JSU 152

                               Big, Bad and very Dirty JSU 152


I on occasion like to do something different, well for me anyways, and build and paint a non rusted model, and here is one of them. I had originally planned to do this model as a rust bucket but wanted to instead just build it OOTB to try some new products from AK Interactive. I will be using an AM barrel from JR that I had bought for the original plan.

I want to paint this one with a very worn and faded white wash, something I haven't done in a few years, using the new chipping fluids from AK. I'll also be putting their earth effects and pigments to good use on this model. It will be a tank set in around the spring of 1945, after the winter when everything is thawing out and muddy.


The Tamiya kit is pretty straight forward with very good details, including link and length  track links with a jig to help glue the tracks with the right sag. The tracks went together pretty quick as there was not much cleaning up involved.

I decided to add some battle damage to the fenders and also omit the front fenders as tho they were torn off. This is pretty easy to do and adds some visual interest to the model. The following pics show the progress so far.






The rest of the kit fell together rather quick as is the norm for Tamiya kits. I decided to, after some advice from a friend on Missing-lynx, to replace two of the fuel tanks with a log. I simply used a branch from the back yard, minus the bark. The parts in the tub will be added after the white wash is applied, to make it easier to replicate the worn white wash.




Some pics of the finished build part



So with the building done it was to for some primer. I decided to go with the Vallejo Acrylic 4Bo primer on this one. The one problem with this is that the primer is the same color as the kits plastic. After a couple of light coats I was pretty sure I got everything covered.



So with the primer dry, a couple of hours, it was time for painting. I am not a big fan of the CM but have a great respect for those who can pull it off quite well. I chose to use three of the colors from the AK Interactive CM set and do some highlighting and a tiny bit of CM. I'm not too worried how this will look since most will be covered by either a worn white wash or the caked on dust, dirt and mud.


The green in the pics are a bit bright, but the actual green on the model is darker.







Next up will be some filters to blend the green tones and some pin washes. For the filter I tried something different and used the AK Slimy grime thinned with their odorless thinner. This was done in two layers in some places to blend the CM together.



Once dry I then applied a light wash and two pin washes, although most of this will disappear with the white wash it will help to bring out the nuts and bolt detail. For the wash I used the AK Dark Streaking Grime and Dark Brown wash instead of the usual oil paints.




So now it was time to apply some decals. I wanted some large bold white writing to break up the large plates on the sides. I had found some nice decals in the spare decal box, but when I tried to apply them to the model they fell apart. So I opted for these that seemed thing enough and they went on with no problems.




After applying a couple of clear coats to seal the decals and also protect the paint from the white wash chipping, I set the model aside to let things dry. With the enamel clear coat dry I then applied two light coats of the AK Worn Effects chipping fluid. using the airbrush and a high pressure of 25 psi. I found the fluid goes on more smooth and even at a higher pressure.



I let this air dry for about two hours before continuing with the next step.

For the white wash I reverted back to the Tamiya flat white thinned with their Lacquer thinner. This thinner gives a very fine and dead flat finish. I also wanted to be able to apply more pressure and scrubbing to get a more worn white wash effect. If I used my normal water and rubbing alcohol mix it may have come off in large patches.




The white was allowed to dry for a few hours before the chipping could begin. Warm tap water and old stiff paint brushes is all that's needed to chip away the paint to reveal a worn white wash.





The rest of the white wash will get chipped and then set aside to dry for 24 hours before continuing.


It's been a few days and a lot has been done on the 152. It has been pointed out to me that the slogan is incorrect and is missing a verb. I thought about adding the missing word but since the weathering stage is so far along it wouldn't look right so I am leaving it the way it is and will make sure next time to research the kit decal slogans before applying them next time.

What I have done is first applied a couple of filters to the model using AK dark slime grime for the green areas and a white oil paint filter to the remains of the white wash ( w/w ). This was followed by a couple of pin washes using AK Dark Brown wash to bring out the details.

The next step was to apply streaks and f or this I used the AK Winter streaking grime.




I then stared to add weathering effects like dirt and dust that collected in areas. For this I used the DAK wash and also the DAK dust effects




Next came some rainmarks from AK. This is marked as rainmarks for NATO vehicles but works well for any other vehicle. I also added this to the DAK wash to get a light dust / dirt color.




Chipping was done with various shades of green and german camo brown from Vallejo and applied with a sponge and small paint brush.
Below are pics of the model in various stages of the weathering. You can see the many layers that was applied to the model to give depth to it. The fuel stains were done using the AK fuel stains and the dark brown wash, with some earth pigments added to give texture.





More layers of weathering to follow along with the lower hull getting dirty. I've gotten most of the mud and muck on the lower hull and wheels. I used mainly AK products for this and think the results are ok. It was fun and easy to do , and adds some realism to the model as well.

I have done a full SBS on how I did the muck and mud on my forum and will get it posted here on the site soon. here is a link to the SBS.

http://modelerssocialclub.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=painting

here is where it stands right now.





So now there is some wet muck effects to add, detail painting and weathering and the wheels and tracks.




The wheels,tracks and tools have been painted and weathered.....and the model is finally done. The weathering of these was done the same way as the the lower hull. Here are the final images of the ISU 152 , thanks for following along.










A full blog can be found on my forum---MSC forum