First steps (Patreon)

My friends, the Panther show is officially on the road, and here's the initial construction and a basic layout of the diorama!

It didn't take me long to choose a circular base for the scene. The worst thing was deciding the diameter! :D The scene is 19cm across and the Panther might or might not protrude ever so slightly. I know that I'm breaking my own rules with it, but I think it will add to some dynamism in this case.

The tank's construction will be slightly different from all my previous models, but even from what I've already glued together it seems that these Takom (or Das Werk) Panthers are very nice. I like how the hull is built from individual interlocking plates, even though it can lead to some fit issues in some areas. But nothing that can't be fixed with brute force and epoxy welds.

The service hatches on the belly are, of course, molded with the hull. Removing some of them required a lot of precision, and I messed up one of the bolt holes. It really pissed me off but I "hid it" with some subtle damage. It was as if the bolt had ripped out a part of the armor plate. Very unlikely IRL, but let's pretend, okay? :D

At first, I considered sculpting the Zimmerit (it's been a while since the Jagdpanther), but I also wanted to try how it feels to work with those resin sheets from Atak. They definitely make everything so much easier, but next time I'll definitely go back to epoxy putty. You just can't beat the look, even if the Atak Zimm has very nice texture.

Right now I'm in the process of adding the running gear. Luckily, I found a set of damaged Panther wheels from Panzer Art. They will come in extremely handy, and transform the model significantly! More progress incoming!