Valenstitch Posted September 3, 2017 Share Posted September 3, 2017 I started this ages ago and the WIP was progressing nicely until the Photobucket asteroid destroyed the images on my WIP dinosaur! However, here is a brief recap! Here are the guts laid out for inspection as per modeling law! I think it`s a reasonable kit! However, an evening of cider kebab and internet shopping resulted in these goodies! The DEF model weighted wheels really are a work of art! Assembly proceeded quickly and was trouble free in the main. The suspension was particularly busy however, if I remember correctly there are almost 50 parts here which you will never see! The only major correction was the suspension geometry, the kit sits too low, since there was an amount of articulation in the suspension components it was simple to make the suspension up on a jig the gave the correct ride height and leave it to go firm! Resulting in this! The next part of the correction was to force the axles lower than the kit would like, so a shim was glues into the hubs, once dry the shim was fettled until the axles sat at the correct angle Kind of like this! The ends of the axles had to be trimmed down by 3 mm to fit the replacement wheels but the result was this.......... Lovely........I had to go and have a lie down! I wanted to make a MK 1 vehicle which meant removing the indicators and their attendant wiring, but that was relatively quick and pain free. One of the other issues with the kit was the absence of hatch rims, bizarrely these were also missing on the Mr Modellbau resin hatches, so these were duly fabricated resulting in the hatches not closing! This is not an issue since I intended to build it all opened up So here is the turret with replacement resin bits, another omission is the commanders .30 cal MG and mounting, thoughtfully everything is provided by our friendly German aftermarket chums. The smoke grenade dischargers were modified with a bit of etch fret and wired up in the now familiar fashion! (stripped telephone cable!) So here it all is pre primer, resin, metal, scratch..................... And early on in the paint process........................ Much later in the process.................. Even further on............... Just sitting on its wheels..........no glue yet Weathering and washes under way....................The yellow and red flash indicates RAC Centre regiment the Rose indicates up north! So a Catterick based vehicle................I got well and truly bogged up on the area there.......so The suspension got a good hammering with dirt..........oh , you cant see it! That's a bit more like it! Proper minging! The only difference between these two fots is the angle! This is Flory wash, and by the looks of it there's still a lot to come off! Ta for lookin` no "G" Granto 13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Widow 65 Posted September 3, 2017 Share Posted September 3, 2017 Nice...as always 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valenstitch Posted September 4, 2017 Author Share Posted September 4, 2017 Ok, a pre work update on the Old Saladbin, This is a MK 1 Saladin that was based at the RAC centre regiment at Catterick (QOH) in 1962, as such I wanted a dirty but not shagged out vehicle. British Army AFV`s of the period were painted in a gloss bronze green for UK and BAOR use, middle east use usually entailed brush painting buff or sand over the bronze green, this would not adhere to the bronze green properly and in the dry high abrasion environment of the middle east it would wear rapidly, this is why there are lots of fots of "Orrible" Saladins and Ferrets. I used Tamiya XF 11 with some gloss clear in it, I think it gives a reasonable effect in this scale. This was airbrushed over the entire model. The canvas was picked out in a slightly different shade of green, although it doesn't look like it in these fots! I will dirty down the hatch pads since they were invariably sat on all day. The Sights and lights were picked out with chrome silver and then over painted with dark green crystal acrylic and red crystal acrylic respectively. The exhaust shroud rusted very quickly in service, so there is a stippling of hull red and some Flory rust wash on it already, that will get some brighter highlights to finish it off. Underneath I used dried sifted earth from the garden sprinkled on to waterproof PVA, for dried dirt effects this has the advantage of being the right colour without having to be painted! I didnt want it caked in dirt, just enough to look like it`s been out for a couple of days! The washdown at Catterick still only had fire hoses when I last used it in 1979, so believe me I know this stuff sticks to waggons like S*it to a blanket! Once dry the underneath got a good Flory wash and today a light dusting of Tamiya buff airbrushed on. The dusting will be confined to the lower portion of the vehicle. The turret got another scrub The wheels also got a dusting of buff She`s starting to come together, there are a number of bits of kit to stow on the waggon, and I still have to fabricate tow cables and shackles yet. And finally for today here is the .30 cal mounted. Still to do, find a crew, paint the antennas, fix the wheels on, that might be a slight issue since they are resin and weighted, so I have to get them with their bottom weighted flats aligned and a slight toe in, superglue might go off too quick! I need the cable on the spotlight, wiper on the sight and a good tidy up all round. But I`m happy so far! Ta for lookin` no "G" Granto 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bullbasket Posted September 4, 2017 Share Posted September 4, 2017 Ah, Catterick Camp in the 60's. The Harewood Club. Happy days. It's looking good Granto. Another one to add to my shopping list. I think that I will need to hire a van when I go to Telford. John. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Etienne Posted September 4, 2017 Share Posted September 4, 2017 Hello, very nice Saladin ... I am interested in the clay washes (Flory or UMP for instance), did you need to fix them with some kind of matt or satin coat ? E Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valenstitch Posted September 5, 2017 Author Share Posted September 5, 2017 17 hours ago, Etienne said: Hello, very nice Saladin ... I am interested in the clay washes (Flory or UMP for instance), did you need to fix them with some kind of matt or satin coat ? E Etienne, I spray a satin coat over the paint work then apply the wash, Flory wash is a clay solution as far as I can recall, you can airbrush it but I prefer a big brush and I swamp everything I want to with the wash and then let it go dry. Once dry I start removing the wash with a flat fairly stiff brush and clean water, rinsing the brush frequently, you can streak it by brushing it in one direction, you can re arrange it pushing it into areas you might have missed, and you can mix the colours, it`s good stuff. The Flory site has a video of how to use it on there! Best of all, if you don't like it you can wash it off and start again, when you are happy another shot with a matt coat and you`re done! Granto 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Etienne Posted September 5, 2017 Share Posted September 5, 2017 3 hours ago, Valenstitch said: Etienne, I spray a satin coat over the paint work then apply the wash, Flory wash is a clay solution as far as I can recall, you can airbrush it but I prefer a big brush and I swamp everything I want to with the wash and then let it go dry. Once dry I start removing the wash with a flat fairly stiff brush and clean water, rinsing the brush frequently, you can streak it by brushing it in one direction, you can re arrange it pushing it into areas you might have missed, and you can mix the colours, it`s good stuff. The Flory site has a video of how to use it on there! Best of all, if you don't like it you can wash it off and start again, when you are happy another shot with a matt coat and you`re done! Granto Thanks for the tips ... I'll try these clay washes !! E 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Widow 65 Posted September 5, 2017 Share Posted September 5, 2017 Fantastic Granto, you have captured the weathering like someone who has experienced it first hand Detail is amazing too. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valenstitch Posted September 6, 2017 Author Share Posted September 6, 2017 What a nightmare! Yesterday, having done my workout, and having a spare hour before work I thought I would fit the wheels onto the Saladin...................So I prepped everything, got everything lined up, did a dry run, I had a dilemma obviously, these are resin wheels, they are weighted and they also need to have a bit of toe in, so I thought that it would be easier to use thick CA and do three on one side all at once to assist in the line up, so I went for it! Resin is a capricious beast, when you want it to stick it doesn't, when you need to adjust something it "sticks like Sh*t to a blanket", guess what happened.....go on guess! Yeah, the flats were out! I tried everything to move the wheels, acetone, debonder, prayer.........nothing worked! So after working out my story that I was going to post here, that someone broke in and stole my half built model armoured car, I thought I would have one last go at saving it. I had a good look and reasoned that the join between the resin wheels and the axles was solid enough that I might be able to rotate the whole axle, so I brushed some extra thin into the gap between the axle carrier and the CV hub to try and erode the bond between the shim I had put there and the axle, left it and went for a brew........... came back and gently rotated it............slight movement..........more extra thin...brew.......back, tried again..first wheel free.......Long story short, I was able to free up all three wheels and rotate them until they lined up. They got another dose of extra thin to try and reinstate the bond after I had fitted the wheels on the other side, INDIVIDUALLY this time, using 60 second CA, adjusting the line up, and parking the whole thing with a limited amount of weight sitting on it on a flat surface to go off! Sweet Baby Moses, I don't want to do that again! Mega flap! Anyway, here she is now, and I cant actually remember which side I got wrong without having a look at the hub carriers.......and once I`ve touched up the paint on them this will just be a dim distant memory that will come back in nightmares and cause PTSD! A bit blurry..................... I`m happy with that..................... So, "close enough for government work" as they say! Ta for lookin` no "G" Granto 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hamden Posted September 6, 2017 Share Posted September 6, 2017 Nice save on the wheels! Roger 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valenstitch Posted September 6, 2017 Author Share Posted September 6, 2017 15 minutes ago, Hamden said: Nice save on the wheels! Roger You ain't kiddin`! #sweatin` no "G" 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
longshanks Posted September 7, 2017 Share Posted September 7, 2017 Glad you managed to pull it back from the brink, looking tasty Kev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badder Posted September 8, 2017 Share Posted September 8, 2017 (edited) My father was in the TA for 30 plus years, and when I was a little kid he used to drive a Saladin (before ending up as the driver and then commander of a Fox) Every Sunday, he would drive the Saladin down our little cul-de-sac and let the local kids clamber all over it. I have a vague recollection of being allowed to drive it 50 yards across a field at some tattoo. I myself joined the TA after my father retired, but drove the Fox. I have a real soft spot for the Saladin though, so I have been following your progress with interest. Damned shame about Photobucket, but you've done us all a favour by taking the time to replace the photos, so thank you. Fantastic weathering and that shade of green is spot on. Great job on the mods earlier on. Way beyond anything I'd consider! Rearguards, Badder Edited September 8, 2017 by Badder 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valenstitch Posted September 10, 2017 Author Share Posted September 10, 2017 A swift update on progress! I have made a start on the tow cables.............. I have used picture hanging wire and tightened the twist using two hand drill chucks, there will be two cables about 8 cm long with an eye in each end joined with a central ring. Here is the wire and the basics of some eyes, a short slice of tube and a bit of triangular stock stuck onto a card backing, then a drill passed through the tube and another piece of card glued onto the top. Once dry the eyes are rough cut out................... And fettled.......... I spun a scalpel blade in the hole to profile it and then started to shape the eyes using a skinny stick, there is a long way to go yet................ But this is where it will end up.........This is an original image, there are better ones out there, but they are in the main restored vehicles which should not be regarded as a reliable source for accurate stowage! I`ve seen some right cockamayme stowage on vehicles at military shows! Ta for lookin` no "G" Granto 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valenstitch Posted September 17, 2017 Author Share Posted September 17, 2017 Here is where we are at today! It`s been a bit of a struggle to get any shed time this last week, I`m in the middle of an attack of cluster headaches at the moment, they tend to mess with your sleep patterns which in my case, despite all the good intentions to get an hour down the shed after work, ultimately ends up with me flaking out on the sofa during the six o`clock news! However, I have made some progress on the tow cable, here are the four towing eyes this morning, still a bit more fettling to go since the right hand one is a fraction larger than the other three! a roughed out one is here for comparison. They have been filed to shape in profile and then starting with a triangular file the channel was profiled. Using a very small round rat tail file the channel for the cable was rounded out A length of stock tube was cut, one end was enlarged internally with a twiddle of a scalpel blade and then a fine rat tail file. And then the cable was wrapped around the eye and inserted in the stock tube, kind of like that! this is a dry run, once I`ve had my brew I`ll have a go and secure one with 60 second CA. When it`s all gone off I`ll reduce the thickness of the "crimp" by about 30/40% hopefully, since it`ll be full of wire and CA it should stand up to a bit of sanding! Ta for lookin` no "G" Granto 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valenstitch Posted September 17, 2017 Author Share Posted September 17, 2017 Happy with that! Just let it go off and then reduce the crimps! Bangin`! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bullbasket Posted September 17, 2017 Share Posted September 17, 2017 Lovely detail work on the cables. Incidentally, there was a documentary on BBC a few weeks ago where a woman suffered from cluster headaches. She said that it was more painful than childbirth. I'll take her word for it. John. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ripaman Posted September 17, 2017 Share Posted September 17, 2017 Brilliant model Granto, do like the looks of the Saladin. Regards Richard 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valenstitch Posted September 18, 2017 Author Share Posted September 18, 2017 I like lates at work, I get shed time in the morning! Raided the "Leg Iron`s" jewellery making spares for a jump ring about the right size to link the lengths, this now needs bending into shape and then priming, next job after that are the shackles! Ta for lookin` no "G" Granto 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valenstitch Posted September 20, 2017 Author Share Posted September 20, 2017 Fettled and bent! And primed! Ta for lookin` no "G" Granto 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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