Tamiya 1/48 Panther G

[IroningMan]

Clank, clank, I'm a tank.

Still a work in progress, not least because painting so many roadwheels is very dull, but it's a nice kit - die-cast chassis and as many parts as you'd find in most 1/35 scale iterations.

All brush-painted enamels, weathering limited to black and rust washes. The decals have silvered, so I need to find some stencils.

[IroningMan]

Now finished. All out-of-the-box. I think 1/48 is quite forgiving - I won't get away without an airbrush if I want to do anything bigger.



Tracks in a dozen or so sections, went together well but maybe half a link too long: burnished Metalcote with a rust wash:





I could be sorely tempted by one of these in 1/35 with lots of PE and individual track links - you don't have to spend long on Britmodeller to find inspiration...



The turret and the top of the hull were brushed with thinned Humbrol matt varnish: it's given a slight sheen which has tackled the silvered decals, but my black wash has still found the edges and picked them up. No substitute for painting them on, I guess.





Feathering the edges of the camouflage with a cotton bud worked pretty well some of the time:

[Red Firecracker]

I like that a lot, the tracks are very effective.

[perdu]

Me too

I'm not convinced the tracks are too long either, seems to be just enough sag for my liking

very nice

[IroningMan]

Cheers. There's just enough extra length in the tracks to lift them a milimetre or so off the idlers at the back, it's hard to spot in the photos and they do sit pretty well otherwise.

[NervySi]

Lovely, your brush painting skills are a credit to you. I particularly like how you have treated the tracks. Re. the decals silvering, I know it's been said many times but honestly, give it a brush over with Johnsons Klear floor polish before and after you place the decals. Then give it a wallop with some matt lacquer (available in a Humbrol can if you're concerned about brushing an even finish) and Bob's your sister. Or even leave it with the Klear satin finish, whatever tickles you.

Nice, I've never tried a 1/48 tank but this is tempting me.

[IroningMan]

The Tamiya 1/48 kits are smart - but not cheap. We have a Tiger and a Sherman Firefly knocking about the house waiting for my sons to finish them.

A Cromwell next for me, though - side-by-side with the Panther to bring home the miserable rubbish that passed for British tank design.

I think I need to have a snoop around the mother-in-laws for a bottle of Klear: she's bound to have some somewhere.

[dr_gn]

It looks great as it is, although I be tempted to - carefully - give it a thin coat of Humbrol #49 Matt varnish. Having said that, zero risk option is to leave it.