I picked up Gecko Model’s 1/35 British landing craft assault (LCA) this past January while I was in Japan and my initial impression was quite good. Surface detail is quite crisp and the build seemed straightforward. I chose to build think kit as part of a D-Day 80th groupbuild I am participating in and I really wanted to step away from traditional armour/aircraft subjects and try my hand at a really unique and somewhat forgotten vehicle. This is my first “naval” subject if you can call it that, seeing as it has very few similarities (in terms of build strategy) with 1/350 and 1/700 warships. I’m aiming to have this project complete by June 6th so there’s quite a bit of work to be done.
Construction started with the wood floorboards and the interior spaces of the vehicle. I decided to completely finish the interior before moving on to more advanced stages of construction due to the fact that conducting and fine detail work after the deck was attached to the hull would be nearly impossible. Finding usable sources was a bit tricky and the painting and weathering of the interior was largely left up to my interpretation of the subject. I kept things simple due to the fact that I didn’t want this build to spiral into a super-detailed project. I opted to not add woodgrain texture but still added some variation to the wood paneling colour. I also decided to include worn paint on the floorboards. I didn’t have a reference photo to support this but chose to do so in order to add some visual interest. It’s plausible that the floorboards could have been painted over to protect them and I like the end result.
The interior work was tedious but not especially challenging. I did have some slight issues ensuring that the floor was completely set on the bottom and I also found that in one specific area the deck was not completely flat with the sides of the hull. These were just minor issues however and I had the deck glued on in short order.
In terms of the construction phase of this build that was pretty much it! The kit was extremely straightforward in its construction and only took about a week or two to get it to a stage ready for paint. I did chose to add some detail here however and I added a rough cast texture on the included anchor:
Thanks for looking! In my next post I’ll be going into detail on the painting and dealing process for this D-Day transport!
A few weeks ago I was finally able to declare the Pakwagen project complete. The scope of this project continuously kept increasing and increasing and in the end I was left with a fully completed diorama. I’m considering this build my best work so far so I’m hardly complaining.
I also decided to make a significant investment in the form of a new camera, a Canon EOS R50. Since starting this blog I’ve largely been taking photos with my phones, a iPhone 8 before and more recently a iPhone 12. The quality was passable at best but this new camera is amazing at being able to capture detail on the model. I’ve also been able to start incorporating a new technique, Focus stacking! Being able to see the entire model clearly in focus is such a huge improvement and I love the shots I’ve been able to take and share.
Also new is the base that the model is sitting on. I first tried out a workflow for building diorama bases with my work on Miniart’s T-55 and I’ve honed that process here as well. It’s comprised of insulation foam with styrene sheet on the edges. I used AK terrain paste along with foliage from green stuff world. Believe it or not, the base was in limbo for a while, I was convinced that it was going to look terrible and that I should just cut my losses and move on to the next project. Despite the rocky start I stuck with it and I’m so glad I did. It’s still got some shortcomings but I’m happy with the result, especially considering that this was my first swing at a base with heavy foliage.
I utilized a set of Tamiya late war German figures which were fantastic, the best figure set I’ve ever used. Amazing surface detail and plenty of spares were par for the course here. It had been years and years since I hade done any kind of figure painting and this set was perfect for getting the rust off. I love the way these turned out, especially the splinter camo.
That’s it for this project! Thanks for looking and enjoy the rest of the gallery below!
Miniart’s T-55 has been in progress in one form or another for almost two years now. It’s survived being stuffed in a box and a move across the country. There’s a few reasons why I’m only getting around to finishing it now, namely that I was more interested in other projects and that it’s a complex kit and not one you’d try to finish when being away from the hobby for a sustained period of time. I’ve slowly picked away at it for the past year but with a new year returns an old build as I’m determined to start the year by finishing off this shelf queen.
In starting the weathering process I’m reminded that conceptualizing the final result *before* beginning the painting process is needed for a good result. In slowly chipping away on this build I painted a layer of 4BO with no real direction as to what I wanted the final result to look like. Looking back this was a mistake, as I would have liked to add some chipping effects via the hairspray method. This mistake could be salvaged however and I decided to use this build to experiment with post shading, colour modulation and other heavy weathering effects. Basically I want to push this build and really go far with the weathering and pigments to get a better understanding of what works and what doesn’t. I settled on a dusty finish of a vehicle set in a desert environment and I think the green of the tank will contrast nicely with the brown environment it will be set in.
The weathering process started with adding some rust highlights by spraying some various rusty shades on the fuel tanks to create some contrast between the tanks and the vehicle hull. I then opted to treat the fuel tanks to a chipping effect to simulate areas where the paint has peeled away and exposed the rusted metal underneath.
Hairspray chipping helped to start a rust effect on the fuel tanks.
After getting the tanks where I wanted them, I hit the model with a gloss coat to seal the paint prior to an oil pinwash. Normally I’d stick with satin finishes on armour but seeing as there were a lot of details for a wash to skink into I opted for the gloss coat in this stage. After the pinwash I used VMS Satin to seal the model again before moving onto further effects. I opted for a satin coat instead of working over a gloss surface because it would allow for easier blending between the various effects I wanted to use.
Initial weathering was comprised of enamels from MIG using various grime and fuel stain effects. I like how this initial stage turned out although I think I need more practice with enamels as they are not my go to as much as oils are. That said, I like how “grimy” I was able to make the surfaces look and how the staining interacts with the colour modulation. This phase was only meant to be a base for the pigment work which will come next.
Since I knew I wanted to pose this vehicle in a Desert or Arid setting, I wanted a significant amount of dusting done to the model. I started on the running gear and underneath the fenders and stippled on AK’s “Kursk Earth” along with various other pigments. I also utilized a “light mud” product from AK to get very light splashes to add contrast. With it having been quite a while since I had really dirtied up a tank much of this process was experimenting to see how I liked the end result. I also cut up some static grass and mixed it with a light pigment before applying it to the model to simulate foliage being stuck to the underside of the vehicle.
For the initial dusting I utilized two pigment shades with pigment fixer and while I think it was good experience to practice with using pigments I think my application of this medium would use some refinement. I do think I need to slow down a bit and put more effort into blending while the pigments are still drying which is something I’ll need to keep in mind for the next build.
I used T-Rex tracks for this build and couldn’t be happier with how they turned out. I painted them in Gunze Mr. Metal Color “Iron” which if left unbuffed will remain a dull dark grey but will result in a really great shine if you rub the surface. I added some more “Kursk Earth” long with several different pigment shades to create a dusty weathered look. I then used several q tips to wipe away the pigments where wear would occur and revealed a nice shine to represent polished metal. I also added graphite onto the cleats on the reverse side to represent where the track would contact the ground the hardest and buff them metal.
This is where I’ll leave this update for now but there are sill a few things I’d like to do before declaring this one complete. I’d also like to put this one on a proper base so I’ll need to get that completed as well. Hoping to get the T-55+Base all done by the end of February so not a whole lot of time left!
This past January I was lucky enough to have some time off work and made the most of it by visiting Japan. I chose the country for two main reasons, to experience Japanese culture, and to check out the amazing hobby shops. For all the talk about “the hobby is dying” I’d argue that Japan alone could self sustain the hobby, the demand here is insane. Every shop big and small was packed with all ages, It’s such a night and day difference with North America.
To be clear, this post is not going to be an exhaustive guide to the various shops in the country. There are far better guides detailing the pros and cons of each shop along with videos on YouTube of people visiting them. Instead this post will serve a a general overview of the modelling aspect of the trip and my take on how things turned out.
Tamiya’s Shizuoka Headquarters
To start off, I knew that near the top of my priority list was to visit the Tamiya headquarters in Shizuoka. Tamiya has a small visitors section that requires you to book in advance. Shizuoka is a relatively (compared to Tokyo) small city about a hour and half Shinkansen ride outside of Tokyo and is the home of Tamiya’s main headquarters. I’m not afraid to admit this visit meant a lot to me. I’ve been building Tamiya kits for over ten years now and to be able to visit the inception point carries a certain weight. In terms of what to see there are to main gallery rooms. The first is dedicated to historical Tamiya kits going back years and years to the 1960’s. Of particular note was a section dedicated to remembering Sheperd Paine which caught me by surprise. I grew up reading about Shep’s dioramas and this was the first time I’d ever been able to see them first hand. I can’t think of a higher honour for a modeller than having a entire section dedicated to you in Tamiya’s official showroom and if anybody deserves it, it’s him.
The other Tamiya showroom is dedicated to Tamiya’s current product line and showcases much more modern products. It’s smaller and less interesting but it’s definitely worth mentioning. Tamiya also has various vehicles on display and something that I found particularly interesting is that they have an early lathe that would have been used to make the metal molds for plastic injection, very cool! The headquarters has a small gift shop that’s worth checking out and I picked up a shirt along with some official Tamiya stickers.
“Modern” Tamiya releases
While I really enjoyed my visit to Shizuoka I won’t lie the trip absolutely wiped me out. I had booked my train ticket for pretty late in the morning and did some sightseeing prior to leaving. Looking back now this was a mistake. The Tamiya building is deceptively far the train station in Shizuoka and the city does not have as good pedestrian infrastructure as Tokyo. I was totally wiped out after getting back to the hotel in Tokyo that evening.
Sticking with the Tamiya theme, next on the list was the Tamiya Plamodel Factory which is sort of Tamiya’s factory store in Tokyo. While the gift shop in Shizuoka is good, it doesn’t have the same selection as a dedicated hobby store which Plamodel is. The next day I visited quite a few stores including: Yellow Submarine in Akihabara Radio Kaikan, Volks Hobby Yodobashi Camera, Leonardo ET and LG, and Tam Tam Hobby.
Yellow Submarine Radio Kaikan
Yellow submarine is one of the more well known stores in the Tokyo area and was fairly impressive. I’ll preface this review with the fact that they don’t have a super extensive selection of kits but are definitely well stocked. I was on the lookout for a very specific kit when I came to Japan (Gecko Models 1/35 LCA in British service) and by pure chance it was in the very first row I walked down. Tool selection is good and I picked up some scribing stencils and chisels as well. Good decal selection as well.
Volks Radio Kaikan
There is a Volks hobby store in the same building as Yellow submarine and as the retailer of Zoukei-Mura kits they have excellent selection of them available. I fully expected to be able to pickup their new Fw-190 in person but they didn’t have any for sale and no marketing material on this kit was up either. Considering that the pre-order period of this kit was spring of last year and that they supposedly started to send them to customers in October of 2023 I was very surprised to not find any for sale. Visit wasn’t a complete wash however, there are a lot of neat builds on display and a good tool selection as well. I picked up a 1/700 Akagi and an accompanying photo-etched set.
Yodobashi Camera
To start, Yodobashi Camera is a big department store of which one section of one floor is dedicated to scale models. Despite this, Yodobashi Camera has the most extensive selection of tools I have ever seen. The entire back wall of the store is filled with a wide variety of modelling tools that I didn’t know I needed until now. Yodobashi Camera is a cut above the other stores because in addition to the great tool selection, the kit selection is fantastic as well with a lot of brands available for purchase. My favourite store in Tokyo by far.
Leonardo ET and LG
I don’t know what the history is between these two stores but supposedly they come from the same person (people?). While the prior mentions were big box stores, Leonardo ET and LG exemplify the mom-and-pop shop. Very small area to move around in and absolutely packed to the ceiling with kits. I liked the atmosphere and selection but to be honest with both of them, it’s kind of too difficult to move about and see the entirety of the selection available.
Leonardo ET on the left.
Tam Tam Hobby
This one is close to the Leonardos’ and besides that was utterly forgettable. Some Tamiya selection and a few tools but nothing of substance here, won’t visit again on a repeat visit to Japan.
Hobby Land Osaka
And last but certainly not least is Hobby Land in Osaka. Out of all the hobby stores I saw in Japan Hobby Land was by far my favourite and did the most to bankrupt me. The store is not large by any means, but has a *insane* selection of aftermarket accessories. Virtually every AM brand is represented in this store. A huge quantity of Eduard and Aires resin sets were available along with Voyager, Legend, T-rex and many other AFV detail sets were also available. Hobby Land does not stock these brands in limited numbers either with a large number of products per brand available. Also available was a large number of reference books for modelling as well as modelling how-to books showcasing various builds. Really great selection of books to choose from and I picked up a few.
Pricing
before my trip I was having issues nailing down how much exactly to expect kits to go for. Typically people will say that kits in Japan are X or Y percent cheaper but no actual prices. It’s dependent on the store you visit as well and boxes with a little damage will be discounted. Here’s what I picked up and what I paid on my trip:
Overall I’m pretty happy with what the kits cost and I’m happy I went with some extra room in my suitcase. I was particularly satisfied with the selection and prices of the Dragon Armor kits as here in Canada they can easily go for $100+ especially for the German stuff.
This past week I was able to finish Kinetic’s 1/48 CF-18 and just in time for the holidays! (currently finishing this write-up out of Toronto Pearson) This build took around 3 months to complete and although I’m definitely happy with the end result (probably my best result to date!), the build itself was challenging to be completely honest.
The kit was plagued with rough fit and unclear instructions. The infamous nose/windshield assembly lived up to its reputation and fought me the entire way.
As I had been thinking about this build for the better part of this year, I spent the months leading up to it gathering various aftermarket pieces to enhance the build. The full list is as follows:
Leading edge “Combat Hornets” decal set
Aries Resin ejection aeat
Flying Leathernecks 3d printed accessories
Wheels
Hud
Pitot tubes
Weapon pylons
Eduard Resin Aim-9 Sidewinder and Aim-7 Sparrow missiles
Anyz decals and 3d printed parts
Various scratchbuilt wiring and tubing
3d printed pylons and resin missiles added a lot to the final product.
The Leading Edge decals really were the catalyst for the build, I knew I wanted to build a Canadian Hornet but that I also wanted build a specific aircraft, No. 188780, one of the participants of Operation Friction, Canada’s contribution to the 1991 Gulf War. This aircraft stood out because of the Cyrillic writing “oсмотри назан” on the Lex fences, with some sources translating the text as “check six”. This marking was specific to aircraft based at CFB Cold Lake which were responsible for “greeting” Russian aircraft over the arctic. As far as I can tell 780 was the only aircraft with the Cyrillic writing present in Desert Storm.
“780” seen here on the ramp in Doha.
The Leading Edge decals performed perfectly, definitely would use again.
Refocusing back to the build, I tried to scribe my own panel lines for the first time along with adding rivet details. While I feel my scribing skills need improvement, I think that the rivet details I added really stand out and were a worthwhile addition to the model. Kinetic is missing some pretty prominent rivet details on the wing and vertical stabs and the custom detail really enhances the area IMO.
Riveting details were added with a Galaxy tools 0.75mm rivet attachment
A more detailed breakdown of the painting and weathering stage can be found on that phases’ separate post but the basic overview is as follows. I primed the model in black, added an initial marble coat, followed by a blend coat and detail coat before tying the entire finish together with a final blending coat. I really do enjoy this technique, the method of slowly raising the opacity of paint layers comes very natural to me and is a straightforward (if time consuming) process. That said I do think I need to experiment in this area, and possibly start to add more post-shading to my workflow. As it stands now I see two distinct disadvantages to my current process, the first is that this is a very “dark” method in that since the model is being primed black I often need to finish the model in a shade lighter so that the end result is tinted the correct shade. The second issue is that the best gloss varnishes like to burn hot and will reduce the opacity of the paint by about 5% or so which needs to be taken into account when spraying the final blend coat.
One area I wanted to pay specific focus on was the cockpit, and took extra care and time to get it looking how I wanted. Of immense help was Kris Sieber’s book, “Superdetailing the F-14 Tomcat” which is a must buy for anybody serious about building modern jets. Even though the book is about the process of detailing a Tomcat the techniques can be applied to any ghost grey jet.
Anyz 3d printed dials and knobs really make the cockpit pop.
All in all however, I really do feel that this is the best kit I’ve built so far and I was able to use everything I’ve learned over the past year or so to really enhance both the building process and the painting/weathering process. Enjoy the final build photos below!
Nomad Models 