Hello All

I'm currently building the DML "1941"-version T-34 and have a couple of questions:

1) Any ideas as to what color the hull area under the rear engine ventilation hood should be? The only color pics I could find were in the second Osprey book, in which Señior Jimenez painted his rust. Or maybe he was going for rust over red-oxide primer?

2) Should the M/G mantlet on the front glacis have a rougher, cast texture than the surrounding plate? None of the walkarounds or references I have show it clearly enough for me to be able to decide.

Thanks in advance

d.v

I'm fairly sure it was green underneath, as any brighter colour underneath i believe would be too visible
here are some photos from a t34 85.from my own personal collection But the principles are the same.

Thanks, great photos! In RE: the color question, that's sort of what I figured. There's a good shot of the under-deck area in Michulec & Zientarzewski's Mythic Weapon and it looks to be the same color as the surrounding hull. Admittedly it's of a cooked example, but barring any evidence to the contrary I'll go ahead and make it green.

Now... I don't suppose you happen to know if the early external "tool box" fuel-tanks had any visible plumbing, do you...??

d.v

DV,
The box-style fuel cells were simply extra cans and had no plumbing whatsoever. The crew had to transfer the fuel from cell to tank via handpumps (or electric ...?) As for the area beneath the engine mesh, I do believe this was finished in the standard green as being left red-lead primer would have been very obvious.

Kirchoff

Hey D.V.,

The collor of the rear engine ventilation hood was the hull collor by the early ones, the later ones were only in primer collor with some overspray of the hullcollor.

There is a difference between the vertical rear engine ventilation louvers amd the horizantal ones. The early ones were a bit nicer and busy crafted. The later was simplefided and a bit rougher.

The model 1941 MG mantlet was not that rough casted. They were not supersmooth, but still nice. Later craftmanship was at a low level and very rough.

Early fuel boxes dont have plumbing.

Good investment to buy the osprey book of Modeling the T-34/76.

Regards,

Remco

http://svsm.org/gallery/T-34-76

http://www.fotovalkirumodelism.com/index.php?cat=5

http://www.primeportal.net/tanks/t-34.htm

http://dishmodels.ru/wlk_main.htm?es=f

http://www.thetankmaster.com/tanks.asp

http://scalemodels.ru/modules/photo/viewcat_cid_131.html




















Hi Dutch

I hope those links can help you

The M/G mantlet on the front glacis was rough if it was mounted

External fuel cells didnt 'have plumbings

Regarding the hull area under the rear engine ventilation hood, I didn't undrestand what did you mean exactly. T-34 engine bay color was Ivory, but in that position you should see the the engine behind the grill





cheers

I am confused a bit, there is no MG mantlet on a 1941 T-34. You should just have the MG barrel sticking out of the gimble (ball) assembly. Now if you mean the hood that comes out of the front hull plate that the MG is mounted in then yes that is a rougher cast then the rolled steel plate of the front hull armor, but not too rough. As mentioned earlier, early Russian castings were of a higher quality than later war ones.

Roy

Thanks Mike, I figured it was something like that but it's hard to tell with most of the ref photos I've seen being of examples which had attracted too much attention from the boys in feldgrau.

BTW, loved your "Sniper" in the Osprey book; totally amazing. Reminded me of my buddies on the WWI forum who accuse each other of secretly owning a Transmogrifier that simply shrinks real aeroplanes & AFVs down to scale percentages of their former selves...

d.v

Remco, dank u zeer from a transplanted Hollander (my family left Appeldoorn for the New World about 1647). I'm not worried about the engine compartment itself, only the deck under the screen. But maybe on my next T-34 I'll put in an engine!

Mauro, great links and photos, pictures 3 and 5 are of the M/G mount I was referring to. They also show that the weld bead had a gap underneath, which I'd seen mentioned in the Osprey book but was never able to clearly see. Mille grazie!

Roy, you were right, of course, the part I was talking about wasn't a "mantlet", it was just the housing on the hull itself. Thanks for the correction & help.

d.v

D.V.,

Graag gedaan. (You're welcome)
Its nice to see that the transplanted Hollander is doing fine. I reed you're artcle wrong. i thought that you mean the upper deck with the louvre blinds on the upper deck. My wrong...

If you want to make a T-34 with interrior (everything inside) i suguest the AFV club T-34. Compare to the Dragon kits, they're quite cheap. Its even intersting to make a mix of the Dragon and the AFV club, because a resin engine is almost the price of the AFV club kit. And you have the whole interrior. Here is a T-34 from Dragon (give or take a little) 45 Euro, The AFV club kit is 35 euro and only a resin T-34 engine is 25-30 Euro.

I,ve bin on vacation twice to the states. Orlando (the parks). Love halloween there. From where in the states are you from?

Regards,

Remco