Although a devoted artilleryman, there is just something about a curvy tank. This little guy is the French Peugeot Char 1918. Peugeot wanted to get in on the action that Renault was getting with their FT tank. they teamed up with an engineer from the artillery branch, Captain Oemichen, to produce a 75mm cannon equipped two-man tank in 1918. It was envisioned that this would be part of the mosquito swarm envisioned by the French high command. Unfortunately, the 75mm also fit in the turret of the FT which provided many advantages. The Peugeot Char 1918 never made it past the prototype stage before the war ended.
This is another esoteric 3D printed offering from Vargas Scale Models. As with most of his kits, the parts count is low, and the assembly is easy. The suspension system is nicely detailed, and it was a shame to hid it behind the armored side-shields. I solved the problem by leaving the shield off on one side. The photos and videos of the prototype seemed to show it as a single color. Deciding that this was boring, I decided to depict it in 5-color camo and unit markings as it might have been had it gone into production and battle.
My track treatment is pretty simple. Brush paint the tracks with Tamiya XF84 Dark Iron then give it a heavy coat of AK Track Wash followed by AK Light Rust Wash. I dot filtered the vehicle with various Winsor & Newton oils. I created custom decals in MS Word for the playing card symbols. The registration number is from some old Verlinden dry transfers. I tried using the Mig Shaders Star Ship Filth to tone down the decals and provide a bit more depth to the shadowed areas. After applying the decals, I sealed everything with a coat of Alclad II Aqua Gloss in preparation for weathering.
I applied a pin wash of AK Steaking Grime and cleaned it up with a makeup sponge. I streaked with AK OIEF & OIF Streaking Effects and AK Kursk Earth. After everything was dry I applied Model Master Flat Clear Lacquer to take out the shine. I lightly drybrushed the details with Winsor & Newton Yellow Ochre. I did a heavy drybrush of Model Master Chrome (I love that stuff) on the tracks to represent the shiny bits. I dropped in a mix of AK pigments about the suspension and fixed them with Mineral Spirits.
Enjoy!
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My first thought was: Warhammer
Those early years when everyone was trying to figure out what this “tank” thingy was supposed to be and what it was supposed to do generated a lot of strange designs.
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What a superb little tank with a truly eye catching finish. Assuredly one of the more quirky designs I’ve seen but I can’t help but like it! The French were and are never afraid to do things a little differently in terms of innovation and projects like this are a great example. Kudos to you Rick for bringing the resin to life in this way with such a magnificent paint job- it suits this little tank right down to the ground, that’s for sure! As usual you have weathered it thoughtfully too.
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Nice! I noticed the curvy tank yesterday during the meeting.
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@Uncle-Heavy I too am fascinated by that period of intense innovation as everyone was trying to figure out how to break a trench line.
@Karl187 Thanks! For some reason I struggled to get this weathered and done. After getting the camo down it just hung out in the WIP box waiting for me to weather it.
@Dan It was good to see you on the Zoom build yesterday. We are doing it again on Wednesday. Yes, I finally finished this little bugger off on the call, then to the photo booth and the display case with the other odd little WW1 inventions.
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It’s an interesting subject… almost too cute to add to the stash, while you feel weird about telling your friends you bought it.
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Sweet little tank. I always had a weak spot for the obscure vehicles. Something off the trodden path, something different. And this certainly fills the definition. Well painted an and weathered too.
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@Robert_Goldman I agree. It’s not often that we get to describe a tank as cute.
@golikell Thank you! I’m with you. I love these obscure early vehicles.
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Kind of reminds me of how VW Beetle enthusiasts refer to the later, curved window Bugs as “fat chicks.”
This Char 1918 would be the “fat chick” version of the FT17, LOL!
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It looks surreal, steampunk… Well done!
gorgeous model.
Nice build and write-up. I am currently working on the same kit (along with 2 other projects at same time). I have just completed the initial wash stage so have some more work to go. Funny how I also decided to leave off one side skirt, for the same reason you stated, but also because it was beyond warped and i didn’t feel like trying to fix it. Did you find it difficult to sand off all those 3D print lines? That is the biggest problem I have with the kit, but its not as bad as the Vargas Romfell trailer which I am also working on (both have a ton of bolt patterns that makes sanding around very tedious).
Finally I do like your camo pattern and thought of doing something similar but in the end I went with a color similar to the box photo since I am juggling a couple of other builds. I will likely make it part of a small vignette with some added mud.
I’m still trying to figure out the drivers station.
Almost liiks as they would back it into position without seeing one up close.
This website claims that the driver was to the right of the gun
“The gun was mounted in the front hull sheet in a ball mount and was shifted to the left side of the machine. On the right side of the gun there was a driver’s seat, which was equipped with a viewing device.”
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Thanks.
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@Panzer948 Mr. surfacer 1000 is your new best friend when working with 3D printed kits. It is self-leveling and sandable. It makes most of the print lines disappear. An electric toothbrush style sander is also a big help.
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