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Trumpeter 1/16 King Tiger


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Finally some progress on the huge King Tiger!

I started this almost a year ago! But found I was getting too short on time, with commission builds:-(

I've restarted it now and i'm going to see though to completion :D ....somehow.

This KT is going to be based on Abt 503 or possibly 101 from France 1944. This will have a Zimmerit finish.

Some progress pics below:

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The hatch mechanisms, although quite a delicate fidel, work quite well when finished.

The build quality and fit on this model are very good considering the size of the molds.

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The 88mm L71:

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Dry fit to turret base

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Off to a great start Phil, good to see your progress so far. Top job with the atak zimmerit too, looking really good :goodjob:

Hi Matt,

I'm really enjoying this build, great to be following your build too. I decided to get the 'Super King' book for reference also.

The biggest conundrum is the 88 barrel, it's fit to the recoil mech isn't the tightest and it is something that will need to be removed periodically to view the turret interior. is the Aber fit any better?

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Hi Phil,

Good call with the super king book. David Parker's build of this kit was phenomenal and was the source of my inspiration to go the extra mile with my build. I just wish he had released the book 2 years ago when I was first starting out!

That connecting piece between the barrel and the main gun assembly is a little problematic. Have you glued that part to the main assembly and left the barrel dry fit? If so, you will have problems with the sloppy fit of the barrel. Here is my fully assembled barrel. Note that I have attached the connecting piece to the barrel so it can be slid into the gun assembly.

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Doing it this way allows you to deal with any play in the join and the barrel can still be be removed from the rest of the gun. Any aftermarket barrel will require modification to the connecting piece. There are no barrels on the market designed as a direct replacement for the trumpeter barrel. If you haven't already glued that part in place, I would recommend doing it this way round instead.

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Hi Matt,

The Barrel is dry Fit only at the moment, The barrel is assembled -i.e. the 2 halves glued together, that's all. The main gun assembly (recoil spring part is assembled)

There is just a little play between the semi circular peg-join - this can be improved with some careful manipulation IMO.

From your picture it looks like you have used it as an adapter for a metal gun. Is that the Aber Barrel or Shumo?

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The other problem I see is the continuous removal of both the barrel and fairing each time you want to remove the turret-roof enclosure.

I think this is why you have opted for the cutaway idea of the turret. Makes more sense now.

My question to myself is, are there enough openings (3 hatches) to see enough of the interior - probably not? but this way you can get away from the gun removal issue.

A conundrum?

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Hi Phil,


As yes, that semi circular join is also a little sloppy. I am intending to add some thin plastic card to this piece to pack it out a little, making it a tighter fit before I glue it. The barrel I am using was a limited run item produced a few years ago which has long since sold out. Schumo is pretty much the only option now. I think the Schumo barrel connects straight to the gun assembly, doing away with the adapter piece.


I personally think the 3 hatches are not enough to get a good view of the turret interior. If you fill the ammo racks you will see almost nothing through the rear hatch. Once you have all the parts fitted and the turret is in place on the hull it gets very dark in there. Maybe consider having a removable turret roof like this:




You would need to cut the roof off along the welds which meet the turret side walls. The roof would then sit on a 'ledge' created by the inner armor. I was originally going to do this on mine but I wanted the interior to be on display without the need for removable parts. It's an option worth considering and you have the Porsche turret to practice on, assuming you have the 2 in 1 kit.
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Hi Matt, I've come up with a plan:

The plastic barrel has some advantages - I reinforced the inner barrel to give more rigidity and strength. I've carefully profiled the muzzle to so no visible seems: inside or out. Plastic is also not as heavy as the turned versions - therefore no droop due to too much moment on the mounts.

The semi-circular peg can be made to work well - Slight increase In cross section as you mention but also adding a peg extension (2 x length) for example.

These 2 mods will provide a tighter but also better alignment for both barrel and main gun assemblies. This should future proof the dismantling & assembling requirements fro display.

I will post my progress on this mod.

I have to say the Trumpeter model is an absolute delight to work with. Fit is very good overall with quite large pieces, working mechanisms are ve4ry good too!

If only they made a Tiger 1 & Jagdtiger like this I would be a very happy AFV modeller. Guess 1/35 will have to do for these.

Edited by Silverstone 2
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I though about making the turret open-top but I don't think it's good place for a visible seen when placed back on.

The other option for other people is to remove the front Mantlet from the turret. This way the Mantlet could be permanently fixed to the base and the gun assembly could also be permanent. But again there would be a join/seem in a very obvious place that could prove to be unsightly.

But another alternative, like the open roof.

I'm determined to go with an improved barrel joining peg!

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Looking forward to seeing your next update Phil. I think your idea should work well, it's just a shame that Trumpeter didn't consider that people might actually want to see the interior once it's finished!


I've just been looking through your photos again and noticed that you have placed a PE grill in that recess in the center of the turret. This space is actually for the turret ventilator. I'm not sure what the part number is but it should look like this:


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It looks like the PE part you have used is for the center air intake on the rear of the engine deck .


Also, you mentioned that you were going to be concentrating on the exterior. I'm just wondering how accurate you are looking to be with this as the 503 & 101 tigers that served in Normandy had a couple of minor differences to what the kit provides. Let me know if you are interested in this. If not, i'll zip it :winkgrin:


Oh yeah, you may also be interested in this....


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No release date given yet though. Keep up the good work!

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Hi Matt,

Well spotted on the ventilator. My piece was on the 'W' Sprue was actually missing. Gutted for a while!

So I decided to scratch build something from PE mesh and a few other parts to make the ventilator. I can still remove it as I dry fit only! I was considering talking to pocket bond for a spare, but I guess they will charge me for a whole 'W' sprue?

WOW, great news about the Jagdtiger :D

I've got a 1/16 Tiger 1 build (HB) that I've done a lot of mode on, albeit mostly external detail including a recoiling 88mm and ball pivot scatter gun.

I will post all this Tiger 1 build after the King Tiger build.

Phil

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That's a pain having that part missing. Odd that it would go missing in the box as this kit is very well packed. I can only guess it was never in the box in the first place. I would try and get a replacement, maybe go direct to Trumpeter as well? You might have to pay for it though.

If not, I'm sure you could scratch something to fill the void. Thankfully it will be a rarely seen detail anyway.

Would be interested in seeing the HB Tiger too. I also have that kit (with a bucket load of AM) which I'm itching to start. I've told myself I must finish the KT first though, before I start any major new projects! :D

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Trumpeter Jagdtiger is a welcome surprise!

Cant tell from the photos if they have extended the hull long enough from the original KT though?

Hope they get the accuracy correct. It will be a must purchase!!! my favourite tank of WW2 along with the Tigers 1 & 2.

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It's hard to tell from that photo but they have certainly retooled the lower hull as some of the details are different to those in the KT kit. I would hope they have lengthened it at the same time otherwise it will be a rather odd looking Jagdtiger!

What concerns me though is the other parts on show. They all look like they are straight from the KT kit. I'm suspecting it will come with the Panther G based engine bay again and the same poorly detailed parts for the lower hull. I'm hoping these are just in there for a test fit and they are actually retooling those parts. Would be a real shame if they didn't as all the research has been done for them, they just need to look at it!

I'm curious as to why they haven't tackled the Tiger 1. That would surely be a best seller, especially with a full interior.

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Hi Matt,

Totally agree, let's hope they do get it right. The Tiger 1 could also be an easy build for trumpeter, especially as there is the basic Tamiya & HB versions already out there.

Are HB & Trumpeter, all under the same guise?

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi Matt,

Yes quite a lot of progress, lots of modular building going on.

The turret interior, exterior zimmerit is all complete now too. Also the internals of the hull are coming alive slowly.

I'll post pictures of the progress over the weekend, although some is dry fit only due to preparation of airbrushing base coats etc.

The build is very enjoyable and Trumpeter have made one great build experience on this KT!

Phil

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  • 1 month later...

Some more updates:

I've almost completed all the sub-assemblies. Some parts are dry fit only prior to the first Airbrushing.

I'm running out of room on what is a very big work-space. :banghead:

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Also extended the peg on the barrel end that meets the firing mechanism. Now twice the length and reinforced too.

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Has a very snug fit and creates perfect alignment - so no barrel droop!

I made the peg profile a all is fitted with thick - CA glue, so very strong indeed :thumbsup:

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Moving along nicely Phil, looking very clean and tidy. Nice mod on the barrel attachment, I assume you are still going to leave it friction fit so you can remove the turret shell?

How's the fit between the upper and lower hull on your kit?

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Hi Matt,

Yes will leave the friction fit on the barrel peg, as it's working very well now.

The top- bottomhull fit is pretty good. There is a slight gap along the sides where there is a bit of sagging in the middle of the side frames.

I haven't fixed all the middle trusses yet In between the ammo racks. But that shouldn't make much difference anyway?

Top half seems pretty snug fit and shape. I'll post some more images. All external detail now fitted, tow cables and tools plus all the zimmerit.

This model does take some time!

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  • 2 months later...

Quite a lot of progress on the KT over December. Ive been usin MM Enamels, RAL 8012 Root Braun and Interior Buff for base colours. There is still a lot more painting details, weathering and staining to be applied in certain places. This will be added progressively as the build continues. These pictures are to give an idea of what i envisage the tank to look like inside.

I have bonded the rear face plate permanently to the top hull, this does improve strength and will hide the top-rear join. I have also constructed a discrete hing mechanism for the rear turret's hatch inner-door so this can operate as it would have been intended. ( This detail should be expected in this large 1/16 scale IMHO)

The Colour tome comes out very well in Natural light. MM2 Enamals do capture the authentic tones and shades of WW2 German AFVs.

Some pics below: (Apologies for the poor lighting) - tends to make the interior buff a bit too yellow looking and the Root a bit red brick.

There will be a lot more pics to follow!

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The Engine:

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The Basket:

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The Hull Interior:

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The Turret interior - Lots of work still to do here!

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Radiator and oil tank:

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Lovely. Can I ask whether you've made any mistakes; spilled glue, stuck something on the wrong way around, snapped a fragile piece, lost a part etc, because it would be nice to know that you are human!

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