_GOTOBOTTOM
Armor/AFV: AA/AT/Artillery
For discussions about artillery and anti-aircraft or anti-tank guns.
Hosted by Darren Baker
Curse of the Dragon Priest!!
Namabiiru
Staff MemberAssociate Editor
MODEL SHIPWRIGHTS
#399
Visit this Community
Rhode Island, United States
Joined: March 05, 2014
KitMaker: 2,888 posts
Armorama: 1,920 posts
Posted: Monday, September 05, 2016 - 12:55 AM UTC
Working on DML's M7 Priest Mid Production (6637). Of course everyone knows DML instructions have their issues, and this kit has proved no different. Mostly the drawings of the complex assemblies just aren't sufficiently clear, but nothing that couldn't be overcome with some careful study--until it came time to put on the front gun shields(step 7).

After struggling unsuccessfully for over two hours trying to figure out a way to get the gun shields to go on properly I finally figured out that parts A29 and A30 must belong to a different variant of the gun.



After carefully carving those two pieces out--no easy task given the fragile nature of the assembly--the gun shields went on in less than ten minutes. Probably would have been even quicker if I had been working with virgin mating surfaces.

Anyway, a warning to anyone looking to build a Dragon Priest of their own. It's a nicely detailed kit, but the instructions have got some major problems.

jasegreene
Visit this Community
Florida, United States
Joined: October 21, 2013
KitMaker: 751 posts
Armorama: 751 posts
Posted: Monday, September 05, 2016 - 01:21 AM UTC
reminds me so much of dragon's marder ii when i went to work on the gun shield,that was nothing but a nightmare.thanks for the advice and tips.
Biggles2
Visit this Community
Quebec, Canada
Joined: January 01, 2004
KitMaker: 7,600 posts
Armorama: 6,110 posts
Posted: Monday, September 05, 2016 - 01:24 AM UTC
I ran into that problem too. I think those parts only go on the field version of the gun. With those parts in place, it makes it impossible to fit the shield. I think Dragon simply re-used some assembly diagrams from their field version of the 105 mm kit without editing them.
Tojo72
Visit this Community
North Carolina, United States
Joined: June 06, 2006
KitMaker: 4,691 posts
Armorama: 3,509 posts
Posted: Monday, September 05, 2016 - 01:55 AM UTC
So the bottom line is,don't use A-29 and A-30 ?

Thanks
ericadeane
Visit this Community
Michigan, United States
Joined: October 28, 2002
KitMaker: 4,021 posts
Armorama: 3,947 posts
Posted: Monday, September 05, 2016 - 08:26 AM UTC
Correct -- those are for mounting the gun shield for the towed version -- not the M7 Self propelled mount.
2-32sherman
Visit this Community
Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany
Joined: February 14, 2003
KitMaker: 64 posts
Armorama: 59 posts
Posted: Monday, September 05, 2016 - 12:57 PM UTC
As explained by Mark, never ever trust DRAGON's instructions.

It's always the same with DRAGON!

Recently I finished the DRAGON M60 MBT.
The instructions tell you to use the square rear lights, that are an spin-off of their M48A3 Model B. The correct half-round shaped are supplied also! But no word. that they should be used! Not to mention the other faults! The faults were named at an earlier posting!

Greets

Hank
M4A1Sherman
Visit this Community
New York, United States
Joined: May 02, 2013
KitMaker: 4,403 posts
Armorama: 4,078 posts
Posted: Monday, September 05, 2016 - 04:11 PM UTC

Quoted Text

Working on DML's M7 Priest Mid Production (6637). Of course everyone knows DML instructions have their issues, and this kit has proved no different. Mostly the drawings of the complex assemblies just aren't sufficiently clear, but nothing that couldn't be overcome with some careful study--until it came time to put on the front gun shields(step 7).

After struggling unsuccessfully for over two hours trying to figure out a way to get the gun shields to go on properly I finally figured out that parts A29 and A30 must belong to a different variant of the gun.



After carefully carving those two pieces out--no easy task given the fragile nature of the assembly--the gun shields went on in less than ten minutes. Probably would have been even quicker if I had been working with virgin mating surfaces.

Anyway, a warning to anyone looking to build a Dragon Priest of their own. It's a nicely detailed kit, but the instructions have got some major problems.



Hi!

I hear all of this! You'd think that DRAGON COULD have included a separate little "CORRECTION!!!" notice on a "Post-It"-sized piece of paper, reading:

"DO NOT USE PARTS A29 & A30", but nooooo...

Aside of that, I thought BOTH of their M7s were pretty darned good kits...
Namabiiru
Staff MemberAssociate Editor
MODEL SHIPWRIGHTS
#399
Visit this Community
Rhode Island, United States
Joined: March 05, 2014
KitMaker: 2,888 posts
Armorama: 1,920 posts
Posted: Monday, September 05, 2016 - 04:18 PM UTC
Instructions aside, it is proving to be a good kit. Some pretty fiddly parts, but that's the price for the level of detail.

How hard/costly would it be for DML to pull some kid off the street and say "Build this, and tell us about any problems you run into"?

Garrand
Visit this Community
Pennsylvania, United States
Joined: October 27, 2009
KitMaker: 195 posts
Armorama: 194 posts
Posted: Tuesday, September 06, 2016 - 12:26 AM UTC

Quoted Text

As explained by Mark, never ever trust DRAGON's instructions.

It's always the same with DRAGON!

Recently I finished the DRAGON M60 MBT.
The instructions tell you to use the square rear lights, that are an spin-off of their M48A3 Model B. The correct half-round shaped are supplied also! But no word. that they should be used! Not to mention the other faults! The faults were named at an earlier posting!

Greets

Hank


Awww, crap! Already well ahead of that phase in my build, and not something I picked up with my references. Wondering if I can still pull them off...

Damon.
americanpanzer
Visit this Community
Iowa, United States
Joined: May 12, 2014
KitMaker: 542 posts
Armorama: 539 posts
Posted: Tuesday, September 06, 2016 - 12:30 AM UTC
Dragon has some good stuff but that issue (instructions) and price keeps me from buying a lot of their stuff (unless I get it cheap at a contest or sale); that being said many of their kits do build up into some nice subjects
Namabiiru
Staff MemberAssociate Editor
MODEL SHIPWRIGHTS
#399
Visit this Community
Rhode Island, United States
Joined: March 05, 2014
KitMaker: 2,888 posts
Armorama: 1,920 posts
Posted: Tuesday, September 06, 2016 - 02:38 AM UTC

Quoted Text


Quoted Text

As explained by Mark, never ever trust DRAGON's instructions.

It's always the same with DRAGON!

Recently I finished the DRAGON M60 MBT.
The instructions tell you to use the square rear lights, that are an spin-off of their M48A3 Model B. The correct half-round shaped are supplied also! But no word. that they should be used! Not to mention the other faults! The faults were named at an earlier posting!

Greets

Hank


Awww, crap! Already well ahead of that phase in my build, and not something I picked up with my references. Wondering if I can still pull them off...

Damon.


Damon,
I used a pair of nippers (with a flat face--not wire cutters) to cut away as much of those parts as possible, then an exacto chisel blade to plane the mating surfaces down flat. If you haven't already attached parts C7 and C8 I recommend attaching them to the shields first (instead of to the gun carriage as the instructions show). This will make it easier to ensure the upper joints--the ones that are most visible--are aligned correctly. Then the bases of parts C7 and C8 can be flexed to the correct location on the gun carriage once the shields have been correctly installed.

I also found that attaching C18 to one or the other of the gun shields (being careful to ensure it is square) before installing the shields helps ensure the shields are aligned nice and square to the gun carriage. It was C18 that finally convinced me there was no way that the instructions could be correct. Fortunately, I figured it out before the shields were so set that they couldn't be easily removed.

Hope this helps.

 _GOTOTOP