[WIP] 1/35 Stryker in Afghanistan Diorama

ajrimmer42 · 09-12-10, 07:36 AM

Well, I'm off to Uni in a fortnight so I decided to get a kit to finish off the holidays with. After much flicking through modelhobbies.co.uk I finally decided on Trumpeter's 1/35 Stryker Fire Support Vehicle

along with their upgrade set to bring the vehicle's equipment up to date, and a little set of 4 super detailed M4/SR16's to go with it. Surprisingly this is my first ever modern AFV, with the exception of a 1/72 Scorpion tank i did about 6 years ago.

Now before I carry on, the reason I'm doing an Afghan diorama is purely because all the Stryker's currently deployed in iRaq are fitted with slat armour to protect them from RPG fire, now I dunno about anyone else but I didn't fancy spending 50 quid on an etched slat armour set in order to spend the next 4 months steadily going insane trying to assemble it. So I took the easy option, there are curently a few Strykers in Afghanistan without slat armour, which perhaps has something to do with the fact they have the highest casualty rate, but I'll not go there... They do however have added blast armour, I didn't realise this until after I'd bought the model, SO it doesn't have any additional armour and is therefore slightly unrealistic. But balls to that, I cba to buy anything else for it.

Soooo, onwards and upwards, here goes:

This is probably the first ever project I've started where I began by making the diorama. This is purely because I was bored waiting for delivery of my Stryker.

I started with a double thickness square of card, anto which I added a pavement and kerbstones. If you're wondering what the random circles are, I used the card to spray some warhammer figures lol

I then built up some buildings and a walled yard, and added a sprue telegraph pole.

Once that was done I mixed up some filler, water, PVA and sand to texture it with

And covered the whole thing

TBC

ajrimmer42 · 09-12-10, 07:45 AM

And this is what it looked like after a lick of paint and some weathering. You have no idea how pleased I was with how good it looked. After I'd painted the first buiilding it looked stupid and I spent most of Friday night thinking that I'd wasted my time and should probably just scrap the whole thing. Anyway I persevered and weathered heavily, and luckily the end result was decent

I also added some blu-tac bin bags, a drainpipe, some newspapers, and Afghan graffiti

And yes, they are real middle eastern newspapers

And finally, I've added a bit more graffiti and some washing

I think I'm going to leave it at that with the diorama, don't wanna put to much on it. The Stryker came with some little 1/35 boxes of bottled water so I'll probably put one or two of those on, there's also gonna be a couple of troops stood around the vehicle.

TBC

Chad · 09-12-10, 11:59 AM

Looks really good!

Buildings do look weathered and realistic.

What did you make the buildings out of?

ajrimmer42 · 09-12-10, 12:27 PM

Thanks, it's just thick card, got a load of sheets of it, and doubled it up for the wall thickness.

Should have an update on the progress of the vehicle soon, once i've un-superglued the photo etch off my fingers....

ajrimmer42 · 09-12-10, 01:34 PM

Lower hull is complete

Rear door complete, that locking mechanism was a bit of a bugger to do lol

Painted

Upper hull is largely complete

Smoke launchers and gunner's hatch. Just need to finish off the detail around the hatch.

Weiss Pinguin · 09-12-10, 01:47 PM

Very cool, can't wait to see it finished.

Chad · 09-12-10, 05:14 PM

Nice.

That's a pretty detailed model too!

ajrimmer42 · 09-13-10, 07:33 AM

Thanks again guys, tbh It's probably the most detailed model I've made, I can certainly recommend it!

The main hull is pretty much complete, just a few bits like the gunner's hatch, 50cal, and crane thingy on top to do.

Chad · 09-13-10, 04:49 PM

Bunch of small parts! Whew

ajrimmer42 · 11-23-10, 01:17 PM

Sorry for the lack of updates, this is now finished, it just took a little longer than I expected due to uni. Pictures will follow soon!!!! Along with a couple of other little projects I've been working on. Two words: Sherman. Mired.

Kapt Z · 11-23-10, 06:19 PM

Looks good so far.

It's been years since I built a model of anything(though I have several unopened kits in the basement).

Just can't seem to find the time anymore.

ajrimmer42 · 03-08-11, 10:36 AM

right... eventually! Here are the pics

AVGWarhawk · 03-08-11, 02:58 PM

Very nice! I like the weathering!

TLAM Strike · 03-08-11, 07:19 PM

Lets see...
there are three troopers there...
none are holding their rifles...
there are four rifles...
and the .50 has no ammo...

...these guys are toast...

But really nice work ajrimmer42. The weathering and dirt looks really believable.

ajrimmer42 · 03-09-11, 03:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TLAM Strike

Lets see...
there are three troopers there...
none are holding their rifles...
there are four rifles...
and the .50 has no ammo...

...these guys are toast...

But really nice work ajrimmer42. The weathering and dirt looks really believable.

The other guy whose rifle that is has gone to get some .50 cal ammo! duhhh!

Cheers for the comments guys

09-12-10, 07:36 AM	#1
ajrimmer42 Royal Kinotropist Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Sheffield, UK Posts: 987 Downloads: 18 Uploads: 0	[WIP] 1/35 Stryker in Afghanistan Diorama Well, I'm off to Uni in a fortnight so I decided to get a kit to finish off the holidays with. After much flicking through modelhobbies.co.uk I finally decided on Trumpeter's 1/35 Stryker Fire Support Vehicle along with their upgrade set to bring the vehicle's equipment up to date, and a little set of 4 super detailed M4/SR16's to go with it. Surprisingly this is my first ever modern AFV, with the exception of a 1/72 Scorpion tank i did about 6 years ago. Now before I carry on, the reason I'm doing an Afghan diorama is purely because all the Stryker's currently deployed in iRaq are fitted with slat armour to protect them from RPG fire, now I dunno about anyone else but I didn't fancy spending 50 quid on an etched slat armour set in order to spend the next 4 months steadily going insane trying to assemble it. So I took the easy option, there are curently a few Strykers in Afghanistan without slat armour, which perhaps has something to do with the fact they have the highest casualty rate, but I'll not go there... They do however have added blast armour, I didn't realise this until after I'd bought the model, SO it doesn't have any additional armour and is therefore slightly unrealistic. But balls to that, I cba to buy anything else for it. Soooo, onwards and upwards, here goes: This is probably the first ever project I've started where I began by making the diorama. This is purely because I was bored waiting for delivery of my Stryker. I started with a double thickness square of card, anto which I added a pavement and kerbstones. If you're wondering what the random circles are, I used the card to spray some warhammer figures lol I then built up some buildings and a walled yard, and added a sprue telegraph pole. Once that was done I mixed up some filler, water, PVA and sand to texture it with And covered the whole thing TBC __________________ Alex Don't judge a ship by the number of it's guns, but by the skill of it's crew.

09-12-10, 07:45 AM	#2
ajrimmer42 Royal Kinotropist Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Sheffield, UK Posts: 987 Downloads: 18 Uploads: 0	And this is what it looked like after a lick of paint and some weathering. You have no idea how pleased I was with how good it looked. After I'd painted the first buiilding it looked stupid and I spent most of Friday night thinking that I'd wasted my time and should probably just scrap the whole thing. Anyway I persevered and weathered heavily, and luckily the end result was decent I also added some blu-tac bin bags, a drainpipe, some newspapers, and Afghan graffiti And yes, they are real middle eastern newspapers And finally, I've added a bit more graffiti and some washing I think I'm going to leave it at that with the diorama, don't wanna put to much on it. The Stryker came with some little 1/35 boxes of bottled water so I'll probably put one or two of those on, there's also gonna be a couple of troops stood around the vehicle. TBC __________________ Alex Don't judge a ship by the number of it's guns, but by the skill of it's crew.

09-12-10, 11:59 AM	#3
Chad ACE Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Kansas City Posts: 1,274 Downloads: 60 Uploads: 0	Looks really good! Buildings do look weathered and realistic. What did you make the buildings out of? __________________

09-12-10, 12:27 PM	#4
ajrimmer42 Royal Kinotropist Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Sheffield, UK Posts: 987 Downloads: 18 Uploads: 0	Thanks, it's just thick card, got a load of sheets of it, and doubled it up for the wall thickness. Should have an update on the progress of the vehicle soon, once i've un-superglued the photo etch off my fingers.... __________________ Alex Don't judge a ship by the number of it's guns, but by the skill of it's crew.

09-12-10, 01:34 PM	#5
ajrimmer42 Royal Kinotropist Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Sheffield, UK Posts: 987 Downloads: 18 Uploads: 0	Lower hull is complete Rear door complete, that locking mechanism was a bit of a bugger to do lol Painted Upper hull is largely complete Smoke launchers and gunner's hatch. Just need to finish off the detail around the hatch. __________________ Alex Don't judge a ship by the number of it's guns, but by the skill of it's crew.

09-12-10, 01:47 PM	#6
Weiss Pinguin Ocean Warrior Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Auburn, Alabama Posts: 3,333 Downloads: 101 Uploads: 0	Very cool, can't wait to see it finished. __________________

09-12-10, 05:14 PM	#7
Chad ACE Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Kansas City Posts: 1,274 Downloads: 60 Uploads: 0	Nice. That's a pretty detailed model too! __________________

09-13-10, 07:33 AM	#8
ajrimmer42 Royal Kinotropist Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Sheffield, UK Posts: 987 Downloads: 18 Uploads: 0	Thanks again guys, tbh It's probably the most detailed model I've made, I can certainly recommend it! The main hull is pretty much complete, just a few bits like the gunner's hatch, 50cal, and crane thingy on top to do. __________________ Alex Don't judge a ship by the number of it's guns, but by the skill of it's crew.

09-13-10, 04:49 PM	#9
Chad ACE Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Kansas City Posts: 1,274 Downloads: 60 Uploads: 0	Bunch of small parts! Whew __________________

11-23-10, 01:17 PM	#10
ajrimmer42 Royal Kinotropist Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Sheffield, UK Posts: 987 Downloads: 18 Uploads: 0	Sorry for the lack of updates, this is now finished, it just took a little longer than I expected due to uni. Pictures will follow soon!!!! Along with a couple of other little projects I've been working on. Two words: Sherman. Mired. __________________ Alex Don't judge a ship by the number of it's guns, but by the skill of it's crew.

11-23-10, 06:19 PM	#11
Kapt Z Grey Wolf Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: ...somewhere in the swamps of Jersey. Posts: 906 Downloads: 153 Uploads: 0	Looks good so far. It's been years since I built a model of anything(though I have several unopened kits in the basement). Just can't seem to find the time anymore. __________________ ...I fought in many guises, many names, but always me. Patton

03-08-11, 10:36 AM	#12
ajrimmer42 Royal Kinotropist Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Sheffield, UK Posts: 987 Downloads: 18 Uploads: 0	right... eventually! Here are the pics __________________ Alex Don't judge a ship by the number of it's guns, but by the skill of it's crew.

03-08-11, 02:58 PM	#13
AVGWarhawk Lucky Jack Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: In a 1954 Buick. Posts: 27,343 Downloads: 90 Uploads: 0	Very nice! I like the weathering! __________________ “You're painfully alive in a drugged and dying culture.” ― Richard Yates, Revolutionary Road

03-08-11, 07:19 PM	#14
TLAM Strike Navy Seal Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Rochester, New York Posts: 8,633 Downloads: 29 Uploads: 6	Lets see... there are three troopers there... none are holding their rifles... there are four rifles... and the .50 has no ammo... ...these guys are toast... But really nice work ajrimmer42. The weathering and dirt looks really believable. __________________