Thinking tanks

[PR19_Kit]

It's got tracks! 



I was pretty sceptical over Tamiya's claim that normal plastic glue would glue the tracks together, but it worked, and they're on now. I had to adjust the front idler wheels out a tad to make them tight enough, but they look pretty good. The instructions say not to glue the top idler wheels in place, but why not? If I don't they just fall off! And they only just touch the tracks anyway, so gluing them in place really shouldn't be an issue.

I've also added much of the 'stuff' on the rear panel, and glued it in place, but there's lots more to go on there yet apparently.

After having read all the sage advice given above I've realised I should have probably already painted some of the stuff, but one learns by one's mistakes of course.

And reading the Haynes book on the Challie, it looks like the main road wheels should have 12 holes drilled all the way through them, but the kit doesn't have them. I'm not sure I want to drill 144 small holes in them, so I may just paint the raised bolts/rivets matt black instead.

On which point, are tanks painted gloss or matt? Logic says that in the field they'd end up matt anyway, but when they're new, what finish are they please?

[Gondor]

It's got tracks! 



I was pretty sceptical over Tamiya's claim that normal plastic glue would glue the tracks together, but it worked, and they're on now. I had to adjust the front idler wheels out a tad to make them tight enough, but they look pretty good. The instructions say not to glue the top idler wheels in place, but why not? If I don't they just fall off! And they only just touch the tracks anyway, so gluing them in place really shouldn't be an issue.

I've also added much of the 'stuff' on the rear panel, and glued it in place, but there's lots more to go on there yet apparently.

After having read all the sage advice given above I've realised I should have probably already painted some of the stuff, but one learns by one's mistakes of course.

And reading the Haynes book on the Challie, it looks like the main road wheels should have 12 holes drilled all the way through them, but the kit doesn't have them. I'm not sure I want to drill 144 small holes in them, so I may just paint the raised bolts/rivets matt black instead.

On which point, are tanks painted gloss or matt? Logic says that in the field they'd end up matt anyway, but when they're new, what finish are they please?

No, it's not worth drilling out all the holes that Tamya missed. you should be able to remove the drive sprockets and the tracks at the same time which will give you access to the rest of the hull and wheels thanks to the polly caps sandwidged between the two halves of the sprocket.  If not you can always unbold the front ideler and remove parts that way.

Gondor

[scooter]

On which point, are tanks painted gloss or matt? Logic says that in the field they'd end up matt anyway, but when they're new, what finish are they please?

Matt.  Based on my particular experiences with 1:1 scale US tactical vehicles (Humvees, LMTVs, 5ts), they're all either matt NATO Green or Sand CARC.  Nasty stuff that, if you have to paint with it.

[PR19_Kit]

No, it's not worth drilling out all the holes that Tamya missed. you should be able to remove the drive sprockets and the tracks at the same time which will give you access to the rest of the hull and wheels thanks to the polly caps sandwidged between the two halves of the sprocket.  If not you can always unbold the front ideler and remove parts that way.

Yes Alastair, the tracks come off relatively easily with a bit of stretching, and all the main wheels and sprockets and the front idlers unplug as well, or they do at the moment. When I've got the MASSIVE side skirts glued on there's no chance of course, so they'll have to painted and finished off by then.

But why do they say the upper idler wheels shouldn't be glued in place? It makes no sense.

Matt.  Based on my particular experiences with 1:1 scale US tactical vehicles (Humvees, LMTVs, 5ts), they're all either matt NATO Green or Sand CARC.  Nasty stuff that, if you have to paint with it.

Magic, thanks for that. 

Yes, two pack paint is really 'orrible to use, you need almost a full HazMat suit to spray it.

[kitnut617]

On which point, are tanks painted gloss or matt? Logic says that in the field they'd end up matt anyway, but when they're new, what finish are they please?

Matt.  Based on my particular experiences with 1:1 scale US tactical vehicles (Humvees, LMTVs, 5ts), they're all either matt NATO Green or Sand CARC.  Nasty stuff that, if you have to paint with it.

As an aside ---

The Brit Army trains at CFB Suffield in the south east corner of Alberta. The area is about the same as Dorset, Devon and a big chunk of Cornwall put together. The ground conditions when wet down there (or anywhere in Alberta for that matter) is referred to as 'Gumbo' and after the troops and tankers had finished the days training, they had to clean all the gumbo off ---  by hand. I had a job to make someones idea work, which was the mechanism for a 'tank wash', it had long pipes set in the floor and hanging off the walls with high pressure nozzles set every three or four feet. Anyway, first time they ran a tank through it covered in gumbo, it worked, it came out sparkling ---I mean as in sparkling clean --- that's because the water pressure was set way, way to high and the tank came out stripped to bare metal ----  not a bit of paint on it   

[Steel Penguin]

Kit the 12 holes per wheel is a later version of the road wheel    so drilling isn't needed.

[PR19_Kit]

---I mean as in sparkling clean --- that's because the water pressure was set way, way to high and the tank came out stripped to bare metal ----  not a bit of paint on it   

Kit the 12 holes per wheel is a later version of the road wheel    so drilling isn't needed.

Ah right, perhaps I didn't read the book too closely. Thanks for that. 

[Mossie]

On which point, are tanks painted gloss or matt? Logic says that in the field they'd end up matt anyway, but when they're new, what finish are they please?

Matt.  Based on my particular experiences with 1:1 scale US tactical vehicles (Humvees, LMTVs, 5ts), they're all either matt NATO Green or Sand CARC.  Nasty stuff that, if you have to paint with it.

Not for your current build, but some 50s/60s period finishes were gloss.  Deep Bronze Green that the British army used on Centurions and early Chieftains (and pretty much most vehicles) had a gloss sheen to it.  Another one I can think of is the West German Leopard 1.

[loupgarou]

A little bit late in thinking of it, but the title of this topic "Thinking tanks" is giving me an image of a tank with a naked brain in place of the turret...

[PR19_Kit]

It looks like a tank now. 



Mind you, that's just the bare bones of it, I've got a small plastic box absolutely STUFFED with sub-assemblies that still need to be fitted, and there's goodness knows how many bits still on the sprues! 

I must say it's a pleasure to build a kit where not only do the parts fit properly, but it's almost impossible NOT to get them in the wrong place or the wrong way. Tamiya make little borders around where the surface mounted parts go so you can't get them in the wrong place, or the wrong way round. It's a welcome reliefe from the AZ and the Mach2 kits of this world! 

[Old Wombat]

Tamiya must have changed the formula of the vinyl they make the tracks from, used to be nothing short of nuclear fusion would fix the ends together.

As said before: Just take the running gear off before painting, Kit, it's no big deal. Post construction painting is the norm for armour.

[Steel Penguin]

Kit   glad to help.   and I have found that Tamiya do rather spoil you in the ease of assembly, you'd think that they wanted to make the hobby fun 

[PR19_Kit]

I'll have to put some paint on it soon, it's becoming very difficult to photograph it against my friends' carpet! 

[NARSES2]

Got a slightly "Germanic" look in that photo, to my mind at least, to many memories of sand yellow Airfix Panthers and Tigers 

[jcf]

A Briggs Cunningham stripes paint job would look good.



Especially as the Chally resembles Le Monstre.