Trooper Mk III

I was just gifted a Colt Trooper Mk III from a friend. These were made from the late 60's to the early 80's. This particular weapon was purchased in 1969. It's been a bit neglected, but only has superficial rust. It currently has a date with the ultrasonic cleaner, so that should pretty well clean off without any trouble. The next step would be to re-blue it to restore the finish where rust ate through.

Cleaning firearms always reminds me of spending weekends with my father. His place always smelled like Hoppes and filtered Camels. I usually spent a good portion of the weekend stripping and cleaning something that went bang. That was always part of the deal - "You shoot them, you clean them."

Getting up close and personal with something is a great way to visualize the 3d model. Building an atmosphere around them can help you give your models more character and life. Try spending a lot of time around the things you model and focus that energy into your work. You'll be surprised what you can do with a deeper understanding of the content.