This is my entry, the turret tool bin has been taken off since I found out this was a prototype.

I've been busy painting figures, so I would like to introduce to you:
Sprüh-Hans (Spraying Hans)


His (scratched) stool and equipment:


And Böser Bertram (Angry Bertram), the weaponschief;


I did a third figure (Laughing Ludwig), which can be seen in the "Get the job done"-campaignthread.
Only 3 more figures to go + all the gear and I can complete the dio!

I've been away for a few weeks .
It's great to see such cool builds !!

Great dio up there. I've been lagging but will now pick up the pace on this 1/48th scale Ferd'y

Howdy Y'all

I'm about ready to give up on my 1/35 Dragon Nashorn. I bought a Dragon 1/72 Sd.Kfz. Elefant this weekend which I think I will build instead. (No individual track links!)

I have a question. The wheels for the Elefant look like they are steel but the instructions say to paint them black as if they are rubber. Anybody know if the wheels are rubber or steel?

Thanks,
Don "Lakota"

Hi Don, I'm fairly sure they are all-steel wheels, and I will be adding the rub and buff. Here's a little more progress. Still not sure if I will add oils and chipping or just go straight to pigments. Have fun with your build. Cheers

Howdy Y'all

Greg: Your Elefant is looking great. I'll do steel wheels also. I would think that you wouldn't need to put many scratches into your model. If it is depicting the Kursk period, woulddn't the Fernidads be fairly new machines? Keep up the good work!

Y'all take care now,
Don "Lakota"

Jan,

Yeap, that last posting of mine on the "Let Get Small" campaign forum was a bit much . . . Anyhow, after carful examination of the DML, Gruppe Fehrmann Tiger I kit # 7357 (I have the same kit) here is what I found and the solution that I came up with to get your vehicle build back on track! (Excuse the pun).

As you mentioned, the idler wheel assemblies are too wide to fit between the track horn runs on the DS tracks. The Idler wheel assemblys should only be as wide as the center pair of road wheels to fit within the track guide horn runs. Here is what needs to be done to fix the idler wheel assemblies to resolve the problem your having.



1) Flat sand to remove the center bushing on the outer side of part R6 (shown in upper center of photo).
2) Remove the center spacer on the inside of part R6 and then remove all of the material up to the molding seam line on the outer edge of the wheel by flat sanding. The outer wheel edge width should now match that of part R5 .
3) Flat sand the inner center spacer of part R5, removing only enough material to aquire the required width when mated together with part R6, to be able to fit this assembly between the DS track horn runs. Use the idler axel part B10 to keep both idler wheels perpendicular to each other.
4) Preform the same process as in step 3, flat sanding the spacer of part B2, thereafter mating it to part B1 and checking that these asssemlies also fit between the DS track horn runs.



5) Remove just enough material at the end of the axel of part B4, and mate with part B3, to check fit these assemblies on the DS tracks. The outer side steel wheel should just come up to the edge of the DS track drive sprocket trench run. Both outside and inside steel wheels should be brushing up against the DS track guide horns as shown in the above photo.



6) You will need to remove just enough material from the idler axel housing on the chassis to get the idler wheel assemblies centered with the center pair of steel wheels as shown above in photo. You may also need to remove a small amount of material from the housing side of the idler axel to get the axel to site flush up against the axel housing after the removal of material from the axel housing.

NOTE: I found no issues with the drive housing or drive sprocket assemblies. The chassis axels will prevent you from placing any of the steel wheel assemblies up against the axel arms. There will be a noticable gap as pictured above and this is fine. As far as I can tell everything should line right up.



7) After test fitting your wheel and idler assemblies as outlined above you are ready to assemble and cement together all of your track components. After cementing all of the track components together I place a couple of styrene tubes (1/4" tube) on each idler held with a clamp to keep the idler wheel assemblies from shifting position during which time I place spacers blocks between the tracks and chassis to get the right amount of track sag before cementing the DS tracks to the wheels. One of the tubes may have to be notched were the idler wheel comes close to the steel wheels on one side of the vehicle to allow the tube to site against the idler.

That little cat is coming along fine. I hope this will help you out.
-Eddy

Eddy, you are an absolute unmitigated genius. You've attacked the issue from an almost opposite direction from what I was trying and it appears that it will work out better than what I was attempting. I'll have to get the Dremel out and commence the necessary modifications. It's really pretty sad that Dragon got this so wrong.

Thanks again,
Jan

Jan,

Thanks for the complement, but I'm no genius! Just employing what I have learned over the years from correcting my many mistakes and from the help and advice that I have recieved from many hobbiest just like you. Everyone has something of value to offer. Just passing on what others have taught me. Especially today with the Internet and the many decicated members here that keep this awesome site online. Hopeing that more viewers will log on and post to join in on the fun here on Armorama.

-Eddy

Dear all,

I've been catching up with all the great work appearing here, and feeling a bit guilty. I've been out of town (and off the internet) far too much, but I can now report some progress of my own! My two offerings are both 1/35 Italeri models (with all the sins the name implies!) but I do enjoy scratching the odd detail...

First up is the Jagdpanther. Progress has been a bit slow, but it now has a basic shape and a crew.


(Sorry the actual 88 of campaign title isn't fitted yet!)


(figures from Tamiya & Dragon crew sets, reposed etc)

And then the Tiger:




(Had to scratch a barrel lock as fitted to new machines of 505 Abt April '44. Best guess based on a few grainy pics so probably not to Tamiya/Dragon standards...)


(Some turret mods, including lower supports for spare tracks, brace for loader's hatch.)


(Main assemblies for painting.)

Both were bought way back when, and there are much better models out there nowadays, but since I had 'em in my stash I figure they are effectively "free" compared to the cost of new kits.

By the weekend both should be ready for primer, I hope. (Still debating adding Tamiya indy-link tracks to the JP, but have avoided the AM bug so far...)

Tom

Here is my contribution for the Mighty 88 Campaign

Pz.Kpfw. "Tiger" VK45.02 (P2) Typ 180 'Turm Hinten'

The WWII armored vehicle that I have chosen to model here is of one of five Porsche conceptual design proposals on paper for his proposed chassis VK 45.02 (P) identified as the Typ 180 with the drive train mounted in center of the hull and the Krupp designed turret for the 8.8cm Kw.K. L/71 gun mounted to rear of hull. Never progressing beyond the design stage, this vehicle was never built.

I used the cast resin conversion offering from Zitader for the upper chassis and both Dragon's Kingtiger (Porsche) and Ferdinand as the donor kits for the turret and lower chassis / running gear respectively. Fruilmodel metal tracks for the Ferdinand were also used. Numerous items were scratch built. The turret was backdated with the 20 mm forward and rearward roof plates. This is my first attempt at a conversion and my second 35th scale build since the early 70's.



















Thanks to all of the Armorama members whom participated in the posted topics 'To "red oxide" - or not to "red oxide"?' and 'German WWII replacement gun barrel color' with very special thanks to Rob Ferreira and Adam Wilder for their kind input on their red oxide paint recipe's (Adam graciously emailed step by step photos for his, at the time, upcoming Tamiya article he was working on for Mig's Tiger II resin hull kit). And to all of the members here at Armorama that post helpful tips and techniques and answer the many questions posted here by those new and old to the hobby like myself that has made this build an enjoyable one for me. All comments are welcome. Thanks for looking.

Martin, very detailed and realistic looking KT!
Warren, good job on that old Tamiya Tiger I.
Anthony, excellent build. I especially like your figures. . . nice touch.
Robert, looking forward to seeing that Porsche prototype finished.
Ron, super job on the figures and vehicle . . . and how about that cobblestone base, KILLER!
Greg, superb build thusfar.
Tom, good start on both the Jagdpanther and Tiger I.

-Eddy

Some really nice work.

But...., isn't the picture being used for the banner actually a captured Russian 85mm gun?

True and True to those questions.

Great work everyone - I'm done with my 1/48 Bandai Ferdinand conversion. I made a few build and painting errors but hey it's done. Cheers

Nice job Greg and an interesting camo paint job.

Braille,real nice subject and a job well done.

@ (Braille) Eddy, what did you mix to obtain your red oxide? I would like to try it on my VK 4501, and apply hairspray then give it a rub with a toothbrush after a coat of grey to see if I can replicate wear.



Robert

Eddy,

Cool concept tank!

Tom

... and Califonia Greg, neat Ferdinand!

Priming my two 88s hasn't happened yet, but still plenty of time to go...

Tom

Greg,

Hadn't noticed until now that you had posted your 48th scale Ferdinand. Really nice job! I also like the camo. I like the oversized towing shackles . . . Dragon's 35th scale version seems to have overlooked them. Sure would like to find a source for them, have looked but no luck! The specks of green dots on the gun barrel add a nice touch of realism to the overall look of your Ferd'.

Thank you Anthony, Robert and Tom your comments are very much appreciated.

Robert,

I used a mixture of Tamiya flat red (XF-7 @ 85%) and Brown (X-9 @ 15%) to achive the red oxide color. You could use any manufactures red and military brown to get the same results. As per the discussion posted 'To "red oxide" - or not to "red oxide"?' here on Armorama photos surfaced of the Finnish panzers with a very bright looking red oxide color . . . check out the links near the bottom of page 3 from Fred Rick Boucher of the Finnish Panzers. This brighter red oxide color could easily be achived by using less of the brown color. Hope this helps.

-Eddy

@ Eddy: Thanks for the information, it was most informitive and your mix came out great in the bottle. Now to apply it to the object and try to see if I am able to accomplish this hairspray technique.

Robert

I'm looking for someone to volunteer to take over this campaign. Nito74 has not been on since September 9. I'm pretty sure something major has happened as I'm sure he would have wanted to hand out the ribbons for his Viking campaign which ended Sept 15. Send me a PM if you want the job.

Update:
Bigrip74 has stepped up to the plate as Campaign Leader. Three cheers!

Robert,

Three cheers to you Robert for stepping up to the plate!!! Hope that all is well with Nito74.

Looking froward to seeing some paint on your Porsche Tiger prototype. That is one kit that I have been looking to add to my collection.

-Eddy

Eddy:
You are correct, I hope that all is well with Nito 74 (John). After reading the thread I noticed on page (1) that the ribbon by (japee) is what everyone has voted on for this campaign. If so let me know for there were some pics deleted which causes a little confusion.


Robert

I second the three cheers for Robert the campaigns new "fearless leader". As with others, I share their concerns for Nito 74.

Cheers,
Jan

Hi all,
Here is my King Tiger from Dragon kit.
Miloslav