Bronco 1/35 M1114 Up-Armored Tactical Vehicle

[adampolo13-Email Not Valid]

Hello everybody,

If I didn't have enough builds going on all at once I decided to throw this one in the mix as well. My goal is to see if I can get it built, painted, and weathered before the AMPS East show in September.



I've pretty much got the lower chassis complete in about 4 hours time. Here's a quick shot just so you get an idea of how big (small) this vehicle is in 1/35 scale.



Overall the details are very nice. There are a few fragile pieces that require very careful removal from the sprue and even more careful handling when sanding. There are a few very good build reviews already available for this kit so I knew about the instructions having the axles backwards but the one thing I picked up on my own so far was this:
To me the instructions show that the fan belts need to rest completely flush against the fan.


At this point I stopped and started dry fitting things.

I found that if I glued the fan belt assembly flush against the fan then everything would get out of wack when I glued the rest of it together. My solution:
Pull the assembly out just a bit to make sure it all fits snug.


After I got that set up I decided to do a bit more dryfitting just to make sure I like the fit of everything. There's some sanding needed here and there but it won't be a problem getting this to all line up nice. here are a few pics just to give you an idea of the details on this and a glimpse at what she will look like.




As always, thanks for following along!

[TRM]

WOW Adam!! Great to see you having at this here!! You made some great progress too!! That is a little truck isn't it? Well done so far!

[deafpanzer]

Great choice... have been watching my fav TV show Battleground Afghanistan and it is tempted to buy and build either Humvee or Abrams! Please count me in...

[Leon]

Off to a great start Adam.Looks like a cool little project.

[Mence]

Great subject Adam, good start, keep it coming....

[paulh.]

Haven't yet added anything Bronco to the stash and given the relative lightness of the parts count on this one I'm very tempted.
Looking forward to see how this comes together.
p

[wbill76]

Neat project Adam, will be following with interest!

[adampolo13-Email Not Valid]

Hey guys, thanks for all the kind words!

Somewhere between making chicken alfredo and burping the babay I was able to get the chassis build completed tonight. Just as a quick heads up to anybody who may decide to build this, pay attention to the instructions on the rear bumper where the spare tire mount goes. It can be confusing because the instructions have you drill the holes for the mount on page one and don't have you install it until the last page.




Okay, here are pictures of the front and rear of the chassis. Details appear pretty crisp to me. ;D







As always, thanks for checking out my progress!

[wbill76]

Nice progress Adam! Sometimes I think the same guy who works for Dragon does the instructions for Bronco too!

[adampolo13-Email Not Valid]

Hey guys,

wbill76, I think you might be on to something!

So I have to apologize, I inadvertently lied t you all. I thought the lower chassis was done last night but it wasn't. The good news is that tonight I got some more work done.

Front end:





Again, this is all dryfit to give an impression of the overall quality of the kit. I have to say I'm very pleased with the way everything is going together.

As always, thanks for stopping by!

[Leon]

Making really good progress Adam.Keep up the good work.

[adampolo13-Email Not Valid]

Hey guys,
I couldn't stop myself from breaking out the airbrush and the AK and starting paint on this.








(I have since gone back and bent the windshield wiper back into place)

Thanks for stopping by!

[Leon]

WOW,paint already .Your making really good progress Adam.

[wbill76]

You're on a roll with this one Adam, nice to see paint already!

[adampolo13-Email Not Valid]

Hey all,

Thanks Leon, thanks wbill76. I'm just messing around with paint while glue dries, and having fun!

I was able to do some more work on this over the last few days. I've been slowly plugging away at the interior, rear truck lid, and weathered the hood up a bit.







Thanks for stopping by!

[paulh.]

The weatherting on the hood is nice. Do you have an issues/difficulties with painting sub-assemblies like that- particvularly with matching up shades etc.?
P

[adampolo13-Email Not Valid]

Aug 12, 2013 8:32:37 GMT -5 paulh. said:

The weatherting on the hood is nice. Do you have an issues/difficulties with painting sub-assemblies like that- particvularly with matching up shades etc.?
P

Hey Paul, I haven't had any issues before. They nice thing about the AK products is that they are very consistent in their finish.

[Tobi]

Aug 12, 2013 8:32:37 GMT -5 paulh. said:

The weatherting on the hood is nice. Do you have an issues/difficulties with painting sub-assemblies like that- particvularly with matching up shades etc.?
P

Hi Paul, considering the technique of color modulation, you don't want shades to match!
It's all about selling it to the people...

Cheers,
Tobi

[adampolo13-Email Not Valid]

Sorry it's not a bigger update tonight. I spent about 6 hours at my wife's parents house yesterday. They have some very good family friends in from Bristol, England and we had dinner etc. Was a great time but no real bench time was had yesterday and tonight I'm exhausted. Anyways, here's what the kit .50 looks like all dressed up in RB model.





I couldn't be happier with the results!

[TRM]

Awesome work on the MG brotha'!! Nice upgrade with this!!!

[deafpanzer]

You are fast on this one! MG looking good... makes me want to see my ma!

[bullardino]

A nice M1114, Adam. I can't stay away, I already know the result will be a stunner

[adampolo13-Email Not Valid]

Thanks guys! I'm really trying to push myself to get this one done before September 26th. I've got a friendly bet going with a buddy to see if we can both finish our kits before the show.

The Def Models resin wheels came in today and I couldn't stop myself from getting some color on them! Sorry for the bad picture. My digital camera was upstairs and I didn't feel like getting it.



I still have to put a coat of future over the whole thing to seal it all up and then I can do some washes etc.

P.s. I think I've now used my wife's hairdryer more than she has! haha Without that thing I'd still be waiting for the primer to dry.

[Leon]

Nice work on the MG Adam.Resin wheels look great.Looking forward to your next update.

[Deleted]

nice work on the kit it looks nicely detailed

[adampolo13-Email Not Valid]

Thanks guys. I'm really hoping to get the last of the build finished on this over the weekend. I worked on some of the stowage for this last night, nothing too major tho, a few MRE's etc.

[bullardino]

Very nice job on the wheels. Have you seen the new meng bottles?

[adampolo13-Email Not Valid]

Hey Bullardino, I was just looking at those last night. They look pretty sweet.

[Deleted]

Well I'm buyin it! Looking gooood!

[adampolo13-Email Not Valid]

Hey guys, all I've got is another small update w/ a few pictures. The wheels are sealed in Future and attached to the frame. ;D The body, hood, etc is all dry fit.






Thanks for stoppin' by!