SPECIAL THANKS. I would like to thank Paul Watson for his sponsorship of several lead figure collections on this blog. Having decided to clear his spare/surplus figures, he generously forwarded them on with no other requirement than they deserved to be restored. I would also like to mention George S. Mills, who kindly furnished a quantity of plastic figures which greatly enhanced several collections.

Friday, 3 March 2023

T34 TANK RESTORATION

In my last post I mentioned purchasing a second-hand T34 tank in 1/35 scale. It was already made up and painted, and cost £13.50, including the delivery, and I thought this was not an unfair price. 

When it arrived, was pleased to see it was pretty well all there, only a few small items were missing, the aerial, and a side lamp, which I replaced. It appears to be an early Tamiya kit.The paintwork was lightly applied, which was fortunate, as it was not to my liking. It was a very dark field-grey, with black splodges, representing some kind of camouflage. A visit to the superb Tank Encyclopaedia Website gave me a better plan. With emulsion paints, mixed up something which would bring out the detail. I also added a barrel, exposed the extras, and gave the crew black-grey overalls, brown belts and flesh paint. 

My WW2 games really don't need more than one medium tank per side, and this answers my Soviet Army needs.

MGB

Original Condition

7 comments:

  1. Wow Michael, what a difference! You have done a beautiful job of restoration here! Excellent work indeed!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Brad, I was a bit concerned looking at the original paintwork. I don't have a spray gun, but the new brush, and the carefully mixed emulsion paints went on perfectly, no brush marks at all. It will never be perfect, but it looks much nicer now on the gaming table!
      Michael

      Delete
  2. They look like two totally different tanks! Well done! Not only that, but that's a great price for a completed model kit, at least in my experience. Win-win!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you John, he was generously open to an offer, and I suspect he was aware the paintwork was 'interesting', and would need something else. The success of the previous WW2 game (Germans-Dutch) is tempting me to reverse the scenario with odd German units opposing a horde of Soviets, set somewhere in East Prussia. As a solo gamer, the victory is second to capturing a situation in miniature, with something of the tactical stress a commander would have faced. I sometimes think my wargames are a combination of monopoly and chess.
      Michael

      Delete
  3. Brilliant model and great work

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks George, it has turned out to be a great addition to my WW2 gaming. By the way, Messenger on Facebook stopped working for me in late February. Not an issue, It gave me the justification I needed to depart that diminished site. Will get Chris to send you my email address. I know quite a few others have done the same, or greatly reduced their usage.
      Michael

      Delete
    2. Hi Mike - sounds good - get Chris to send me an email.

      Delete