UBB.threads
Posted By: Bernie Brule A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 08/28/2007 10:29 PM
Rick Turner and I met once at a MAX show in the late eighties or early nineties. Even after meeting only once and living at the opposite ends of North America, we have become good friends.

Rick is an man of many talents. Among them is being one of the foremost model builders of today. He has posted many of his models on this forum for all to enjoy.

When I finished putting together my 1/16th r/c Tamyia King Tiger, I had no idea who I was going to get to paint it. Although I can build 'em, I can't paint 'em.

To make a long story short, Rick agreed to paint it for me. To say that I was happy was an understatement.

I will use this thread to post his progress of what will be a King Tiger of the schwere Panzer Abteilung 503 "Feldherrenhalle" during the Battle for Budapest in the fall of 1944 and spring of 1945. Although little is known of that battle here in the West, it was one of the bloodiest of WW2 with over 100,000 Russian and German casualties.

But enough of that. To give you an idea of the talent involved here, here are a few pics of the jack.

Attached picture Bernie's_KT_05.JPG
Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 08/28/2007 10:29 PM
second coat

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Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 08/28/2007 10:30 PM
Finished product.

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Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 08/28/2007 10:30 PM
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Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 08/28/2007 10:31 PM
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Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 08/28/2007 10:31 PM
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Attached picture Bernie's_KT_53.JPG
Posted By: Ruski Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 08/29/2007 03:05 AM
That is a great paint and weathering job on that jack!! I think your tank is going to be something special Bernie - Rick is very talented!

Regards

Russell
Posted By: Anonymous Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 08/29/2007 03:19 AM
Bernie, I have a tank like that still in the box. I never put it together as after I got it, I thought I needed to get all the parts painted first. If that is not the case please let me know and I will get busy. The painting thing is way beyond my talents, but I can put one together OK (I think).

Mark Confused
Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 08/29/2007 04:15 AM
Mark, I think it's easier to paint before all the parts are put together. But if you find an artist he can probably do the job anyway.

If you decide you don't want it, let me know. Cool
Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 08/31/2007 01:47 AM
The metal parts of the wheels get an acid bath.

Attached picture Bernie's_KT_25.JPG
Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 08/31/2007 01:49 AM
The wheels and fenders are given a coat of primer.

Attached picture Bernie's_KT_60.JPG
Posted By: Landser Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 08/31/2007 09:25 AM
I think that work is fantastic & Rick is truly an artist with great skill. That jack looks so real you can almost feel the rust & pitt`s. I should be very interest ed in learning something of the processes & applications involved in achieving this appearance. Perhaps others would too? Can`t wait to see more. Fantastic! Cool
Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/02/2007 03:33 AM
Here's Rick's secret recipe for making those huge metal King Tiger tracks look like the real thing. Now ya gotta admit, they DO look like the real thing. Top ones have been prepped for treatment.

"I was able to blacken an entire tread in 30 minutes! Now for the kicker, unlike your first set and my Sherman tracks, NO paint or oil based wash this time. If you remember on yours and then again on my first set of metal tracks I had to revert to the old ways for weathering and age. Not so this time my friend. ;-)

I've changed my process. Each group of tracks was submerged in 12 oz. of fresh fluid, no solutions were reused on the next group like I did last time. This gives the tracks in the soup the full strength of the blackening solution which they absolutely need given the mass of metal I'm putting in there at one time.

Every five minutes the tracks are "rolled over" in the solution but not removed. I found that removing them and letting them dry, then putting them back in the solution again is not the way to go. After a few minutes the tracks become very warm to the touch and the solution starts to bubble, this is very good.

When the tracks come out of the soup they are hot! Rinse with cool tap water as before and let them s l o w l y air dry. I was setting them in the sun before, they dry out too fast. When they first come out of the soup they are jet black now with almost no residue coming off them during the rinse, a very good sign that the metal will hold its color.

Now as they dry they start to turn a blackish brown color, the whites start showing up and the things start looking more like a set of used tracks. Not heavy wear mind you, but they look like they've been around. About the only thing you don't have are wear to the highlights and wear from the road wheels.

For that I used my own mixture now. On the last couple of projects I started experimenting with natural soiling, dirt from my backyard. We sit on some of the best dirt in the world so why not use it? Also, why do people always think this stuff has to be done in a certain order. I've tried their ways, too much extra work for nothing, its the finish that counts, not the order that things were applied. :-)

So, I add just a dash of natural pigment, in this case European Dust, to the natural Sandy/Lome soil that we have plenty of and apply with a dry flat brush. I added soiling where the road wheels have been running, to the holes where the sprocket teeth grab and to the areas between the cleats on the downside of the tracks and thats it.

Next I take clean mineral spirits and give the tracks a final wash. This is not a wash like used on the paint finishes as it has no color added. This wash has two purposes, the first is to act as a solvent to blend my dirt into the surface and second is to actually wash the last bits of debris from the track pins. Remember, they are in-place through the whole process, this frees up the tracks again without adding any form of other lubricants.

And thats it! These are clearly the best set of large scale tracks I've made so far. I'll leave it up to you to add the wear to the highlights. No steel wool for us, just drive it! ;-)"

Attached picture Bernie's_KT_63.JPG
Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/02/2007 03:35 AM
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Attached picture Bernie's_KT_64.JPG
Posted By: Robert H. Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/02/2007 03:03 PM
Cannot be done better how they look.

Bernie, why an acid bath for the wheels and what kind of acid is this?

Did the traks also go in the acid fluid with dust and dirt?
Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/03/2007 12:04 AM
Robert, the phosphoric acid bath is to clean the metal before the weathering procedure. They do not go back into the acid after.

Here's a pic of the phosphoric acid Rick uses for cleaning metal parts. Orchard Supply carries this.

Attached picture T66_06.JPG
Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/05/2007 02:56 PM
Some of the mods that Rick has made. All are done from "scratch":

The vane sight turned out cool, added the lock down fixture on the muzzle brake too. Oh, and the lifting plate for the gun mantlet. Nothing major, just little odds and ends that can be added fairly easy. Also did just a little welding on the machine gun ring. Those rings were attached to the commanders vision ports with some major ugly welds, now you have some too. ;-)

Also did a little weld work along the seams on the armor covers for the rear hatch on the turret. The hatch handle has also been replaced with a new scratch built wire handle. Also added additional weld work to the turret vent, there were actually two or three layers of welds there, hides the joint at the turret roof as well.

I drilled out the hinge points on the spare tracks hanging on the turret. One of those things that keeps me up at night Big Grin, so I started drilling them out. I'll need eight of your spare track pins. A little slow, all the work needs to be done by hand, but it'll look 1000% better.

I'm in the process of adding the tank commanders "open sights" to the top of the turret and the hold down bolts that secure the armor chunk to the lower rear side of the turret.

oh, did I also forget to mention that the poorly shaped (and incomplete) cold starting crank guide on the bottom of the right hand muffler guard has been removed! Yup.

Another long time Tamiya error. The incomplete portion has been cut away, the two flanges reshaped and the holes for the removable pin (that would hold the cranking guide in place) have been drilled out.

On my break times Big Grin I started whittling away on your turret, you now have actual handles on all your turret hatches, no more of those molded in toy like things! Formed out of heavy copper wire, fit perfect!

And that pesky loader's hatch that didn't open, well it did, but not in a proper fashion. Well now that loader's hatch has pivot points and holes drilled for future pins to be pressed in after paint is complete. You now have a functional loader's hatch. Wink

Also did some work on the base of the turret lifting hooks. The kit hooks don't fit real good so I did some bondo work around the bases, looks like they came from the factory now. Also spent some extra time with the Dremal tool, looks like the turret is made from real German armor plate now. Need to finish up one more glue coat, then I promise some pictures.

BTW, your tail pipes have been drilled out and the proper single wire guards have been installed. I hate the way Tamiya finishes of the tail pipes, makes 'em look like they have a big baffle stuck in 'em.

P.S. I'm also currently scratch building a stop light for the tail end and Tanya is heading down to the jewelry mart tomorrow to look for some form of glass bead to use as a travel for the back.

Cool Cool Cool
Posted By: Robert H. Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/05/2007 03:52 PM
Bernie, many thanks for all your great hobby info skills. Same to Rick
Posted By: Dave L / dblmed Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/06/2007 01:27 AM
Bernie..... Utterly Fantastic Scale Models!!!!!!

You bring a special dimension into the preservation of the history of the AFV's.

Love to see your work ...& may get Brave enough to try it one day!

Keep the Photos coming.. Dave/dblmed
Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/06/2007 02:42 AM
Dave, I built it but Rick is the one who's bringing it to life. Wink

I've no doubt that this will be one of the most realistic looking 1/16th r/c King Tigers anywhere.

Stay tuned for more pics.
Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/06/2007 07:48 PM
The turret is readied for priming. Note the tank commanders "open sights" on the top of the turret that Rick added.

In Rick's own words:

"You can't really see it in the pictures but the entire turret (except main gun) was treated with several coats of M.E.K.

Extra texture was added to some areas with Tamiya poly filler, smells like bondo to me. All the main turret plates were lightly sanded. Parts like the hatches and spare tracks were not. You know about the little tweaks along the way, now you can see what they look like. The turret is spotless, I'm very happy with the clean look it has going into primer. A very good sign that the primer will be flawless."

Attached picture Bernie's_KT_66.JPG
Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/06/2007 07:50 PM
This gives a great view of the track pin holes drilled in the spare track links on the side of the turret. How did he do that????

Attached picture Bernie's_KT_68.JPG
Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/06/2007 07:51 PM
And the non-functional loader's hatch is now functional... and has a real handle. Big Grin That's where I'm going to put the on/off switch.

That part that you see inside the commander's hatch is for the Battle System.

Attached picture Bernie's_KT_72.JPG
Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/06/2007 09:27 PM
The turret is primed and ready...

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Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/06/2007 09:27 PM
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Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/06/2007 09:28 PM
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Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/07/2007 02:24 AM
First coat of colour...

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Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/07/2007 02:24 AM
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Posted By: Rick Turner Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/20/2007 03:45 PM
Von Brule's track set is complete, only the best for my bud. No paint was harmed or ever in any danger of use during the weathering of these tracks. Cool

We do this for love, we do this for fun, but we don't do it for money. Wink

Rick

Posted By: Rick Turner Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/20/2007 03:56 PM
Cool

Posted By: Rick Turner Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/20/2007 03:58 PM
... one more then back to the shop! Razz

Posted By: Wolfederico Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/21/2007 01:54 AM
A MAGNIFICENT model project, the extra detailing and weathering prosses is superb for the plastic and metal parts of a working model, it will complement the great FX sound effects of the Tamiya radio control model.

Please keep us posted on this amazing King Tiger model.
Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/21/2007 05:13 PM
Nobody does it like my buddy Rick. Wink

Rick also did my Tiger tracks. Here they are after a few runs on some soft hard packed dirt. Notice the polished high spots just like the real ones. Cool

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Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 09/21/2007 05:19 PM
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Posted By: Trigger Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 10/02/2007 08:41 PM
WOW Eek
What is that fluid used for the tracks?
That is awesome! And I want to do the same on mine!!!!

Cheers,
Posted By: Tim Schreiner Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 10/03/2007 02:32 AM
I'm really beyond impressed!!! Eek
Posted By: Rick Turner Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 10/03/2007 02:15 PM
Thanks gents, we’re using a gun finishing product called “Aluminum Black” by Birchwood Casey for the color. 0% paint and really 0% oil paint based wash on Bernie’s KT tracks. Natural soil with just a dash of pigment were used to add highlight to areas where the sprockets, idlers and road wheels run. A small amount of this soiling is added to the cleat faces on the connecting links but here again most of what you see comes from the blackening process, even the crustiness. Smile

Unfortunately my camera is down right now for repair but once it returns I’ll post some images of the set on my Sherman that I did beginning of the year, they now have over 40 hours of run time outdoors. Long term wear characteristics look good, they become even more enhanced with actual use. Wink

Rick Cool
Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 12/17/2007 01:20 AM
Well, it's been a while but my buddy Ricardo da Vinci has been hard at work. Thanks to a broken camera, pics were not forthcoming until now. But as you will see, well worth the wait.

The turret.

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Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 12/17/2007 01:20 AM
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Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 12/17/2007 01:20 AM
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Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 12/17/2007 01:21 AM
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Posted By: Bernie Brule Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 12/17/2007 01:21 AM
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Posted By: Polizist Re: A 1/16th King Tiger Like No Other - 01/28/2008 06:17 PM
Eek
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