Being in armor forum, I am sure this topic has been played out many times, I have spent a lot of time going thru the forum for my answer but to no avial. I have a few tank kits (panzers) and havent built a tank since high school, however the panzer tank is one of my greatest loves as a modeling subject, but for the kit that I have from dragon I want to make it look at least half way decent for my first tank project in nearly 25 years. I have read several modeling books and they say first paint the tracks flat black and then dry brush with rust or red brown, another book says paint them the base color, and when I look on on-line model galleries they vary in color depending on the campaign they are in , Im sure. But Im turning to the forum to see if any one else has struggeled with this topic. My tank is a panzer Pz.kpfw. ausf E and I was leaning towards the german grey color for the base color. Since it will be my first tank in nearly 25 years I didnt plan on going to crazy with the detailing or battle damage, just wanting to get my feet wet again in this genre. Any help would be appreciated.
I prefer flat black as a base. You are going to get as many answers here as in the books. It basically comes down to a personal preference on which method you prefer. I suggest trying a few different techniques and see which one looks best to you.
modelmaniac,
I don’t worry too much about historical accuarcy (sorry guys)… tracks are all heavy metal parts rubbing together. Here’s a basic to advanced and beyond…breakdown, in my opinion, of the techniques for finishing tracks:
Very basic: Flat black with soft grapite accents on cleats
Basic: all the above, add rust, oil paint washes
Intermediate: all the above, add more detailed soft graphite accents inside, sides, etc… on tracks
Proficient: all the above, add pastel and or pigment dust/dirt
Advanced: all the above, add dirt clumps, wet dirt/mud, snow, ice, turf, splatters, etc…
Slightly disturbed[8-](most of us Forum members): Real metal tracks with individual treads that sag (O.K. we’re all a little older, we’re all sagging more[;)]) all the above, depict disengaged, blown-up, mangled, etc…tracks
*Remember, when you go up from one level to the next level don’t forget to make sure the basic stuff looks good, i.e., tracks with dust and dirt need a second go-around with the soft graphite to bring out the metal contrast.
Hope that helps.