Hit and Abandoned Beute Su85
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By: Francisco José Nunes da Silva e Almeida
Manufacturer(s): Fujimi 1/76
Modifications: Only the barrel and exhausts were perfurated, as well as the two hits on the right side.
After-market parts: Kit OOTB.
Description: Again having fun with old Fujimi 1/76 kits, again building beute vehicles... This time I decided to give it a try on reproducing one of the German captured Su-85 from the 128 Pz.Jg.Abt. 23 Pz. Div., operating in Romania, during the summer of 1944. The built was quite easy, and, of course, these old rubber tracks are a pain. This is the reason why I decided to go on a vehicle which supposedely was hit while crossing a creek, and afterwards abandonned by its crew. In this way I managed to hide the staples which were the only way to fix the tracks... After the primer, the Su was pre-shaded and afterwards painted with Vallejo Model air Panzer dark yellow. Then, several filters, and some (well, maybe a lot...) of chipping with vallejo dark grey. Then, Pigment time! For the top surfaces I decided to use Tamiya master sets Rust, Soot, and Oil stains diluted with terepentine. For the tracks, the usual Mig pigments mixture (variating the aplication of dark and european mud) mixed with gloss master model acrylic lacquer to give the mud some wet aspect. The big side crosses were scratch painted, and the front one comes from a german airplane decal set.
- Judge 1
- A good build (the poor kit tracks are cleverly hidden on the base!). The finish is complex and the paint chipping and scuffs are well done. It may be the photo quality, but the finish looks a bit too glossy in certain areas. A slight sheen in places is good but it's best not to overdo it. The details would also benefit from some pin washes, for example to differentiate the track links along the spare track along the glacis amonst other places.
- Judge 2
- Nice build of old model. Flash on tacks and joins on fuel barrels are too visible. Weathering is overdone, causing model finish looks somehow smudged. For such "old&used" vehicle, you should put some more rust streaks. Little black cross on the front has no weathering at all.
- Judge 3
- It's an avarage OOTB built kit. The yellow is a bit dark for me, but not bad. The wear and the chips are well done, a bit overdone here and there, but also not bad. The surface is a bit glossy on the photos. Mud is well done, but some work with oils and dusty effects with pigments could take the model to a higher level. Hit marks also well done. We should not judge the base, but let me tell you one thought. The grass looks nice, but you can make it a bit more interesting by placing some other plants, like a little bush, or something like this, on it. Anyway, it's a nice sceene.