Airfix Tiger 1 Early Version Build

Pretty much complete apart from the crew 

Pretty much complete apart from the crew 

Pretty much complete apart from the crew 

Crew added. Their painting could be better but they will do for now.  

Although the model itself is essentially complete, I decided to build a simple diorama to set the tank in. This is my first ever attempt to do such a thing although I have done an amount of model railway scenery. This is intended to be a desert wadi and is inspired by a YouTube video by James at LPJ Models (Youtube Video). Mine is a DAS clay base on a piece of 12mm plywood. The rocks are from Woodland Scenics outcrop rock moulds made from plaster of Paris. The stones and gravel are three grades of model railway track ballast from medium to fine mixed with a dash of plaster of Paris and some cheap poster paint (hence the odd colour) laid over an airbrushed coat of Vallejo desert primer. Still to come is some Chinchilla sand and more plaster dust then proper painting and weathering. I plan to do as James did and use a crackle finish paint to simulate dried mud. Once complete, I will put the tank in place and add some dusty track weathering. It's all a bit of an experiment but it's fun.
 

I think this will do for now. I am reasonably happy with this. The terrain is a bit green because of the depth of the Vallejo primer colour but I don't want to use even more paint on this project. I will use a different primer and I need to find cheaper paints for doing this kind of thing. I was pleased with the cracked river bed effect. This used Quake Crackle Creator Textures Scorched Sand A.MIG-2184 Ammo. It takes a few days to really crackle but it works well.