Finished T-35

Késznek nyilvánítom a jószágot, amit menet közben eléggé megszerettem. Nem vittem túlzásba a koszolást, nem is volt szándékom. És egy tanulság, okulásul: nem szabad egy napot várni az AK Interactive "dust deposits" termékeinek felvitele és a blending között. Én hagytam és meg is szívtam, mert alig tudtam tompítani az éles szélek látványán anélkül, hogy az eredeti festést fel ne szedjem a hígítós ecsettel. Ha a cucc felvitele után 5-6 perccel tettem volna ugyanezt, sokkal szebb lett volna a végeredmény (próbadarabon ellenőriztem), de végül így is elégedett lehetek, azt hiszem. A kipufogó narancssárgáját még tompítani kell, ezt rendszerint elbaltázom, de ez egy perces korrekció csupán. Most egy darabig nem kezdek újabb, egy évnél rövidebb kampányba - be kéne fejezni a Leopardot meg szeretném összehozni a Jagdpanzer IV diorámát is, ezzel azt hiszem 2018 végéig majdnem el is fogom tölteni az időt...

Finally it is finished. It was a lovely build and I'm pleased with the result. The only problem occured that I left the AK Interactive "dust deposit" to cure overnight - and it was a pain to try to feather/blend it next day. The white spirit started to soften up the original paint. Next time I'll leave the dust effects product to dry only 5-6 minutes after applying it and then start the blending. That way it has an amazing finish.
Now I plan to hold a pause. Or at least don't start a campaign that is shorter than one year. I'd like to finish the Leopard (sleeping in her shoebox) and to build a diorama with the Jagdpanzer IV. I'm quite sure that it will last till the end of 2018.

Hand tools painted and some more modulation...

Annyira megtetszett ez a moduláció-dolog, hogy még átmentem egy-két részleten újra a highlight színnel, kapaszkodók, miegymás kiemelésére, és nagyon elégedett lettem a végén. Nem tudom, hogy mennyire fogja ezt tompítani a koszolás, filtert nem tervezek rátenni, de kosz meg por az lesz. Hamarosan lefújom a félfényes lakkal, aztán pedig jöhet a vedöring. Kicsit megint kezdek aggódni, hogy mindjárt hóvége, de azért két hét alatt csak készen leszek tán...

I used the highlight color to enrich the look. I quite like this modulation thing though I weren't that extreme modulator as some of the "big ones". Also painted the hand tools and now I plan to apply satin varnish and then weathering commences. Fingers crossed. End of month is approaching...

Track problem

I bought my Friul set for this kit second hand. And that is now why I can not complain at the producer that the kit consisted of two bags of tracks. Both left side. Arrrgh... should I use it or throw it out? The only difference is the track pin - on the right side I should correct it somehow. Tiny putty blobs, or whatever... but anyway, it is annoying a little.

PE problem

I've tried to use Voyager PE but soon had to give it up. The separator panels between the wheels are very bulky and ugly right from the set. The PE would look way better and far more accurate in scale. The problems are tough:
- it is wider than the kit part and to cut/shape it would be pain (eight times...)
- it has no real surface to glue. I tried with small L shaped brass strips but were still too fragile
So finally I decided to use the kit parts. The first pair has been sanded to let the first return roller work but the other three pairs were left as they were. Hardly will be visible when finished.
Otherwise the kit goes together swiftly. Not a Tamiya kit but far better than I expected.

It's huge

Compared to my previous builds the T-35 is huge. It seems that the lower hull is slowly closing to the finish but now I have the big question: to use or not to use. The photoetched side armor / running gear cover. With thousand bolt heads which need to be individually glued/soldered. I'm not convinced that the PE would add so much to the final visual result to worth several hours of eye-popping bolt-head-job. The kit armor piece is nicely moulded and fairly represents the original (according to the few photos I have) and... well... I'm not a time-billionaire. Unfortunately. So I'll go with the kit side (and wasted some money on the PE...).
So far here we are:

New project: T-35

Well, a little pause after the Jagdpanzer (figures and diorama is a side-project, still in feasibility phase). Another campaign on armorama.com is the "Landships" where I enlisted a few months ago. Time-pressure is my big old friend and that is why I thought 4 months will (must) be enough for this monster. I bought some PE stuff but after an hour of learning the instructions and checking the plastic parts I am not convinced about the running gear / side plate PE parts... I'll see. But that big pack may be left out of this project. Painting will not be an issue - green. Tracks look quite OK in the kit but I have Friuls as well. So, let's begin... again, a lot of wheels but this time a lot of turrets, as well :)