Tamiya’s M48 and Verlindens Buddha statue.
Please keep in mind that I’m a broke-a** white boy and I had to make do with cheap materials!
Thanks fer lookin’.

















Peace.
Mike.
Tamiya’s M48 and Verlindens Buddha statue.
Please keep in mind that I’m a broke-a** white boy and I had to make do with cheap materials!
Thanks fer lookin’.

















Peace.
Mike.
Mike Great looking diorama, The detail and painting is outstanding Thanks for sharing
Mac
Nicely done. You may want to check your headlight painting though. The headlights are identical, removable and interchangeable. The black IR lens should be in the same spot on both headlight assemblies (on the right as you look at them). So your left side headlight assembly needs to have the lenses repainted.
Looks great to me. Nice work on the M48 and the figures and the foliage looks great! Sets up a strong jungle impression on me.
Very good Mike, I like it alot. The sanke is great.
One thing that alot of people do not know is that the older ruined temples in South Vietnam were Hindi, not Buddhist (not faulting your use in this case in the slightest). They resemble Angkor Wat in style. I saw a picture of one just outside of Nha Trang in particular. Angkor Wat was in fact a Hindi temple coverted to Buddhism when the then emperor of Cambodia changed religions after losing too many battles against Buddhist Vietnam. The southern Hindi kingdom of Vietnam was conqured by the Buddhist northern kingdom around 1400.
I like the snake as well. The scale of it is appropriate. In some North African dioramas I see people put in lizards, but they are too much out of scale. In North Africa, the largest lizards is 12 to 18 inches in length.
Mike T.
Thanks guys. Appreciated.
Never knew that about the headlights Rob. It’s an easy enough fix though. Thanks for the heads up.
Hey Telsono.
We crossed post there.
I did not know that… but it’s interesting that you mention it because before I built this I was actually on E-Bay looking for the type of statue you mentioned. I was hoping to find something cheaper than the Verlinden option…
I needed one that could be made to look like a ruin and I wasn’t sure I could do that with what I found.
Good to know that about N. African reptiles as well…I’ll keep that in mind.
Thanks.
Mike.
Hello Mike!
Good job on the foliage here! do you have more Vietnam War models? Thanks for sharing, have a nice day
Paweł
Hi Pawel. Thank you!
Unfortunately this is my only Vietnam model…so far!
I may build more in the future though.
mike mike
Nice work . The jungle plants and grasses are superb.
The armour ,figures, and ruined temple are A1 and tell the story. I love the addition of the snake.
Like your thought process.
Regards
Gerry
mike mike -
Concerning North African lizards:
I researched the species trying to find a color pattern for one supplied by Tamiya. the more colorful ones would be too small to be noticed. The largest in Tunisia and Cyrenica, as I said were 12 to 18 inches in length and pretty dull looking. The largest in the area are the Nile Monitors and they don’t go too far away from the Nile itself.
For North Africa, a dog or too would be better: Below are three example sets with dogs that might be good to use. I dobt if there are many german shepherds used in North Africa. A short haired mut would be best. the dog chasing the goat would fit in nicely. The last one has a nice selection of positions as well.
Mike T.
Thanks Mike. Some good stuff there. I really appreciate your help.
Thanks Gerry…you’re too kind!
I think I feel another dio coming on…with a dog of course!
Mike-Mike if you ever need to send me a Pm and we can talk about things.
Mike T.
Cheap materials or not, this is an excellent job. All I see that might be considered wrong is perhaps not enough dirt on the M-48. Love the snake. The Tamiya M-48A3 is a very maligned kit and I could never understand this, it builds up into a nice model as evidenced here. Thanks for the look.
Regards,
Mark
O.K. Mike…thanks for the invite. After seeing the prices of some of those dog figures I think I may try to sculpt some of my own.
Mark , thanks bud. The tank actually does look dirtier in person. But a little more dirt wouldn’t hurt…and yes I also think this is a great kit… it’s been enhanced a bit with Eduards photo-etch.
I have a soft spot for cheaper kits like this one and Tamiya’s Panzer IV D and their T-62A…Also Italeri’s Tigers.
Their lack of detail creates an opportunity to put your own stamp on them. As little or as much as you want. They go together well , they’re easy to build and easy to detail.
Peace.
Mike.
I agree… MORE DIRT! You can never have too much dirt on armor! (LOLOL) Great job guy! Very realistic looking…
Mike,
I think it looks great. Can you post some more pics that show the whole dio in one shot? To show the overall setting and placement of the individual elements.
Thanks Rigidrider…nothing beats a filthy AFV but I’m calling this “done”. If I mess with it any further I know I’ll screw it up! So I’m gonna leave well enough alone.
Thanks Padakr…Here’s four more.



LOL… Just kidding with ya… Looks great. I served in Viet-Nam in 1971. Doug (RR)USMC
that’s o.k…My dad was a Marine in Vietnam as well…a couple of tours from what I remember. I can vividly recall the day he came home.