Wednesday, January 7, 2009

IDF ERA Centurion Part 3

There had been some emails to me.....thanks guys for seeing that I have material to share.....however, for those who are serious about improving the model making skills, and are living in Singapore, I strongly encourage you guys to take up a course with Bernard Cher of M Workshop....that will cover the whole spectrum and lay a good foundation for you guys.

Next, if you can, I strongly encourage you to have a nice and properly organised work bench....all it takes is a few chest of drawers like what I have, and IKEA full wooden table, make sure its stable type, as I saw, hacks and even hammer the punches on this desk.... Silair compressor below, vice at the left side to hold the airbrush, all solvents on my left, what ever I needed, I organise it into compartments, I also have a chest of drawers table at the left side that is not shown, all in, about US$4,000, Waldron punches, Mission Models Etch Mates, 4 airbrushes, about 25 different types of brushes, wires, cutters, diamond files, dremel below the bench, grainder, small lathe, all sorts of paints and solvents, oils, enamels, acrylics, lacquers, water colour, pastels, pigments, gels, solgel matts, awls, scribers, scratch building materials, butyl acetate glues, acetone, thinners, tarps, filters, metallic buffing materials etc...... one time pain, but you can also grow with the hobby. It took me 36 years to get here. So, don't give up. And my wife married me without knowing that I am this freakish about it! Now she enjoys watching me in action, sometimes criticizing my work!!!!


Now, back to the Centurion, enough of bragging hag.....ok, whose the wise crack shouting back there?!!! Show your face! Lots of critics on the internet, but mostly from people who can't have anything to show for it...now, the stowage, I have done up except that the rope is still waiting to be dried from its brown wash of Acrylic Gel Resin from MIG Productions. I rusted and dusted the tin in the basket. I also 4 tones the tarps and added in the rops and the black shadow edges advocated by Calvin Tan. The basket Tarp and the Ali Baba bag has not been touched up yet, just the black, white drybrush and a few layers of glaze. More work there cut out.


The view from the top. Can see the stowage clearly, the front mantlet canvas still has not recieved the shadows yet. However, for chipping, its completed. Next up, once the mantlet is done and the rope has been dry brushed, we have to paint the antenna base white, then wash and tone it with dust and chips like the rest of the turret. Then, I have to assemble in the 50 Cal Machine gun with the remote firing mechanism. This thing has to scratch as the Legend part is a sham. I have to put in 2 Academy sorted Browning 303 machine guns for the two cupolas.


Another view of the completed chipped turret. The straps and the stowage still needed some work.

I also weathered the top of the barrel too, just for some effect.

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

IDF ERA Centurion Part 2

After the long break where I took time to do the colour modulations and pre chipping, time was at hand to put in the real chips, which took really long with my favourite JR productions triangular stock Sable O brushes and my favourite German C. Black from Vallejo.Dot by dot, I added, 5 days of 2 to 3 hour sessions, this is what I get. This is before we unite the whole thing with further filtering and some rain marks.


At long last, chipping is 90% completed.....the pre chipping followed by the actual, after 15 man hours, we are still not finished! Not a way to make money to sell on Ebay man....good thing I am keeping my models....otherwise, hungry siah!!!!!

Thursday, January 1, 2009

IDF 1982 Centurion Part 1

Painting it at long last......2 years on the shelf as yellow, brass, white plastic and green. This Tamiya converted Legend kit bashing is finally about to take on a coat of nice bruised paint.

  • I painted the whole thing black epoxy to give it a tough undercoat, as always.

  • I mist it with Mr. Colour, red brown, yellow, white and 123 green mixture and dust it 20%

  • I mixed the base with 30% 123, 10% Desert Yellow to build the solid colour

  • I lighted 10% sail colour to form the highlights and concentrate on the top surfaces

  • I panzer filtered it

  • I sand filtered it

  • I flat brown filtered it

  • I green filtered it

  • then I modulated a Vallejo Camo Green with Desert yellow, white, flat brown and yellow to form the pre chip patches




Here, you see that the colour has been modulated, and the filters and spluttering colours are blended with Tamiya Enamel thinners to get a patchy and yet, gravity modulated colouring. This gives the base model a interesting depth look to the colours.

The pre chip chipping with the very light green allows me to create some interesting patch work to break up the monotony of the body work.

Then I started to add in the small chips with my favourite Vallejo German C Black. This done dot by dot, 0.1mm dia at a time and not patches like the green.


The end result of the chipping modulated by the under pre-chipping. Expand the photo to have a clearer picture.