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M16 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage Part One

Now to the rear tracks. US halftracks have a unique and brilliant rear track, being molded as one piece thick bands of tire rubber, reinforced with steel cords running lengthwise, and with embedded steel parts for center tooth alignment and sprocket engagement. No model company before Dragon has quite got it right when attempting to represent these. The real thing is a bit thick and is under constant tension, so there’s no sagging. Tamiya didn’t quite get it with their vinyl tracks, and no one really solved this until Dragon and their advanced sculpting methods and mold making technology changed everything. These tracks are made in Left and Right halves, and are completely accurate in construction, allowing detail painting that was previously not possible. The drive sprockets and idler / tensioner wheels are also just beautiful in every detail. The painting must be done partly before assembling the left and right parts of each track, with most of the pre-assembly being about the steel cleats and center teeth. For these I use Testors Model Master Steel, Flat Black, and some Rust, hand brushed to detail the steel parts as if they are on an operational moving vehicle, which means a bit of shine where metal hits metal, with a little rust in the seams and cracks. Once left and right parts are assembled and dry, then the rubber is done in Flat Black. This is allowed to dry for a bit, because final the assembly onto the chassis can get a bit tricky. Because the sprockets and idlers are so finely made and need to be painted off the model, as with the tracks, the final assembly involves placing the sprocket and idler in the track in the correct position, then sliding the whole thing onto the chassis. A second person is a very handy thing to have, and my lovely girlfriend Brenda kindly lent a hand by grasping the top and bottom of the track and spreading them open enough to go over the road wheel carriage, while I slid the sprocket and idler onto their pins. A tricky method, but worth it, as the photos here demonstrate. I think it’s coming out pretty nice so far.

So that about wraps up the assembly of the chassis, drivetrain and wheels/tracks for this kit. If you are into the US halftracks, as I am, you’ll get familiar with these assemblies fast, as they are common to the entire series of US M3 based halftracks. In this part of the build there weren’t too many things to correct or modify, but as not a lot of the underside of the model will be seen, I wasn’t really looking too hard for things to improve at this stage. The next section will be vastly different, as I go into the cab/crew compartment, and there’s tons of stuff to do there. Lots of PE brass to work with, lots of compromises to correct. The next episode promises a lot more of everything: more detail, more tiny parts, more work, period. But this is what’s required to bring a miniature fully to life, it’s an Art, and Art takes time and effort to accomplish. Nothing truly spectacular is ever done in haste. Patience is everything. Until next time…

WARCLOUD

The story continues here with Part Two.