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Post by dierk on May 5, 2012 13:35:11 GMT -5
Hello everybody! At the danger of slowing down my already glacial build speed further still, I've decided I've sat on the fence long enough and the time has come to let you have a glimpse into the dark goings-on on my workbench. I've had this kit sitting in storage since I last built kits over 30 years ago. Last year I let my masochistic tendencies off the leash and decided to try and make something presentable from the old nail. Dimensionally it's not too far off, but detail-wise it is somewhat under-endowed - no welds, or screws at all, lots of missing bolt-detail...but to make up for it Italeri covered the rear plate in some 20 ejector pin marks, obliterating some of the already very limited detail in the process:  Once I threw some goodies at it, it looked like this - still more bolts to be fitted around the tow-hook:  I had some PE welds by ET Models littering up the place that I had no other use for - my usual subjects being soviet, they are way to neat and regular - so I liberally spread them over this blank canvas. As the plan is to turn this into a Russian captured tank, all the pioneer tools and gubbins will be stripped off leaving just a load of empty clamps and clasps, some of which I've fitted already:  The mantlet required some major surgery to fit the RB barrel, resulting in a serious case of 'brewer's droop' This was over-come by gluing in some coins with a portrait of a woman who's family used to be known as Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, but now go by the much more palatable moniker of Windsor ;D. Depending on the turret position it is either nice and level or displaying all the symptoms of a Viagra overdose  The springs holding the rear of the mudguards (fenders) in place were made by wrapping fine wire around a needle and fitted using a Masterclub rivet at the front and a flattened link from a fine chain at the back:   Thanks for looking and any hints or tips will be gratefully received. Cheers, Dierk |
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Post by spud on May 5, 2012 14:02:04 GMT -5
Dude you need medical attention ........ thats Fecking Crazy!!!!!!!!! in a good way of course, and you were hiding in teh shadows all this time being shy!!
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multicam
Senior Member
Member since: January 2012
Nate
Posts: 2,039
Jan 10, 2012 14:35:41 GMT -5
Jan 10, 2012 14:35:41 GMT -5
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Post by multicam on May 5, 2012 18:10:54 GMT -5
Nice work and well-blogged:)
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Post by robbo on May 6, 2012 6:13:23 GMT -5
Good work Dierk looks very nice
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Post by dierk on May 6, 2012 9:40:26 GMT -5
Dude you need medical attention ........ thats Fecking Crazy!!!!!!!!! in a good way of course, and you were hiding in teh shadows all this time being shy!! Hmmm...medical attention...drugs  ? Cute nurses ? Very tempting, but then what would happen to my Panzer IV  But seriously: This is my most ambitious project to date and I can still count the number of my finished models on the fingers of one redneck-hand (slightly more than five ) and with the close relative of the carpet monster, the F***-up Fairy, as my constant companion, this could still all go mammaries up. Especially as my abilities aren't always a match for my ambitions. Nice work and well-blogged:) Glad you like it! I find the 'I did this, and then I did that' style a bit boring - but sometimes I get carried away (no Spud, I don't mean by the men in white coats ) Good work Dierk looks very nice Thanks Robbo, much appreciated! Now, I could do with some advice: I'm faced with two conundrii - the F2 didn't have head-lights, but the mountings for them are moulded into the mudguards (fenders) of the kit, if I remove them it'll make a mess of the non-slip pattern. I'm tempted to just fit the lights and add some wiring and to hell with accuracy. My other problem is that I was unaware of the Tristar suspension and wheel set when I started on this venture. Should I give the above mentioned fairy an opportunity to do her worst by trying to retro-fit them? Cheers, dierk |
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Post by dierk on May 6, 2012 13:39:14 GMT -5
I think I may have found the solution to the headlight conundrum. I sanded the mountings for both headlight and Notek down as well as part of the mudguard (fender) and inserted a piece of PE from a set I bought accidentally. The gap at the front is less noticeable than in the photo:  Just a shame the knife slipped....twice!  I think I'll have a lie-down before tackling the other side... Thanks for looking, Dierk |
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Post by wbill76 on May 6, 2012 18:11:01 GMT -5
Looks like you're dressing up this older kit quite nicely Dierk, I agree with Boo, keep the updates coming!
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Post by 406 Silverado on May 6, 2012 21:58:28 GMT -5
Looks great. Got to love those old Italeri kits. The welds and goodies are top notch and very clean.
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Post by wouter on May 7, 2012 0:59:47 GMT -5
Now that's some nice 'n clean etchwork...love it!  Cheers |
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Post by armorguy on May 7, 2012 2:05:50 GMT -5
Nice Italeri tuning mate ! Lots of blinky detail !
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Post by dierk on May 7, 2012 8:11:03 GMT -5
A bit late now I realise Dierk but you could always trim and sand away the offending items and graft in a spare piece of deck tread plate?  What?  He already has?  I'll get my coat.......... nice fix BTW Is it 'great minds think alike', or 'fools seldom differ'? I can never remember ;D ;D @ Boo, Bill, Rob, Wouter and 'armourguy': Thanks for the kind words, I'll do my best - but don't hold your breath the longer I work on this, the more stuff I find to change/add...yesterday, I realised how much more prominent the rivets (which on closer inspection turned out to be domed slotted screws...)on the mudguards are on the real thing compared to the kit now, I've got 70odd holes to drill so I can bung in some Masterclub rivets (haven't got screws)... If this one doesn't drive me (even further) into the mouth of madness, I think I'll do a nice 'shake and bake' kit to recover... Cheers, Dierk |
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Post by dierk on May 17, 2012 13:33:26 GMT -5
Oops, dropped off the first page - better pull my finger out! Big job's broken out: I decided to go for the Tristar wheels and suspension after all, which stopped any further PE work, as I get to grind/sand/scrape off all the suspension bits Italeri saw fit to mould into the lower hull. As the suspenders haven't arrived yet, I added some 0.5mm 'slot-less dome screws' (rivets) to pass the time - only another 50odd to go.  Another hurdle I'm approaching with trepidation is the front spare track mounting. I don't know what drugs the Italeri designers were on, but it only bears a passing resemblance to the real thing...provided it's dark and your eyes are closed! Does anybody know if these were fitted to all F2s, or could I just get rid of it? Thanks for looking, Dierk |
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Post by 406 Silverado on May 17, 2012 19:43:05 GMT -5
This old Gal is starting to come to life. love all the added details, really stands out and will do her justice once painted.
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Post by dierk on May 18, 2012 13:14:25 GMT -5
Thanks for the kind words Rob. Just a quickie for today - having found a few photos of F2s without spare track mountings on the front, the decision was an easy one: there they were...gone! Lesson learned for future projects: do your research properly and get the butchering out the way before attaching details  ! More soon, hopefully. Cheers, Dierk |
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Post by dierk on Jun 9, 2012 13:45:08 GMT -5
As I got a bit bored with destroying some of my work, I thought I'd take some time out and make a start assembling the Tristar suspenders. What a difference compared to the Italeri parts!!  Due to a slight mental disability caused by the blonde gene I can't be certain, but I think the instructions randomly mix up left and right...maybe the guy who does the Dragon instructions moonlights at Tristar?  Definitely a vast improvement over the Italeri kit parts. I've had a go at filing down the moulded on bits on the hull by hand - VERY slow progress - even by my standard! So I'll try it with something that plugs into the wall next. I'll let you know how I get on. Cheers, Dierk |
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Post by wbill76 on Jun 9, 2012 13:55:25 GMT -5
Good to see this one's still moving along Dierk. And you're right about the night-and-day quality of the Italeri suspension. The Tristar suspension is designed to be workable so they probably thought they needed to keep things interesting with the suspension instructions just to keep you on your toes! |
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modelfreak72
Full Member
Member since: January 2012
Why worry, each of us is wearing an unlicensed nuclear accelerator on his back.
Posts: 1,479
Jan 28, 2012 23:21:46 GMT -5
Jan 28, 2012 23:21:46 GMT -5
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Post by modelfreak72 on Jun 9, 2012 14:06:56 GMT -5
Holy AM fest batman! This man is total off his block! I Love it!
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Post by dierk on Jun 9, 2012 14:31:01 GMT -5
;D ;D surprisingly, the Italeri suspension is workable...in a crude sort of way. I have been told that the Tristar drive-wheels aren't the most accurate - but I've got to draw the line somewhere ;D Yep, the miracle of electricity has done its job. Just got to clean and level by hand and Robert's your father's brother.  Cheers, Dierk |
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Post by TRM on Jun 9, 2012 14:44:47 GMT -5
Great bit of progress there!! I looked back again and love the added spring work on the fender!!! Keep it going!! |
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danb
Reviews member 
March 2013 MoM Winner
Member since: November 2011
Posts: 2,808
Nov 17, 2011 9:22:52 GMT -5
Nov 17, 2011 9:22:52 GMT -5
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Post by danb on Jun 9, 2012 14:47:44 GMT -5
excellent work there my freind im liking the kit bashing and PE work keep it up.
Dan b
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Post by dierk on Jun 9, 2012 15:10:45 GMT -5
Holy AM fest batman! This man is total off his block! I Love it! I think I've been hanging around too much with a hyper-perfectionist Russian modeller....I've been encouraging him to join MSC Great bit of progress there!! I looked back again and love the added spring work on the fender!!! Keep it going!! Glad you like it - it's one of my favourite bits, too. I've since added the whatchamacallit, the spindleaxle-type thingies that stop the mud-flaps from falling off - hardly noticeable, but I know it's there |
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Post by dierk on Jun 10, 2012 3:03:09 GMT -5
Great bit of progress there!! Unfortunately, not all of the 'gress' was 'pro', some of it was 're' - you may have noticed that there was more PE in earlier photos...thankfully my carpet-monster isn't too fond of PE and regurgitated all but one tiny piece. Cheers, Dierk |
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panzerjager
Full Member
Member since: June 2012
Posts: 204
Jun 5, 2012 21:56:23 GMT -5
Jun 5, 2012 21:56:23 GMT -5
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Post by panzerjager on Jun 10, 2012 8:36:14 GMT -5
I have worked with a couple of those Italeri kits and I know how hard they are, so, congratulations for a great job, Dierk
Darío
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Post by bbd468 on Jun 10, 2012 9:54:18 GMT -5
Hey Dierk, you are giving alot of love to the old kit. I like you style man! Keep up the great work. |
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Post by deafpanzer on Jun 11, 2012 8:34:02 GMT -5
This is very serious impressive work so far! You have been bookmarked. Looking forward to more of this!
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Post by dierk on Jun 11, 2012 13:30:37 GMT -5
Thanks for the support, everybody! No pressure then, I've seen some of your builds and you're setting the bar pretty high for a newbie like me ;D Couldn't resist a dry-fit of the road-wheels - they all line up!  I have to say, I am seriously impressed by the foresight the designers of the Panzer IV tyres have displayed - they must have known, that sometime in the future there would be scale models of their tank, so they designed the tyres to fit perfectly onto the handle of a craft-knife when scaled down to 1/35, greatly easing removal from the sprue and cleaning them up!  Hope you won't have to wait too long for the next update... Dierk |
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Post by wbill76 on Jun 11, 2012 18:16:47 GMT -5
Looking good Dierk! Have to agree with you on the fit to the knife handle...that's some smart thinking for sure.  One note of caution if you don't know of it already, the separate tires are a tight fit to the hubs, so you'll want to be sure to avoid getting any paint on the inside of the tire rims using hte same handle trick no doubt. I've heard and seen instances of the tires splitting if there's any kind of added diameter on either the tires or the hubs. |
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Post by dierk on Jun 12, 2012 1:33:07 GMT -5
Thanks for the tip - I had noticed it's a bit of an interference fit and yes, you're right, I do intend to paint them on the handle . I will use masking-fluid on the wheels to keep the contact patches nice and clean. Cheers, Dierk |
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Post by spud on Jun 12, 2012 5:40:34 GMT -5
wow they supply the tyres seprate... that is handy
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Post by dierk on Jun 12, 2012 12:06:42 GMT -5
wow they supply the tyres seprate... that is handy Not just that, which I find pretty too - they even have the manufacturers name 'Continental' and the size on them. I am well impressed by the set, it provides options for Panzer IV versions from Ausf. A to G. There are shallow sink-holes on the leaf-springs, but once the wheels are on they are no longer visible. If you have a look at it on the LM website, it shows you piccies of all the sprues - and they're pretty cheap too. Cheers, Dierk |
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? Cute nurses 
But seriously: This is my most ambitious project to date and I can still count the number of my finished models on the fingers of one redneck-hand (slightly more than five 
What? 
He already has? 
! 
