The Venerable 1/35 Tamiya Pz III Ausf L....kick'd up a notch!

[Canuck63]

Thank you so very much Dad!

From now on this and my other builds will be in memory of Thomas Jentz.R.I.P.

L.E. D.V.-G.

[foxy]

Looking good Canuck 63 nice bit of work there .

Your interior of the turret is nice to see, not many attempt that as it will be hidden when inplace.

Nice one.

[Canuck63]

Looking good Canuck 63 nice bit of work there .

Your interior of the turret is nice to see, not many attempt that as it will be hidden when inplace.

Nice one.

Thanks a lot for your much welcome comment Foxy!You know the old saying that goes "It's hidden but I know it's there!",don't you?

Well..it's not THAT hidden since much of ythe work could be seen thru the open hayches!

Cheers

Manny

[Canuck63]

Today I've been toying with the idea of transferring the whole module of the fighting compartment into the Dragon hull,which is better detailed.This way the only part that I'd keep would be the turret,since I've been working hard on it and the Dragon one is only marginally better.Itr's not an easy task by any means,since the locating tabs of the Dragon fenders would "intrude" into the fighting compartment and not using them would leave a gap between the upper part of the FC and the tub,buit I'd have used PE fenders anyway,so no big deal filling a gap or three with strips of 0.20"thou. stryrene strip.

The Verliden engine module would stand a tad too proud and interfere with the engine deck,therefore I'll use a CMK engine set..it was originally intended for the Tamiya kit but after a few trials I've discovered that it will fit the Dragon hull just as nicely,no need to waste money buying the new CMK set for the Dragon kits.

In the meantime I've added the bin for stowing 5 rds. of 50mm ammunition under the commander's seat (still to be detailed with the padded seat,clasps and the stand for the commander for when he felt like by peering out of the cupola..risking a bullet in the noggin!) and the stowage for the MP 40.It's unbelievable to see how many pieces of equipment were stored inside this tank,and I'm going to go to town,especially with the new Gen2 weapons and equipment by Dragon!

I couldn't have gone so far without the precious infos,drawing and pictures by the late Tom Jentz!

Cheers

Manny

[Pete H]

I just had a rread through this as I've been busy moving house,,,,, but can honestly say that this is mightily impressive work.

My god,,,,,, me eyeballs are revolving just imagining bending the brass for those vision ports,,,,,Can't wait to see the next installment.

Regards, as always

Pete

[Canuck63]

I just had a rread through this as I've been busy moving house,,,,, but can honestly say that this is mightily impressive work.

My god,,,,,, me eyeballs are revolving just imagining bending the brass for those vision ports,,,,,Can't wait to see the next installment.

Regards, as always

Pete

Many thanks for your comment Pete...much appreciated!

Cheers

Manny

[Canuck63]

Ok..the decision has been taken and there's no turning back.

Whatever...I've bitten the bullet, chucked something terrible into my Dremel and turned it into a DDD (detail destroying device)...ground off the beautifully detailed torsion units inside the Dragon lower hull and decided that the latter was the new home of my Panzer III interior!

The "old" (not THAT old...after all it hails back to 1997!) Tamiya model is still a great kit and I'm going to save the lower and upper hulls I've been working on for another project,but the Dragon is more gratifying in that just about any hatch can be left open and being blessed by a wealth of cast-in details second to none will save me a lot of time that I'd have spent detailing the Tamiya kit further.I'll keep the Tamiya turret though...and a few sets of already soldered fenders.which fit the new Chinese kit(s) to a tee!

Now that the locating point for the torsion bars have turned to a nice pile of styrene dust as the next step,before putting the "old" hull to pasture for good, I'll have to find a way to glue the suspension arms nice and even!

More to come......I hope!

Cheers

Manny

[Canuck63]

The work on the Dragon hull goes on and I've managed to fit the suspension arms even after having shaved off the torsion units inside the hull which,with hindsight,won't be needed to achieve a good result,in fact the swing arms locate securely to a pin on the rearward external "slide/guide" and inside the heads of the torsion bars.Care must be taken in order to have all the twelve roadwheels touching the ground evenly but it's a ten minutes job....let's make twenty-three!

The horizontal glacis plate must be shortened a few millimiters in order to avoid it interfering with the instrument panel and the radio receiver.

Now I'll have to sand off the locating ribs for the kit's fenders on the sides of the lower hull and glue two flanges made of 0.10 thou. styrene strips with Grandt Line hex-head bolts....unsurpassed little friends as far as quality,crispness of detail and price are concerned...a tenner will give you a life-time supply of Grand Line bolts and only a 50 or so Bronco ones...you pays yer money you takes yer choice!

Cheers

Manny

[Canuck63]

And now,for something completely different....the masters I've made of some internal electrical components common to many WW2 German tanks...I'll use quite a few inside this tank!

Cheers

Manny

[AngloSaxon]

Oooo! You should sell them as sets, I would buy some

Mike.

[robw_uk]

Oooo! You should sell them as sets, I would buy some

Mike.

Me to.. Seeing this i will have to add detail to my stug. Just need references....

[Canuck63]

Mike and Rob,
thank you very much for you kind comments guys.In the past I made a complete interior (with corrected turret) for the Tamiya Tiger I Fruhe, which I produced in thirty-five sets and whose pictures appeared on a Japanese modeling magazines, and a resin conversion to turn the Tamiya Panzer III Ausf L into a late H.
I'm considering doing that again with "something" that would be very useful to anybody wishing to detail the interiors of a few WW2 German tanks;it would sell for a few quids that I wouldn't keep to myself,hope you get my drift ;-) !
Stay tuned....and thanks for your nice and motivating comments.
Cheers
Manny

Edited January 12, 2015 by Canuck63

[foxy]

Taking shape nicely there Nanny mate.

Seems you might have a market for those elecrical components.

Nice going, following this with great Interest.

[clift]

Very impressive!

[Canuck63]

Thank you very much Foxy and Clift.

Just a little update...been busy with practicing for the next match and casting parts for this and another project.

I've fitted the turret's motor and the tubular supports for the gunner's seat and the foot rest /MG pedals for the commander.These parts come straight from the Verlinden set which is like the proverbial curate's egg even if,truth be told,it's not bad at all for a "thru the hatches" view of the interior and will lend itself nicely to further detailing.At first I wanted to cut off the transmission and use the more detailed one by Aires but it would be not worth the effort...the Verlinden transmission/clutch/tracks brakes assy will look great once painted and weathered.

The hardest part has been lowering the upper hull by 0.25" as per Jentz and Doyle's drawings and thickening the Tamiya turret ring in order to make the tubular sections align with each other (i drilled holes and inserted brass pins to make the frame "adjustable"!) and turret motor align with the corresponding part on the transmission tunnel....and make the whole damned thing rotate with the turret without snapping off.The motor will be detailed further while the part it will rest onto (which is but a mere resin cube in the Verlinden set) will be scratchbuilt since on the real vehicle it's a metal frame and not a solid lump,even if it can't be seen once the turret is in its place...we'll see,after all I need something solid for the motor to rest onto and these "desert" tanks were issued with two 20lts jerrycans for drinking and distilled water inside the fighting compartment and more often than not ready rounds for the gun were stacked wherever the gunner could put them....

While I was at it I've opened the pistol ports on the rear turret wall...it's been a nerve-wrecking moment,since opening these oblong holes with a few drill bits and a cylindrical cutting burr freehand and hoping in a neat result is akways a looooooong shot...but I think that after a lot of swearing,sweating and other words that were anything but child-friendly I succeeded!

The handle is an Aber etched part thickened with resin to give it a three-dimensional shape.

Cheers

Manny

Edited December 20, 2012 by Canuck63

[Canuck63]

I've added the gunner's adjustable seat and backrest and filled in the locating holes for the towing cables on the engine deck.

The gunner's seat and backrest are modified resin copies of the corresponding parts from the CMK detailing set for the Tamiya Panzer IV.Many small components of the Pz III and Pz IV were "standardized"...GREAT...the more standard parts the less scratchbuilding...even if adapting them to make them fit is a major PITA sometimes!

Cheers

Manny

[Jaykay]

Truly amazing stuff. Don't know where you get the time, patience and enthusiasm,

Good work,

Jk

[Canuck63]

Here's a picture of the scratchbuilt/converted/"pilfered" parts ready for the silicone.This way of mold making is not recommended if we would like to cast these parts in great numbers,for a maximum of four or five,depending on their dimensions,can be successfully cast without making a mess with the resin.It's good to save on silicone though!
Cheers
Manu

[Canuck63]

I've started working again on this WIP.The progress is slow but steady (been busy scratcbuilding a few structures for the engine compartment)..the most noticeable little details added of late are the commander's cushion on the bin for five ready rounds made of Tamiya epoxy,the brass grab handles/bin supports,the small box for the Fernhorer and the radio inside the glacis plate.
The clamps for the towing cables on the engine deck come from a Model Kasten detailing set.
I've also made the master for the crew's gasmasks and their supports to be cast in resin..retaining straps to be added later.
Next thing will be detailing the ammo bin/commander's seat further by adding the support on which he stood while peering out of the cupola!
Cheer
Manu

The master for the crew's Atemschlauchen:
Next update will feature the completed interior...and going by the vehicle's handbook it's AMAZING to learn that this tank was a true rolling bazaar..."(you'll find)everything but the girls" would be much appropriated!

Edited January 12, 2015 by Canuck63

[Matt182]

Just been reading through and what a fantastic build. Some truly superb scratch building on show here. I will be following this one

[Canuck63]

Thank you Matt,so glad you're enjoying that as much as I do!I've put aside the interior for a while(gonna post it when it’ll be finished) and turned my attention to the fenders.I had a few PE sets to choose from and two were already soldered together,i.e. the beautiful Aber set and the nice ones from Part.Since the former had all the support already soldered to the very fenders it’s been the obvious choice…it was intended for the Tamiya hull and fitting them to the Dragon tub has been a PITA and blasphemy was at the order of the minute…there have been moments that the character Linda Blair plaied in “The Exhorcist” may have been mistaken for Mother Theresa but I succeeded in the end.
The Aber fenders are beautiful,lend themselves to realistic battle damage and the front and rear flaps can be made workable if you CAREFULLY solder the hines hinges.
The Red Oxide Primer is a shade that the local paint shop custom mixed for me after I've shown an original,period part to them.They conveniently put it into a rattle can that once warmed up and thoroughly shaken sprays like velvet,but I’ll decant and airbrush it for the final priming not to hide delicate details.It’s incredibly tough andI think it’ll withstanding the realistic (read mechanical) form of weathering I’ve got in mind.
Cheers
Manu

Edited January 12, 2015 by Canuck63

[Canuck63]

A small progress on what is one of my favourite WIPs;

I've only added a few pieces of equipment inside,i.e two resin atemschlauchen and the PE box for the signalpatronen on the starboard ammo bin, the MP40 rack ( primed in ROP like the box for the signal flares), three kochgeschirren (mess kits) a canteen and the P38 holster on the rear firewall and two gasmasks on the turret's "turncradle".......I cannot call "turntable" that mess of pipes for the life of me!
Now the interior is getting interesting, even if still a lot has to be added...the tanks modified for Tropen were equipped with two 20 liters Jerrycans inside....gonna find out were they were stowed.On the Tiger three Jerrycans were stored on the turntable...I think that on the "Three" they were store where they wouldn't have fowled the turret while it was traversing
I've enlarged the holes for the driving sprockets to fit two Model Kasten units to the Dragon hull!
Cheers
Manny

Edited January 12, 2015 by Canuck63

[Canuck63]

Here's a little update...I've changed the internal stowage around a bit;moved the lone messkit to make room for the MP 40 mag pouches,fitted a Dragon MP40 in its bracket,stowed a few MG ammo bags and a couple spare vision blocks on the rear bulkhead and momentarily placed a fire extinguisher behind the driver's seat.On the real Panzer III the Tetra was kept in a small recess and only the upper half was visible.Gonna cut it in half and build the ridges on the sides of the recess with 0.05thou, plastic strip.The more I look at the pictures of the prototype the more I discover new things to add/correct
All in all I'm having a hell of a fun with this build!
Cheers
Manu

[Canuck63]

[Canuck63]

Cheers
Manu