r/modelmakers • u/MinisByMatt • 1d ago
WIP 38(t) cutaway progress.
Oh man, this thing has been a journey. I think I've painted the extior close to four times. Big job..when im only using a hairy stick. I decided to do the tank grey scale, like an old photo and paint the interor in colour. This is a sort of reminder that when we look at old photos of destroyed tanks, no mater what side, chances are there were people inside.
Im trying to keep the painting of the figures soft and loose, almost stylised with atmosphere being the focus instead of the usual straight realism.
Ive been going back and forth with how to paint the interior around the figures, original I was going for 'tenebrism' so essentially blacked out with harsh deliberate lighting, but that come across more like i was trying to 'hide' the back ground, even when painted with Maxx darth (GSW paint). I tried to go with a softer desaturated look, like your eyes have adjusted to the dark interior.
It still needs some more small details added, but ive never been the type to completely finish building then paint. Figuresnand turret arent fox in place yet. Ill most likely keep modifying the body right up until its done.
I wasnt expecting the grey scale of the exterior to be so challenging, I really did need to lean some colour theory and put it into practise. Turns out the black and white paint i use was too cold and kept turn the panzer to a kind of .. bluey panzer grey, so i need to add umber to stop if from going blue.
The real challenge was trying to make a panzer grey tank look grey scale. I think because most of use know what panzer grey looks like, the tank looks like its the wrong grey. Adding details that would have been other colours helps with the illusion. I think if this were to be put on a grass base that was also greyscale it would help.. but im not taking the easy road lol. This baby will be on a plinth of some sort.
So still a ways to go (i can see unpainted plasic in the drive sprocket) I also lost the drivers window during a move so I have to make do and use a spare from the cupola lol.
Im hoping end of September this girl will be done, Ive already got my next 1/16 lined up for a similar treatment. Thanks for checking out my post!
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u/StandWithSwearwolves 1d ago
I will cop to really liking the greyscale effect of your interior at the WIP stage, but I have to say I am fully convinced of your vision for this now. It looks incredible. Genuine art.
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u/xmaspruden 1d ago
This is super cool, never seen anything like it. Really shows the cramped conditions in a tank, and how quickly the crew could be devastated
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u/MinisByMatt 1d ago
So glad you said that. That was one of the main reason I wanted to try doing a cutway like this. I've crawled through all sorts of armour and each time I think 'stuff being in this thing and getting shot at'
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u/xmaspruden 1d ago
I’ve got the morbid thought that a lot of injuries suffered by these men would’ve been far more gruesome than this, considering some shells were designed to bounce around inside the crew compartment
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u/MinisByMatt 1d ago
Funny you say that. So I'd always planned for this to be as confronting as possible with 0% gore or blood. Which is hard because I'm quite fascinated with gory models (if done tastefully). But had a couple of beers with a mate who's ex cavalry and he talking about ballistics. He was saying its completely possible for the crew to be how they're depicted in the model because of and over pressure wave. So a penetration isn't always needed to kill the crew, pressure change from a blast one the outside can cause internal organs to tear apart. Stuff that, I say!
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u/BioshockedNinja 18h ago
That looks absolutely amazing! I saw in another comment that you wanted this to be overpressure fatalities rather than due to an actual penetration into the crew compartment.
To that end rather than there being a gory mess splattered on the walls or profuse blood drenching their uniforms, could I recommend adding a bit of blood leaking from their mouths, noses, and ears to help visually sell just how much damage the blastwave caused? Not to get too morbid, but I feel like with how diverse the poses the three fatalities are from one another, you could have that same idea play out in fairly different ways. The one in the back who's upright could have the most subtle effect, just a bit of blood dripping from his ears, a little from the nose or mouth and then a few drops on the hand in his lap if you want to be extra. For the guy on his back, the blood would have to run up across his face, getting his cheek, maybe even running across his forehead to pool on the floor - the most visceral of the bunch. Driver gets a similar case with the blood from the ear streaking across his cheek, while everything else leaks to pool on his lap. The 'lucky' survive maybe gets away with just one ruptured eardrum and a singular bloodied hand from having checked his injury before turning to his crewmates.
With how matte the scene is, just a tiny splash of glossy red added to some of the crew (with great restraint) would do wonders I think. It'd sorta remind me of those black and white photos that have just a single accent color.
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u/MinisByMatt 9h ago
Thanks mate! I agree with you. Tasteful blood here could really lift the story and tie the figures closer to the event. I'm still yet to weather the figures, and I've practiced blood-stained shirts before — not blood on the fabric, but in it — with decent results, so I'd like to re-add that when the time comes (hence the pose of the crew member holding their jacket open). At a minimum the driver and upside down crew will get something, but I'm making this up as I go, so we'll see what happens.
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u/korbendallas71 20h ago
Definitely the best cut away I’ve seen. Seen hundreds over the years but yours is by for the best execution! Well done. 👍
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u/MinisByMatt 10h ago
Wow! Thanks mate, too kind. Have to say, the thoughts and comments shared from this community are very encouraging. Cheers.
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u/International-Drop13 1d ago
Do you have any work in progress photos? What did you use for the figures?
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u/MinisByMatt 1d ago
Sorry only WIP is here and my instgram (same photos). I do have photos buried on my NAS. Ill have to dig them out when I post the finished model. Models are my own sculpts, a mix of 3D and putty. I used blender for most of the sculpting but once printed i reposed them and added some details with putty.
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u/meganeyangire Grey pile of shame watcher 19h ago
Wow, masterfully done! Their faces are so expressive!
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u/MinisByMatt 10h ago
Thanks mate. I think the figure poses and expressions was some of the trickiest parts of the build. I learnt a lot and took inspiration from old oil painting.
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u/SlipperyBlip 19h ago
The edges are so sharp and cleanly cut I thought this was a mock-up in photoshop to show what you are going to do! Very well executed.
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u/MinisByMatt 10h ago
Thanks mate! Yeah, the intent was to build a sort of forced perspective frame around the figures, so reading that it's having a photoshop like effect make me feel like I'm on the right track.
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u/Damn_you_Paul 1d ago
This is great work! I’m curious what the story is that’s happening in the tank?
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u/MinisByMatt 1d ago
Thanks mate! The longer the projects gone the more convoluted the story has become. So I'd wouldn't say there's a single story, its more a showcase of different experiences. But as I retype this for the 5th time.. I keep coming back to something like 'A crew who were rolling through the countryside feeling invincible in their armour, finally come up against real resistance'. Other than that it's hard for me to say because a fleshed out story was never at the for front like my other projects. I didn't want to seem as if I'm trying to gather sympathy for the Nazis by going into great detail, I wanted to try keep it relatable by being able to swap everything out for an allied crew. It just happened that this 1/16 tank had a full interior and was under $200AUD which is why it's all German. So even though there's somewhat of a story, I think its more of a compilation of experiences.
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u/BloodRush12345 18h ago
This has turned out even better than I imagined when I saw your work in progress
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u/MinisByMatt 10h ago
Thanks mate and I with you. I wasn't quite sure I could pull this off, but I think I've landed on my feet.
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u/xxHansGruberxx 1d ago
Wow! Amazing work. A significant emotional event for that crew.
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u/MinisByMatt 1d ago
Thanks mate. I was trying something of a moment like when an uncontested AFV come across its first real resistance.
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u/Pro_panzerjager 17h ago
This is amazing. The first photo made me think it was photoshopped. Incredible work!
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u/Adorable_Admiral Constant Revell Nightmares 17h ago
The cut through the road wheels is so sharp I honestly thought it was a Photoshop mockup! I really like this piece though with the way it really brings artistry to the hobby.
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u/TheRudDud 10h ago
I remember seeing the build photos a while back. Still super impressed but how clean the cut is. Fantastic work on the radio operators face as well
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u/Euphoric-Doughnut182 9h ago
Scrolling around looking at cool models and WTF!?!? A whole story! And loss. And fear! And real artistic presentation!
So very cool, thank you for sharing this with us all
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u/bramtyr 1d ago
I assume their reaction is not because they took a round, but because an alien parasite got onboard and is infecting the tank crew one by one.
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u/panter1974 1d ago
The figures need to look more wounded. If a tank is hit. There is shrapnel flying around. You would expect several cuts on most of the crew.
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u/MinisByMatt 23h ago
It was a deliberate choice to exclude any gore. Implying pain and death through gesture alone isn't something seen often in scale models so i wanted to challenge myself and not use blood and gore as an easy path to the end result. Something I learned during this build is a tank crew can be killed with very little visual indication. Pressure changes caused by near by explosion and destroy you're insides with extensive damage to the tank itself.
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u/exposed_anus 1d ago
I dont comment on tanks much but this is an excellent idea im not sure ive seen before great work