Model Armour

This is when the realization hit that I could not glue the hull together until the interior details were complete. So I shifted back to that work. I textured the interior of the turret with Mr.Surfacer 1000...

This is a pressed steel turret, not cast, so I did this lightly...just enough texture so that when I applied a wash or filter the paint had something to grab onto. Then painted first black, then a thin coat of white...

Now I could start the interior detailing. I had a Tank Workshop T-34/76 hull interior at one time. I painted, but never used the drivers area. So I am using it on this project. The Tank workshop kit was originally made for the old Tamiya T-34/76 so it took some hacking to make it fit. Again, this is not bolt for bolt modelling, just the basic shapes to support leaving the turret hatches open. The seats are scratch with cushions from the parts box- seat back cushions are coming...

You can see that the view through the hatches is going to show more turret floor than anything else. In a T-34 the floor of the fighting compartment is the storage area for main gun ammunition. I was going to add the boxes. I borrowed an ammunition box from the AFV Club T-34/76. I cut off the lid and then scratchbuilt 5 boxes. I was going to cast a lid so I could show the ammo boxes open on the floor. A very easy way of providing some visual clutter beneath the 76mm gun.

I primed the drivers hatch in black, put in the clear periscopes and glued it together, Like many modellers, I prime everything in black!

If you look at T-34's you will often notice the contrast between the heavy armour and the shredded and mangled light metal fenders. I really wanted that contrast on my model. So I took the fenders off and annealed them.

A great opportunity to point out that if you want to improve you cannot be afraid to be wrong! Next time I will anneal PE before I use it - less work and better results!
I also found some more parts from the Tank Workshop T-34 interior...again painted years ago and never used. They too will find a home in this model. More details...

Earlier in the build I showed the ammo boxes that would be on the fighting compartment floor. At this point I made a mould of the lids and the boxes. First thing first though - annealed fenders are back on! Well worth the trouble as they bend much easier...

Here is the gun breech through the right side turret hatch...

The new ammo boxes I had cast up will provide a nice backdrop to what can really be seen, which will be the turret interior. Boxes in the background, lids in the foreground...

Lids alone - these will go onto the white styrene boxes I made so that I can show some open boxes...

Now some of the interior being primed black...

Just to get a feel here are the boxes in the hull...

With the hull top in place...

The lower turret in place...

...and the turret in place...

I sprayed the interior and all my ammo boxes flat black. Then I airbrushed Tamiya Acrylic Flat White to establish a base colour. The White was applied in one thin coat- I want the interior to look well worn. This takes a little guess work since the reference pics I do have show restored Museum vehicles with fresh paint. Once that had cured I was able to move on to hand painting with Vallejo Acrylics. I hadn't been using these very long when this was written, (this was my second model with them), so I was still discovering things I liked about them. Thin and clean up with water is great of course, but I was even more impressed with how thinly they could be applied. No chipping yet, but the basic colours were there. One primed ammo box...

A few of the instrument panels from the Tank Workshop T-34/76 interior...

The overall shot. Seats weren't glued in place yet....

The blue gas cylinder in the front was one of two used to start the diesel engine.
Some shots of the gun...

Left side...