1:72 Mirage M3 Lee

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Softscience
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1:72 Mirage M3 Lee

Post by Softscience »

Here is my completed M3 Lee from the Mirage Hobby kit. This is a fantastic little kit. It is built entirely out of the box. I had the version which came with a small PE fret that included brush guards, rear engine grill, and side-door interiors. I had problems with the decals shattering, but having read other builders' accounts of the kit, I think I must have had an odd faulty sheet. The more recent releases of small scale armor from Mirage are fantastic, and I recommend the Lee/Grant, Panzer IV, and Stuart kits to anybody who fancies this sort of stuff.

The base was made from a circle of card covered with epoxy putty. I sifted some sandy soil from my back yard through 6.3 mm mesh and after coating the base with white glue, sprinkled it on. Once it dried I applied several misty coats of earth tones to make it more deserty looking. The vegetation is dyed shredded dish sponge and hairs from an old brush.

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I'm really proud of how this turned out, and I hope you enjoy it too.
spitfire31
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Re: 1:72 Mirage M3 Lee

Post by spitfire31 »

Softscience wrote: I'm really proud of how this turned out…
And so you should be! A very effective vignette. Only the somehow gravity defying, upward tension of the tracks lets on that the model isn't a much bigger scale than 1:72.

Very well done indeed!

/Joachim
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Beowulf Shaeffer
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Re: 1:72 Mirage M3 Lee

Post by Beowulf Shaeffer »

very nice indeed.................i like the innovative use of the sponge :-D
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splash
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Re: 1:72 Mirage M3 Lee

Post by splash »

It looks great, what a difference a small base makes.

I must have a go at making small display bases as they make the model look so much better, you say you used card & epoxy putty for the base, was that like the type you use for car body repairs?

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Re: 1:72 Mirage M3 Lee

Post by shangos70 »

A great piece of work , the dio just rounds it off .
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MrDyzio
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Re: 1:72 Mirage M3 Lee

Post by MrDyzio »

Nicely done Lee, good weathering as usual. I would skip this green spongy thing imitating vegetation...
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Softscience
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Re: 1:72 Mirage M3 Lee

Post by Softscience »

Thanks guys.

Splash, the Epoxy Putty is a product called Apoxy Sculpt. I don't know if its the same as things like Bondo and the other car body stuff. It may be, you'll have to check. But this stuff is a two part epoxy that you kneed and roll into a plasticine like consistency and then sculpt or use to fill large gaps.

Dyzio, the spongy stuff isn't the best, but I wanted to recreate some of the low creeping shrubs I saw in photos from North Africa. Admittedly, its not the best material for the job. Whatever it was you used to cover your SKOT would be better. What did you use?

Bruce, my goal was to reproduce a scrubby high-desert habitat like some of the Tunisian foothills. It came out more desert-like than intended, but I like it nevertheless. And coffin for 6 brothers indeed; could you imagine cresting a hill with that high profile?
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Re: 1:72 Mirage M3 Lee

Post by Jagewa »

Great work Ralph, it looks 1/35th, I had to go and check the title again. You are the weather master.

Cheers
Jim
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Re: 1:72 Mirage M3 Lee

Post by MrDyzio »

Softscience wrote:Dyzio, the spongy stuff isn't the best, but I wanted to recreate some of the low creeping shrubs I saw in photos from North Africa. Admittedly, its not the best material for the job. Whatever it was you used to cover your SKOT would be better. What did you use?
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Re: 1:72 Mirage M3 Lee

Post by Dirkpitt289 »

Well done Ralph
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Marek
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Re: 1:72 Mirage M3 Lee

Post by Marek »

Splendid, and it is a Mirage! :)
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