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Roy!,
The Weathering Master kits from Tamiya see use with ever Build around here. Their use cannot be overstated in terms of the great realism effects that it is possible to achieve with them. Following along!
regards,
Painless

PainlessWolf wrote:Roy!,
The Weathering Master kits from Tamiya see use with ever Build around here. Their use cannot be overstated in terms of the great realism effects that it is possible to achieve with them. Following along!
regards,
Painless

Yes, Painless, and I've followed all of your in depth builds, and made mental Post-Its to be able to recall your most effective tweaks
The Decals arrived today. That's pretty quick response and delivery
The decals will give the JP its new identity.



I need a few warm, sunny days to finish the base coat, and then I'll be apply a clear coat, followed by the decals, if all works out well. The Weathergods are blowing winds from the Arctic right now, up here in the Far North..... Brrrr..

A little update. I brushed Vallejo Acrylic Matt varnish onto areas where I'll be using Tamiya accent line (Pinwash), and to where I'll be attaching the decals.
Peddinghaus recommend fitting their decals with a decal setting fluid. First of all, though, a clear coat is also recommended.
I opted for Humbrol's "Decalfix' as it's a setter and solvent in one fluid.

Humbrol have a short, but informative video on how to use it:

Frankly, I've never bothered with water-slide decal fixatives in the past; and have never had a problem fitting them. However, since Peddinghaus recommend a fixative, as well as the clear coat, I thought I might as well try them both out. (The clear varnish I used is Vallejo Clear matt acrylic varnish- brushed on. I'ts fairly self-levelling )
I also took the opportunity to add a few panel lines, and component washes, using Tamiya Accent Line.


Here you'll also see that I used a base coat of Tamiya Nato Black (XF-69) on the spare tracks. The jack has now been painted using that colour. I think it looks better than the XF-56 (metallic grey) that Tamiya recommends.




I've also begun to apply base colours to the tools_ Nato Black for metal, and Desert Yellow (XF-59) for the handles- along with a pin wash. I'll also use Tamiya's Weathering Master on them, and the JP.


The little blobs of Blu-Tack are meant to keep the wee stubs, that glue to the tool racks, free of paint.

I found Andy's static Jagdpanther painting video (Part 2) to be especially useful. That's Andy, as in Andy's Hobby Headquarters.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vM3d4QGNXzI

Good afternoon, Roy!
The Hunting Panther is a total Eye Catcher. I am enjoying your Detailing of the small parts and tools. Your Peddinghaus decals turned out better than mine did on the Panzer IV ( I will have to sand those down a bit ) The paint scheme overall is very strong. A great match for the vehicle it represents. Following along,
regards,
Painless

That's all coming together nicely.

I'm a convert to decal solutions these days as they give a great finish and tend to dissolve the carrier film to give it a painted on look. I go with the one,two punch method of Micro Sol & Micro Set and only have good things to say about them. It's hard to tell from this photo but the "Cobra King" on the side of my sherman jumbo is across a very prominent weld seam and the decal solutions melted it in perfectly.

PainlessWolf wrote:Good afternoon, Roy!
The Hunting Panther is a total Eye Catcher. I am enjoying your Detailing of the small parts and tools. Your Peddinghaus decals turned out better than mine did on the Panzer IV ( I will have to sand those down a bit ) The paint scheme overall is very strong. A great match for the vehicle it represents. Following along,
regards,
Painless

Many thanks, Painless, for the supportive observations. Quite how well a camo scheme like this one would have worked, I have my doubts - but it is similar to patterns used at the end of the war, when paint and time were scarce. I quite like it, though- and, since I have to live with it, that's the important thing.
I really like the way Tamiya's accent Line wash works to give a model some definition, and a wee bit of the 'used' look.
I'll use the Weathering master on the wheels, and exhaust pipes- but not to excess.

I shall have to buy a two decent aftermarket tow-cables, as the bits of string Tamiya supply are utterly useless.
These Taigen ones are much better:

I think I have some in my Aladdin's cave of spare parts, but they not be the 500mm long ones recommended for the Panther and Jagdpanther. We shall see.

I'm happy with the tools now, and the wooden block (base for the jack). Lots of little bits of touch up and tidy up remaining to do, as well as weathering on the wheels, and the exhaust. Overall, though,
the hardest stuff is done. More judicious panel line needed on the bolt heads, and accessory surround (unwanted blob of paint needs to covered up, or removed, on the block holder, as well). Then, there'll be the greasy/road dusty look to add to the wheels, after the pinwash. That'll be with Weathering Master D and E. Weathering Master C (Orange Rust/Gunmetal/Silver) should help bring the exhaust to life.
Nothing excessive though. I've had a lifetime of trying to curb my OTT (over the top) tendencies... Finally, having tested the Vallejo clear coat on a spare hull, and not had the dread white bloom appear (like some unwanted plastic poltergeist ), I'll give the model a final coat of lacquer. That's the plan, anyway.

Very smart!

Might I suggest a set of Schumo track holders? The pins and wires are beautiful pieces and not too expensive.

Also, if you’ve not done it, an idler bearing - Schumo do one which is cheap and works well.

Excellent model but heck, you're just getting started.

B_Man wrote:That's all coming together nicely.

I'm a convert to decal solutions these days as they give a great finish and tend to dissolve the carrier film to give it a painted on look. I go with the one,two punch method of Micro Sol & Micro Set and only have good things to say about them. It's hard to tell from this photo but the "Cobra King" on the side of my sherman jumbo is across a very prominent weld seam and the decal solutions melted it in perfectly.

Thanks, B. Well, I gave quite a bit of thought to the decals issue. Previously, I just used the Tamiya supplied examples; but I do like to experiment, when I can.
The Humbrol Decalfix seemed to have some good reviews, and was reputed to not only set the decals, but also soften and embed them. Thus far, they seem to do that.

Another option I considered was using masks, at least for the German crosses. I have some somewhere. Masks/Stencils surely must represent the ultimate means of adding symbols to tanks- but, getting the right masks, and using them well, undoubtedly takes a good measure of practice- and time, of course.

The Sherman star does look pretty impressive, by the way.