Looking good my friend, the other thing you can try is use a piece of flat plastic the same size as a cobblestone and press on a few random cobbles at different agles to represent stones that have dropped or moved over the years. It gets rid of that perfect just laid look.
-
-
Yes....the incredible shrinking Panther. If I understand your construction method correctly, all you will need to do is "raise" the bar a little to put this back on "track".....I'll get me coat!.....
PS. Life is too short to scratch what is readily available and looks right for the purpose at hand.:thumb2:Comment
-
The Panther Looks nicely set in it's base Allen, I don't think they would have been too particular about how they dug them in!Comment
-
Evening Crazy's,
Wow, thanks so much for the tips and kind words. I haven't been just sitting around spending money. I have been thinking about a few things/ways to make laying the cobbles around the Panther easier. I came up with this,
A general idea of the area surrounding the Panther that was filled with dirt. I had to make some snippets for the curved parts. Doesn't look too bad. Then, I glued them to the main piece,
Used a bunch of things to keep the snippets in place till the glue dried. I really need to get me some more heavier pieces like the 2 brass ones. Then I placed it on the street and did a test with some cobbles. A no go, as 2 rows of them was......Too high. I decided to add a second foam sheet to make it as high as the 2 block rows. To make this work, I had to raise the Panther about 3mm. Pulled the skewers, re-stabbed them and we were in business, finally!!!...I glued the second sheet on and with some trimming on the insides for the tool racks, we ended up with this,
Now we're talking!!! I wasn't about to dump 1 kg of dirt and stuff to take up the difference. The cobbles will be placed around the rim and then I can do the second row. This will be covered in Vallejo thick mud and fine sand. I will fill in the rear section with more foam as the cobbles go all the way around the emplacement. Once the hull is painted, I can glue this to the street and start the cobble work around it. Here's a side view of how she sits,
You can see I have room to form the mud/dirt to the hull and all around the emplacement. It has to have a bit of a contour effect so it doesn't look like a pancake. As I have never worked with foamboard before, I am pretty happy with my work so far. Still a lot to do, but I am really having fun here...
Thanks again for looking in and your kind words. Everybody have a great week and stay safe...
Prost
AllenLife's to short to be a sheep...Comment
-
You're properly thinking this through Allen. Definitely going in the right direction.Comment
-
All looking very nice dude.Comment
-
Lovely.....this will save hours of time digging around in flower beds to get enough dirt to pile up around this "dead cat" bring on the bricks and cobbles Buddy! :thumb2:Comment
-
Thanks Jim! It's funny, but I do spend 70% of the time thinking about what to do and 30% of the time actually doing something...Working with foamboard is really fun at the moment and it won't be the last time I use it...
Thanks Bro! Really having a good time with this at the moment. That Beemer is of yours is really nice too!!!...
Appreciate it Buddy! I don't want this thang to weigh a ton when it's finished. Right now, the whole thing weighs about 800 grams. No bricks, but lots of cobbles have to be added when I get the Kitty hull painted...
So, another quick update on the 'Kitty in the Hole'...I've been playing in the foamboard to finish off the back of the emplacement. Pretty easy stuff and after an hour of tinkering, cutting and gluing, we got it done,
Needs a little cleaning up around the edges, but the basic shape is there. This can only be glued to the base after I can paint the Panther hull. Once this is glued on the base, I can't get the Panther out of or in the hole anymore...I also did a test piece to see how the AV Thick Mud out of the jar would look on the board. After it dried, I found I applied it with a brush that was too soft to break the clumps up. I have a few other methods to try tomorrow with it. I'll do a few more tests to find the best results. A close-up shot,
You can see the clumps pretty good. Overall, it kinda, sorta, maybe looks like packed Elephant dung dirt. Out of the jar, it's not wet enough and dries too fast. I have quick fix for that too......
Short and sweet tonight Folks. All comments and abuse cheerfully accepted. Have a good one!!!...
Prost
AllenLife's to short to be a sheep...Comment
-
Don't let the "odor" deter you Allen, I'm sure it will disappate once things have dried :tongue-out3:.......but really, playing about with elephant poo at your age! Looks like you might need some "kitty" litter to help hide the obvious.
Comment
-
Great work Allen, that's one nicely planted PantherComment
-
Nah Bro, as long as I keep a window open, it's no problem and remember, age is all mind over matter...I don't mind and it don't matter!!!
Thank you Mick! I just hope when I do glue the ring on it, I didn't forget anything on the hull. So far, so good...
I didn't get to do any experiments today as I was running around shopping and doing some research. I did manage to finally work out a way to paint all those damn shell casings!!! Like I said to Jim, I think (sometimes) a lot more than I actually do. I had a brain fart storm and found another use for my scraps of bluefoam. I had scored the old base to make cobbles and using two pieces of it, I made a new Henry Foamboard Assembly Line for them,
Just tape down a strip of AK masking tape to the foamboard and push the shells into one of the scores in it. It holds them securely and you are able to paint them up with your hairy stick. They don't fall off either. I made 2 so when you are finished painting the second set, the first set is dry enough to pop them off onto the plastic lid. When I am done with them all and they have thoroughly dried, I will dab some paint on the bottoms and inside the top of the casings. I'm really loving this foamboard stuff!!!...
Even shorter than yesterday people and thanks for looking in!!!......Stammtisch tonight as I deserve a Schnitzel w/ homemade potato salad and a few cold ones to wash it down......
Prost
AllenLife's to short to be a sheep...Comment
-
Storm'in along beautifully.Comment
-
Thanks Paul!!! I'm trying to give it my best and I am really having a lot of fun with it. Hope all is well in downtown Ohio and the snow isn't too deep...
While the weather here has been quite crappy with rain and winds, I decided to go for it and fire up the hissy stick. It was one of the quickest sessions I've ever had. Hose out the window, compressor on, booth and lamp on, shot a squirt of AK 3rd Gen rotbraun in the cup and had at it. Took about 8 minutes, start to finish and it was over......Voila,
Painted 'Panther in a Hole'......I used Red Oxide as I would think (Not a 100% proven fact) that when the hull was stripped and the plates were added, the Krupp-Druckenmüller repair shop in Tempelhof just primed the hull. Other tanks were repainted and the original turret was put back on them, with the original turret numbers. The turret for this Panther was repainted though...Then I did a dirt board test fit,
That should work pretty well!!!...I just need to glue it to the street now. Another view,
Once it's glued down, I can start laying the cobbles around it. I've also finished painting the rest of the shell cases. In the morn, when they're fully dry, I can dab the bottom of them with steel and swirl some black into the opening on top, holding them in my fingers. The Henry Foamboard Assembly Line jigs will be stripped down and retired till another time when needed...
So the fun goes on and we are actually making progress here!!! More to come good people...Have a great weekend and Moggle on!!!....
Prost
AllenLife's to short to be a sheep...Comment
-
Dude.
Good to see you cracking on with this. Looking good.Comment
-
Following this Dude1 , very nice reading through your methods .pm on way .Comment
Comment