Hello everybody,

This will be my first real build log here on Armorama, hompefully you will all enjoy.

If I didn't have enough builds going on all at once I decided to throw this one in the mix as well. My goal is to see if I can get it built, painted, and weathered before the AMPS East show in September.



I've pretty much got the lower chassis complete in about 4 hours time. Here's a quick shot just so you get an idea of how big (small) this vehicle is in 1/35 scale.



Overall the details are very nice. There are a few fragile pieces that require very careful removal from the sprue and even more careful handling when sanding. There are a few very good build reviews already available for this kit so I knew about the instructions having the axles backwards but the one thing I picked up on my own so far was this:
To me the instructions show that the fan belts need to rest completely flush against the fan.


At this point I stopped and started dry fitting things.

I found that if I glued the fan belt assembly flush against the fan then everything would get out of wack when I glued the rest of it together. My solution:
Pull the assembly out just a bit to make sure it all fits snug.


After I got that set up I decided to do a bit more dryfitting just to make sure I like the fit of everything. There's some sanding needed here and there but it won't be a problem getting this to all line up nice. here are a few pics just to give you an idea of the details on this and a glimpse at what she will look like.




As always, thanks for following along!

Cool. Nice build so far, I'm going to follow this because I plan on getting the Academy M1151 and I may use this for a little help later on.

Nice choice Adam....it's a great kit. The Academy M1151 is also a great kit IMO Michael. Great to see so many new Humvees around.

Hey guys, thanks for all the kind words!

Somewhere between making chicken alfredo and burping the babay I was able to get the chassis build completed tonight. Just as a quick heads up to anybody who may decide to build this, pay attention to the instructions on the rear bumper where the spare tire mount goes. It can be confusing because the instructions have you drill the holes for the mount on page one and don't have you install it until the last page.




Okay, here are pictures of the front and rear of the chassis. Details appear pretty crisp to me. ;D






As always, thanks for checking out my progress!

Hey guys,

So I have to apologize, I inadvertently lied t you all. I thought the lower chassis was done last night but it wasn't. The good news is that tonight I got some more work done.

Front end:




Again, this is all dryfit to give an impression of the overall quality of the kit. I have to say I'm very pleased with the way everything is going together.

As always, thanks for stopping by!

looking good, Adam

Jay

Hey guys,
I couldn't stop myself from breaking out the airbrush and the AK and starting paint on this.









(I have since gone back and bent the windshield wiper back into place)

Thanks for stopping by!

Looking great.... Glad you got to play w the airbrush early, but what's the AK? Like the rifle ? Granted I've felt like that before!

AK Interactive is a company that makes pigments and other weathering products.

Am I seeing one wheel and tread is facing a different direction than the other three (front right)?

Are the wheels just placed on and it can be swapped for the spare in the back?

Just pointing it out, not being offensive.

Keith.

Keith, no worries on pointing out the tread pattern. I probably should have told you guys earlier that the wheels are just tacked on. While the Bronco wheels do go together nicely I've read in a few places that their not accurate reproductions of the real thing. I've ordered a set of resin replacements that should look a little more accurate.

I was able to do some more work on this over the last few days. I've been slowly plugging away at the interior, rear truck lid, and weathered the hood up a bit.








Thanks for stopping by!

Sorry it's not a bigger update tonight. I spent about 6 hours at my wife's parents house yesterday. They have some very good family friends in from Bristol, England and we had dinner etc. Was a great time but no real bench time was had yesterday and tonight I'm exhausted. Anyways, here's what the kit .50 looks like all dressed up in RB model.





I couldn't be happier with the results!

The Def Models resin wheels came in today and I couldn't stop myself from getting some color on them! Sorry for the bad picture. My digital camera was upstairs and I didn't feel like getting it.



I still have to put a coat of future over the whole thing to seal it all up and then I can do some washes etc.

P.s. I think I've now used my wife's hairdryer more than she has! haha Without that thing I'd still be waiting for the primer to dry.