Hobby Boss Sdkfz 222 Leichter Panzwerspahwagen 2cm (2015)

[Bill Plunk]

One of the neat things about checking reference photos is that you often pick up little details that can be added to a build but also creates a little distraction at the same time. Today was one of those days! I was getting parts ready for painting with the airbrush and realized that the rear engine hatches would need some attention. I had always planned to open up the top and right side hatch but hadn't figured out a way to also open up the rear hatch due to the way Hobby Boss designed the parts. The light bulb went on after looking at this reference photo of the restored former Littlefield Collection 222.



The HB unarmored exhaust grill part D36 includes the hinge plate base that you need but is molded solid and is designed to be in the closed position with the armored cover part C62 added over that to complete the whole arrangement. I learned however that at some point in the production run the unarmored grill was deleted entirely and the hinge plate added directly to the armored cover as in the reference shot above. So I set about seeing if I could do the same thing with the kit parts. The first problem was that D36 is smaller than the armored cover, so to fit the hinge plate, I needed to widen it a bit. I glued some thin white styrene sheet to the rear of D36 and after it had set I broke out the razor saw and cut off the base plate that I needed.



I also needed to add some other details that the photo showed including the latch mechanism on the armored cover and the matching locking bracket. The latch was added using a piece of small sprue cut from an extra part courtesy of the spares bin and the bracket was scratch built using some left over PE strip brass. I also painted up and weathered the bottom half of the hinge pair with red oxide along with the two engine hatches that will be posed open. The third engine hatch was also painted and installed in the closed position to round out this little 'detour' activity.

[Bill Plunk]

Now that the build is getting very close to the point where it will be time to join the hull halves and chassis together and make the final push for the exterior details, I broke out the airbrush and went to work. I sprayed a primer coat of MM enamel Panzer Schwarzgrau over the upper hull and various other details. The pedestal gun mount also got the same treatment as a base coat for additional detail painting/weathering since it's also a key component in the next couple of steps.



Next up was a base coat application of MM enamel Afrika Grunbraun '41 (their version of RAL 8000). The turret mesh screens and the roof deck screen also got some paint treatment at this stage. Originally I was only going to paint the upper hull but after some consideration I decided to go ahead and paint the lower hull as well as some of those spaces are going to get very tight once the hull halves are together and other details like the fenders and storage boxes get added.



While all that cures, I'll be working on the gun mount to keep things moving along!

[Bill Plunk]

Detail work continued on the gun mount and turret areas. I dry-brushed a lightened mix of the panzer gray to help bring out some of the details and provide some depth to the finish. I'll likely add a pin wash to go with it but need to wait for that. Picked out all the various details including the telescopic gunner's sight and open AA sights. The crew seats were also painted up and installed in place along with the gunner's elevation/rotation control wheel. Last but not least the guns themselves were painted with MM non-buffing Metalizer Gunmetal and lightly dry-brushed with MM enamel Steel to round out the day's efforts. The mount with the seats added makes for a much tighter arrangement inside the fighting compartment but everything is continuing to play nice in terms of the little add-on details I included so that's always a plus!

[Bill Plunk]

The day of destiny finally arrived. It was time to put the 'Russian doll' hull together and combine all the elements together in terms of chassis, hull, and turret. One last look at all the pieces before the assembly begins!



The hull bottom was slid into place and glued to the chassis first and then the upper hull added to the bottom hull and some strategic rubber bands used to hold it all together while the glue set. I used regular glue for this and added small amounts of liquid glue in different spots that needed a little extra help. The mating surface for the upper and lower hull is fairly small so I had to be sure it didn't shift or flex once the bands were added.



After the glue had set, the bands came off and I permanently added the top deck screen with some small amounts of CA placed along the slight recess molded into the roof.



I'm going to hold off permanently installing the gun mount into the turret until after I've finished with all the hull paint work. I plan to add some more shading and modulation effects and it's just easier to do that with the mount separate from the turret. Now it's on to the rest of the exterior details!

[Bill Plunk]

Now that the hull is finally a single unit, I went back through the earlier steps and started adding or working on all the odds and ends for the exterior that I had deliberately skipped in previous steps to avoid complications or having them knocked off.

On the left side I used the hull to help create a 'module' of the stowage boxes on that side and the rear fender so I could remove it all as one piece for painting before it gets permanently installed. The rear fender got its PE brush guard for the convoy light and PE license plate and I added the step bar that wasn't included in the kit out of brass rod.



I also worked on the right rear fender. For some strange reason, Hobby Boss elected to mold the circular brake light as a clear part but it's the only one like that. I annealed its brush guard with a lighter flame and then bent it to shape using the handle of a round needle file. The jack and fire extinguisher that mount to the right rear fender were left off for now so they can be detailed and installed separately. The tread plate step is kit-supplied PE but doesn't have any bend lines, so careful work with pliers was needed to shape it to the supports.

I also added the small boxes to the crew access doors and used Griffon PE clasps to create their missing latches. Last but not least, the spare wheel & canvas cover was cleaned up in preparation for painting and install. It's got some nice fabric/wrinkle texture molded into it but also had a mold seam running all the way around its outer edge, so that had to be carefully sanded down with a sanding stick.



Next up will be the front fenders and then more paint work!

[Bill Plunk]

More progress on the exterior bits today with the front fenders getting their turn. The kit provides the box lids as PE parts that can be posed open if you're so inclined but I decided that I didn't really have a good reason for having one of them open in my dio scene, so I closed the m both up and added their PE latches. The turn signals both had large sing marks in their back sides that needed to be filled with putty but otherwise no issues with getting the fenders and their details together. After looking at various reference photos I decided not to fit the 'cage' around the Notek light. This was a removable light and while the cage was a feature on some Africa 222s, it wasn't a standard/common fitting but more of a unit field-mod type of thing. I also put together the front lower hull guard along with its tow hooks so it can be painted prior to installation.



So here's the group shot of all the fender and exterior stuff that will get fitted to the hull in the coming steps.



Last but not least the front main headlights and horn/siren were added. The clear lenses will get added later after painting. No option is provided for black-out slit covers but I like the look of the glass/clear lenses so will show them 'naked' regardless. I also added a field-mod jerry can rack using left over strip brass from a PE fret to the left rear hull. This will be left empty (the jerry can that Sitting Guy is using in the scene is the can that would've mounted here) and weathered accordingly with some scratching/chipping added once it's painted to match the hull. Another 2-can rack will get added to the right front fender as this is another one of those DAK features that pops up on many 222s but that's going to be a little trickier to build and I need the fender solidly in place first before I can tackle that little extra detail.



Next up will be paint work on all those exterior bits and then getting them situated on the hull.

[Bill Plunk]

I airbrushed all the exterior components from the last session and set them off to dry. In the meantime I've also been working on the jerry can rack for the front right fender that holds a pair of 40L water cans. This is a field modification that pops up pretty regularly in DAK 222s so I decided to add it using some strip brass from a PE railings fret that I'd used on a ship build a while back. I built up the base portion first to make sure I had the right dimensions then added the top part including a locking strip held in place with a pair of styrene wing nuts courtesy of spare parts from a DML Pz IV family build.



I also wasn't happy with the previous rack I'd added to the hull side as it seemed too thick to be in-scale, so it was also redone with some of the narrower strip brass that I used on the front rack.



Once the paint cures overnight I'll be adding the exterior bits and then doing more paint work to start the weathering process.

[Bill Plunk]

Some familiar lines are finally starting to appear on the 222! I attached all the fender modules that had been worked on and painted over the last couple of days. Some careful paint scraping was a necessary evil to get them firmly in position in a few places but nothing too heavy. I also added the kit-supplied PE rain guards over the hull vision ports and installed the front lower deflector plate.



After the glue had set, some more time with the airbrush got everything matching as it should be.




Next up will be some shading work on the base coat now that all the core components have been installed.

[Bill Plunk]

Broke out the mixing jars and whipped up some lightened shades of the base coat to start the weathering process. I used Light Gray and created a roughly 70/30 mix and a 50/50 mix. The 70/30 went on first over the base coat and then the 50/50 followed to add more depth and variation. I dropped the pressure down to around 15 PSI and worked in very close to the model's surface to get as tight a result as possible.



After both applications, it's starting to look like a desert finish! The weathering process to come will alter this even further of course, but this lays a solid foundation for that to work off of.

[Bill Plunk]

A good bit of progress to report on the weathering and details front. First up was a round of chipping and wear on the field-applied overcoat on the original Panzer Gray. I used MM enamel Panzer Schwarzgrau and a cheap brush to dry-brush and stipple in some chipping and scuffing in places where natural wear would happen in terms of the crew moving around the vehicle, using tools, etc.



I used the two lightened shade mixes from earlier and dry-brushed them in various places to blend some of the chipping work back in and look less stark. More layers will get added later as well so this isn't the final finish by a long shot. It was time however to add the rest of the exterior details so the shovel and special jerry can rack were added and I scratched up a small tarp using some paper towel cut to size and bound with a strip of PE to simulate a belt strap. The paper towel was soaked with some of the Woodland Scenics scenic cement and after it had dried enough to handle, I shaped it with tweezers and then adjusted it to fit in the spot next to the jerry can rack where it's finishing its drying so it will hold its shape for painting.



Other details were also added on the opposite side in the form of the spare tire, fire extinguisher, and jack. I left the fire extinguisher in panzer gray for a little visual variety and used the 70/30 lightened shade for the jack for the same reason.



Tail lights were picked out with Tamiya Clear Red. I used the tip of a wooden toothpick for this due to their small size and then did some very light touch-up in a couple of spots. Now that I see how the jack looks in the pics I think I'm going to give it a little more attention before it gets all sealed up.



Wheels were dry-brushed with the 50-50 lightened shade since I hadn't dealt with them yet and I also chipped and weathered the loose bits and hatches that are yet to be installed. The turret top screens got their folding support arms for a tarp covering at this point so they can be ready for installation later to the turret.




Now came the moment of truth, time to permanently install the gun mount into the turret and then add the guns. Due to how small the contact points are for the gun mount, I used the vehicle to help provide some support for the turret and the mount inside the hull. I added glue to the two contact points then carefully maneuvered the mount into place and held it with tweezers while the glue caught enough to hold it. After the mount was solid, the MG34 and KwK38 were added to round things out for the day.






Will let all that set up nice and solid and then see about adding the wheels and getting ready to seal this one up for markings and the rest of the weathering steps.