Small Scale Military Headquarters

This was also posted in the 1/32 Scale Forum, however I figured I would also post here... Below are some pics of the Bronco Models 1/35 scale kit of a German Seehund XXVIIB Midget Submarine that I finished today



The model represents Seehund #17, which operated off the German coast between January-May 1945.

The kit was an overall simple build with the most complex parts actually being the torpedoes, where you had to position some of the tiny propeller blades and photo-etched parts of the igniter on the front end of the torpedo. After priming and preshading, I painted the sub with Tamiya acrylics. Medium Gray (XF-20) was used for the base color, then it was given a heavy wash of thinned Dark Sea Gray (XF-54). I then attempted to use a dot filter with splotches of the Medium Gray, then more Dark Sea Gray streaking to blend it better. Panel lines and riveting were highlighted with charcoal pastels and given a pin wash of rust paint. The torpedoes were painted Tamiya Dark Sea Blue (XF-17) with the warheads painted in Testors Insignia Red. Weathering powders were used to show salt staining and wear. Rust highlights were added throughout.











Given that 1/35 scale U-Boat crewmen are tricky to find at an affordable price, I decided to use a couple spare Dragon CanDo 1/35 German tankers. Repainted, they work well for passable U-boat crewmen. I painted a couple for different positions standing in the hatch, but can't decide which I like better...

You did a great job and the weathering perfect.

The figure looks great to.

My only issue is the props . They look yellow in the pics not brass/bronze .

Maybe a little filter of brown may bring were they should be ?

Otherwise I would be proud to have her berthed on my shelf !!

Thanks Pickle! Glad you think the weathering looks good. That was a process which took a while to get right (the professional builders online whose projects I used as a reference made it seem so easy!)

I used gold paint for the props as that was what I had on hand - and part of the issue was the lighting - but you're right in that they do look too yellow... I'll try a filter to darken them a little. And that's part of the fun with these projects - they are never truly finished

Beautiful job Tman, I think it looks great.

Great model, well done, ttt!
How many crewmen could house in that submarine?

T-Man

My intentions were not to come off as harsh.

I really like what you have done.

I would love to make this in 1/18th scale !!!!

Hey Pickelhaube, no worries, I knew you liked the model and were offering some constructive advice, which I really appreciate

This sub would be really easy to do in 1/18 scale and be an easy way to get what was technically a U-Boat that won't take up someone's entire garage... You should check out pics of the un-assembled Bronco Models kit online as there are fewer than 100 parts and the sub is basically the two halves of the hull glued together with several other parts attached. In a way, the torpedoes were the most complex part of the kit as they had the smallest and most delicate parts to attach.

And granch, the German Seehund submarine held two crewmen, a skipper and engineer. It was arguably the most successful of the series of German mini submarines (most of which had been small, short-ranged one man subs like the Biber, for example). The Seehund could have presented a greater threat to Allied shipping had it come earlier in the war. Here's a good article that is a bit more informative than the Wikipedia listing: http://www.one35th.com/seehund/sh_history.htm