My German, Panzerkampfwagen IV, Ausführung H, in 1/16 SCALE:
The Mother of Models:
First off, this was a great kit, perhaps reaching the limits of my ability. I deliberately took my time, and I pushed myself into scratch building or modifying existing parts like the upper hull so I could take it apart. I admit my model is far from perfect, but I’m really happy with how it’s coming along. It’s cool to me and a lot more than a drawing 3/D, but you can hold it! (Dropping it, however, is a terrifying thought.) I thought I knew all about the Panzer 4s, inside and out, a bit of a fixation in armor, and I had to make it. There is a lot there, and then some. Whether I can take it apart again without breaking it is a bit questionable, but I managed to do so. I’m not sure my ability to take pictures does the mode much justice, I did primer much of the model bit by bit and they came together, with a finished color, making none of it match In the end, so it received too many coats of paint taking from the details, and I did scratch built some stuff I felt I could make fit better, or something was overlooked, and added by me. Again, there are far better modelers than I am, and my old school methods are limited, but it doesn’t stop me from pushing along; they inspire me, and I learn from better modelers. Still, I can’t always do as they can, but it keeps me busy.
It is a Trumpeter kit, a 1/16 scale gient of a model, Panzer IV Ausf. J., Some of these pictures are from the construction of the kit, there were a lot of fine parts and several resin detail parts I bought and tried adding to the kit, and some scratch building only if I had to, like piping, and wiring, weld marks, I guess I did do a bit. But it is a very good kit, I thought I could do it, but I hesitated for some time. But I took on the challenge, and it was an organized kit with a lot of parts and a couple of options. Decent decals came with and came in several separate boxes. I bought the crew extra, as they took a lot of work out of the process, and were pretty easy to make. Some detail bits were missing or overlooked, and some I had a problem with, but I have my limits, and I broke and fouled stuff up as I went. It took well over a year, and I was happy with it, working on it in summer and winter. It did not, however, fit well in the model case-but I’ll work that out.
Let me introduce you to my Panzerkampfwagon IV, Ausf. “H”, 12th SS-Division “Hitlerjungen”, Normandy Area, June 1944:
The finished model, finely! I started sometime early on the start of COVID, and hid in my house! Like, well over a year ago now. This was my biggest challenge to date, I think, next to my T-34/85 in the same scale. I've been working on this thing, it’s a 1/16 scale Haswaga Model of the Panzerkampfwagon IV Ausf. H with the complete interior!
The crew was separate, and other small bits were ordered separately, some custom work, and finished off with some stuff cut out with a laser printer, It was a game-changer, this will change the industry the detail, and you don't have to solder it all together and all I bought was a fire extinguisher!!! But there is a lot of fantastic stuff out there, I grabbed stuff that would be used, I hope, in other kits I have.
Calling this done now, because the faces on the figures have been repainted too many times, and it isn't getting better! I'm going blind obviously, and shaky, and these getting hard to do, so many little details, and even the new stuff has to be modified to your own particular model.
God help me if I ever have to open it up to see the insides again!
