Modelling a Waffen-SS Figure SS-Schütze, 3rd SS-Panzer-Division 'Totenkopf' Vienna, 1945: In 1/35 scale

By Calvin Tan

Written by one of the world's leading figure modellers, this guide features a main pattern of Waffen-SS camouflage and dress and describes in clear, step-by-step instructions how to achieve these finishes. Advanced figure sculpting techniques, including conversions, are also covered, providing plenty of detail and diverse challenges to modellers of different abilities. Calvin Tan's superb base artwork and his multi-layered painting technique are brought to the fore in this visually detailed and engaging treatment of one of the most popular figure-modelling subject areas. This title provides a detailed, step-by-step guide to modelling a SS-Schütze, 3rd SS-Panzer-Division 'Totenkopf' Vienna, 1945. It also provides a comprehensive list of available aftermarket products and kits of all scales. This guide forms part of Osprey Modelling 23 Modelling Waffen-SS Figures ebook.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
• Release date: Jun 20, 2012
• ISBN: 9781780969428

Book preview

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Contents

Introduction

‘Salvation’: SS-Schütze, 3rd SS-Panzer-Division ‘Totenkopf ’, Vienna, 1945

Kits and accessories available

Further reading and research

Introduction

Raised to serve as Hitler’s personal bodyguards, the Waffen-SS burgeoned from a small militia into a 38-division-strong elite combat unit by the end of World War II. Its men were handpicked according to the dictates of the Aryan ideal; they were imbued with strict discipline and strong political convictions to the Nazi cause. As such, its units were issued with special uniforms and equipped with the most sophisticated weaponry and equipment of the time. In battle, the Waffen-SS would spearhead some of the most pivotal campaigns and key combat operations, proving time after time their right to be called an elite unit, and gaining the respect of even their most hated enemies. Despite their symbiotic association with the Nazi quest for world domination and the acts of racial hatred and genocide that they participated in, to this very day soldiers of the Waffen-SS exert a fascination, particularly for military modellers, wargamers and reenactors.

An SS-Schütze from the 1st SS-Panzer-Division Liebstandarte Adolf Hitler in France 1940. (Stephen Andrew; from Osprey Publishing’s Men-at-Arms 401)

An SS-Sturmmann from 1942, carrying an MG34 machine gun, and wearing the reversible camouflage smock. (Stephen Andrew; from Osprey Publishing’s Men-at-Arms 401)

Apart from the evocative historical appeal of such a topic, many modellers are drawn to the aesthetic details