DML Sdkfz 251/22 Ausf D

[deafpanzer]

That's a lot of process!!! Looking good already... how many hours did you spend over the weekend?

[wbill76]

Thanks Andy! I think between the two days I managed to get in a good 6 hours or so with some small interruptions here and there.

[bigjohn]

Nice update bill, This thread will be invaluable when I build mine.

[wbill76]

Thanks John, glad to hear it will be helpful for you. With any luck I might be able to sneak in some time this evening since my wife has an Open House she has to attend for her elementary school. Fingers crossed!

[wouter]

Some nice work again Bill, looks like a neat kit. Really lookin' forward to see that interior painted!

Cheers

[bbd468]

Hey Bill,

SWEET!!! Another halftrack buld. I luv'em. Im really looking forward to this one Bill.

Gary

[wbill76]

Thanks Gary and wouts!

Due to the fact that my wife has to attend an open house at her school, I have the chance to get in a mid-week session at the bench! That means the Pak 40 got some attention. It truly is a kit-within-a-kit as the sprues are taken directly from DML's Pak 40 kit with the only swap-outs being the special cut-down gun-shield used on the 251/22s and the extra rail guard on the loader's side.

I started in on Step 16 and selected the b46-b56 style muzzle brake since this is the type featured on the photos included in my Panzer Tracts reference and is the late-but-not-final type of brake commonly seen on Pak 40s in 1944. The tuned aluminum barrel was fitted using CA gel and the breech assembled per the instructions with only a small amount of putty needed at the joins to create a seamless look. I left off the breech lever so it can be detail painted separately and also left the block movable for the same reason.



Step 17 adds the recoil tray and other bits...and has a little pitfall that I didn't catch until it was too late. The instructions show the orientation of the D-shaped pins on parts b26/b27 pointing backwards...I wasn't paying close enough attention to the part numbers and thus installed them on the wrong sides. Of course I used a liberal amount of liquid glue to get a good bond and rather than risk damaging the parts trying to remove them, I ended up carefully snipping off the D pins, reversing them, and re-gluing in the correct position. The pic below is before the surgery.



Step 18 adds the side mounts and their respective details. I left off the elevation and traverse wheels and the gun sight to allow for separate detailing. I used 0.5mm solder and CA gel to add the missing bowden cable to the firing mechanism for a little extra detail. On the right side, the mount pins and holder for the small hatchet were filled in/removed and sanded down since that wasn't a feature on these guns.







Step 19 adds the gun shields and I opted for the PE shutters for the gun sight aperture. The PT reference pics show that the usual Pak 40 storage cylinders weren't mounted (and the instructions indicate those are optional as well) so I filled their mount holes on the inner shield with putty to eliminate them.



A small test fit with the lower hull and upper hull to make sure everything is playing nice before painting. Definitely shows how cramped the interior was on these vehicles.



Next up will be painting and detailing the interior and the gun!

[bigjohn]

Looks good Bill, Glad you found some extra time tonight.

[bbd468]

Bill, i was so excited about your update i forgot id already posted on the first page....LOL ;D And you have yet another SWEET update.

Gary

[spud]

Fantastic Bill i wasnt expecting to see an update when i poped in. the Gun looks Sweet

[wbill76]

Thanks john, it's always good to get a little "bonus" time in on a project like this during the construction phase since the paint/detail/weathering always requires larger blocks of time to get anything meaningful done!

Gary, just blame it on the residual effects of your recent cold/illness! ;D

Spud, thanks for the comments, a mid-week update is a rarety but they do happen from time to time!

[martyncrowther.]

Mighty fine work Bill! You can't beat a halftrack can you?

Martyn

[bigjohn]

I keep peaking in on this thread, and eye balling my kit over in the stash. I must fight the urge to pull it out and crack open the box.

[bbd468]

Aug 15, 2012 10:58:01 GMT -5 wbill76 said:

Gary, just blame it on the residual effects of your recent cold/illness! ;D

Bill, i may of double dipped into the Nyquil too. But we will keep that between you and me.

Gary

[wbill76]

Dicky, the Pak 40 was a hefty girl, no question about it! One of the reference pics I have shows how the crew would augment their ammo storage with individual rounds on the left side in the space between the mount frame and the hull side, so I will be stacking some there to add some life along with some other items in the seat bin and elsewhere. I can imagine that the 4 man crew had a tight fit...I really pitty the gunner given how the sight is positioned!

Martyn HT's provide a lot of fun and variety, no question!

John, you know you're going to give in eventually...just bow to the inevitable!

Gary, ahhh yes...the old "Nyquil" defense...kind of like Twinkies only not quite as tasty.

[TRM]

Cramped isn't the word Bill!! Like mounting a Flak on a roller skate!!! She is looking stupendous Sir!! Excellent gun construction!!!!

[Deleted]

I love this project! thanks for all the great updates and superb pictures!

[robbo]

Very snug in there. Did it all fit trouble free

[wbill76]

T, that's an apt description! LOL

ialarmu, thanks for the comments as well, it's been a fun project so far but the real fun starts with the painting and detailing!

Robbo, no major fit issues but I did change up the build order from the way the instructions have it to make sure that everything lined up just right. The positioning with the front bulkhead, the angled support legs, and the side bins has to be just so or you will run into problems...and, as usual with DML, the instructions aren't always specific in terms of where things should go!

[deafpanzer]

Nice try buddy! Trying to catch us off guard by doing a mid-week update? Nice update by the way! Digging the gun as it made me realize it may have been little too big for a 251.

[wbill76]

Andy,

Thought I would try to sneak one past you...almost made it!

By the end of '44 they were trying to get mobile AT capability any way they could...going so far as to create "kits" out of the mounts to allow existing standard 251s and 251/9s to be converted to /22s using alreayd-equipped field Pak 40s!

[multicam]

Simply great blogging Bill. Nicely done:)

[406 Silverado]

Been away for a bit but checked in on this one now and then. As expected, clean building. Very tempting to buy these HT's from Dragon with all that detail, especially the main gun. Ebay here I come...LOL

Looking great Bill.

[wbill76]

Thanks Nate!

Go for it Rob! The Ausf D HT kits still stand up very well and if you can snag them on ebay for a good price, well worth it.

[deafpanzer]

Just a quick note Squadron is having this kit on sale for only $25 or something like that.

[wouter]

oh, nearly missed an update

That gun looks very neat Mister Bill, will look lovely after paintwork, no doubt about that!

Cheers

[wbill76]

Thanks wouts! Speaking of paint...

It's a good thing I sneaked in some time during the week on the PaK 40 as my next MBA class, Statistics, is starting up this week and the initial reading and problem workload is a tough one! Back to the grind as it's all math, math, and more math...which of course distracts from time at the workbench.

Still, I managed to get some additional progress in on the build. I masked off the glue contact surfaces on the hull halves because I hate to scrape paint if I can avoid it. I used MM enamel Italian Dark Brown to prime the interior lower hull, and the interior and exterior of the upper hull as well as the PaK 40. This helps check the putty and other work I had done previously and also ensures I don't end up with any bare plastic spots in the tight places. Then the base coat of 50/50 enamel MM Light Gray/Panzer Dunkelgelb was airbrushed over the primer coat.



I also used the kit-supplied single-round ammo containers and assembled all 10 to stack in the hull void on the left side of the gun mount. These will get some additional weathering and detailing, including the kit decal stencils, prior to installation. Since I was already airbrushing the rest of the interior, they got some paint as well.



That's it for now, the paint will get a chance to fully cure during the week before I start in on the weathering and detailing for the interior.

[deafpanzer]

Nice update!!! Statistics? Not exactly one of my favorite classes I can tell you. Majored in Business Management and that class was one of the requirements.

Good luck with your classes!

[TRM]

Ooooo, color!! Looking spiffy Bill!!

[wbill76]

Thanks Andy...I can already tell this one's going to be a slog...I'm getting the material and understanding what is involved but there are a ton of problems to work through to achieve that, so it's time consuming! We'll see how I feel after the rest of the 6 weeks is done.

T, felt good to sling some paint, thanks!