I have gotten the new “Smart” DML Panther Ausf. G. a long while back; it was, in fact, a 2007 Christmas project. Because it looked very sad and empty inside, I’ve gotten my hands on something I’ve hardly dared to try: a Tank Workshop complete interior… (As I mentioned before, I have a fetish for interiors… they do make the model much, much more interesting by letting you peek under the “hood”.) It made me understand how torsion bars work, how the torque was transferred to the front gearbox, where the ammo was stored… it made me understand a bit better how a steel monster, like the Panther, was assembled. Having finished a couple of other German tanks with interior detail, it also made me appreciate the similarities and differences between the different German tanks from the light Panzer I to the enormous King Tiger. (Interestingly the basic layout did not really change from the Panzer III.)
So… the first steps were the bottom parts and the torsion bars. The torsion bars were created from evergreen plastic. Two things were incredibly frustrating: removing the bottom from the casting block (it was one huge flat block), and removing the plastic pegs from the inside of the lower hull…
For most of the time I’ve either used Gorilla Glue, or two part epoxy. I wanted to make sure the joints will hold. Forever.
At least the bottom of the interior fit into the hull.
Fitting everything together… with some paint already applied.
The turret
The turret basket is -obviously- a multiple part affair… not an easy one at that. The detail is quite nice; you get all the motors that are rotating the turret, the gun cradle, equipment stored on the base of the turret. There’s even an ammunition pouch on the side.
The gun’s breech is entirely resin; the kit did not have one.
The turret basket is finished; with the seats installed it is quite apparent that even the relatively large Panther had a very tight turret.
Painting
The assembled hull was sprayed with Surfacer 1000.
Once the mistakes were corrected, I’ve used a light cream color for the typical German interior color.
Once it was dry, the interior surfaces were masked with tape, because I needed to do the lower hull. I’ve decided against the typical primer red; every modeller uses it, but the Germans did not necessarily leave everything red. A lot of the tanks had a light blue-ish basecoat on the bottom of the inside.
Kind of like this. I might sound a bit strange to do the blue second, but I was conscious of the fact that light colors are very difficult to paint well. I was not sure how hard it would be to achieve an even coat with the light cream over the darker blue. The neutral grey primer was a much more forgiving surface for painting it.
Adding details… the tank’s interior looks more and more busy.
I’ve collected some reference photos online; I tried to replicate the larger cables and wires, but overall I was not concerned with absolute authenticity. To be honest, as this was my very first resin interior, I was happy it was coming together nicely, and that I managed not to mess it up.
Painting the turret was a similar affair: it was spray painted to the interior color, and I’ve used a brush to paint the rest.
Weathering was done very lightly. Some metallic wear-and-tear only. Unfortunately I have not taken photos of the turret’s interior; Tank Workshop has provided everything to dress up the frankly quite plain kit turret interior.
Even more details were added and painted.
Finishing the interior by adding the ammo racks, radios, seats, and other small details.
Painting the exterior was done after some extensive masking. I’ve chosen the two-tone color scheme from the box art.
Camouflage was done with silly putty.
Practically ready.
The tank is unfinished as of yet. Mostly because it’s in storage still (I’ve built it in Florida), and because I have no idea how I should display it… I do not want to close up the hull. Perhaps I’ll cut a couple of holes on it, or display it somehow with the upper hull “levitating” over the lower. Some weathering will be also in order; the interior needs some scratches, some dirt; as does the exterior. Anyhow; the main parts are done. On to the next German tank with interior.
It’s a panther g just saying
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With a Panther A interior
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I’m not sure it’s an issue. After all there are so many interior sets available, one can be forgiven for not picking the right one 🙂
(In other words: beggars can’t be choosers- that was the only set available, that’s the one I used.)
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I know. I used it. It came up great because I added some vital pieces (visible through the hatches). The kit is woefully inadequate and over expensive. Thankfully there are now some awesome kits about to be released. Vis:
https://www.perthmilitarymodelling.com/newkitnews/ryefield-model.html
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These resin interiors are always the best option if there is no other available… (Well, most of the time.) I’ve used CMK’s set for the T-55, for example, but it cannot hold a candle to the MiniArt interior. Back then this was the only Panther interior I could get my hands on- and it was detailed enough so I used it. (Otherwise I don’t think Panzer Workshop is bad; it’s actually quite alright.)
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I have that CMK/Tamiya kit combo as well. And the mini art T54. THE CMK is ok but looks a lot of work.
Keep an eye out for mini arts soon to be released;
T55
T55A
They have (believe it or not) even more detail. The driver compartment is now fully complete.
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And
http://www.themodellingnews.com/2018/01/nobody-wanted-new-bergepanther-did-they.html
http://www.themodellingnews.com/2017/08/full-interior-zimmerrit-in-different.html
You will find these of a different universe compared to the antiquated garbage of yesterdecade
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I just took a look at the link you’ve sent for the first time. That Panther looks incredible. (I’ve built two Takom kits so far; they have not really impressed me much. But their Panther looks pretty good. I like that we are getting several models with interiors available. Finally my prayers have been answered… Now I just need to wait for a T-72 🙂 )
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Ditto 😉
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Also for the above (tank workshop/Jaguar) kit there was no commanders hatch opening device. I scratched built mine and it came up great.
With all this detail now a lot of it in my mind is OTT. I mean under the turret floor? Behind the gun mantle.
Unless you are doing a wreck or factory build it’s wasted.
But stuff you can see through hatches has to look good.
Did you use an airbrush to do above kit?
What ref material did you use?
Nice to chat to fellow modeller.
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The Meng King Tiger with seperate interior (have stored but not built) is meant to be THE kit for interior detail.
You’ll need David Parker’s reference book to help out.
http://www.meng-model.com/new.php?id=662
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It’s a good thing I did not jump in and bought the 1/16 King Tiger by Trumpeter… 🙂 I prefer the 1/35 scale, unless I want something to sleep in. That thing would not fit into my apartment.
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I bought, then sold it. Made a profit (lucky). The Takom and more so the Meng are both much better, cheaper options.
The other great interior kit is RFM Abrams. I have that and it seems very accurate. The engine and bay will need a little work but should build into something impressive.
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I found Meng to be amazing (the FT-17 with interior)… so I guess it’s no surprise. I do have a DML King Tiger with a resin interior which I intend to build; I collected the parts a long time ago, and I really want to see what I can bring out of it. The thing is these older sets have still merit I think.
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