Armortek

Hi, I think you might find that its a Tamiya 1/25 Tiger 1.They had a good go at producing Tiger track in plastic but slightly over scaled it hence the 'chunky'look.
Hope it helps.

Yes Jeff your right mate ..tis a nice job too regards phil

What a photo! What a lot going on, imagine replicating this as a diorama !

Now you couldn't have made that concoction up, its all wrong...a Stug pulling a Famo pulling a Tug boat out of the water up hill, its brilliant! Kinda reminds me of Kellys Heroes when the Yank officer is pinching the sailing boat using a M4 high speed tractor instead of sorting some r and r out for his troops.
I wonder where the guys were taking it.If you look closely there is a guy filming the lift.
We sure do need a Famo in 1/6th hint hint.

While we are on the subject of boats, heres an example of rust (all accelerated by the salt but I think worth showing) which is very important in our photos, see if you can spot the wife as this will give scale.
The main engine colour is worth noting.
The wreck is not far from us on the south Cornwall coast.

Phil - forgive me but I thought we were on the subject of Armortek models? Stephen

I was waiting for that, rust is the study here as we replicate it on our models.
Delete it if you wish Stephen, I didnt mean to steal your thunder from your thread many apologies Phil.

I think the rusting kits available for modellers are pretty good as its a very difficult finish to replicate, you just cant beat the real thing, which as we all know its just the iron returning to its natural state ie iron oxide.
The exhaust shields on the Tiger 1 are excellent as they are generally made from steel by Armortek, which means you can have genuine rust if you wish, I apply a little heat and let sit in salt water for a few days (rather like an antique restorer using a jam jar of rusty nails and screws in a salt solution to complete the illusion of age and wear) if you remove the paint where you want the rust the remaining paint will protect the metal in the areas where you dont want it.
The heat generated by the Tigers exhaust (especially when its not running right on one bank) rusts very quickly indeed!
Do you see where I am going ...it all adds to the illusion of it being REAL.

I'm with Stephen on this.

I can see the point of a discussion on how to replicate rust on our models without resorting to the real thing. But I can't see the need to illustrate that discussion with pictures of random pieces of rusty metal that have been immersed in salt water for God knows how long.

I also can't get my head around why someone would take one of Armortek's lovely (and costly) creations and deliberately trash it in a misguided search for 'authenticity'. I know we're a 'broad church' here, but I don't want to know about that extreme aspect of our hobby, and certainly don't want to sift through loads of posts about it to get to the interesting stuff.

Just my 2p worth, with a plea to keep it focussed on useful modelling techniques,

Chris

Your entitled to your opinion Chris and I would expect you to side with Stephen, if you dont like my thread with its info then vote with your finger and dont click on it ..simple.
There are lots of people who are watching and reading this thread and i hope enjoying it.
Your ref, why anyone would want to trash an Armortek model...600,000+ views on Youtube.(fantastic advertising)..thats why.
I also have helped the Armortek brand with purchasing lots of models and spares,and have helped John Spalding and Mark in the past develop units. I have a total 5 kits on the go right now, and love every minuet of what I do.
I wont be bullied into keeping quiet for a minority, kind kind regards Phil.

OK chaps, time out. I was a bit sharp with Phil this morning and the last thing I'd intended was to discourage constructive posts. On the other hand, we should bear in mind that this is the Armortek Forum and it's best to keep posts focussed on Armortek models and techniques for building and operating them.

All the best.

Stephen

Personally I really enjoy Phil's posts - don't see them as off topic at all. A bit of a fresh approach to the story of these models. My vote would be to keep them coming

Lets have another go with some photos that i think merit some discussion, previously posted in Bergepanther thread but edited to omit the background and so could pass for the real thing (as my shed is not so visible ? ) I don't think they have what it takes just yet.
Black and white verses colour.

Your Sunday "real or fake" article
The hard target restoration Tiger 1 from the rear, a difficult photo to get right even in 1/1.
Although not finished with little to no weathering and no weld beads (the reason she has never had any weld beads, is that every time the hulk is subjected to the shock of either HE or HV rounds or even pyrotechnic charges the milliput welds shoot off, or break down one side very much like the real thing, in this scale it does not look good) the overall appearance looks quite convincing in black and white, me thinks.
Try taking a photo from this angle of your vehicle and you will see what a mean. The photo of 131 after its capture looks awkward to me, we know its real so its ok, I think its the way the turret sits, it looks to small for the hull but from another angle looks in proportion, see photo.
Note the intense shadows on all the photos...real or fake.

Phil try transposing a LIFE or BUNDESARCHIV title onto your model piccies - even more realism