Coolee-class Hover tank - "Waltzin' Matilda"

[Scotaidh]

Back in 2010 we had a hover tank challenge at StarShipModeler.  This was my entry.


Waltzing Matilda 001
I'm a fan of David Drake's "Hammer's Slammers" series, so when I had a shot at making a hover tank, I jumped at it.
I found out that computer plastic is very model-glue-compliant, so when I had the chance to stock up on some tilt-swivels, I did so. This tear-drop-shaped one seemed ideal as the basis for my tank hull. The lower half of the turret is the swivel part of the base - the upper half of the turret, seen upside down behind the tank, was a different base. A friend sourced the gatling guns for the co-axial guns. (I've never understood why real tanks don't have mini-guns for that role - one in 20mm would give a serious anti-light armor/soft vehicle/building capability.)


Waltzing Matilda 002
Taped together to give the general look. I added skirts to the bottom of the hull.


Waltzing Matilda 003
The Slammer tanks used lift fans; so shall I. I didn't build the driver's position because I didn't want the added work of it - yes, I have a lazy streak.


Waltzing Matilda 004
The local hardware store had these inexpensive drain strainers. Since nothing looks more like metal than real metal ... Also, the oval hole in the lighter plastic (underside of  the turret, to the right of the main gun tube) is the muzzle opening for one of the two gatlings.


Waltzing Matilda 005
The second gatling is much more visible.


Waltzing Matilda 006
Inside the plenum chamber, I wanted something to direct the fans' thrust. These drinks lids seemed ideal.


Waltzing Matilda 007
The Slammers use (will use?) directional mines on their hulls to combat infantry and other close-in threats. I found these stick-on rubber feets. They look about the right size and shape, and I don't have to make them, just paint 'em.


Waltzing Matilda 008
A lot of putty went into this commander's cupola. 
For those of you who aren't familiar with Aves Apoxie Sculpt, it's pretty good.  I've had that set since 2008, and it's still usable.  Also, it thins with water, and to smooth it all you need is a damp/wet finger. 


Waltzing Matilda 009
Nothing quite like a unifying coat of paint - and you can't go wrong with a classic colour like Olive Drab.


Waltzing Matilda 010
Off to my 'pizza-box on a bar stool in the garage' paint studio. The white mesh is some rubbery thing my wife bought to put under the plates in the cupboard, as padding. This was an 'extra' one - I thought it'd be interesting masking.


Waltzing Matilda 011
Several sprayed pigments later, and ... Voila!


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A fishing float made a good commander's cupola/turret. The commander was sourced from a defunct 1/35 Centurion.


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The cupola gun and grab rail, plus the gubbins on the hatch are all from the spares bin. The day/night sight was scratched from square rod stock.


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Cuploa innards - spares bin greeblies. The turret hatch ring is an aluminum washer that fit just right.


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Inside the cupola.  Amazing what a coat of paint can do


Waltzing Matilda 016
Radios/comms, multi-function screens, and an air vent.


Waltzing Matilda 017
Pioneer tools and commander's MG came from a dead panzer. The tow cable is more fishing gear. The dome-ular bumps on the turret are targeting sensors. There are three of them, equally spaced to ensure that at least two face any potential threat.


Waltzing Matilda 018
CO (from a 1/35 Tamiya Centurion), decals, and weathering in place.


Waltzing Matilda 019
"Proceeding with caution into harm's way, over."

[Captain Canada]

It's a turret shaped turret, with a turret on top !



Great stuff. Love the colours and the shape. Great details as well. But now I'm stuck singing that tune lol

[Old Wombat]

I remember that one!

Do you remember this:

[Weaver]

Nice one! That looks really good, especially the paint. 

The cupola gun from the spares box is a couple of Lego Technics parts by the way.

The reason real tanks don't have Gatling guns is mainly ammo supply: unlike planes, they have to be able to fight for hours, not minutes, and if you turn the fire-rate down, then there's no advantage over a normal gun that weighs less and doesn't need electrical power to fire.

Having said that, the increased use of remote weapon stations could see Gatlings more widely used due to their reliability: if they feed a dud they just spit it out again, and nobody has to climb outside to re-cock the gun. The linkless ammo feeds are also much more amenable to a long feed path from a big magazine deep inside the hull than belts, which have to be within the lifting capacity of the gun mechanism. The rate of fire on an RWS Gatling would probably still be turned right down though, or at least selectable by the gunner.

[zenrat]

Those both look very good.

Would a hover tank need a turret?  Surely the whole thing could pivot quicker than a turret could.

[PR19_Kit]

But hovercraft have HUGE inertia and tend to keep on going the way they already are going, so tracking a target could be a right pain unless you had a turret as well.

[zenrat]

Hmm, true.  I suppose they could end up moving in a spiralling motion.

"...just fire every time the target goes past..."

[Old Wombat]

Nice one! That looks really good, especially the paint. 

The cupola gun from the spares box is a couple of Lego Technics parts by the way.

The reason real tanks don't have Gatling guns is mainly ammo supply: unlike planes, they have to be able to fight for hours, not minutes, and if you turn the fire-rate down, then there's no advantage over a normal gun that weighs less and doesn't need electrical power to fire.

Having said that, the increased use of remote weapon stations could see Gatlings more widely used due to their reliability: if they feed a dud they just spit it out again, and nobody has to climb outside to re-cock the gun. The linkless ammo feeds are also much more amenable to a long feed path from a big magazine deep inside the hull than belts, which have to be within the lifting capacity of the gun mechanism. The rate of fire on an RWS Gatling would probably still be turned right down though, or at least selectable by the gunner.

In the Hammer's Slammers universe, which is the loose basis for both builds, machine-guns are multi-barrelled because they are plasma weapons, not projectile, & heat up much more quickly. The multiple barrels allow each barrel more time to cool between each shot & the weapons are fired in short bursts (as are projectile mg's) to stop them melting. Their rate of fire is probably no higher than that of a single-barrel projectile weapon. All infantry weapons (& tank guns) are semi-automatic, with the exception of submachineguns/machine pistols which have a tendency get very hot & to jam due to matrix residue from the plasma rounds building up on the firing mechanism.

Although a complete fiction, the "theory" behind the plasma rounds of the power guns is actually very well thought out & believable (it's told in one of the intermissions in a collection of Slammers short stories).

[Scotaidh]

I remember that one!

Do you remember this:

I do remember that!  I love that tank - it looks so very cool.    I believe I said nice things about it at the time, too.    Seriously, it's a great piece of work.  Turret is from a computer mouse, no?

[Old Wombat]

Turret is from a computer mouse, no?

Nope, top part of the handle of one of those speed-test zapper toys, where the last one to press the button gets an electric shock.

The hull is the top of a self-loading, foam disc shooting pistol.

[Rick Lowe]

Both are really cool, and fit right in with what my imagineering tells me a Slammer's Panzer should look like.

I always thought his working out of the tech and tactics, etc was well done, and had more thought put into it than many other writers do.