Thanks for the ref's Peter. I still have a Meng Leopard 2A4 to build, so I may look into those chains.

Pasi,
Looking good!

It's a good day when you can look forward to weathering. So here I am painted, decals on, and sealed with Future.




Next stop on this trip is oils. Hatches have been left off preparing for crew. But the crew is stuck in Korea as mail between there and Australia is not happening.

Looking Great Gaz. Do you know that the steering is linked in paired axles - front two linked and the rear 2 linked, so when the vehicle is turning either 4 or 8 wheels turn together?

All 8 wheels can turn when the vehicle is at low speed (like on the box art), but at high speed only the forward four (as the vehicle is travelling) move.
Also, the forward/rearward most wheels turn out at a wider angle than the 2 inboard sets do.

As some one said, imagine the vehicle is sitting on the outer edge of a circle. Each wheel would be oriented to the section of the circle they sat on.

I have several builds on the go at the moment, but have done some more work on the M981 FIST.


Started on the Model Kasten Tracks which are very nice and comes with an excellent replacement drive sprocket.



Replaced the Tamiya inner idler (basically just a fat disk), with a spare from an Academy Fitter kit. That kit has parts not for use fortunately. The Academy one is better than the Tamiya offering (it couldn't be any worse) but it still pretty ordinary. Therefore some mod work has been done.


Tamiya kit part on the left, Academy unmodified part in the middle and my reworked part on the right.




As you can see, I also hollowed out the underneath of the 'hammerhead' unit and the curved side panels which are just a piece of curved steel plate in real life. Still in two minds about whether to fully scratch build this whole assembly as it is dimensionally Kaput as is...

Beautiful and impressive, Gaz. Very good work, congratulations.
Hmm... Peter, I see that your job is going great.
Mine is stagnant, but I will catch up soon. Good luck in the next stage.
Kalin

Peter,
Glad to see some progress on your work! I pretty much understand how the 8-wheel concept works. My suspension is just disconnected enough to allow me a little freedom while weatheing, and choosing wheel positions if I'm going to put it on a base. Love the [pics, though. Wish I had seen them earlier, I might have laid the driver's mirrors down.

Kalin,
Thank you!

Gary, Peter, nice progress

A few updates.

A bit nervous with this kit ! Some built steps impossible to make because PE material is too thin, too difficult to form and doesn't glue so I found alternatives to avoid become crazy.



Windows frames rebuilt in styrene. Front frame in photoetch with wrong shape on the right.



Antenna step with full of folds to make only with one part. NO WAY, EXIT !



My work with styrene sheets.



Wheel caps step also problematic, NO WAY, EXIT !



My work with Hobbyboss rim parts with width reduced.

Sorry Gaz, didn't realise you had it disconnected…

The Germans usually folded the mirrors down on their vehicles and the Brits remove the mirror from the stems. They only use them when they are in a populated area - what use they are is moot.

Nice work Alex. The frames certainly give a better appearance.

I hear you on the bird cage too, but etch rings are not too bad if you heat the brass first, then roll it around a suitable sized tube. I have some plastic electrical tube, wood dowel and copper tube for the task. To solder, I use a tube where I have cut out a wide notch about half way through the tube at the end. I tape the etch ring on the tube so the join is together over the notch. That way I can slip the soldering iron in the end of the tube and the notch lets me get behind the join in the ring to solder it.

If you want to make them from thin styrene strip, cut the strip and tape that down around some dowel or plastic tube. Pop that in hot water for a few minutes, then take it out press down on the join to make sure it has moulded round and then let it cool. When cold, it will have retained the circular shape. Just peel off the tape, remove the ring and glue the join with Tamiya extra thin cement.

Another option is make one of the etch ones and then cast it. I used an etch ring intended for the tread step on an SdKfz 7 Drive sprocket to make the ring, then made a mould of that so I could cast them in resin for other kits:

Thank you for techniques descriptions.

Creating a crew:


I ordered some Bundeswehr figures in resin from Korea... but they're stuck there.

So, I've taken these Miniart dudes and made berets and mickey mouse ears for them. Thankfully the Bundeswehr mechanized folks were wearing some low-detail coveralls.

They look great Gaz. No one will know anything different

Makes you wonder how they got their heads out, the heads sets are so wide!

The mickey mouse ears still need trimming. They were so small I decided to reduce them after they;d set. Otherwise, they'd go flying. I made them with sprue gates.

About to crack on with my M8 Greyhound.

Further weathering - a pin wash. And more figure work.

Gary, nice improvement on figures !

Excellent Gaz. Details are starting to pop nicely. Love the figure work.

Hi Stephen.

I hate to do this, but the 37mm armed M8 does not fit the rules, it is a max 25mm.
"Command vehicles (not gun tanks that have dual roles and have an active offensive capability- tanks primarily designed with light weapons only, up to 25mm, to defend itself in need.)"

I will move the main gun size into a separate rule as it is easy to miss with it included in the Command Tank line...


I have already Veto'd a SdKfz 250 with a Pak 35 on page one of the thread and put in this clarification:

"If this were a radio equipped version of the SdKfz 250 it would fit, but the Pak 35 is a bit bigger than I envisaged the defensive weaponry to be. I was think more along the lines of a maximum 25mm as in the LAV, otherwise we edging over into offensive capability, not defensive.

e.g. a British Humber Armoured car Mk 2 or Mk 3 is fine with the 15 mm Besa, but the Mk IV with a 37mm gun would not fit in."

Sorry Mate.

Peter;

I admit to certain confusion about what appears to my admittedly aged and enfeebled mind a certain amount of capricious ruling...

The US M-8 was specifically designed and built to be a rapid recon vehicle - a scout car. Its 37mm weapon was provided as a defensive weapon. It is very lightly armored and was never intended to be any sort of fire-support system - the 37mm gun was used as being on hand and able to provide more defensive fire-power then 0.50 cal did. So, I would think that the US M-8 would be a shoe-in here as a purpose-built scout car.

The Sd.Kfz 250/ and 251/ tracks armed with 37mm guns were built for and intended to be platoon-level command and fire-support vehicles - not recons. So I would concur their exclusion here, I think.

In contrast, a 250/9 with its hanglafette turret w/ 2cm KwK 38 gun was a purpose-built armored recon vehicle. As was the Aufklarungspanzer 38(t) w/ 2cm turret... And the Pz.II L Luchs with its 2cm KwK 38...

But the rules lend confusion... The French EBR was specifically built as a recon vehicle, and armed with a 75mm cannon (which fails under that 25mm rule). Likewise, the German WWII "Leopard" was proposed and designed as an armed recon tank... armed with a 5cm PaK 38 for up-level defense. As was the Sd.Kfz. 234/2 Puma recon car... And the Aufklarungspanzer 38(t) w/ L24 7.5cm gun also was built specifically as a recon vehicle.

The Bundeswehr's Spahpanzer Luchs - a purpose-designed scout car - is armed the same as the Marder I Infantry-Fighting-Vehicle, where that armament is provided expressly for fire-support... Defensive use in one vehicle by design, offensive use in another... By design.

Probably nobody will actually argue that small tankettes armed with MG were ever intended to be anything other then training vehicles (the Pz. 1a and 1b) or recon vehicles (various French and Italian and Russian and Japanese types, among others) - by role they were often used as recons; by armor and armament, not qualified to be called much of a true armored combatant.

But of course, armies everywhere and throughout time have "run what they brung" and made do with stuff on hand. So "recon" becomes a fuzzy label sometimes applied to purpose-builts like the US M-8 and other times applied to whatever vehicle might be available to do that role, regardless of gun size.

So, in effect, the 25mm rule rules out many purpose-built recon vehicles dating back to WWII and perhaps before!

Seems rather arbitrary and a bit confusing, to me! Armored cars as a class were originally primarily designed as armed scout vehicles - and rapidly moved to heavier armament then is possible on a motorcycle... but used per prevailing doctrine in the same recon role.

Just saying, Peter!

Cheers! Bob

And here I was considering bringing in an EBR - one of the heaviest-armed purpose-built wheeled recon vehicles ever!

Thanks for the input Bob. I appreciate your point of view and acknowledge very valid points.

The original intent of this group build was primarily focussed on observation but was expanded to include reporting of what was observed or to assist others see. The idea was artillery observation vehicles, Radar equipment, search lights (CDL. UHU, etc). The intent was that the vehicles in question would be lightly armed and therefore do what ever they could to avoid contact of any sort. Defensive weapons were personal weapons or Mg's, etc if needs be.

Many vehicles with smaller calibre cannon fit the observation and reporting role purpose but are not intended to take offensive action or stand their ground when attacked, so it was decided to up the ante slightly and allow some of these into the rules. Instead of ruling on every different kit choice, the choice of limiting the maximum size defensive weapon to a 25mm cannon was made as a cut off point to keep the build as close to observation with no or limited firepower vehicles only, but still give reasonable scope to guys to join.

In respect the EBR, whilst I personally would love to see you build it, as it is a kit I have often be tempted to buy myself, the Post war French doctrine was for vehicles like the EBR and AML 90 to fulfil a secondary role of battlefield support and take offensive action when required. This is why they were designed with higher calibre offensive weaponry. This secondary (dual) role approach is one of the reasons large calibre guns and vehicles of the type were ruled out for the build. It would be a perfect contender for the 'Got Wheels' build though.

I hope this makes it a bit easier for everyone to understand why the guideline of max 25mm is there.

Thanks for the reply, Peter!

I do occasionally get a bit ahead of myself - I need to step back and keep in mind that it's house rules and leader's intent and not some higher argument on definitions!

Pax and Cheers! Bob

Hi all,

A few pics

Improved running boards

Original parts have an antiskid surface molded on but a wrong type (cross), and also on the vertical area.

Antiskid surface is only on horizontal area.

Original antiskid was sanded off and replaced by a perforated type, in photo etch material (Trumpeter).





The MMK kit gives an american fuel can instead of a british water can. I've got a spare part from Blackdog.



One positive aspect of the containment situation is to have a lot of time to build models !

Looks Great Alex. A cross to holes is a pretty big difference!!

Nice addition with the water can too.

Thank you Peter.

Aloha All,

Nice work going on here all around.

If it's an acceptable subject, I'd go in on this campaign with the Tamiya M20?



Happy Modeling,
zon

Looks like a nice kit, Zon!