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Armor/AFV: Modern - USA
Modern Armor, AFVs, and Support vehicles.
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DML M103A1 - disappointment
Vodnik
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Warszawa, Poland
Joined: March 26, 2003
KitMaker: 4,342 posts
Armorama: 3,938 posts
Posted: Saturday, September 13, 2014 - 09:25 AM UTC
I finished the kit construction today! Well, almost - looking at the photos I noticed that I still need to add two small details, but it's just a couple of minutes of work. Now I need to paint it.





18Bravo
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Colorado, United States
Joined: January 20, 2005
KitMaker: 7,219 posts
Armorama: 6,097 posts
Posted: Saturday, September 13, 2014 - 09:35 AM UTC
Wow! What a huge difference when compared to some of the OOB builds out there. Very well done.
DaGreatQueeg
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Napier, New Zealand
Joined: August 01, 2005
KitMaker: 1,049 posts
Armorama: 841 posts
Posted: Saturday, September 13, 2014 - 10:45 AM UTC
And ......... that's how the kit should look. Really inspiring stuff Pawel !!!!!

cheers
Brent
M4A3E8Easy8
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Washington, United States
Joined: February 04, 2006
KitMaker: 302 posts
Armorama: 300 posts
Posted: Saturday, September 13, 2014 - 03:46 PM UTC
Looks great, too bad you can not just put it on a copy machine and send it to dragon and tell me to make the kit like that. Looking forward to the paint.
accelr8
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Washington, United States
Joined: March 17, 2005
KitMaker: 159 posts
Armorama: 156 posts
Posted: Saturday, September 13, 2014 - 04:18 PM UTC
Superb! Oh please oh please tell me you took WIP pictures of the hull modifications? I'm extremely curious to see how you resolved the length and turret ring location issues.
MikeyBugs95
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New York, United States
Joined: May 27, 2013
KitMaker: 2,210 posts
Armorama: 1,712 posts
Posted: Saturday, September 13, 2014 - 04:50 PM UTC
What I'm curious about is how much of that is just KIT. How much hasn't been modified?
Vodnik
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Warszawa, Poland
Joined: March 26, 2003
KitMaker: 4,342 posts
Armorama: 3,938 posts
Posted: Sunday, September 14, 2014 - 12:09 AM UTC

Quoted Text

What I'm curious about is how much of that is just KIT. How much hasn't been modified?

Very little... Suspension arms and other components and road wheels are original, although the wheels are far from perfect (but I just didn't think the kit was worth the investment in replacements). A few other details, like travel lock are original as well. But indeed almost every part required modification or replacement... Even tracks, even though they are Dragon DS tracks, are not from this kit, as the kit ones had much too much flash do be usable. As once again I decided against using aftermarket product, I used tracks from DML M48A3 kit lengthened slightly with a couple of links cut off from the kit tracks.
HeavyArty
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Florida, United States
Joined: May 16, 2002
KitMaker: 17,694 posts
Armorama: 13,742 posts
Posted: Sunday, September 14, 2014 - 12:32 AM UTC
It came out great. Are you going to do a feature on your site that explains to us mere mortals how you did it?
cbear55
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United States
Joined: October 23, 2007
KitMaker: 3 posts
Armorama: 3 posts
Posted: Sunday, September 14, 2014 - 01:45 AM UTC
Yes, please!

Chuck
Vodnik
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Warszawa, Poland
Joined: March 26, 2003
KitMaker: 4,342 posts
Armorama: 3,938 posts
Posted: Sunday, September 14, 2014 - 03:30 AM UTC

Quoted Text

It came out great. Are you going to do a feature on your site that explains to us mere mortals how you did it?


Sooner or later I probably will do it.

Now a few more pictures to show that it now looks more like M103A1, unlike the Dragon OOB caricature. My model is not exactly accurate - the turret is still a couple of millimeters too long (despite being already shortened significantly...), the sprocket wheel is still attached a bit too high and some details are not perfect. But I hope you agree that it is now significantly closer to the real thing - particularly the turret shape.










Extended and reshaped hull nose, shortened engine deck and completely remodeled turret top:



Flat rear hull plate, the kink eliminated:

tankmodeler
#417
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Ontario, Canada
Joined: March 01, 2004
KitMaker: 3,123 posts
Armorama: 2,539 posts
Posted: Sunday, September 14, 2014 - 04:17 AM UTC
Now _that's_ what an M103 looks like!

Well done, Pawel! Bloody well done!
rfbaer
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Texas, United States
Joined: June 12, 2007
KitMaker: 1,866 posts
Armorama: 1,696 posts
Posted: Sunday, September 14, 2014 - 04:34 AM UTC
Extraordinary modeling skill!
Now I know for sure I'll never build one, as I simply don't have the talent to duplicate this kind of work....
hugohuertas
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Buenos Aires, Argentina
Joined: January 26, 2007
KitMaker: 1,024 posts
Armorama: 1,013 posts
Posted: Sunday, September 14, 2014 - 04:58 AM UTC
Those comparative side views definitely proved me -if still needed- that Dragon's kit is a bad -and expensive- joke...

Amazing work, as always, Pawel!!!
TDFreak
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California, United States
Joined: May 19, 2010
KitMaker: 18 posts
Armorama: 17 posts
Posted: Monday, September 15, 2014 - 07:09 AM UTC

Quoted Text

It came out great. Are you going to do a feature on your site that explains to us mere mortals how you did it?


What he said. Hell!! I'll pay for it, real money!!
jvazquez
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New Jersey, United States
Joined: September 26, 2006
KitMaker: 857 posts
Armorama: 811 posts
Posted: Monday, September 15, 2014 - 07:49 AM UTC
Wow really nice!!

I'll be honest I had no real interest in this tank or kit, but watching your blog and how you reworked this thing is inspiring!
chumpo
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United States
Joined: August 30, 2010
KitMaker: 749 posts
Armorama: 521 posts
Posted: Monday, September 15, 2014 - 09:11 AM UTC
I say it's still easier to find a virgin in Estes than to do what you just did to this model .
adamf18
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South Carolina, United States
Joined: July 26, 2005
KitMaker: 1 posts
Armorama: 1 posts
Posted: Monday, September 15, 2014 - 12:24 PM UTC
Any pics of how you fixed the chassis?
MikeyBugs95
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New York, United States
Joined: May 27, 2013
KitMaker: 2,210 posts
Armorama: 1,712 posts
Posted: Monday, September 15, 2014 - 03:31 PM UTC

Quoted Text


Quoted Text

What I'm curious about is how much of that is just KIT. How much hasn't been modified?

Very little... Suspension arms and other components and road wheels are original, although the wheels are far from perfect (but I just didn't think the kit was worth the investment in replacements). A few other details, like travel lock are original as well. But indeed almost every part required modification or replacement... Even tracks, even though they are Dragon DS tracks, are not from this kit, as the kit ones had much too much flash do be usable. As once again I decided against using aftermarket product, I used tracks from DML M48A3 kit lengthened slightly with a couple of links cut off from the kit tracks.


Man... That's disheartening... That a company like Dragon simply can't get a kit like this up to their well established standards. It does not reflect well on their company values when they pull a stunt like this. If it was from a company like Revell, Zvezda, Italeri, or some other company I don't think it would cause such a fervor as it does being issued by Dragon. Now don't think that I'm saying that those companies put out bad product because they put out some pretty good but I don't think they are upto the modeling standards of Dragon. But it's a true shame that a company such as Dragon had to put out such POS' such as this kit when they didn't have to. It's practically intentional how they did this.

Sorry to be on a sour note and a tad off topic. Extraordinarily nice job fixing this kit Pawel. Think you might help any other company try and make a styrene M103 at all if they approach you?
djohannsen
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Virginia, United States
Joined: June 24, 2005
KitMaker: 364 posts
Armorama: 355 posts
Posted: Tuesday, September 16, 2014 - 03:08 AM UTC

Quoted Text

But I hope you agree that it is now significantly closer to the real thing - particularly the turret shape.

The shortened engine deck makes all the difference in the world!

Thank you sharing your completed work. Simply stunning what you have done.


Dave
pespada
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Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: June 13, 2014
KitMaker: 65 posts
Armorama: 60 posts
Posted: Tuesday, September 16, 2014 - 07:41 AM UTC
Nice but I'll get the new Voyager set--it's not how you start but how you finish...
tankmodeler
#417
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Ontario, Canada
Joined: March 01, 2004
KitMaker: 3,123 posts
Armorama: 2,539 posts
Posted: Tuesday, September 16, 2014 - 09:19 AM UTC

Quoted Text

I say it's still easier to find a virgin in Estes than to do what you just did to this model .


Soooo, not to get too far off topic, but where, exactly, is this town "Estes" you speak of??

:-)
hugohuertas
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Buenos Aires, Argentina
Joined: January 26, 2007
KitMaker: 1,024 posts
Armorama: 1,013 posts
Posted: Tuesday, September 16, 2014 - 09:27 AM UTC

Quoted Text

Nice but I'll get the new Voyager set--it's not how you start but how you finish...



And how will the Voyager set fix the huge errors of the base kit?
djohannsen
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Virginia, United States
Joined: June 24, 2005
KitMaker: 364 posts
Armorama: 355 posts
Posted: Tuesday, September 16, 2014 - 12:45 PM UTC

Quoted Text


Soooo, not to get too far off topic, but where, exactly, is this town "Estes" you speak of??

:-)


Estes Park, Colorado?
Vodnik
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Warszawa, Poland
Joined: March 26, 2003
KitMaker: 4,342 posts
Armorama: 3,938 posts
Posted: Tuesday, September 16, 2014 - 06:34 PM UTC

Quoted Text

Nice but I'll get the new Voyager set--it's not how you start but how you finish...

And the Voyager set will give you a new turret, new gun mantlet and a new hull with a new engine deck?... You get a gun barrel, but I don't know if it is as accurate in length as the RB Model part.

Adding a few photoetched brass pieces to the pile of sh*t will not change the fact, that it will still be a pile of sh*t, just a bit more shiny...

Of course you can create a very nice model adding just the Voyager set, but in fact so you can just with the Dragon kit out of the box. But you will not get a reasonable M103A1 scale model / replica from it without serious plastic surgery...
MikeyBugs95
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New York, United States
Joined: May 27, 2013
KitMaker: 2,210 posts
Armorama: 1,712 posts
Posted: Tuesday, September 16, 2014 - 06:39 PM UTC

Quoted Text

Adding a few photoetched pieces to the pile of sh*t will not change the fact, that it will still be a pile of sh*t, just a bit more shiny...


But you know what they say: "Better a shiny turd than just a regular turd."
 _GOTOTOP