I did manage to do some more work on the 38(t) though. These are the final detailing steps.
1) The muffler.
Rusting up a muffler is probably the easiest weathering step on an AFV. On this particular model I started by sloppily painting the muffler and associated pipage with Vallejo rust color. I intentionally left the color coverage uneven.
Once the paint was dry I dampened it all with thinner and began to stipple and daub deposits of ground pastels with a frayed old brush. I used a mixture of brown, black, and mostly orange pastels.
I made sure that there was variations in the color. Nothing looks worse than monochrome rust. In some portions I applied the pastels especially thick, so that their coarse grains showed in the finish. This was done by tapping the brush over the muffler and allowing the pastel dust to fall onto the wet/damp thinner. As the thinner dries the colors all turn a shade brighter and become somewhat fixed to the muffler. Do keep in mind that pastel finishes are fragile, and avoid handling the muffler directly after they dry.
2. Leather
There aren't much leather-clad areas on the 38(t), but I decided to give the commander's hatch padding a leathery look. This was very simple as well. I first painted the pad in a mix of black and dark brown paint. Once it had dried, I dry brushed Vajello's shadows flesh.
To finish off the hull, I applied a few paint chips using Model Master burnt Iron. I use this effect sparingly, and it often goes unnoticed, but it does add to the overall effect. I also decided to add a final wash coat of Vandyke brown oil around all of the bolts to help them pop out more. (this is not a necessary step, but all the filters had muted my original washes).
The final weathering step was to metalize the track. I did this by simply rubbing powdered graphite on the track teeth, the drive wheel sprockets, and the inner and outer faces of the track.
A final step was to rub the highest points of the outer faces of the track with a silver prismacolor pencil.
The kit is in effect finished at this point, but as its being set on a diorama base, I will add one final step to integrate it with the base. That's coming very soon.
