"3D printed Tiger I and Sherman, Artizan Designs" Topic

I recently delved into the WWII gaming era for the first time.

I got an old copy of the original Bolt Action rulebook and then picked up some generic stuff to start with.

After researching much of the ongoing debate of 28mm scale and the problems that can arise when trying to have size compatibility with 1:48 vehicles vs. 28mm vehicles, I decided to go with the more aesthetically pleasing route.

I really liked the look of Artizan Designs Americans and Germans, but quickly learned that they are way too large for like Warlord's 28mm tanks. 1:48 seemed to be a way better match so I turned to 3D prints on Etsy for my Tiger I and Sherman.

I'm glad I made that choice. 1:48 is just about perfect alongside Artizan's infantry. Their infantry is huge, practically bordering on 30mm.

To start with I got enough packs to do 17 Germans and 18 Americans. I went with the winter greatcoat versions for both sides as I like that particular look. I figured it would make sense to just get a bunch of riflemen and then a couple machine gun teams for each side, and a BAR for the Americans.

I also utilized Etsy for some WWII themed terrain. I found some excellent French village houses, so I picked up three of those. They are modular, the roofs and the second floors lift off each building so that figures can be placed inside.

I painted the infantry mostly with Citadel Contrasts. The tanks were airbrushed primed in their base colors and then I used Contrasts and washes for the weathering.

The decals were interesting because it proved to be very difficult to get a good, solid glossy surface over the decal areas. The 3D print material seemed to soak up the gloss varnish so in the end I had to go with what I had.

The decals on the Tiger worked fabulously, they blended it completely after the final coat of matte varnish was put over the gloss, and really look like they were painted on. However I didn't have the same success with the Sherman. I tried the traditional gloss/decal/gloss/matte process but I simply could not eliminate the silvering. But I went ahead with it, it's good enough for gaming.

With the quick research I did and beginner knowledge of the WWII period, I learned that U.S. uniforms and gear were made in pretty darn near every possible shade of brown, green, tan, and every combination in between.

The Contrasts proved to be excellent for this. Skeleton Horde for the great coats and Creed Camo for the helmets. I used Basilicum Grey for all the gun metal parts. All the faces and hands got Guilliman Flesh.

For the Germans I used several shades of Contrasts. I did Space Wolves Grey over both the coats and trousers, and then I changed the shade of the coats by adding Citadel Nuln Oil over it, while leaving the trousers the original Space Wolves Grey color.

The only detail that I actually painted with regular paint were the German helmets. I painted those with Dawnstone because I felt that they needed to look smoother than the uniforms. If I had done everything in Contrasts it would have felt a bit off and clunky.

So hopefully I'll be able to add more to my forces and I learn the game and of course, get more money together, lol.

‌

‌

‌

‌

‌

‌

‌

‌

‌

‌

‌

‌

You don't see many tigers in grey. I like it more than the fall camouflage.
As for 1/48, I have the entire Bandai WW2 line. But no, our group went with the 1/56. Just as well, I painted them in the 70's.

I am guessing it is more whitewash to go with his winter theme than panzer grey

@Korvessa,

That is exactly right. It's not meant to be Panzer Grey from the factory. It's the color a Tiger often took on after being whitewashed with winter camo and then getting dirty and weathered.

Another possibility is based on the fact that camo. paint was issued as a paste and then they found whatever was on hand to dilute it. So it could have been gasoline, turpentine, or god knows what. The actual color that the "white" turned out to be could very widely and have brown or grey tones all through it.

Between the variants in camo color combined with environmental weathering Tigers would have been every shade of white or gray imaginable.

Thanks for the insights Korvessa.

The Bandai 1:48 collection is really nice and versatile for WWII gaming additions. I game with 1:48 Bandai, Tamiya and few other model companies. I even did some conversions before I got my 3D printer. I would go back and re-visit those "70s" kits and give them a lil TLC and bring them up to gaming standards. The push here was 1:56…but I pushed back and…well I won.

Good luck on you gaming and modeling.

P.

@redmist,

Oh, I hadn't thought of Bandai! Their Star Wars models are amazing in the detail to their faithfulness to the movies, wouldn't doubt their historical stuff is equally accurate to the original vehicles of the time.

Will check it out, thanks for the info!