Geez Steve... you do know there's an EDIT button, right?

And Darren, are you the new man in charge?

Good deal!










~ Jeff

Edit button? I was just having one of those moments where I couldn't get my head around anything. Sometimes the simple stuff just slips out of reach I guess, I'm all squared away now, and making ground on the actual model as well.

Believe it or not that paint job is rattle can Rustolium gray primer i use it for all my pre 43 German vehicles
As far as the 2 indents go i didnt even notice them until you mentioned it I'll have to correct that
I have located some spare parts from a Tamiya Sd.Kfz.7/1 20mm Flakvierling which was dated 1972 and added them to this build Ill have some pictures of that up tomorrow
@ Robert great work on that vacu kit that is something i will never attempt
but everyone seems to be making some great progress on their old plastic kits, keep up the good work this is a short campaign

Here are some in progress photos, not much to this build I will be finishing up soon.





I'll post more photos soon.

looks good Andrew you need to add all the storage to that little guy

Ok progress,
The interior, not as nice as Garys Marder over at the Marder campaign but i used his build to assist me here

And here it is with Futures awaiting decals



Hope to wrap this one up by the end of the week

Here's my entry for this campaign.







Finding a kit I still had in the stash with molds older than 2000 was harder than I thought.

Nice work Sal!

I started sanding down the filler and was pretty much finished when I tested the fit of the nose section and found that the body needed to be spread top to bottom to match. In the process of doing this I was squeezing the sides together and the seam by the gun opened up so I found out how much the top and bottom needed to be apart and glued in a spacer then re-glued the seam by the gun.

Cheers Rob.

Paul, thanks for the words of encouragement!

I made good progress on the wheels and tracks today, and I can say the worst is over:



Let me see... drilling seemed to be best option to get around the tight-fitting external wheel halves. But in the end I
decided against it -- so I went on to cut the stubs and just eyeball the alignment. Apparently I found it faster and easier in ensuring that all the wheels are level on the surface.



The kit has link and length tracks. Quite brittle I may say, but I find this a better compromise than rubber band tracks for a kit this age. As expected the drive gear teeth proved to be too big for the tracks to sit snugly. Between sanding them down to fit and totally cutting them off, I went for the latter:



Well, one of the return rollers is missing, and I've also thought about sagging the track -- but having the schurzen on sure proves to be a good solution to it!

I am quite happy with today's results, moreso that it sits quite flat on the surface:



Finally I've figured out why I was having difficulty placing the on-board tools. Apparently the steps in the instruction sheet are not in the proper sequence of the build -- this I find weird.

Anyways, back to the build...

Cheers,

Tat

Hi all,
nice to see you are sticking at these oldies, and I am ashamed that I haven´t even sorted out what to do:

@Andrew: nice start and like Sal said there´s a tonne of stowage to go on there.

@Sal: nice progress mate and please remember this is all just for fun, so don´t go comparing yourself.

@Matt: another shake and bake from the big T,. I never did get that kit, I´ll watch this closely and maybe buy one later.

@Rob: oh boy, I do not envy you on this one.

@Tat: Told you so!

I´ve just had an idea, you guys choose my build. Here´s some of what´s in the stash:

Italeri Hetzer 1/35 1980
Revell (ex Dragon) T80 1/35 ????
Tamiya Leopard 1/35 1975
Dragon Befehlspanther 1/35
Tamiya Bren carrier 1/35
Tamiya LRDG Chevy 1/35
Tamiya SAS Jeep 1/35
Tamiya Gloster Meteor 1/48 1997
Zvezda T-60 1/35 1996


Paul

@ Sal
It really is not that hard. And a few selfmade tools make the work even easier. Just a bit more putty, sanding and scratchbuilding then with the average kit. Only problem is that they are getting harder to get hold of and if you find them they are bloody expensive as well.
Nice work on the Wespe by the way. Love that fightingcompartment. Also great camo job you did. A bit of overspray but that can be fixed without any troubles during weathering.

@ Andrew nice work on the Jeep. Currently also a working on one it still is a very good kit from Tamiya.

@ Matt
Sweet that is one of those vehicles that has been on my wants list for years and somehow never got round buying it.
Will watch that one closely maybe it will finally make it to my stash.

@ Rob
That Jet is really taking shape. Looking forward to the rest.

@ Tat
I had to go back to see what scale that kit was ad I have to say that is one clunky sprocket. But your work proved to be worth it. It is a nice looking chassis. Looking forward to the superstructure.

Again I have an update. looking at other peoples progress it seems like very small steps every update. But a lot of the work is unseen. One side of the interior is currently detailed. The other will be detailed in the same way. And then the benches will get their threatment. I decided to scratchbuilt those as well as the original seats were not that detailed and did not fit in the car with the detailing of the interiorpanels.
Left door without details, Right door with details and window in opened position.


Top no interior detailing, bottom with interior detailing.





More to follow soon

@ Paul
I'd vote for the Italeri Hetzer. It is a nice kit, And a quick built as well. Will built up into a nice vehicle.

@Robert and @Paul:

Didn't think there was such a draw for the M8. I've gotten the first couple of steps done, the lower suspension, etc. Will have photos up later. I've done the 1/35 Tamiya M20, which was a real gem to build. The "A", "B" and "C" sprues are identical, which is most of the hull, the interior (sparse as it is) and the suspension, transmission and wheels/tires.

I will probably even use the kit supplied commander figure. My painting skills on figures aren't nearly what I would like them to be, and I don't really want to muck up an expensive (even if older) resin guy.

@Paul
I think you should do either the Italeri Hetzer, or the Tamiya Bren Carrier. Probably leaning towards the Hetzer more though if only because it's earlier in the "Jurassic" period.

As promised, photos of last night's efforts. Steps 1-3 completed:



Fit between the axles and the lower suspension both front and rear are a little less than perfect, similar to the M20:







Undercarriage as a whole fits well to the lower body of the M8, but the armored cover sitting mid-body doesn't quite match up to the hull. I could have also had a hand in that though, I sheared off the two locating pins by mistake:



Lots of ejector pin knockouts will need filling. Some of the larger ones will get plastic card discs instead of the usual Mr. Putty:



Here's the M20 I did back in 2007 or 2008:

Nice builds guys -- why do I get the feeling that this campaign is running like a kit review? Or better yet an SBS? -- they're all good, keep 'em coming!

Sal, you amaze me with your speed in completing one campaign after another!

Robert, Paul, thanks for the comments. Barring any other kit issues, I am targetting to complete the build part by the weekend

Robert, that kit's really coming into shape! Man I couldn't see myself taking on a vacu-form one with all the scratch-building required. I may as well just scratch my head in the process!

Paul, I'd vote for the Hetzer as well -- maybe with disc camo (?) Hey, you can check on Robert's walkaround pics posted a couple of days back as additional reference. Good luck on your build!

Cheers

Tat

hello, here is my progress
steph

Thanks for the complements guys, Tat I don't work (retired) so I have nothing to do all day or night for that matter except school 2 days a week

Here is some more progress shots with decals added and a black wash added camo netting, muzzle cover



added some more weathering and some mud to the lower hull this morning This one is almost a wrap

Paul,
It's not too bad considering how old it is, having said that I do know I passed on this when I first came across it and the only reason I have it is I read a review of the F-15E kit and this is all I could find at the store did not realize it was such an old kit. but it should still come out nice.

Robert, Thanks!

I could not leave the engine nozzles the way they came so I started modifying one, I cut the representation of the control arms off and started to carve off what's not needed with a knife and a Mission Models chisel I like that tool.
The one on the right is untouched, also got some more filler on.

Cheers Rob.

Well guys, I added some mud and dirt mixture and then gave the lower half a Burnt Umber wash and Im ready to call this one finished




Tow cable, outer armor box, first aid box, personnel gear, headphones and decals all came from the spare parts box
Hope you like it comments and suggestions are always welcome

@ Steph: nice progress there my friend. Are you going North Africa or European with painting scheme?

@ Sal: Congrats on your completion, looks cool the way it´s turned out. Now build my entry please so that I can concentrate on another build

Well by popular demand I shall do the Hetzer. I am not looking forward to the tracks mind

Keep up the good work

Paul

Sal, Looks great.

Paul, Good to see you're going with the Hetzer. Dragon had an individual track set for their early Panzer 38(t) vehicles, which were based on the Italeri molds. I know it's pushing the spirit of the campaign (stash clean-out), but they could be used as a replacement later.

BTW, I should have some progress pictures up on the Bergepanzer 4 this weekend.

Hello,
very nice model SAL.
PAUL, I'll make a decoration EUROPEAN because I do not know if the MKII been in service in North Africa. the hetzer very good idea (this is the first kit in 1:35 I build)
steph

Hello,

Just a quick update.

Had to do putty work on the nasty gap after both upper and lower hulls were joined.



Other than that, progress was ok. Next came the on-board tools and the spare wheel racks.





Only in this pic have I noticed that even the upper hull has some warping. Anyways the schurzen should hide that from view.

I then worked on thinning the schurzen. I told myself maybe I should try taking one of the panels off -- so I carved one out and retained the hanger:







The results look encouraging so I'm planning something similar for the other side.

Cheers,

Tat

Finally got going on the Gaz



Green base coat on and tyres painted.



Figures glued and first flesh colour applied.



Mighty impressive builds going on here.

Sal doesn't waste time.

Well here we go.

First off I'll post the sprue picture of the Panzer II. I thought I had uploaded it with the rest of the start pictures but didn't. The decals are trashed so I'll be digging something out of the decals box to use. I'll be building it as an ausf. F and going for a gray tank with winter camo, operating in LAH. I've got plans to use this one later with a Panzer III/J. If you have Squadron's "SS Armor" you'll see the inspiration on the front cover.


Bergepanzer IV time. I went in to building this one with a very low opinion of this conversion. The instructions are vague, at best. Some of the parts are damaged. I think the PE is over-engineered to the point of being vindictive. In all seriousness, I think some of this one were made much more difficult than they needed to be.

First up is breaking down the base kit. It's mostly an old Academy Panzer IV/H. I had some extra roadwheels in the spares so there's a variety of colors there. I'll dress it up. I doubt it'll be white after it's done. If I can get some old Dragon Panzer 3/4 tracks to fit it, I might use those.


I don't like to work with resin because it irritates my sinuses. I went ahead ans strarted removing the resin pieces at once, seperating them or marking them.The kit was either short a length of tubing or I misplaced it. I had a spare length from a Verlinden M113 Dozer Conversion so I used it.


Starting assembly.

I decided to build this in subassemblies. I quickly tossed that out and focused around the crane. While the super glue was setting, I'd jump over to other components like the block and tackle, storage racks, and the pully wheels.

I went ahead and started to mount the ends to the tubing. I mounted the wooden turret ring cover. The turret ring for the Academy kit is larger than the one for the Italeri kit (recommended kit for the conversion). The tabs were still showing so I had to fill them.


The instructions only give lengths for the main crane support pole and the crane arm. The other two you have to eyeball them. Same with the towing rig...no lengths given.



In spite of the horrible instructions, the crane did come together.


The block & tackle assembly is under construction along with the crane support and tow arms storage bracket. I saved the storage bracket for last because it is the part I least relish assembling.

At this point I wish I could say that I've had a change of heart on this conversion. Unfortunately, I still have a low opinion of it. I just want to finish it up and be done with it. I get started on the Panzer II and begin the healing process.

I’ve finally got the build complete on my 110 and have begun the painting process. I’ve decided to go with the ever so simple Israeli scheme as it will weather up nicely. Base paint was used with Life Color Israeli sand green followed by a panel fading using Vallejo light mud. The white bands were pre paint and masked before the base color. I’ve also applied the only decal on the model using a spare from AFV Club’s Shot Cal bumper code. I’ll let this dry over night and begin the weathering tomorrow.