Not the best photos due to artificial light, but I have just painted my 1st ever oil dot filter to a model. I am very happy with the end result. I used burnt sienna, burnt umber, ochre and titanium white. This was only a $10 cheap set from the discount store but turned out better than I expected. It is still very subtle (poor photo doesnt help) and no weathering pigments have been added yet.
I am still awaiting the metal tracks I orderd, but am working on the afv club individual workable tracks just in case.
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I have managed to chip and add wear marks around the areas most used by the crew. This tank has had many new techniques applied that I’ve never used before, definitely pushing my creative abilities.
I have recieved the metal tracks and must say I am very impressed. They fit around the sprockets very well and are identical to the AFV CLUB plastic ones, so much so that you can alternate them the fit is that close (I just did this for test purposes). I am that happy with them i ordered 3 more sets.
However, as this vehicle will be used in a diorama I am going to stick with the plastic AFV CLUB tracks. I will save the metal ones for stand alone vehicles for added weight.
Here is a pic of the painted tracks in progress. After priming black I painted them Tamiya Lacquer light gun metal (as can be seen on the bottom track run) and then weathered with AK track wash (top track run). I am waiting for some pigments to arrive so I can weather them before mounting them to the vehicle.
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While waiting for a few orders to arrive so I can continue with the tracks (I want to get them weathered and on before I click the turret in place) I have started playing around with a few figure ideas.
The besa gunner figure will be a mash up from the figures from Tamiya’s M10 Achilles kit. I’d like the leather jerkin to go with this figure but some putty work will be required to fill some small and large gaps.
The leaning figure is from Djiti’s with a Hornet head.
The child is from a Verlinden set I have.
I plan on having 7 figures for the complete diorama, 5 tank crew and 2 civillians. Here are a few mock up pics. Tank is still to recieve dust etc.
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Wow! That looks excellent Nick. Love the interior as well. So the Churchill’s were painted silver inside ? I didn’t know that. So no white at all for the interior?
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Brit’s painted all their tanks silver inside up until Chieftain
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Thanks @metalhead85, its almost finished 
. From what I’ve read and understood (please feel free to correct me), the majority of british churchill’s were silver, but some were white. This depended on which factory they were from, the year, conversions and what paint they had at hand.
I am unsure if the fireflies would have a white or silver turret after their conversions (my potential next kit, that or a cromwell). Unfortunately black and white photos aren’t the most helpful.
FF probably would have been white. Cromwell probably silver. I’ll root around some boos in the am
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Right, so a little digging on the inter webs this morning seems to reveal gasp a lack of consensus!
Convention appears to be silver/aluminum for pre war though early war when the aluminum required for the paint was prioritized for aircraft production and things switched to white.
White for the dark times and then a return to silver towards then end and post war.
There was a claim from a gentleman to have clambered inside two unrestored valentines with near as makes no difference production dates and one was white and one silver.
US production vehicles for sure used white so I’d be confident with the FF being white. The Cromwell could go either way I suppose. I’d still lean to the Churchill being silver.
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Thanks @Canmedic for following this up. I remember reading something like this prior to starting my build but couldn’t remember if the original surviving tanks were crusaders or valentines.
I guess it gives a modeller the choice in regards to the interior colour for the churchills. In regards to the ff I’d agree with the turret been white as the lower hull interior SHOULD be white as standard u.s colour , surely after the refit of the 17pdr and moving the radio box they wouldn’t pain the turret silver.
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99% done. Tracks weathered and put on. They weren’t too bad to install under the track guards and around the sprockets.
This just needs a flat coat and a splatter of darker pigment. I wanted a subtle dusty look, minimal weathering and some dried dust on the turret.
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