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British Army Diamond T Tank Transporter with Centurion Project


Bonkin

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Having returned to the hobby after a great many years and having a practice build on a few models, I decided it was time to embark on a project to model my Dad's British Army Diamond T tank transporter. He used to drive them during his time in the Army in the 1950's and my aim is to faithfully replicate "his" T. This means I'll be doing some minor modifications, including a little bit of scratch building and custom decals... neither of which are things I've ever attempted before. For the trailer I've purchased Accurate Armour's Dyson 50 Ton trailer - and working in resin is something I've not done either!

https://accurate-armour.com/our-products/135th-kits/k168

Just to add that I'm a very slow builder. I don't get huge amounts of time to devote to the hobby and I do tend to be away a lot with work. That said however, this is intended to be presented to my old man in a finished state whilst he still has all his marbles! This is him (on the left) with his No.2:
A.Bartlett-2%20-%20black%20%20white_zpsc

And this picture is of one of the tractors in his company. Note the position of the mirrors and the gun hatch on top of the cab.


A.Bartlett-1%20-%20black%20%20white_zpsw 

Anyway, on with the kit. For the tractor I'm using Merit's 1/35 M19 kit. Having come from a 1970's Airfix background I'm finding the quality of the kit and packaging to be outstanding.

 

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Some of the parts are tiny... and my ageing eyes need extra magnification!
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Engine block goes together nicely.
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I've already spent a lot of time on my hands and knees searching for tiny bits of kit that have pinged out of my tweezers! These two parts are roughly 1mm across and fit onto the generator.
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I had to thin the belts in order to make everything fit. At first I thought it was a problem with the kit but I then realised I'd made a schoolboy error with the orientation.
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Luckily there is a spare belt because I broke one with a bit of over vigorous sanding.

 

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Tip: The longest side of the triangle should be in vertical.

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Clamping up to keep everything aligned whilst the glue sets...

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I'm thinking that I should prime and paint it before adding in the air and oil filters (which are different colours). I'm also considering whether I should add wiring looms, or whether that is a step too far for my skills.

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Work has also started on the chassis.

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Edited by Bonkin
Replaced Photobucket links
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That looks good so far, and it's a nice thought to give it to your dad. I made my dad a model of his first car, and Austin 7, which he was very happy with.

Incidentally, rather than having the tiny parts ping off when trying to place them with tweezers, I find it easier to pick them up and place them with Blue-tac – rolled to a point. Then just twist the Blue-tac and it releases the part.

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This is very interesting. I have one of these in my stash. If/when my 'British mojo' returns, I intend to build it - it's one of my all-time favourite vehicles, and I bought the kit when it first came out, even though I wasn't actually doing any modelling at all at the time! I shall be following your build with interest.

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3 hours ago, Cromwell said:

will the the trailer be empty? Or are you going to add another project to sit atop it!

it would be nice to reproduce the second photo in model form, with the tank as well - although I don't recognise what the tank is. Also, are you going to reproduce the markings and registration plate of you dads ride?

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The tank is a Centurion.  Hard to tell the mark with the turret reversed and the tarp over it.  With a "BA" registration it could be a new build vehicle up to a Mk 8, but as it still has the two superimposed blackout lights on the glacis it could only be a Mk 3, 5 or 6. Do you know the photo date?  AFV Club do a nice Mk5, but it would need some backdate mods to represent the vehicle here.  The lighting parts might possibly be in the kit as they are used for the Israeli version.

 

The trailer in that photo is of course completely different from the one in the Merit kit.  The original 3-axle Rogers trailer in the kit couldn't carry the necessary weight post-war and was replaced with the 4-axle Dyson.  Accurate Armour do that trailer, but you won't like the price!

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My knowledge of Centurions is limited, but could it be a Mk.1? I'm going by what looks like a muzzle brake and I thought only the Mk.1 17pdr armed tanks had one. As I say, my knowledge is limited.

 

John.

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Thanks all.

 

19 hours ago, Gorbygould said:

Incidentally, rather than having the tiny parts ping off when trying to place them with tweezers, I find it easier to pick them up and place them with Blue-tac – rolled to a point. Then just twist the Blue-tac and it releases the part.

 

See, this is why I decided to join the forum rather than be a lurker. Helpful advice will be at every corner. Thanks. Good tip.

 

6 hours ago, Cromwell said:

will the the trailer be empty? Or are you going to add another project to sit atop it!

 

Funny you should ask... I've just acquired the tank to go on it - so it will be a 3-piece project.  See below.

 

3 hours ago, Gorbygould said:

it would be nice to reproduce the second photo in model form, with the tank as well - although I don't recognise what the tank is. Also, are you going to reproduce the markings and registration plate of you dads ride?

 

It's a Centurion. He was based in Germany and these were the tanks he was mostly transporting. The idea is, (as far as my skills allow), to faithfully replicate his ride. This means I'll also be needing to make my own decals... again something I've never done before.

 

1 hour ago, Das Abteilung said:

The tank is a Centurion.  Hard to tell the mark with the turret reversed and the tarp over it.  With a "BA" registration it could be a new build vehicle up to a Mk 8, but as it still has the two superimposed blackout lights on the glacis it could only be a Mk 3, 5 or 6. Do you know the photo date?  AFV Club do a nice Mk5, but it would need some backdate mods to represent the vehicle here.  The lighting parts might possibly be in the kit as they are used for the Israeli version.

 

The trailer in that photo is of course completely different from the one in the Merit kit.  The original 3-axle Rogers trailer in the kit couldn't carry the necessary weight post-war and was replaced with the 4-axle Dyson.  Accurate Armour do that trailer, but you won't like the price!

 

Thankfully my Dad is still around to ask questions. He recalls that they were Mk2's or 3's. As for the trailer, you are right, it is a Dyson 50 ton trailer - a Mk2 type. I've already purchased the Accurate Armour one :smile:.

 

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As for the Centurion, well the correct version kit seems very rare. I did consider buying the later AFV kit and doing a conversion but in the end I decided to hunt down the Tamiya kit. I've been looking for a while and have been outbid several times on eBay - however I've now managed to acquire one and am awaiting its delivery from across the pond. It certainly is going to keep me busy for a while.

 

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It certainly isn't a Mk1 or Mk2: a Mk3 is most likely  The 20 pdr Type A barrel had a pronounced collar at the end and that's what you're seeing under the saggy muzzle cover, not a brake.  The registration says post-1949 production, by which time the Mk3 was in. Pre-1949 Mk3s would have had registrations beginning "Z" like the Diamond T to denote re-numbered in-service vehicles when the numbering system changed in 1949.

 

The Tamiya kit is pretty ancient now.  It can be improved with the AFV Club individual link tracks, Type B mantlet cover and 20pdr barrel.  Eduard used to do an etch set for it.  DEF do a mantlet cover too.  Legend, Bitzkreig and Panzer Art have better wheels, or there's the AFV Club full suspension set - but that has rubber tyres.  Lion Marc used to do a complete Mk3 turret.  But all this lot won't come cheap.

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Of course, you'll have a spare Rogers trailer now.  What to do with that?  I did find this single fuzzy picture of a Scammell recovery towing a Rogers with another Centurion on it.  Danish, according to the source site.

 

Image result for scammell rogers trailer

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1 hour ago, Das Abteilung said:

It certainly isn't a Mk1 or Mk2: a Mk3 is most likely

 

Here are some additional pictures which may confirm it to be a Mk3:

 

BARTLET35_1.JPG

 

BARTLET06_1.JPG

BARTLET01.JPG

 

And some of the notes my old man made for me regarding markings:

 

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57 minutes ago, Das Abteilung said:

Of course, you'll have a spare Rogers trailer now.  What to do with that?  I did find this single fuzzy picture of a Scammell recovery towing a Rogers with another Centurion on it.  Danish, according to the source site.

 

Image result for scammell rogers trailer

 

Not sure yet. I may use it for spares or practice.

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Some small progress today. I'm trying to get the main sub-assemblies complete so that I can prime them. Since the engine was a REME rebuild it will be painted in a blue/green colour - although I'm not sure of the exact mix at the moment. My plan is to to drop it in as late as possible so that I don't have to try and mask around it when painting the chassis.

 

Rear drives:

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Work has started on the cab:

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And then I spend a bit of time trying to correct the mis-spelling of "Hercules". Presumably a copyright thing? I wasn't sure of the best approach to do this but decided to use a new blade to correct the "E" to an "L" and then, a bit of masking and Mr.Surfacer 500 to try to convert the "L" to an "E".

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Masking up:.

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I'm hoping that by the time it is painted up it will be passable:

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I also did a bit of touch up on the chassis:

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Incidentally, my Dad refers to the colour as a "British Bronze Green". There seem to be conflicting views as to exactly which mix to use so I'm wondering if anybody has any advice to offer?

 

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Like your work so far

feel like I should of kept my mouth shut as regards the 'putting something atop your trailer' remark

cans of worms opened courtesy of yours truly:worms::oops:

Edited by Cromwell
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The colour was called Deep Bronze Green, and it was gloss.  Hataka A271 from their Modern British Colours set is reputed to be a good match.  DOA do a match for Deep Bronze Green No24, but that may be the pre-war shade and in any case I think they're out of business.  AFAIK no-one else does a named match.  In the Bad Old Days it used to be Humbrol Brunswick Green with a bit of flatting agent to tone the shine down.

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Great story Bonkin and great research, good luck matching the green us Brits made it difficult for modellers, i agree with a deep bronze green to my eye it was darker british racing green. Just to add some confusion Accurate Armour do some Hannants paints or obviously direct from Hannants they are closest i have seen XA1814 British deep bronze green. XA1815 British Mid Bronze green.

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Thanks all. I'm currently away on business so have found it difficult to find time to respond... and of course have been unable to make any progress on the project. I'll check out those paints though... together with the new Vellejo Bronze Green Model Air. I'll try them side by side in order to make a decision. Thanks again.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Got back from my business trip today and found my eBay order from the States had arrived :penguin:. Unfortunately I had to pay another £20 in customs duty because the price was visible on the label. Someone told me the way around this is to make sure you get the person sending it to you to mark it as a gift. Not sure if there is much truth in this but its one to note for the future. Anyway, its arrival means I now have all the parts for my project!

 

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I've had a look in the box and it is all complete - although the decals are somewhat yellow coloured.

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