US Special Service Force

[Pete_H]

It's been a while since I posted any in-progress pictures of anything here, so I decided to get the old digital camera out. Here's an in-progress shot of Soldiers' 70mm US Army Ranger. I decided to turn this guy into a commando of the 1st. Special Service Force. All I've done is shave off the Ranger diamond tab and sculpt on the arrowhead insignia. I'm also planning on muddying up the helmet (Hello Kreston!) for camouflage, which was a common practice amongst them. It's painted oils over acrylics; the metallics being a mixture of gold printer's ink, liquin, and lamp black).

Questions & comments are always welcome.

 

[Alex M.]

Hey Pete,

The figure looks great so far!!

I was just curious...does he work out to 70mm? i know soldiers advertise their recent figs as 54mm but they're huge...i have the ironsides figure on my bench right now, and i was trying to figure out what scale he actually is

-Alex

 

[Pete_H]

Alex,
I literally measured the figure with a ruler (in inches) and then converted it to millimeters. It literally came out to 69.85mm. I wrote about this in my review of the kit (http://www.planetfigure.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=3038). It's a really good kit and well worth the price; I'm having a blast painting it

 

[rafaelega]

Pete,

Very nice work!
I have this figure in my workbech. I'll paint it very soon then I'll follow your explanations with a lot of interest.

Please let me know what color mix you use for the jacket.

Thanks

Rafa

 

[LCoote]

That's looking very nice Pete, but only one pic, c'mon mate :lol:

 

[Patrick Kirk]

Petey,
Very impressive my brother...excellent tones for the webbing and jacket...I really like the way the two colors compliment one another. Your green trousers are right on, too!
Will you be sharing the mixes for both anytime, soon?
How far are you along on the flesh tones?

All the best my friend...hope all is well
Give me a call!

Patrick

 

[garyjd]

Gee Patrick, You said everything I wanted to say. Pete, Very nice, I really like the jacket. This also says a lot about the figure. There are some that almost paint themselves. If you have the time throw us a few more pics.~Gary

 

[John Long]

It's coming along really well Pete. From the pictures I'd say your best paintjob to date.

One comment though, I don't think that the 1st SSF were issued leggings. They more typically wore jump boots.

 

[Kreston]

Nice work, Pete. I'm looking forward to seeing you work some mud-magic !

Kreston

 

[Pete_H]

Thanks, guys. Here are some responses to your questions ...
COLOR MIXES
All acrylics are Vallejos
Jacket -
Undercoat: 1 part beige (917) + 1 part khaki (988)
Basecoat: 1 part mars yellow (I should've used gold ochre, but I reached for the wrong tube )+ 3 parts unbleached titanium + 1/2 part Davy's gray (tones down the yellow).
Highlight: add unbleached titanium with highest highlights by adding tit.white.
Shadow: add raw umber to base with deep shadows by adding sepia.

HBT trousers -
Undercoat: 2 parts Russian uniform (924) + 1 part green-grey (886)
Basecoat: 2 parts gold ochre + 1 part olive green +lighten with unbleached titanium.
Highlight: add naples yellow to base.
Shadow: add olive green with deep shadows by adding blue-black.

Webbing -
Base: Beige (917)
Basecoat: 1 part gold ochre + 3 parts unbleached titanium.
Highlights: unbleached titanium with highest highlights by adding tit.white.
Shadows: raw sienna.

Leggings -
Same as jacket, but I substituted brown ochre (by Sennelier) for Davy's gray.

I know these formulas are at the very least goofy, but I just start playing around with mixes until I get something I like. I also keep notes on the mixes (with a swatch of each) as I go along. Hey, it's fun!

Kreston - the Zen philosopher Peckahashi once wrote: "there's always room for mud."

John - aaaaaaaaaaw crap! Thanks for the heads-up, I should've known that. I guess replacing the arrowhead with a Ranger tab is in order, eh? Thanks for the info.

Leigh - considering my track record, be glad I actually got one picture uploaded

Patrick - hey there, brother! The fleshtones (at least the head) is done and is now attached to the torso. As luck would have it, I found a slight gap between the scarf and the torso, which needs to be filled in. When I test-fitted the pieces, the fit was perfect ... that is, until I painted the darn thing. Funny how that happens.

Rafael - espero que las formulas te ayuden a pesar de que son para oleos.

Gary - this is definitely one of those figures that just paints itself.

More pictures will be posted soon.

 

[Johan]

Originally posted by Pete_H@Nov 20 2004, 02:28 PM


I know these formulas are at the very least goofy

Nevertheless, I took notes. You're quite good at mixes for WWII uniform colours...

One question I have about your Vallejo acrylic undercoats ... do you never have any problems with them when you overpaint in oils? If not, how do you apply them (airbrush?) And how do you dilute them - a mix of water and alcohol, and at what ratio ?

... perhaps the fact that I dilute them with water only and apply them simply with a brush is the reason I have some trouble with them - I don't know...

Nevertheless, Vallejo do have some of the most beautiful colours you can get anywhere I think...

 

[homellop]

Hi Pete!
Great painting job.I like specially the jacket.
Please,post bigger pics to see better the figure.
Best regards
jaume

 

[Pete_H]

Johan - Guess what: I apply Vallejo's pretty much the same way you do. I just dip my brush in water and mix it through the paint. I then brush it on in thin coats (2 or 3 should do it) letting each coat dry completely (normally about 5 minutes for each). Are you priming the figure before painting? If not, then that's where the problem is.

As for applying the oils, I have a very bad habit of using too much paint. What i've taken to doing is wiping the brush onto a lint-free cloth to make sure I don't have too much on there. After applying a very thin coat, I let it sit for about 1/2-hour and then go over it with a soft flat brush. This advice was given to me in Chicago and I've put it to use on this figure; I'm happy with the results.

Jaume - esta noche tomare fotos mas grandes de la chamarra.

 

[Johan]

Pete, I'm always priming with Tamiya air spray fine surface (light grey) primer. So that shouldn't be the problem ...?

Hm. I'll try much thinner coats of Vallejo then, and make sure they dry very well.

Thank you,

Johan

 

[Pete_H]

Johan,
On the contrary, I use thicker coats since all I do is dip my brush in water and then into the paint. However, I try to use less paint on my brush since I'm applying a less-diluted mix of paint & water.

 

[rafaelega]

Pete,

Thanks for the color mix. I think this is a good reference for my next try with this figure.

Rafa

 

[Guy]

Beautiful!!! love the jacket Pete. I have this figure on my ever growing "Want" list. I shall watch this figure as you complete him.

 

[Pete_H]

A quick update ...
I've finished painting the head and have attached it to the torso. I also decided to paint all gear that hangs off the web belt since it would be much easier than attaching the arms first (which I still have to paint). Speaking of the arms, I removed the 1st.SSF insignia (thanks again for averting a disastrous error on my part, Mr. Long!) and sculpted on the 4th.Ranger Bn. ribbon insignia. I'll take pictures and post them here tonight.

 

[KeithP]

Overall really nice work on the fig.

I recently disciovered the unbleached titanium. Works well in alot of applications.

Keith

 

[Larry R]

Looks Sweet Pete!