Tamiya 1/35th-scale Panzerkampfwagen I Ausf. B.

The conclusion to Clayton Ockerby’s Panzer I 35th Scale build review can be found in Part II. II. See how he paints, weathers, & finishes his kit in a lovely Spanish scheme in pictures & video today…

Video build review Pt.II: 1/35th scale Panzerkampfwagen I Ausf.B from Tamiya.

From Tamiya
Kit No. 35388
1/35th scale
Plastic kit including one figure.
Length: 123mm, Width: 60mm.
included three different markings for the Polish, French, & Russian fronts.
DecalsPrice: $25 USD
Previous parts of this story:from Hobbylink Japan

Today:

Video review Pt. II: 35th scale Tamiya Panzer I: Painting, weathering & finishing…If Panzer Grey doesn’t float your boat, fear not, because today I’m going to show you how to create a unique, hard-edged 3-tone camouflage on the new Tamiya Panzer 1. Let’s get started. This early German scheme was seen in the Spanish Civil War. So, without delay, let’s get started.

These are just some of the Panzer I’s that overall inspired me on this build process.

I touched on prepainting the wheels in the build video, but I’ll talk you through the reasons I did that in the video, and I’ll also explain why I chose to prime the model in a red oxide rather than the traditional grey or black. There is conflicting information about the 3-tone pre-war schemes. Other references show schemes with a hard edge. Some sources suggest soft edges, while others clearly depict them. The truth is, both were correct, depending on when and what they are referring to. I always like to experiment with new techniques. The air recognition markings for the hatch of the commander were made with Tamiya strips over a base of black and then painted white. The decals were crumbling and I was forced to do the best with what I had. I had some fun with the numbering on the model, although completely fictitious.

Another thing of note is the lenses for the headlights. It was so easy to glue the lenses because they fit perfectly. SO perfect that I could remove them after the test fitting… so I just left them in place without any glue required.

Weathering complex, multi-colour schemes like this can be a delicate balancing act, so I was mindful to keep the weathering reasonably low key. Check out the video for a complete tutorial; however, the model was weathered over multiple layers of acrylic dusting and enhanced using pigments and oil paints.

CONCLUSION

I’d been wanting to paint a scheme like this for a long time now, so as soon as I saw this Panzer I announced, I knew this would be the model that would provide me with the perfect canvas to execute it.

The pre-war schemes that saw action during the Spanish civil war offer us some interesting options other than the Panzer Grey you may be used to. In the conflict, pre-war Russian and German tanks were pitted against each other to test how they performed during actual combat. There were modifications made to these Panzer 1’s during the conflict in an attempt to give them greater firepower, which again opens opportunities for the keen scale modeller to explore.
Should the camouflage be soft edge or hard edge? I think you could make an argument either way, but for me this build was all about creating an interesting scheme from an important conflict that was the precursor to the Second World War and having a bit of fun along the way.ModelTo see how this result was achieved, check out my YouTube page for the second part of this build in glorious technicolour–and be sure to watch all the way to the end for my Christmas message…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbufCiQpDBQ