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We shall see, in still a bit of a novice when it comes to the airbrush! I've got a load of AK Interactive and Ammo stuff coming in the post- earth/dust pigments, chipping fluid, filters and mud effects. Should be interesting!

This is all good practice as I'm contemplating a GD entry this year, possibly involving a DKoK censure assault carrier and grenadiers...

Awesome mate! Def go for it! Some cracking looking work in your galleries!

Haha, I don't know if I'd get anywhere but you never know. I've just gone through your blog too and it's got some inspiring stuff in there- really liking the diorama so far dude!
I aim to have a playable army by the summer so I'd better get my finger out and get painting!

Cowl added to searchlight and barrel bands redone. Also started work on the arbour plates for the next two tanks.

Looks perfect now man. Really just sets it off. Brilliant work.

Cheers Medium! I'm going to see if I can get a head-start on the Vanquisher variants by making up the turrets over the next couple of nights.

I've also decided to call these tanks Praetorians

So I made the mistake of starting the Vanquisher variant turrets this evening *groan* I swear that the mm scale on my steel rule changes depending where you measure on it. Either that or I needed more tea. Or gin. Or both.

Anyway, the point is I made a start on one of them to see what it would look like and, well, I'm not too stoked on it at the moment... Granted it is still early days and I haven't taken any pictures of it so I'm sure I'll be happier with a little more work on it. Stay tuned!

Sometimes you just have sessions like that, its best to just put it down and do something else. The Punisher looks awesome, BTW.

"Praetorian" is a cool name mate! Works well!! Its frustrating to have a session like that where you feel like your either making something wrong or having an off day with the ruler.... but in my short time at this.... I have learned not throw anything! it might not be right for this project..... but keep hold of it and i bet it will come in useful for another one!

By the way you will have to get me your source for those brass rods.... they look really convincing as gun barrels!

Look forward to seeing more progress!

Thanks for the pep talk chaps, I'll have another bash tonight and see how it looks when I've got the extra panels and bits done to it.

@MagosBiff90, the tubes are from Ebay (davej4755 is the seller)

Awesome! Cheers for that! I will chase him for some!

No worries dude, happy hunting.

Emperor's teeth, Warseer is a rubbish forum...

Anyway, outburst over with, I've been rather quiet of late but i have not been idle- 20 Korpsmen are on the (new) cutting mat and will be assembled once I've cleaned them all of flash and given them a bath. I've got 20 Grenadiers (*Scions* pffft), 10 more infantry and 6 Heavy Weapon Teams on the way. Have made more progress on the Vanquisher style turret and have plans to buy a Vulture and a couple Taurox to be the transports for the Grenadiers.

Went to Hobby Craft yesterday and picked up some cheap flat sable brushes, cutting mat, thinners, white/burnt umber oil paints and a can of satin varnish. I definitely didn't sniff the thinners as I walked around the shop...
Some supplies also arrived in the form of AK Interactive and Mig Ammo earth and dust effects, filters, pigment fixing liquid and mud effects.
The Praetorian Punisher has been primed and will have paint applied this evening.

*Edit* After a fight with the airbrush and no amount of trepidation...

Base of different greens to make the flat panels more interesting ( not necessarily zenithal but you get the idea):



Then after a coat of satin varnish, AK chipping effects, Vallejo Air white, AK DAK vehicle wash, AK rust effects and AK streaking grime:




Still to come, the rest of the tank... LOL.

Brilliant man. Just brilliant. Really ties everything together.

 Elnibbus wrote:
Emperor's teeth, Warseer is a rubbish forum...

I'm willing to agree with that, I just abandoned it myself. Barely any comments on plogs, no real batreps, crazy pic limits and whinging.

Anyhoo, the tank is turning out excellent, even better than expected.

Thanks guys. I have to say thus blog is keeping me motivated and I appreciate that a great deal.

@Cap'n Facebeard, every post I have attempted to make has needed admin approval before it is shown and as such, only my intro post and one other went through (though the pictures in the second post didn't work!).

Anyway, was going to do a bit more this evening but I remembered I'm going to the theatre for some culture.

Properly Awesome!!

Thanks Magos. I'm thinking that I've overdone the rust though- the whitewash is supposed to be a layer of paint over the top of the actual colour of the tank so I'm going to remove some of it. Next up will be chipping- if I follow the tutorial I have then this is supposed to go right through the whitewash and the bottom layer so I'm using a dark brown and a very small brush. After that comes the mapping.

Cool..... sounds good mate!

With regards to the rust..... i am a big fan of a LOT of rust and properly beaten up looking armour...... so IMHO its looking spot on!

What tutorial are you following? Always intreagued to see new ways of doing things!

I think a little bit of rust is good, you can't expect an AFV to stay in pristine condition, especially in wet conditions. However, I've seen some tanks so rusted that they look completely unserviceable (even if they do look quite awesome!). I'm going for a happy medium between "realistic" and futuristic engine of destruction

The tutorial: http://migjimenez.blogspot.co.uk/2011/12/tiger-i-148-winter-camo.html?m=1

Yeh i got to agree with you.... but again... personal tastes.... i just dont like pristine and "fresh from the makers yard" armour! lol

Thanks for the link.... i will check it out..... but tonight i have a date with some sculpy and making more sand bags! Oh joy! haha!

Take it easy!

No worries dude. I might get the rest of the whitewash done when I get in this evening but I'm not going to hold my breath. I think I might wait until it's finished before I post any more pictures, for dramatic effect

As I predicted, the play at the theatre about 9/11 wasn't a heart-warming, uplifting tale however the amateur actors did a splendid job of remembering an entire 2 hours with no prompts and without skipping a beat. Pork pie in the pub afterwards was awesome.

Anyway, what are people's opinions on wooden lasgun stocks? I've been feeling that I should perhaps attempt them given that I'm supposed to be going for a "realistic" appearance though I don't know if I can be bothered. I was also thinking about Armies on Parade.
Another thing I've been contemplating is basing- I'm pretty crap at it but want snow bases in a forested environment i.e. The Ardennes. I'm think I'm going to have to look at historical photos but the idea is mud, snow and leaves with the HWT bases featuring blasted tree trunks and shell craters. Getting the balance between full-on snow bases and a woodland setting is going to be the difficult part.


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Ok, so I thought I'd do a little tutorial on the whitewash thing. Bear with me, I'm not great at turorials (and yes, I bite my nails and should stop)...

First of all, base coat your vehicle in your chosen colour. I used an airbrush and 3 different shades of green to provide a bit of interest to otherwise flat surfaces. Once you're happy, give the model a spray of satin varnish. To help speed up the process, you can use your fiancée's expensive hair dryer to dry the varnish...

>

Next, apply a couple of thin coats of this stuff with an airbrush and leave to dry:



Once dry, take your airbrush and apply a coat of white acrylic. I used Vallejo Air White. Try not to apply an even coat as you want to make it a bit haphazard. Once you're happy, take a flat brush that has been moistened with water and work on the surface of the paint:



Once you've gone over the vehicle it should look a little battered. Next you want to apply some of the following to all the rivets, lines and creases of the vehicle:



After you've done that, clean any excess away with some thinner. Next take some AK Interactive Streaking Grime and streak it over areas that would get dirty. Once dry, take a flat brush with thinner and streak the grime in a vertical or horizontal fashion. You'll end up with something like this:



That's all for now. Tomorrow I'll show the oil paint step, rust and earth pigments. Any c+c is welcome!

Earth pigments from AK Interactive:



Drop them onto the desired areas with a drybrush. The dark earth pigments should be used in the recesses to represent a build up of dirt over time.



Once happy with placement, take some of this:



And dab it onto the pigments- don't brush it on as this will move the pigments around.

Hey man awesome tutorial ! I might try this with my tanks, though do I have to use an airbrush as I don't own one and don't really have the cash to get one ?

Thanks Wolf- I've simplified the tutorial given by Mig Jimenez and I imagine it will have a wider audience here.

I haven't tried with a regular brush but I imagine if you apply thin coats of white acryllic then you should be OK. I did actually go a little too thick in places on the hull and I think my first pass on the turret looks better. The airbrush I use isn't too expensive so in time it might be worth saving for one. Let us all know how it goes though!

This thing is looking mean mate! really good!
I am tempted to look at the chipping effect solutions as you have proved.. you get quality results..... but being a tight arse i think i will stick to Asds's own brand hairspray and black coffee for the washes!

Still... top notch work! Really giving me inspiration to get my butt in gear and get some progression on my own work!

Cheers,

Thanks Biff, means a lot since it's your stuff that inspires me!

Hobby-bromancing aside, I need to get some white spirit to apply the oil paint modulating thingy-majig technique- thinner doesn't really cut it! Hopefully I can pick some up on my way home and get some work done on this tonight. Rust streaks, rust and soot pigments on the exhaust and mud effects still to go.

I'm a bit unsure as to what to do about the glass sections- I was thinking doing the gem technique but in grey to simulate the view through glass into the dark interior. Any suggestions?


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So much for not liking heavily weathered tanks or not putting up any more pictures...

Started on the infantry today and after giving them a bath:

"GRENAAAAAATTTTTEEEEEEE!!!"

Nice potato masher. And the tank looks awesome, some realistic muck there.