Soviet armor finished at last

[reserve]

Thank you, Gentlemen

Have not been at the bench much lately, deer season starts this Saturday so final rifle sighting and scouting have been the order of the last few days. In spite of this, I managed to finally get figures painted and installed in the Trumpy T-62



Have begun the pin wash on the T-90 (which I cannot seem to stand doing for more than an hour at a time)



And started fixing the nastier seams on the T-80.



I think this one will need turret wiring replacement also. Perhaps for a laugh I ought to post it on a certain forum as it's going to be mostly OOB just to see how much I get reamed over "inaccuracy".

Regards,
Mark

[bbd468]

T-90 looks BASD A$$!!! Figs are very nice man!

Gary

[wbill76]

Nice set of figs to go with the -62! I hear you about working with pin washes...I wear a breather mask when I'm doing them because of the thinner exposure and have to take frequent breaks as a result.

[deafpanzer]

Nice work on the figures!!! Good luck with the hunt!

[reserve]

Thanks, gents, I'm not the world's greatest when it comes to figures so I always love it when I get to paint black uniforms.

Gary-Looking foreward to see what you do with yours.

Bill-I've taken to using mineral spirits for pin washes. It's a little more work to clean up the excess but I don't strip paint and it does not stink nearly as much.

Nemo-They are the ICM Soviet tank crew 1979-1988. I think by the time I get this done I'll have used every Soviet plastic figure set on the bleeding market.

Andy-Thanks, with a little luck it'll be mule deer backstrap for supper on Sunday.

Regards,
Mark

[406 Silverado]

The 62 looks great, and nice clean work on that T80 turret.

[reserve]

Thanks, Rob

T-90 done, I'll have figures in it tomorrow



Every picture of one of these I see shows black tracks so I did no rusting







As said before the T-80's been started. It's difficult to get motivated about it as the kit's kind of a dog. Looks like they cut some of the molds with a hammer and chisel, and so far it has a disturbingly toylike appearance. Perhaps I can make it look decent.





We'll see what shakes out.

Regards,
Mark

[bullardino]

Nice

I love russian armour

[danb.]

Very nice mate modern stuff is not my thing but i am enjoying your blog keep it up

Dan B

[Deleted]

lovely stuff particularly like the T62 very smart indeed

[wing_nut]

Oct 19, 2012 0:55:41 GMT -5 bullardino said:

Nice

I love russian armour

I am more and more.

Especially after seeing all this.

[robbo]

Very nice builds Mark

[wbill76]

Hang in there on the T-80 Mark, it will be worth it to have it in the lineup when you're done. Nice job on the T-90!

[reserve]

Thanks for the nice observations, guys

Does anyone know of aftermarket kits that may be available for the T-80? One may help breathe a little life into this one.

Regards,
Mark

[bullardino]

I found this page: mmfs0.tripod.com/reviews/t80/index.htm that says:

"Now, here are some resources to help you fix up those kits. They will require money, time, patience, and advanced skills to use but the end result COULD be a stunning T-80 miniature.

Eduard Photo-etch: There are 4 sets available, 3 for each DML kit and 1 for the SKIF kit. The PE for the SKIF kit has the non-standard engine deck grill that matches the "incorrect" kit piece. Parts from different PE sets can be cross-used on other kits, but there may be "issues" due to which kit the PE set was designed for. Widely available online.
SP Designs - There are MANY detail sets and conversions offered: T-80 Tracks, Roadwheels, Replacement Upper Hull, Turrets, and complete conversions for multiple variants, mainly for the SKIF kit. Please see Sergeant at Arms Models for the complete range of parts and details. Just to be fair, I run SAAM - be aware.

MR Models - They have three sets: Roadwheels, Early T-80 details and T-80U details. These are meant for the DML kits. Available online through several dealers.

Barrel Depot - they make one turned metal barrel to replace the plastic one in the DML kits. It is a direct copy of the ovesized DML part and is NOT CORRECT to use unless you just want to replace the plastic DML barrel. Available wherever Barrel Depot stuff is sold.

Model Point - They make replacement main gun barrels (accurate), smoke mortar tube replacements (loaded and empty), radio antenna bases, and nicely done resin ERA bricks. Available at Model Point US (no affiliation) and several other online stores.

Miniarm - No specific T-80 conversions yet, but they have some very nicely done ERA in thier T-72 conversions. Look at the Miniarm Website for more info.

Master Club - Very nice click together resin tracks BUT they require the SP Designs 213 sprockets as they will ONLY work on DML sprockets. Roadwheels are nice, but designed only for DML kits and a bit off in detail. "

[reserve]

Thanks, Luigi, just the information I needed.

Due to this I have shelved the wretched T-80 kit for the time being. The plan is to incorporate...well, replace most everything with SP Designs products. This will be spendier than I'd planned but will make for a much more acceptable result.

In the interim the Trumpy T-54A was started. This kit also has its issues but the detail is vastly better (and present, also) with much better molding. Gappy, but what's a little putty?



My method of dealing with the drive sprocket mounting problem with this kit. I want to keep this representing as early a vehicle as possible hence the D10 main gun sans fume extractor. Having been forwarned of the vinyl tracks included here I got a set of Trumpy indy links which should enhance things a bit. So, off I go again...

Regards,
Mark

[bullardino]

Nice, trumpy T-54 is a kit I wanted to get. I'll follow very interested

[wbill76]

Sounds like a great reason to swap out the order. Look forward to seeing this one get added to the lineup Mark.

[reserve]

Thanks gents

Had to shim the running gear out .040 so the indy track links would fit



Also had to cut the drive sprockets and shorten the shaft as they were too wide for the links. Trumpeter had a bad comment day in this house when I discovered this problem.



Getting tracks on



Some turret work as well. Not sure I like my replacement co-ax, might have to drill it out and do something different. For as bad a rap as this kit has it's really not so bad; so far I can work with it.
Nemo, I'll let ya know if the SP Designs stuff is worth the cost as they offer a UD conversion as well.

Regards,
Mark

[bbd468]

Nice work on the shims Mark. T-54 is lookin' great!

Gary

[wing_nut]

Like a reall Russian factory... cranking out these bad boys.

[wbill76]

Working the usual magic on this one Mark, you've learned one of the things I picked up as well when it comes to AM tracks...always check the alignment of sprockets and idlers with a short test run of tracks before assembly! Looks like a good fix on the shims.

[reserve]

Thanks, guys

Wingy-It sure makes a difference in time spent with the light weathering I've been doing

Bill-Since the manufacurer of the kit and the track links are the same I foolishly assumed all would be well guess the joke's on me again

Nemo-Blast it, you're right it is SK Designs. Hope I sent my money to the right place



Tracks on and mostly weathered. As can be seen I bungled the left track, should have added one more link. So,



the old cheater fix.



Did not get much sag out of it, but it'll have to do as I don't want to put too much strain on the joints. It'll look OK once the upper hull is on. Tried a new medium for external fuel lines



.019 stainless steel wire. It holds its shape much better than plastic and seems more ductile than brass. Will be back...

Regards,
Mark

[eastrock]

weathered tracks looks great, same with the detailed build Mark

[wbill76]

Nice fix on the tracks! I thought after I posted that these might be the Trumpeter-provided links but didn't go back and edit the comment...I'm still not 100% sure they are actually Trumpeter-molded links...the brown plastic is reminiscent of MK tracks but don't know if that's where Trumpeter is getting the workable links or if they've sourced them from somewhere else.

[bullardino]

Nice job, I like it

[wing_nut]

Tracks look good.

[bbrowniii]

Mark
I've just read through this whole thread. I must say, awesome work. Makes me want to break out the old Tamiya T-62 that I have on the shelf and bust it out.

It is really cool to see the progression from the first Post-War era tanks (T-54 and -55) to that awesome, futuristic T-90. Great work.

By the way, you never mentioned how the deer hunting has been? Remember, if you don't get a deer this year, you could always save money by becoming a vegetarian... ;D

On that note, however, I did hear recently that this summer's drought is likely to impact meat prices for several years. Yikes!

Keep up the good work, Mark. Can't wait to see your next update.

[deafpanzer]

Nice save on the tracks!!!

[robbo]

Track look great to me mate