U-Star Type 59 - abandoned in a riverbed, somewhere in Albania
Posted: Mon Mar 25, 2024 12:16 pm
The rusting communist legacy - a Type 59 tank overlooked by a concrete bunker - attracts the attention of a photographer, somewhere in rural Albania
This vignette was entirely based on this article by Tomasz Janiszewski in the AK Weathering Magazine Issue 30 - Abandoned. I thought it would be very interesting to recreate this entirely in 144th scale.
I started with the tank, a Type 59 (Chinese built T-54). To create a suitably weathered look it needed to be one where I could have flaps and hatches open. This is pretty rare on a 144th scale vehicle - especially now with most being 3d printed solid resin.
Fortunately the U-Star kits, from Taiwan, are plastic and multi-part so it was possible to drill out some of the engine deck and turret hatches to give the right appearance. Some sprue offcuts were put underneath the open parts to represent the engine and spare etched mesh recovered one of the gaps.
I also cut up the single-piece track/wheel piece to seperate the wheels.
The tank complete so layout could begin.
I hadn't planned the bunker initially, but when I discovered that Albania was the only European operator of the Type 59, it made perfect sense to combine the tank with an iconic concrete bunker. I even had my own reference photos from my September 2023 trip.
Built in the thousands across the secretive Communist dictatorship by the paranoid government, these bunkers would provide cover for soldiers against nuclear strikes and allow them to fight back against the NATO hoardes. They are ubiquitous in the impoverished country, with many still standing, particularly in rural locations. A lot have been grafittied.
Some offcuts of thin cork were used to scratchbuild the walls and entranceway, while a piece of sprue with concrete paste applied made the roof.
Painting the tank was good fun - an all-over dark rust tone was followed by sponge applied lighter rust. The green was later painted over some chipping fluid to give a highly weathered look. A decal from the stash was used, carefully sanded before application to give a worn look as well. The nicely detailed etched turret side rails were added at the end and painted seperately to avoid them getting damaged.
The scene was then built up with static grass and some model railway trees. For the water I used AK slow moving water paste - this gives a nice effect but has the thickness of a terrain paste so doesn't need the careful handling of resin.
Several coats were used, as it is quite thick, care is needed to avoid any inclines and I had to poke water-thinned paste around the wheels in particular to ensure full coverage.
Once this was complete, I added the figure - he is from Modelu3d.co.uk and has lovely detail - and finished it off with a nameplate from Name It Plates.
