I’m working on a 1'72 tiger and need some advice on the rubber tracks.
First what’s the best way to put them on? I don’t think I can put them one and then fit the drive wheel in place like I’ve done with 1/32 kits due to the tigers wheel layout (I cant fit the drive wheel in place .)
They seem to be kind of stretchy so I think I could stretch them enough to get them on but I don’t know how to go about painting the tops of them if the tight space then.

Also what’s the best way to make them sag?

Thanks.

Jacob - Good luck working them into place, that just takes some time and effort, I'm sure you'll be successful.

As to painting, try painting them before you put them in place and then doing "touch up"?

As to making them "sag", I use discreetly place straight pins, through the hull, to hold them down on to the road wheels. I used to sew them on but that's a pain.





But, what do I know, I'm an aircraft guy :-)

Jacob,
You don't mention what brand of manufacturer made you tiger, so I can only guess that it is a Hasegawa, or a Dragon Tiger.
These are the only ones that I can think of that have a Rubber Band type of track, unless of course you have the old Airfix, and possibly aNitto/Fujimi kit which are 1/76.
Anyway the best ways to make track sag are;
#1 as Chuck stated, metal pins in the right locations
(this may not be practicle with the Dragon metal hull)
#2 Sewing with black thread through the middle of the track (again as Chuck said this often times can be a pain).
#3 A drop of "super glue" on the underside of the track where you want the sag to be. This will have to be done after the assembly, and depending on the brand of tank can also be a pain.

As far as the application of the tracks go.....
First Paint the tracks, there will be chipping.

If it is the Hasegawa kit you need to glue all susp. components in place first (allow to dry for 24hrs), then wressle the tracks on. Then touch up once finished.

If it is a Dragon kit ...First Paint......
While this is drying, glue all the susp. components in place. The Dragon Tracks are a little more forgiving that the Hasegawa ones. Now there are two types of Dragon tracks; the black ones are less forgiving and don't hold pain as well as we would hope. The tan colored (DS100) are for more flexible, and hold paint better. These both can be poped over the suspension with out too much worry., and they take to super glue very well.

In both descriptions you will need to do some touch up, and then the standard weathering.

"I" often use the tracks from the Revell Tiger I, since I bought the kit just for "parts" anyway.
Hope this helps.
Cpl Overby

You could install the driving sprockets before, both the one with teeth an the one without, install the tracks and in the end the wheels which have a contact with the ground. I'll do this with my Tamiya T-34/85 tracks because they are too tight! I would not risk "closing" the tracks after having adapted them to the wheels!

Thanks guys.

My kit is by Hasegawa sorry for not pointing that out sooner.

The reason I want to put the tracks together first is that the pins face the inside of the track so it would be hard to close them after.

Kenneth I’ll try your idea of adding everything and then the tracks. ( before realizing the tracks could be a problem I already glued most of the wheels in place.

For the sag I’m assuming to use the pins they would need to be put in from the inside of the hull and stuck into the side of the tracks? If so I don’t think I’ll be able to do it with this one.

Aaaaah the Hase. Tiger
OK first glue all wheels , sprocket, and ideler wheel in place (you did paint them first right?)
Allow to set for 24hrs, while this is curing melt the track ends together, and paint them.
Now the wire method is best for this model....
Once the tracks are on, decide where your sag should be.....(BTW what size wire do you have?) drill a hole through the side of the hull (same place on left and right side).
Placing the wire on top of the tracks(pushing the tracks down) incert in the hole all the way through to the other side
This will give you the sag you want.
Measure and cut to a length that will hide the ends of the wire, then paint it the same color as your tracks.
It is inportant that you get a wire that is fine enough to hide but stronge enough to do the job.
I use .025 thou. steel wire, it can be purchased at Micheals.
Or any other Arts & Crafts store.
Hope this helps
-Ken


oooops Forgot to mention BUY the book by Shep Payne, "Modeling Tanks and Military Vehicles"
this book explains the whole process (with Pictures), and will be of great help with all kinds of later projects.

That's a rough kit, my condolences to you! I normally leave both the sprocket and idler off of the vehicle until I mount vinyl tracks. Sometimes I have to mount one or the other if the fender overhang does not allow the sprocket or idler to be mounted after construction.

I too leave them off, if it looks like a tight fit. I have in the past had to reposition the idler to get really tight tracks to fit.

Thanks again Kenneth.
Don’t worry the wheels and the hull behind them have been painted already.

For the wire I’ll have to check. I’ve been cleaning scrap metal so I have a verity of wire laying around.
I’ll see about giving it a try but it will be a little until I add the tracks. Still have some other work to do first.

Sabot I already have the idler on but I’ll try keeping the sprocket off until I get the tracks on. (I cut all the spaces out on the idlers and will be starting the same on the sprockets next.)
I must agree that it’s a very poor kit but I’m slowly getting it fixed up just takes a bit of work.

Jacob,
I strongly recomend that you glue all suspension parts on and let set.
I built nothing but the Hasegawa kits back in the day.
If you try to glue them on after the tracks, the tension will pull them out of the sockets.