Zvezda GAZ-MM

Modeling Subjects Armor
1

Hey all, I’m looking for opinions with this build. I’m building Zvezda’s GAZ-MM, maybe someday to put it in a dio. The GAZ-MM was a WWII Russian truck produced with as many wooden parts as possible to save on metals. The goal of this project, more than making a nice looking model, was to experiment with balsa wood, weathering and some irregular paints from Folk Art. I’d like to mimic a dio builder’s aged wood technique from armorama (found here http://www.armorama.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=SquawkBox&file=index&req=viewtopic&topic_id=143043&page=2) on the bed of a truck. The bed is not attached yet.

[View:/themes/fsm/utility/:550:0]

[View:/themes/fsm/utility/:550:0]

[View:/themes/fsm/utility/:550:0]

[View:/themes/fsm/utility/:550:0]

Anyways, when its all done (someday) I’ll have played with the aforementioned wooden bed, and have had firsts in attaching spark plug wires and using pigments. I know that there are still some ugly plastic lugs in the cab floor around the base of the seat (too late to remove) and that much of the plastic is way to thick for scale fenders etc. Doesn’t matter, I don’t have the tools to do the work…anyways…Back on topic, the bed is going to get a coat of Folk Art’s Crackle medium on top of the Folk Art Antiquing Medium which is already applied. Over the Crackle will be the olive green Russian camo, that hopefully will crack up a bit (Crackle is an acrylic paint which somehow apparently will create lead paint like flaking on the top coat, exposing the undercoat). I’ll then scrap the paint out of the damaged wood sections and restain and cover in some heavy washes to bring out the detail. The cab and occasionally the doors were made of canvas; both of which will be replicated as best I can, but in a more ragged form to simulate weathering. I doubt that I can weather the leather seat covers much; but I do remember an FSM issue which demonstrates a technique on how to do it to a derelict car. What else…If I ever get it into a dio, it will be in a ditch half buried, but right-side-up. My final idea is to try replicate a dent; if you’ve seen any old cars with a splintered spiderweb of paint around a dent, then you’ll know what I’m after. I want to do it by masking out a spiderweb pattern on the green topcoat then spraying in a little dark brown or rust color. I’m not sure if it will scale out well, but might as well try for the sake of the order.

Anyways, I apologize for the book which I just wrote, and poor quality pictures, but its the best I can do with my cellphone. I’m looking for any opinions or tips that you all might have.

Thanks!

2

Hey Beav ,how have you been. Seems like a long time ago since you shared a build. Since I believe you were in sunny No.Dak… Is this the old Zvezda. I see they have introduced some new kits or maybe just repops. You’re experiment with the wood will pay off in the end as it looks so much more realistic. Hope to see an update soon.BTW how did the little polish tankettes you were building come out?[^o)]

3

If I may, I would like to suggest a better way to make the wood and age it. I’m not convinced that blasa wood is the way to go. I seriously considered it for my Model T rustbucket build, but I didn’t think that it looked as good as what I could make in plastic. The difficulty of painting it and the undeniable textural differences between the plastic model and the wood itself didn’t look right to me. It didn’t look like “scale” wood, it just looked like,…well,balsa wood.

Consider the effect I got here.

!(http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u244/heydoog/Model T/100_5239e.jpg)

!(http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u244/heydoog/Model T/morebeddetails.jpg)

To get this effect, I used a cheap Pyrogravure tool that I found at AC Moore’s craft stores. It’s called a "“Plaid/Stencil Decor Stencil Cutter-” and costs around 13.99.

!(http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u244/heydoog/Model T/100_4558.jpg)

!(http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u244/heydoog/Model T/firstpost10.jpg)

I used it to scribe in the wood grain, and then used a rough micro-saw to draw across the grain and rough it up.

!(http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u244/heydoog/Model T/thsione.jpg)

I used thin styrene strips, cut to size, and once the grain had been patterned in and achieved, I bumped up the edges with razor files. Painting could then be done using normal styrene weathering methods. I think I painted it in gray and then used brown and grey washes to age it.

!(http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u244/heydoog/Model T/painting19.jpg)

!(http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u244/heydoog/Model T/Tdone16.jpg)

If you decide to go with the balsa, I wouldn’t have painted it. I would have used oil washes to stain and age it. In my opinion, ainted wood just doesn’t look as realistic as "real " wood stained and faded with the natural color and grain.

This model article has been sold to FSM, and should be in print sometime soon hopefully?

I hope this gives you some ideas!

4

@Detailfreak, I’ve been well, but I’m no longer in NoDak, the army swept me up and now I’m in Sunny OKie. I haven’t been able to continue much on the polish tankette much, school picked up really quickly, then with the army and all…this truck is another holdover from then (almost two years ago!). I’ve always wanted to do something like this to one, so we’ll see.

@Doog, I see what you mean, I haven’t been quite satisfied with what I’ve created (balsa is cheap, and I’ve got enough for another attempt); but I do want to continue with the painting method that I’ve got, maybe use this balsa bed as my paint test bed. It hasn’t been ‘painted’ per say only given a deep stain. I’m really curious to see if the Folk Art product will work somewhat convincingly. What I do want out of the bed is to make it look heavily worn, and heavily repainted at one point; which is what set me on the dio tutorial, and since I don’t have a local place anymore for styrene stock, balsa was the more available medium. I’ll probably give your method a shot, just to see if I can reproduce something as awesome as that.

Thanks for posting!

I wish I was better at this hobby, but I keep taking all these dang two-three year breaks for school and stuff, its getting on my nerves!