1/72 Takom Russian Tractors. Special Delivery

[Lee Drennen]

Looking great Andy

[minitnkr]

Yes, prolly should have said something of a warning, as anything more than 1/8" at most takes foooorrrrreeeeeevvvvvvrrrrrrr to dry. PaulE

[Guest]

Thanks Lee.

I'm more accustomed to body filler / bondo Paul where thickness isn't an issue. Maybe I'll have to use that in the future :smiling5:

[minitnkr]

Reading your reply brought the smell back immediately. Can't believe we used to work that stuff w/o a mask. Plaster patch however can be used in thicker layers but is harder to work when dry. Kind of like the difference between bondo & Greenstuff. PaulE

[Guest]

Got some paint on the last one today. Back to the splattery edges I've had before with Vallejo, just can't seem to get the balance right. She's supposed to be a well worn old girl though so I can live with it.

Also got the engine in and posed the engine cover open. I just know I'm going to knock that flying but wanted to see how it looked.

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And here are the pieces together. A bit of a mish mash but again, that's the idea. A well used vehicle that's been adapted over time. Whether it works or not is another thing but it's what I had in mind. Hopefully washes, oils and plenty of mud & dust thrown at it should tie the separate elements together a bit.

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[scottie3158]

Andy,
Looks good.

[Guest]

Cheers Paul.

It was one of those moments, I'd had it in my head for so long but when it finally came together I wasn't so sure :smiling5:

Now there's just the dio to finish and 4 vehicles to weather. Piece of cake. Probably Christmas cake.....

[Guest]

Definitely bitten off more than I can chew here! Having a brain that's wired slightly differently to the norm means that I can focus intently on one thing, but add too many other elements and processes and it quickly becomes too much to process. Multi-tasking doesn't mix well with the Autistic traits in me :upside:

So I thought I'd focus just on the wheels today. Even then there's 24 to go at (40 if you include the trailer that only needed minor tweaks), with virtually all of them needing their angle and/or height setting. I think I've pulled it off, even though the bulbous nature of the tyres and their shadows make some look a bit iffy.

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Of course now I need to move everything to finish the gardening, but at least I know all the wheels touch the ground when in the right place so with a bit of sinkage into the scenery it should look ok.

But then there's that corner. With everything placed where I want it it's unbalanced, so I agree with all of you that said it needs to go! Can't decide where to lop it off though. I want to avoid an angle that would have the wrecked truck parallel to it, so I can either go roughly along the course of the river (green line), or cut further back along the red line.

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Personally I think the red line as it seems as though it would draw my eye into the scene, but I'd be glad of advice from you guys that know a lot more about this than I do. Of course if you think of something completely different I'd love to hear that too.

Thanks

[scottie3158]

Andy,
All looks good to me I must admit I am not in to the science of dioramas I just put things where I think they look ok.

[minitnkr]

Wheels & hood/exposed engine look great. Looks ok as is. How about a scalloped edge incorporating both lines loosely following the elevation for a little added interest? PaulE

[spanner570]

Nice work Andy.
My advice? Just go with your instincts. If it looks right to you, then it is right.

Folks will alway have different takes on what is required - That's if anything needs altering in the first place.

[Guest]

Thanks chaps.

I treated myself to an afternoon nap to think it over and still thought it needed to go so got the saw out and started hacking. I may take some more off yet but it definitely looks better to me.

Added in the fresh mud for the wheel tracks then started some colouring in on the rocks and roadway. Different shades of artist acrylics dry brushed or wet blended. I used different tones of the same colours between the two so it looked something like they used the stone recovered from the rock face for the road surface. It's no Picasso but much of it will be hidden anyway.

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Added some grassy stuff and the fence on the cliff top.

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[Steve Jones]

just had a quick catch up Andy. Loooking very fine indeed. Looking forward to seeing the sheep, cows, farmer and rabbits in the field. :smiling5:

[Guest]

lol, I've already been looking at sheep and what varieties could be found in Russia. That's part of the reason I included the fence. :smiling5:

It may not happen, but then again, you never know.

[Guest]

Progressing well Andy, now you've reduced the base you will I'm sure feel better about the whole thing. Like those three, very clean from the inners .
Now my ex bucket of dry linner adhesive is nearly gone I've gone over to a normal shed cheapo wall filler, still need to be aware of how thick you put it on.

Was going to try Sculptamold, think Jim has used it , that's a very light
, white, non-toxic compound that combines the best features of clay, plaster, and papier mache, does not shrink, and is durable for dioramas.