discussion 1/72 Takom Russian Tractors. Special Delivery

[Guest]

Cheers Rick. I've used blu tack before but thought this might work better. It certainly "slumps" to the surface given a bit of time so follows details better, but will have to try it again to see if the issue was a one-off.

This little beauty turned up today. I tried to find one at the Newark show (or rather Zoe did!) but ended up having to go elsewhere. I'm sure some will shout that it's decades out of date for this dio, but with a Ron inspired twist to the tale, it was rescued and restored by a local farmer many years ago and he's been using it ever since. He happened upon our luckless duo and offered to help them out, in exchange for what vodka they hadn't yet drunk.

Nice looking box art, which only bears a passing resemblance to the model inside! It shows wood grain on the load bed (nope), glazing in the windows (nope, but I intend to make some), doors which look like they could open (nope) and various other details that the kit doesn't actually have.

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Anyway, for 1/72 it'll do, and there's very little inside the box

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And within an hour it was ready for paint

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I couldn't resist improving a few things though. The two steering control levers were moulded in one piece so a bit of careful cutting ensued

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Also the towing pintle was sadly lacking. I couldn't reach it from the side to simply drill it out, so cut it off and fashioned a new one from copper wire, referencing the size from the ones in the Takom kit. Not brilliant but at least it can actually tow something now.

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I then shot it with my usual black Mr Surfacer 1500. I also tried a bit of pre-shading with MrC white, then promptly buried it by putting on one too many coats of Vallejo Olive Drab!

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Plenty of detail painting left to do but, like the KZKT above, at least the main colours are on and can harden up over the next few days while I'm back at work.

 

[minitnkr]

Came together very fast. At least the glass is flat. I see the winch cable was provided-a detail opportunity. Would have thought first mod would toss out rear seats to make room for more turnips:smiling3:. PaulE

 

[Guest]

Came together very fast. At least the glass is flat. I see the winch cable was provided-a detail opportunity. Would have thought first mod would toss out rear seats to make room for more turnips:smiling3:. PaulE

A buddy of mine gave me two small sheets of clear styrene which is the perfect thickness too.

And I hadn't even realised that was a winch cable! Now you mention it and I can see it properly on the blown up pictures I see I missed a trick there. Most of the parts are still only dry fitted though so I may still have chance to do something with it.

Really must learn to spend more time studying and planning instead of just forging ahead :smiling5:

 

[Guest]

Are you quite sure your new to this modelling park Andy.
The putty takes getting used to, various ways of angling the ab will give harder or softer edge. As to your problem how long did you warm the putty in your hands ? I found the longer you moulded it the more elastic it became and easier to use. Perhaps that might have had an effect on the paint if it was cold, can't see really why.

 

[SimonT]

Andy - the box art for this one and the similar Voroshilovets that I have built are actually their 1/35th versions, hence the increased level of detail

Cheating somewhat

 

[Guest]

John, it did take a while to warm it up as it was so cold, so maybe something transferred from my hands. I certainly won't knock the product for what could easily have been user error. Will try it out again when the weather is a bit warmer!

Andy - the box art for this one and the similar Voroshilovets that I have built are actually their 1/35th versions, hence the increased level of detail

Cheating somewhat

Ah, thanks, I suspected as much. Rather naughty of them!

 

[Jim R]

Hi Andy
Nice little tractor. As for preshading it is the bane of my life I have tried quite a few times. Carefully spraying a nice dark colour along lines and edges and into shadow areas and then obliterating it with a clumsily applied top coat - one day I'll get it right :tongue-out:
Jim

 

[Steve Jones]

Bloody Nora!! Its all happening here. I take a weekend off and you have built and painted all these vehicles. The guys have said it all really. Your certainly no novice now. I particularly like the engine and canvas work. The camouflage has come out well also. Keep up the great work mate

 

[Guest]

Thanks Jim and Steve.

I'm the same at work, 200-250% efficiency is the norm for me lol.

I do need to slow down a bit in this hobby though as I'm overlooking stuff and making mistakes.

The winch cable mentioned by Paul E should have been attended to, and if you look carefully I made a big mistake with the canvas. I made one end more pretty than the other and added an access flap. When I took the masking off it was at the wrong end! :smiling5:

So the less pretty end is now on show, after adding another flap. A bit more care would have prevented that, but I'm still happy with how it turned out.

 

[Guest]

I needed the 2.5x magnifiers and a new No.15 blade, but managed to scrape off the moulded winch cable without losing too much other detail. Didn't have any thin enough wire for the hooks so filed and sanded some 0.4mm copper stuff to a more in-scale size, then the cable itself was some twisted strands from a CAT5 cable.

Paint still wet and needs the cable picking out in a different colour but I'm happy with how it's turned out. Thanks for seeding the idea in my head Paul :thumb2:

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[scottie3158]

Andy,
Nice work mate.

 

[Mini Me]

Much Better!

Rick H.

 

[Guest]

Thanks guys.

 

[Steve Jones]

Loads better mate. Great work

 

[Guest]

Cheers Steve.

 

[Guest]

A bit more work done today.

First off was a job I've been trying to avoid as my hairy stick skills are still lacking - outlining the camo in black. Didn't come out quite as well as I'd have liked but there's no going back now.

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Then back to the Komintern. The lack of woodgrain effect had bothered me as soon as I saw it was missing so had a go at carving it in

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And since I'd buried my preshading I had another go. Mixing a much lighter shade of the original colour for highlighting, then toned it back with a light thin coat of the regular one.

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Still subtle but a bit better than before I think, even though it's bleached out a bit by the lighting.

Gave it a dark wash, some detail painting, and made and fitted the glazing. Tracks need toning down a bit more but again, that'll wait until I start putting the dio together and know what shades to use.

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[Mini Me]

My eyes see nothing wrong with the black outline, I don't think it was perfect on the real thing either. LOL
As for the wood grain effect...Outstanding!
Cheers, Rick H.

 

[Guest]

Thanks Rick.

 

[Guest]

Oh, I forgot about the figures.

I ordered a pack from a place suggested to me by Peter Day. At 12 pence each I wasn't expecting great detail but to be fair they aren't half bad. I fell unlucky with the random mixture in the pack though - 8 ladies with handbags and 2 guys in top hats won't be much use lol and only one seated person, which is a shame. I've ordered a larger pack, 100 figures for a fiver!, so hope for a better selection next time.

Anyway, I donned my scrubs and started chopping a couple of the useable figures up. A guy walking with a stick now has his arm lifted to become the Komintern driver/farmer, pointing at where to hook up the tow chain, and another casual looking guy also had his arm amputated to be raised as if waving.

They had a splash of primer to highlight any further work that needs doing. Not greatly detailed like I say, but at this scale, and given my dodgy figure painting skills, I think they'll suffice. More surgery tomorrow!

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[scottie3158]

Andy,
There is nowt wrong with the black out lines mate. The rest of the paperwork is looking good as well.