Jagdpanzer IV L 70

[mikeh]

Calling it done.


Made a base for it.

[Whiterook]

Oh my goodness, that’s literally STUNNING! Just amazing stuff there, with plenty of eye candy. The netting really hit me first and is masterfully done. Is that separated cheesecloth? …looks perfect. The diorama is killer!!! I’m no where near that level, but it gives me inspiration to try groundwork like that. So much to admire in this build… great work!

[mikeh]

Thanks Em. The netting is medical gauze like you get in a first aid kit, I soaked it in a brown acrylic wash for a day. The base is just one of those foam discs you get in the craft section of Walmart. Most of the ground texture was done with a lighter. It really made nice washes and gully's. I had started by carving the road out but that was really making a mess. Makes it more fun when you run the risk of burning your house down.

[Whiterook]

Sept 12, 2023 22:14:39 GMT -5 mikeh said:

Thanks Em. The netting is medical gauze like you get in a first aid kit, I soaked it in a brown acrylic wash for a day. The base is just one of those foam discs you get in the craft section of Walmart. Most of the ground texture was done with a lighter. It really made nice washes and gully's. I had started by carving the road out but that was really making a mess. Makes it more fun when you run the risk of burning your house down.

Hmmm, I’m remembering the use of medical gauze now, and also remembering I’d meant to check that out with whatever we have in supply, and of course, forgot to 

Well, the lighter thing is a first!!! …I never heard anyone saying they used that technique but it makes sense! I think I’d use one of those extended nozzle fireplace butane lighters myself, however, as I just KNOW I’d burn my hand with a short flame    So, I’m assuming you used the lighter on the sides of the foam to blacken it? …that’s brilliant and I wouldn’t have thought of that! Much easier than trying to paint it. I’m seeing some modelers that use very thin wood veneer to wrap around and stains, but I have no idea for the life of me how they secure it.

The foam disk is a great base foundation, but I know your pain of trying to cut it with a knife… I wouldn’t mind getting a hot knife, made especially for carving and cutting that type foam, but can’t justify the cost and storage space vs the use time it would garner. I used to be a draftsman in a packaging company back just after graduating from college and used them…they melt through foam like butter.

[mikeh]

Hey Em. The sides are just painted black with diluted craft paint, melting doesn't change the color I found out. It does however melt to an even and smoother plastic. Doesn't really matter as I put down Cellu Clay. This was my first try at really making an effort to make and texture a base, in the past I would just glue some find sand down and toss some static grass on it but never tried making uneven ground features, I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out.

[Whiterook]

Sept 13, 2023 13:43:22 GMT -5 mikeh said:

Hey Em. The sides are just painted black with diluted craft paint, melting doesn't change the color I found out. It does however melt to an even and smoother plastic. Doesn't really matter as I put down Cellu Clay. This was my first try at really making an effort to make and texture a base, in the past I would just glue some find sand down and toss some static grass on it but never tried making uneven ground features, I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out.

Ohhh, Cellu Clay! I bought a package of it a few years back but have been chicken to try it out. I’ve seen it used so much though, so I knew I had to try it… your dio is yet another example telling me I need to try it out. I’d like to try it on the dio base for the Panzer IV I’m building, which will be a base of wood (pine?) plaque I got from Hobby Lobby… I’ll have to look at application and adhesion online; I’m guessing it wouldn’t just stick to the wood, but would need some sort of glue or something, maybe once dried. No clue, really.

[mikeh]

If you are going to use a pine base you will have to seal it to avoid warpage. But it sticks well, mix the Cellu Clay with water, add a little dish soap to break surface tension then add a good dollop of white glue/pva to keep it from shrinking while it dries. At this point add your sand then track and footprints etc. It is really easy to use as it is just really paper-mache. Once mixed up you can store it in an air tight container for quite a few days. This is handy if you have pre colored the Cellu clay as you can go back and touch up areas of dirty up your tracks and lower hull without worry's about color matching.

[Whiterook]

Sept 14, 2023 14:15:40 GMT -5 mikeh said:

If you are going to use a pine base you will have to seal it to avoid warpage. But it sticks well, mix the Cellu Clay with water, add a little dish soap to break surface tension then add a good dollop of white glue/pva to keep it from shrinking while it dries. At this point add your sand then track and footprints etc. It is really easy to use as it is just really paper-mache. Once mixed up you can store it in an air tight container for quite a few days. This is handy if you have pre colored the Cellu clay as you can go back and touch up areas of dirty up your tracks and lower hull without worry's about color matching.

Thanks for that tip!!!

I made a no of this in my Outline app, which I have a modeling log in… I’m gonna try and document my try with it in the Pz IV threads, but likely also start a Tips & Help thread on it for future use (the more we can get in there, the better for attracting audiences). I don’t tend to do a lot of dioramas with my models so, I know I’d forget how I did it, lol.