Marder/Wiesel.

Modeling Subjects Armor
1

After spending a few months sojourning in the Airplane/Chopper fora, I’ve returned to my roots for these two.

The Tamiya Marder 1A2, and the AFV Club Wiesel 20.

The Marder was an unusual one. I knew it wasn’t exactly a modern kit (not least I bought it about ten years ago), but I was not expecting the 1977 copyright on the molds. A very good kit for the age, although the two parts of the molds didn’t match up fantastically well. Something I was not expecting was the engine, and there is no indication on the box that it comes with one. Compartment is a bit bare, but it certainly would make a good start if you have an inclination to superdetail things. Not many kits come with an engine.

As I look at the pictures, it seems I forgot to Krystal Kleer the troop compartment periscopes. Oops. (They didn’t come with plastic sheeting)

The AFV Wiesel is an interesting kit. For starters, it only has 16 roadwheels, unlike the normal 28 or 32 to drive you mad. The tracks on the real thing are rubber-band, but I haven’t been able to properly glue them together to look seamless. Comes with a photo-etch set, most noticeable as the exhaust guard, though folding and gluing is a royal pain in the arse.

Here they are together for relative size. The Wiesel really is a tiny little model, there are 1/72 tanks which are larger than it.

Took quite a leap of faith to go from the nicely done, clean paint job to go over the lot of it with drybrush, instead of simply highlighting the raised details. I think I lucked out, the overall ‘faded’ look seems to have worked.

NTM

2

Welcome back. And what a comeback!

-60

3

NIce job man, like the camo’s. Did you use Silly Putty.

4

No, just my Aztek.

I tried an old single-action airbrush trick I read up on once of holding a cutout paper mask a fraction of an inch above the model, which provides just a little feathering, but I bought myself a new air compressor, combined with striking it lucky on the pressure/thickness mix rended the masking moot. Worked out about as well, and is a hell of a lot easier.

NTM

5

They look great. Good job. The Marder engine is a big plus and can look great. I used one as the base for my M7 B-FIST engine and tranny.

6

I’ll be buggered. I thought the Brad’s Cummins was an 8-banger, and the Marder’s MTU is a six-cylinder.

NTM

7

You are correct, but once it is all closed up, you can’t tell the differance.

Looks close enough for me.

8

What!? Is it possible? You accepted “Convincing enough” instead of “Totally Perfect?”

That’s less than I’ve come to expect from you!

On another note, I was down your way over the weekend. Got drenched. Never seen a thunderstorm with plenty of lightning but no thunder before.

I’m deciding I don’t like Irwin. Three unpleasant experiences out of three.

NTM

9

I do accept “close enough” when most of it won’t be seen, but not that often.

As to the rain at Irwin, it can be pretty bad when it comes. They (yes, I said they) are in the middle of monsoon season there. Lots of storms for about a month or so, then nothing till next spring. I PCSed from there in July (not soon enough!!) for Maxewll AFB, Al. It is much greener here, but has been raining all week too.