1/87 pta mt-lb
 

Alrighty then. It's been awhile since I blessed ya'll with one of
my exceedingly excellent masterpiece of a work in progress
build thread. I'm sure everyone will appreciate the artful skill
and surgeon like techniques I will grace you with, both to astound
and make you realize.....

OH! Wait! Was that my outside my head voice? Oh man! An
internal monologue filter failure! AAHhhhhhh!

Ok, so now I have your attention (and hopefully got you laughing) with my
delusions of grandeour, this will be just my “still not as good a modeller as some of ya’ll”
out there build thread of the MT-LB (многоцелевой тягач легко бронированный,
Mnogotselevoy Tyagach Lekhko Bronirovannyi / multi-purpose light-armoured towing vehicle).

This kit was acquired from Clif Burton, of Papertigerarmaments. It is designed in
1/72, but I prefer working with my armor in 1/87, so I rescaled it.

There are several things I am changing, or modifying during this build. The first
item on my agenda was the paint scheme. I purchased the tri-color scheme,
and almost immediately put it through Paintshop for some changes. I personally
did not care for the pixelation of the graphics, so Clif sent me the b/w line
file to repaint. Using the aforementioned program, I matched the colors a
little closer to some photos, and to actual vehicles I had seen while overseas. I also
chose a smoother, feathered edge to the paint colors.

http://img94.imageshack.us/img94/5540/comparepp.jpg

One thing you may notice, the colors appear on the bright side of life. There is a
reason for this and in upcoming installments, you will see why. As the vehicle is
weathered, it will tend to tone down the colors, so they needed to be brighter to
start with.

Here I have started on the road wheels. Using a technique that Pericles had reminded
me of, I used a small amount of glue to build up and give some shape to the part. Then,
reaching into the mental wayback machine, I began using some methods from my plastic
modeling days.

In this picture, from left to right is the sequence I used to work this part. 1, is the original part.
2 is the glue application. 3, I have begin applying a dark gray pastel chalk to the recessed areas
to begin depicting some depth to the part. 4, now I am applying a lightened acrylic paint
to the raised portions, to further the effect. In the last position,
you can see I have used a little more of the chalk brushed
onto the bright new paint to help tone it down and blend it in with the rest of the wheel.

http://img62.imageshack.us/img62/8626/roadwheel2.jpg
More to come…..Why yes, thank you nurse, I will take my meds now.

Show off!

But seriously, I look forward to the application of the famed Flyboy techniques to a PTA model. Am prepared to learn from your "exceedingly excellent masterpiece of a work." [You Air Force guys all talk alike.]

Humble Dogface

That comes from decades of OPR/EPR (OER/NCOER) writing and proofing
to make your **** sound better than the other guys ****!

Get back to the tank, Flyboy!

Great! Looking forward to watching your extreme excellence in operation. I like your technique of using glue and paint for a more dimensional effect.
Chris

Here is the next proof of concept idea. I cut out the roadwheel outer circle, then punched out the inner circle to form a ring. After edgecoloring, it was glued into position to add the final element of depth to the roadwheel. A light dusting of pastel chalk to blend it in, and here it is.

I think it works!

http://img840.imageshack.us/img840/6...elcomplete.jpg

Excellent! Adds considerable dimensionality. I look forward to seeing this little tank take shape.

Don

it does work. stunning detail on your part Tex. those 2D wheels were a challenge to design in the first place, but you have made them come alive. wheels on a vehicle mean everything.

Continuing..
 

Well, not alot accomplished during the weekend, alot busier than the scheduled looked for me, but some work has been done. In the first picture, I show an actual roadwheel from the MT-LB. You will notice
that the center of the wheel has a "bowl" shape to it. After looking at my roadwheel, I devised a simple little form made from meat packing tray foam. Using the same punch I used to make the roadwheel rubber ring, I punched a hole in the foam into which the upside down sheet of roadwheels will face. Then, using the round end of a crochet needle approximately the same size, I pressed the wheel into the hole. The soft foam supported the outer edges of the wheel, allowing the bowl shape to be semi replicated. It is a subtle difference, perhaps not as visible in the pictures as it is on the actual part, but it is very different in person.

Attachment 88709 Attachment 88710

In the next steps, I have started working on the tracks by cutting out the outer portion of each track link, which I believe are the drive sprocket guide teeth? (Any qualified treadhead please step in and let me know the real part names if needed!) I haven't gotten very far with this yet, as there are 256 of these sections to remove. I intend on giving the tracks some of the same treatments that the roadwheels got to give them a little more depth as well.

Attachment 88711

I'm confused...this is the oddest looking aircraft I have ever seen.

and, whats with the massive scale?
you sure you got room for something this big?