Panzer IV D

by: Niklas Grundstrom

The "title" I had in my head for this was "Alte Hasen", or "Old socks", which is what the veterans were referred to, in this case both the tanker and the vehicle. I figured it was a tank which had been around a while and got fixed up over the years (well, two years...). The figure is a modified Art of War whose legs were shortened and the arms repositioned. I've tried to simulate dust using oils, as when I studied photos of desert vehicles I saw very little chipping and scratching, but lots of sand. I could probably have done with some chipping and scratching but I left it out. What some people interpret as chipping down to bare metal is in fact just the yellow camouflage wearing off to the original grey. I've tried to simulate a more mottled appearance of a tank originally in Panzer Grey but repainted in Sand Yellow and then faded back to the original colour in places, and then dust on top of that. No rust either, the DAK took good care of their vehicles.

The engine louvres are actually tubs made from a bottom sheet of plasticard, around which I glued plastic strip, then a centre runner was placed and then the slats on top. The spare wheel holder is just bent wire. The tracks on the front are Fruilmodel metal tracks, the rest are the kit tracks. The antenna bracket and assembly was also homemade as is the stowage rack, obviously.

There is a slight rune on the bulging thing on the side, making it 5.leichte-Division, 1941.