IPMS Nationals German Heavy Armor winners

Modeling Subjects Armor
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Guys:…a couple of winners for you to see, I thought I had a photo of the third place winner but I don’t. It was a Panther. Here are first and second place in the German Heavy Armor 1/48 and larger catagory;

1st:

2nd:

EDIT The next pic’ is NOT the third place winner, it is my build. I was NOT in this group, but for fun here’s my Stug III, it’s the one from my other thread, “…wondering…WEATHER…I ever had a chance”. This is for comparison/learning only, former judges, anyone else, please chime in on how I could compete against these winners.

By the way, the winners are by the same modeler, you can see the similarities. Being a real winter camo’ fan, I’m not too thrilled by the perfect whitewash on the Tiger, but I do like to see the weathering on the Jagdpanther. Having seen these first hand, they are IMPRESSIVE!!!

I have a TON more of pic’s from multiple armor catagories, if you’d like I could start another thread and post a bunch, let me know…

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PLEASE DO!

gary

3

Well, they certainly are nicely finished, but I’m not sure if they beat yours?

I think that the weaethering on the Jagdpanther is not especially realistic. It just doesn’t look like there was much thought put into it. The chips are garishly-huge, there’s no weathering on the inside of the tracks, and the side skirts look funny–like they have rounded sides or something. I also don’t see how the big missing chunk therewould have happened?

On the other hand, the Tiger is beautifully finished, but has very little weathering at all.

Both have beautiful post-shading and streaking.

IMO, your models which you’d posted here beat them both. But it is possible that your models were considered more as “diorama’s”?

4

The Tiger looks great but, going with what doog said, the Jagtiger’s weathering seems inconsistent and unrealistic.

David

5

I too don’t care for the Jagdpanther. Roy would be going out of his mind with all the damage to the schurzen. LOL No sorry, just doesn’t do it. I’ve also never seen the towing hooks all rusted up like that either.

6

I have to say that these two tanks are beautiful examples of technical proficiency in building, detailing and painting models. I hope that someday I can build on an equal level with these examples. That said, they don’t strike me as particularly realistic looking models. In my opinion, there is more of a fantasy aura about them.

The highlighting on the Tiger, while well done, doesn’t float my boat. I don’t think that the natural process of weathering does that. I agree with the statement by Doog regarding the side skirts on the Jagdpanther. To me, they looked like they got attacked with a cutting torch and not by some pissed-off Soviet tank crew with chips on their shoulders and anti-tank rounds in their barrels.

I don’t mean to criticize the models. Again, they are technically well done (and far better than what I can do) but I’ve seen more appealing work in this Forum.

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They both have a “cartoonish” look to me.

Why would the back side of the tracks be solid rust even where the road wheels run on the Jagdpanther?

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Okay first the tiger. The edges of the cross on the side can be seen due to the weathering and since when have you seen the side skirts that perfect except for the day it rolled out the factory door. Last but not least the tracks are covered with snow but almost nothing on the roadwheels…Hmmmm

Now the Jagdpanther, if there every was a question of over rusting and were they ever painted panzer gray? Cause thats what it looks like under the whitewash. I’m I mistaken?

Also the w-wash looks like a plastic film being peeled off not worn or chipped paint.

Steve you definitely need to come to the AMPS East show.

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Please post some more pic’s. I love looking at other peoples work. Thanks.[tup]

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Im a complete noob, and its arrogant for me to criticize either of the two models posted, which have technical skills waaay beyond mine…but…

The “scratches” on the side of the Jagdpanther’s hull look EXACTLY like a brushstroke to me (I know, I make them all the time! :slight_smile:

… am I misreading the marks, do they look like authentic weathering to you???

oh by the way, I have learned a lot from these posts, great to see true critiques, great learning experience… thanks to everyone for chipping in, pun intended :wink:

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The builder of the Tiger has posted at IPMS/USA in response to my query about sweeps that the Jagdpanther is not his. One of the head judges, a guy with whom I am friendly, also assures me there were no sweeps. Each place belongs to a different builder. It is striking how similar they appear at first blush and how different the techniques are as you examine them more closely.

As far as the look, flash photography can do some strange things to finishes that don’t look at all like that in ambient light.

I’m sure that’s not sivering on the Tiger’s cross. Look closely and you’ll see a fade in the black portion of the horizontal bar. It’s the white outline that loks like silvering.

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Just my humble inexperienced opinion here but between those two and SMJ’s stug, I’d have to go with SMJ’s. The tiger, while probably flawless in its build, the finish looks forced upon you. Like someone is trying to force a weathered appearence upon the viewer. Does that make sense? Kind of hard for me to put it into words. SMJ’s finish looks way more natural even if it is kind of heavy. A heavy weathering that just looks natural. The Jagdpanther just really doesn’t trip my trigger even though it is way better than anything I’ve built. Of course this is just based on the pics at hand. Seeing all 3 laying out on the table might change my opinion some but I don’t think so.

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Al look again past the “white outline”

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I agree with the rest of you guys. while these models have been buit well; I am not impressed by the weathering. these are nice looking models; but they do not seem to be first and second place material to me. I have seen much better examples of bith types of tanks here on this forum.

15

These are both pretty builds, but I’m with Doog. I like the Tiger’s weathering much more than the Jagdpanther’s.

On the Tiger, believe it or not, I think this would qualify as OOB, because of the lack of anything aftermarket - unless the tracks are AM, which I doubt. I say that because this is the Tamiya early Tigger kitty, which I’m building right now (it’s one of the two Tigger kitties on my bench). If he built this OOB, what this tells me is that the modeler places more emphasis on paint & weathering than on counting rivets - a man after my own heart.

I did notice a couple of things, though. First, on the Tiger, I’m seeing gaps where the Feifel hoses connect to the cleaning canisters. Those gaps shouldn’t be there, should they? And second, on the Jagdpanther, is that an MG42 in use as a bow MG? Shouldn’t that be an MG34?

~J

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My biggest pet peeve… Gun tubes projecting past the groundwork borders… I hate that…

Sure looks like it… Gonna be difficult to change out the barrel on that gun…[;)]

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Guys: Thanks for the vote of confidence, but I wasn’t in this group with my Stug. In my group I didn’t even photo the winners…the models didn’t catch my eye when I had my camera on me(before the awards). In hindsight I wish I would have so I could have added the pic’s to my other thread.

The Tiger and the Jagdpanther in this thread were BETTER, IMHO, then the winners in my Stug group…I hope you now can understand why I was so miffed by the judging.

P.S.: OOOPS…I thought both were by the same modeler…sorry[:I]

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I’m not too impressed either. If you want to see the best-drybrushed model win, go to IPMS Nats. However if you actually want to see the most realistic models win, go to AMPS…[:-^]

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If this is what wins at the Nationals, there must be some sort of black-hole swallowing up all the talented modelers and obscuring the judges vision.

Is this Tiger OOB? Because there are all sorts of parts missing. Too lazy to add the wires for the smoke dischargers, headlights and S-mines? How about a antenna stub? A couple of wingnuts perhaps? I’m not saying it needs to have every AM goody on the planet, but there’s a new thing in town, it’s called scratch building, this guy should get some. No scuff marks, scratches, mud splatter or muddy footprints on the rust-streaked but otherwise pristine whitewash? Did the crew just “teleport” themselves in and out of the vehicle? Must have just been through the car wash and detail shop.

Looks like the old buddy system of judging to me…I’ve seen plenty of that action over the years. Someone was robbed…

Here is a letter from someone I don’t know, who posted his sentiments about a regional IPMS show I attended a few years ago;

"Other than the 120 mile round trip and paying $10 for a piece of “Blue”
colored “Copied” paper, if this is the way “IPMS” does their contests, I’m
not excited!
I stayed for the so called “Awards”! It seemed, “all”, if not “most”, of the
fancy Plaques, Etched Glass, and Trophy awards went to IPMS members, with
the IPMS logos, on their shirts. And, if they didn’t, it was members of the
Seattle Club, with their “Blue” shirts!
I sent a message to a friend of mine, who writes articles for a major model
publishing company, about the “Seattle Show”! His reply was:
“Hi Bob” "Your experiences are typical of what goes on at IPMS contests.
First, despite the name IPMS, they are a club for military modelers. They
are NOT car/truck/space/ship modelers.
“The judging at IPMS shows, have always been atrocious, in my experience.
The way they typically do it, is to have people who are competing in class
100, to judge class 200, and those in 200, judge 100. All this does, is lead
to the image of the judges, giving each other awards. It sounds like this
club didn’t even have enough money to go out and buy some ribbons!”
So? There it is! And, he was right! Why $10 to enter one or more models,
when the general public pays only $5 to get in?
Well, they “suckered” me into it! But, it won’t happen to me, again. At
least, not in Seattle!

10 dollars short and not going anymore at least to Seattle’s’ show!"

20

Ok I’m gonna have to echo most of what everyone else has already said here…

The drybrushing on the Tiger seems way over done. However the tank blends very well into it’s base (snow coming up on the tracks, etc.) but that gives me the impression that the tank must have been stationary during the most recent snow squall. And if so, wouldn’t atleast a little bit of snow be dusted in the crevices on the upper hull and turret??? Which seems to be devoid of any. It also ticks me off that every sideskirt/mudflap are in pristine condition.

The JagdPanther seems to be the polar opposite of alot of these flaws. The very first thing I noticed on this model were the rust streaks, WAYYY over done is you ask me (especially on the front hull/glacis!) and on a “temporary” winter whitewash too. Also, the washes on the lower hull and front fenders done to accentuate the detail are way over done as well, maybe fine on a tank painted in camo, but they should have been toned down on a tank with whitewash. (same goes for my comment about the rust streaks.) The chipping looks as if those pesky Russians climbed up onto the tank and took a jackhammer to the upper hull and blew away chunks of steel, not flakes of paint. Also the tank has absoloutely NO snow, mud or anything on the lower hull, but it is on a snow base is it not? (on a side note the base looks pretty basic too.)

I maybe going a little too hard on these guys, me having never been to a contest before and all, but I just can’t see the judges passing over such obvious flaws. It all sorta turns me away from ever wanting to go to one.

SMJ, your Stug is beautiful, one thing I might want to point out however is that there seems to be a hole in the lower mantlet where you can see deep into the tank, which would have been covered would it not?