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Building a 1:8 Scale Panther: Part 2

The Fun is in the Details

The great interest of the Panther to me is that the entire tank is busy. There are bits and pieces everywhere! I next made the frames that support the tools and other equipment. The frames from plasticard, the tools from plastic, wood and pieces of metal. The spade is made from a ‘throw away’ plastic teaspoon you find in cafés and the handle from plastic rod. All of the tool retaining clips are from lead and brass.

The tow ‘ropes’ were difficult. Each actual rope has an inner piece of curved steel that prevents fraying of the rope. I had tried using stripped insulation from an electrical cable, no good, it would not hold its shape. I then made a scale half piece from which I made yet another silicon mould. Two pieces joined together produced the right shape. The rope itself is heavy nylon rope of the correct scale diameter. The tubing the rope fits into is turned down plastic rod.

I next moved on to the spare track links. A major drawback to the actual Panther in action was its thin side armour. In an attempt to provide greater protection over the vulnerable fuel tanks at the rear, each tank when issued had spare track links mounted on U shaped brackets and secured by chained pins covering this area. There not being sufficient spare track links with the tank, I resorted to making a further silicon mould using 2 of the better links as masters. Some 17 links later, they were cleaned up and joined together in 5 three piece and 1 two piece with scale track pins (2 mm plastic rod) and closed with scale collets (5 mm plastic rod). The U brackets are from brass strip and the frames they are fixed to are of plasticard. Each set of links has its own retaining chain.

The rear mountings for the tow ropes are of turned to scale brass tube, each with its own retaining pin and chain. Mounting brackets mounted from small sections of square brass tube were fixed under the hull for the attachment of the side plates (bazooka plates). The side plates themselves were made of scale thickness aluminium sheet and fixed to their brackets by scale fittings.

The only remaining fitting was the tubular gun cleaning rod holder mounted on the left side armour. This was made from plastic tube with plastic, chain and lead fittings. New front mudguards were made from thin brass sheet with plastic rod detailing and or course, the f/g/resin screws and bolts. The final work was to create the areas of weld and cast metal that would still be seen once the Zimmeritte was applied. The welds with Milliput Super Fine and the cast effect was mainly by using Gunze Sanyo Mr. Finished 500, a liquid filler. This was painted on and stippled with a short bristle brush until the desired effect was achieved. In some areas on the tank e.g. the turret ventilator and cupola, a stone cutting bit was ‘bounced’ over the piece until again, the effect was satisfactory. Finished!