Firefly IC Diorama |
| By James Wechsler |
| Started: | Jul 15, 2007 | | Updated: | Aug 31, 2007 |
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This blog is intended to be a bit different than most in that a big focus will be on the diorama aspects. The focal point will be a Firefly IC (a welded hull M4 based Firefly). This will be built using the new Dragon Sherman III kit and the following Formations sets:
F079 M4 Conversion for the Dragon Sherman III
F022 Low Bustle Firefly Turrret
F018 Sherman Pioneer Tools
F050 Sherman Headlights
F046 Sherman Siren Assortment
F047 Sherman VVSS Track Skids
F013 US Cables and Clamps
The diorama is going to show the Firefly driving over a temporary bridge with a wrecked Panzer I command tank partly submerged in the river below.
I intend to include a number of chapters on making the ground work and also on how to make the water.
Up next: The M4 Conversion |
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| The Final Steps | Aug 31, 2007 |
Not much left but to glue the tank to the bridge.
Well this project was an experiment for sure. I’ve never poured water so deep and to be honest I don’t know anyone else who has nor have I seen it done. So it was a real first time effort. In general my feelings are mixed.
For sure it’s kind... more |
| Attaching the Bridge | Aug 30, 2007 |
| With the groundwork completed, I attached the bridge. To do this, I just mixed up a little more groundwork using the same methods described a few chapters back. I placed a big blob of it under each side of the bridge and pressed the bridge into it. Then I used a large stiff paint brush dipped in water... more |
| The Surface | Aug 28, 2007 |
| I guess if you just want to make a very still pond or slow moving river, you could stop at this point. But I like to add a little surface texture to represent the natural effects of water flowing and light wind, etc. To do this, I’ve found that the product I like best is clear silicone caulking. This... more |
| Pouring the water – completed | Aug 27, 2007 |
| Well this chapter will be shorter because I didn’t run into any more major disasters. The rest of the pours, another 5 for a total of 10 went pretty smoothly. One aspect that I was very careful about was that with the tank opened up, I had to pour Envirotek into the tank too. I tried to make sure... more |
| Pouring the water – part way | Aug 26, 2007 |
Pouring the water – part way
Well I thought this was going to be a short chapter that simply showed how the Envirotek looked about half way through the pouring process. But I had a pretty big disaster, actually the worst one I’ve ever had, and it nearly killed this project. So I’ll use this chapter... more |
| Preparing for the Water | Aug 24, 2007 |
| In the photo I included some of the products I’ve found to be very useful in making water. By far the most important is a product called ‘Envirotek Lite’. This is sold at most art supply stores and is considered a varnish. But it can be poured in thick layers and makes really nice water. It’s a two... more |
| Groundwork | Aug 20, 2007 |
I started with a mixture of a product called ‘Fixall’, which is a powdered wall repair product you can buy in a hardware store, black and brown powdered paints, which you can buy in an art supply store, dirt from my yard, and water. This I mixed into a sloppy goo with a consistency of cake mix.
This... more |
| Boxing in the Base | Aug 19, 2007 |
| In order to improve the overall appearance of the base, I paneled it with sheets of 0.020 inch styrene that’s available at most hobby shops. It’s a pretty easy job. Just cut the four sides to the dimensions of the base and then use a marker to demarcate the area to be cut out where the river goes.... more |
| Shaping the Base | Aug 17, 2007 |
| With all of the pieces of the diorama ready to go, it’s time to carve up the polyfoam. For this dio I decided on a deep but not too wide river (conveniently just the right size for a Treadway bridge). So I simply used the electric carving knife to cutout the basic shape and then I went on to shave... more |
| The Panzer I Command Tank | Aug 15, 2007 |
| The Panzer I command tank, whose actual name is Kleiner Panzer Befehlswagen I (Sd.Kfz.265), is a Dragon kit. One reason I chose it is that it’s a really well done kit and with it being submerged in the water, no after market items were necessary. Well almost. I did end up buying Fruilissimo tracks... more |
| The Treadway Bridge | Aug 4, 2007 |
| The Treadway bridge is a Verlinden set that is a pretty simple set to build. There’s only a few parts and for the most part they fit together well. I painted it using the same methods as the tank. For the weathering, I used quite a bit of pigments since this bridge is laying in the dirt and vehicles... more |
| The Base – Initial Construction | Aug 1, 2007 |
So after playing with my sketch and looking at the dimensions of the bridge and the Panzer I command tank, I determined that I’d need a base that was 12 inches long, 6 ½ inches wide and at least 4 inches high.
For constructing complicated terrain such as this, I’ve come to like to use polyfoam. I... more |
| Starting the Diorama | Jul 29, 2007 |
| I really debated about including a photo in this chapter. The reason is that to begin a diorama, the first thing needed is imagination. Fortunately, between the lingering effects of college, two daughters, and the stress of employment, my mind is a vacuum just waiting for some thought to enter it.... more |
| Putting the Firefly together | Jul 28, 2007 |
| Well not much was left to wrap up the tank build. The tracks are the ones from the kit painted with Model Master Raw Sienna, washed with Raw Umber, rubbed with a little dirt pigments and dry brushed with Model Master Dark Anodonic Gray and Aluminum for the metallic effects. Dragon gets real credit... more |
| Figures | Jul 26, 2007 |
Every once in a while, and probably not often enough, my wallet decides to voice its opinion. Usually it yells at me to stop buying so many expensive resin figure sets.
So for this build I decided to improvise and use the figures and parts I had on hand. Fortunately I had a left over commander figure... more |
| Weathering | Jul 25, 2007 |
| For this model, I felt that I didn’t want to heavily weather it, just for a little variety. So I first gave it an overall wash with Raw Umber oil paints. Then I added just a few streaks, also with Raw Umber oil paint and added some dried fuel spills with a mixture of Raw Umber and Burnt Sienna oil... more |
| Markings and Detail Painting | Jul 24, 2007 |
| For a little variety, I decided to make this model as a Firefly IC in service with the Czech Independent Brigade which served with Commonwealth forces during WW2. Bison has recently released a decal set with markings for a Czech Firefly IC Hybrid. After a little online checking (or is Czeching?) I... more |
| Painting | Jul 22, 2007 |
I first painted the entire model in Model Master Flat Black. Then I used Model Master Green Drab to panel fade the whole kit. Finally, I used Model Master Olive Drab to further fade the horizontal surfaces. This is a pretty straight forward process and is really just the setup for the weathering stages.
Up... more |
| The Turret | Jul 20, 2007 |
| Well the Formations turret set is pretty complete and accurate so there’s little to do but put it together. I also added the rolled up camo netting to the side mount fittings on turret. The basic tank is going to be the British dark green so I thought that adding a khaki colored item would help break... more |
| The hull from the rear | Jul 18, 2007 |
The rear of the hull required little additional work. The bulk of the effort was the addition of the various Formations’ sets. The barrel cleaning rods, fire extinguishers and gun travel brace come from the turret set. Added to this are the Formations pioneer tools and the tow cable clamps.
I also... more |
| The hull from the front | Jul 16, 2007 |
Since I’m writing this blog just as I’m completing a blog on building a Sherman V DV my intention is to keep the number of chapters on construction and painting to a minimum. That will allow this blog to move to the diorama aspects quickly.
Building up the hull is a pretty straight forward process.... more |
| The M4 Conversion | Jul 15, 2007 |
Converting the Dragon Sherman III (M4A2 in US nomenclature) to an M4 is a somewhat amusing job in that it was only a few short years ago that we Sherman builders were converting the Tamiya M4 to a Sherman III!
The Formations conversion set is a pretty straight forward set consisting mainly of replacement... more |
