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In the previous part we assembled the model and applied the ambush camo.
This part will deal with the detail painting, decals, tracks and maybe weathering, we will see that.
There are not many details we have to paint up separately, some tools, machinegun and the wheels where we have to paint the rubber wheel treads.
All in all not a big deal, let´s begin.
I paint the wheel treads with Revell Matt9 "anthracite". It is not pitch black but a very dark grey.
In my opinion it is the ideal colour for tires or rubber wheel treads.
I mixed Matt9 and Matt91 "iron" to create a rather dark metal colour in order to paint the metal parts of the tank.
You shouldn´t paint the metal parts of the tools with bright iron colours, this wouldn´t be realistic.
It would reflect the sunlight and the real tank could easily be spotted.
I paint the wooden handles of the tools with Revell Matt82, in my opinion a great colour.
It is a medium brown, so it doesn´t look like fresh wood and chocolate.
It looks like coated wood, a very suitable colour in my opinion.
This was the detail painting, there wasn´t much to paint.
Now we have to deal with the tracks. As you can see these are segmented tracks,
where you have single track links around the corners and longer segments for the straight pieces.
This time i will do the tracks differently, in my opinion the technique i usually use is not very suitable here.
I will paint the tracks in the sprue with black colour and spray some dark brown and rust brown over it aswell.
Then i will install the tracks. I will weather the tracks together with the whole model at a later stage.
The paint is dry now, let´s assemble the tracks.
I always do it this way: I start with the section below the drive sprocket so the track will sit on the sprockets correctly.
Then i continue the assembly either this way or that way.
It is a very bad idea to start on the rear in this case, because it is very likely that the track won´t sit on the sprockets nicely.
This was the first track, now we have to play the same game on the other side.
Both tracks are glued in place, it was a very easy task. The technique i used here is very easy to use for segmented tracks.
For single tracklink tracks i don´t recommend it to do it this way.
Now we have to paint over the areas where the plastic is still visible due to the connections to the sprue.
Some glue is visible aswell, but these are only very small areas.
It is not a big deal, most parts of the tracks are already painted.
Now i paint the bearing surfaces of the tracks with some Revell Matt91.
Metal is visible there because the metal is grinding on the ground so the paintwork of the tracks won´t last long.
There is no rust aswell if the tank is used constantly, because the rust gets rubbed away aswell.
It is easy to reach the whole track of the Hetzer, so that is not a problem to do that at a later stage of the assembly.
Let´s continue with the decals.
Again there is not much to do, only three Balkenkreuze.
It is a quite minimalistic vehicle, few tools to paint, few decals to apply,
but thats fine because it is realistic.
How to prevent decals from silvering is a frequently asked question.
Amongst other things silvering happens because the surface underneath it is rough,
so the decal does not sit on the surface correctly due to air bubbles.
Then you can see the coat of the decal as a rather grey area.
If you hold the model towards the light you can see this effect even more.
Usually you can see it even with the naked eye.
There are several ways to prevent the decals from silvering, but i only use one of these techniques.
A lot of model builders apply a glossy varnish over the whole model at this stage.
The glossy varnish creates a very smooth surface, so if you apply a decal on such a surface there can´t be silvering,
because the surface isn´t rough anymore, so no chance for silvering.
There can be still some silvering if you apply the decal with wet fingers, so there can be water between the model and the decal.
So there can be silvering even if you use a glossy varnish, same with my technique.
I´m using Micro Sol. It is a decal softener and i experienced that it helps a lot to prevent silvering.
Micro Sol softens the decal, so it adapts to the surface perfectly.
As long as there is no water or something else in between you won´t have silvering decals.
Everybody has his own way to do it, i personally don´t like to apply glossy paint on a tank model, because i like the beamless look of the model.
The gloss varnish would simply annoy me.
Let´s start with the decals. It is not a big deal.
You cut the decals you need from the sheet. You can use scissors or a scalpel, this is banana.
Then you put the decals a few seconds in lukewarm water.
It is the fastest way to detach the decals from the sheet, if you use cold water it takes ages and it can happen that some parts of a decal are already peeling off,
whereas other parts still stick to the sheet, so there is the danger of ripping a decal apart.
It should be loose now, yes it is.
We apply some Micro sol on the place where the decal will sit on,
and grab the decal with a pair of tweezers and place it on the model.
You better don´t touch the decal anymore, if you get the decal out of place or remove it again,
the decal will be very brittle and sticky, so you won´t be able to get it there where you want it again.
That is almost impossible, the decal will be destroyed and it is missing on the finished model.
Don´t be scared if the decals (especially bigger ones) start to curl because of the Micro Sol, it will be alright.
It is not tragic, it just looks very bad in the beginning.
I´m not a model builder who seals off the decals with clear varnish, i do that only when the weathering is finished to hold the pigments in place.
It seems like the decals are safely attached to the model with Micro Sol.
Of course you can seal off the decals only with clear varnish or Mr. Mark Setter to make sure the decals won´t get damaged at a later stage.
So far with the second part, the third part will deal with the weathering and i´m sure we will see the finished model aswell.
Stay on the ball, thanks for watching, bye - your Hamilkar Barkas.