German E-100 - Exploring the Krupp Center Turret Concept

The German E-100 super-heavy tank fitted with a Krupp-designed center-mounted turret represents one of several late-war and postwar conceptual directions explored for Germany’s E-series heavy armor program. While the E-100 chassis itself progressed to limited construction, turret configurations varied widely on paper, with centralized turret layouts proposed to simplify production and improve weight distribution.

This 1/35 scale model depicts a “what-if” interpretation of the E-100 using a center-mounted Krupp turret. The build incorporates scratch-built infrared equipment on the turret roof along with a remote-controlled Goliath tracked mine carried on a cradle and winch assembly. Weathering was completed using acrylics, oil washes, clay-based washes, and selective pigment work to convey a vehicle that saw active combat.

WW2 Italian Lancia Armored Car Balkans 1943

The Lancia armored car served the Italian Army primarily in secondary theaters such as the Balkans, where terrain, climate, and anti-partisan operations shaped both its use and appearance. By 1943, many Italian vehicles operating in the region carried locally applied camouflage patterns intended to break up their outlines in rocky, arid landscapes rather than formal parade-ground finishes.

This model is finished in acrylics with light oil washes to reflect a relatively dry operating environment. Weathering is restrained, focusing on dust accumulation and subtle wear rather than heavy combat damage, consistent with a vehicle used for patrol and security duties rather than frontline armored combat.

 

United States M3 Lee - A Stopgap Tank for a Global War

The United States M3 Lee was an interim tank design developed under urgent wartime conditions, intended to place a powerful 75mm gun into service before a fully turreted solution could be fielded. Produced by five different manufacturers, a total of 6,258 M3 Lees were built and saw service across multiple theaters, most notably in North Africa during the early stages of U.S. involvement in World War II.

This model represents my first olive drab U.S. armored vehicle and required a slightly different approach to weathering compared to European camouflage schemes. The finish emphasizes subtle tonal variation, restrained wear, and accumulated grime rather than heavy chipping, reflecting the practical, utilitarian nature of early-war American armor.

Queen of the Desert: The British Matilda II

The British Matilda II infantry tank depicted here represents service in the North African theater, where its heavy armor proved highly effective during the early stages of the desert war. Although slow and lightly armed by later standards, the Matilda’s protection made it exceptionally resilient against contemporary Axis anti-tank weapons.

This build is based on the Tamiya kit and was finished primarily with acrylic paints, using a deliberately restrained weathering approach. Only two weathering media were employed: VMS Black Steel pigment for subtle metallic wear and Tamiya panel liner to enhance surface detail. The result emphasizes accumulated dust, operational grime, and tonal variation appropriate to desert conditions without overwhelming the underlying paintwork.

Where Armor Was Born: Britain’s Mk.I Tank of the Great War

The British Mk.I was the first tank ever used in combat, marking the birth of armored warfare during World War One. Developed in 1915 and first deployed in 1916, it was designed specifically to break the deadlock of trench warfare by crossing barbed wire, trenches, and shell-torn ground that had stalled infantry advances.

This model represents the “Male” version of the Mk.I, armed with two 6-pounder guns mounted in side sponsons along with multiple Hotchkiss machine guns for close defense. Its distinctive rhomboid shape and track layout allowed it to climb obstacles that were otherwise impassable on the Western Front.

The kit is Takom’s 1/35 scale Mk.I and was finished using acrylics with restrained weathering to reflect the harsh operational conditions of early armored warfare. Mud, wear, and surface texture were emphasized to capture the crude, experimental nature of these pioneering machines and their place at the very beginning of tank history.

Steel Behemoth: The 1946 “What-If” E-100

This model depicts a late-war “what if” scenario in which the German Panzerkampfwagen E-100 reached limited production as the war dragged into 1946. Shown in early spring conditions, the vehicle retains remnants of a hastily applied winter whitewash that is fading and wearing away, revealing the underlying camouflage beneath.

Conceived as part of Germany’s Entwicklung series, the E-100 was planned as a super-heavy breakthrough tank with a projected crew of six and an estimated combat weight of approximately 123 tons. Standing over eleven feet tall, it represented the extreme end of late-war German armored design philosophy, prioritizing firepower and protection over practicality.

This 1/35 scale kit by Amusing Hobby was finished using acrylics, oils, and VMS and AK pigments. Weathering was focused on heavy operational wear, corrosion, and neglect consistent with a vehicle rushed into service during the final months of the conflict. The hull camouflage wires were deliberately over-aged to emphasize rust and deterioration, reinforcing the sense of a massive machine deployed too late to alter the course of the war.

Panzerkampfwagen VII Löwe: The Lion That Never Roared

A “Paper Panzer” hence it existed only on paper though some sources say a hull was found in the closing days of WW2 for it. The Panzerkampfwagen VII Löwe (Lion in English) was designed to have the L/70 high velocity gun and a 1,000 horsepower Maybach engine. The Panzerkampfwagen VII Löwe (“Lion”) was a proposed German heavy tank design that never progressed beyond the drawing board, making it one of the many so-called “Paper Panzers” of the late war period. Conceived as an intermediate step between the Panther and the massive Maus, the Löwe was intended to combine heavy armor protection with greater mobility than Germany’s super-heavy designs. It was planned to mount the high-velocity L/70 gun and be powered by a 1,000-horsepower Maybach engine, giving it formidable firepower on paper.

This model represents a realistic late-war “what if” interpretation of the Löwe, imagining how it might have appeared had construction progressed far enough for a prototype to exist. Built and finished to emphasize weight, scale, and industrial brutality, the weathering reflects a vehicle undergoing trials rather than combat. Acrylics, washes, and restrained aging were used to suggest a machine caught between concept and reality - an armored lion that never had the chance to roar on the battlefield.

Char 2C - WWI’s Colossus, WWII’s Relic

The French Char 2C remains the largest tank by volume ever to enter production, a true armored giant conceived during the final stages of World War I. Designed as a breakthrough vehicle, the Char 2C carried a massive crew of 12 and embodied early interwar thinking that emphasized sheer size, firepower, and psychological impact. Unfortunately, it arrived too late to see combat in WWI and by the outbreak of World War II it was already obsolete - slow, mechanically complex, and vulnerable to modern anti-tank weapons.

One of the most well-known vehicles, Char 2C No. 92 “Picardie,” broke down during the 1940 campaign and was captured intact by German forces. Its ultimate fate remains unclear, though it was almost certainly scrapped. This model represents the Char 2C in 1/35 scale, built from the Meng kit with the tailskid modification added. Subtle weathering and restrained aging were used to emphasize the vehicle’s immense scale and mechanical presence, capturing the look of a technological marvel that history ultimately passed by.