WIP: Newbie painting the King Tiger

[UltraVargen]

My first RC model and my the first military model I painted in many years. I started to shamelessy copy part of what Alpha is doing in his King Tiger blog.

Painting metal wheels that are supposed to roll. I hope the paint won't flake too much when it sees action.
I removed blemishes with metal file and scuffed the metal with a scuffing pad. Then cleaned washed them with water and dishwashing liquid. After that used acetone to wipe them off.
Tamiya red oxide primer was used to basecoat, followed by Motip clear spray varnish. Then a layer of hairspray and Tamiya dark yellow spray.
Chipping was difficult because of the type of paint I used. Also I notice on some small edges the paint flakes off a bit. I assume this is to be expected. I'm not worried... yet.
I also did a sludge wash to give some depth. For now I will leave them like this while I continue on the rest of the tank.

I also stared on lower hull. Scuffed it with grid 400 sandpaper and wiped it with alcohol (the non-drinkable variant mind you). Then red oxide primer again.

And now I'm waiting for more supplies to come in. Man a 1/16 scale tank takes more paint than I anticipated! I'm also waiting on some detail parts like better tow-hooks and metal engine grill covers. Also I'm on the look for a better cupola turret gun and mount. The detail on the Heng Long is extremely basic. Maybe I will 3D print something.

Quick question from a panzer newbie, for those who made to here:
This King Tiger will be the kind that has just the red primer from the factory and then painted in the field by the panzer company - Did they fieldpaint the inside of the fenders, skirts, underside? I assume not because of the paint shortage at the end of the war but I can't find any conclusive evidence.

[Alpha]

UltraVargen What an encouraging start, thanks for sharing! I look forward to seeing the finished tank!

Expect lots of natural chipping once you start running the tank outdoors. It adds to the appeal.

[Elbee]

UltraVargen, Welcome to Hobby Squawk, glad you're here. Looking forward to more pictures of your King Tiger build. I have this tank on my list, it just didn't make it in with the last shipment, so I will live vicariously through your build. Best, LB

[UltraVargen]

Thanks guys and thanks for the welcome. I'm really looking forward to finishing this tank, and during it finding out some facts about King Tigers.

[UltraVargen]

Gun blueing liquid came in today from the UK. Expensive and I couldn't find any of this in the Netherlands. I immediately went to work, used two 3 oz bottles. Was scary to do but very easy in the end. I dunked the liquid in a big glass bowl and ran the tracks through it. Touching up with a toothbrush afterwards. Then rinsed with tap water.
The result with this liquid is amazing.

[Prowler901]

Nice work on the Tiger. Looking forward to seeing your continuing progress. I got my bluing a few days ago. But, was waiting for my Challenger to arrive. I'm going to do them together.

[UltraVargen]

Thwnks Prowler. Be careful handling the bluing. It's nasty stuff.

[Meter Rat]

Looking good. Look at some of the military modelling sites. Some indicate that when painted in the field they used brushes or even rags, so I would think that painting any that was not visible would not be done. Your choice if you do it or not. They soon get dirty any way, so it would not be noticed.

[UltraVargen]

Thanks! A military-aficionado friend of mine also said thay don't paint the parts that are hidden. So I will leave the underside red. Just gonna weather it a bit.
For the camo I will use sprays and airbrush as I'm not a big fan of brushing. But I'll try to muddle it up a bit so it looks like it might be hastily applied.

[UltraVargen]

Last couple of days:
Added some texture to the hull and turret with Mr Surfacer 500. I think I'll do some more as the texture is too subtle right now.
I also replaced some moulded hatch handles with a piece of brass rod.
But after doing so I figured I actually want the driver and gunner hatches to be able to open so a figure can sit there. Made some 3D printed "tubs" and hatches. I will make it a pull-up and turn mechanism with a 3mm brass tube tightened with a small spring (basically like on the stock cupola hatch).
Also I made some 3D periscopes to go underneath all the empty periscope covers.

[Beeg]

Nice parts. Especially the hatches..

[Elbee]

[QUOTE=UltraVargen;n258668]I also replaced some moulded hatch handles with a piece of brass rod.But after doing so I figured I actually want the driver and gunner hatches to be able to open so a figure can sit there. Made some 3D printed "tubs" and hatches.

UV, Some more great work, Sir. What material are you using for your prints? Best, LB

[UltraVargen]

Thanks guys.
I print in UV resin. It's less sturdy than fdm printing but gives great detail.

[UltraVargen]

Constructed the working hatches. Textured the hull a bit better, installed periscopes. Did some weld lines that could've been better with greenstuff. Primered.

Next up is fixing up the supplied detail parts, install PE engine covers and a new headlight.

[Prowler901]

Outstanding detail work.
Looking forward to seeing the results.

[UltraVargen]

Thanks Prowler!

[UltraVargen]

The springs under the hatches made them get pulled out of wonk in the open position. So I installed magnets under the hatches and under the hull so they get pulled against the hull.
These hatches turned out to be a lot more work than I first envisioned. Live and learn I guess.

I also did the PE engine deck covers. I abhor working with PE as it's difficult to glue. Back when I used to do a lot of modelling I usually skipped the PE parts as I find them mostly unneeded. But in this case there really is no alternative.

In the last photo you can see that I removed the obsolete metal receiver antenna. I used a piece of sprue to fill the hole in.

[UltraVargen]

Been a while since I worked on the King Tiger.
Today I airbrushed the flecktarn camouflage. Took the better part of the day.

Now I also know why the Germans really lost the war: They were too busy painting their tanks.

[UltraVargen]

The King Tiger is finished! I'm quite happy with how it turned out. Though seeing these photo's I might add a small pin wash here any there. Also the wheels are a different shade of dark yellow even though I used the same base colour. I think it's because of different weathering techniques. I might give it a quick hit with the airbrush again to bring back the yellow.
I also made a simple modification to prevent the read mudflaps from falling out.See the last photo.

One thing that is weird: The track recoil doesn't trigger anymore when the BB gun is fired.I don't think I missed reconnecting a wire, and all the other functions are working correctly. I don't want to open her up again, as it's not a big deal.

Now to continue the quest for a suitable 1/16 scale crew...

[Alpha]

UltraVargen Very nicely done! Personalizing a tank is very rewarding, in my opinion.

Regarding your track recoil, have you tried pressing the two buttons on the radio that select the amount of Track Recoil? It cycles through Off, Light, Medium, and Heavy recoil. Perhaps your track recoil is in the Off setting?