Tiran 5.

[Bullbasket]

16 minutes ago, Hewy said:

I've had a read through from the start on this one john, incredible attention to detail, really nice build in progress here

Glynn

Thanks Glynn. I have to admit that when I started this build, I hadn't realised how involved it was. Both the hull and the turret have a hell of a lot of detail to be added. It's nearing the end now and it's been enjoyable.

 

John.

[Hewy]

4 hours ago, Bullbasket said:

Thanks Glynn. I have to admit that when I started this build, I hadn't realised how involved it was. Both the hull and the turret have a hell of a lot of detail to be added. It's nearing the end now and it's been enjoyable.

 

John.

I know what you mean  on how you can get carried along on a build , i was only going to take my time and do a oob scammell taking no notice of inaccurate windscreen  and other bits and bobs but....

Your doing a sterling job on the tiran,  I'm watching with interest 

Glynn 

[Bullbasket]

13 hours ago, Hewy said:

I know what you mean  on how you can get carried along on a build , i was only going to take my time and do a oob scammell taking no notice of inaccurate windscreen  and other bits and bobs but....

Thanks Glynn. I honestly can't remember the last time that I did an OOTB build. I was probably still in short trousers!

 

John.

[Jim Wasley]

Great looking project you have going,know this will be another great one from you, I love the Russian tanks have a few 55's I built long ago,Have been eyeing off the T-55 Enigma and the T-55- amv,I have 3 projects on the build at the moment a MK A Whippet,German CT3-60(R) and dare I say a 1/72 C-130 H/E. The cost of your kit is sure getting up there,I have to spend twice as much as that as our dollar is so low and at times the mailing cost is much more than the kit,any way you can keep the money down buy drinking that cheap Jacobs Creek wine.Cheers.

[Bullbasket]

9 hours ago, Jim Wasley said:

any way you can keep the money down buy drinking that cheap Jacobs Creek wine.Cheers.

Unfortunately, only when I'm back in Blighty. Here in France, Aussie wine is as common as rocking horse droppings!

Thanks for the comments though Jim. Yes, the cost of this build has rocketed a bit, probably close on a £100 with all of the add ons. But it's kept me occupied for a few months and keeps me out of the pub.

 

John.

[Bullbasket]

And so on with the myriad of additional parts. First up is the rear turret basket. Along the back are a couple of tie downs from the Voyager set. On the left side are one of the fire extinguishers and the four tube flag mount. The latter is supplied with the ends solid, but careful drilling with a .4mm drill bit improves the appearance no end. On the right side of the bin is one of the jerry can holders. This one came from the Eduard set and is soldered together.

 

 

 

There are two, smaller stowage bins on either side of the turret. The right hand one is for portable communications sets and C-rations. I wanted mine to be a little more three dimensional than that supplied in the kit, so I built a new top from various thickness’s of card and detailed it with a new handle made from 10amp fuse wire and catches from the Voyager set. I made a new rim for the lid from pewter foil and super glued this around the edge.

The smaller bin on the left hand side, which housed the night vision scope, was used as per the kit but with etched catches.

 

 

 

 

There are an additional two jerry can holders, one each side of the turret. I used one from the Voyager set (the one with a lot of solder on the front) and one from the Eduard set, just to see how they compared. You need less solder with the Eduard one. To mount these onto the side of the turret, I made a couple of brackets for each one. These consisted of a piece of thin brass etch with a .4mm hole drilled in the end. This was then bent to an L shape and then a suitable piece of brass wire of the correct diameter was then inserted in to the hole and a dab of CA glue applied. I worked out exactly where these brackets would attach to the turret and drilled corresponding holes each side.

 

 

On the front right side of the turret is an infrared searchlight. The kit supplied, small platform which it sits upon is a bit one dimensional, too solid for my liking. I made a new platform from two pieces of card with a spacer in between. It was then detailed with some card and etched brass plus four punched out bolt heads on each corner. There are four brackets around the face of the searchlight and I razor sawed them in half to give the gap that they should have.

 

 

 

There are .30 calibre mgs for the commander and the loader, plus a .50 calibre mg mounted on top of the mantlet. This last one was remotely controlled by the commander. I removed the moulded plastic barrels and substituted brass ones from RB Models for a much better appearance. I also added some etched brass from both the Eduard and Voyager sets.

 

 

 

 

Final parts are the loaders and commanders hatch covers. These were detailed with Voyager etch and left off until after painting and weathering. I'm a bit like a cow with a musket when it comes to clumsiness, so I thought, better safe than sorry. I'd already managed to snap off one of the hinges from the commanders hatch, which will be replaced with rod when it gets installed.

 

  

 

And so that concludes the work on the turret parts. Next up will be adding them all in. Thanks for looking.

 

John.

 

Edited September 3, 2017 by Bullbasket
Correction.

[FrancisGL]

.30 cal mgun barrels, are a flat piece of PE, you had to twist to be cylindrical? ... I bought a set, but not having the right tool ...

Cheers John 

[Bullbasket]

2 minutes ago, FrancisGL said:

.30 cal mgun barrels, are a flat piece of PE, you had to twist to be cylindrical? ... I bought a set, but not having the right tool ...

Cheers John 

No, they're not flat pieces of etch. That's why I buy RB Models mg's. What you see in the photo is how they come. It's the outer perforated cooling jacket with a central barrel. Well worth the money.

 

John.

[Gremlin56]

Your super detailing is out of this world John, really way beyond my skills.  Looks great and the paint is yet to come

[Bullbasket]

Thanks Julien. Really appreciate it.

 

John.

[Etienne]

Nice job ... the bins are excellent, the one with the pewter lid particularly  E

Edited September 3, 2017 by Etienne

[Bullbasket]

3 minutes ago, Etienne said:

Nice job ... the bins are excellent, the one with the pewter lid particularly  E

Thanks Etienne. I'm glad that I bit the bullet and changed that lid.

 

John.

[robgizlu]

Sheer Class

Rob

[Hewy]

More cracking close up work the clips on the stowage bins especially 

Glynn 

[Bullbasket]

1 hour ago, robgizlu said:

Sheer Class

Rob

Thanks Rob. Much appreciated.

34 minutes ago, Hewy said:

More cracking close up work the clips on the stowage bins especially 

Glynn 

Thanks Glynn. The Voyager etch is fiddly but worth it.

 

John.

[Carius]

I agree with all peaple above...cracking job

[Bullbasket]

12 hours ago, Carius said:

I agree with all peaple above...cracking job

Thanks Carius. Remember, it was your T-55 that got me started on this.

 

John.

[beefy66]

That 50 Cal is stunning  

 

beefy

[Bullbasket]

Thanks Beefy. The RB Models barrels are brilliant and far better than bending the cooling jacket from etched brass.

 

John.

[Etienne]

5 hours ago, Bullbasket said:

Thanks Beefy. The RB Models barrels are brilliant and far better than bending the cooling jacket from etched brass.

 

John.

Hello, I'll add that for those who can't find the RB models barrels, there's also the Master Model's ones, very nice too ...

 

E

[Bullbasket]

14 hours ago, Etienne said:

Hello, I'll add that for those who can't find the RB models barrels, there's also the Master Model's ones, very nice too ...

Hi Etienne. I had a look at their site and the barrels look good. Couldn't see a .50 calibre on though.

 

John.

[Bullbasket]

Okay, it's time to bring all the turret parts together. First job tackled was the main gun. There are a couple that could be used, but the one that was recommended to me was the Aber M-68, Variant A. This is a lovely little piece of engineering in itself, being supplied in five parts which screw together.

 

 

Once assembled, it fitted into the kit's mantlet as snug as a bug in a rug and just required a touch of CA glue to secure it in place. I left off the three machine guns and the hatch covers as already stated, to avoid damage whilst painting and weathering.

 

 

Beginning at the mantlet and travelling clockwise, the first thing that can be seen in place, is the IR searchlight. Also, the linkage between the searchlight and the main gun, so that wherever the gun pointed, so did the searchlight.

Moving round, the stowage bin that contains the communication and rations is in place, as is the large open bin on the rear of the turret. In between is one of the jerry can holders.

 

 

 

LHS of the rear stowage bin. Next to that is the small bin for the night vision scope and another jerry can holder.

 

 

 

This is the item that Tamiya omitted, but as this kit is based on a Russian built T-55, it should have been included, namely the deep wading frame. It proved to be quite fiddly to assemble so I hope it stands up to the painting and weathering.

 

 

 

Final photos show the completed model minus the “knock offable” parts.

 

 

 

 

 

So now the next move is to the paint spraying booth. This will take a little while as I want to get some more done on “Champagne”.

Thanks as always for looking.

 

John.

 

 

[clive_t]

Good grief, that barrel is amazing! Great work as ever, John 

[Bullbasket]

Thanks Clive. Yes, it's a real beauty and so easy to assemble.

 

John.

[Gremlin56]

Nice work John, can hardly wait to see the paint job