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Armor/AFV: Allied - WWII
Armor and ground forces of the Allied forces during World War II.
Hosted by Darren Baker
First use of PE on M4A1
HONEYCUT
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Victoria, Australia
Joined: May 07, 2003
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Posted: Tuesday, February 28, 2006 - 11:14 AM UTC
Hey there
Here are a pic or two of my first use of Aber PE on my M4A1(75)
My general concensus is that half is pointless, and about half is useful, with only a small amount being "great"...

I actually think that the Aber instruction sheet will come in more handy than the PE it came with... Gives a good insight into the smaller lesser known parts and how they can be recreated (ie.scratchbuilt) in future...
Things like the periscopes/housings, tail lights, some pioneer tool brackets, new sight for commander are really great, and haven't done the sandshield attachment strips or support skids for the bogey housings yet, but they still look good...

Sorry for the slight blur... But you can see here the guards which I scratched myself, and the addition of the Aber PE horn front plate and front 'cowl'(?)
It appears to be slight Frankenstein of parts, with mix of Tamiya and resin tools, JR barrel etc. Whatever I had on hand...
Feel free to comment and advise...
Cheers
Brad
HONEYCUT
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Posted: Tuesday, February 28, 2006 - 11:36 AM UTC

Quoted Text

Brad,

don't cha' just love the fiddly bits ??

Step one, cut from fret without sending it into outer space, step two, create shape by folding said piece without turning it into a pretzel, step three get it exactly right, and glue it without the slightest shake, twist, or slip.




Hehe... welcome me to a hell many of you dwell in...
That said, a wise man [ok he works at the LHS] once told me to cover the whole PE fret with 'contact' (that's what it is called here... clear adhesive sheet roll which you cut to size and cover schoolbooks etc with. Then once cut, you can just press the part out onto a cutting mat front to back...
Donald99
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Hong Kong S.A.R. / 繁體
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Posted: Tuesday, February 28, 2006 - 01:44 PM UTC
Interesting idea that is well worth a try. Thanks for sharing.
PiotrS
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Warszawa, Poland
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Posted: Tuesday, February 28, 2006 - 02:10 PM UTC

Quoted Text


My general concensus is that half is pointless, and about half is useful, with only a small amount being "great"...


It's a standard ratio for most of newer PE sets from Aber or Part. I'd like to see smaller and cheaper versions just a bit more complicated than Eduard Zoom sets.
Mine Sherman update set was made of awful thick brass hard to cut and shape, it looks like yours is the same. Usually Aber makes much finer PE than this one.

Piotr
nato308
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Iowa, United States
Joined: October 23, 2003
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Posted: Tuesday, February 28, 2006 - 04:00 PM UTC
Lookin' good Brad... Yep, that certainly is the world of PE half useable, half worthless... What'cha gonna do... Although, I have gone back and used "scrap" PE for future projects. You will find a use for it. When I have done AFV's in the past I tend to use a combination of PE and scratch builds. Sometimes the flat PE just won't do for items that are to be round. Good work, mate...
tankmodeler
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Posted: Wednesday, March 01, 2006 - 09:21 AM UTC

Quoted Text


Quoted Text


My general concensus is that half is pointless, and about half is useful, with only a small amount being "great"...

It's a standard ratio for most of newer PE sets from Aber or Part. I'd like to see smaller and cheaper versions just a bit more complicated than Eduard Zoom sets.

I agree, which is why I really like to use my old On The Mark sets. They were amongst the first and I think still amonst the best. There was virtually nothing on the fret tha you couldn't or wouldn't use. And cheap, too. Did I mention cheap???

I still have a bunch and use them when I can.

Paul
HONEYCUT
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Victoria, Australia
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Posted: Wednesday, March 01, 2006 - 11:06 AM UTC

Quoted Text


I agree, which is why I really like to use my old On The Mark sets.

Do I read into this and guess that they are now OOP?
Have heard good things about them.
Hollowpoint
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Posted: Wednesday, March 01, 2006 - 12:00 PM UTC

Quoted Text

I actually think that the Aber instruction sheet will come in more handy than the PE it came with... Gives a good insight into the smaller lesser known parts and how they can be recreated (ie.scratchbuilt) in future...


I can't agree more. Same thing with Eduard ... though they are kind of fun to build (Eduard, not so much Aber).



Quoted Text

I agree, which is why I really like to use my old On The Mark sets. They were amongst the first and I think still amonst the best. There was virtually nothing on the fret tha you couldn't or wouldn't use. And cheap, too. Did I mention cheap???

I still have a bunch and use them when I can.


Paul, I love you (not that way). I just love what you said. FineMolds makes (made???? I haven't seen one in a while) a set that was almost better, in that it had headlight and tailight guards for TWO vehicles, plus tie-downs and other assorted bits to add to a Sherman or other U.S. made vehicle. They were more expensive than OTM, but you used the whole thing in two kits. I stil have many remnants of OTM sets and use them when I can. Trouble is, they are getting darn scarce these days.
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