1:16 T-34/85

Markings on the T-34/85 in 1:16 scale

Rearming the T-34 with a gun of 85 millimeters caliber called for a completely new three-man turret and turned the original tank into a machine that could stand up to the German big cats. The vehicles from the spring of 1944 then drove all the way to Berlin, and their markings with them: large numbers on the sides of the turret, Guards badges, tactical triangles and slogans painted in white over the protective green. In 1:16 scale these markings make up the most conspicuous detail of the whole model.

Two sheets in the box

The set holds two masks for the national insignia. A pair of sheets gives room for both sides of the turret as well as for the additional items, without your having to be sparing with material. The items are held on a backing sheet and are lifted out with sharp tweezers or the point of a scalpel drawn along the edge of the cut, never by pulling at a corner.

Green, white and winter

The surest order is the green base, letting it cure, then the masks and finally the white in two or three light coats. If you want a winter finish, the work is reversed: first finish the markings, let them harden and only then lay whitewash over them so that it stays partly translucent. The markings then come through from under the finish exactly as the weather and the crews' brushes used to make them. Always press the edges of the masks down well, otherwise thinner will get under them and the white will run. Lift them off shortly after spraying, while the film is still flexible, and pull the sheet along the longest edge of the item. Any bleed can be scraped off once dry with the point of a toothpick, which does not scratch the finish underneath the way a steel blade does.