T34 engine trouble #10

Painting

There are quite a few schools of thought when it comes to painting a model. Some want their models to be realistic and keep the painting natural, as it would be on the 1/1 version. Others prefer to take the artistic route, but still aim for a realistic finish. I’d probably sway more with the second grouping, and attempt to let the paint represent the natural shadows and highlights of a real vehicle. At the moment, pre-shading/post-shading, dry brushing, pin-washes etc are almost becoming redundant, as its not considered realistic, but in reality a 1/35 model cannot cast shadows and capture light like the real version. Both sides have valid arguments, so it all comes down to each modeller’s own preference on what way they paint their model.

Newcomers to the hobby often ask the question; “should I paint my model as I go along and in sub assemblies, or should I build the model completely and then paint?” Again it all comes down to preference and what works best for each individual. On a tank like this, I prefer to paint normally in two pieces …. the lower hull and the turret. As hatches are open, and would be easy to knock off, they will be kept separate until I make the final weathering effects. I decided to keep the etched two-man saw separate as well, as it’s so fragile.

The first step is to paint the entire model in a brown, earthy colour. This is done for two reasons; to prime the model so that all added details have the same ground colour, and also for the base colour for the tracks. This is probably the most critical stage, as everything must be covered. There’s nothing worse than seeing some unpainted plastic on the inside of wheels or the running gear on a finished model. Less care can be taken in the stages afterwards, as any of this brown colour that shows through, will look like built up dirt or dust. Tamiya earth and hull-red was used for this colour. I use T-röd (ethanol) for thinning.

Stage two is to spray Tamiya black for the tyres. With properly thinned paint and some practise, this is easy enough to do. I never worry about over-spray, as the upcoming stages will take of that. I played around a little with some pre-shading on the edges and panels, but this is not necessary. Stage three was to spray some yellow-mix, as a ground colour for the wooden box and the tarps. Then its time for stage four, and the T34 green. Tamiya J.A. green (XF-13) was used. I don’t get too hung up on the actual colours, as the later weathering stages will change it anyway. Stage five is to fade the base green slightly with the same yellow-mix as used previously.

The final stage of painting is some dry brushing (a Humbrol 159 khaki drab and Hu 103 cream mix). I still believe dry brushing is a useful tool for defining edges and making the smaller details “pop up” more. The model now has a lot of contrasts in the base colour and it has also made it lighter. Each stage after this will darken the base colours again, and also tie them together. Even though the colour will get more unified, because of the previous steps, it still allows the details to be visible and gives them a more natural depth.