RC Tank Warfare community hobby forum

Hi,

As this is a build, I wanted to show the US Armored Cav figures i have created before the painting and final assembly phases.

Building one 1/16 figure kit is already something, so imagine building six into various conversions, and try to make them look natural sitting/standing on a APC. This is a risky proposition on its own. There is no cold war or modern US tank crew or riders available. Even Tamiya did not produce one with their latest M1A2. There are tons of 1/16 German WW2 tank riders now available, few US WW2, even a couple of modern Israeli chicks, but no American.

So, here they are;

Heads and some arms to be painted flesh color and later detailed with a magnifier are into position, this is why you do not see them attached to the body until fanal assembly, whenever possible. This is not some kind of ritual...
The commander/M2 gunner (SOL Vietnam Marine) and the driver (Dragon Seal) are within their armored position and do not show too much without their heads. I am still trying to figure how if I can manage to do a crew helmet.
Overview of the riders position in the back.
This M16 rifleman is the PMC Cav trooper with Dragon seal legs and arms. I put the M-16A1 there just to show how the figure will hold it once the arms are in place. This transformation was quite difficult to achieve because the bridge between the torso and legs was non existant. Various equipment from the source kits were mixed in with all figures.
The M79 gunner is the Verlinden torso with Dragon seal legs. This was a simpler arrangement.
Those Vietnam style helmets are a must.
This ACAV M60 gunner crewman is the Mitches M60 Vietnam gunner. I had to modify it because it was way too big compared to the other figures. He was a giant and I must have removed at least one scale feet in height by shortening the legs a lot, then a bit of the torso and neck. He's still tall but tall guys are ok as long as they are realistic compared to others. I modified the sculpting as well because the towel around the neck was not to my liking.
The M16 rifleman riding inside the vehicle is a modified Dragon seal kit. Human anatomy is not as easy as an armor plate so I am still fine tuning this one to make his seating position more natural.
Next steps is to polish them a bit more and then start painting. Painting faces is a nightmare and I am usually not really good at it, so I will do my best and see what happens. I am not the kind of guy who will take a week to paint a face and I have six. Whatever the results, these converted figures will be something you have not seen before.

Regards, Louis

Staggering
Perhaps some clever type out there could use your pre-painted completed figures to make resin molds from ?

Hi,

Finally, the figures are finished, the best I can. I could fine tune these for a week but I find them acceptable. I would normally take better pictures outside in the sunlight but its winter.

I applied decals for the 11th Armored Cavalry regiment, the Black Horse. I have named my M113 "Bookoo Boom Boom", hope you like it. I was inspired by a picture of an Australian M113 in Vietnam and also by a scene in the movie Full Metal Jacket. Hope you enjoy the pictures.
Regards, Louis

Like it?

Love it!

I want one!

Hi,

Here are a few more. Now taking a break until my next project to be revealed soon.
Regards, Louis

Video of this beauty in action would be great.

Those crew figures are crowning touches to an already epic build

Max-U52 wrote:Video of this beauty in action would be great.

Hi, here is a YOUTUBE video i just took. The riders are not yet glued to the hull (i am not yet ready for that), so I did not put 2 of the riders because they would have been thrown overboard. This model is quite agile. Will take better video when I am finished with the interior, still are a couple of things I want to do.

https://youtu.be/6_AU7Uphjz4

Regards, Louis

Louis it looks like a prop from a Vietnam era movie so well done! Your figure painting is super

Hi,

HERMAN BIX wrote:Those crew figures are crowning touches to an already epic build

c.rainford73 wrote:Louis it looks like a prop from a Vietnam era movie so well done! Your figure painting is super

Hi, thank you,

After the Nashorn and M7 build that had large crew compartments that I (sadly) left unattended, I decided to spend some time and $ on a crew for this one. All the various figure parts in resin and plastic adds up to about $250 in expenses, which is significant. It is also quite risky. Figure painting require different skills. Flesh and tissue are not the same as armor plates. Paint for the face need to be applied with the tip of a blade... and many attempts can be required to get it to an acceptable level. Also, can't just put a figure strait off the shelf standing there doing nothing, a crew need to be natural on their mount in order to look good. Modifying the legs of the Dragon Seal to create some seated guys was done on a best effort basis as objective, the M79 gunner is better than the other two I think. The SOL figure used for the commander was the best and simplest, just had to put one resin arm in the microwave for 1 minutes to bend it, but at $50 I really hoped he would look good. All the others needed extensive modifications of arms, torso and legs, mixtures of various body parts into a single figure. Wartime pictures show the M-113 crew as dirty and dusty as their mount. This is what I also tried to repro but it is difficult cause you can't wash a guy in dust pigments but can't leave it too shiny either. Some expert in figure painting would have done a better job, but i'm happy and this was definitely one of my best and most fun project ever.

Regards, Louis