Hisham, my Legends set didn't come with any instructions about the ball and chain either. I basically took the photoetch set from the Academy kit and figured the lengths I needed from that. Its not exactly accurate lengths but it works for me. I cut a small length of the wire to form the mounting ring (on the runners) then added a short run of chain. For the ball mounts, I cut the inner links of the dog tag chains as close to each ball as I could. I then held the ball with the holes pointing up and down. I shook the ball and that opened the hole on top. Add some CA to the now opened hole and then stick a straight piece of the wire into the CA/hole. Let that set. Out the bottom of the ball now you will probably have a short length of the inner link. Trim that off. After the CA has set the wire, loop it through the length of chain and you have a piece of hanging ball/chain. Set up a bunch of balls, chains and wire pieces and the process actually goes pretty quick and easy.

Good luck!

Thanks for the tips, Cory... this helps a lot.

Hisham

And a finished project. The ball and chain was really not that difficult to do. It took a little patience but not bad. I now have to pack this one up and send it to its new home in Colorado. Comments welcome.

I have to admit, I am not real happy with the pigment color. Its too red for my likes. That will probably be that last time I use that one.


I purposely left off some of the balls and chains off. A lot of pictures I have seen show them not all there.

Hi Javier,

Nice work with only 8 months experience. I never had much luck with CA based super glue. The glue dried to fast to move the part into place or I ended up gluing the part to me. Expoxy is too messy. What I use is a clear urethane glue called "Liquid Fusion" I found at a craft store. Easy to use and stays useable for additional parts for a couple of minutes. Put a little dot on a pece of paper and use a toothpick to apply. You can clean up the excess with a moist Q tip like white glue. Don't know about availability, but worth checking their website. www.duncancrafts.com

Hi Cory,

Great looking tank. I just started my MK IV a week ago. I happend to be leafing through the latest copy of Fine Scale Modeller and saw their article on the Academy kit. They mentioned the barrel issue which I appreciate your illustration of how to solve. The author used the Legends chain and ball as well, but substituted #8 lead fishing shot for the dog tag chain balls. As they are split to put on a fishing line, he slipped the chain end into the split and crimped the ball shut on the chain. Voila! I'm going out to get some tomorrow and try it. I bought just teh Legends chain set for the Merkava II and III to install on my Merkava III.

Shades are difficult to tell in photos, but I have seen numerous shots of Israeli tanks with similar red dirt on them from the Golan and Northern Israel. As to paint color, I use Poly Scale Israeli Khaki FS505348 acrylic paint on my Merkava Mk III and M60A1 with Blazer armor and it appears quite close to your shade.

Javier,
Please don't take offense here, but as this thread was originally started by Cory when blogging his Merk 4, why not start your own thread to display your work?

Regards,
Mike

The wait is over ! Desert Eagle Publishing is back with The Merkava Mk 4 in IDF Service.
This book, like its critically acclaimed predecessors, is using an extensive collection of over 225 never-before-seen color photographs and detailed technical drawings, which makes it a great companion to the Academy Mk 4 model kit, and a priceless resource to IDF armor modelers.


The Merkava Mk 4 in IDF Service is No 3 in the IDF armor series, but the list of our upcoming titles is growing fast, with 2 sequels to the Magach 6B Gal (including Gal Batash+M-88A1+AVLB) and Merkava 3D are just around the corner.

Desert Eagle Publishing, is happy to bring you this series on a variety of IDF armored vehicles to modeling aficionados and armor enthusiasts who will revel in a treasure trove of one-of-a-kind photographs and illustrations, and we are set to provide you many attractive titles in the future.


The Merkava Mk 4 in IDF Service is available and ready to ship out so let us know about your intentions or your orders to [email protected] for direct quotes.

Thank you for your continued support.


Sincerely
Michael Mass and Rafy Levy

The wait is over ! Desert Eagle Publishing is back with The Merkava Mk 4 in IDF Service.This book, is using an extensive collection of over 225 never-before-seen color photographs and detailed technical drawings, which makes it a great companion to the Academy Mk 4 model kit, and a priceless resource to IDF armor modelers.


Hi guys. The Merkava Mk 4 in IDF Service is No 3 in the IDF armor series, but the list of our upcoming titles is growing fast, with 2 sequels to the Magach 6B Gal (including Gal Batash+M-88A1+AVLB) and Merkava 3D are just around the corner.

The Merkava Mk 4 in IDF Service is available and ready to ship out so let us know about your intentions or your orders to [email protected] for direct quotes.

Thank you for your continued support.


Sincerely
Michael Mass and Rafy Levy

after spraying the multi-textured paint, then priming it, how did you paint it next? also, howd you paint the individual road wheels and tracks? thanks!

Excellent non-slip texture; I'm going to use this when I build my Academy Merk IV. Great job on the entire build, too. Thanks for posting!

Looking good Cory.