Modeling Workshop: Treads, mud, and weathering

Greetings!

This morning I have for you a short selection of pictures I took while adventuring. They are of construction equipment playing in the mud, so hopefully will be a useful reference in muddying up your tanks, construction equipment, or what have you.

Muddy muddy tracks! This shows it might be quite useful to simply use something like Stirland Mud on your tracks. Remember two things though: You still want it with very fine grit, due to the scale, because otherwise it'll look way too bloppy. Also, the mud on the tracks is darker than the mud you see on the chassis there, since it's newer and churned up and is still retaining some moisture, while the caked on stuff is completely dried out and light.

Let's move on to the dozer blade.

Their is bare metal, because obviously painting it would be a waste of money when it's going to be constantly dinged up and scratched. Here we see the two colors of mud again: dark and smeared on the lower two thirds, and dry and caked on the upper third.

It's interesting, because normally you see weathering articles showing mud on a dozer blade being stippled on more than being brushed on, but here we see there is quite a bit of smearing! I think this can be easily replicated by taking a ratty old brush where the bristles have spread a bit, wiping off a good chunk of the paint (but not as much as you would for drybrushing) and then doing a quick, streaky stroke (again and again). Easy!

Here is the back of the blade, showing how mud splatters up and dries on the rear. Overall, the machine is quite muddy and dirty, but wait! What do we spy down there?

Oooo, so shiny. This is one of the pistons that positions the blade, which means it must be well-oiled to keep it moving easily. This keeps it incredibly clean and chrome-like in the face of all that dirt, mud, and rust. A nice shiny steel paint will work well enough.


Hopefully these pictures provide a good reference, and maybe inspire a few tricks to make your models stand out something extra. Til next time!

Cantigny pt.1: Tanks!

Greetings! I apologize for the absence, but I have been busy taking pictures of things and hobbying away my time, busy busy!

First up will be about a visit to Cantigny in Wheaton, IL. We go every year and it's superawesomefun, or at least it is rather enjoyable. The gardens are full of blooms, and the tank museum is great for references and of course, climbing on.

Tip #1 - Hang a right as you enter the park. This will take you to the parking lot at the tank museum, which is generally empty most of the time. This actually gets you closer to the park faster, as there are often busloads of kids in the main parking area.This also takes you to the best part of Cantigny: the tanks!

Tip #2 - Go during a weekday, because there's practically nobody there to crowd up your outdoor enjoyment, except the aforementioned school buses.


Here are the vehicles they have on display:

I'm on a tank! (Patton)

Rifling...

...for this. It can launch missiles through the barrel!

Rawr. Patton tank.

M5 Stuart.

The first American tank, based on a French Renault.

Bulldog.

Bulldog and Chaffee, my two favorite light tanks!

Classic American muscle car.

Finds something possibly more interesting in the distance...

As always I had fun in the tanks area. It was nice being there right around lunch time, which leads me to...

Tip #3: Visit the tanks during lunch hours, because the students will all be having lunch somewhere and not getting all in your vehicle photos.


So this was the tanks segment for Cantigny. They also have a field artillery section and indoor museum, but I did not cover those this time around. Next post will feature some nice shots of flowers, and trust me, they are very vibrant.

Til next time!