Well, it’s a done deal! The Helo Miniatures Hetzer is “finito”!
I added chipping and some more pin washes, did the muffler, added the tools, and detail painted it…I still have to add the antenma, but that will be simply shipped with the model to be glued on when unpacked, as it will get broken off anyway. I’m happy with the way it turned out; I would liked to have done some more detailing on it, but time was of the essence, and I wanted to make sure I got it done before leaving for Germany on the 20th of November for 10 days–just in time to miss Thanksgiving! [sigh][banghead][BH]
Anders from Helo Miniatures has said that he will be producing a second set of tank crewmen for the Hetzer–one pair is standing around, perfect for a peaceful dio/viginette, the other set will be riding in the hatches; the one guy will be sitting facing-forward on the rear, holding on to the opened engine hatch… I have already seen the first set, and they’re really nice!
Well, I hope y’all find favor with it! It’s STRICTLY “OOB”, so don’t be too hard on me! [swg] Enjoy!
doog, congratulations on a great commission build! I’m sure they will be totally stoked with their new Hetzer!! I LUV IT! Gotta build be one of these, but no way will it be anywhere near as good as yours![bow] Keep em coming dude!
And you say I’M a fast builder? when did you start painting his thing? half a week ago? [:D] To tell you the truth, in this set of pictures I really like the darker colors now. Man, that must be painful having to seperate the twins, but I’m sure those guys at Helo will give it a nice loving home.
Hey, this is a beauty… I am trying to repaint that Hetzer I build 30+ years ago to see I can get at least close to your great work. In the last days your Hetzer models has been an inspiration.
Looks great Karl i love the hard weathered finish as far as details go the only thing i added to mine was some mesh for the screen and the way you have painted and weathered this one brings out the kit details just right im sure they are going to be delighted with this, great job.
Very nice tank, I like the weathering on the wheels and back of the tank, lately i’ve been interasted at tamiya new hezther but now is not the time to get another tank.
Well thanks so much all you guys–I’m glad you all have found favor with it! [:-^]PHEW! [(-D]
If you all are interested, I was gonna do another painting tutorial about the silly putty method, and some more weathering info, mainly just another reiteration of the dots used on this build. Let me know if there’s enough interest–I don’t want to “post-spam” with Hetzers already! Some of you have PM’d me for info, so I figure I’ll just condense my answers into one post?
It’s a honor to hear that some of you have been inspired by my work on these little panzerjaegers that, to tell you the truth, I always thought were the ugliest tanks! [yuck] It’s nice to see that I can inspire you with a tank which I first built only to add it to my collection because it was a conspicuous absence!
You did it again Doog, this thing looks amazing! Make sure that when Helo put’s this in their advert for their figures they get a copy of it on here so we can see it. Love the way this look’s well used.
As for any tutorials/ write-ups on your methods I’m always willing to learn from experienced builder’s, so in my honest opinion post away.
Congrats on the commission Doog, it turn out great!
[bow][bow][bow] We are not worthy! We are not worthy! Another first class build! Your results are nothing less than superb. How about a tutorial on your rusty exhaust technique sometime? Or have you covered that already? OOB obviously works for you.
Well just another great build. [tup][tup][tup] I always love to see your suff with the best weathering. [:-,] I’m sure those guys will be proud of it. You should get them to send you the cover picture they use along with a print of the kit box. Might make a nice framed exibit, at least for your miniature armory. [;)].
Hopefully you enjoy the “farterland” [(-D]. I’m sure the turkey will wait until you get back.
I agree with you about the Hetzer tank being an ugly looking tank but you sure have done justice to this one! Excellent weathering! Looks very used . . . I especially like how you did the wheels and tracks. And the rusted out exhust adds a good touch of interest.
Excellent build! Excellent photos! Your an inspiration to us all! Sure enjoy viewing your builds. Keep up the excellent work and tutorials. [tup][tup]
[tup]Looking great Karl, although I like the other one better. From the small rusty spot on the lead off pipe (at the muffler), to the finish of the tracks and wheels, [#toast] it’s apparent that we’re dealing with a pro builder here.
Now……. just don’t get taken hostage by a terr [}:)] on your way to Germany. [BH] I can just see the forum trying to divvy up the ransom to get you back! Steve
Eric, Dale, stikpusher, redleg, MIke and Manny, Eddy and Steve, and Ben–thanks you guys! Nice for y’all to take the time to comment!
You know, I actually skipped using powders of any kind on this build, as I figured with the shipping and literal handling by the Helo crew once they get it, that it would all just get displaced, or smeared in the end. I did use a touch of regular artist’s pastels on the muffler there; that’s what the lighter “spot” is–just a touch of bright orangey pastel.
My rusting technique will be described in the January Finescale article on “SPOOKED!”, my burnt-out Pz IV-J article. I recently received an email from Aaron Skinner telling me that the article would focus on the building and weathering of the Pz IV,and that the rest of the article ( all the rest of the info on the finishing of the base and figures) will be available online on this site somewhere. It’s really not hard–just rough up the plastic with an old, stiff brush and some Tenax R-7 glue (in truth, any will work; Tenax is just fast) and then base coat with a dark rust. When dry, add a thickerish wash of lighter rust colors and while that is wet, sprinkle and/or directly stipple in the pastels of various rust shades, and let dry. You can scrub some of them off when they dry if you’'re not pleased with the colors or add additional stabs of wash here and there to provide surface variation–remember, the more layers and subtle variations, the better.
Thanks agian for the comments, gys! I guess I’lll start on that new tutorial this fine Sunday morning! Be loooking for it!
P.S.–Aaron Skinner was also looking over the full Hetzer article which I had sent him as he wrote me that email and said that it “looked great” and that he was excited by the over-150 WIP photos and the detailed information O had provided. He said that “this is the kind of article that we love!”!–so keep your fingers crossed–again! [:D]
