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HobbyBoss 82459 - GMC Bofors 40mm


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HobbyBoss 82459


GMC Truck with Bofors 40mm AA Gun


Free French Forces, France 1944



Not over inspiring with options on the colours and unit schemes but, how many do you really need anyway?



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The GMC CCKW 353 truck was modified for many uses being the common standard 2.5 ton truck of the US Forces in WWII.


This particular variant was unusual as it was almost exclusively used by the Free French Army (equipped by the USA).


Unfortunately, this kit does not come with a Gun Crew.



It is Build Club today so I shall start a bit later and see how far I get.




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This is an interesting take on things, it's also good to have an AFV (albeit soft skinned) in the GB.

Welcome!

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This is an interesting take on things, it's also good to have an AFV (albeit soft skinned) in the GB.

Welcome!

Well, we treadheads can't let the flappy guys have all the fun now, can we?

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End of Phase 1



A very straight forward and fairly simple construction with no issues to mention.


Parts are crisp and clean with almost no flash to clean up.


Parts C22 were the only ones with any ejector pin marks but a small amount of filler solved that - and if you don't do it, you can't see it anyway!



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Let's see how far I get tomorrow



Thanks to ALDI for my Fish & Chips

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Quite a busy day for me yesterday and no modelling at all.



Ensuring that the chassis is true and square is probably one of the most important aspects of a truck build.



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Being able to make all frames fit properly is helped by my new Picador Engineering Blocks.


The blocks, 4 each of 2 sizes, have enabled me to provide both a platform jig from which to work and a brace to make sure that all parts fit correctly.


Every day I am finding a new use for these items which are steel and weigh a fair bit.



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The rear axles are a different story! The 2 blocks are holding, in place, the rear springs so I can install the 2 rear axles and drive shafts.


The process here is that the rear axle pivots on the rear spring array and this need to remain fully level whilst the build progresses.


The rear springs are only held in place temporarily whilst the axles and drive shafts are installed and once glued, the whole array can be taken apart for painting.



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Attempt 1: in needing to ensure the wheels will all touch the ground I elected to brace 2 metal rules along the length of the chassis


to balance the 3 axles and 6 wheel points equally, and level, to balance the frame. - Rejected



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Attempt 2: try again! this time to invert the chassis to the upright position and obtain the correct seating of the axles and chassis


and apply the correct weight to ensure that all 3 axles and 6 wheel points stay level. - Accepted



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Sometimes these construction jobs take a bit longer than you would originally anticipate and whilst it seems a bit excessive I think the effort will more than pay-off.


This technique will also stand the test and be used on future truck chassis builds.



More tomorrow!

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I don't think that's excessive at all. That's just good engineering technique. And where can I get some of those blocks?

This is the closest I could get, but when I find my invoice I'll post more information:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Picador-UK-7PC-group-of-Milling-CLAMP-BLOCK-SET-4-MYFORD-LATHE-/350980716021

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I managed a bit more today and finished off the suspension - front



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and rear


The Drive Shaft 'isn't quite long enough' by approx 1mm.


I remedied this by removing the slim section, drilling out each side and inserting some plastic rod which I then adjusted to fit.



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AND, while all this was curing I jumped ahead to Step 10 and started the Cargo/Forward Gun Deck



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It has a decent level of wood finish and should render well when I do the paint and weathering.



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A straight forward 4 sided fold on the Jerry Can rack



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The Jerry Can rack fitted to the underside of the forward gun deck



More decking tomorrow


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A trying day today with a sick Aunt and a long stint away from the workbench however,

The Gun Deck continues....

Part E37 does not have any locating pins and will need to be 'eyeballed' into place although the instructions do give a very good indication of the

location and the number of planks in the instructions vs the kit match.
I have also not yet installed the lights (E7, E8, PE10) & reflectors (GP3) as they may become damaged later as the build progresses.

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The breakdown of each element of the cargo deck is interesting and actually works out very well.

Everything just 'slips together' and fits like a glove.

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A close-up of the Gun Decks in place (though not glued). It is a snug fit and it sits very well on the chassis.

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The gun base plate goes together very well and is 9 parts. The PE part is easy to bend and DOES NOT need to be annealed.

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Currently this is proving another enjoyable build, I just hope they are not famous last words.

More later today.

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Time now for the 'business end' of the kit with the building of the 40mm Bofors Gun.


More detailed than Italeri but the Bronco kit has it beat hands down (can't comment on the AFV Club versions).


This is more than adequate for this build and does not need to be replaced.



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The standard of kit gun is very good and has some PE elements not present on Bronco kit.


However, the Bronco kit IS a better and more highly detailed model.


This gun for this kit is more than satisfactory in my book, there is no point in swapping the gun.



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The gun in the kit has the Stiffkey device in both Plastic and PE - you'll be seeing that installed shortly - and


I will try to fit the plastic one first as it is 1-piece a rod construction rather than the flat PE option.



But THAT, is for another day


I may be quiet for a couple of days what with the Hinckley Show coming up and all the prep!



But, as Arnold once said....... I'll be back!

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Well, it's now April - doesn't time fly.....



I'm pleased to say that I had very good feedback on Sunday at the East Midlands Show where this was on display



The Cab & Bonnet area isn't hard to do but you will need to have some way of bracing some of the parts.



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In my case, the bonnet sides were ever-so slightly warped and needed a little 'tweak'.



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The same also applies to the mudguards.



All fixed together and with the air intakes added.



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Making sure all the parts fit flush is essential.



The bonnet cover and front grill are not yet glued as I need access to some of the smaller parts and headlamps.



There are a few PE parts to add and they need a small amount of folding which I did with some long-nose pliers.



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A small amount of jiggling to get the cab to fit over the engine and onto the chassis - it looks pretty good so far.


Looks like one of the PE parts has come off? I found it and it's fixed back in place.



Now, it's off to finish building the Gun!


Edited by Shermaniac
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And, for this mornings rendition....

Plenty of small parts but gentle use of the sanding stick has paid off.

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With all the PE super-fine parts added this now looks the part.

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There are some fine parts on this part of the build, not least the PE (photo-etch).

They are very detailed and really make the model *POP!*

The Construction phase of this build is almost completed with just the Gun Crew Seating and the Windscreen to finish off.

All the other parts are the 'extras' that come with the kit.

I AM, looking forward to the next part though........

Painting!

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Cracking progress so far :thumbsup2:

Looking forward to the painting stage as personally, I would have been painting this as I went along so I'm interested to see how your approach works out (not a criticism, I'm genuinely interested - there's always something new to learn)!

Wez

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The undercoat will be Vallejo Olive Drab Surface Primer followed by their Brown Olive.

Then a varnish, decals, varnish followed by weathering etc.

Shame there isn't an available crew but I'll see what I can come up with.

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PAINTING!



Phase 1



Assemble the Troops



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All of the kit sub-assemblies broken down and arranged for painting.


The smaller parts are taped to a piece of card for ease others, left on their sprue.



NEXT!


Get them kitted out



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Having used Vallejo Surface Primer - US Olive Drab the parts are drying in the sun but will also be covered to prevent dust adhering to the paint.



In the meantime and back on parade.....


A bit rag-tag I know but, if someone had just blasted paint in your face you'd be disoriented as well :poo:



Leave overnight to cure and off to camouflage school


The subject of tomorrow's class will be 'GREEN'

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That Stiffkey director thing-ummy is some piece of kit isn't it? I was reading about it the other night - great work

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Painting & Weathering



With a coat of Matt Varnish, I then heavily thinned some Vallejo Wood and applied it as a stain across the wooden deck and sides.


Decals were applied over a Klear base coat (applied only where necessary) and sealed with Micro Set/Sol.



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After attaching the wheels I applied a wash of Vallejo 76.519 Olive Green across the bodywork and allowed the model to dry off.



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The 4 x 40mm Ammunition boxes are also given a wash but most is subsequently removed from the flat surfaces with a tissue.



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At this point, I am starting to attach the accessories to the vehicle - here we have the footplate ammo storage.



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Note here the depth of detail highlighted by the wash.


Yes! I haven't painted the lights or fitted the reflectors as yet.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Finishing

Current progress has been slow due to other projects and family stuff!

The main painting jobs are now completed with some of the smaller parts needing to be added.
We shall now move on to the 'Finishing' process (which I'm still working on) so the model can be closed off as a project.

Baggage & Stowage are my primary focus here, as well as finding some suitable Crew figures - these will be wearing little personal equipment due to the constraints of being a gun crew.

This precludes many of the current box sets and they are 'Combat' troops.

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Tissue paper soaked in a PVA/Water mix and painted/stained with an Acrylic mix of Olive Green/Khaki were added.

Personal kit such as sidearms, water canteens, netting comes next - perhaps some Value Gear products?

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I'll see what I can get tomorrow at the Milton Keynes Show

Edited by Shermaniac
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Absolutely stunning work, thanks for the WIP.

Reading this makes want to try a "wheelie" thing to go with my "flappies", hopefully number one child has taken the hints and something similar in 1:48 is winging its way down the Pacific as we speak...

Won't be suitable for this build but still will be fun to try

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