Großer Hund Upgrade

I recently finished a project I had started some time ago, the Machinen Krieger Großer Hund in 1/20th scale. This bench queen started as a submission for the Plastic Posse Podcast group build for the 2023 IPMS National Convention. Although I had completed the majority of the assembly process it never did get finished. 

Several other projects took priority, including 4 sets of Mandalorian armor for my 2023 family Halloween costume, but that's for another post. With other projects finished I mustered a bit of mojo and sat down to finish the Großer Hund.

I replaced most of the tubing which came with the kit with a variety of handmade and aftermarket alternatives. Anticipating it's inevitable demise I also replaced the plastic "chin" bar with steel wire and brass tube and  I added a thin high strength wire for an antenna.

Various surfaces were stippled with Mr. Surfacer for a cast texture. Where I felt it appropriate I added weld seams using green stuff two part epoxy putty.

With all of the added details I didn't feel like I could stop there. So next I hopped into Fusion360 and designed a new weapon for him. I wanted to stick with the retro-future aesthetic so I felt that a rocket pod was in keeping with the spirit of the genre. 

The rocket pods are available as a two pack at www.WhiteTanksHobbies.com

With that designed and printed it was time to paint. The model was painted by airbrush with Vallejo acrylics. It was then weathered using multiple techniques including oil, acrylic, and enamel washes. Chipping was completed using sponges and a brush where needed.

I used a variety of decals both from those included in the kit and from my stash, all were applied using Micro Sol / Set. 

The base was a wall hanging I found at a second hand store. I removed the hardware and added a couple of layers of cork to the top. The surface of the "asphalt" section remained relatively unchanged and I covered the "concrete" sidewalk in plaster of Paris. 

The chain link fence is window screen mesh and styrene tubing. The vines are braided wires and birch seeds. I made the "Warning Dog" sign in Adobe Illustrator, printed it, and glued it to thin styrene sheet.

The storm drain was also modeled and printed. Is this something you would be interested in? Either as a 3D file or as a printed product? If so let me know in the comments.

Overall I had a real fun time working on this project. Once I got the ball rolling again I couldn't stop until I was finished. I hope you enjoy! If you would like to replace one or more of the Panzerschreck on your Großer Hund with a rocket pod stop on www.WhiteTanksHobbies.com, and/or you would like to see additional custom parts for use with this kit let me know in the comments!

 

  

  

Large Wheel 3D Printed Resin Kit

 White Tanks Hobbies YouTube channel is now live with our first video. A build video of the 1/20th scale Large Wheel kit.

The kit is available for sale in 1/20th and 1/35th scales at www.WhiteTanksHobbies.com

2020 Year in Review

In 2020 I started off productive on the modeling front and pretty well kept that pace going forward. Until the pandemic interrupted us all I was regularly attending model club meetings and, fortunately, after they went virtual I was able to attend a few more.

I completed far more than I had expected this year, although not all of the projects I intended to complete were finished. I did pick up two 1st place finishes at monthly model meetings for my Grot Egg Plane and my Star Wars AT-M6. I was also honored to be receive Modeler of the Year for 2020 (a designation determined by points accumulated for various hobby related achievements throughout the year.

I worked on several projects which I have yet to finish. Most notably I've started working on a collection of Hollywood cars. So far in the works are Ghostbusters, Ready Player One, Aliens, and Wayne's World. I also have a Deadpool Bust, the other halves of both my Dark Imperium and Blitz Bowl sets, and countless other Warhammer 40k kits to complete.

That pile of plastic shame aside, here are the models/figures I managed to finish this year:

Grot Egg Plane - January 7th

Colonial Viper - February 4th

AT-M6 - February 4th

Death Guard - April 13th

Stuffed Fables - June 21st

 

 

 

To Boldly Go - November 27th

The Thing - December 10th

H.A.B. Suit - December 15th

I hope that this year was productive for each of you and that you and yours have remained healthy and well during this trying time. I'm optimistic for what 2021 has in store and hope to continue to grow as a modeler and to share that progress with you. What was your hobby progress for 2021, did you check any of the preverbal boxes you set for yourself back in January? I'd love to hear about it. Feel free to drop me a line by e-mail, FB, or in the comments below. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

3D Printed Mech Suit

I've had my Elegoo Mars Pro for a while now and used it to print numerous things. Miniatures, accessories for gaming, custom mounts for my Ikea cabinet, on and on. But the first thing I printed (aside from the test model) was this H.A.B. Environment Suit in 28mm by Roguish_Charms on Thingiverse.

The model comes with 3 pieces: the pilot, cockpit door, and suit. I only printed the suit and sealed it up. The antenna were very fragile and so I replaced them with steel wire of roughly the same diameter. 

The model was painted with acrylic paints and washes and for the markings I used rub on transfers. The base is a bottle top (which I made no effort to conceal). It was decorated with cork and some flocking, leaves, and moss from my basing supplies.

This was a fun little build which I cranked out in an afternoon just for the sake of painting something.

 

 

 

To Boldly Go

Shortly after purchasing my Elegoo Mars Pro resin 3D printer I set about trying to teach myself how to use Autodesk's Fusion 360. There is a free version allowed for non-commercial work or you can pay a monthly or annual subscription for commercial use. 

I've created a playlist of some of the videos I found most useful in creating this project on my new Youtube channel here:

For my first project I decided on brining my favorite Matt Dixon painting "To Boldly Go" to life. 

Once designed in Fusion 360 I exported the model to Chitubox to be sliced for my printer. A few prints of the smaller parts failed and I had to adjust my supports a couple of times before I was able to produce satisfying results.

Using Matt Dixon's painting as a canvas in Fusion 360 I created several sketches which were extruded into the shapes which comprise the robot and his rocket ship. A surprising amount of 3D information can be determined from a 2D painting.

Still there were details I had to take creative liberty with. The interior of the cockpit for example isn't visible in the painting. I designed some gauges and vents for the dash, a diamond plate tread for the floor, the seat, and the legs and feet of the robot.

 

I modeled all of this to be printed in several pieces

The antenna was printed as part of the head but proved to be quite delicate and I've had to reattach it at least 4 times. In the above photo the lifting arm is shown in place, it is a separate piece.

I did purchase clear resin for printing the windscreen but ultimately decided on cutting it out of clear plastic packaging. 

I noticed a few issues with the design, such as the tolerances being too tight and some cutaways that were missing. I made the corrections in Fusion 360 and reprinted the model in a much large scale. 

 

This larger version I packed away for later and proceeded to paint and assemble the smaller version. I began in my usual method of joining subassemblies and painting base colors. These were all quite bright but would be toned down later during the weathering process.

For the base I scaled the original painting on my computer screen until it matched the model in my hand. I then traced the background on a piece of paper which I cut out as a template. Using that, I made the base from stacked plywood and 1/8" MDF which was glued together, coated in wood filler, sanded, and then textured with plaster. 

The name plate was also designed in Fusion 360 and printed with the Elegoo Mars. I printed it in various scales between 30-45mm in height so that I could pick the one I found most appealing. This was my second go at the name plate. In my first attempt I noticed all too late that I had misspelled 'Boldly"! Oops. 

The power cord was made from a bit of wire and the plug was made out of scratch polystyrene tube and sheet. I used the same sheet material to make the power plate on the wall which I changed from UK to NA standard. The base and the model were painted with Army Painter and Vallejo acrylics, weathered separately with acrylic washes, and then the model was glued down to the base. Lastly I placed a few pieces of sand with tweezers and painted them to match.

 

 

 

If I had it to do over again I would change a couple of things. First I wouldn't use metallic paints to paint the robot. No matter how much I tried to tone it down it is still too vivid for my liking. I think the rest of the model could be toned down a tad more too. I might also like to try my hand at making some custom decals. If I do I'll probably just hire out the work but it would be nice to have a set of waterslide decals. Since I already have a second print of this model I guess I'll have the opportunity to set those issues right.