Tiger Evolution
The Tiger tank is one of the most studied subjects for the scale armour modeller; contentious and stressful for the web-based super-detailer, yet evocative and enticing. The array of kits available on the market is wholly confusing; currently Dragon slay the opposition at with their hard to find boutique kits, however sourcing such rare beasts can be an expensive headache. With huge diversity of aftermarket products it can be easy to fall into the trap of sourcing a lemon, yet on the whole those pieces out there will go to make your base-kit something more special, whether it be resin or photoetch, white metal or brass.
Having recently built and super-detailed the 1/35 Tamiya Tiger 1 (late) last year I was captivated; being a dyed-in-the-wool Panzer IV fan I was surprised to have been bitten by the Tiger-bug, but the catalyst was surely the SMI Productions book ‘Modelling the Tiger 1’. This particular reference lays out in easy to understand sections the evolution of the Tiger 1 & 2 production models and their different features. Coming in as a late entry I am equally impressed by the Xtreme Modelling publication ‘Elements in Combat 3; Tiger 1 & variants’ with a splendid collection of Tiger 1 models. I strongly suspect ‘Elements in Combat 4; Tiger 2 & variants’ will be my next purchase.
Having spent months researching this Tigerfest I have managed to source a number of kits for a journey into this confusing jungle of sprues and hope to bung in a dizzying array of aftermarket shineys to keep the Tigerfans interested.
To kick off I will take a few detailed pictures of my recent late Tiger 1 build to whet your appetites, but hope to be better build quality and detailing references.
Keep an eye out for picture uploads!
Please feel free to follow me on this blog that will incorporate the following Tiger variants:
1. Tiger 1, Initial (Dragon 6252)
2. Tiger 1, DAK (Tamiya)
3. Tiger 1, Early 503-style (Tamiya with Aber & Voyager)
4. Tiger 1, Classic Early (Cyber Hobby with a twist)
5. Tiger 1, Mid (Kursk) (Dragon conversion)
6. Tiger 1, Late (Dragon 6406)
7. Tiger 1, Early Fehrmann (Cyber Hobby)
8. Tiger 1, Initial Hybrid (6252 on steroids)
9. Sturmtiger (AFV club)
Keep a close eye on this thread; the Tiger trail will no doubt lead to a surprising collection o’moggles with a heap of PE, tracks'n'other bits!
Any help along the way would be greatly appreciated.
Bill Hazard
The Tiger tank is one of the most studied subjects for the scale armour modeller; contentious and stressful for the web-based super-detailer, yet evocative and enticing. The array of kits available on the market is wholly confusing; currently Dragon slay the opposition at with their hard to find boutique kits, however sourcing such rare beasts can be an expensive headache. With huge diversity of aftermarket products it can be easy to fall into the trap of sourcing a lemon, yet on the whole those pieces out there will go to make your base-kit something more special, whether it be resin or photoetch, white metal or brass.
Having recently built and super-detailed the 1/35 Tamiya Tiger 1 (late) last year I was captivated; being a dyed-in-the-wool Panzer IV fan I was surprised to have been bitten by the Tiger-bug, but the catalyst was surely the SMI Productions book ‘Modelling the Tiger 1’. This particular reference lays out in easy to understand sections the evolution of the Tiger 1 & 2 production models and their different features. Coming in as a late entry I am equally impressed by the Xtreme Modelling publication ‘Elements in Combat 3; Tiger 1 & variants’ with a splendid collection of Tiger 1 models. I strongly suspect ‘Elements in Combat 4; Tiger 2 & variants’ will be my next purchase.
Having spent months researching this Tigerfest I have managed to source a number of kits for a journey into this confusing jungle of sprues and hope to bung in a dizzying array of aftermarket shineys to keep the Tigerfans interested.
To kick off I will take a few detailed pictures of my recent late Tiger 1 build to whet your appetites, but hope to be better build quality and detailing references.
Keep an eye out for picture uploads!
Please feel free to follow me on this blog that will incorporate the following Tiger variants:
1. Tiger 1, Initial (Dragon 6252)
2. Tiger 1, DAK (Tamiya)
3. Tiger 1, Early 503-style (Tamiya with Aber & Voyager)
4. Tiger 1, Classic Early (Cyber Hobby with a twist)
5. Tiger 1, Mid (Kursk) (Dragon conversion)
6. Tiger 1, Late (Dragon 6406)
7. Tiger 1, Early Fehrmann (Cyber Hobby)
8. Tiger 1, Initial Hybrid (6252 on steroids)
9. Sturmtiger (AFV club)
Keep a close eye on this thread; the Tiger trail will no doubt lead to a surprising collection o’moggles with a heap of PE, tracks'n'other bits!
Any help along the way would be greatly appreciated.
Bill Hazard
(...oh, and yes, I will be using the Voyager super-set for some of these builds - WAHAY!)
Tiger alert... Tiger Alert... The clawed Paw dominates the night sky overhead, as the console illuminates in an alarming display... Time to don the nomex and kevlar Tiger suit once more and venture into the awaiting styrene jungle... Destination Tigerfest!!!
ReplyDeleteGreat choice of subjects Bill! This looks like
a really excellent multi-blog, I'll go and hire the pop-corn machine, and order a shipment of Detmolder's in ready for the long haul...
Made my day Bill, maybe a road trip is on the cards with my pasting utility belt
S'marvellous, Phil.
S'wonderful, more like!
ReplyDeleteThanks Phil - I hope we can bang heads together on this one.
Bill