Trumpeter USMC LAV-AT - COMPLETED 8/30/14

[doogsatx]

BRINGING OVER FROM MHI

Working from home today and needed some thinking time to wrap my head around a project, so I decided to pull out my on-deck armor project - Trumpeter's LAV-AT.

This will be the first time I'm tackling a ground vehicle that doesn't have tracks.



The kit itself looks nice and simple compared to some of the others I've tackled recently.



For those who may not be aware, the LAV is more or less exclusive to the USMC, and has been in service for some time. The LAV-AT is a TOW-missile-equipped fast scout and tankbuster. It served in Desert Storm. I believe it's been replaced by the newer "under armor" TOW launcher, but I just love the older Hammerhead design.

Camo will be green/brown/black tricolor, and I'm leaning toward representing it as this one from Desert Storm...



Here's another view.



Aftermarket's going to consist of some stowage, AFV AR film, and that's it. I've decided to stick with the kit vinyl tires, since they're actually pretty nice.

[doogsatx]

Initial work has taken me mostly through steps 3 & 4...mainly the drivetrain assembly.



Thing didn't quite sit evenly on all eight wheels, but it was close, and a bit of adjustment (very glad I didn't glue everything all the way down) got all eight on the floor.

[TRM]

Ooo...this is gonna be good!! I'm in!!

[doogsatx]

More work last night! So far a nice, easy kit. But it looks like the rear is going to be dicey, fit-wise.

[TRM]

Oh...more pretty pics!!! Nice job so far Doogs!!

[doogsatx]

After sitting for FAR too long (literally a month!), got some forward progress on the LAV-AT last night. The rear is now on (and it took a LOT of finessing...the part is about 1.5mm too tall), and the hammerhead TOW launcher is together.

[dupes]

The best part about vehicles without tracks is...no tracks! You get to eliminate 2? 3? 5? Hours of unnecessarily tedious clipping, sanding, gluing, fitting, and cost.

Almost makes you want to build wheeled vehicles exclusively...

Looking good!

[deafpanzer]

Looking good! I like how its TOW launcher looks...

[doogsatx]

Yeah - only thing that really bugs me about the kit is that the vision blocks are all just solid styrene. That's WEAK...and is going to make tackling the giant ones on the TOW cupola a major pain. Really hoping the AFV Club anti-reflective sticker things work.

[doogsatx]

Wrapped up construction last night. Now I need a clear night to start throwing paint.

[TRM]

Very nice Doogs!! Let the fun begin!

[dupes]

Nice! I've got all four of Trumpy's LAV-variant kits awaiting a massive rainy-weekend-assembly-line build...should be a good time. Heheheh.

[bbrowniii]

Mmmmm... LAVs do bring back some fond memories for me. We only had a section of LAV-25s attached to us in Desert Storm. Never got to see one of these hammer heads in action.

Good stuff, doogs, very good stuff.

[wbill76]

Very nice Doogs, looking forward to seeing it with paint on.

[doogsatx]

Thanks all! Question for those who know LAVs better than I do - did/do they wear primer under their paint? If so, what color/what propensity to chip? I've seen a few AT's looking fairly worse for wear, with what looks like pretty thin black/brown camo.

Also, were any AT's overpainted with desert sand for Desert Storm? Finding several overpainted examples, but none of them call out whether they're from Desert Storm or Iraqi Freedom.

[bbrowniii]

Jul 18, 2014 11:44:48 GMT -5 doogsatx said:

Also, were any AT's overpainted with desert sand for Desert Storm? Finding several overpainted examples, but none of them call out whether they're from Desert Storm or Iraqi Freedom.

doogs,

I cannot speak specifically to the ATs, but I know that the LAV-25s we had with us were painted in desert sand. We were the last major deployment from the west coast, leaving San Diego on 1 December 1990. Since we were last to go, there was time to get most of the equipment 'desertified'.

[doogsatx]

Thanks! I've found a few overpainted -ATs, but again without any kind of date attribution. Seeing that the -ATs used the old Hammerhead turret right up until 2012 or so, it's hard to determine between ODS or OIF without other markers to reference (soldier uniforms etc).

[doogsatx]

Managed to throw primer last night. Man, it takes a LOT to get into all the nooks and crannies, particularly in the suspension and drivetrain.

[Leon]

Looking good in primer Doogs.I know how you feel about the suspension painting.

[pantherf]

NOW it's starting to look like something!


Paint's gonna be the key now. 









Jeff

[doogsatx]

Can't seem to get a straight answer on primer vs. no primer, and then last night I realized I could get anal with that kind of thing on another build, and just have fun with this one. So I threw down some Mig AMMO Chipping Color, which produces a nice, dirty brownish gray/black color that reminds me of many axles and frame rails other drivetrain components I've spent far too much time bashing my knuckles against with socket wrenches.



Next up will be the hairspray, and then on to the NATO camo.

[TRM]

Looking sweet there Doogs! That black primer looks crazy!! LOL!! Love it just like that! Looking forward to seeing you painting progress on this one!! Keep up the great work!

[wbill76]

Sounds like as good a plan as any Doogs regarding the primer/chipping. Looking forward to the next round on this one.

[doogsatx]

First coat of color is on - Tamiya NATO Green. Got in a tiny bit of chipping last night (probably barely visible in the photos) before having to hit the hay.

[deafpanzer]

Green looking real good on it!!!

[doogsatx]

Chipping!

Before moving on to the brown and black camo, I've added some light chipping to the LAV-AT. It's extremely subtle, even in person, so it's a bit hard to catch in the photos. This is my first time using hairspray for chipping, and it's been somewhat revelatory. I can't wait to try it on something needing more of a beating!









Next up - clear coating this to prevent further chipping, and the moving on to the camo.

[mrt51]

Coming along nicely!

Terry

[TRM]

Looking sweet Doogs!! The subtle chipping shows up!! Nicely done!!

[Leon]

Nice work on the chipping Doogs,looking forward to the camo.

[doogsatx]

Camo is down. The brown is a mix of Tamiya NATO Brown and Flat Earth, and the NATO Black is, well, NATO Black, lightened slightly with Tamiya JN Gray.









The wheels were overpainted in desert sand - mixing Tamiya Desert Yellow with some deck tan. One of the Desert Storm images I've got shows what looks like standard camo combined with desert-painted wheels. It's a nice touch, so I'm going with it. Though - I may have to go with resin wheels after all. The vinyl tires flex when being fitted/removed from the suspension, and the paint on them cracks and flakes off.