "plasticard".

I gently scrapped away the paint from the inner ring of the original hatch area, and went with a light amount of glue. The larger part glued down nicely.....except in one tiny area in the front of the original sponson. That bastard did not want to bond, no matter what I did. I finally got a half-way decent fix by gluing one of the strapped bundles from the Citadel set on that spot.

Then I found that the hatch didn't fit flush with the commander's coupla ring. Apparently, it's made to be attached in the open position only. I did some gentle sanding. But no joy. I ended up going with the hatch in the open position.

I wanted the storm bolter option as a pintel mounted weapon...facing to the rear. However, what I took for a mount was actually for the damned spotlight. And guess what was in the wrong position? After the aggravation I went through, I sure as hell ain't gonna start pulling crap apart. So, I went with the flow and mounted the bolter where the spot was and said to hell with it. Putting the trigger/grip assembly on the body of the storm bolt was real fun (sarcasm.jpg). It looks kinda (as the old folks would say) "catty-wampus". But proclaimed "Damn it, this is it's 'ready position'!" and took my minor victories where I could.


I figured if the hatch is gonna be open, might as well stick me a little tank commander there. I picked the coolest head (and the one closest to what I wanted originally. Damn it, Forge World. Get your thumbs out of your asses), glued it to the torso I decided on, and viola! What I ended up with wasn't originally to plan. But now that I look at it, it look kinda cool. I just dread having to paint all of those tiny parts without making a mess.


The results so far. Obviously it needs a little more work (and some handy-dandy green stuff):












Okay, you guys can laugh now.



More to come. Feedback, as usual, is more than welcome for future reference and a learning experience.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/08 07:08:03


Post by: Blimy


The Nightblade is like a wedding cake of turrets!

Pop some some Imperial Aquila on it and cover every panel with rivets to add complexity.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/08 07:16:46


Post by: shasolenzabi


Wow! that sucker really is a big beast! the missile tank looks nice as well, coming along nicely, sorry to hear about the issues with the Flak.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/08 07:42:54


Post by: oldravenman3025


Blimy wrote:The Nightblade is like a wedding cake of turrets!

Pop some some Imperial Aquila on it and cover every panel with rivets to add complexity.




Oh, it will get some proper transfers signifying it's service to the Master of Mankind and the Imperium. Might even throw in a few real world technical transfers to round things out.


I'm gonna have to skip out on the rivets on this one. Going for the cleaner lines similar to the Fellblade, Glaive, and the (now sadly OOP) Mars and Lucius Pattern Baneblades. Since this tank dates back to the Great Scouring (it's a relic in the 41st Millennium because of it's main gun, an accelerator cannon), it kinda fits.



shasolenzabi wrote:Wow! that sucker really is a big beast! the missile tank looks nice as well, coming along nicely, sorry to hear about the issues with the Flak.



Thanks. Going to have to order some green stuff and fine detail brushes for the next bit of work.


But I do have a couple of questions for you guys.....


Because of the oddball camo scheme, what should I use for highlighting and/or washes?

And will Citadel 'Ardcoat be fine for applying to get those small-scale glossy surfaces required for water transfers?


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/08 07:47:41


Post by: shasolenzabi


For highlighting the black camo, use some medium grays, and for the white, make it like wear and tear with metallics and some dark flecks.

The sealer will help, and the matte coat usually helps dim down the shiny decals.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/08 08:05:58


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
For highlighting the black camo, use some medium grays, and for the white, make it like wear and tear with metallics and some dark flecks.

The sealer will help, and the matte coat usually helps dim down the shiny decals.




Thanks for the tips. It's much appreciated.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/12 03:49:15


Post by: oldravenman3025





Got something accomplished today. Yay.



Day before yesterday, I managed to get the missiles and turret/launchers primed with Krylon Fusion black and hunter green respectively:











Today, I painted the missiles and put 'em back into the launcher units. However, because of the added weight, the glue job didn't hold under the center piece. So, I popped it off, scraped away the dry Testors cement, and did a better job this time. After I re-attached the turret to the main hull, I propped the launch units with a paint pot until the glue dried.






In case anybody is wondering, that brown piece of yarn is going to be used as rope, placed in that same area, once I get the large fishing hooks attached to it and the main hull gets it's final layer of paint.


Now onto the "Nightblade" project.....


To cover up that tiny slit at the rear of the cupola, I decided to make a small roll of personal camo netting. I used a piece of medical gauze, and just dabbled on Abbadon Black and Administratum Gray until I got a rough three color strip. I then cut a small piece and rolled it into a bundle, and wedged it under the spotlight mount to the rear of the cupola. Even without glue, it's holding firm.







Afterwards, I painted the cupola, hatch, tank commander, and pintle mounted storm bolter with a base coat. Here are the pics:










I'll have to wait to get the correct paints in before I paint the small bundle to the front of the cupola.



I also went ahead and carded up the large hatch area on the Equalizer's top piece for it's main turret. Please note that this isn't an actual credit card, expired or otherwise. It's one of those facsimiles that the credit card companies send in their junk mail to try and get you to apply for a card. No valid numbers of any kind are on the card I used. Junk mail or not, it still benefited me and served a purpose in the end.






Anyway, that's it for now. More to come..........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/12 08:39:02


Post by: oldravenman3025




Couldn't sleep, so I decided to start a quickie side project, picking something from my queue of projects-in-waiting. I had just got around to disassembling my old Armadillo, cleaning it up, and removing the old G.I. Joe decals. So, that was the one I went with. This is still a work in progress to be done at leisure. The three main vehicles I'm working on now takes priority.


Anyway, here is some pics:



















Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/12 12:02:57


Post by: Theophony


Nice progress so far. Walgreen rewards cards were a good idea, I've also used old credit cards so I can use my name off of it, or the embossed numbers too. Just make sure to cut them up enough to not give away your credit history. House for sale signs are also a good source of plastic card substitute. If you are going to do a lot of conversions or scratch building then you might consider Iplasticsupply.com, you can order bulk plastic sheet from them, shipping is high, but I bought 3 bundles of 1'x1' plastic sheets from them 3 or more years ago and still have a little bit left.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/13 03:40:19


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Theophony wrote:
Nice progress so far. Walgreen rewards cards were a good idea, I've also used old credit cards so I can use my name off of it, or the embossed numbers too. Just make sure to cut them up enough to not give away your credit history. House for sale signs are also a good source of plastic card substitute. If you are going to do a lot of conversions or scratch building then you might consider Iplasticsupply.com, you can order bulk plastic sheet from them, shipping is high, but I bought 3 bundles of 1'x1' plastic sheets from them 3 or more years ago and still have a little bit left.



I'll be sure to check them out. Thanks for the heads up.



Now on to today's entry.........



My main projects are on hold until I can get another supply drop in. So, I've decided to carry on with what I started with the Armadillo, and knock out some stuff on the side.


This is nothing more than assembly of a glue free model, with priming, painting, and other stuff to come later. I call it the "Hoplite Project", the first of what I hope will be several Dark Age Relics used by my Ordo Eternia.


The model selected is a Bandai 1/144 scale XXXG-01SR Gundam Sandrock kit from their old W Series kits (relating to Gundam Wing). It's a poseable, glue free model. Which makes for a perfect quickie project.






So far, I've cleaned the parts with warm water and dish detergent, then assembled it. Here is the progress so far.....











Because this is one of Bandai's cheaper kits, it got stickers instead of transfers (a practice, to my understanding, still goes on today with Bandai kits). Wasn't planning on using them anyway:





But at least Bandai was kind enough to provide some extra parts if something got lost......





Well that's it for tonight. More to come......



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/20 07:22:30


Post by: oldravenman3025


Time for an update......



Haven't had much time for hobby-related stuff, but I got something accomplished today after picking up some more Krylon from the local farm/hardware store.


First off some projects to mention....


The Gundam M61A5 has been pushed back a bit until I can get some putty for the suspension pieces, since shasolenzabi gave me the heads up on their fragility. The MOBAT project is also on temporary hold until I can get some fine detail brushes and required paints in. In the meantime, there is other stuff I can play catch-up on.


Here's one for the near-future:





And here's one I've started. Both are old kits I've had for ages and never bothered to assemble (I also have a few Arii Macross Variable Fighter kits, but that's another topic).






I went ahead and primed the Labor parts while still in the sprues, to save time and hassle (like taping up the red and blue clear plastic parts). I had already cleaned the parts in warm, soapy water (along with the Gundam model pictured above) a few days ago.








I also managed to get the the upper hull of the Equalizer primed. I might be wrong, but it seems like it took more to get decent coverage with satin than it would have with gloss:







I decided a while back to cook up a way to make big hemp-type rope to wrap around the front hitches of the Wolverine. I was going to try and glue some large fish hooks to ends of a piece of brown yarn I conned my grandmother out of. But after looking through some tackle I inherited from my late Pops, I decide to go with this instead:






Tested it out. It works like a charm. Just gotta make sure it's tight when I reattach it after painting:






When I did a slapdash repair of the broken drive sprocket area, I wasn't too confident of it holding up long term. So, I cut a circular piece of plastic (an old drivers license. Yeah, I'm cheap.), punched a hole just large enough to fit center stub tight, and glued it down with Testor's. It just might work......








Hopefully, weather and humidity permitting, I'll be able to prime it tomorrow.


Anyway, that's it for tonight. More to come........




Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/20 21:12:32


Post by: shasolenzabi


Man! you are getting busy! good projects all around, and liking the conversion of the Joe tanks!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/22 05:11:51


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Man! you are getting busy! good projects all around, and liking the conversion of the Joe tanks!




Much thanks. It's appreciated.




Now, for tonight's update.....



Did luck up with the weather/humidity and got the lower hull of the Equalizer ADV primed:










I don't think I'm going to bother sealing up those wheel wells on the tread bottoms. They're not noticeable when the vehicle is on a flat surface, unlike the Armadillo.



After drying for a couple of hours, I put the parts back into the lower hull for some ballast, made sure the storage and engine hatches were secure, and reconnected the upper and lower hulls:












Now on to the "fun" part......



Next up was the Labor model. As usual with my Bandai kits assembled so far, you get stickers instead of transfers......








Years ago, when I first bought this kit and looked through it, these rubber pieces, for some unknown reason, intimidated me. Now I know why, after nearly a decade. First off, the hole cutting didn't go 100% to plan. Fortunately, the armor would cover them up, and the elongated holes turned out to be a blessing in disguise......







The Instruction sheet did have a cool poster on the other side. I might frame it......







Stage one of the assembly started out okay. But getting the parts into the rubber coverings, and fighting said coverings to assemble the armor, was a major pain in the ass. The second arm wasn't as bad, but was still a fight. I think it was because of the Krylon paint not allowing the parts to just smoothly slip in. You live and you learn.






Assembling the shoulder units was also a minor bitch because of the rubber and the light bars wanting to be bastards about it. And that tiny red light was a real blast to get in due to my big fingers, and the pieces not cooperating when I used tweezers.





Getting the legs, feet, and lower torso put together wasn't as bad. The rubber covering wasn't as uncooperative here. My lapse in attention caused me to put the left leg armor on ass-backwards. And the "crotch" piece had to be pressed together several times for it to finally set half-way tight. The rubber was partly to blame (no "I See What You Did Thar" intended ):





I corrected the error and re-adjusted the rubber piece in the "crotch" area (no dirty jokes intended):





Here is a blurry, crap shot of the upper/center torso. I ended up having to take the whole thing apart because I forgot to put a connection piece in. Problem solved:





I attached the upper and lower portions. Getting the rubber above the waist behind the cockpit module/center torso, and still get the pegs flush into the connection holes, was a small battle. I had to re-adjust the rubber below the cockpit after I took this picture:






Attaching the arm/shoulder units to the main body actually went well. No issues.







Next up was the head unit. I screwed the pooch on this one, making it harder than it had to be in the end.


When I went about filing the excess sprue plastic from the head pieces, I accidentally filed off two small prongs, on the rear head piece, that needed to fit into two corresponding small holes. After sliding in the visor and connecting piece, glue would take care of that problem. But because of pressure caused by the neck prong on the inside of the head unit, and the small amount of paint inside the head pieces, it didn't want to bond. I ended up having to gently sand away the paint (which my dumb ass should have done to begin with, despite being very little splatter inside the head pieces) and having to sit there keeping them carefully pressed together for nearly a half hour for a bond to form with the Testor's and plastic. I had assumed, for some reason, that the red forehead sensor piece was a pop-in, like the little red lights on the shoulder armor. Instead, I was supposed to slide it into a tiny slot, with the "nipple", extending through the hole from the inside. Remembering close-ups of the Type Zero on the Ark in Patlabor: The Movie is what clued me in that I screwed up, since the instructions were no help with this small step (Japanese kana instead of English and Roman letters) with a vague illustration. So, I said screw it, and glued it on from the outside. Good enough for government work, good enough for me.







The small gap on the front bugged the hell out of me.I did manage to tighten it up some. But a little green stuff might be needed before the final painting:










I used the regular hands instead of the pieces extended in combat. But because this is a glue-free model kit, you can change it out. So, I'll hold on to it:









The model still doesn't look half-bad, despite the hassle and minor screw ups. I'm going to enjoy painting this one up.


Anyway, that's it for now. More to come......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/22 05:15:09


Post by: Theophony


The Equalizer is looking really good with just the primer base, cannot wait to see your take on it with the camo and such.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/22 05:22:27


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Theophony wrote:
The Equalizer is looking really good with just the primer base, cannot wait to see your take on it with the camo and such.




Thank you.


I'm going for a winter scheme on this one. The basic pattern is going to be as close to the original Hasbro as possible, but with winter colors. I just haven't settled on all the colors yet.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/22 09:21:57


Post by: shasolenzabi


So titans and mega tanks to stock the army is a good thing!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/27 05:31:05


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
So titans and mega tanks to stock the army is a good thing!



Agreed. Especially with all the nasty stuff the Tau are running around with nowadays, dusting off some ancient relics is a wise move.


Now, on to tonight's entry.......


I decided to work on the Equalizer a bit more, in the interest of progress. First off, I added the "glass" to the hatch viewing ports for the main hull. I used some leftover pieces of an old driver's license for the hatch work. I used a bit too much Testor's, but since it was on the inside of the hatches, I didn't sweat it too much.







Next, I sealed off the bottom with some more plastic. Didn't use as much glue this time around....







Next, I did some internal repair work on the turret assembly, and put it back together. The guns are slightly bent inwards because of the soft plastic. But it's not that bad, and I've seen worse on Forge World resin models where the owner didn't bother with using the hairdryer trick to straighten the pieces out. I may or may not attempt to put a brace between the two barrels with some old sprue.






I wanted some smoke canister launchers. The toy originally had two sets on the turret rear. But one of them was lost, and I didn't like the way the Hasbro launchers refused to line up properly. So, I used the two Citadel smoke canister launchers from my GeeDubs tank accessories set, and glued them over the holes for the original launchers. Here is a comparison between the Citadel and Hasbro smokers:





And here is the Citadel bits mounted:







I slid the missiles back into their launch tubes. I like the way they recess into the launchers, as opposed to the exposed missiles on the Armadillo:







Next, I glued an Aquila from the Citadel parts set on the front. Perfect fit......







Next up, I put the mud guards back onto the vehicle. Twice I thought I had lost one or two of them, victims of my cat looking for something to play with. I figured it was better to be safe than sorry:








Next, I decided to start work on the camo. I used Administratum Grey as my second color. The first is the Krylon Fusion Satin Gray. Theophony thought it looked good, so I decided to stick with that as a first color, rather than paint over it. Using an old tablet to access my gallery on Dakka, I followed the original camo pattern as close as possible (which is why I photo-recorded it a while back), outlining it with a small base brush. Then using the small brush for tight areas and a large brush for the flat areas, I filled it it with the first layer. Here is the results of the first layering:








I also used an old Testor's soft bristle brush I had left over from my scale aircraft modeling days to slap on some Admin Grey to the smaller wheels, just under the top of the tracks. It's going to get some mud, weathering, and (hopefully) a little snow anyway, not to mention the armored skirts are going to hide them. So, I didn't go for perfection. I just did it on a whim as to not waste the paint still on my makeshift pallet. That stuff cost money.


I hope to be able to put on a second layer sometime tomorrow, in addition to assembling the Gundam Sentinel kit I showed off earlier in the thread.


Well, that's it so far. More to come.......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/27 05:50:09


Post by: evildrcheese


Cool. That missile system looks great.

EDC


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/27 06:53:46


Post by: oldravenman3025


 evildrcheese wrote:
Cool. That missile system looks great.

EDC




Thank you for the kind words. It's much appreciated.



I like the idea of a mobile hybrid air defense system, incorporating both SAMs and guns. When I was in the military, we had two vehicles (the M163 PIVADS and M48 Chaparral using the Sidewinder-based MIM-72 missile) instead of one platform for both. It seems that outside of Russia and Israel, such self-propelled hybrid air defense vehicles haven't really caught on.

The Imperium is 40k also goes the two vehicle route, with the Hydra system, and Manticore armed with Sky Eagle SAMs. I figured that a superheavy hybrid system would be something fun and different for a project.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/29 22:06:53


Post by: oldravenman3025




Time for an update.


First off, the Equalizer Air Defense Vehicle......



I managed to get a second coat on the gray camo, and cleaned it up a bit. Looks better than before. I still have one mudguard on the front to paint up, and one to layer some more. But the other two are done.


After priming the hatches and armored skirts, I went about reinstalling them to the vehicle. The hatches went back on fine. No issues there. The skirts, on the other hand, were another story.

As some of you well know, one of the front catches for the skirt was broken off a long time ago, and I planned to use that spot for some light battle damage. Unfortunately, while putting the skirts back on, I ended up breaking off the rear-most catch on the opposite side. Now, it really looks like crap. Gluing was out of the question due to the paint, and considering the pressure of the skirts on the hull catches, would not have held anyway. So, I started brainstorming......

The Equalizer is a REALLY big vehicle. Bigger than the MOBAT/"Nightblade and M61A5. Truth be told, it's more like a mobile air defense fortress than an armored fighting vehicle. Like somebody took a Gepard or 9K22 and fed it a special formula of Miracle Grow for tanks, and it had a major growth spurt. Something that big, with the bulk of it's advanced sensors geared toward anti--air, there might be blind spots in it's ground scanner coverage for infantry and light vehicles (including walkers) to exploit.

And what to use? It hit me. Thumbtacks. The kind designed like pushpins with the plastic doo-hickeys that allow you push them in easier, and pull them out without having to use a knife to pry them out of whatever they are stuck into.


So, I scavenged a couple of old thumbtacks, and using a little elbow grease, screwed them into the plastic behind the damaged points of the skirts. I painted them up, and viola, enhanced ground senor pods with added range, for better security surrounding the vehicle.

They look ghetto as hell, and some might consider it sloppy work. But does the trick, and adds a bit of character. I'm satisfied with the improv repairs.







Once again, I'm still not finished with the two mudguards I'm painting by hand. One needs another coat of paint, and the other needs to be painted.



I decided to add a few things to the turret. First off, some tools.......






Once again, though, things didn't go to plan......


I went back to the Wolverine for a bit. I found a piece from the kit of an old G.I. Action figure that would fit perfectly as an improvised hatch. I also found what looked to be an antennae from another G.I. Joe toy. So, I decided to add that.

I assembled to the spotlight kit and heavy stubber, and planned on using the towing hook as an improv mount for the weapon.




I added some more plastic to the Wolverine hatch. Rather than pulling the tricky stunt of attempting to punch holes through two layers of plastic, I decided to use some sprue from my Citadel parts set. It mounted without much hassle, even with it turned down slightly in the ready position. I also used sprue for the antennae, using a safety pin and box cutter to work a big enough hole for the unit to fit into. I slapped them onto the vehicle. The antennae is a bit tall. So, I might cut it down a bit:





Problem is, there was no room for the heavy stubber. Time for a change of plans. I decided to use it on the Equalizer.


The plastic card's weld was a bit weak on top of the turret. So, I slapped on another piece of plastic on the exterior of the hole. I glued down a spare ammo box at the rear, and glued the heavy stubber on the front. In hindsight, I probably could've have skipped the exterior plastic. But no harm, no foul.






I decided that I would cover that unsightly plastic with leftover camo netting from the MOBAT/Nightblade project. I rolled it up and tied it on both ends with some white yarn for rope. I haven't installed it yet. That will come later, and I plan on pinning it instead of using glue.





Earlier today, I did a bit more work on the Sandrock Gundam. First, I glued an Aquila to the shield unit:







Later, I primed the Gundam and it's equipment with Krylon Fusion gloss light tan. The end result.....








That's all for now. More to come.....


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/30 21:36:02


Post by: shasolenzabi


Man, you are getting a lot of work done! Excellent!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/04/30 22:01:44


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Man, you are getting a lot of work done! Excellent!




Thank you.


I'm getting on a roll. I'm just concerned I'm gonna end up like a lot of folks with a long queue of stuff needing to get done. I'm trying to keep it manageable, so it stays fun instead of becoming like work. But when ideas start rushing in, and with the wait times involved in ordering new materials, I get bored and start working on something else to pass the time.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/05/05 00:56:36


Post by: oldravenman3025




Update time......


Got the Gundam Sentinel kit assembled: Gotta paint it up, add transfers and purity seals, and it will be done.










Too bad it included stickers instead of transfers. Since the model will be painted, I can't use them. They are actually nice and well done.






Some size comparison shots with the 1/144 Sandrock and 1/60 Type Zero Labor (the Sentinel is 1/144).









Did a bit more work on the Armadillo. I made a rear hatch out of an old check card and a hatch handle from the Citadel parts set.






I managed to get the Armadillo's missiles (Krylon Fusion Gloss Black) and launch tube assembly (Krylon Fusion River Rock Gloss) primed:








And, as for the Equalizer, did some priming work with Krylon Fusion Pewter Gray Satin (same as the hull). Didn't get 100% total coverage before the paint ran out. But I got enough where it won't be difficult to work around while painting the camo.







The turret re-attached to the main hull. Still a bit more to go, though.










More to come.......




Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/05/05 05:23:18


Post by: evildrcheese


Tank looks great. That Mecha is with massive gun is bad ass too.

EDC


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/05/05 11:10:57


Post by: Theophony


Great progress so far with the tanks and mech. Definitely not lacking in long range payload.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/05/05 22:12:01


Post by: oldravenman3025




Thanks for the positive feedback. It must mean I'm doing something right.


Anyway, I may do some painting on the Equalizer turret tonight. Things have been a bit hectic over the past week, but are settling down enough to get some hobby stuff done.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/05/07 19:49:48


Post by: shasolenzabi


Knight titans, heavy tanks, what's not to love? looking forwards to seeing the troops!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/05/10 23:35:14


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Knight titans, heavy tanks, what's not to love? looking forwards to seeing the troops!



Thanks.


And now for today's entry......



First off, I started cleaning up some future projects. Pulled the decals and cleaned up my old 1984 vintage G.I. Joe S.H.A.R.C. Next, when I get a chance, I'll hit the old adhesive with either low grain sandpaper or GooGone.






After picking up some more stuff, I started on the long-overdue M61A5. Got the lower hull, suspension, wheels, and treads assembled and based. Started on the upper hull and attached the two parts.








Next was putting all the parts on the upper hull.










The string wanted to start falling apart while trying to cut it. Thus, it ended up a bit too short. I ended up using masking tape to make a makeshift repair. After basing the upper hull, it will just look like more random crap you see on a wartime tank.






Next, I started working on the turret. Over half-done so far.......






Size comparison with the MOBAT/"Nightblade" superheavy. The Sixty-One has less volume, is narrower, and slightly shorter length-wise in terms of hull. When the twin main guns are facing forward, the Sixty-One is waaaaaay longer. And the MOBAT is also a bit taller.







Hull comparison between the Sixty-One and Equalizer. The Equalizer is a monster in comparison as far as the main hulls go.






Comparison between the Sixty-One and Wolverine. Close in width, but the Sixty-One is clearly bigger.......









Shot with the turret sitting on top of the main hull. I really like this vehicle.







Well, that's it for now. More to come......



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/05/11 01:18:09


Post by: Theophony


That 61 is really nice looking, and I see so many uses for the SHARC.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/05/15 22:48:53


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Theophony wrote:
That 61 is really nice looking, and I see so many uses for the SHARC.




Thanks.


Now for a quick update....


Haven't been able to get much done here of late. A couple of days ago, I did manage to attach the travel supports for the main guns and base coat the Sixty-One. I experimented with camouflaging with Krylon, since I liked the colors and was going for a soft line pattern with light splash on the edges, rather than a hard lined camo pattern. It looks okay and should look better with details like washes, dullcoating, dust, and mud. But any feedback is welcome.

Anyway, here are the pics. I'm waiting for another supply drop, so I can do some more work on the MOBAT and Equalizer. And there is still work to do on the Sixty-One's turret.









There will be more to come....


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/05/16 04:31:53


Post by: shasolenzabi


All looking good, and as I have a M61A5, I have some idea as to how big all the Joe tanks are, the smaller one is still bigger than a Leman Russ, so a "Heavy" tank where the M61A5 and other larger ones hit "Super-Heavy" category! awesome stuff!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/05/16 05:13:25


Post by: evildrcheese


Looking good. The Sharc is cool, load of potential there.

EDC


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/05/22 00:58:10


Post by: oldravenman3025


Thanks. folks. I appreciate the feedback. It's always encouraging.


Update time!



First off, since the last posting I made some supply runs and got a couple of supply drops. Wal-Mart, hardware, and dollar stores are good sources of supplies. I also got some items in that I ordered from Games Workshop and Forge World.....









First off, I decided to do some more work on the turret. Phase one went off with out a hitch.








Phase two didn't go as good, however..........




The photo etching, to put it bluntly, was a pain in the ass. I despise photo etching now. Flat surfaces on a hull is no issue. But mounting parts in a plastic frame wasn't fun in this case. I ended up having to do an emergency repair with masking tape. I don't like it. But it will be covered up for the most part, when all is said and done. Anyway, the effort turned out half-assed, but passable. However, it was aggravating enough that I decided to skip putting the etched chains on the smoke canister launcher. On the plus side, it gave me an excuse to use the last Citadel jerry cans I had left.

I also added some stowage on the side of the turret and attached the rear autogun.









Since I got some more Citadel paint in, it was time for some detailing on the MOBAT project.....










Still some work to go. But completion is getting closer on the original project that started this fun. I may wash it in a dark wash to tone down the gray and silver. I haven't really decided, and what wash, if any, that I will use.



Next thing on my agenda was basing the turret of the Sixty One. Since I was going with a "soft" camo pattern, as opposed to a "hard line" pattern, my experiment in spray paint camo didn't turn out horribly. But it's not something I would do often. After everything dried, it was time to attach the turret to the main hull. And that sure was fun.


I ended up having to do some serious scraping around the turret rings to finally get it where I could traverse the turret foreward. In the process some of the hunter green base came off in a couple of small places, and the hatch, hatch ring, heavy stubber, and pintel mount popped off. While it was aggravating, all of the above wasn't something to stew over. The parts went back on with no issue (nothing was broken), and I expected some degree of "chipping". As this is still a work in progress, it's no big deal in the end.










Now, for a comparison now that the Sixty One is assembled:










Anyway, that's all for now. More to come.......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/05/22 08:28:10


Post by: shasolenzabi


Lovely big beasts! speaking of, I just got a T-90MS in my Armored Warfare garage, and stock, if played smartly does very well, and makes things hurt!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/02 02:55:08


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Lovely big beasts! speaking of, I just got a T-90MS in my Armored Warfare garage, and stock, if played smartly does very well, and makes things hurt!




I heard that Armored Warfare was a decent game. Never tried it out myself, though.



Now on to tonight's (very short) update.......


With the tropical storm we had this week, the humidity was just too high for any aerosol base coating. So, I focused on finishing the basic winter camo on the Equalizer ADV. The three color pattern consists of Krylon Pewter Gray Satin, Citadel Administratum Grey, and Citadel Russ Grey. The main tail lights are dabbed in Citadel Evil Sunz Scarlet. The bores of the "accelerator cannons" and heavy stubber are dabbed in Abaddon Black, as is the "Iron Aquila". The Aquila on the spare ammo box behind the camo netting roll, and heavy stubber itself, is painted in Runefang Steel.


The next step, I guess, is to do a wash. I have some Vallejo gray winter washes coming in soon. I'll paint the hatch viewports with some sort of blue, and then 'Ard Coat it the ports, after that for a "jeweled" finish.


Anyway, here is the work still in progress:











More to come......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/02 05:53:25


Post by: evildrcheese


Looking good. Nice work on the camo

EDC


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/03 01:14:04


Post by: oldravenman3025


 evildrcheese wrote:
Looking good. Nice work on the camo

EDC





Thank you. I'm glad you like it.



Now for a quickie update....



I got a couple of things done this evening. First off, I got this in today. A Crusher Joe Galleon in 1/48 scale. I remember the Galleon from my Battletech days, as one of the infamous "unseen" after that ruckus between FASA, Playmates, and Harmony Gold U.S.A. I found this baby on Ebay and made an offer. The seller took the offer.








As usual for an anime kit, you get a nice color guide along with simple instructions. What is really pleasing is that I got water transfers instead of freakin' stickers. I dunno if the decals, or that little tube of glue that came with the kit, are any good. But I'll know if the decals are any good here soon. I'll try the glue out on a future project.






If I feel like it, I'll start on the Galleon tonight, since it's a simple kit to assemble. I just have to wait for the parts to dry from their cleaning.



I got a couple of things accomplished with the Armadillo. I couldn't find any suitable, old radar dishes among my old stash of G.I. Joe stuff. So, I made one.



First I added a sheet of "armor plate" on the rear of the turret so Smokin' Joe doesn't get a bullet in the ass.







Next, I cut a round disk from the "No Trespassing" sign I picked up at a local dollar store for a buck (the same source as Smokin' Joe's anti-shanking turret armor). I also used a small piece of sprue from the M61A5's leftovers .









Next up was the mount. The vehicle already had a faux fueling hole on the front hull, which was perfect. I used more sprue that was perfectly canted the way I wanted.








I used Loc-Tite superglue to attach the dish to the mount, since the "paper" side will not bond to the sprue using plastic cement (I learned this the hard way with the MOBAT's copula job, if you recall dear readers). Not too shabby. Good enough for government work, good enough for me.






It's loose enough to rotate like an old-school search radar emitter. But I might glue it down anyway, just to be on the safe side.



Anyway, that's all for tonight. More to come.......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/03 22:38:07


Post by: oldravenman3025




Update time.......



Last night, I started on the Galleon. I concentrated on some easy stuff before bedtime......




Road wheels:






Main missile pod:






Port and starboard mini-missile pods (sorry for the craptastic pics):








Rear hull plate:






Late this morning, after a trip to town, I started back to work. Some further assembly:






And the finished product:










Apologies for the bad pics in the bunch.


The first photograph, you'll notice a gap in the tread strip on the bottom. That particular strip was beginning to harden at one of the ends, and snapped off. I ended up using super glue to reattach the broken piece of track. And since I couldn't stretch the track now to connect the two ends, I had to super glue the bottom of the tread unit to the road wheels. Finally, I used a small strip of my one dollar sign (superglued on the bottom) as a connecting foundation for mud and weathering effects on the treads.



The kit came with a figure of Ricky, the youngest of Crusher Joe's teammates, and a base. I'll save him for another project down the road.







Today, the humidity was low enough for some base coating. Using Krylon Fusion River Rock, I decided to base coat the Armadillo . First was the turret:







Then, the main hull was next:







The Armadillo fully assembled, with it's SAM launchers attached to the turret.







Before I log off, I wanted to give a heads up regarding future projects. First off is a couple of Maisto 1/27 scale die-cast Hummer H2s I picked up a few years ago at a Stop n' Rob. They're going get a minor treatment as armored staff cars for VIPs to ride in style.






The other two are a couple of TimMee Toys vehicles that they made from the days of my youth to about eleven years ago. I played with those bags of "army men" and tanks when I was a kid. I cannot, for the life of me. remember where these two examples came from. I'm thinking they were for a relative's kid's school project that didn't pan out. But I'm not sure. Anyway, they're going to become PDF vehicles. First is the armored scout car:






The other is a M48 Patton toy. It will make a nice, light scout tank. Here is a comparison with the tank and the 1/48 Galleon:






Anyway, that's it for this entry. More to come.......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/04 04:20:45


Post by: shasolenzabi


Oh wow! a Galleon apc from Crusher Joe days! I may have to see about getting one, but I have gotten hold of a used and empty deodorant container for making into an old grav tank


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/05 03:38:14


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Oh wow! a Galleon apc from Crusher Joe days! I may have to see about getting one, but I have gotten hold of a used and empty deodorant container for making into an old grav tank



They turn up on Ebay from time to time. Usually overpriced. I just got lucky with this one.


As for the grav tank project, I look forward to seeing the results.


The work on the Galleon didn't go as well as I would've wanted it to today. It may have just been a can with a bad nozzle, but the Rustoleum base coat didn't turn out that great. The texture was too rough.







It bugged me so much, I decided to go with an anime-ish paint scheme (using the paints I had on hand) so I wouldn't have to look at the crappy base coat. Still not finished, but here is what I have so far:







Still looks a little rough, but it's better than before. I'm going to stick with Krylon Fusion, with the fancy nozzles, in the future. Lessons learned and all that




On a brighter note, I finally finished basing the Wolverine where I added the what-nots to the hatch area. Had to trim the aerial down, since it was too high.







And finally, a supply drop. Some washes and a 1/35 scale Tamiya Panzer II.








The washes are mostly for the MOBAT and Equalizer projects.


For an older Tamiya kit that cost me a hair under eleven bucks, you get some cool stuff with it.


Some history and info on Panzer units during it's time in frontline service and the Afrikakorps







Some other stuff on the English language instructions, including the camo patterns and unit markings (for decals):








Apparently, you can motorize this thing. But RC isn't my bag. This is going to be a PDF vehicle in my little collection:








Here is a size comparison between the 1/35 Tamiya Panzer II and 1/48 Takara Crusher Joe Galleon (before I started painting it)






Anyway, that's all for now. More to come........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/05 04:48:32


Post by: Theophony


Can't say I reMember crusher Joe, but the tank looks interesting to say the least. I've had similar issues with my rustoleum sprays, usually it's that the paint got cold at some point or the nozzle got clogged, but it's still my go to for primer.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/05 09:49:02


Post by: shasolenzabi


Good work, and yeah, that makes the Crusher Joe Galleon and the Pz-II similar to Chimera sized so they could work for 40k army.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/06 00:55:18


Post by: oldravenman3025


Theophony wrote:Can't say I reMember crusher Joe, but the tank looks interesting to say the least. I've had similar issues with my rustoleum sprays, usually it's that the paint got cold at some point or the nozzle got clogged, but it's still my go to for primer.




I'll have to remember to stick the can in some warm water before use in the future. Especially sprays using conventional aerosol nozzles.


And the fact that I actually know Crusher Joe in and out makes me feel old.




shasolenzabi wrote:Good work, and yeah, that makes the Crusher Joe Galleon and the Pz-II similar to Chimera sized so they could work for 40k army.




Thanks. It's a pain trying to cover-up a screw up. But it's coming along. I finished the touch-ups and did a wash with Vallejo light grey to give it a oily, grimy look on the surfaces. Next up is to get the stuff needed for weathering and dirt effects to dirty it up some more. With the rough texture due to the Rustoleum, I'll probably need Micro-Sol and Micro-Seal for decal application.



Here are the pics of the work so far. After the pics were taken, I went back and spread out the excess wash pooling up on the road wheels and hull. ......










As always, feedback and comments welcome.


More to come......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/07 06:48:03


Post by: shasolenzabi


I had no idea how much extra weaponry was packed into that!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/07 21:44:30


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
I had no idea how much extra weaponry was packed into that!




Yep. One main missile launch system, two secondary cannons, one turreted main gun, and two side facing missile launchers (door is closed on the turret side, open on the left side). Also, a retractable "dozer" blade on a pair of servo arms.



On another note, the Panzer II is assembled.....









I did attach the Rommel Kit to the turret, making this an Ausf. G. But I didn't assemble the infantry of tank commander. I'll save those for another time.







Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/08 00:07:07


Post by: shasolenzabi


Yeah a game buddy used that with a GW commander or buttoned up, I can't remember. old WW-II stuff was small enough for 40K conversion/use.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/09 07:59:37


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Yeah a game buddy used that with a GW commander or buttoned up, I can't remember. old WW-II stuff was small enough for 40K conversion/use.




Yeah, especially the early war stuff. Late war vehicles in 1/35 can be a little on the large side, the best I can tell.



I managed to get closer to finishing the "Nightblade" (MOBAT) superheavy today.



First off, I found another product I'll never use again: Krylon Triple Thick Crystal Clear Glaze. The humidity and temp was perfect for aerosols when I went to put the gloss coat on the tank for decals. But it still frosted up kinda heavy. On the plus side, it just happened to fit the ashen weathering/filth I wanted for the hull. I applied the decals since the areas I wanted to apply them were fairly smooth. Unfortunately, it didn't go 100% to plan.


I had some old Testors decals, which were shot. And the Galleon's decals were no good either. So, I had to mostly stick with the Forge World black decals on the gray parts, and used some of the Tamiya decals from the Panzer II kit on the black surfaces. Because I didn't use Micro-Sol and Micro-Set, you can still see the outlines of the 40k transfers from Forge World. You live and you learn. I won't make the same mistakes on the other vehicles I'm working on.

The Krylon Matte Finish for hobbyists, worked out beautifully. I then applied some more Vallejo wash in healthy amounts. I'm pleased overall with how nasty the tank looks. Next up for this vehicle will be a bit of drybrushing along the edges. You suggested medium grays for the black edges and metallics for the gray, if I remember correctly. I'm thinking about using Necron Compound (Dry) for the metallic. I haven't decided which brand of gray I'll use.

Anyway, here are some pics of the one-part success and one part not-so-hot. Please note that the wash wasn't completely dry when I photographed the progress so far. Also, sorry for the crap quality of the pics.







Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/09 09:39:51


Post by: Camkierhi


Great work going on here, reminds me of Shas's thread. Great tanks, and often thought of the gundams as proxies, nice to see someone doing it.

Subbed.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/09 21:38:24


Post by: shasolenzabi


Ah well, not all plans go smoothly, but if it worked, hey, all good!

Tank is looking great!!

@Cam: I have Leynos strike suits as proxy knights, lol!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/12 00:23:24


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Ah well, not all plans go smoothly, but if it worked, hey, all good!

Tank is looking great!!

@Cam: I have Leynos strike suits as proxy knights, lol!




Much thanks for the positive feedback.




A brief update......




I haven't had much time for hobby-related stuff since the last update. However, I did manage to get started on painting the "details" on the Armadillo.



The work so far.....










When everything dries real good, I'll slap some more paint on the dish. But it's still a work in progress.



Anyway, more to come.........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/12 22:44:25


Post by: oldravenman3025




Time for a brief update......


Nothing much to say, except I did a bit more work on the Armadillo today. But it's still a work in progress.........



Here are the pics:










That's all for now. More to come.......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/12 22:55:22


Post by: shasolenzabi


Man that looks good. Noticing the massive frontal overhang it has.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/12 22:57:45


Post by: Theophony


If you wanted more authentic 40k vibe then you need to put an exposed gas tank on the front bumper for the heavy flamer. Otherwise it's coming along great.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/13 18:17:10


Post by: Camkierhi


That does look good. Have to agree that nose does stick out a little, and the whole thing is very factory fresh right now.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/27 00:34:45


Post by: oldravenman3025


shasolenzabi wrote:Man that looks good. Noticing the massive frontal overhang it has.


Theophony wrote:If you wanted more authentic 40k vibe then you need to put an exposed gas tank on the front bumper for the heavy flamer. Otherwise it's coming along great.


Camkierhi wrote:That does look good. Have to agree that nose does stick out a little, and the whole thing is very factory fresh right now.




Yeah, the overhang is part of the design. The original 1985 series gun-armed Armadillo had it, just as this one does. It will also get some weathering and desert environment nastiness added on later.


As for the fuel tank, I've never been a fan of exposed flamer tanks. That's why I prefer the Mars Pattern Hellhound over the Artemia Pattern and Malcador Infernus. Besides, the flamer is a defensive weapon. No need to risk a valuable and rare ADV (the Armadillo is a relic and isn't built anymore in my headcanon) over so simple a design flaw from a fluff perspective.

Also, there is a story behind this particular vehicle and it's commander. Will get to that later on.


Anyway, here is the long overdue update.....


I did some more work on the Type 61. It's still a work in progress. But any progress, however slow, is better than none at all.


Pics:











Also, I thought I would share a couple of upcoming projects....


First, is this baby. More details regarding the project coming later.









And this, an old G.I. Joe Battleforce 2000 Pulverizer.....








That's it for now, folks. More to come......




Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/27 23:14:17


Post by: oldravenman3025




Quickie post for today. I started assembling the F-4J model. It's an inexpensive kit for it's time (late 1990's Revell-Monogram). But it had more flash than what I anticipated. So, plenty of sanding, filing, and cutting. And I'll still need to fill in some gaps.


I think I may do this one as part of an Imperial Navy diorama. I'm still not 100% decided on that though.


Pic:





More to come....


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/27 23:18:35


Post by: shasolenzabi


Hmmm, #135 is looking good so far!

1/48 scale planes can be made to fit 40k armies

That seat on the pulverizer, definitely a armored structure over it needed with a normal Leman Russ scale hatch for the commander!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/27 23:24:04


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Hmmm, #135 is looking good so far!

1/48 scale planes can be made to fit 40k armies

That seat on the pulverizer, definitely a armored structure over it needed with a normal Leman Russ scale hatch for the commander!




Thanks for the positive feedback.


You're absolutely correct about the Pulverizer. I've been brainstorming every since I pulled the toy out of storage, on what route I'll take with the homemade "cab" for the open spot. I might need heavier plasticard instead of cutting up plastic signs from the dollar store.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/28 17:32:04


Post by: oldravenman3025





I managed to get a little more done today, since the weather outside isn't cooperating. Oh, and don't mind the ammo boxes. They are useful when improvising prop-ups when needed.


Pic:





That's it for now. More to come.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/28 17:41:41


Post by: Theophony


Ammo boxes are always useful , even when they are empty. Nice work so far on the mig.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/28 18:11:20


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Theophony wrote:
Ammo boxes are always useful , even when they are empty. Nice work so far on the mig.



Thanks.


And I've decided to go the diorama route with this one, just for something different.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/06/28 20:31:40


Post by: shasolenzabi


Can't wait to see what you do with the F4!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/07/06 19:37:13


Post by: oldravenman3025




Since I'm getting closer to finishing the MOBAT project, I decided it's time to start with the stories behind some of my projects.




Nightblade Superheavy Battle Tank (Koverra Pattern)



The Nightblade was born out of necessity. When Task Force Explorer "Storm" returned to Terra after several scheduled resupply rendezvous never arrived, and numerous Astropathic reports went unacknowledged, they found the Imperium in shambles. The region around the Imperial Palace was decimated, the Regent was dead, and the Emperor was interred upon the Golden Throne. Knight-Champion Rober Marius (the name he was using at the time) was in shock. The man who was leading Mankind's glorious rebirth as a galactic power, the man he befriended in a dusty little beer joint in New Mexico back in the late Second Millennium (and revealed who, and what, Rober truly was), no longer walked among them. After getting the story from (a grief stricken) Dorn and enraged Guilliman, shock turned into a thirst for vengeance. Marius took the remnants of his task force, and joined the pursuit of the traitor dogs, hounding them all the way to the Eye of Terror.


Task Force Explorer "Storm" was composed of some of the best troops the Imperial Army had to offer, including detachments from the Genos regiments and Solar Auxilia. However, thirty years into a deep range exploratory and reconnaissance mission took it's toll on the bulk of the group's equipment. Plus, the supply vessels being held up by the Heresy certainly didn't help matters any. One area in which the Task Force's equipment was hurting was that of superheavy armor.


"Storm" relied heavily on the Baneblades and Stormhammers in it's Table of Organization and Equipment. The assembled force also had a handful of Fellblades supplied to them, thanks to the influence of Malcador, who felt that the task group could use some extra high-tech machines to aid in their mission. However, the numbers of these tanks had been greatly reduced either through attrition, or being relegated to reserve stores until replacement parts could be requisitioned. Unfortunately, Horus's rebellion had disrupted normal supply channels and the steady, reliable production of replacement superheavies.


Prior to the beginning of his mission, Marius was bestowed the title of "Knight-Champion of the Imperium", and given a "land" grant of a cluster consisting of 19 worlds in the Segmentum Tempestus, as a reward for volunteering for such a hazardous mission into the unknown. The grant would be claimed once the assignment was complete, which was estimated by the Officio Militaris and Corps Logisticae to take four Standard decades.


Marius, fortunately, didn't allow his anger to cloud his judgement. He knew he needed a logistical base to support his forces, and knew that supply from the Imperium proper was going to be unreliable at best. With that in mind, he pressed his claim to Roboute Guilliman, who was (more or less) the de-facto comander of the punitive forces and was the only stable leader after the internment of the Emperor, collapse of the Council of Terra,and death of the Sigillite. Guilliman was reluctant at first, but relented since it was a promised reward bestowed by the Emperor.


Marius sent representatives to the single forge world withing his new "fief", Koverra. After intense, but short, negotiations, the Archos-Magos of Koverra agreed. With the promise of new technologies and STCs possessed by Marius, an agreement in perpetuity was signed between the two parties.


The first issue to be quickly addressed was the need for superheavy combat vehicles. In those days, the Mechanicus tended to be more efficient than the were in the 41st Millennium. It was decided that a new tank would be crafted from the initial STCs provided per agreement.


The STC design chosen was perfect for the current needs. It was known as the "Multi-Ordnance Battle Tank" (or MOBAT, for short). It was discovered that the design was part of the same series of STCs as the old Rhino, and vehicle designs discovered by Arkhan Land. Using old, but proven and easy to produce/maintain technologies, these vehicles were intended for hard scrabble colony worlds to utilize for exploration and defense, back in the Dark Age of Technology. The final product produced on Koverra wasn't a modified version, as in the case of so many other STC vehicles, but a straight up copy made directly from the plans.


The new tank was dubbed "Nightblade" as a thematic nod toward the Baneblade and Fellblade superheavy tanks. Unlike it's Baneblade cousin, it would be a "minimalist" tank closer to the Fellblade in principle. It wouldn't be a rolling fortress bristling with guns and missiles, but armed just enough to get the job done in order to speed up production. In that vein, the Nightblade would also lack some of the more advanced technologies present in the Fellblade, like flare shields and plasma reactors.


The Nighblade is powered by an impressive Koverra Pattern Light Weight, All-Environ Large Thermic Combustion Reactor. This engine, based on the powerplant of the newer Phobos Land Raiders, was larger than it's parent design, but made with lighter, more advanced materials. This powerful engine was capable of moving the massive vehicle at speeds up to an impressive 43 kph off-road. The powerplant was also the main generator for the tank's electrics, auspex systems, cogitators, and logic engine, with a short duration back-up batterty pack in case of engine failure. The engine was also equipped with an internal smoke generator that eliminated the need for vulnerable external smoke launchers.


While few in number, the armaments are powerful. The main gun is a turreted Koverra-Trent Pattern Multi-Ordnance Accelerator Cannon. Coming in between the Fellblade's fearsome (and massive) twin-linked, dual-munition heavy accelerator cannons, and the Sicaran's deadly Herakles Pattern Accelerator Autocannons, The Koverra-Trent weapon embodies the better attributes of both worlds. It fires at a slower rate than the Herakles, despite it's sophisticated autoloading system. However, it nearly rivals the Herakles in pinpoint accuracy, and hits with the authority of a single heavy accelerator cannon.


The secondary weapon is a sponson mounted Trent-Pattern light autocannon. This weapon is intended for anti-personnel and anti-light vehicle work. It's cyclic rate is decidedly average for it's class. But Trent's munitions plants produce a proprietary 24mm round that can still decimate mobs of lightly armored infantry that attempt to swarm the tank, in addition to knocking out supporting enemy light APCs and other thin-skinned vehicles. Covering the autocannon's blind arc is a standard Mars Pattern Storm Bolter that can be fired manually or remotely by the tank commander.


The tank lacks the IR/UV/LED head lamps found on many tanks in the Imperium today. However, the multi-purpose, multi-spectrum gun-mounted search light, that is tied into the vehicle's auspex targeter and logic engine, can provide such service if needed, in addition to it's primary purpose of night fighting.


The tank's armor, like it's main gun, is manufactured using techniques and arts lost to the current Imperium, but was common when the vehicle was first produced. Consisting of a unique plas-steel/ceramite alloy, with an adamantium plate sandwiched in the center of each plate, the tank is capable of surviving direct hits from all but the heaviest weapons. It has been chronicled during the tank's height of service, that only a full barrage from traitor Baneblades, or hits from Titan-scale weaponry, were capable of quickly putting a Nightblade out of action. The toughness of this beast has earned it the nickname of the "Crawling Brick" among the personnel of the Black Watch.


The center of the Nightblade's control systems is the Cyclops Mk. III Machine Spirit. While less advanced than the M32 Cyclops used by modern Land Raiders, it's still a capable and efficient piece of equipment. The Mark III is critical to the integration of the vehicle's various combat and operations systems. If the machine spirit is somehow knocked off-line, the crew can still carry out it's duties and remain combat effective. Just not with the same speed, coordination, and efficiency as the Mk. III.


On another note,the Mk III was, more or less, a compromise solution. With the shake-up on Mars in the immediate post-Heresy era, and the loss of Anvilus 9, negotiating for the M32 system would have been uncertain and time consuming. Which, of course, would have violated the agreement between Archos-Magos Wilke and Knight-Champion Marius for fast supply of badly needed equipment.


The standard crew complement for the Nightblade is a driver, commander, primary gunner, loading operator, systems operator, techpriest, and assistant driver/gunner. The small, seven man crew is possible thanks to the Cyclops Machine Spirit. But in the event of a shutdown of the Cyclops, the workload of the crew can be harrying. Thus, intensive, specialized training is mandated for crews assigned to a Nightblade. Because of this, the crews of these iron monsters tend to be the most coordinated and well-oiled in the Black Watch brigades.


The Nightblade was in steady production throughout the massive offensives carried out during the era known as The Scouring. Koverra was able to keep up with demand for most of the period. At one point, there was even a surplus of these vehicles sitting in Koverra's tank parks, waiting for delivery. When that happened, Marius requested that production surplus be supplied to the Imperial Army and Legiones Astartes units involved in pursuit and purging operations. Thus, some Nightblades were used by loyalist Legions and other Imperial Regiments during those troubled times.


When the Traitors were finally driven out of the Imperium, a "golden age" began in the domains of Man. With industry, trade, and production normalizing once again, Baneblades became available in numbers to Marius's forces once more, which was important boon when the surviving forces of "Storm" were reconstituted into the original three brigades of the Black Watch. However, the Nightblade remained in low-level production on Koverra, and was still listed as a standard vehicle on the TO&E of the Black Watch. Copies of the plans had been passed on to Mars as part of a technology sharing agreement with Koverra, and the Nightblade was produced for the ranks of the Mars Skitarii, where they still remain in limited use in the 41st Millennium.


Many of the Nightblades held by the Space Marine Legions, like most of the superheavy combat vehicles in Astartes use, were passed on to the newly minted Imperial Guard, after Guilliman's reforms. A few were retained in case a need arose for their use, however The surviving Nightblades in Imperial Army service were likewise passed on to their successors in the Guard.


After the chaos of the Age of Apostasy and Nova Terra Interregnum, the secrets of the Nightblade's mass production were slowly lost. The STCs still existed. But manufacture of the critical components were either slow (had to be built by hand) or impossible/impractical (in the case of the Nightblade's powerplant and main gun). With the availability of the Baneblade (and it's variants), and new superheavy tank programs on Forge World Koverra and industrial worlds in the Holdfast Imperialis to address the Baneblade shortages at the turn of the 42nd Millenium, efforts to recover the lost ability to mass-produce Nightblade's have become a low priority.


As of 999.M41, roughly 100 Nightblades remain in the Black Watch's armoriums, carefully preserved in stasis bays, and some spare parts produced by hand under the watchful eyes of the Forge Masters, and Savant Engiseers of Koverra. These vehicles are only parceled out to units that have earned the right to have one on their rosters, and even then, crewed by only the very best.


Remarkably, a few Nightblades remain in the hands of First Founding Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes. In particular, the Salamanders and Iron Hands Chapters, whose Master Artificers are capable of producing the means to keeping their tanks in operational condition.


As mentioned before, the Mechanicus of Mars still use the Nightblade in their Skitarii legions. In the past, there have been few ever deployed. However, as with the Space Marines who possess them, more and more relics are returning to the blood soaked battlefields of the present day. It's a troubling sign of the times that machines once considered precious beyond all measure are being risked with destruction, while being called to the Emperor's service once again. Whether the use of mostly forgotten, advanced technology units like the Nightblade or Fellblade can turn the Imperium's fortunes around remains to be seen.













Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/07/07 22:06:09


Post by: shasolenzabi


I like the fluff here.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/07/09 03:50:07


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
I like the fluff here.




Thanks. I pondered on this for a while. But since the P&M side has been slow during the last few weeks (had minimum time to work on the Phantom- and that's it), I decided to post some quick general fluff. Later on will be the back stories of individual vehicles and notable personnel.



For today, I'll throw out some more back story. This time on the outrageously huge Equalizer ADV.




Koverra Pattern "Equalizer" Air Defense Vehicle, Model 1, Mark II.



The Equalizer ADV was born out of a need for planetary defense assets during the early years of the post- Great Scouring era. During that time, the Knight-Champion and his trusted advisors began the long process of "settling in" within the borders of the Holdfast. Some of the worlds were highly prosperous, while the rest were either simply "economically viable" or outright impoverished. Any of them could be a target, especially in regards to hostile xenos. It was noted that this would become even more likely as the region grows and begins to prosper by forming trade routes, both within the Holdfast Imperialis and with the Imperium of Man proper.


As other projects were well under way, some focus could be shifted to the on-planet defenses for the fief's nineteen worlds. The first step was setting standards of training and equipment for the PDFs, including those that were already established. The next was lobbying for the desired amount of (the newborn) Imperial Navy presence within the Holdfast. The third step was strategic planetary defenses. It was with this last one that the problems were glaringly obvious.


It would be decades before the Navy could be firmly established with outposts and bases within the territory. And it would be decades before powerful defense-force networks, with capital-scale ground-based weaponry installations, could be completed. The push for higher standards among PDF units would alleviate the problem some. But it was an established fact that a good defense consisted of a powerful first line, if the enemy got past the Navy pickets/patrols within a given system.


In the early years, defense was handled mostly by system defense monitors deployed by the Navy, and frontline interceptor squadrons rotated on each world by the Navy's Segmentum H.Q. at Bakka. Ground based anti-air defenses were towed Earthshaker artillery pieces utilizing special munitions, Hydra ADVs, and Hydra fixed platforms (mostly operated by local PDF troops). It was obvious that aerospace defense had to be shored up.


One method was supplementing semi-mobile and fixed defenses with new weapons systems. The first was the deadly Trent Pattern 75 Surface to Air Missile (SAM), a cheap and effective system that could be mass produced and quickly deployed for low-altitude defense. The next route taken was with mobile SAM systems for high level air defense, able to engage dropships, transports, and gunships at higher altitudes. The Forge World of Koverra responded with the new Pattern 25-12 Mobile Surface to Air Missile Battery, a system that in later centuries would earn a fearsome reputation among the Orks and Dark Eldar. Also deployed (though at a slower rate) were heavy mobile launchers such as the Nante Pattern 18 truck mounted missile, and the Koverra Pattern 76 heavy cruise missile that could deploy vortex or thermonuclear warheads at sub-orbital altitudes.


The panel responsible for planning planetary defenses also wanted a superheavy mobile AA gun system to be the "anchor" for Hydra ADV units. The tech-savants of Koverra scoured through the STC printouts provided per agreement, and after a period of time, found the perfect candidate.


Within the STCs available, were technical readouts and engineer's schematics for a "budget" (for the time-the Dark Age of Technology) mobile air defense system, that combined small SAMs and AAA on one tracked superheavy platform. After much meditation, prayer, and ritual, it was decided that this new system would be put into production.


The vehicle, dubbed the "Equalizer", is an impressive machine, both in size and capability. Larger and heavier (at 406 tonnes) than the Baneblade, the Equalizer is well armored, and has the structural integrity to take heavy enemy fire. The armor is of the same advanced type used on the proven Nightblade superheavt tank. However, the massive tread units were also made out of the same material, making it difficult for opposing infantry to immobilize the vehicle by destroying a track. Armor protection is critical, since the only close-in anti-personnel defense is a single pintel mounted weapon (a heavy stubber is the most common in the current day). Because of this issue, most Equalizers still operational are often provided escorts, often in the form of Punishers or Devil Dogs.


The vehicle is powered by two Koverra-Phaeton Pattern Adaptable Thermic Combustion Reactors. Based on the powerplant developed on Forge World Phaeton, for the new Mars Pattern Hellhammer support variant of the mighty Baneblade, these engines lack the Gravis Pattern Thaumic Resonance Crystal Generation Unit. But this doesn't limit the impressive performance of the engines, capable of pushing this crawling fortress to a top speed comparable to the much lighter Baneblade.


The powerplant is also responsible to keeping the large back-up battery banks fully charged in case they are needed. The back-ups are not capable of providing power to move the vehicle. But they provide plenty of power to run critical systems, both combat and non-combat, if the engine is shut down or out of commission.


The combat capabilities are no less impressive. The Equalizer's primary armaments are two Nante Pattern 54 High-Speed, Multi-Ordnance Accelerator Autocannons. The main role of these weapons is to bring down (or drive off) a foe's air support or troop droppers. These augury targeted guns proved themselves especially deadly to drop pods, as a traitor warband discovered to their dismay during a raid on the Agri-World of Novo Mulan in 686.M38. Supplementing the guns is six launchers for the Pattern 767 "Skyguard" SAM system. The missiles are initially tied in to the Equalizer's search-scan augury and targeting auspex system. When the system gets a lock, data is fed into the missile's cogitators. When launched, the missile is a self-guided instrument of the Emperor's wrath against those who exercise ill will toward Mankind and His domains.


Another advantage enjoyed is that the augury system is a dual mode, search-scan and target system, using two "antennae". If one is damaged, the other can take over it's functions at a reduced rate of efficiency. Still, any is better than none at all.


The Equalizer has a crew complement of: Commander, Driver, Assistant Driver, Systems Operator, Two Gunnery Specialists, Ordnance Specialist, Techpriest, and Vox Specialist. On board is also stowage and a small arms locker for crew usage, which is true for all tanks in the Emperor's service.


The Equalizer had a rear lamp set for use when acting as lead vehicle in a convoy. However, it relies primarily on it's auspex night fighting systems when forward viewing is needed for moving at night. Because the vehicle is designed for planetary defense garrison duty, this wasn't seen as a major issue.


The vehicle's Machine Spirit is a Cyclops M32, which is a proven design used in the modern Phobos Pattern Land Raider. Because of the Equalizer's role and system requirements, the expense and intense negotiations for the privilege to use this advanced model of the Cyclops was considered well worth the effort.


The Model 1 is the only major model of the Equalizer ever produced by Koverra. The Mark II was developed when a flaw in the road wheel bearing system was discovered to cause rapid wear, and frequent maintenance on the drive system, for the older Mark I. Over time, all Mark Is were upgraded to Mark II standard when time for overhauls came to pass. Neither Mark was ever exported or shared with other Forge Worlds, mostly because of a lack of need or interest.


In the early days of the Equalizer's service, it was crewed by personnel from it's host planet's PDF. However, due to it's status as a relic at the end of the 41st Millennium, only Black Watch, or specially trained Imperial Navy teams, are allowed to operate this advanced war engine.


In the present day, as mentioned above, the Equalizer is a relic of a more prosperous and hopeful time, when it's advanced weapons, materials, and systems were better understood. Most of the examples produced are still in service, mostly thanks to it's role as part of planetary defense force networks in the Holdfast. However, due to the increasingly advanced nature of Mankind's enemies, Equalizers are being deployed in warzones outside of the fiefdom of Knight-Champion Marius, by the Black Watch. The Equalizer has proven to be a nasty surprise to Man's enemies that have no experience in combating it. The Tau, in particular, were shocked during Operation MUSE WINTER, when they had become overconfident of their countermeasures and tactics against the Manticores and Hydras, and encountered the Equalizer ADV. Dozens of Tau Air Caste operators met their end on the snowy, ice-covered hellworld of Planta IV, at the hands of skilled Imperial patriots, and the Pattern 54 guns and Skyguard SAM system. The foul xenos space socialists were driven off of Holy soil after a grueling 13 month campaign, ending in 178909.M41.


End of File.

Thought For The Day: Ask not "Why kill the alien?", instead ask "Why not?"






Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/07/10 01:19:42


Post by: oldravenman3025




Quick update....


Managed to find the time to work a little more on the Phantom project. I hope to have the weapons hardpoints assembled and painted within the next day or two.. I also plan to have the cockpit area painted as well.


I'm wanting to add some more ordnance to the plane. I hope to be able to get some Forge World Hellstrikes in by the first of next month, to add to the already existing stock weapons.


As far as painting goes, it looks like it's going to all be the old fashioned way (by hand) or not at all. It's currently too humid to use rattle can paint for basing.


Anyway, here is a pic of the work so far. I'm going to order some more Tamiya putty, because the fit of the parts isn't the best in the world. So, there are gaps. But it's an old, cheap kit, so I was expecting it.


Pic:






More to come folks. Stay tuned.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/07/20 09:02:40


Post by: oldravenman3025




Update time.....



First off, I have some more supplies coming in. So, I can do a bit more work on some older projects nearing completion. Also, I got this in the other day:








It's going to be a while before I start it. I want to wrap up what I have going on now, before starting other stuff.



On to the Phantom project.....



On the undercarriage, I canted the landing gear struts a bit. The plan is to have the plane lifted in the rear, and throw together some ground crew personnel in the process of working on them (a bit of last minute stuff before a training mission for the plane's aircrew).






The first weapons cluster is completed and ready for painting. It's a slow process, since I have to wait for the glue on each individual part to dry good, before moving on to the next.


Here is a couple of (admittedly lousy, I'm no photographer) shots of the first cluster with the Phantom's aircrew:








Started on the second cluster. Don't mind the old Buddy L jeep. It's just a future project serving as a prop-up for drying glued parts for now.






I also managed to get the first base coat on the cockpit interior (once again, sorry for the poor picture quality).






Well that's it for now. More to come.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/07/20 22:27:18


Post by: Theophony



So close to a Dr. strangelove tribute


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/07/30 06:25:36


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Theophony wrote:

So close to a Dr. strangelove tribute



I guess the NBC detection vehicle and choice of Cold War-era jet kinda leans it that way, huh?



Anyway, update time!



Small supply drop:







I went with the Testors putty this time because it was cheaper than the Tamiya stuff, and I used it back in my scale aircraft modeling days with half-way decent results.





I also got some more Citadel paint and 'Ardcoat in for the tanks waiting for more attention:









The Phantom received my attention with the limited hobby time I've had of late. I finished assembling the final weapons cluster:








I then started sealing up a few gaps on the plane with the Testors:








I decided to try an experiment with the camo for the Phantom. I broke out the old masking tape:









And started cutting it into the pattern I wanted. It wasn't perfect. But any clean-up and touch-ups, I will do free-handed:








Next was the base coating of the primary hull color. I also took the time to paint what I wanted detail-wise in the cockpit:








I then added the pilot's area canopy pieces:









Next up, the second primary color base coat:








I removed the masking tape. Like I said, not perfect. But I expected to still have some free-hand work to do on it.










Here, I finished the canopy and starting a little painting of the gray areas of the camo pattern. I also based the vertical stabilizer and rudder in gray:








I worked on the paint for the canopy area and nose a bit, and other little odds and ends. I plan on painting another base coat on the skin and stabilizer next, with some more work on the canopy. As you can see, I DO NOT have a steady hand.


The work so far...........







Anyway, folks, that is it for now. There will be more to come......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/07/30 06:50:15


Post by: evildrcheese


Looking good so far!

EDC


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/08/12 22:47:19


Post by: oldravenman3025


 evildrcheese wrote:
Looking good so far!

EDC




Thanks for the kind feedback. It's much appreciated.




Update time.........



Did some more work on the MOBAT/Nighblade project. I'm getting closer to what I consider "finished". I painted up the IR spotlight, periscope viewports around the commander's hatch, commander's helmet visor, and commander's face. I also wrapped the base of the autocannon with a piece of camo netting I had left over from earlier.


I plan on drybrushing with some Necron Compound, and I'm still waiting on the pigments for the tracks from Forge World. Then, I'll call it good.








I also painted the lenses/viewports on the Type 61, in addition to the main headlights. Looking at the picture closely, more detail is needed with the black headlamp mounts. I'll probably need a brush for fine details, though.








On the Phantom project..........



I slapped another coat of Russ Grey and Administratum Grey on the upper airframe. The progress so far:







I also got in some Tamiya XF-2 Flat White for the bottom of the Phantom from Hobbylinc. As with the pigments for the MOBAT, I'm still waiting on my Hellstrike missile set from Forge World.








Well, it's not much progress. But any is better than none. More on the Phantom will be posted within the next few days. But the next update will be more fluff. This time the Wolverine and Type 61 will get some background.



And as always, comments, advice, and feedback are more than welcome.



More to come......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/08/13 00:18:21


Post by: shasolenzabi


Good to see you catching up, looks good to me!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/08/14 00:34:47


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Good to see you catching up, looks good to me!




Thanks for the positive feedback.




First off, the Forge World order finally came in today........









The Hellstrikes:








The unpacking:










A comparison between the Forge World Hellstrike sets, and the Revell-Monogram Sidewinders and Mk 82s that came with the kit:








And the soaking in warm, soapy water to clean the resin pieces. Will scrub them clean in a little bit.









And now on to some background for one of the projects: The Wolverine. But first off, some pics of the preliminary decal work that I did some time back, and didn't think to post. The transfers are from an old Testors/Italeri MiG-37B Ferret-E concept stealth fighter kit I had.


The photos:












The Koverra-Nante Pattern "Wolverine" Tactical Missile Carrier Vehicle (T-MCV).




In the late 36th Millennium, there were complaints by Black Watch Team Commanders about the lack of high-mobility, close-in missile fire support. Manticores were, more or less, mobile artillery units, and not well suited for close support of Black Watch Stormtroopers and powered armored Heavy Support Troops (HSTs). The various Patterns of Hunter-Killer missiles were seen as defensive OSK weapons. Once fired, they were gone. And man-portable systems, while ubiquitous, were not always the ideal solution in heavy fire scenarios.


When the 37th Millennium rolled around, increasing encounters with Ork forces close to the Holdfast galvanized Holdfast Strategic Defense Command into action at long last. After fact-finding discussions with analysts at Segmentum Command and the Departmento Munitorum, the SDC petitioned the Knight-Champion to open negotiations with the Forge World of Koverra for a new tactical missile support vehicle.


While the rabid orthodoxy that settled in on other Forge Worlds, especially Mars, hadn't permeated Koverra on every level of it's resident priesthood, ritual and religious contemplation had long become an ingrained part of Koverra's sect of the Machine Cult. Thus, negotiations were, at best, slow in going. Even with a respected man like the Knight-Champion, who tread the same ground as the Omnissiah, pushing the case for the Black Watch's top brass.


Negotiations were completed on favorable terms for both parties, and the long process of scouring Koverra's collection of STC printouts began. Finally, around 333.M37, a design was settled upon. The vehicle, dubbed "Wolverine" after an ancient, extinct Terran animal known for it's ferocity and bad temper, was based upon a cost-effective "militia tank" from the early centuries of the Dark Age of Technology. The vehicle, based on the few fragmentary records remaining regarding it's history, apparently remained in some use amongst the Federation's backwater worlds until the Men of Iron uprising and Fall of Man in the 25th Millennium.


It took an additional century and a half before production began, and the first examples were shipped out to Black Watch units from Koverra's vehicle parks. The first battle reports were promising and production was increased. Eventually, the Wolverine T-MCV was exported to Imperial Guard units in the Segmentum Tempestus and across the Galaxy to Cadia. To keep up with demand and possible future exports in the wider Imperium, the Archos-Magos at the time, Jan Korrd, authorized the Industrial World of Nante to begin production in it's tank factories in the mid-37th Millennium.


The Wolverine is classified as a heavy vehicle in current Imperial nomenclature, as mandated by the Departmento Munitorum. Weighing in at 89 tonnes, it possesses a sturdy, rugged superstructure, which adds to it's survivability on the modern battlefield. The heavy tracked vehicle's two-part hull design is protected by armor consisting of plas-steel, with underlying ferro-steel ballistic plating around the crew compartment and critical systems. The tread units and bogey wheels are made out of cast adamantium, with the front and rear drive bogeys being more durable than the four road wheels.


The T-MCV is powered by a large HL-ITN-440 V16 Multi-Fuel powerplant. This mighty engine is capable of burning most forms of combustible Prometheum fuels available in the Imperium, simplifying it's logistical footprint to a degree. It's capable of producing a maximum off-road speed of 25 kilometers per hour, and 38 kilometers per hour on smoother terrain like roads and tarmacs. Also, as a standard feature, the Wolverine has a bank of reserve batteries for use when the tank's powerplant is shutdown for whatever reason.


The Wolverine is armed with a turret mounted, dual rack Pattern 87M tactical missile launch system. Each "rack" (or "box", as some troops call them) contains six short-mid range missiles, each in it's own self-contained launch chamber. The missiles are Pattern 115 multi-purpose, solid-fueled missile units. The warhead type can vary according to mission needs. But the most common types are Krak, anti-personnel fragmentation, and penetrator warheads for bunker-busting. The launch system is tied in with the Wolverine's cogitator-array and auspex systems. Both provide targeting data to the vehicle's primary logic engine, which allows the gunner to evaluate and prioritize targets. The system is also capable of multi-targeting and volley fire if necessary.


The vehicle lacks any fixed secondary weapons. However, there is a mount near the commander's coupla for a heavy stubber, storm bolter, or a relic pintel mounted multi-laser. And the vehicle is designed for the addition of a Hunter-Killer Missile launch rail if desired or necessary.


Another feature of this combat vehicle in an emergency escape hatch on the bottom of the hull. It can also double as a maintenance access egress.


There are various access points and fuel/fluid vents and filling points on the tank's hull, and a sturdy engine access covering. In an unusual bit of foresight, the catches of these coverings are reinforced, staying closed even when the vehicle takes a direct hit from a heavy weapon. This is part of a safety system that prevents fires from getting to the self-sealing fuel tank bladders and fluid reservoirs.


The Wolverine has a generous external stowage capacity. Tents, packs, and tools are commonly carried into the field. The generous sized tool compartment and aid kit stowage allow for numerous extras for the crew, and any supporting infantry. One bit of stowage that always attracts curiosity from onlookers is the oversized tools on the hull. These are for use by combat and support walkers, or personnel in large powered armor suits. The large towing cleats on the fore and aft also allow the crew to carry spare tow lines, chains, or large hemp ropes. The tank is equipped with a cast tow hitch that is essentially part of the upper hull. It's proven sturdy and rigid enough to stand up to the strain of pulling Macharius Heavy Tanks, or in vehicle pairs, a single Baneblade.



For night fighting and security, the Wolverine comes standard with the ubiquitous Mars Pattern searchlight near the top hatch. Mounted near the external vox aerial, the light unit can be operated manually, or from inside the turret by a crew member.


The Wolverine T-MCV is operated by a four man crew: Commander, driver, gunner, and systems specialist. In the interests of flexibility, the crew is trained in aiding in the reloading of the missile launch units (which have to be loaded externally), and can do basic/emergency repairs. There is an internal access port to the engine compartment for use in an emergency and/or the crew can't exit the vehicle (hostile environment, enemy fire, etc).


The Wolverine has made a name for itself in the numerous campaigns and battles across the Imperium (and beyond) in the millennia since it's introduction. Still in production on both Koverra and Nante, most are found among the Black Watch brigades, and among some PDF forces in the Holdfast Imperialis. However, it's still fairly common among the Tallarn, Brimlock, Cadian, and Krieg regiments in numerous warzones across known space. While demand from the Munitorum quartermasters and pencil pushers has dipped somewhat in the last three centuries, it's still a treasured and useful unit among Guard regiments lucky enough to have them in their ranks. The most notable use among the Black Watch was during the Fan Long Insurgency that lasted from 505.M40 to 573.M40. Toward the end of the nearly seven decades of bloodshed, the Black Watch launched Operation PEACE GOLD under the command of the Knight-Champion himself. In that action, the Stormtroopers and vehicle units (including numerous Wolverines) of the Black Watch, supported by the flyers of the Imperial Navy's Holdfast Battlegroup, initiated "shock and awe" assaults in support of the XXXV, LIX, and CCII Catachan to end the uprising once and for all. Wolverines proved highly effective against the traitors' ad-hoc (but ingenious) fortified positions and hide-outs, using their deadly payloads to blast the enemy out of cover to be mowed down by lasgun and autogun fire from loyal forces. The intervention by PEACE GOLD forces, and superbly effective units like the Wolverine missile tank, is credited by Imperial savants for bringing a fast end to the traitorous rebellion against the rightful authority of the Emperor.


Thought for the Day: "To Question is to Doubt".




That's all for now. More to come.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/08/14 08:26:55


Post by: Camkierhi


Well nice to see some action, Phantom is looking great, and the weapon load out will look brilliant I think.

These tanks are pretty awesome, git some old stuff kicking about, got me itching. Great stuff.

Thanks for the fluffy bit too.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/08/14 21:43:40


Post by: shasolenzabi


Always good to have fluff for stuff


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/08/25 01:57:21


Post by: oldravenman3025


Camkierhi wrote:Well nice to see some action, Phantom is looking great, and the weapon load out will look brilliant I think.

These tanks are pretty awesome, git some old stuff kicking about, got me itching. Great stuff.

Thanks for the fluffy bit too.


shasolenzabi wrote:Always good to have fluff for stuff





Thanks, guys. It's always appreciated.




Quick update time......



The Phantom got some more attention. Did some touching up and started on the jet exhaust nozzles.









The Hellstrike Missiles assembled and ready for painting.







I started painting the weapons pylons and drop tanks. I can already see that I'm going to need more layers with this Tamiya paint than I would with Citadel.








The same with the Hellstrike Missiles/pylons.







MOBAT time, folks........




I used the Forge World Ash Grey weathering powder to attempt (key word here) to simulate volcanic ash and dust along the bottom of the vehicle. I concentrated on the bottom of the side armor skirts, motive system, bottom of the rear grill, and lower hull on the front. Here are the shots of the results.























Anyway, that's it for now. More to come........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/08/25 06:18:46


Post by: evildrcheese


Looks awesome.

EDC


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/08/25 19:53:12


Post by: shasolenzabi


F-4 Phantom is coming along nicely.

Tank is looking mean and ready for battle!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/08/25 23:29:24


Post by: oldravenman3025


evildrcheese wrote:Looks awesome.

EDC


shasolenzabi wrote:F-4 Phantom is coming along nicely.

Tank is looking mean and ready for battle!






Thanks guys. It's always, as usual, much appreciated.



Today's post is a little different. Instead of "update time", it's gonna be "opinion time".



I've been seeing people using HALO Warthogs for their armies in the gallery. The ones that looked the best, size-wise, were the McFarlane HALO 3, Series 1 toys. These examples are from a user going by the username of Ike. They look outstanding. The high-tech look of the M12 Warthog would fit in nicely with my Orders Eternia that I'm planning on building up, in addition to the Black Watch and various Holdfast PDF forces.


Here is a link to Ike's gallery of Warthogs:


http://www.dakkadakka.com/gallery/images-58466-30275_Warthog.html



Anyway, I ordered one through Amazon to evaluate. Payed 10.99 plus shipping. Got it in today.





Unpacked:







The first thing I noticed was the measurements I saw on Amazon's product description were pretty close to correct. This damned thing is tiny. Here is some size comparisons with current and future projects that are on the small side......



Top comparison: Timmie Toys armored car, Timmie M47/M48 toy tank, Takara 1/48 Crusher Joe Galleon, McFarlane Warthog, and Tamiya 1/35 Panzer II.






Top shot comparison: Armadillo and Warthog.






Some front comparisons:








I don't have any spare GeeDubs minis to test the crew areas of the Warthog. So, I used the next best thing: the figures from the 1/48 Revell-Monogram Phantom kit I'm working on.


Sorry for the craptastic photos. Passenger side:







Even with the bad pics, you can see that the Revell-Monogram figure doesn't sit flush. And they are slightly taller and slimmer than the 28mm "Heroic" Citadel minis, as seen in this shot with the aircrew standing figure, and my GW tank commander, in the Armadillo.





Here is the standing figure in the gun mount of the Warthog:






Personally, I think the GW/Citadel minis would actually work, even with the small size of these Warthog toys. But before I invest in more of these little jeeps, I wanted the opinions of others. What say you, Dakkanauts?


On another note, with the really nice detail, factory mud splatter, and paint job/weathering, if I use them, I'm keeping them stock except adding some Imperial insignia/heraldry and appropriate climate related details. They are just too damned nice to paint over, especially considering their low costs.


Looking forward to any responses, opinions, and advice. Much thanks in advance.


That's all for now. More to come.........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/08/30 00:51:16


Post by: shasolenzabi


Warthogs make for some nice IG fast attack cars, forgeworld makes similar cars, and a slightly bigger version.

Elysian Tauros


Elysian Tauros Venator


So the Warthog fits the Tauros well.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
In fact, methionks GW also liked the Warthog and made the Tauros like the SM Talon-GS resembles the Orca from Command and Conquer


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/08/30 02:43:37


Post by: Camkierhi


Methinks that for all their banging on about IP rights etc. GW are completely not above stealing ideas from everyone. Though difficult sometimes to say which came first.

Warthog is a perfect proxy. Even better for being good enough without needing much work. Did a buggy conversion myself some time ago. A £2 toy. But was a fair bit of work. I was really happy with the end result though. Actually got a couple metal Tauros somewhere.

Good ideas as always here. Will be something to see your army once done.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/08/30 03:47:07


Post by: shasolenzabi


 Camkierhi wrote:
Methinks that for all their banging on about IP rights etc. GW are completely not above stealing ideas from everyone. Though difficult sometimes to say which came first.

Warthog is a perfect proxy. Even better for being good enough without needing much work. Did a buggy conversion myself some time ago. A £2 toy. But was a fair bit of work. I was really happy with the end result though. Actually got a couple metal Tauros somewhere.

Good ideas as always here. Will be something to see your army once done.


Yeppers, they just make the pattern similar, then go all "gothic" on it.

Latest Deathwatch ship reminds me of something from Chronicles of Riddick" merc ship.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/08/30 05:59:32


Post by: evildrcheese


From the pics you've posted I think it should work. Difficult to say for certain without seeing some GW crew types incorporated into it. Before you invest in more you should 40k it up first, to see how it works out.

EDC


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/08/31 09:59:49


Post by: oldravenman3025


shasolenzabi wrote:Warthogs make for some nice IG fast attack cars, forgeworld makes similar cars, and a slightly bigger version.

Elysian Tauros


Elysian Tauros Venator


So the Warthog fits the Tauros well.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
In fact, methionks GW also liked the Warthog and made the Tauros like the SM Talon-GS resembles the Orca from Command and Conquer





Yep. At some point, I might pick up one of each. Unfortunately, one of them is listed as being "temporarily out of stock". And with Forge World, that means there is no telling when it's going to be restocked. Just look how long the Destroyer, and one of the Centaurs, have been "temporarily" out of stock.




Camkierhi wrote:Methinks that for all their banging on about IP rights etc. GW are completely not above stealing ideas from everyone. Though difficult sometimes to say which came first.

Warthog is a perfect proxy. Even better for being good enough without needing much work. Did a buggy conversion myself some time ago. A £2 toy. But was a fair bit of work. I was really happy with the end result though. Actually got a couple metal Tauros somewhere.

Good ideas as always here. Will be something to see your army once done.




Much thanks for the positive feedback. If it's in your gallery, I'll check it out (if I haven't seen it already, there is far too much good stuff on Dakka to be able to remember it all).




evildrcheese wrote:From the pics you've posted I think it should work. Difficult to say for certain without seeing some GW crew types incorporated into it. Before you invest in more you should 40k it up first, to see how it works out.

EDC




Yeah, you're right. It might pay to crew it with Citadel minis before I buy a slew of them. But that's going to be a while yet, unless I get a wild hair up my ass and decide to jump right into it sooner rather than later. I've already set the Phantom aside for a couple of days (I'm getting frustrated with the Tamiya flat white), and started painting on the Zeta Plus Gundam's main cannon on a whim.



And speaking of frustrations and disasters, I went ahead an applied the transfers to the Galleon (aka the "Sandpaper on Treads"-Coutesy of the Rust-O-Leum Corporation). I put some Citadel 'Ardcoat on the spots where they would be applied, and afterwards "sealed" them in with the same. Personally, I consider MicroSol and MicroSet to be a waste of money for anything but a narrow range of circumstances. I was afraid that I would need both because of the paint's rough texture. But I took a chance and it worked. Now, the only thing left is weathering, maybe some mud, and dry brushing in an attempt to salvage a bit more from this mess (I already went over it with some Vallejo Black Wash some time back). Then I'll seal it with Krylon matte varnish and say to hell with it. As rare as these kits are nowadays, and the scalper's prices for most of them on Ebay when they do pop up, it's probably going to be a long time before I find anymore at this price point (forty bucks). So, I'm pretty pissed off at the botched base coating. In hindsight, I should have soaked the can in some hot water before using it.



The main transfers are from Forge World. These particular Imperial Guard transfers are no longer available. But because they are not cut to shape (the whole damned sheet is like one big transfer), and the minor annoyance involved with them as a result, I wouldn't consider it a great loss if it wasn't for the fact that Imperial Guard transfers are hard to come by, unless you buy complete damned kits from GW. It's even worse for those who want to build an Elysian army, since that sheet was discontinued too (it's my understanding that Forge World kits don't come with decals).


The small red stenciling are from that Testors-Italeri Russian "Ferret-E" concept stealth fighter kit, the same one I used for the Wolverine's stencils.


Anyway, here are some pics.











Anyway, that's it for now. More to come.....


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/09/10 07:32:52


Post by: oldravenman3025




Sorry for the late update. Let's get to business, shall we?



First up is the Panzer II.


Using a bit of sprue from the Galleon kit, I fashioned a launch rail for the Panzer's turret. The "Hunter-Killer Missile" is a rocket from a G.I. Joe action figure set. Also in this shot is the Gundam Sentinel's beam cannon. I mentioned some time that I started painting on it. As you can see, my lazy ass hasn't made much progress on that one.







On a side note, here is another addition to my now-long list of future projects: A New Ray 1/32 radio controlled King Tiger. I'll wipe it down, detail it, and do some weathering/environmental effects. For a cheap Chinese RC toy, they did a pretty good job on reproducing late-war German camo. I'll also add some stuff to it. Just haven't decided what route I will take in that area yet.






Now for a special surprise. A spur of the moment deal. The H.I.S.S. tank.


I cleaned it up and used Goo Gone to remove the old sticker adhesive from the tank. I then started on the turret. I cut pieces from the "No Trespassing" sign to use as turret "flooring".









After a couple of days of work, here is what I have so far. I only used what I had on hand or could scrounge. It's still a work in progress.


I used Loc-Tite super glue due to the weight of the parts and composition of the various components. I only used Testors plastic cement on the rifle and bipod stowed in the turret.


I super-glued the drive unit/tracks back onto the bottom of the main hull (it broke apart a long time ago). I also glued down the canopy. I had to glue the guns to a fixed position, since the piece that stabilized them also broke years ago.



On this side, I used a piece of sprue from my Citadel spare parts set, and a missile from an old G.I. Joe Cobra Trubble Bubble flying pod, to make a Hunter-Killer missile assembly (I filled in the attachment slot on the missile with Testors putty). The large stowage pack is an old G.I. Joe action figure backpack, that I cut and filed down the piece that you attached the pack to the figure with.







Front shot of the tank:









Here I used the old smoke launchers from the Equalizer. I think I will add the photo-etched chains from the Type 61's smoke launchers that I didn't use before. They're kinda small in comparison. But it will add a bit of detail, I think.






Here is the rear shot of the WIP: The red tool box is from an old AMT 1957 Chevy Bel-Air kit, the stowage kit on the turret is a G.I. Joe action figure backpack, the auxiliary fuel tank is from the Citadel spare parts set, and the vox aerial is from a G.I. Joe Dreadnok Thunder Machine. If you look closely, you can see that I glued down a couple of square pieces from leftover sprue just under the gun assembly as bases. Then, I shaved down the handles for the machine guns, and attached some "power cables", made from tubing from a G.I. Joe action figure set, from the guns to the two little bases ("power cable attachment points").







Top shot. The silver round doohickey....I don't know where it came from. All I know is that it made for a decent coupla. After making the hatch from the "No Tresspassing" sign, I used a small bit of sprue to make a handle for said hatch. The stand-ins for turret mounted autocannons are heavy machine guns from action figures (G.I. Joe knock-offs that you could buy at the time). I used more sprue to make a rifle rack. In the rack is a Kar 98k from the Tamiya Panzer II kit, with a M299 bipod from the Type 61 Bandai kit attached. I didn't have anything small enough to make a scope. But it still works as a DMR to shoot Tau from the turret with.







Well, that's it for now. More updates to come.



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/09/10 14:31:53


Post by: evildrcheese


Funky conversions. I'm digging it.

EDC


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/09/10 20:52:26


Post by: shasolenzabi


Stuff is looking good there! Sad about the Tauros kits, But the Warthog stands in for the Tauros very well. Tauros Venator is more a truck with the triple axles.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/09/12 19:07:56


Post by: oldravenman3025




Thanks for the positive feedback. It is very much appreciated.




SUPPLY DROP!



Got some Archer transfers in. WWII Heer divisional markings.








Also, found this cool little kit at Hobbylinc. It only cost me $8.64 plus shipping. It's what I assume to be a Russian kit. STC Start 1/35 scale BM-8-24 "Katyusha" Rocket Launcher on a Soviet T40 light tank chassis.








Instruction sheet. The text is mostly, if not all, in Russian.







Other side of the sheet. It has a correct sprue map and everything looks to be numbered correctly. The pictorial instructions are not overly cluttered. Which is good, because I can't read Russian.







The hull and tracks. Some flash, but far less than what I expected from such an inexpensive kit.







Small parts and transfers. The parts look okay and all there. The transfers look a little iffy, though.







If this kit isn't too much of a pain in the ass, I'll try to get a couple of more for a battery. It will make for a nice PDF vehicle.



Anyway, that's all for now. More to come.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/09/12 19:43:03


Post by: shasolenzabi


Light tank /missile launcher looks promising, good luck with it.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/09/16 03:05:16


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Light tank /missile launcher looks promising, good luck with it.




Thanks. Since I finished the H.I.S.S. tank. I started on it, since it appears to be a fairly simple kit.



Now for tonight's update.......



First off, supply drop. I got some Elmer's white glue for weathering projects, and I was running low on Loc-Tite for the H.I.S.S.









I then went back to work. First off was the "heavy stubbers" and some extra lights for the tank. I cut the actions and grips from a couple of G.I. Joe action figure machine guns. Using a 383 Chevy head cover from an old AMT Bel-Air kit, and some spare headlamps from a G.I. Joe AWE Striker, I made a fog light unit for the lower hull.








I then mounted them to the tank. The "heavy stubbers" were attached in a couple of convenient recesses in the hull, below the pilot's compartment:








Another shot:








I then used some photo etched chains (for the smoke launchers) from the Type 61 kit. I added them to the smoke discharger units scavenged from the Equalizer. As you all may recall, I went with the Citadel smoke canisters on the Equalizer, because I was missing one of the Hasbro sets. As for the work here, it was a pain in the ass and I made something of a gom of it. I hate small PE parts. This is what I have to look forward to with the JGSDF Chemical Recon Vehicle when I start on it soon. Ugh.



Sorry for the craptastic pics. I'm not a very good photographer.







The ladders were less of a hassle. I used sprue from various kits (mostly from the Galleon and Patlabor kits) to make them. As for the ladder mounted on the side of the rear platform, I originally wanted a two-section slide-down ladder, similar to the one on the back of the Bandai Type 61 MBT. But I settled on an easier single piece ladder.







I used some sprue to make a coupla for the front of the upper hull, and made a hatch and some inner coupla armor from the "No Trespassing" sign (that I still have plenty of). Also, using medical gauze and bread ties, I made a roll of camo netting. Rounding it off is the photo-recon camera unit from the Phantom kit, that I used as a sensor pod and laser rangefinder/targeting unit (the grey piece glued to the side of the clear canopy).









I wasn't happy with how the large handle stood out on the front hatch. I also didn't like how the front coupla looked like a shot trap. So, I cut the handle down on the front hatch, and cut some transparent (and easily bent) plastic from the Warthog's packaging, to make a couple of armored plates at the front of the coupla.












I then used some old pieces from an ATM card to make the headlights, and the grill between said headlights. I wanted to stick as close to the original design as possible, since I like the early 1980's "automotive" look. The pieces are not cut perfectly to size, but it works for me.


In this shot, you can see the transparent "armored plates" for the coupla a little better. I've since trimmed the tops of the plates down a bit, so they don't stand out so much:







And the H.I.S.S. is complete, except for the painting, weathering, decals, etc. It looks clumsy and a little like crap. But once painted, it will look a lot better in my opinion (going for the same winter scheme as the Equalizer ADV).



Except for the need to pick up some more Loc-Tite super glue, everything with this project was what I had on hand. Not too shabby.




On another note, future project news......




I dug out and cleaned up my old G.I. Joe Triple-T tank. I'm lucky that all of the parts are still there, and the only thing broken is the little joystick in the pilot's cockpit. You can see the spot where it's broken in the photograph. But it's no big deal, considering what I have in mind for it.






Right now I'm working on the STC Start BM-8-24/T40 kit, since it's a fairly simple kit. I'll post some updates on that one soon, in addition to more on the Phantom's and Gundam Sentinel's paint work.



Anyway, that's it for now. More to come...........




Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/09/16 05:10:23


Post by: shasolenzabi


HISS Tank wants banana?


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/09/16 05:20:56


Post by: evildrcheese


Oo I think there's a lot of potential in the triple t tank.

EDC


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/10/03 16:03:15


Post by: oldravenman3025




Yeah, I have a bad habit of leaving fruit on the table. I also have a bad habit of continuing my hobby work on the same table, instead of creating a dedicated workspace for painting and modeling,



As for the Triple-T, I'm trying to figure out the best way to construct a cockpit for it that fits well with the lines of the vehicle. Still thinking on that one.



I know I promised a more extensive update, but unfortunately real life has a bad tendency to cut into hobby time. However, I'll share a few things in a brief update.



First off, I started thinking about that can of Rust-o-Leum that I used with that semi-disaster of the Galleon project. I recalled something I read on Dakka about issues with rattle can paint, and how you can set a can of paint in a pan of warm/hot water for an hour to cure any issues with gritty finishes or splatter issues. So, I decided to give it a shot and try it on the Panzer II as a test, since I was going for a gray base color on that model anyway. Here is the results:





Much, MUCH better than the results I got with the Galleon. I learn something everyday.



Next up is the BM-8-24 rocket artillery. I've been doing a little work on this kit. Other than having to deal with the flash (it's a cheap beginner's kit), and some issues with glue control (which prompted me to order some Testor's non-toxic in a controlled applicator), it's been going well. I've gotten more done since I took these pics, but I have no photos on that work yet.


The lower hull, as of the time these pics were taken:







As you can see, part of the amphibious assembly wasn't included with the kit (probably because the T40s used by the Soviets for these conversions lacked that feature). But I used them anyway, since it fit's into the 40k backstory I created for this model kit.



The upper hull:









One thing I discovered is that this kit has extra parts to allow you to build a light tank instead of a mobile rocket battery. Unfortunately for anybody looking for a historical accurate production T40 in this kit, the main gun and assembly is for the T30 prototypes as opposed to the production models. As for me, it's no big deal, since accuracy isn't a must for my needs.



The turret assembly:









The pistol port covers:








The turret ring and machine gun:








And now, for another parade of future project subjects!



A couple of G.I. Joe "Whirlwind Twin Battle Guns".









A G.I. Joe "Desert Fox 6 W.D.". I need to repair that one missile hardpoint on the right side.









A G.I. Joe "V.A.M.P."







A Cobra "Rattler Ground Attack Jet". The gatling cannon needs to be repaired.












A G.I. Joe "PAC/RAT Mobile Gun". Still have to take it apart and clean it up.









An old Tonka front-end loader for a future Imperial Navy diorama. Still needs a bit more cleaning and a good sanding down.









An old Fisher-Price toy ambulance that will become a military ambulance at some point:







I see a lot of potential with this inflatable Zodiac-style boat. Especially if I can find a replacement outboard for it:







Anyway, that's it for now. More to come folks!




Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/10/15 03:50:02


Post by: oldravenman3025




Long overdue update. We just got power back day before yesterday, and the cable/internet was down most of the day yesterday. The hurricane really threw things for a loop around here. One good thing to come out of it was that I had some peace and quiet to work on my models some (during the daylight hours during the five day long power outage).


First off the STC Start 1/35 scale BM-8-24 "Katyusha" on the T-40 Chassis........



Here I finished up the frame for the launcher's rails.....








Then I worked toward finishing up installing the track links. They were a pain in the ass.







The last few links. Because of a slight screw-up in the spacing (barely noticeable after base coating with black Krylon), I had one link left over. I ended up gluing it to the hull as a spare.








The completed tracks. I then glued the upper and lower hull pieces together:






Next up was the Citadel dozer blade:








Then came the assembly of the 82mm rockets. It was fairly easy and quick:






The rear blast shield (I guess that's what it is):








Some shots of the completed vehicle before spraying on the base coat/prime, with some extras. Namely, an old G.I. Joe action figure ruck (in hindsight, I should have used a slightly smaller one), a Tamiya MG34 stowed, a Tamiya ammo box (for the MG34), and a machete from a G.I. Joe action figure (standing in as a stowed power sword).








Yesterday, I managed to luck out on the humidity in my area, and was able to base/prime the vehicle with Krylon Fusion Gloss Black:









The base coat came up fairly good. It wasn't overly blemished by the "glazing" effect the Loc-Tite superglue had on the plastic used to mold this kit (visible as white smudges in some of the previous photos).



Next up, I went back to painting. Here is the work so far on the Gundam Sentinel's main gun, and some extra paint layers on the Phantom's warload. The Tamiya Flat White (XF-2) isn't working out as well as I hoped:







Here is a shot of the (nearly) completed Hellstrike missiles from Forge World. I need to apply another coat on the warheads. Also, on the bottom corner of the shot is a peek at my initial progress on the Mk 82 bombs (in black):







Now to wrap this post up with some extras......



Supply drop:






I went with this type of container for the Testors because I need better glue control than the standard tube offers.



And a new model to assemble later:








And some more G.I. Joe stuff to showcase. I managed to salvage enough parts from two units to make a complete PAC/RAT Missile Launcher:







The PAC/RAT Flamethrower (from the same 1983 line as the PAC/RAT Missile Launcher, and PAC/RAT Machine Gun unit, respectively). I still need to clean this one up a bit:









This one is a Cobra Command S.N.A.K.E. from the 1983 G.I. Joe toy line. I plan on using it as part of my Phantom diorama, with the gun (as a laser wielder) and claw:







Here is another big vehicle from Hasbro's 1986 G.I. Joe line-The H.A.V.O.C.. Of course, it needs cleaning up after years in storage before I work on bringing it into the Emperor's service.


Can you you say "Big-ass mobile H.Q. command center"?





One of the missiles on the other side is missing. If I can't find it, I'll have to find a replacement on Ebay.




Well, folks, that's all for now. More to come later on.......






Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/01 13:36:34


Post by: oldravenman3025



A quick, but overdue update. But nowadays, I take it one day at a time.



I managed to get the Type 97 Chi Ha assembled. It went off without much trouble (as expected from a Tamiya kit). I'll still have to add some putty to a gap on the front of the vehicle, where the top and bottom hull meets. Here is the bone stock build:






You can see the gap that needs filling here:











I have some stuff on order. One of the items is a Citadel lascannon assembly I found on E-bay for cheap. It's going to be mounted co-ax to the "battle cannon" in the turret. I also want to add some stowage, and maybe make another camo net roll for the vehicle. And of course, gotta have the hunter-killer missile. I haven't decided if I want to use a Citadel missile, or just throw one together from my old G.I. Joe/aircraft model bits. Throwing one together would be the cheaper option.




One thing I like about these old Tamiya kits is that they include some history, technical stuff, and organizational info concerning the model in question. I know it doesn't pertain to what I'm building it for. But it's still a nice touch.






I finally got around to starting the Trumpeter JGSDF Chemical Reconnaissance Vehicle. It has a lot of detail for a twenty dollar kit, including photo-etching. At 248 pieces, it's going to be a slower than normal build.



Here is a couple of shots of the wheels assembled. They are replicas of Bridgestone tires (using the name brand is a nice bit of detail). I don't plan on sanding the lettering off of them for the sake of 40k. For, in the grim darkness of the far future, the Imperium chooses Bridgestone.







Preliminary work on the lower hull and suspension:







And the lower hull completed. I still hate photo-etching, even though the PE on this kit isn't as aggravating as the Bandai Type 61's PE parts:








Supply drop. I also ordered another STC Start BM-8-24/T40 kit, because it has the parts to build a "T30" light tank, the prototype of the T40, which is the chassis that this mobile launcher is based on. I also needed some brown paint and a dry brush.







Moving on, I started the winter camo on the Panzer II. It's still a work in progress. With this Tamiya flat white, it'll take several coats to get it close to how I want it.


Pics:









I also managed to get the Phantom's weapons finished, painting wise. Next, I will concentrate on finishing the base coat on the bottom of the fuselage. I'm over half-done with that step:







And finally, I did the detailing on the Wolverine. I still need to find some white Aquila transfers and weather/wash the vehicle. I may also add some mud to the tracks (something I'm strongly leaning toward).









In addition to the lascannon parts for the Type 97, I also have some Necron Compound on the way to finish the "Nightblade" (MOBAT). Also, I have some Eisenkern Stormtroopers on order from Dreamforge's webstore, so I can start some work on the infantry.



Anyway, folks, that's all I have for now. More to come.......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/01 23:53:13


Post by: shasolenzabi


Someone's been a very busy boy!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/05 21:19:54


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Someone's been a very busy boy!




Not busy enough, it seems. But some progress has been made. And any is better than none at all, I guess.



I did get my Necron Compound in. And I went to work drybrushing the MOBAT. I might have gotten a little too crazy with it. But it had the side effect of adding some wear on a few flat areas.












And far as I'm concerned, the "Nightblade" is finished. I might get another MOBAT off Ebay at some point in the future if the price is right.



The lascannon assembly I found on Ebay for cheap. Too bad it's too big for what I had in mind. So, I'll put it aside to use for something else, and go back to the drawing board. I'll figure out something else I can use as a turret co-ax weapon on the Type 97.








I did start painting a bit on the mobile "Katyusha". Still have a ways to go, though.









I'm still waiting on my Eisenkern Stormtroopers. I'm expecting them in this coming Monday or Tuesday.



Well, that's it for now. More to come.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/05 23:10:02


Post by: shasolenzabi


Well, as you will see, the Eisenkern are great miniatures! they come like Tamiya style soldiers, just smaller and you will love the crisp details and options.

Necron compound made that MOBAT look good, so yeah, Nightblade looks great

Katyusha looking to be a real heart stealer of a little tank!

Oh yeah GW oversized weapons can only ever be main weapons of a 1/35 scale kit, never coaxials, sadly. :(

But all looking good so far, just got paint drop early today, and some miniatures as well, have to snap pics and upload myself.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/11 02:13:16


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Well, as you will see, the Eisenkern are great miniatures! they come like Tamiya style soldiers, just smaller and you will love the crisp details and options.

Necron compound made that MOBAT look good, so yeah, Nightblade looks great

Katyusha looking to be a real heart stealer of a little tank!

Oh yeah GW oversized weapons can only ever be main weapons of a 1/35 scale kit, never coaxials, sadly. :(

But all looking good so far, just got paint drop early today, and some miniatures as well, have to snap pics and upload myself.




I finally got them in today. The quality is every bit as good as you said. The molding is outstanding.







On another note, the Armadillo got a bit more attention after a long period of neglect. It's still very much a work in progress.








More to come.......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/11 02:43:06


Post by: shasolenzabi


Armadillo looks good, and glad you like the stormtroopers, I liked them so much I have three of the heavy weapon sets, the command squad, and the panzerjeagers and loads of regular stormers, and the 3 squads of heavy armored knight troopers, the one leviathan, 3 Hanomags, 1 with rockets, the other turned into the mobile cannon. I could not help myself.

Nice thing about the eisenkern plastics is they work with the Testors' lemong scented glue (non-toxic btw).


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/11 11:37:14


Post by: evildrcheese


Nice work on the Armadillo.

EDC


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/11 13:17:31


Post by: JeffyP


Very cool tanks.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/12 16:59:28


Post by: Camkierhi


Looking brilliant bud, really nice effect on the paint.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/13 15:55:26


Post by: oldravenman3025




Thank you all for the kind words and feedback. It's always very much appreciated.



On the subject of the Armadillo.......



I was watching a video on Youtube from Andy's Hobby Headquarters channel (I'm a subscriber). It was a vid where Andy assembled and painted up a Tamiya Matilda infantry tank from the North Africa Campaign. In the video, he demonstrated an easy method of applying chipping effects on a desert paint scheme. I decided to try it myself.


I mixed up some Citadel Abbadon Black and Tamiya XF-10 Flat Brown, and applied it to the edges of the vehicle. I also applied to areas where there would be metal friction and minor bump damage (like Sentinel power lifters bumping up against the launch tubes while reloading).

Here is the end results. Feedback and advice is always welcome.










Sorry for the poor lighting. It's overcast here this morning.


That's it for now. More to come.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/13 21:16:55


Post by: shasolenzabi


Looking decent! I would lightly smudge the front of the launcher tubes to show the burn from the rockets leaving.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Looking decent! I would lightly smudge the front of the launcher tubes to show the burn from the rockets leaving.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/19 05:18:52


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Looking decent! I would lightly smudge the front of the launcher tubes to show the burn from the rockets leaving.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Looking decent! I would lightly smudge the front of the launcher tubes to show the burn from the rockets leaving.




In all likelyhood, I'll go that route. But I want to use soot/jet exhaust pigments to simulate that, in order to avoid completely obscuring the chipping work I did on the launch tubes. I hate wasting paint.



I painting up some stuff in the commander's area. But looking at the pic closely, I'll need to do some touch-ups on the vehicle commander:






On another note, I've been working a bit more on assembling the JGSDF CRV:







Anyway, that's it for now. More to come later.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/19 21:48:18


Post by: shasolenzabi


Your motor pool is nicely varied!

I hear ya on the soot concept, As long as you are happy with the work, that is what matters.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/23 03:51:30


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Your motor pool is nicely varied!

I hear ya on the soot concept, As long as you are happy with the work, that is what matters.




True. But I still like to get input. Somebody might bring up something I missed or bring a new idea to the table.



The work on the JGSDF CRV is still ongoing. The fit of Trumpeter kits are usually very good, so I assume I miscalculated somewhere and didn't sand down something enough. Oh, well. That's what putty and green stuff is for. To fill in the gaps and holes.













I lucked up, and ran across a piece of an old 1980's vintage Transformer toy in all of my old junk in storage. It looks like I'll get my co-ax "lascannon" after all.







I went ahead and attached it to the vehicle tonight. Not too bad, I think.









Well, that's it for now. More to come.......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/23 03:56:36


Post by: shasolenzabi


So, what will that new weapon on the Chi-Ha be?


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/23 04:11:25


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
So, what will that new weapon on the Chi-Ha be?




Co-ax lascannon riding sidecar to the "light battle cannon". A little something to supplement the main gun in the light-to-medium anti-armor role. The three heavy stubbers are the supplemental anti-personnel weapons to the battle cannon.


This is going to be primarily a PDF "infantry tank" designed to support the boots on the ground, as opposed to a full-on battle tank like the Leman Russ. In that vein, I may add a Hunter-Killer Missile rail somewhere on the vehicle.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/23 06:25:10


Post by: evildrcheese


Looks good. Nice work as ever.

EDC


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/23 06:32:07


Post by: shasolenzabi


 oldravenman3025 wrote:
 shasolenzabi wrote:
So, what will that new weapon on the Chi-Ha be?




Co-ax lascannon riding sidecar to the "light battle cannon". A little something to supplement the main gun in the light-to-medium anti-armor role. The three heavy stubbers are the supplemental anti-personnel weapons to the battle cannon.


This is going to be primarily a PDF "infantry tank" designed to support the boots on the ground, as opposed to a full-on battle tank like the Leman Russ. In that vein, I may add a Hunter-Killer Missile rail somewhere on the vehicle.



Ah, so a support tank, lighter armor of say 12 or 13 front glacis plate? so many stubbers, but it was well set for MGs that tank was.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/25 05:46:17


Post by: oldravenman3025


evildrcheese wrote:Looks good. Nice work as ever.

EDC




Thanks, cap'n. I appreciate it.




shasolenzabi wrote:
 oldravenman3025 wrote:
 shasolenzabi wrote:
So, what will that new weapon on the Chi-Ha be?




Co-ax lascannon riding sidecar to the "light battle cannon". A little something to supplement the main gun in the light-to-medium anti-armor role. The three heavy stubbers are the supplemental anti-personnel weapons to the battle cannon.


This is going to be primarily a PDF "infantry tank" designed to support the boots on the ground, as opposed to a full-on battle tank like the Leman Russ. In that vein, I may add a Hunter-Killer Missile rail somewhere on the vehicle.



Ah, so a support tank, lighter armor of say 12 or 13 front glacis plate? so many stubbers, but it was well set for MGs that tank was.





Pretty much on the money. It's sturdy. But it can't the frontal hits that a Russ can take.


The number of heavy stubbers is a bit more than the typical Imperial standard (much like the Macharius). But they have a certain charm all of their own.




On another note......


The Galleon is pretty much done, except perhaps a hit of Krylon matte to get rid of the shiny 'Ardcoat spots around the decals. First off, the chipping and paint scratching effects with some Abaddon Black/Tamiya XF-10 Flat Brown mixture (After a dab of Altdorf Guard Blue on the headlights).








Then the light mud effects. I used a mixture of Elmer's white school glue and Forge World weathering powder:










The the dust effects with Forge World weathering powder (or pigments, if you prefer). It's nice and nasty now.











What started out as a disaster with the priming turned into a half-ass decent end product. At least, it's good enough for the tabletop.



Anyway, that's it for now. More to come........



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/25 07:42:43


Post by: shasolenzabi


Galleon looks all dirty and dusty, well done!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/25 23:23:53


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Galleon looks all dirty and dusty, well done!



Much thanks. I will say that it was a worry for a while, considering the normal cost of these models on the Ebay scalpers market. I just lucked up getting this one for the price I got it for.


On to other stuff......


Did some more painting on the Katyusha:









Still a work in progress, of course.



Anyway, that's it for now. The next couple of posts will probably be some background fluff on the Armadillo and Galleon.


More to come, folks......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/26 09:02:37


Post by: Camkierhi


All looking brilliant bud. Nice weathering.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/28 02:04:04


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
All looking brilliant bud. Nice weathering.




Thanks, boss. I'm glad you're digging it.





I did manage to start assembling the stormtroopers earlier today. I didn't get to finish them. But there is always tomorrow.









I had forgot that I still had a couple of sprues from a 1980's vintage Testors/Italeri "Ferret-E" model kit. The 1/72 scale missiles are just about right for my needs:







This is about the only place on the vehicle to mount the missile and an improvised launch rail.



(Sorry about the craptastic photograph)








I had to make a run to the local dollar store tonight for some Loc-Tite superglue. I was a bit pissed at first, thinking they were out of what I needed. But I lucked up and found the last two packs at the bottom of a display, near the cash register in the check-out line. Yay.








Anyway, that it for now. More to come........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/28 13:07:17


Post by: shasolenzabi


I figured the HK and rail would have to go to that plate on the hull of the Chi-Ha!

Katyusha tank is very nice!

Glad to see the start on the stromies!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/28 20:59:05


Post by: Theophony


The storm troopers are such a great kit, just don't cut all the parts off the sprue and then try and assemble them. There are matching sets which you won't be able to figure out later.

GIJoe tanks looking excellent by the way.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/29 00:58:38


Post by: oldravenman3025




Thanks for the encouraging feedback and advice. As always, it's always welcome and appreciated.



A brief update....


I went ahead and mounted the Hunter-Killer missile. I also rolled up a small piece of medical gauze and tied it with old pieces of bread ties. I then mounted it on the other side for stowed camo netting.









I started working on the Timmee Toys M47/M48 tank project. I used some more cuts from the dollar store "No Tresspassing" sign to complete the lower hull (easier to bend). And lastly, sealed the deal with pieces cut to shape (half-assed to shape, more like) from one of those fake junk mail credit cards. The ones that the credit card companies love sending in the mail all the damned time. At least it's good for something besides filling up the trash can, or putting wear and tear on "Milhouse" (my paper shredder; named after Richard "Tricky Dick" Nixon).


The pics of the work so far:







Anyway, that's it for now. More to come folks......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/29 07:01:55


Post by: shasolenzabi


Chi-Ha is looking better!

Can't wait to see what that toy conversion ends up like!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/11/29 22:46:27


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Chi-Ha is looking better!

Can't wait to see what that toy conversion ends up like!





Thank you.


I have ideas formulating on the direction I'm going with the Timmee Toys tank. It's definitely going to be a light-weight, with an eye toward the reconnaissance role.


I did some more assembling on the stormtroopers. I'm taking it at a pace to decide on poses, arms, etc. options and to let the glue dry before moving to the next step (because the minis are small and my hand isn't). I'm also heeding Theo's warning about going snip-crazy on the sprues, and losing track of what goes where with some of the parts.







More to come folks......



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/12/05 05:40:12


Post by: oldravenman3025





Update time. This time the subject will be the Timmee Toys toy M47/48 tank.....



First off, I cut off the barrel of an old gun for a G.I. Joe action figure. Then I did a little cutting around the commander's machine gun copula and mounted said piece as a "counts-as" flamer. I also used an old depth charge from a G.I. Joe Killer Whale hovercraft as an auxiliary fuel tank.
















Sorry for the fuzzy quality of some of the pics.



Next was the side armor skirts. I made these from what was on hand. In this case, pieces of that "No Trespassing" sign from the dollar store that I still have plenty of.



Photos (the first one is fuzzy):












For the next fuzzy, crap photograph, I cut down the four half-moon stubs molded on the bottom of the tracks to protect them from wearing down too fast (courtesy of rough kids, it's actually really simple and clever). I'll have to use a steel shop file to sand them down some more, since fingernail emory boards won't do the trick.







Since this an old-school cheap plastic toy, there is a lot of hollow space. In this shot, you can see where I sealed off the opening underneath the main gun with a strip of "armor":








Next up, I used a piece of "twin-peg" sprue as the base for the vox aerials. Using a punch bit and a multi-tool, I made a little hole in each "peg". Then I cut some plastic tie, and superglued them into the holes with Loc-Tite. Bam. I have dual antennas.







It was time for the annoying part: sealing up the bottom of the turret from highly visible rear. Using more of the "No Trespassing" sign, I cut out a rough shape to match that of the rear turret and glued it down. Here is the piece before installation:








Using a piece of old plastic card and sprue, I made a bottom hatch:








Here a made a couple improvised headlight armor coverings with what was left from cutting out the armored side skirts. You can also see what I call the "Heavy Crew Stowage Pack" on the side of the turret:








Side shot with the "Heavy Crew Stowage Pack":









In this shot, you can see the stowed weapon (an MP40 from the Tamiya Panzer II kit). After securing the weapon itself, I made a security "clamp" for it out of what was left from the tie used to make the antennas, and attached it over the MP40.








Top shot. You can better see the "clamp" for the SMG (autogun) and headlight coverings here.








Here is the spot where the large roll of camo netting will be stowed. You can also see a couple of small leather bundles from the Tamiya Panzer II kit (one on top of the commander's machine gun copula, the other just right of the Heavy Crew Stowage Pack):











Side shot. Here you can also see some "camo netting" draped over the main gun (a counts-as "autocannon"):








Final shot for tonight, from the front:








This is still a work in progress. But it's a quick, simple project that has gone by fairly fast so far. I might even get a chance to finish it by New Years, if I don't set it aside for something else for a bit.


That's all for now. More to come.........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/12/05 10:14:15


Post by: shasolenzabi


Interesting, scale pic with a soldier maybe for size reference?


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/12/05 12:45:05


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Interesting, scale pic with a soldier maybe for size reference?




Sure. Here's a shot with one of the Stormtroopers and the "Pattern 47-48 Light Reconnaissance Tank"






Another angle. Sorry for the pic being blurry. I'm no photographer.







Final shot. A MUCH BETTER picture. This time I added the 1/35 scale Tamiya Panzer II in for reference:








Obviously, the Stormtrooper in full battle-rattle will have a hard time getting into the vehicle, unless he crawls under the tank and enters via the emergency hatch (and he'll be getting REALLY close to the tankers inside because of the cramped conditions). But I envision this "light scout tank" to have a three man crew, that can squeeze through the hatch on the commander's machine gun copula, to mount up. And at most, they'll have a helmet w/comm unit, flak vest, and protective leggings, as opposed to carpace armor and a respiration/power unit on their backs.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/12/05 13:54:22


Post by: shasolenzabi


Very nice! it is good sized for your army.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/12/07 21:50:06


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Very nice! it is good sized for your army.




Much appreciated, brosef. I'm glad you like it.




Update time, folks......




First off, I cut the scope off of an old G.I. Joe action figure's submachine gun (the same donor for the "flamer" I added to the commander's machine gun copula) and mounted it on top of the turret. Front shot (It's to the left of the heavy stowage pack):




Top shot (that's less out of focus):






Today, I base coated both the "Nante Pattern 97 Infantry Tank" and "Pattern 47-48 Light Reconnaissance Tank" with Rust-O-Leum Winter Gray in the rattle can:





Note that the camo netting also got a winter gray treatment, just to finish off what little paint was left in the can.



Also today, I finished assembling Fire Team Alpha, First Squad of my Stormtroopers. Here they are posed with the recently based tanks:







Better shot from above:







On another note...


I decided to repurpose the Cobra S.N.A.K.E. Originally, it was going to be a utility/support walker for my Imperial Navy Reserves Phantom diorama. Instead, I plan on finding an alternative, and use the S.N.A.K.E. as a type of Dreadnought that can be operated by non-Astartes. Just like the good ol' Rogue Trader days of 80's and Awesome.


Some shots of the S.N.A.K.E. with it's alternate weapons:









Here's a shot with the S.N.A.K.E. next to a tape measure to get a rough idea of the height of the unit:







Also, I found some spare parts on Ebay to replace the missing pieces of my old G.I. Joe Polar Battle Bear skimobile (snowmobile). The parts in question were the engine covering and two ski mounted missiles. I still need to find a replacement roll bar (as an anchor for the armored cab I'm planning to make for it).


Pics:







Anyway, good peeps, that it for now. More to come..........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/12/07 21:53:55


Post by: shasolenzabi


Oh yeah, for the full 10man squad Sgt, I usually gave them the SMG to act as a carbine for them.

That walker is good sized! very nice.

Tanks and fire-team looking good!

Snow-mobile, maybe some armored housing and make it look like a APC?


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/12/07 22:04:30


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Oh yeah, for the full 10man squad Sgt, I usually gave them the SMG to act as a carbine for them.

That walker is good sized! very nice.

Tanks and fire-team looking good!

Snow-mobile, maybe some armored housing and make it look like a APC?





Thank you.



As for the Polar Battle Bear, that's exactly what I had in mind. You, sir, have a good eye for possibilities.


It's going to be part of the same force (Operation MUSE WINTER) as the Equalizer, Panzer II (Imperialis PDF), and H.I.S.S.. Also, I'm planning on getting some of these for the Imperialis PDF auxillaries to the Black Watch forces in question:


http://www.hobbylinc.com/trumpeter-soviet-rf-8-aerosan-plastic-model-military-vehicle-1:35-scale-2322

http://www.hobbylinc.com/trumpeter-soviet-nkl-26-armored-aerosan-plastic-model-military-vehicle-1:35-scale-2321

http://www.hobbylinc.com/trumpeter-soviet-nkl-16-armored-aerosan-plastic-model-military-vehicle-1:35-scale-2337


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/12/08 02:41:02


Post by: Theophony


Better start scratchbuilding snow shoes for the stormtroopers then


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/12/08 16:21:57


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Theophony wrote:
Better start scratchbuilding snow shoes for the stormtroopers then




I know, right? I've been out of State elk hunting in areas where the snow drifts were kinda deep. Chugging through that little bit without snow shoes was a real workout. Still, I can only imagine how it would be on any hypothetical ice world like Fenris (to name one example from 40k).


I've been piddling around today on hobby related stuff. I wanted to keep track of which troopers went with what unit. So, I took the el-cheapo route, and instead of painting the letters/numbers, I used a Sharpie. Crude, but effective. As they say, "Good enough for government work".







Considering the type of troops I have here, I decided that sidearms in "tactical" thigh holsters would look the part, even in the grim darkness of the far future. I took a couple of "standard" German issue holsters from the Tamiya Panzer II kit, and the last three from the Bandai M61A5 kit. This is the result. Not too shabby looking:





I still need to get some more for Fire Team Bravo.



I plan on using the figure from the 1/48 Crusher Joe Galleon kit as part of the Phantom diorama's ground crew. So, I assembled it for future use (or for the hell of it; either way, the little turd is glued together):







Here is a comparison shot of the Crusher Joe figure and one of the aircrew from the F4J's Revell-Monogram 1/48 kit. As typical for most anime kits, the little guy is thin with a big head. But they are comparable (i.e. close enough). And not outrageous huge when compared to 28mm figures. That also means that I can use the Airfix 1/48 British ATV troopers as rough riders in the future. Noice.





Oh, and for the curious, here is the Airfix kit I was talking about:


http://www.hobbylinc.com/airfix-british-quad-bikes-crew-new-tool-plastic-model-military-vehicle-kit-1:48-scale-4701



That's all for now. More to come, folks........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/12/12 20:37:53


Post by: oldravenman3025





I haven't had much time for hobby stuff. But I have been getting a bit more work done on the JGSDF CRV:












Also, I dug out and started cleaning up my old 1985 vintage G.I. Joe Cobra Ferret ATV. I think it will make a cool desert combat ATV. Just need to figure out how I'm going to build an armored upper hull for it.


Some size comparison shots. I'm also happy to say that none of the parts got lost.



With an unfinished 28mm Dreamforge Eisenkern Stormtrooper:






And with the 1/35 scale Trumpeter JGSDF CRV:








I still need to take the Goo-Gone to it to get rid of the old adhesive.



Anyway, that's all for now. More to come, folks.......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/12/13 20:53:59


Post by: oldravenman3025






A brief update for this evening.




I'm happy to say that Fireteam Bravo is now assembled. Now I have to get some more stormtroopers to build.










Size comparison with the CRV:









Started playing around with the S.N.A.K.E. a bit (get your minds out of the gutter ). Added a "semi-modular" lascannon to the left arm. And using a bit of the good ol' "no trespassing" sign, a piece from an old ink pen, and the remaining parts from the lascannon assembly, I made a multi-spectrum searchlight/scanner. I envision (fluff-wise) it to be omni-directional, thanks to the flexible cable and servo motors in the light itself and service box behind the walker's head area. Good for taking a peak from behind cover. The stock remote weapons from Hasbro will serve the same purpose on this "reimagining" of the S.N.A.K.E. as the original: Modular weapons options for the arms. The choices will be a modular remote HK Missile, modular remote flamer with internal fuel tanks, modular remote heavy stubber, and modular remote multi-purpose claw. The lascannon is a semi-modular weapon that would take longer to replace in the field, since it lacks the modular "plug and play" design of the other weapons. It's meant to be mounted regardless of the "hand" weapon options used.

















Here is a size comparison shot with Fireteam Bravo:







The next step is to carefully hit the spots where there is old sticker decal adhesive with a bit of Goo Gone, and then (once again, carefully) wipe off treated spots with a damp cloth.







Well, that's it for now, peeps. More to come later on.......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/12/14 03:00:58


Post by: shasolenzabi


JGSDF vehicle is good sized and wow BIG tires! I am pleasantly surprised regarding 1/35 scale holsters, must have been for the smaller Walther pistols.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/12/20 07:25:06


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
JGSDF vehicle is good sized and wow BIG tires! I am pleasantly surprised regarding 1/35 scale holsters, must have been for the smaller Walther pistols.




Indeed. They look to be about the right size for a PPK, although German tankers were also know to carry the smaller Sauer and Mauser pocket pistols.


The other three holsters are for the fictional M71A1 Service Pistol of the Earth Federation Forces (Gundam).


I did manage to find a holster I overlooked in the Tamiya Type 97 kit. Probably for the Type 14 or Type 94 8mm service pistols. I used it on Fireteam Bravo's team leader. It works out as well as the others.


I did manage to get a bit more work on the CRV done. It's getting close to being fully assembled.






I also started messing around with the Timmee Toys armored car. I used another G.I. Joe Killer Whale depth charge as an aux fuel tank, and a barrel from a G.I. Joe action figure gun as a co-ax lascannon riding sidecar to the stock autocannon. Still a WIP.







The toy is approximately 1/32 scale. Here is a comparison shot with the 1/35 CRV:





To the best of my knowledge, it's based on the Lockheed XM800W Armored Reconnaissance Scout Vehicle (ARSV). The main difference is that the real-life inspiration was a 6 wheeled design, while the toy has 4 wheels.


In other news, for Christmas, I have another anime model tank on the way. It's one that shasolenzabi willl be familiar with: The Aoshima 1/48 scale MBT-90D Mazurka from the anime film Techno Police 21C. It's going to be my stand-in for the Forge World Destroyer Tank Hunter, since FW recently discontinued that model.


Anyway, that's it for now. More to come.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/12/21 04:43:34


Post by: oldravenman3025





Update on the armored car project.....



I cut some red transparency for the hull and turret view ports, for that anti-laser/anti-glare coating look.










Added some stowage and a stowed SMG, using bits from the Tamiya Panzer II kit. The vox aerial and stowage clamp for the weapon is from some old plastic tie.










In this shot (and in the previous shots) is a large "water storage container". It's actually a spare gas can from a G.I. Joe V.A.M.P. Mk II, but it has a new job now. You need plenty of water when operating in the desert long term.







That's it for now. More to come.......











Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/12/21 05:24:35


Post by: Camkierhi


All looking brilliant bud, the walker is very interesting, but the fave at the mo is the latest, reminiscent of Shas's Honimogs. nice looking vehicle, not bad on size. I have a heap of the 1:35 scale bits given to me some time ago, they make excellent stowage.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/12/22 02:12:33


Post by: shasolenzabi


Yeah that work with the red cellophane is neat! makes that dollar store toy look better!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2016/12/23 01:13:15


Post by: oldravenman3025


Camkierhi wrote:All looking brilliant bud, the walker is very interesting, but the fave at the mo is the latest, reminiscent of Shas's Honimogs. nice looking vehicle, not bad on size. I have a heap of the 1:35 scale bits given to me some time ago, they make excellent stowage.


shasolenzabi wrote:Yeah that work with the red cellophane is neat! makes that dollar store toy look better!




Thanks for the feedback, guys. It's always appreciated.


I started working on the bottom hull on the armored car. I also added some extra "bracing" on the transparency in the driver's viewports. It looks like crap, but it works. And nobody will see the patch job once everything is done.







Also, one of my Christmas presents came early this year. May I present my Destroyer Tank Hunter stand-in:






The goodies in the box:








The upper hull:







Some parts sprue shots. Also the tracks. They assemble in a similar manner as the Tamiya rubber tracks, using the hot nailhead method. The difference is that the sealing is done from the inside of the tracks, as opposed to the outside of them.






Wheel caps and more parts:







Lower hull, wheels, armored skirts, etc.....







Some character figures. They are a bit on the big side for 1/48, but they are anime characters after all. The robot might make for a nice servitor.








Comparison of the 1/48 scale upper hull from the Aoshima Techno Police 21C kit, and the 1/35 JGSDF CRV, 1/32 XM800W based armored car, and 1/27 scale die cast Hummer H2. The vehicle looks to be shorter, but wider than the others in the photo.








Instructions/sprue map, color guide for painting, and an old mail-in offer card from the early 1980's.....









Some really cool additions. An animation sheet, mini comic (in Japanese), and an old (probably out of date) mini-tube of plastic glue. There are also a couple of brass rods for assembling the drive sprockets to the lower hull.








I really have to get the Road Ranger and MBT-99 kits from this series. Problem is, I got this one for a decent price. But the other two go for scalper's prices on Ebay. I'll have to be on my toes for another good deal.



Anyway, folks, that's it for now. More to come......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/01/05 19:53:04


Post by: oldravenman3025




Okay, it's party time......



I've been painting a bit more on the Panzer II. This is the progress so far........












It's still very much a work in progress. I'm debating on whether or not to get some Leadbelcher and paint the tracks. But since they're going to be gommed up in snow and mud by the time I get through, it might be a waste of paint.




Next up is the progress on the toy XM800W knock-off. I added some items to the bottom of the main hull. However, the green box-like center piece hung too low to the ground. So, I went with something else instead. Pics:








I finished sealing up the bottom and added some sprue to spice things up a bit (it looked too bare for my tastes).......








I then made a homemade version of the JACKAL anti-IED system for the front of the vehicle. Pics:









The end result. Next up is the base coating/priming......










Next on the list is my HMTT (High Mobility Tactical Transport) projects. For the first one, I started assembling the T30 turret from the STC Start 1/35 BM-8-24/T40 kit.......












This is about where the turret will go on the vehicle. I still need to fabricate a turret ring for it. However, it's a start.........







Anyway, that's it for now. More to come.......





Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/01/05 22:23:15


Post by: shasolenzabi


Good converstions! and congrats on scoring the hard to find Mazurka! I have one, did a chop shop conversion to a MBT style for my forces

Here is a pic showing the mods I performed on it
[/img]



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/01/14 00:32:06


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Good converstions! and congrats on scoring the hard to find Mazurka! I have one, did a chop shop conversion to a MBT style for my forces

Here is a pic showing the mods I performed on it
[/img]





Much thanks. I also remember that project of yours. I liked the end result. It turned out really nice.



I haven't been doing a lot since the first of the year. Maybe I can stop dilly-dallying around in the next week or two.




The HMTT project is coming along. I found an O-ring around the old family farm. It works as a nice turret ring for the T30 turret. I also made some armored panels for the rear windows. You'll also notice the little piece of Forge World resin sprue and plastic twist top. These were used (or I should say similar pieces were used) to wedge behind the wheels that were bent from being stored long-term in a box, in order to straighten them out. The work so far:








Next up, armored panels for the rear doors with viewports. Red transparency was used as anti-glare "glass".








The front doors (that can open) were next. I also used a small piece of plastic sprue as a turn handle on the sunroof (it will be a large hatch after painting). Lastly, I added a dab of superglue to the larger antennae's base because it was bent somewhat loose while in storage.







Today, I base coated the armored car with Krylon Fusion River Rock Gloss in the rattle can, after masking the view ports with tape.







Welp, that's all for now peeps. More to come.........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/01/14 16:12:52


Post by: shasolenzabi


Liking the IFVs cooking up here! Looking forwards to the finuished machines, as always!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/02/07 12:31:17


Post by: oldravenman3025





Sorry for the lengthy delay. I haven't had a hell of a lot of time lately for hobby-related stuff. But I'll post what I have accomplished since last time.



The HMTT Project........



Added a large stowage pack (from my collection of old G.I. Joe stuff) for extra provisions/stuff and a large jerry can for spare fuel. This thing is going to be set up as a vehicle operating on a desert planet, after all. Long drives between outposts and supply points.






I'm glad that I saved this stuff. It'll come in handy:






I cut up some of the bag to make a folded up tarp for the HMTT:







I then painted the tarp with some Tamiya Olive Drab:








Next up, the the JGSDF CRV. The basic build is done. I used some spare leftover parts to cover up any holes, and replace lost handles that flew off to oblivion while cutting them from the sprue. The areas that look faded and rough are from the superglue. And it was deliberate. I plan on giving those areas the corrosion treatment. It's a dedicated NBC vehicle operating in a "hot" AO, after all. The next step is to fill in the gaps with Testors putty.


Photographs for your amusement:










That's all for now. More to come.......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/02/27 23:44:43


Post by: oldravenman3025





Long overdue update.



Assembly and preliminary painting of the 1/48 MBT-90D stand-in for a Destroyer Tank Hunter.


Pics:












Thought about using this IG crewman with the '90, so I assembled him. But changed my mind:







More tank pics:




















I assembled the figures from the kit. I guess I'll find some use for them at some point.






Some size comparisons:

















Since the Mazurka is fairly far along, I started assembling a T-40 Amphibious Light Tank (with a T-30 prototype turret) from a BM-8-24 kit. Unfortunately, the main gun and mount is missing from the kit. That means both home brew fabrication and improvisation, and some room to play with weapons selection.






Well, that's all for now. Sorry for the long stretch between posts.

More to come, folks.




Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/02/28 08:16:34


Post by: Camkierhi


Very promising start on the tank. Good to see you about again.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/03 23:29:05


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
Very promising start on the tank. Good to see you about again.




Thanks, Boss. It's good to get some steam built up again.



UPDATE TIEM!!11ONEELEVENTY1!ONE1!



I finished painting the wheels on the MBT-90D Mazurka and attached the armored skirts. Basic build is done:






Since the main gun/gun mount for the T-40 was missing from the kit, it was time to improvise. Here is the donor toy for "twin-linked autocannon"





BA-DA-BOOM. Works like a charm, if not entirely pretty (NOTE:Shots not in order):












Lower hull work progress shots (not in order):













Tank fully assembled and ready for the priming/base coat:















Some size comparison shots:









I could never find a spare roll bar for the Polar Battle Bear (online or otherwise). So, after a bit more clean-up and some adhesive removal with Goo-Gone, I made one with some sprue on the spur of the moment. Not pretty. But since it's going to get an armored cab, it's no big deal:







Some time back, I found the other smoke discharger for the Equalizer. So, I added some PE chains from the Gundam M61A5 kit, and put it on the opposite side from the other discharger cluster on the H.I.S.S.:










Finally, I started the process of sealing the gaps and obvious holes with Testors putty on the JGSDF CRV:







Welp, that's it for now. More to come......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/04 05:38:01


Post by: Camkierhi


Lots going on and all looking great.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/05 21:20:15


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
Lots going on and all looking great.




Yep, I've been on a roll, playing catch-up. But before long, I suspect that I'll hit another bottleneck. But I do have some stuff on order at the local mom n' pop hardware store, and an order coming in from GeeDubs (including an honest to God Chimera). So, I'll still have some stuff to do, even if I slow down on the pace.



I did get the Panzer II one step closer to being finished. I spot varnished with Citadel 'Ardcoat, applied the decals/transfers I wanted, then sealed them in with another thin coat of 'Ardcoat. Since this is a "winterized" vehicle, I may hit it with Krylon glaze to give it a "frosted over" look after matte coating it. Of course, I'll use the Valhallan Blizzard texture paint and other stuff for the tracks and light patches of snow on the hull. I also have some el-cheapo Wal-Mart Play Day kid's sidewalk chalk in various colors (including white) and Elmer's white school glue to play with.


Anyway, pictures....












Earlier on, I outlined the camo pattern for the armored car. Today, I painted the first coat on the camo:







After getting the camo all nice and tidy, it'll be on to painting the details on the vehicle.




Anyway, just a quickie update. More to come.....








Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/10 01:14:53


Post by: oldravenman3025






Quick update......



I managed to get another layer on the armored car's camo. It looks okay so far, but I might go for one more coat on it.












The PAC/RAT Project: Phase One-The missile launcher.....


Had to pick up some more super glue. Gorilla is good stuff, but I prefer gel:







After hitting the old adhesive with a bit of Goo Gone, it was time to repair the missile turret. Too bad that one of the missiles wouldn't stay perfectly straight, no matter what. And I had to glue down the launchers so that they will stay at a fixed elevation due to age and wear making it too loose. After that, I re-assembled the unit.












Next, back to the Katyusha. I did some more detailing and touch-ups on the paint job:






















Next, spot varnishing with Citadel 'Ardcoat and adding decals:




























Finally, I added a coat of Krylon Matte Finish to the BM-8-24/T-40 and Panzer II to get rid of the 'Ardcoat shine and dull the glossy paints used on these projects:







Well, that's it for now. Sorry for the quality of some of the pics.


Stay tuned. More to come.........





Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/12 03:00:45


Post by: oldravenman3025





Quick update.



First off, SUPPLY DROP. My order from Games Workshop arrived today. I also found some potentially useful stuff at a local dollar store.











Note: The kitchen knife didn't come from GeeDubs.





I happened to find a small paperclip that I thought would look nice as vox aerials on the Panzer II. They fit in the little holes around the commander's cupola. After the Gorilla Glue dried, I went ahead and painted them up in Abaddon Black.











Next up was the winter effects. I used the Citadel Valhallan Blizzard texture paint to simulate slush, compacted snow, and ice around the bottom of the tank. Special attention was paid to the tracks, wheels, suspension, and hedge cutters (front).














Sorry for the bad pic at the end of the list, folks. I'm no photographer.




Next, was a good wash with Vallejo White Wash for winterized (white and gray) vehicles.









Next up will be a coat of Krylon glaze for a "frost" effect on the upper hull, possibly followed by a final light coat of Krylon matte. Then that will be another project finished. However, I want to order two more of these vehicles for a full squadron.




Finally, I started on the Chimera tonight. I plan on having it serve as the PAC/RAT unit's Control, Coordination, and Support Vehicle (CCSV). It will still be a standard Mars Pattern Chimera IFV, but with extra specialized comms equipment for the PAC/RAT remote mobile weapons platforms. I also want to add a techpriest or two to the unit at some point in the future.







Anyway, peeps, that's it for now. More to come........................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/12 17:45:17


Post by: oldravenman3025





Update time.



More work on the Chimera last night (couldn't sleep, so why not?). Here is the work on the main chassis/hull so far........

















I used the last tanker figure from my Citadel/GW tank accessories sprue. Also, using the arm option with the pintle weapon trigger assembly/grips, and a broken G.I. Joe action figure's walkie-talkie, I made a hand held scanning device.









The work on the turret so far.....








Finally, we got some snow today. So, why not have a bit of fun with a photo opportunity and the "winterized" Panzer II?









Well, that's it for now. More to come.......



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/13 00:15:18


Post by: oldravenman3025






Update..............



More progress on the Chimera. A shot with the Panzer II:







More progress pics. The track guards are from the Citadel Tank Accessories sprue:


















I made some headlights using connector pieces from the Bandai M61A5 kit, nail heads, and pieces of "No Trespassing" sign:
























The 2357th Special Technology Detachment:






Did a bit more repair work on the turret of the T-40 light tank:






Comparison between the T-40 and Chimera:







Finally, I forgot to mention in the previous post that I started detail painting the "XM800" armored car:







Well, that's it for now. More to come..........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/13 08:09:14


Post by: Camkierhi


All looking ggreat bud. The shot in the snow is brilliant, love it.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/14 05:46:05


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
All looking ggreat bud. The shot in the snow is brilliant, love it.




Thanks, Cap'n. Feedback is always appreciated.





Tonight's update........



Used the storm bolter from the Chimera kit. Attached it at the location where a machine gun would be on the CRV:



















Basic details painting completed tonight. I'll go back over the armored car later and do any touch-ups that need doing:




















Sorry in advance for the quality of some of the photos.


Anyway, that's it for now. More to come........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/14 19:05:26


Post by: shasolenzabi


Good to see so much tank works on the table! It is now hard to get models of the Mazurka,,,and more so for the Timujen tanks


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/14 23:29:55


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Good to see so much tank works on the table! It is now hard to get models of the Mazurka,,,and more so for the Timujen tanks





Thanks! It's always appreciated.



I know the feeling on the anime models. If you find any on Ebay, one will either pay scalper's prices for them or do without. The same for the Crusher Joe Galleon. If you come across a good deal, you had better jump on it fast-like.


I wanted a Warhound-sized Metal Gear Solid Rex. But the prices quickly went up over a hundred dollars in a couple of months on the various offerings. So, I dropped that idea (unless I come across a good deal).



Time for a brief update:



SUPPLY DROP! The local mom n' pop hardware store got that order of Krylon Fusion in, including the Stain Pewter Gray I requested. I grabbed a can while I was there to pick up some lunch meat from the honest-to-God, old fashioned meat counter the store still has in operation (right down to the mechanical scales and cuts to your preference). I can finally base coat the H.I.S.S. tank.








Today, I hit the Panzer II with another coat of Krylon Matte to protect the Valhallan Blizzard texture paint on the lower hull. I then spayed on a light coat of Krylon Crystal Clear Glaze for a "frosted" or "iced over" effect on the upper hull. Next up will be a spot application of Valhallan Blizzard in corners and crevices on the upper hull. Then, the "Trent Pattern 121 Defense Tank" will be complete. Later on, I'll order two more for a complete squadron.
















I know, craptastic pics.




Finally, I busted out the "BIG BOY" to try and finish up. The Equalizer will take up the majority of my focus for the next little while, with other stuff getting attention in bits and pieces. I'll paint the details in sections, along with spot varnishing, adding transfers, and pin washing as I go along.







Well, that's it for now. More to come.......



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/16 02:42:56


Post by: oldravenman3025





Brief update.



Not a lot to report tonight. Today I got a supply drop from Hobbylinc. Yet another STC START kit and some MiG pigments from their Fantasy line. In this case, Martian soil pigments, which will make for some nice red clay and mud.








And tonight's progress on the Equalizer ADV:




















Well, that's all for tonight. More to come, folks........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/16 07:49:28


Post by: shasolenzabi


That will be a nightmare for flyer users!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/17 01:45:45


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
That will be a nightmare for flyer users!





Twin accelerator autocannons and six surface to air missiles should certainly make the skies a bit more unfriendly. Hopefully, the end stats will make up for the shortcomings of any friendly Hydras in the field (poor Hydra got the shaft rules-wise some time back). I just have to keep in mind that this thing will also be a giant bullet magnet as well, once enough enemy flyers start going down in flames.




Tonight, I slapped on some transfers and sealed them up with 'Ardcoat. I also applied some more 'Ardcoat to a few more spots to be drying for tomorrow, when I add some more transfers after a bit more detail painting.


Rear of the left side missile cluster:






Right side missile cluster, rear. Also, note the Cog Mechanicus decal on the turret's rear, signifying that this vehicle is a sanctioned STC vehicle built on a Forge World (Koverra, in this case) :


.



Transfers applied to a couple of spots on the rear intake frames. The gray stencil transfer on the left side didn't come out all that great. The red one looks alright:







Another bad shot to add to my growing collection of bad shots. You can still make out the cog wheel on the turret and "diamond skull" on the lower right of the tail light assembly. The white stencil (from the JGSDF CRV kit) above the tail light assembly is barely noticeable, but it shows up well in later pics:








Lower left side shot. You can see the aforementioned white JGSDF stencil on the upper right side of the main hull, above the tail light assembly:







I'm pleased to report that after applying some spots of Citadel Valhallan Blizzard to the Panzer II's upper hull, with special attention paid to the edges, fenders, corners, and crevices, that this project is completed.


Comparison shot with the Equalizer. The super heavy vehicle is a monster in comparison, dwarfing the little Panzer II.







Some more shots of the end-product:












In the next post, I'll post some background fluff for the "Trent Pattern 121 Defense Tank" (Panzer II Project).


Well, that's it for now. More to come folks.



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/17 10:14:11


Post by: Camkierhi


Amazing work, very inspirational stuff. Lots of great ideas. Panzer II looks brilliant bud.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/18 05:24:05


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
Amazing work, very inspirational stuff. Lots of great ideas. Panzer II looks brilliant bud.




Much thanks. I'm glad you like it.




Tonight, I managed to get a little painting done, and some transfers applied to the Equalizer. But it's not as much as I hoped to accomplish today. The affairs of daily life has a nasty tendency to rear it's ugly head.




I painted a bit more yellow on the yellow tail lights in an attempt to make them look less green and more yellow. I also painted one of the tread pieces (inside and out), and hit the center of the road wheels and idler wheel on the left side of the tank. I also painted some of the details on the front corner and armored skirt. Finally, some more transfers on the missile launchers.


Tonight's pics for your viewing pleasure:





















That's all for tonight's brief update. More to come, folks.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/18 09:09:51


Post by: Camkierhi


Roll over


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/19 01:49:46


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
Roll over




Still a work in progress. I still haven't taught it to fetch or play dead.





Tonight's thread update.



More painting and transfer work on the Equalizer. Here are the shots of the progress so far.......

























Well, that's it for tonight. More to come folks, including the promised fluff for the Panzer II project (I haven't forgotten).


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/19 01:53:12


Post by: Camkierhi


Good steady progress.

Sorry earlier could not see your earlier post, thought it may be caught in the page roll over. Think Dakka had technical issues, sorted now.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/19 03:38:06


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
Good steady progress.

Sorry earlier could not see your earlier post, thought it may be caught in the page roll over. Think Dakka had technical issues, sorted now.




Yeah, there was some sort of cache issue for longer threads, to the best of my knowledge.


Fortunately, it posted without issue tonight.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/19 22:10:04


Post by: oldravenman3025




Update Time.



First up, today's progress on the Equalizer. A special note on the road wheels. Instead of simply painting the bolts on the center of the wheels, I allowed for some extra stippling to simulate paint being chipped/knocked off, exposing a tiny amount of bared metal.



Time for pics:
































Also today, I got a bit of base coating done:








Welp, that's it for now. More to come.......



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/19 22:57:21


Post by: Camkierhi


The big girl is looking good. And your painting queue is growing.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/20 02:53:43


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
The big girl is looking good. And your painting queue is growing.




Thanks. And I do have to start being mindful of getting too far ahead of myself.



Here is a size comparison shot of the three base coated units:








Anyway, I promised some fluff. Well, here it is:



The Trent Pattern 121 Defense Tank








Within the Holdfast Imperialis, there are several interesting aspects that makes the nineteen worlds somewhat different than most other planets in the Imperium of Man. One is that Imperial Law is THE law. All Planetary Governors are picked by Knight-Champion of the Imperium Rober Marius, Liege Lord of the Holdfast, from among Imperial Adepta, rather than from local politicians, officials, and nobles (the last being moot, since Marius had all the remaining local nobles/Rogue Trader dynasties executed across the Holdfast during the "Blue-Blood Purge of 777.M32"). And his choices have to be, more of less, rubber-stamped by the High Lords (who speak for the Emperor) before they take office.

Another is that despite having to be responsible for at least 50% of their own military hardware and training, the PDFs, known formally as "Imperialis Planetary Defense Forces", each answer to the central military authority for the Holdfast (as their name suggests), are on a rotating list of units to serve as auxiliaries for the Black Watch brigades on operations outside the Holdfast, and have to meet the high standards set by the Black Watch. This means that while Planetary Governors can command and activate the Imperialis PDFs during times of emergencies, especially localized planetary emergencies, ultimate command rests with the Black Watch Central Command on Homestead, the capital of the Holdfast. It also means that the I-PDFs, at minimum, are the same quality of the better Imperial Guard regiments and are considered Imperial personnel rather than local. Locally produced equipment also has to meet certain standards, which are set by the Koverra Mechanicus.

On the industrial world of Trent, there was an enterprising young Planetary Governor by the name of Jensen Kolburn, in the mid-33rd Millennium. Kolburn was an Auditor of the Adeptus Administratum who impressed the Knight-Champion with his efficiency and attention to details (not to mention his talent for cleverly and quickly winding his way through any field of red tape he runs into). Marius felt that this talented Adept would be perfect for overseeing Trent's industrial expansion, while maintaining efficient use of local natural resources. However, despite tackling the job with gusto, he would privately admit to his closest confidants that he really didn't want the job.

One of the policies Kolburn put into place at the local level involved military equipment produced on Trent, to meet the requirements set by central authorities. Known as the "Chassis Commonality Policy", it mandated a multi-purpose tank design at the core, with it's chassis being readily adapted to other types of military vehicles. The thing that made things easier and faster was the declaration that said vehicle didn't necessarily have to be a STC design. The Koverra Mechanicus Artisans and local designers put their heads together, and began hammering out a new tank design.

It took five years of work at the Trent Central Industrial Complex, and several failed prototypes, before the end result was reached. The vehicle was dubbed "Trent Pattern 121 Defense Tank", and by some miracle avoided the "design by committee" curse that seemed to plague many non-Forge World projects even in those brighter days. The final prototype was rolled out of the TCIC's doors for viewing by several high ranking Magos from Koverra, Holdfast military officials, and the Knight Champion himself. After a successful demonstration, the vehicle was given approval by Marius, and consecrated by the Magos as being acceptable in the eyes of the Machine God. Initial series production began on 5224556.M33.

The Pattern 121 was a simple design, but effective and rugged. It utilized the "wide hull, narrow tread" design philosophy seen with the Chimera IFV, but was still narrow enough in profile for high speed maneuvers through rubble, and tight urban and industrial confines. The chassis, assemblies, and armor were of commonly available cast plasteel and ferro-steel, much like the Leman Russ Battle Tank. However, being lighter than even the Chimera at 30 tonnes (the same weight class as the Rhino APC), it doesn't have the same durability and ability to soak up damage as the Leman Russ.






The tank's best defensive (and offensive) attribute is it's mobility. The 121 is a relatively quick vehicle, with an off-road top speed of 50 kilometers per hour (70 kph on-road), allowing it to keep pace with infantry laden Chimeras on the battlefield. However, despite it's light weight and speed, it's armor is still good enough to stop a direct hit from a battle cannon on it's turret and front glacius. The sides and rear are slightly less well armored to reduce strain on the powerplant and transmission, but still offering effective protection from common battlefield explosives, shrapnel, explosive near-misses, and some heavy weapons (such as autocannons).

The Pattern 121 is powered by the HL62TR Multi-Fuel Powerplant. This engine can burn any kind of available promethium fuel in the Imperium. The engine, besides powering the on-board systems and propelling the vehicle, is also responsible for keeping the standard back-up emergency battery system charged for when needed.

The vehicle's targeting systems are of the standard Imperial variety, with a targeting periscope being the primary means of aiming the weapons, which are concentrated in the turret. The gunner is assisted in combat by a laser rangefinder, landscape reader auspex system, crosswind monitoring systems, and a gyro-stabilized turret for firing accurately on the move.

As mentioned before, the weapons are concentrated in the turret. The main gun is a Trent Pattern 30-L-55 Light Autocannon. This pattern of autocannon is of a smaller caliber than the typical Imperial autocannon. But it is still capable of a similar damage profile as a heavier caliber weapon of the same class due to high-velocity AP ammunition, combined with a high degree of accuracy, offering more rounds on target and in a tighter shot pattern.

The secondary weapons consist of a locally-produced Pattern 34 Heavy Stubber for anti-infantry work, riding sidecar to the autocannon. Oftentimes, the one-two punch of both weapons has a devastating effect on mobs of infantry often encountered when fighting such foes as the Orks or Tyranids. The other is the optional semi-modular rail system for most common patterns of Hunter-Killer Missile in the Imperial armed forces. The most commonly used is the Trent Pattern 119-BC Missile System, which is the one seen in these pic-captures.





One area that the designers didn't skimp out on was the vox system. The 121 Defense Tank uses the sophisticated Pattern 5 Vox set imported in from the Forge World of Koverra. This system allows the tank to serve as a command vehicle for armored squadrons, a recon vehicle, and the other wide variety of roles the tank excels at with a high level of efficiency and coordination. The system can even relay communications and data packets to high-speed, high-flying aircraft, such as the Imperial Navy's Marauder Vigilant.

Another standard piece of equipment that this tank has equipped from the factory is a set of hedge row cutters attached to the front of the vehicle. However, the set can be easily removed by the crew, which is usually done when the need arises for the optional use of a dozer blade for rough terrain, such as urban rubble. Also standard equipment for each new tank rolling off the assembly line are field tools for track repairs, digging, and a spare road wheel. But other items can be carried as stowage if there is room on the primary hull.





The vehicle has generous storage capability, with various storage and tool boxes on the primary hull, in addition to the internal storage for small arms, ammo, medkits, and personal effects. This includes a compartment on the rear turret often referred to by it's ancient Terran nickname of "Rommel Kit", named after a long dead general from Old Earth's pre-spaceflight era. The ammunition for the tank's weapons are stored in what is known as "wet storage", which consists of a water/gylcerine mixture held in an outer hollow casing surrounding the ammo bin. This has the effect of slowing or preventing ammo fires cased by a penetrating hit to the tank's magazine. This is an ancient technique, low tech but reasonably effective, and a solid safety measure choice for a "budget" tank produced locally.

The vehicle is also equipped with the standard patterns of Imperial NBC warfare systems, including decent environmental controls and limited environmental sealing capabilities for use in non-Terran Standard atmospheres, such as toxic environments and extreme conditions.

In the seven and half millennia of regular production, the 121 has gone through a series of minor tweaks and variations, but the basic vehicle (a multi-purpose, fast light tank) hasn't changed. Also, in compliance with the Chassis Commonality Policy, other designs were developed on the Pattern 121 chassis. The most notable were the Pattern 124 howitzer, Pattern 131 tank destroyer, and Pattern 15-33 Self-Propelled Infantry Assault Gun. All of which have found various degrees of usage across the Holdfast Imperialis over the centuries.

One particular campaign that the tank took part in was Operation MUSE WINTER, the thirteen month effort to drive the Tau Empire from the snow and ice-laden Imperial Death World of Planta IV (known to Imperial savants as "The Planta War"). The tanks did remarkable well and held up in the harsh arctic winter environment with only minor issue. The 121 was especially useful in the scouting role, and as cavalry screening the slower armored elements against surprise Tau ambushes. There were several notable (and bloody) clashes between Trent I-PDF fast attack and recon squadrons, and Tau XV15 Stealthsuit-equipped forward observer teams. Despite heavy losses among the tanks due to Tau ambushes and traps, often the Trent tankers gave back as good as they got, inflicting serious losses against the light-weight stealth suits and laying ambushes of their own against the Tau. Ultimately, the Black Watch and their Trent I-PDF Auxiliaries were victorious, with Operation MUSE WINTER wrapping up in 178909.M41.


End of File.


Thought For The Day: A coward always seeks compromise


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/22 01:28:59


Post by: oldravenman3025



Tonight's brief update................




First off, SUPPLY DROP.



Yesterday, on a trip out of town to visit a medical specialist, I went to the only shop I found, less than an hour away, that carries Games Workshop products. So, I decided to do a little shopping while there:







They had a special: Six pots for twenty bucks. Better than paying ten bucks shipping for a small purchase from GW's webstore.



On to the Equalizer ADV........



Completed is the detailing and transfers. I also did a pin wash with Vallejo dark grey wash, and hit the large areas with some Vallejo white wash. Next up with be a bit of dry brushing and winter weathering/effects.



The pics:

















Well, that's it for now. More to come.........




Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/22 01:34:08


Post by: shasolenzabi


Al looking good! and I see the Hiss tank is a massive machine as well, next to that Chimera


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/22 01:38:49


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Al looking good! and I see the Hiss tank is a massive machine as well, next to that Chimera





Very true. I would put the H.I.S.S. in Macharius territory, size-wise. Just taller.



And as always, much thanks for the feedback. It's always welcome.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

I got bored tonight. So, I decided to start a bit of painting on the IJA Type 97. Still have a long way to go, though.



Pics:



















And as always, more to come........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/23 01:11:26


Post by: oldravenman3025




Update Time.



First off, I made some home-made weathering powders from the cheap kid's sidewalk chalk I inherited. This evening, I only pounded down a couple of colors (four large pieces of chalk), one of which was used for "wintering" the Equalizer ADV.

















Mixing up the "snow/slush"...............................






After application to the lower half of the vehicle:















Size comparison: Equalizer ADV and Type 97........








Next up for the ADV is some dry brushing on the upper hull, and a bit more wintering.



Also, I did a bit more work on the Type 97:











Well, folks, that's it for now. More to come........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/23 16:43:21


Post by: oldravenman3025




UPDATE:




Last night after the last post, I hit the upper hull with a dry brushing job. I used Necron Compund for this vehicle:






























Next! This morning I added some winter snow/slush on the upper hull and turret with Citadel Valhallan Blizzard texture paint:


















































Well, I'm close to being finished with this project. And that's it for now.


More to come, folks.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/24 02:03:43


Post by: oldravenman3025





Another update......




First off, today I hit the Equalizer with a coat of Krylon Matte to get rid of the 'Ardcoat glossiness.








Finally, I sprayed on a coat of Krylon Clear Glaze for additional protection, to add an effect of thin ice on the upper hull, and to add the illusion of moisture to the snow/slush effects on the vehicle. I'm happy to say that with this stage done, this project is COMPLETE. Another one down, a lot more to go.
























I broke out the long-ignored Wolverine. I couldn't find any white Aquilas, so I decided to paint a red and white stripe on a couple of locations on the vehicle. I also did some more detailing on the Wolverine.
















I have been painting on the Type 97 as I have been going along. I made some more progress this evening. It's a good chance for a size comparison with the Wolverine:










Well, that's it for now. More to come, folks.......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/25 02:45:05


Post by: oldravenman3025






Update time, peeps......




After some 'Ardcoat and transfers, I now have a couple of proper Aquilas on the Wolverine:












The last of the detailing I wanted to do on the Wolverine is complete. Next will be some dry brushing:



























On another note, I decided to pick up a bottle of the acrylic craft paint I found that a local dollar store carries, just to give it a try:










I also finished the basic detailing on the Type 97 tonight. Next up will be the spot varnishing with Citadel 'Ardcoat for the water-slide transfers:




















Well, folks, that's all for now. More to come....................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/25 15:46:44


Post by: shasolenzabi


I do so like seeing your progress for your tanks


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/25 23:48:10


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
I do so like seeing your progress for your tanks





Thanks. Hopefully, I can continue to make steady progress, with few lulls.




And on that note, update time.



First, the Galleon is really and truly complete at last. The last step was a light coat of Krylon Matte to get rid of the shiny spots from the 'Ardcoat. Despite the issues with the base coating/priming on this project, it turned out fair as a dirty, banged up tank operating in a hostile environment.


Oh, and this vehicle is now a Commissar's relic ride. Only the best for our favorite BLAMming bastards.



Pics:
















Last night, I spot varnished the Type 97 with 'Ardcoat, allowing it to dry overnight. Today, I applied transfers and sealed them up with more 'Ardcoat. Finally, I applied a coat of Krylon Matte to get rid of the gloss of the 'Ardcoat and Rust-o-Leum.



Pics of the results so far:





























On the lower right side of the rear of the tank is a Tamiya IJA I.D. plate transfer. I numbered the tank, using Forge World numbers transfers, to correspond to the same number (i.e. #"257").



Of course, working on two vehicles at once is a good opportunity for some comparison shots:















Anyhow, that's all for now. More to come.......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/26 23:09:58


Post by: oldravenman3025





Update time, folks........




First off, I did a bit more work on the armored car. I continued working on the "water only" white stripe on the old V.A.M.P. Mk II jerry can. I also started painting on the bottom of the vehicle, hitting the drive equipment/protective covers with some Citadel Leadbelcher. I also did the spot varnishing with 'Ardcoat in preparation for the waterslide decals:












Back to the Type 97. First, using Forge World Ash Grey weathering powder, I added some dust effects to the lower areas of the main hull, concentrating around the wheels, treads, and suspension.









Next, I mixed up some ashen mud with Elmer's white school glue and more Forge World Ash Grey powder:















Finally, some chipping effects. I hit the areas base coated with Rust-o-Leum Winter Gray with a mixture of Tamiya XF-10 Flat Brown and dollar store black acrylic craft paint. The areas painted with Citadel Abaddon Black, I used a light stippling of Citadel Runefang Steel.


Pics:




















Well, that's it for now. More to come.......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/26 23:14:30


Post by: Camkierhi


Nice work, really coming on now, you are really cranking them out. Love the extra detailing, right up my street.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/27 08:34:58


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
Nice work, really coming on now, you are really cranking them out. Love the extra detailing, right up my street.





Thanks, Cap'n. It's always appreciated.



Might as well toss in a quick update.



The remaining detailing on the armored car project was completed tonight. I also applied the transfers and sealed them in with 'Ardcoat. Next will be a coat of Krylon matte, weathering, chipping, and desert effects.



The pics:


























That's all for tonight. More to come........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/27 20:39:55


Post by: oldravenman3025





Update:




I matte coated the armored car today with Krylon matte. The work so far:





















On to the Type 97..........





The vehicle after a final coat of Krylon matte to protect the dust, chipping effects, and mud. I had pondered adding some dust effects to the upper hull and turret with the Forge World powder. In the end, I decided against it. Thus, the project is officially completed.


The pics:



























Well, that's it for now. More to come.......


Automatically Appended Next Post:




I got a bit more done late this evening. I decided to go for a two-fer for this stage.





I dry brushed both the Wolverine and BM-8-24 Katyusha (on a T-40 chassis) in Ryza Rust dry from Citadel. I went a little heavy because I'm working toward a similar effect as seen on armored vehicles operating in SE Asia, during the war in Vietnam (weathering something close to the "red clay" mud and dust effects seen in those tropical SE Asian environments). I also starting painting on the stowage pack mounted on the side of the Katyusha.



The pics of the progress so far:
























Well, that's it for now. More to come......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/28 08:27:15


Post by: shasolenzabi


All looking great! some look like they need rust remover! good use of effects.

Galleon as Commissar's pimped relic ride works!

Type 97 Looking properly Imperial!

the big manticore style and the little Katyusha launcher also look good, (and need rust removal jelly!)



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/29 01:59:49


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
All looking great! some look like they need rust remover! good use of effects.

Galleon as Commissar's pimped relic ride works!

Type 97 Looking properly Imperial!

the big manticore style and the little Katyusha launcher also look good, (and need rust removal jelly!)








Thanks. Your feedback is always welcome and appreciated.





Now on to the update.......




I'll cover the armored car project first.



First off, I painted inside the tire treads with a bit of Citadel Tallarn Dust:











Then on to the chipping and wear effects. I used my usual poison: Runefang Steel for the brown and black areas, a mix of Tamiya Flat Brown and black paint (dollar store acrylic craft paint, in this case).






















A progress shot of the work on the stowage pack for the Katyusha:







And the stowage pack finished:








On the Wolverine, I used a dark wash on the stowage packs, on the engine cover, to bring out their details a little bit better:









On to the next step, I hit two vehicles in one sitting. I used the MiG Martian Dust and Elmer's white school glue to make the red clay and mud mix. After application, I heavily dusted both vehicles with the same powder to simulate heavy red clay dust. Tropical jungle environments, during the dry season, don't make for clean vehicles. The next step will be the matte coating with Krylon.


The pics of the nasty, dusty AFVs:

























Well, that's it for now folks. More to come......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/03/29 23:19:00


Post by: oldravenman3025




Time for another update to the thread.....



First off today, I took the Wolverine and Katyusha outside, and used a standard household paintbrush to dust off some of the excess weathering powder. After that, I started applying the rattle can Krylon matte finish:










After coating the Katyusha, I started matte coating the Wolverine. That's when I got a rude surprise. The Katyusha model is fairly light weight, even with the Citadel dozer blade and G.I. Joe stowage pack added on. Out of habit, I also had the little model sitting on an old sales paper on the front porch rail. Along comes a gust of wind, and this happens:







Fortunately, I used Loc-Tite super glue to build the launch rail and I was able to recover all of the pieces intact. It didn't take much to apply some Gorilla super glue to put everything back together in a "good enough" repair job.







And I am happy to say that after repairing the mess, the BM-8-24 "Katyusha" (on the T-40 chassis) is now FINISHED.



More pictures:


















Also finished up today after a good coat of Krylon matte is the Wolverine. I just have to put the towing rope back on the front, and I'll call it good:



















I broke out the Armadillo and painted between the track links with a little Citadel Tallarn Sand. I also hit the vehicle commander with some Vallajo dark wash to bring out the details a little better (because I suck at painting figures). After this, like the Armored Car Project, it will have to be put on a back burner until I get some desert weathering materials.










Finally, I started painting the camo pattern on the Chimera CCSV (Control, Coordination, and Support Vehicle) using the Equalizer as a painting guide:








Well, that's it for now. More to come, folks.



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/04/03 02:50:13


Post by: oldravenman3025





Quick update.



Painted the first and second layers of camo for the Chimera.



First layer:



















Camo comparison with the Equalizer (both vehicles will be part of this particular force, or "army", that I'm working toward):













The second layer on the camo scheme:




















Supply drop!



The Crafter's Closet black acrylic paint seemed to work out okay. So, I decided to pick up another bottle (Metallic Silver this time) to try out.








Well, that's it for now. More to come.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/04/04 06:07:51


Post by: oldravenman3025





UPDATE:




Camo touch-ups were taken care of. I also started painting on the details and am over half-done with them. After that, I will backtrack and touch up the details needing it.


I'll need to pick up a new fine detail brush before working on the vehicle commander. But in the meantime, I'll spot varnish with 'Ardcoat and apply transfers.


Anyway, here are the pics of this evenings progress:
















Anyway, that's it for now. More to come.......


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/04/04 06:31:44


Post by: shasolenzabi


All looking good! shipped Armored Car, and that red dust gets all over things!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/04/08 00:14:43


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
All looking good! shipped Armored Car, and that red dust gets all over things!





Indeed it does. Vietnam veterans I knew over the years used to tell me that crap could get into anywhere during the dry season. Added to the bugs and humidity combined, it was a major pain in the ass. I can imagine tropical alien planets in 40k would be just as bad. Or worse (because GRIMDARK).



On to this evening's glorious update.......




I went back and touched up the details as best I could. It's not perfect thanks to a slightly unsteady hand and aging eyes. But's good enough for tabletop quality, I suppose.




Photographs for your viewing pleasure:






















Last night was the spot varnishing with 'Ardcoat and application of waterslide transfers. Then the sealing of said transfers with more 'Ardcoat.


Pics:




























Next up, I hit the vehicle with a light drybrushing of Necron Compound. Then I applied a coat of Krylon #1311 Matte to knock out most, if not all, of the 'Ardcoat sheen.




The photos:
























The next thing to do is the pin wash with the Vallejo dark wash. Afterward, a light wash with some of the Vallejo white. Then on to applying the Valhallan Blizzard, then the Krylon clear glaze. The vehicle will be complete after that last step.


That's it for tonight. More to come.......



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/04/08 07:27:37


Post by: Camkierhi


Thats looking brilliant bud, and loved the rust work previous.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/04/08 08:17:15


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
Thats looking brilliant bud, and loved the rust work previous.





Thanks, Cap'n. I'm glad you're enjoying the results so far.



I've already pin washed the Chimera and did a light white "winter" wash of the flat areas on the hull. The snow and ice will get slapped on tomorrow.


I'm ready to start working on the PAC/RAT that I already have base coated. I have two other PAC/RATs to base coat, and one PAC/RAT chassis that I want to use for a custom melta armed unit. I also want to put together another control vehicle for the PAC/RATS. I'm looking at using a Rhino just for variety. I'll also need some techpriests as datasmiths, and maybe some armed support personnel. I'm leaning a little to the high tech and oddball side for the Operation: MUSE WINTER army.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/04/16 00:43:38


Post by: oldravenman3025





Update. And one that is long overdue.



Please note that some of these pic have been posted in the gallery for over a week. I'm only getting around to posting today. It's been busy.



After the washes and winter effects, I applied the Krylon Clear Glaze to give an effect of frost/an iced-over hull (except the tank commander, who I blocked with paper to avoid glaze on him). After that, the Chimera CCSV is FINISHED:

















Two-sie shot with the "Pattern 121":









Base coated the MBT-90D in preparation for painting:







I also painted and touched-up the missiles on the PAC/RAT:




















I decided that building an armored cab for the Polar Battle Bear would be easier if I built a frame first. Now, I'm trying to decide how I want to build said frame:








I have been painting the camo on the MBT-90D. I'm taking it nice an slow, allowing it to dry good in between coats and trying to keep it neat.







The same goes for the PAC/RAT:







Well, that's it for now. More to come.....






Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/04/16 06:27:35


Post by: Camkierhi


Chimera is looking spot on matey, good work.

The rest is all coming on well, the camo on the 90D is looking great.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/04/20 12:19:03


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
Chimera is looking spot on matey, good work.

The rest is all coming on well, the camo on the 90D is looking great.





Thanks, Boss. I'm glad you are enjoying it so far.



Quick update.




The Polar Battle Bear Project.



Using a piece cut from an old novelty sign, I made what will be the top of the armored cab for the over sized snowmobile (But hey, it's the Imperium of Man. Go big or go home). Then, using the bottom cut from a leftover small butter container, I made the main "ring" of the top hatch slash cupola:







The using leftover bits from the Tamiya Type 97 kit (for the "open hatch" option on the commander's cupola), I made the top hatch:








Next is the armored viewport on the cab's front glacis. This was made with the base for the bonus figurine from the Takara Galleon kit, and a small piece from the old novelty sign for the "transparency" /window. Then, after letting the Gorilla Glue bond good, I glued it to the front glacis:












I assembled the unused heavy stubber from the Chimera kit next:










Since Citadel/Games Workshop sees fit to include only one trigger/grip assembly for the pintle mounted weapon, I had to improvise. I made my own grip/trigger from some small sprue leftover from the Trumpeter JGSDF CRV kit.









Since the connections for the moving guns are a bit on the flimsy side due to age, I super glued them to a fixed position. Also, better safe than sorry. Because once the crew cab is assembled, there will be no more disassembling the vehicle, since the hood, dash, driver's seat/position, and engine are all part of a two piece assembly. An assembly that comes off of the chassis part as one piece. It would be a pain in the ass to put the gun assembly back to together, if they ever popped lose after finishing the conversion.










I also started building the frame with sprue from one of the STC T-40/Katyusha kits.









Next, using sprue from one of the STC START T-40/Katyusha vehicle kits, and a connector piece from the Bandai Patlabor kit, I made a pintel mount for the heavy stubber leftover from the Chimera kit.















Next up is ADVICE TIME, where I humbly seek advice from you, dear readers.



In your opinion(s), what would be the ideal sized base for the 1/144 scale Gundam Wing Sandrock for tabletop? To get an idea, here is a size comparison shot with a 28mm Dreamforge Eisenkern Stormtrooper:









Anyway, thanks in advance. And with that, update for today is wrapped up.



More to come...................






Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/05/02 16:42:58


Post by: oldravenman3025





Just dropping in to give a heads up........



With Spring upon us, that means warmer weather and things that need to be done. Because of that, this thread won't be updated as much as before, at least for a little while. But I will continue to post pics in the gallery as I go along, updating the thread when I have enough images posted to make it worthwhile.


Here are some pics of the Polar Battle Bear project that have been up in the gallery for a while. Most of the work has involved building a crew cab.




















And some free 60 grit sand paper from an uncle to work the paint off of the old metal toys. It ain't much. But it was a freebie:







Well, that's it for now. More to come (at some point).........





Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/05/03 21:18:46


Post by: Camkierhi


Looking fantastic bud, great work on the cab.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/05/04 23:37:03


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
Looking fantastic bud, great work on the cab.





Thanks, Boss. It's coming along slowly but surely, since I'm not working from a template and doing it "on the fly".


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/05/05 00:31:41


Post by: Captain Brown


Always interested in what you are going to come up with next.

Cheers,

CB


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/05/05 21:57:36


Post by: oldravenman3025


Captain Brown wrote:
Always interested in what you are going to come up with next.

Cheers,

CB




Much thanks. It's always appreciated.



Since I'm here, just a brief update........



I did manage to start painting some on the "Sandrock" Gundam. Still have a ways to go.







I also finished the basic camo pattern on the MBT-90D:

















Well, that's it for now. More to come......





Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/05/06 04:53:45


Post by: Camkierhi


Your Gundam work has me itching. Got one somewhere.

Camo is looking great.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/05/11 02:35:38


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
Your Gundam work has me itching. Got one somewhere.

Camo is looking great.





Thanks. As always, it's much appreciated.



Tonight's post will deal exclusively with the MBT-90D Destroyer "Counts-As"..................



First group of photos were taken after a bit of work on the treads and details. I also did a bit of pin washing on the engine deck. Spot varnishing came next, followed by transfers and sealing with 'Ardcoat. The exception were the two German tactical symbols I used fore and aft. Those being Archer dry transfers, they don't need a glossy surface or sealing.




















Next group of pictures were taken after the detailing, treads, and pin washing were completed. I'm not going to be fussy about the tracks and wheels, since winter effects will cover up the missed spots and imperfections. Next up will be the white wash and matte coating to get rid of the 'Ardcoat and paint gloss, and to tone down the excess Vallejo dark grey wash.



























Well, peeps, that is all for now. More to come........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/05/11 19:19:26


Post by: shasolenzabi


Looking good there! good wintry camo


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/05/12 05:41:41


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Looking good there! good wintry camo




Much thanks. It's always appreciated.



Today, I managed to get a little more work done on the MBT-90D. Whitewashing with Vallejo model wash:

























Then, the drybrush job with Citadel Necron Compound Dry:




















Well, that's it for now. More to come.............


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/05/15 02:38:36


Post by: oldravenman3025





Quick update.




The MBT-90D got a matte coat of Krylon and some snow/slush effects via Citadel Valhallan Blizzard. The next step will be the Krylon glaze, and the project will be finished.



Pics:















I also did a bit more cab work on the Polar Battle Bear:














A size comparison between the Polar Battle Bear, the Chimera, and a 28mm Dreamforge Eisenkern Stormtrooper:














That's it for now. More to come....................






Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/05/15 03:25:16


Post by: Camkierhi


Brilliant work, on both pieces.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/05/16 19:44:40


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
Brilliant work, on both pieces.





Thanks, Boss. I'm glad you're enjoying it.




Now, time for a update...............




After a coat of Krylon Clear Glaze to add that "iced over" look, I'm proud to say that the "Pattern 90 Mazurka Tank Destroyer" is complete.



Pics:





























On to the PAC/RAT.........



Finished the camo and treads. Then knocked out the details, and applied some spot varnishing with 'Ardcoat. After that dried, I added the transfers and sealed them up with some more 'Ardcoat. Next will be the dry brushing and matte coating.



Pics:


























Well, that's it for now. More to come..................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/05/16 22:36:33


Post by: shasolenzabi


Cute mini missile launcher.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/05/20 12:45:08


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Cute mini missile launcher.




Thanks. Glad you like it.



Update time.



PAC/RAT will go first.......



I completed the dry brushing, pin wash, and matte coating.






















I decided to try an experiment on the desert vehicles. Instead of using some sort of commercial weathering powder for scale models, I wanted to try the orange kid's chalk that I grind up for desert/dry region dust effects. Here are the results on the XM-800 based armored car and Armadillo:
































I decided to go ahead and give the armored car a light matte coat to tone down the dust effects a bit, and to seal the dust effects so they don't rub off when handled. The XM-800 armored car is now officially COMPLETE.




















I also had to restock some of my supply of Krylon Fusion yesterday.......









Back to the PAC/RAT.............


I skipped the Vallejo white wash on this one because of the machine's small size. Instead, I went straight to the Valhallan Blizzard and coat of clear glaze. I'm happy to say that the first phase of the PAC/RAT Project is now COMPLETE. Just three more to go............


Warning: Some of the following pics are super crap quality.










































Well, that's all for now. More to come........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/05/20 23:44:43


Post by: shasolenzabi


Looks like you are catching the vehicles up on their paint and details!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/05/31 23:25:33


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Looks like you are catching the vehicles up on their paint and details!




I'm getting things done, slowly but surely.




Quick update.



Using Testor's contour putty, I started filling up the holes on the Sandrock's gun. Also, painted some more on the leg units.










I started painting on the power scythe swords, starting with the hilts. I had to use the dollar store Crafter's Cubby black paint, since I'm out of Citadel Abaddon Black.







Next up is the T-40. I managed to luck up and get a low humidity day. So, out comes the Krylon and the base coating gets done.











Here are the shots of the progress so far on the swords for the Sandrock Gundam. I also started paint work on the unit's gun.











Additional progress on the walker itself:









Finally, the Polar Battle Bear build is complete. It ain't pretty. But this is the Imperium we're talking about here. Attractive vehicle designs are few and far between. I'm debating on whether or not to superglue the missiles on their pylons, since those can easily get lost. Either way, the vehicle is ready for base coating.



Pics:

















Well, that's it for now. More to come..............


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/06/01 05:55:27


Post by: Camkierhi


Really great solid work. Gundam is looking great, nice colour choice. And the PBB is looking great, really has a patrol boat vibe to me.
Spoiler:






Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/06/02 20:48:45


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
Really great solid work. Gundam is looking great, nice colour choice. And the PBB is looking great, really has a patrol boat vibe to me.
Spoiler:








You're absolutely right. It does have a patrol boat look to it. If not for your photo, I would've never made the connection. LOL



I did get the vehicle based with Krylon Fusion satin pewter gray. It doesn't look as ramshackle with paint.










Well, that's it for now. More to come.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/06/05 23:55:52


Post by: shasolenzabi


Looking good! can't wait to see those all camo'd up


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/06/07 05:39:49


Post by: Captain Brown


More great conversions of toys and models I would never have considered. Great stuff.

Cheers,

CB


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/06/11 08:51:15


Post by: oldravenman3025




Thanks, guys. As always, it's much appreciated.




Quick update.



The Gundam Sandrock Project. Here is the progress on the swords so far. Next up, I'm going to try some freehand here, and add some wording to the blades. Then drybrush the edges.


Pics:









On to the H.I.S.S. Project.


I completed the camo pattern first paint layer and placement tonight. Next will be the second layer of paint for the camo.



Pics:




















Well, that's it for now. More to come.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/06/11 09:04:02


Post by: Camkierhi


PBB is looking stunning with a coat of primer.

Great work on that camo, looks proper if that makes sense.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/06/24 19:03:11


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
PBB is looking stunning with a coat of primer.

Great work on that camo, looks proper if that makes sense.




Much thanks, Boss. I'm glad you like it.



Update time!



First off is the second layer on the H.I.S.S. Tank's camo paint job. Pics:













I did make an expected detour on the P&M highway. The M61A5 model has been sitting aside for a while. So long, that the craptastic Forge World transfers were starting to fall off, since I forgot to seal them in with varnish. So, I re-set them and sealed them in with Citadel 'Ardcoat.


Pics:









Since I had the tank out and on the table, I decided to go ahead and make a dash to the finish line with this project. I went ahead and applied a wash with Vallejo. Pics:








Next, I mixed some black craft paint and Tamiya flat brown. Using a disposable oral swab, I dabbed the paint on spots to simulate paint chipping and wear, concentrating mostly on the areas painted in tan.


Pics:




















Next was the dry brushing with Citadel Necron Compound. Pics:
















A bit more dry brushing on the tank's tracks. Pics:













Next, I took the end of some pliers and pounded some kid's chalk into a much finer powder, to make a mud mixture and for dust effects. Pic:








Then, adding some Elmer's white school glue, black craft paint, and some Citadel Zamesi Dust layer paint to some of the chalk powder, I mixed up some nasty looking mud. Pic:








Using a stiff bristled, el cheapo art paint brush, I applied the mud in spots on the bottom of the armored skirts, on the wheels, treads, and the area behind the wheels.


Pics:












And some mud on the lower front and rear. Pics:











Next, the dust effects with dry kid's sidewalk chalk. While the humidity today was ideal, the temperature was too high for matte coating with Krylon #1311. So, the final step will have to wait.


Pics:











Well, that is it for now. More to come, folks........................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/01 15:10:40


Post by: oldravenman3025




Quick Update.




I finally hit a good day temp and humidity-wise to apply the final matte coat to the Type 61. The project is now FINISHED.



Pictures:













Next, a bit more work on the Gundam Sandrock:














SUPPLY DROP.












Finally, the first layer on the camo paintjob, for the T-40 (T-30) Amphibious Light Tank Project. Here's the pics of the work so far.......
















That's it for this update. More to come....................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/02 23:01:00


Post by: shasolenzabi


Looking good so far there , like the "winter" pattern.




Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/03 08:40:50


Post by: Camkierhi


All looking mighty fine bud, really great work.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/08 03:40:03


Post by: oldravenman3025




Much appreciated, fellas. I'm glad you're enjoying the show so far.



Tonight's update.




First things first. The T-40 (T-30) Light Tank........



Pics of the second coat of paint on the camo:


















The third and final painting on the camo pattern. Also applied the spot varnishing with 'Ardcoat, and painted most of the details. Pics:











Next was the waterslide decals, and sealing in said decals with more 'Ardcoat. Pics:






















I also painted a bit more on the Sandrock Gundam's wargear. Pics:











Tonight, I started assembling the second Panzer II kit. I'm halfway done with putting it together.








Finally, I started with the final detailing on the T-40: The stowage.






Well, that's it for now. More to come.......



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/09 00:34:16


Post by: oldravenman3025




Tonight's quickie update.



First off, I finished the assembly of the second Panzer II kit. Here are some twosie shots with the first Panzer II I completed.












SUPPLY DROP. A Tamiya 1/48 scale JGSDF Komatsu Light Armored Vehicle and some more Tamiya XF-10 Flat Brown (I was running low). Pic:










Onto the Sandrock Gundam,.......



First off, I decided to try my hand at freehanding lettering on the power scythes. The phrases are Latin in pseudo-runic script to represent High Gothic. After these dry good, I'll work on the other side of the blades.









Painted on another coat of Tallarn Sand onto the hip armor covers.








And painted the first coat on the front of the shield.








Next, I started assembling the second T-40 (T-30) Amphibious Light Tank. This one will be sporting a heavy flamer in the turret.








Finally for tonight's update, I'm closer to being done with the final detailing on the stowage, on the first T-40 (T-30). Next will be a coat of Krylon Matte and dry brushing with Ryza Rust Dry.







That's it for tonight. More to come...........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/09 22:24:02


Post by: shasolenzabi


That tank is looking very nice! will it get some wear and dirt on it?


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/12 04:21:55


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
That tank is looking very nice! will it get some wear and dirt on it?




Thanks, bro. And yeah, there will be some extra environmental effects added. But weather hasn't exactly been ideal for rattle can spraying. I want to put on a coat of matte before dry brushing. Then there will be red clay effects and clay dust. And a final coat of Krylon matte.




Now, for a quick update.



I finished the assembly of the second T-40/T-30 conversion. This example is sporting a heavy flamer.


I used the turret heavy flamer from the Chimera kit. Other non-STC START kit parts used includes pieces of a dollar store "No Trespassing" sign, a fire fighter's tank and a rubber hose from G.I. Joe action figures, a tiny clamp and washer from the Tamiya Panzer II kit, a piece of sprue, a label clamp from a Wal-Mart clothing hanger, and a cheap necklace chain.


Pictures for your viewing:
















I also finished the detailing on the first T-40's stowage and applied a dark wash to it. Here's a twosie shot with the T-40 recently assembled:








I finished the freehand Latin on the power scythes:







Then, I applied a coat of 'Ardcoat to the blades of the power scythes:













The second coat of Tallarn Sand to the Sandrock's shield:










I did a bit more painting on the Sandrock's handheld gun:










I finished the legs of the Sandrock and I'm nearly done with lower body. I also did a bit more work on the hands and wrists. Pics:














Well, that's all for now. More to come, folks........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/12 05:22:28


Post by: evildrcheese


Looking good dude. Keep plugging away!

EDC


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/12 10:29:21


Post by: Camkierhi


All looking good, great work on the Gundam. Tank is really coming on too.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/12 23:41:22


Post by: oldravenman3025





Much thanks, folks. I'm glad you both like it.



Brief update........





The weather allowed me to get some stuff done. Sunny and the humidity was ideal, although the temp was borderline. I got a coat of Krylon matte on the first T-40, and a coat of Krylon Fusion on the second vehicle.











While waiting for the light tanks to dry enough to handle, I decided to start the painting phase on the HMTT Project, basing with Krylon Fusion River Rock light tan. Here I masked off the areas I didn't want to coat with Krylon.


Pic.








After the base coat/priming. The light tanks are still drying. Pic:








The tanks are now dry enough to handle, if not completely dry. I removed the masking tape from the die-cast Hummer. Pic:








I applied another coat of Tamiya olive drab to the tarp I made for stowage on the HMTT:










Sorry for the quality of the second pic.




After the paint on the tarp dried a bit, I applied a coat of Krylon matte to seal in the paint and prevent flaking, which the Tamiya paint will do on this type of material. Pic:








Well, that's it for now. More to come.....................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/14 03:39:13


Post by: oldravenman3025



Update for tonight......




First things first. I got the dry brushing done on the first T-40 Amphibious Light Tank, using Citadel Ryza Rust. Pics:












I also started detail painting on the HMTT. Pics:












Today, I assembled the Tamiya 1/48 scale JGSDF Komatsu Light Armored Vehicle. It was a quick build, with the only hitch being that I broke one of the rear struts. But a quick repair with Gorilla super glue solved that problem.


The commander figure is from the GW Chimera kit. Overall, it makes for a nice little armored jeep, and I'll be ordering more of them. I may even get the 1/35 version in the future to make a homebrew MRAP.


Anyhow, pics of the assembled vehicle:





















Comparison shots with the McFarlane HALO 3 Warthog and Dreamforge Eisenkern 28mm Stormtrooper:













Couple of more shots of the LAV, with a better view of the stock driver figure:











Finally, tonight I got another coat onto the areas painted black, on the HMTT. Picture:








Anyway, that's it for tonight. More to come, peeps...................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/15 19:06:05


Post by: oldravenman3025





Quick update.......



Last night, I threw together a mixture of Elmer's glue and MiG pigments for the red clay/mud effects, and applied them to the model. Pics:












I also painted a bit more on the Hummer for the HMTT Project. Pics:











Today, I applied a light dusting with the MiG pigments. The results:












Finally, I applied a coat of Krylon matte in the rattle can to the tank. It is now officially COMPLETE.


Pictures of the completed product:

















Well, that's it for now. More to come...........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/16 10:55:30


Post by: Camkierhi


Great work. Nice weathering and good work on the Hummer.

Just a suggestion, pic up a set of cheap pastels at the art store. Scraping or sanding them into powder, is an awful lot cheaper than Mig Powders. I would keep the Mig for special.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/18 05:18:21


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
Great work. Nice weathering and good work on the Hummer.

Just a suggestion, pic up a set of cheap pastels at the art store. Scraping or sanding them into powder, is an awful lot cheaper than Mig Powders. I would keep the Mig for special.






Thanks. Glad you're enjoying the show.



As for the pastels, you're absolutely right. In fact, the winter effects on the Equalizer, and desert dust effects on the HMTT, Armadillo, and Armored Car, were all done with crushed up kid's sidewalk chalk. But I do need to expand my selection of make-do "weathering powders" (pastel chalks). I just use the Mars Dust from MiG's fantasy powders because of the look I'm going for on certain vehicles for that particular army (tropical red clay mud and dust). I also limit my use of Citadel Valhallan Blizzard to the smaller winter army vehicles, using the white chalk for the larger vehicles, in order to save money.


By all means, keep that advice coming. I can always use helpful tips and money saving advice.



Now, for the update.......



I went ahead and cut the waterslide transfers I wanted for the Hummer. Don't mind the two figures in the picture. It was just something I was monkeying around with, unrelated to the HMTT Project.







Then on to more detail painting.................

















I took a side trip back to the Armadillo ADV. I experimented with lead pencils, and then coloring pencils, in an attempt to simulate carbon leftovers, on the rear of the launch tubes. It didn't work out. So, it'll be either weathering powders or dark chalk for this one. It's the only thing holding up the final matte coat that will complete this project.







Back to the HMTT Project, I got the detailing done. Then, I spot varnished the vehicle with 'Ardcoat, applied the decals, and sealed them in with more 'Ardcoat. I ran into the issue of the chevrons on the front doors not being dark enough against the Krylon River Rock tan. So, I had to paint the front doors with a dark color (Tamiya Flat Brown, in this case), and outline the chevron transfers with Citadel Zandri Dust, in order to make them stand out.


I also added the stowed tarp, and finished painting it and the wires holding it down.



















I also started monkeying around with the old Fisher-Price ambulance. I suspect that this will be a fairly easy project.








Finally for tonight, the desert dust effects, using crushed up kid's sidewalk chalk:
































On this particular project, I skipped the wash, dry brushing, and chipping effects. The next step will be a light coat of Krylon Matte, and it will be finished. Then, I can get back to the H.I.S.S. and Gundam Sandrock.


And on that note, that's it for tonight's update. There will be more to come, folks....................



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/18 09:18:22


Post by: Camkierhi


Really nice work on the Hummer. Interesting to see how the ambulance fairs.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/19 22:30:42


Post by: Captain Brown


The Hummer turned out really well.

Cheers,

CB


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/22 01:07:11


Post by: oldravenman3025





Thanks guys. I'm glad you're enjoying the show.




Update time!



The High Mobility Tactical Transport (HMTT) is now complete after a final coat of Krylon #1311 matte. Pics...........











And back to the High Speed Sentry (H.I.S.S.).................



Third and final coat on the camo pattern. I also started on the detail painting.



Pics:














I had a relative make a paint run for me. Unfortunately, they grabbed some Citadel Air White Scar instead of Citadel 'Ard Coat. I might be able to use the airbrush paint for small jobs. And I'll have to order some 'Ardcoat online, since I'm running low.








Detail painting complete. Also finished is the spot varnishing, transfers, and decal sealing. Pics:



























The next step will be a bit of dry brushing and a matte coat. Then some snow, ice, and slush effects. Some clear glaze afterwards, and another one will be done.



Well, that's it for now. More to come, folks.................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/28 22:07:35


Post by: oldravenman3025



Okay, folks. I'm back after a week without a computer, after my machine took a giant dump and died. But I'm back online and ready for action.



And as a result, this is gonna be a huge ass update post. So, let's get cracking here......



First the H.I.S.S. tank project.




I went ahead and ran a dry brush over the vehicle, using Necron Compound. Then, it was on to the Vallejo washes, with dark pin washing and a general white wash.


I also wanted to point out why I made the choice of numbers that I did on the nose of the vehicle. The font used for the "789" was basically the same as the original Cobra "788", just smaller. I thought it would be cool to toss in a nod to the vehicle's origins.



Pics for your viewing enjoyment:














Next, I made a paste out of white kid's sidewalk chalk, Tamiya flat white, and some Elmer's white school glue. I then applied it to the lower hull, around the main drive assembly.


Some pics for y'all:



















Next up was some Citadel Valhallan Blizzard on the upper hull.














And finally, a coat of Krylon clear glaze to round it all out. The H.I.S.S. Project is now finished. Pics:
























Group shot with the other winter vehicles, including the two WIPs:









Next is the M47/M48 Light Scout Tank Project...............



In these pics, the camo pattern is done and I started on the details. Photos:















I broke out the ol' Pulverizer in order to do some repairs on it. It's in the near-future line-up, so I went ahead an fixed the broken pieces with Gorilla glue.








Back to the M47/M48, I finished the detailing, varnishing, transfer application, and decal sealing:


























Next was the chipping effects, using a mix of dollar store black acrylic and Tamiya flat brown for the light areas, and Runefang Steel for the dark areas.



Pics:

















Next is the ashen mud effects on the lower hull, using a mix of Elmer's white school glue and Forge World grey ash weathering powders. I also applied a dark Vallejo wash to the large stowage pack.


Pictures:

















A final coat of Krylon #1311 matte in a rattle can, and another project is done. Images of the finished product:




























And a group shot with the other completed vehicles in this particular army:







On to the second T-40 Light Tank (this one a flamer variant), I completed the first layer on the camo pattern:










Second layer on the camo pattern:









SUPPLY DROP. I ran out of Gorilla glue and needed to restock my supply of super glue:








On to the Gundam Sandrock, here are pics of progress made on two separate days.



As of 7/26/2017:











As of 7/28/2017:












And finally, I started painting on the camo for the Polar Battle Bear.

Pic:







Well, folks. I hope you enjoy.


More to come..............



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/07/31 00:49:02


Post by: oldravenman3025




The second T-40 (flamer variant) is nearly done.


Pics:
















That's it for now. More to come.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/08/05 08:04:17


Post by: oldravenman3025




Update..............



The Gundam Wing Sandrock is more or less done. Just need to matte coat it with Krylon.























The second T-40 (flamer variant) is complete. I went light on the hull dusting this time around.
















That's it for now. Stay tuned........................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/08/05 10:22:18


Post by: Camkierhi


Excellent work sir, tanks are looking fantastic.Gundam is awesome, really great work. Love the pic with the 4 lined up, need to get you on to terrain, as display board.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/08/17 07:48:05


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
Excellent work sir, tanks are looking fantastic.Gundam is awesome, really great work. Love the pic with the 4 lined up, need to get you on to terrain, as display board.





I love your idea for a terrain piece as a display board, especially for pictures. The only thing keeping me from doing it right now is a lack of space, and a safe storage space for the terrain piece (I have a cat. A typical, nosy cat. ).



As for the projects themselves, the Polar Battle Bear is nearly done. Pics of the progress so far:
















I really need to learn to put transfers on straighter. And not to be so heavy handed (I broke part of the connection piece for the front skis that I fixed some time back, and had to do a hasty repair. That's why they look a little out of alignment).


Anyway,, more to come soon.





Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/08/17 23:31:17


Post by: shasolenzabi


Gundam done? Check!
Sov style tank done? Check!
Hiss Tank done? Check!
I see what you meant about the decals, but the 36 aligned with the upper glacis plate angle is good looking. No worries. looks like the factory belted her out just in time to drive to battle.



Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/08/18 22:57:40


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Gundam done? Check!
Sov style tank done? Check!
Hiss Tank done? Check!
I see what you meant about the decals, but the 36 aligned with the upper glacis plate angle is good looking. No worries. looks like the factory belted her out just in time to drive to battle.






Thanks, dude.


Here are two more that are finished: The Polar Battle Bear and Armadillo.


Pics:






























I also had to make a supply run to Wal Mart.









And finally for today, two more kits added to the waiting list:









More to come soon.............................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/08/19 13:31:13


Post by: Theophony


Great progress on all the tanks. hiss tank looks great.

Also just FYI warlordgames.com is having a tank sale shameless plug. Also previewing their King Tiger kit coming out in September I believe.

If you order, make sure to sign in as being British and using £ since it's so weak right now. I ordered my gates of Antares stuff from them and it took about 2 weeks to get, but if it's over £50 then shipping is free and with the exchange rate that most credit/debit cards are doing you save a ton.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/08/20 11:19:44


Post by: shasolenzabi


Looking good, and the armored car and future car is stuff to look forwards to seeing your work on them.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/08/21 20:08:32


Post by: Captain Brown


oldravenman3025,

Keep up the conversion madness.

Cannot wait to see what you do with the SdKfz Armoured Car.

Cheers,

CB


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/08/27 19:33:15


Post by: oldravenman3025





Much thanks, guys. It's always appreciated, even though I know my "mad skillz" ain't so mad.


As for the sale, I took a look. I especially like the Konflikt '47 stuff. Some of the smaller Bolt Action vehicle pieces are actually cheaper than their scale plastic counterparts! I look forward to your review on the Tiger, Theo.



Here is some more finds for future work:










The Komatsu LAV's progress so far. Base coated it by hand and started on the camo:










The work so far on the Sdkfz.231 6-Rad. I used a piece of sprue to make an adjustable red dot sight for a G.I. Joe XM-3 Laser Rifle, standing in for a stowed heavy anti-material las rifle:






General WIP:








That's all for now. More to come, folks...................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/08/28 18:33:49


Post by: oldravenman3025





Basic build and non-standard add-ons completed. Next will be sealing the gaps and the base coating with Krylon Fusion.











Stay tuned for more to come..................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/08/28 20:28:19


Post by: shasolenzabi


Looking cool


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/09/04 21:20:12


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Looking cool





Thanks, brah.




I applied a base coat with Krylon on the 231 and started on the camo.











Twosie shot with the "XM800", which will serve as this squadron's command vehicle.









The Komatsu is getting closer to completion.














On the subject of the LAV, here is a heads up for those following this thread.




The finished detailing may will likely be the final pics I post of this particular vehicle in the gallery, or in this thread. The same for the next two planned for this squadron. And here is why.....



I abhor waste. Especially of something that costs money. Since I model (if you can call it that ) on a budget to keep form going hog wild, EVERYTHING that can be used will be used. Chalk it up to the way I was raised, in a different time and place than most whippersnappers nowadays.


That is especially true of transfers, waterslide or dry. I like to mix and match to add my own flavor to each vehicle and force. This is a fantasy setting, after all.


I have several spare transfers left over from the Tamiya kits. I decided to use the emblem of Erwin Rommel's Afrika Korps as a squadron emblem. Kinda appropriate since Rommel was one of the foremost combined arms commanders of his day, and these LAVs will be part of such a mechanized army I'm putting together. They really wouldn't be too noticeable on a larger vehicle, but these LAVs I'm using are kinda tiny at 1/48 scale. And the Panzer II transfers are for 1/35 scale vehicles. So, it will be a bit more noteworthy.

The problem is that the emblem of Rommel's Afrika Korps is a palm tree on top of a small swastika. It's no big deal to me, personally, since it's just another "historical" military emblem used by the Wehrmacht. But based on what I've seen in past threads, and in the comments section of the gallery, I don't feel like dealing with the sheer, raw butthurt over the emblem because of the swastika, or give any potential trolls the opening to disrupt the gallery comments or to up this thread. Nor do I want to create any bad blood with the folks in the PM sections of this site that I tend to get along with.

So, when I'm done with this LAV, and future LAV's in this squadron. I'll give you a guys a heads up. If you want to see the finished product, I'll PM some pics to you.


Much thanks in advance.


And as always, more to come...............


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/09/12 23:53:51


Post by: oldravenman3025






A short update. Nothing much to report.


Got another kit in, and some Forge World photo-etched Aquilas.











Started the second HMTT/Hummer H2 project.








And I did a little more work on the Ambulance:










Before I do anymore painting, I'm have to wait for my new brushes to come in from Hobbylinc. And I'm close to finishing the Komatsu LAV (just have to paint the vehicle commander and pintel mounted weapon). If you want to see the work so far, either here or via PM, post it here. I'll leave it up to popular vote, since the transfers are applied (see previous post)

That's it for now. More to come.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/09/14 16:32:45


Post by: oldravenman3025




Quick update.



I finished making and installing the Hummer's "armored paneling with anti-glare viewports" for the window areas. This time, I won't add paneling to the rear windows. I'll just paint over them. I also used a small piece of sprue to make an ad hoc handle for the top hatch (which the sun roof will serve as once painted over).


Pics:













Finally, to the LAV Project.................



I no longer have a third party image hosting site, since I just dropped Photojunket like a bad habit after downloading my albums. And I have no plans to bother with other adware infested "free" hosting sites for the time being. I felt like this thread would be missing something if I didn't share the progress on the LAV. So, I said the hell with it, and posted pics anyway. Here is the project progress so far. NOTE: Please keep the politics or gripes about the Afrika Korps emblem out of this. It would be much appreciated if we focus on the vehicle and project work. The Desert Rats squadron (which this vehicle belongs to) would appreciate it too.



PICS:
























Next will be painting the commander figure and finishing up the pintle weapon. Then on to matte coating and weathering.


Stay tuned for more to come..................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/09/15 23:21:58


Post by: oldravenman3025




Since the weather was good for rattle can painting this evening, I went ahead and applied a coat of Krylon Fusion to the second HMTT.













Here are the G.I. Joe items I selected for extra stowage.










Staaaaaayyy tuned for MOAR, my peeps.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/09/16 01:09:49


Post by: shasolenzabi


Very nice, Looking forwards to see the Aquilas placed on vehicles


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/04 23:20:55


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Very nice, Looking forwards to see the Aquilas placed on vehicles




Much thanks, brother. I've been a bit busy of late. But I'm trying to get back on track.




UPDATE!



The Sdkfz.231: Before the final dusting and matte coating............












Don't mind the Bandai transfer. That was something of a lame joke on my part.



And the completed product..............


















I got my new detailing brush in from Hobbylinc. Unfortunately, it was broken. Probably during transit. But I needed a brush. And so, I broke out the ol' tape and did it country-style.











I also had to admit getting old. Picked up a pair of +4.00 reading glasses to make painting small things easier close up.








I'm nearly done with the second HMTT. Here is the progress so far................
















Finally, I started building the crew cab for the ambulance:








Anyway, that is all for now. More to come............................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/06 18:48:42


Post by: Captain Brown


oldravenman3025,

The Sdkfz.231 turned out very nicely.

Cheers,

CB


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/14 01:09:01


Post by: oldravenman3025


Captain Brown wrote:
oldravenman3025,

The Sdkfz.231 turned out very nicely.

Cheers,

CB






Thank you. I'm glad you like it.




Now, for an update..............



I ordered replacements for long lost G.I. vehicle parts from Ebay. A single missile from the G.I. Joe HAVOC and both gas cans from the G.I. Joe VAMP.












And now, I have complete sets to work with. Except the steering wheel for the VAMP, which won't be needed.










I also got this in: A Chinese YW-750 armored ambulance in Iraqi service during the Gulf War. I've personally seen a couple of these close-up back in '91. But they were abandoned and burned out.








The basic mods on the toy ambulance were finished:










I used an old watch battery as a gas cap for the vehicle:








When I got a break in the nasty tropical weather, I based the ambulance in Krylon Fusion Hunter Green. I removed the necklace chain before painting :











I started on the M56 Scorpion kit. Here is the progress so far........












Here is a comparison shot of the 1/40 scale (not 1/48 scale) figures that came with the kit, and a 28mm (1/56) scale Dreamforge Stormtrooper. The stock figures won't be used with the Scorpion, but on some future project down the road.








Well, that's all for now. More to come...............





Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/17 04:01:21


Post by: oldravenman3025




Quick update.




I started working on the camo for the ambulance. The first layer..........................











The second HMTT is nearly finished. All that is left is the desert dust effects and matte coating:










Progress on the Scorpion project:









I then started on the drivers station, firewall, and gun assembly:







Well, folks, that's all for now. More to come......................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/17 20:01:26


Post by: oldravenman3025





I'm happy to report that the second HMTT project is completed.



The pics:














That's all for now. More to come.............


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/20 02:31:13


Post by: oldravenman3025






A brief update.............



Just wanted to share some pics of the Scorpion's progress. The pictures:














Well, that's it for now. More to come...................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/20 05:26:14


Post by: Camkierhi


Wow...you are really cooking on gas lately, good stuff bud, excellent work on the HMTT.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/20 09:24:10


Post by: shasolenzabi


The motorpool is growing very nicely! Sorry it took so long, but my computer got sick and had to go out for a week to get fixed.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/20 23:05:53


Post by: oldravenman3025


Camkierhi wrote:Wow...you are really cooking on gas lately, good stuff bud, excellent work on the HMTT.





Much appreciated. I'm glad that you like it.




shasolenzabi wrote:The motorpool is growing very nicely! Sorry it took so long, but my computer got sick and had to go out for a week to get fixed.




No worries, bro. I know how it is. Computers have a bad habit of taking a giant dump at the worst possible times.




Now for a brief update.............



I had to make a paint run for more Hunter Green:








Using the new can of paint, I did a bit of base coating:









A bit more work on the lower hull stuff:








Well, that's it for now. More to come.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/22 01:03:41


Post by: shasolenzabi


That started as a Scorpion i think, the US Tank Destroyer?


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/22 06:09:35


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
That started as a Scorpion i think, the US Tank Destroyer?




Yep. The M56 Scorpion SPAT for airborne troops, mounting the M54 90mm anti-tank gun. However, it's combat history involved more fire support than straight out tank killing. In Vietnam, it was used by the 173rd Airborne Brigade. They were also used against the Sahrawi communist rebels by Morocco in the Western Sahara War. The M56 was also used by the RoK armed forces and Spanish Navy Marines.



Speaking of the Scorpion, here is today's progress pics.











I also went ahead and base coated the JGSDF Chemical Recon Vehicle:









Anyway, that's it for now. More to come..............


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/23 02:38:17


Post by: oldravenman3025




Update:



The blast shield had a place for the driver's windscreen with a little wiper blade, but no glass. But there is plenty of clear plastic laying around.








The following pics are of today's progress. I will say that the gun was a major pain in the ass to mount on the turret.













Well, that is it for now. More to come...........


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/23 02:46:08


Post by: shasolenzabi


Looking good!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/23 21:16:58


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Looking good!




Much thanks.




I'm glad to say that he basic Scorpion build is finished. I applied a little extra Krylon matte to give the vehicle a slightly dusted over look. The next step is to add crew for the vehicle. But I have to order the figures, which will be (I hope) a bash of Mad Robot and Forge World. Then the final weathering, effects, and matte coating.












Today, I decided to apply another coat on the Ambulance's camo scheme.....









Anyway, that is it for now. More to come, folks.......................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/23 21:21:54


Post by: shasolenzabi


Scorpion looks good, and that is one funky truck


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/24 22:19:08


Post by: oldravenman3025


 shasolenzabi wrote:
Scorpion looks good, and that is one funky truck




Thanks, man.



Speaking of said truck, the third layer of the first color was applied today (Citadel Layer Tallarn Sand). Tomorrow, I'll start on the second color, which will be Tamiya XF-10 Flat Brown. This will be a three color pattern, with the base Hunter Green being one of the colors.



Pics of today's work:













Well, that's it for now. More to come........................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/24 23:37:50


Post by: Meer_Cat


I haven't seen that Self-propelled gun kit in years! It's been around since the '60's, and is perfect for 40k. With the way you're painting it, you're taking something that truly existed in our history and making it look like the far future- well done!


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/25 18:13:43


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Meer_Cat wrote:
I haven't seen that Self-propelled gun kit in years! It's been around since the '60's, and is perfect for 40k. With the way you're painting it, you're taking something that truly existed in our history and making it look like the far future- well done!




Much thanks, Meer. The sad part is that Revell stopped producing this kit a while back, making it hard to find and expensive (for what it is) when it pops up on Ebay. The only other scale-appropriate option is the slightly larger 1/35 Hobby Fan kit (which is also getting a bit hard to find). But that one is resin and the last one I saw for sale online was running close to three hundred bucks. You can buy a couple of Baneblades for that kind of green.




So, on to today's little update............




I started with the brown pattern on the camo for the Ambulance, applying the first layer of Tamiya XF-10 Flat Brown.



The pics (and no, I don't take very good pictures. ):












Anyway, that's it for now. More to come..................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/26 21:18:51


Post by: oldravenman3025






Today's progress report.




I applied the second coat of Tamiya Flat Brown to the Ambulance camo scheme. I think that one more coat should get it the way I want it. Then I can start working on the details.


Pics. The first two shots are kinda dark, but the rest are okay.














Here are some better side shots, taken in the sunlight.









Well, that it for now. More to come.........................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/27 01:30:19


Post by: Camkierhi


That is a very interesting model, great paint work bud, looking good, really like this little thing.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/28 01:26:40


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
That is a very interesting model, great paint work bud, looking good, really like this little thing.





Much thanks, Cam. I'm glad you like it.




Now, on to today's progress report.



I finished the camo on the vehicle. I then started working on the wheels and a few details here and there. It's still a work in progress. The pics:














Well, that's it for now. More to come..................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/10/29 00:38:37


Post by: oldravenman3025




Just dropping in for a quick update. Here is today's progress in photographs:














Well, that's it for now. More to come...................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/11/01 05:24:00


Post by: oldravenman3025




Time for an update!



I starting painting a section of the old novelty sign I'm using as ersatz plasticard. This will be cut up and used for windows on the ambulance.







I also decided to get in some paint work on the CRV, starting with the wheels and camo scheme. I only managed to get a coat of Abaddon Black on a couple of the wheels today.








On to the ambulance, here is the progress I made over the last couple of days in pictures:












Well, that's all for now. More to come..............


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/11/06 00:31:17


Post by: oldravenman3025




Okay, update time!



First, the ambulance................


After a second coat on the plastic strip (from the sign), I cut the section up into smaller pieces and applied them to the vehicle. Now I have to wait for the transfers I ordered to come in. After the last transfers are applied and sealed, it will be onto the weathering.


Pics:














SUPPLY DROP! I ordered this:











It a 28mm mini made by Antenocitis Workshop for Infinity. I've been wanting to get a hold of one of their minis to check out for some time now. Their other lines also look fantastic.


The Taruca Lautaro, like most of AW's minis, is part resin and (I'm guessing) pewter. It will be a chance to play with something a little different.



Anyway, that is it for now. More to come...................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/11/06 17:05:19


Post by: Captain Brown


oldravenman3025,

Some more great conversions.

Cheers,

CB


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/11/08 21:56:04


Post by: oldravenman3025


Captain Brown wrote:
oldravenman3025,

Some more great conversions.

Cheers,

CB






Much thanks, Cap'n. Glad you're enjoying the show.




I've been sick over the last week, and haven't felt much like doing anymore work on the CRV. I'm starting to feel much better, and hope to jump back into it soon.



In the meantime, here is a couple of goodies I got in the mail today.



A standard two-man Land Speeder, with the option to build two more variants: the Typhoon (missile variant) and Tornado (assault cannon variant)








And another McFarlane Toys HALO 3 Warthog......










I'll try to have some more stuff to post soon.




Anyway, that's it for now. More to come.......................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/11/11 06:00:16


Post by: oldravenman3025





Brief update.



Today, I started back painting on the Chemical Recon Vehicle. I'll have some pics to post by tomorrow. On this particular vehicle, I going to take my time painting the vehicle. Like the Sandrock Gundam, I'll work on it as I go along, since there is a lot of details to paint.


In the meantime, some more stuff I ordered came in today. First off, I was running low on Citadel 'Ardcoat and Valhallan Blizzard, and ordered some more.









I also got in the Leman Russ Battle Tank I ordered. I need to order another GW tank accessories set for a pintel mounted weapon and track guards, whenever they are back in stock in the webstore.


I'm going to build this one as a Vanquisher. However, instead of using the stock parts to build the standard Tigrus Pattern Vanquisher, I'm going to use the Stygies VIII Pattern turret/gun I ordered from Forge World (which I'm still waiting on, in addition to the Cadian hostile environment troop parts for my Scorpion crew). It'll be fitting, since the Stygies VIII Pattern Vanquisher used the standard Mk VII Leman Russ chassis, rather than the longer Mars-Alpha pattern hull.







Well, that's it for this quickie update. More to come...................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/11/14 02:04:29


Post by: oldravenman3025





UPDATE!




Here is the progress on the JGSDF CRV painting so far...................















The last Warthog I ordered came in today, making for one complete squadron. I want at least two more squadrons worth of Warthogs.













Some transfers from Hobbylinc. Now I can finish up the Ambulance project:









Also in today is the parts for the Stygies VIII Pattern Vanquisher, from Forge World:











The Cadian hostile environment parts came today from Forge World. Combined with the Mad Robot parts, I can start with the Scorpion SPAT's crew.










And finally, the sidearms, arms, and legs from Mad Robot also arrived today. The Scorpion's crew will now become a reality.









Well, folks, that's it for now. More to come.....................................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/11/20 04:11:33


Post by: oldravenman3025





Time for another update.




First, the cleaning and drying of the Forge World resin parts for the Stygies VIII Vanquisher.










Next, the EMS emblem is applied to the ambulance, and sealed in with Citadel 'Ardcoat. Transfer work is now done.










Then, using Citadel Runefang Steel, I applied the chipping and edge wear.










SUPPLY DROP! Picked up some stuff from the local mom n' pop hardware/lumber store. I figured that I might need a contractor's plastic cutter in the future. And I picked up an extra can of Krylon and a mini-hacksaw for resin work.









I started sanding on the resin parts after cutting them from their sprue blocks. Also the work on the GW/Citadel plastic Leman Russ kit up to this point.










I cut a piece of the red film to make an anti-glare "glass" screen for the driver's view port.







The overall work so far.........................








Applying the red film. I have to say that I'm satisfied with the result.










The smoke launchers applied to the turret and rear parts assembled:











The basic build completed. I'm just waiting for the Citadel tank accessories set to come in from Games Workshop.












Size comparison with one of my Tamiya 1/35 scale Panzer IIs











And the Vanquisher is dwarfed by the the 1/35 Trumpeter JGSDF CRV.









Size comparison to one of my 1/35 scale STC START T-40s.









Size comparison to my 1/35 Tamiya Type 97 Medium Tank.









Size comparison with my Timmee Toys M48 (Approx. 1/48 scale)










Size comparison with my 1/48 scale Takara Crusher Joe Galleon tank.









Painting progress on the CRV so far..................












I also started painting on the camo for the second Panzer II...............








Well, that is it for now. More to come................




Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/11/21 03:49:00


Post by: oldravenman3025





Just dropping in for a quickie update....




I managed to find another complete, still sealed in plastic bags, Takara 1/48 Crusher Joe Galleon kit. And it didn't cost an arm, leg, soul, and first born.











Here is a heads up if you're ever considering a Takara Galleon kit. These kits are originals from the early 1980's, with no re-issues that I know of. The material for the track units will harden over time, and lose their flexibility. Try to bend them, and they snap. I lucked up with my first Galleon kit, with only an end piece of one track being hard. But both tracks with this kit were shot. So, I ordered two sets of AFV Club 1/35 NATO/German flexible tracks (one for the M113 and one for M548s). If they are not too wide (the original Takara units were a bit wide, like the Crusher Joe anime tank), I can make them work.








Well, that's it for now. More to come..............................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/11/22 23:59:43


Post by: oldravenman3025




Update time!




My stuff from Games Workshop finally came in.








The track guards are installed. I had to do a bit of inside sanding on the guards, because of the hand holds mounted on the rear lower hull.










The auxiliary fuel tank: assembled and installed............








Because of the location of the spotlight assembly, the stock heavy stubber wouldn't fit because of the size of the ammo box. So, I broke out my spare Tamiya parts. I cut the MG34 from the sprue, leaving just a small part of the sprue. Using a gas mask carrier, I made a drum magazine.







I attached the "pintel mount" to the spot that a Lucius Pattern heavy stubber would normally be mounted.









The bottom of the sprue piece (where cut and sanded) was a bit unsightly. So, I used a personal kit pack from the Panzer II kit to hide most of it from the front. I'll use a bit of putty on the bottom-rear of the homemade pintel mount.








To the left rear hull, I added a kit just for the hell of it.







Added two more packs to the other side of the hull just for looks.








I wanted some forward driving headlights. But I didn't have anything left to make some proper lights for the Vanquisher (on the track guards). So, I improvised. I remember seeing light assemblies mounted on the lower front hull, in some older artwork for the Leman Russ. So, using a piece of broken cockpit plastic from an old G.I. Joe toy, I cooked up my take on the concept.








Light units mounted on the lower hull. They look like crap now, but will look better when detail painted. And the snow/ice effects will hide the imperfections of the plastic pieces. Anyway, the build is done. Next is base coating/priming with Krylon.








More shots of the finished build. Next is the base coating ................












Anyway, that's it for now. More to come.......................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/11/24 02:19:03


Post by: oldravenman3025






Quick Update.............




I cleaned as much of the sticker gunk off of the PAC/RAT Mobile Gun as I could. That way, when I base coat the Vanquisher, I'll base coat the PAC/RAT.








I also painted the second white coat on the current Panzer II's camo pattern.







More to come, folks......................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/11/26 03:03:35


Post by: oldravenman3025







Quick update time.............





The Vanquisher and PAC/RAT Mobile Gun Unit got their base coat of Krylon Fusion.









The third coat of paint was applied to the Panzer II's camo pattern.










The slow progress on the JGSDF Chemical Recon Vehicle. The Tamiya paints require more layers than the Citadel paints, when applied with a brush. And the Tamiya paint needs to be completely dry before applying another layer. It's best to let the layer of Tamiya dry overnight.











And layer number four on the Panzer. One more, and I'll be satisfied with the coverage.














Well, that's it for now. More to come.......................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/11/28 00:58:30


Post by: oldravenman3025





Minor update for you, folks.





The final coat of Citadel Ceramite White on the Panzer's camo. Next up will be the outlining of said pattern with Citadel Russ Grey.


Apologies for the blurry pics.












SUPPLY DROP. The AFV Club tracks I ordered from Hobbylinc came in today.








I test fit on one of the Galleon's road wheels to get an idea of how it would look on the vehicle. Both the M113 and M548 tracks are (obviously) the same size, and they just do fit on the road wheels, being they are a bit on the slim size.
















Comparison with the original tracks on the first Galleon I built.









I also started painting the camouflage onto the Vanquisher..........









Well, folks, that's all for now. More to come.................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/12/01 23:57:57


Post by: oldravenman3025




UPDATE!


I found these crafting pliers at a local dollar store for around two bucks. I'm sure they'll come in handy at some point.










I lucked up big time and finally found something I've been looking for a long time: An early Citadel Mark 1b Rhino from the Rouge Trade (and 2nd Edition) era. And one that is unpainted and intact. I'm a happy feller.












I forgot how small these things are. Some size comparisons:









At last, I finally base coated the Stormtroopers by hand, with Citadel Abaddon Black:









Progress pics of the Vanquisher painting so far................









Well, that's all for now. More to come...................


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/12/03 06:41:06


Post by: oldravenman3025





UPDATE.




First off, I found a Bronco 1/35 Adler Kfz.14 Radio Car to go with my Bronco Adler Kfz.13:









Next to report, I finally got around to base coating the Komatsu LAV's vehicle commander, using Abaddon Black.








Next up is today's progress on the Vanquisher. I'm nearly done with the basic camo work.









I also finished the camo outlines on the Panzer II, using Russ Grey from Citadel.











Next up, I reattached the hedgerow cutters/Human shish-ka-bob making device to the Rhino. Along with the earlier Chimera I built, this will serve as a CCSV (Control, Coordination, and Support Vehicle) for the PAC/RATs in the 2357th Special Technology Detachment.









Next was my ambitious attempt to make non-standard aerials for the vehicle, with intent to mount them where the banners/aerials went originally. I used soft sprue and connectors from one of the Bandai kits. But I didn't like the end result.

However, I did like how the Phantom kit's recce pod turned out on the vehicle, being used as a sensors pod.

Pics:















Using parts from the Citadel spare tank accessories set, I added a couple of pieces of stowage:








I couldn't stand those over sized aerials anymore. And they wouldn't stay on, anyway. So, I went for a smaller, side mounted non-standard aerial. It looks like an old school outdoor T.V. antennae, but it works. But it looks better than my first idea.


Pics:









Well that is all for now, folks. More to come.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/12/03 08:29:00


Post by: Camkierhi


Just catching up. All the work is looking fantastic. Nice find on the rhino. And vanquisher looks mighty fine. Scale shots really emphasizes the scale issues. But also giving me so many ideas. Thank you for sharing bud we are here following, honestly great work.


Oldraven's Little Projects Thread. @ 2017/12/04 03:01:39


Post by: oldravenman3025


 Camkierhi wrote:
Just catching up. All the work is looking fantastic. Nice find on the rhino. And vanquisher looks mighty fine. Scale shots really emphasizes the scale issues. But also giving me so many ideas. Thank you for sharing bud we are here following, honestly great work.





Much thanks, bro. It's much appreciated.




UPDATE!




I got lucky with the temperature and humidity today, and managed to give the Rhino a base coating with Krylon:











I also started working on the Panzer II's wheel details tonight.










I finished the basic camo work on the Vanquisher, and went ahead and applied the tactical symbols, since they are Archer dry transfers. After the paint dries overnight, I'll go back and check for any needed touch-ups.



Pics:












Well, peeps, that is all for now. More to come.............