I know its been blogged before but I thought I would do a limited blog on my ASLAV type 1 phase 3 with turret Bar Armour using the Arms Corps Models (ACM) conversion, set number ACM35851.

As usual, the trumpeter ASLAV kit is used as a donor kit.

This is going to be diorama model, not a shelf queen and this may impact some of the build features.

Firstly I attached the hull and deck together, and rear plate to make a nice solid box from which to work. The engine vents were removed by sharp knife scribes and an xacto saw blade. the corrected engine cover (part 19) was added, gaps filled and sanded.

The biggest issue for me is I have never done the anti slip coating. And because this is going to be with two other vehicles on a diorama, one of which has the antislip already fitted, I have to add it here for consistency.

I have seen several methods, and didnt like any of them enough to try it (the aerosol suede effect was the most creative and the one I liked the most i guess but could'nt get the stuff from bunnings).

I came across this product theother day in the hobby shop while buying sanding sticks. Tamiya "diorama texture paint" light sand, grit effect. quite a mouthfull. I bought it (expensive was about $18) and test painted on some scrap card. I like it alot ! took two coats to ge a good consistent coverage.
The paint has a ceramic pellets in it - super fine, that give it a texture, and the paint is more like a paste - the consistency of the pre made custard you get at the supermarket. can't shake it, can stir it, wouldnt bother airbrushing it as it would block the nozzle. I didnt thin it, it is an acrylic paint.

Anyways heres some pics, I shifted the ligh so to throw shadow over the surface to see the effect better.

Excellent!!!!

Have you picked a vehicle you want to depict as yet, or will it be an amalgam of all the cool features seen commonly? Good thing is that there are enough of us with so many shots in the hard drive that you'd reckon there would be shots of each vehicle, if you wanted to do one in particular.

Yes Jase needs to pull the finger out and get the camo drawings sorted

SD

Oh Lordy - pick a specific vehicle! wow. Thats something I must dwell on some more. Of course if I pick something, it HAS to match the other two on the diorama (ie matching unit /tac markings IF dispayed). And then if I am doing AMTG patrol or Admin run through AL Samawah I guess it needs to be consistent with the unit on rotation, and, the fittings to the vehicle match all 3 (patrol order set up (damm antennas again!)etc etc). Plus uniforms to match of the Troopers on board.

I would like to. Originally my diorama was going to be a SecDet patrol on route Irish in Baghdad. But then there are issues as mentioned above that just make life and modelling a serious challenge!

Wait out on this decision. Once i cross the markings and painting bridge planning stage I'm sure the decision will be made, and offered for scrutiny

I was toying with the idea of a tribute somewhat. Unless its seen as bad taste or inappropriate. From my research, there were 4 Australians Killed in Iraq during Op Catalyst. 3 In the service of the ADF, and one was serving in the US Army ? I was thinking of naming each vehicle with the members surnames. I know it breaks the callsign tradition of Charlie company having names starting with C or Bravo coy with B names etc. Sure enough Im going to be told i've got my numbers wrong so it goes out the window, but we'll see. As i said, just something I'm toying with. It wouldnt be broadcast or in the production notes, but those who know the names might appreciate it when they see it.

Adamskii

the hull.

This is the sort of straight forward stuff, that really shouldnt be a headache at all. just be carefull trimming the parts from the risers - i damaged a couple that were challenging to repair.

Left side showing most of the removed parts, Alot of teh detail is sanded/ cut off and replaced by the resin parts - the hardest part to remove are the shock tower bulges.

right side


The undercarriage was assembled as described in the other blogs - my steering changed by my method (shorten some tie rods, lengthen others).

Here I have added the shock struct tower bulges (rounded tops for ASLAV), and also the exhaust. the cover is not on as I understand they are removed on Bar Armour variants.

left side

start adding some hatches and ventilators. I will touch up anti slip later when I do the turret.

Added the big side stowage bin that replaces the removed ones from the turret. Had to remove the side viewing ports to make it fit.

blocked off left side viewing ports here too (spall liners installed)

attached rear doors, blocked off thier viewing ports, attached phone box, and jerry can in holder.

look closely you can see I have added some handles to the front, most towing/lifting points are installed aswell. Drivers hatch in place too.


Adam

Expect to see more progress, very good.
Cheers
Blackwater

Tool's and cam pole rack

The tools could'nt be simpler - but be sure to check alignment with references.
The cam pole rack is a bit of a challenge. First glue part 37 to the hull, its the biggest bit and will act as a guide for the other parts.

Attach resin part 36 to the the cam pole basket from the Trumpy kit.

Attach two small offset mounting lugs on the two prongs that dont sit on either of parts 35 or 37. The offset lugs are from the bar armour section, parts 17 ( I hope I have enough for later or i will be scratchbuilding)

Line up the rack and glue in place. I find that way easier than trying to get the mount points exactly right and then fit the basket - I always screw that way up for that kind of assembly.



Spare wheel rack and rear panel

I have the Mouse House spare wheel carier update - although the kit one would look ok, as its nearly entirely concealed behind the wheel anyways. be sure to do door handles first as be hard to fit under the wheel! Also fitted the trafficators and some other small details to back panel



Its a good thing I dont mind painting things in situ.

Adam

If it seems like I'm going a bit faster with this blog it's because I am. I will take the time to detail the turret construction as much as possible, but the hull assembley is very simple so far, or has been covered in detail in other blogs so I see no need to dwell on this. I suggest reading this construction in conjunction with my other build log - https://armorama.kitmaker.net/forums/169096&page=1

Adam

Looking good mate.
One problem tho,


The episcope actually stays on the hull and the resin is attached to it to block it off.
But the right hand side should have the forward one removed (so that version of bin will fit) and 3/4 the rear one removed. See below.

Cheers Jason

Thanks Jason, will refit the epsicopes afetr a trip to hobby shop - I think they sell angled plastruct that could be used to make neat ones. I was wondering how Sam did his stowage bin.

Speed bolts.

I described in other blog how to put the proper bolts on the grills, but to be honest unless I have my visor on, I can't tell that they have a hexagonal bolt shape. SO heres something I experimented with a while back and the results when compared to the resin bolt heads are most satisfactory, much quicker to apply and alot less fiddly. I have large clumsy hands and fingers that make managing very small parts difficult!

firstly attach the two mesh grills over the engine vents. They need trimming to fit. Now what I do is take a piece of plastic rod the same diameter as the bolt heads - in this case 0.5mm, dip it in super glue gel adhesive and poke it onto the grill where I want the "bolt" to go.



next cut the rod off about 5mm from the glued end, invert the cutters so the flat side cuts the piece being removed - this is important as you want your next rod end to be flat when applied to mesh.

Repeat this for all the bolts you want added


Now trim the crown down to the height the bolt should be - use the flat side of the cutters this time facing down so leaves a flat head. I cut the bolts the same height as the ridge around the mesh grills (maybe 0.25mm?)

Then when all trimmed down, I run a sanding stick over the heads to clean up any burr and to make sure all same height

Finished - a very quick and less fiddly way to get the same look. Of course under magnifying glass its not as accccurate - they will be round bolts not hexagonal, but with naked eye it wil be indestinguishable.

Before tryingthis metthod I suggest you test it on some old kits, just to be sure about how much glue you need to hold in place.

Bar Armour attachment to the hull

Someof the nicest and simplest castings so far, this part of the project is really quite fun.

First attach the two bars that cross the deck. I am unsure how in real life they are secured - but I think must be welded on as there are no bolts that I can see. I screwed this next bit up, cut off the plastic fifting lugs I attached earlier (mentioned in a post here earlier too) in the red circles.

then, attach the two armoured lifting lugs to the rear quarter panels.

Another view, and, cut off the red "rubber" bump stop but leave the angle bracket (in red circle).

attach the two rear frames to the bump stop brackets.

another view

Behind the props go a few more mounts - I love this bit, such a change to vehicles look with so little work!

And the other side. Also note I have attched the INVS antenna ( hope thats right name for it, and a flex mount. Will have to remove the flex mount though as thats where the shark fin is attached (Just rememeber as I write this).

:[]-- Just a note, I would of postedthis several hours ago but just got back from hospital - Kidney stones really REALLY hurt. But morphine takes the sting out of it! So I post this with a crook groin but a very light head !

Great progress so far!!!

AS for the hull bar armour supports, they bolted to the front and rear ventilator dome bolts:

Front:

2 bolts here


Then an arm bolted to the exhaust assembly on the other side


And the rear support just bolted to the 2 forward bolts of the rear ventilator


Something you might be interested in, later rotations of ASLAV's (or later mods) had the BFT mounted inside the large side stowage bin. This was powered by a cable running from one of the rudder holes, then cable tied to the side footman loops:


The silver looking bolts on the upper rear of the side bin hold the Blue Force Tracker.

Here's one I did (I havent published this build anywhere as yet)
This is 16310 '3:10 To Yuma' a gun car in Afghanistan at present


Here you can just see the BFT in the bin


Sorry for hijacking your thread, and hope you feel better soon!!!

SD

NICE clear photos - I'm always impressed by them. Hijack away! The reference pics are pure Gold! I have come to realise I need two of every kit - the first one to build and post, the second to rebuild using the cool reference pics you and Jason provide _after_ the glues dry on the first ! LoL. I did'nt realise there was a footman loop on top of the susupension struct buldge behind the exhaust.

I will refit the bolt on points for the cross bars Asap. I must study instructions harder as I don't remember there being anything about that in there.

Your build looks great (as Always). I doubt will relocate the BFT, I will keep it simple I reckon from now -the more technical I get the more I stick my foot in my mouth. My 6 month old boy can fit both feet in his mouth - guess we know where he gets that from eh ? I have enough trouble putting the right antennas where they belong before I start moving em around.

Thanks for the comments - always appreciate ones that will help improve what I'm building!

Adam

OK - here are the rest of 310 to Yuma..





















And the real deal:





Oh and you can do the change on the BFT if you want for an Iraq car (if you want to). Here is the uncroped shot from above, 3 gun cars and a PC being loaded onto flatbeds, all the gun cars have the mod for the BFT (as per the great honking arrows)


SD

The Turret

Firstly I cut off all the details to be replaced with resin. Thats nearly everything except the lip around the hatch holes!

use a sharp knife to clean up the cuts, I am right handed but thats using the camera, so the left hand is posing only - always cut away from yourself for safety!

The cleaned turret

I start installing the periscopes,a nd assemble the hatches on thier hinges. they are quite workable with a single piece of 0.5mm wire running through the hinge, and only a bolt at each end glued on to hold in place

hatches installed - locate the closed hatch, fold the hinge back over and locate, mark, and then glue hinge in that spot where it fit best.


Now I add the anti slip surface texture. This is the Tamiya paint used at the top of the article. while wet I run a 1mm rod around major elements to create a clean line.

rear turret stowage bins and Ant mounts added.

Periscopes (I hope thats the name) added, also some footman loops starting to appear

Side stowage bins added. Very nice pieces of photo etch these - easy to make.

next I want to install the main guns mantle cover but it did'nt fit, realised I had to shave off another lip on each side of the opening (lip is recreated on the resin mantle cover).

The underside

the gun mantle and the first stage of the guns barrel is made in plastic, i assemble to test fit, and will work on sanding and filling the first barrel stages seams.

The handles behind the periscopes are made from 0.5mm wire.

thats it for tonight. Hopefully we get to the meat and potatoes tomorrow with the assembly of the BA !
Adam

Yet another informative build, Thanks Adam.

The tip about the Tamiya textured paint will be really helpful since I cant find that rustoleum textured spray here.

Nice work on the turret, I didn't really know Trumpeter had got so much wrong but I guess I'll leave that alone on my ASLAV for the time being.

Looking forward to seeing more

Really awesome work Adam!

Gota say i'm loving all the ASLAV builds on the site at the moment, its a subject ive pretty much ignored until now, but yours and Sam's work is definitely tempting me to have a crack at one, all of the little details that can be added make them a really attractive model once complete.

Nice clean work, thanks for posting!


cheers

Excellent work, great tutorials thanks for the effort. Inspirational to say the least.
Regards
Bill

Bar Armour

Thanks for the comments above - They help keep me motivated!

So now the BA. Firstly it is very very fragile. Did I mention it was fragile? Alot of test fitting coming up, so be carefull to read the instructions (something I'm real bad at). I have not built this before so will blog it as I go, and if I screw it up I guess you get a front row seat. Hopefully I nail it first time. Did I mention its fragile?

Cut the first frame from the photo etch sheet. I guess doesnt matter where you start, but you have to build several panels with the bars before lining them up and joining to the turret. I have chosen to make the largest frame first - frame "E"

Fold as directed to make the frame, use a tiny drop of adhesive to secure the end fold. the cross cut alignment grooves for the other rails go on the inside of the fold.

Cut the small rails from the PE sheet, and dip the end in a drop of thick superglue.

Spin it over and dip the second end in the same drop.

Fit the small rail into the alignment grooves in the frame. - the rail grooves go to the outside.

Keep going with as many small rails are needed to fill the grooves

Remember to put glue on both ends of the short rail


The built frame E!

Now to add the Bars - The kit has several pre cut lengths win a small bag, of 0.5mm rod.

Take the appropriate length ( they are cut oversize for a reason) and lay it across the rails, slotting into the grooves, with a little overhang at each end.

ok first problem - what adhsive to use? I think instructions talk about epoxy, but I get real messy with that. So Im going with very thin super glue as any thick stuff might leave lumps or blobs. SO to apply the adhesive I figure the best method is with a brush, this will be slow work so if I puddle some on scrap plastic it will cure before I can draw from the puddle. So I decided to decant the reminants of an old Tamiya extra thin into a newer bottle, and use the bottle and its brush for the super glue ! I hope this works.

I pour a good portion of super glue into the bottle (if this does'nt work its a lot of waste)

Label the bottle immeadiately so it doesnt et mixed up with the proper tamiya glue. I use a texta, but make a proper label once organised.


I use the Tamiya applicator to let the extra thin adhesive flow onto the joins.
It works quite good but the bristles in the brush cure But still its as good as a toothpick which is what I would usually use to apply thin adhesive to a model. (dip and poke)

repeat this for all four bars

Trime the overhang from each bar carefully. Did I mention it is Fragile?

The frame "E" is done!

Now it is important to keep each frame labelled - the instructions say to write it on. I have a different method. I place it in a small tackle box, with a piece of paper saying what frame part it is.

The tackle box needs 6 more frames before we can continue! This will take a while....

See you when their all made.

BA continued.

Talk about confusing. I probably spend 1 - 2 hours building last night, but 3 - 4 hours looking and checking and test fitting, for it took a while understand how to start this. Documenting was difficult, I took over 60 pictures, but not many make sense without detailled explanation of my experimentation.

Firstly heres the completed BA panels - this was surpeisingly quick to make - maybe just over an hour.

So I made the decision to locate the rear panel as it seemed like a good centering spot and point of reference to grow the other two sides from.
Heres the parts laid out / being test fitted for the rear panel "part E"

I first located it a bit off center to the left by accident, and it took a while to realise this and had to restart. Was only about 2mm but it made a big difference later on. I suggest putting the bottom bracket on first then the two upright hangers.

Then hang the panel centrally. It's important to note that the turret is on a flat surface without the base attached ( as per instructions). The BA is assembled around the turret on the flat surface so when finally glued together and lifted off, none of the panels will hang lower than the join line of the turret top and base. This is very important as IF any panels hang low, they will not clear the items on the deck of the vehicle and will foul the turrets movement.

As in the pic above, here we see two pieces of double sided tape on the board. the turret is placed in the middle and the bars are test fitted/ arranged around it. This helps check for alignment, and to ensure none of the panels got mixed up. Also the panels must be the rightway up - some have different angles at each end, so if inverted they will make a wierd frame when assembled.

test fitting


While test fitting I also checked the resin hangars for fit. Be careful removing from riser as they are brittle and I snapped one.

side view

once happy with the location of each element, I started to glue the back panels on - panels "DL and DR" glue straight onto part "E". Align on the table so the panels all have the same flat bottom edge, and glue from above. I did that on the double sided tape but took pic on the board.

I worked my way forward hanging the panels As I went. If a resin hangar was needed I would test fit that first and glue to turret, then fit the frame . The difficulty being the resin hangars must allow the frame to fit without fouling its baseline. you get into a chicken and egg senario where you have to decide to glue the hanger to the turret or the bar armour to the hanger. In the end after much mucking around I Just went for it and glued the resin to turret and then hung the BA panels.

another view of above pic

the left side done, panels "AL, BL, CL, DL, E and DR" fitted. This pic shows how true the base line is if you build on flat surface as Instructions show.

test fitted to turret base, mounted on vehicle , to see clearance. I achieved barely 0.5 - 1mm clearance, and the turret can rotate a full 360 so far without touching anything! I hope I make the right side work as well!

The hangers are attached to the bar frames by bolts, and the frames are also bolted together - i have not detailed this yet as I will fit all the little bolts once the main assembly is done.

thanks for sharing your techniques
looking good!

Nice write up so far, thanks!


cheers

Y'know, even if I never build a single piece of bar armor, your organization techniques (the labelling and the tackle box) will help me greatly in the future. Excellent pictures too! Thanks!

The right hand side is attached, same as the left.


The barrel is an easy assembly if you have the correct tools. Firstly I drill out the flash suppressor with a 0.5mm bit to center the hole. Then I drill with a 1.0mm bit, and finally a 1.5mm bit. The has the effect of revealing the flutes in the flash suppressor from the inside out. It is important to use the correect barrel and flash suppressor as the ASLAV one differs to the US Bushmaster.

Turret has other elements added. Lifting rings, periscope armoured covers attached, extra footman loops, coaxial MG. Also, The bolts joining all the bar armour panels are added. This takes a while but I find it difficult to get a clear image of them - when I finally nail It I will post one.
Turret mounted on Hull for test fit

Also some photo etch added above barrel and underneath some resin bolts added.

smoke dischargers added

side view

wire cutters added x2. I am told there ought to be a third one on the back of the turret, will confirm with reference, but for now will leave it off. Also added is the MG and PLatt swing arm mount. Very nice assembly.


Headlight Assembly
the photo etch parts added from the kit. I am surprised the conversion set does'nt have the resin and PE parts the others did, although this is the oldest of the 3(PC and Fitters), and maybe it will be updated one day. That said the kit parts are very clean and fit nice, Just some what questionable in thier accuracy!

the headlamps attached

another view

Resin kit MEAO update flashers and sirens added. (great to have this in the conversion). Right side view

left side view


Will concentrate on the wiring tomorrow, and finishing off the smaller or forgotten details (such as wire the tank telephone etc), footman loops, and a few other things. Almost there !

Adamskii

Some had it, some didn't. The ones that did were usually at the rear of the patrol with the turret facing 6 o'clock.


In the instructions, there is a drawing that shows how the tube supports are attached to the top and bottom of the bar armour panels and show where the bolts go.


It is actually 4, but who's counting. I HATE PE. So if I can get away without having to use it, I don't use it. One thing that Trumpeter did get almost right was the head light mounts and indicator mounts. The indicator mount is about 1 mm too high and the large front facing indicator is a bit out of shape and the mounting point for the back of the head light is wrong. But with this kit and every other one I have done, where do I stop when it comes to making it as accurate as possible and fix every part of the base kit????. At the time I scratch built the parts for this one, It was based on the Trumpeter LAV-25 kit and not the ASLAV kit. Then when the ASLAV kit hit the market I added a few things and removed a few things. As it was I could have added another 20 parts to the kit, but then the price really starts to get out of peoples reach.
This kit is currently being remastered (as is the PC) with a few new parts (headlight cluster etc) and even more detail. I did this kit almost 3 years ago and my casting has vastly improved since then from bench drop pouring to vacuum and pressure as has my scratch building ability. For instance, the barrel is now one piece, the headlights will be replaced with the same ones as the Fitter, and the periscopes will be done in clear resin. I don't intend to replace the kit PE headlight mounts, because as far as I'm concerned they are good enough.
As with all kits that I produce (and for Mouse House) they are constantly being updated as the moulds wear out and my scratch building becomes more refined. And in saying that, the bar armour will be done in resin. Dropping the price down to under $100 AUD.

Cheers Jason

Oh and PS There are not supposed to be any Tie down/Footman loops on the back of the turret top under the hatches. That spot of turret where there is no anti slip is for the shipping text for the turret weight. Any ASLAV that has any sort of marking or information text in and around the horizontal planes, has no anti slip.