Completed 1/35 Tamiya IJA fun

Kimmo · May 20, 2023

It's been a weird few months, lots of things not happening and lots of things unfortunately happening. Been working on a classic Tamiya kit and figure for the better part of three months. I gussied up both the the figure and tank. Considering the original molds are 50 years old, they are pretty good out of the box but not up to today's standards. I improved things with styrene, copper cable, some etch mesh and new tracks.

Here's what I ended up with after a fair bit of work. Click on photos for full size.

And here's where I'm at after 4-5 painting sessions.

I decided I was going to give NMM a try for the entire project for a change of pace and to see how it would turn out. So far so good, the tracks will be the make or break moment. If they don't work out, I can always go back and use metallics. I'll try and show the process for the tracks when start them.

Kimmo

Redcap · May 20, 2023

The extra detail you have added to the figure really does elevate it to the next level and the paint job is excellent. Looks great!
Gary

Nap · May 21, 2023

Hi Kimmo

Great to see you posting ,good subject nice modelling and additions on both

Paintings coming along well

Following with interest

Happy benchtime

Nap

Kimmo · May 21, 2023

Cheers Gary and Nap! Feels good to be doing something again. Hopefully I'll have an update early in the week.

Kimmo

T-34/85 · May 21, 2023

Fantastic work on this venerable kit! Looking forward to seeing your results with the tracks, Are they 3D?

tom

Robert Jan de Wit · May 22, 2023

Great job Kimmo.
I really like the upgrade you did on the figure.

greets,
RJ

Kimmo · May 24, 2023

Cheers Tom and RJ!

Tom, the tracks are Vision Models injected individual tracks. They are a major improvement on the kit's rubber tracks but are kinda disappointing. They should just click together, which they do, but fall apart unless you glue them. And if you glue them, you press them into each other more to make sure they stay put which shortens the run which means less sag. You get 4 links extra each side which isn't nearly enough for my taste. The link is a very complex shape, and there were some problems with the track pin hole splitting as it is very thin walled. If you look closely in the photos below you'll see what I mean. If money was not a concern, I'd go with 3D tracks or Friuls. Considering how much work is needed to get to the kit looking this good, I'd think about starting off with the Fine Molds or Dragon offering.

Finally got an update. I spent two days getting the tracks to a point where I could test fit them, and realised I needed to add the wheels and some basic dust to the lower hull. I really couldn't take in progress shots, just not enough space to shift everything around. The process was pretty basic, dark grey brown base colour, followed by a darker wash, rusty wash, then a mid grey brown for the initial tone on the track faces and worn areas and edge highlight/glaze to taste. Tedious, but not terribly difficult as it turns out and I'm happy with where it's at now.

Now I can glue the tracks and wheels in place and fine tune the NMM and continue with the weathering, which will basically be a dust coat using paint and maybe washes. Can't be bothered to use pigments this time around.

Kimmo

T-34/85 · May 24, 2023

The tracks look great. Thanks for the feedback on them. I’ve been considering building some Japanese armor. I have both this kit and the Dragon one.

tom

steeleagle · May 24, 2023

Really awesome job on this old kit. IJA tanks are a neglected subject which is a shame as their color schemes are as much fun to replicate a the German schemes. IMHO. Great job!

Nap · May 25, 2023

Hi Kimmo

Nice work on the tank ...those tracks look a lot of work to put together but certainly do the job

Must admits it's good to see the IJA being modelled

Following with interest

Happy benchtime

Nap

Kimmo · May 26, 2023

Cheers Tom, Steel and Nap!

Japanese armour is neat to be sure, funky looking things with some interesting schemes. I really like inter/pre-war camo schemes, so many interesting patterns and the thinking behind them. I have a couple more in the stash that would qualify as eye catching, just need to sort out some details and schedules.

Nap, indy tracks are extremely tedious at best, a right pain in the backside at worst. These are not too bad as far as things go.

Another session in, this time getting the lighting sorted out now that the running gear is glued in place. The most irritating part of all this is waiting for things to dry out properly to see what you have. I went a touch too light with the track faces, a few glazes should sort that out.

A crop of the front end to show the brushwork. One of the greys I'm using is Panzer Aces German Tank Crew II, it has a greenish tint and works as a nice compliment to Basalt Grey which has a wee bit of blue. I'll take a shot of the palette for the next update.

Another couple of rounds of tedium should sort the tracks out. I'm undecided on whether to give all the metal bits a coat of satin varnish or not when all is said and done to smooth things out and to give them some shine. We'll see...

Kimmo

Kimmo · Jun 11, 2023

Been out of commission for a bit with some health issues, finally back at the bench trying to wrap things up.

The base has been more or less completed, a few touch ups needed. The figure is almost there, the goggles need more work. The tank is about 95% now. The last round of work involved a million little things and a round of inks. The inks smoothed out the tracks nicely I think, and made the shiny metal bits more shiny. The figure benefited from a few light touches as well, mainly the leather.

A quick peek at the base and tank

And the figure

I'm hoping to get things finished in the next couple of days.

Kimmo

Nap · Jun 12, 2023

Hi Kimmo

Sorry to hear ref health , hope things remain better now , good to see you back at the bench

Nice work on the figure and the tanky

Look forward to seeing more on both

Happy benchtime

Nap

T-34/85 · Jun 13, 2023

Your projects looks great as you head into the finish line with it. Your use of inks have given it a nice, “pop” factor for the tracks,

tom

theBaron · Jun 14, 2023

Excellent progress, Kimmo! You put the lie to the opinion that many hold, that Tamiya's old figures are no good. Maybe they're not as crisp as today's resin figures, or 3D-sculpted and -printed figures. But you can still get excellent results with them, with skill and time. I look forward to your finish on this project!

Prost!
Brad

Kimmo · Jun 14, 2023

Cheers Nap, Tom and Brad! No updates yet, knock on wood for some bench time tomorrow.

Tom, inks never fail to amaze me, they do so many interesting things.

Brad, Tamiya figs are hit and miss, new and old. No different than anybody else really.Usually the basics are there and you get a reasonably good starting point. It all comes down to who sculpted it and how it was broken down rather than when it was made. I need to get my hands on some of the very recent releases, they look really nice.

Kimmo

theBaron · Jun 15, 2023

Kimmo said:
...Brad, Tamiya figs are hit and miss, new and old. No different than anybody else really.Usually the basics are there and you get a reasonably good starting point. It all comes down to who sculpted it and how it was broken down rather than when it was made. I need to get my hands on some of the very recent releases, they look really nice...

Yeah, I mean the old figures, produced the traditional way. Hand-sculpted masters used to produce the tooling for injection-molding. Many today turn their noses up at them, and understood, with the quality we have today. But I defend the figures because they were among the first I painted when I was in my teens, and I look back fondly on them. And I remember the things Shep did with figures like that-they were starting points for conversions.

But you're right to want to build the new ones. Today, Tamiya uses 3D imaging, working from live models in uniform and with their gear. Those masters are used to create 3D-printed parts. The level of detail, the crispness, is indeed better than their old figures. The commander in the Hellcat tank destroyer, for example, is an excellent injection-molded figure, because of the improved technology. I definitely encourage you to get some of the new ones and try them!

Prost!
Brad

Kimmo · Jun 18, 2023

Still no update, now I've been dealing with heat. If it isn't one thing its another. I have managed to do most of what's needed to be done, just need to glue the tank to the base and do a few more little things. Need to get the bench cleared and do a general clean up for a time sensitive project so I'm getting rather impatient with progress...

Brad, agree that older figs can be, and should be, gussied up with a bit of work and they make great practice pieces for sculpting and posing purposes. Just need to find the mood to get stuck in with them. I did up a Dragon piece before I started on this project and will get back to it over the summer once I've gotten other things taken care of. It got stalled because of a sling and trying to decide on groundwork.

Kimmo

Kimmo · Jun 21, 2023

I think I'm finally done. I've been working in the dead of night when it's cooler meaning very little gets done. Me and the heat don't get along too well, and it aggravates other stuff to add to the enjoyment factor. I'll do a once over tomorrow and take some good photos, these are a bit over-exposed.