Black Label M103

[Canuck2016]

Good day all!

Here are some photos of the much-maligned Black Label (Dragon) M103 in 1:35 scale. This kit received a lot of criticism for accuracy issues, although I don't know enough to comment about those. Another issue you may have heard is that the exhaust ports on the rear deck sit too high (or the underside of the turret is too low), so they prevent the turret from traversing fully to the front, hence the rakish pose of the gun you see. I think the problem is most apparent in the last photo.

Criticisms notwithstanding, I found this to be a pleasant, easy kit to build, and it makes a large, impressive model with its bulbous four-man turret. Weathering has been kept to a minimum, as I believe these tanks were never used in combat and had a relatively short service life, training in America and Western Europe.

I have another Black Label kit in my stash, the MBT-70, and I'm looking forward to getting started on it!

Cheers!

[celt]

Well tidy mun.

[iggie]

Excellent! The weathering is spot on and the rusting is especially good

[PTB11]

Fantastic work. Great finish and weathering.

[Canuck2016]

Thank you all!

Iggie, I have a "secret weapon" for doing rust. It's a two-part product called "Sophisticated Finishes" by Triangle Crafts. The first part is a very thick, dark grey paint which I believe contains very fine iron filings. You simply brush it on and wait for it to dry. The second part is a liquid which, when applied to the first layer, makes the iron rust realistically within a few minutes. It used to be available in arts and crafts stores in Canada, but it's very difficult to find now. I've seen it on Amazon, but it's quite expensive there.

[Marek]

Absolutely loveable build!

[Clashcityrocker]

That's nice. I like the effect you've achieved on the vision blocks and the lights.

Nigel

[gnomemeansgnome]

Cool.

[ShaunW]

Top job Canuck, that is a great piece of armour modelling. Shame someone at Dragon got it a bit wrong with the turret and/or exhausts! I might have been tempted to get rid of that raised exhaust manifold on the rear deck (accuracy? schmaccuracy ) in order to have the turret pointing forwards - bet you wouldn't notice due to the overhang of the rear of the turret.

[Titan]

As a model you have done a very good job with it and the weathering is very good. I have never made any Dragon armour although I do have a couple of tigers in the stash but have never heard of any criticisms of those so hopefully they should look ok once built.

[ntrocket88]

Good work.

[Canuck2016]

Thank you, all!

Shaun W, that's good advice. I might pry off the exhaust cover and do as you suggest. But for now, I don't mind the gun pointing off to the side. Looks kind of dramatic. Or maybe I'm just making the best of a bad thing!

Nigel, the vision blocks are just shiny blue mylar which I cut into strips and glued onto solid kit part. As for the lights, they were solid grey plastic parts in the kit. I hollowed out the front of the part with a drill, coloured the inside surface silver with a Sharpie marker, then filled the hollow part with Future floor wax. It took a few applications as the Future contracted as it dried, but in the end it looked passably like a headlight!

Iggie, here's a photo of the rusting product I was talking about, in case it helps you to find it in a shop or on-line. The two bottles are sold together in a small cardboard box. Anyway, I think the stuff works very well, and it's easy to use. The second photo shows the same product on Tamiya's 1:35 BT-7 (exhausts and fenders).

Cheers!

[Marek]

Thank you for the hint with the triangle coatings, just ordered the set to experiment with it.

[Canuck2016]

Glad to hear it, Marek! I hope it works well for you. Once you've tried it, please post some photos!

[iggie]

I'm still trying to track down the rust treatment! I've got to have some!!