To transport my squads of Afrika Korps troops around the Western Desert, I needed some trucks. Not wanting to shell out another $30+ on some 1/56 scale plastic kits for an army that was really done as a fun side project, I went looking for alternatives and stumbled on Matchbox's Models of Yesteryear. I liked the look of the WW1-era British Crossley Tenders and picked up two for $10. And I can already hear the rivet counters say in unison "Well, actually..." and they would be right - it's ahistorical to drop these 25 years on in the middle of Egypt or Libya, but my headcanon says they picked these up from some old British fuel dump somewhere and borrowed them, permanently.
I disassembled and primed them in Krylon Red Oxide, then applied a layer of hairspray for chipping and airbrushed on a 50/50 mix of Tamiya Olive Drab and Medium Green. Once dry, I worked on chipping that paint, oversprayed it with Krylon Flat to maintain colorfastness, applied another layer of hairspray for chipping, then airbrushed on a 75/25 mix of Tamiya Dark Yellow and Yellow Green. Once chipped, this makes it appear that the truck was originally painted in British Drab and then oversprayed in Afrika Korps Sand Yellow after capture. Details were then painted, the trucks reassembled, and then decals were applied from the Rubicon Opel Blitz sheet. After sealing, the trucks were weathered in oils and dry pigments.
They look old fashioned and aren't perfect, but for $10, I'm not complaining.
1 comment:
Nicely done!
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