Jackhmn

Hi all, The aftermarket set I've been waiting for finally arrived. It took quite a while to come, as evidenced by the dust which has gathered on the parts of my Renault. PHASE 1: CONSTRUCTION Part 2: Removing parts from the sprue and part preparation Nothing much to say else here apart from these new Tamiya kits are really stress free and a pleasure to work with. The parts in white are the aftermarket parts for the "tail". They include a nice little chain and equipment piece which is nice.

Coming along nicely John, you’re making this conversion work look easy. Also, did you glue the top and bottom of the hull together? I did but I think it wasn’t my best idea ever...getting the tracks on could be a pain despite the sprocket being a poly cap attachment.

That build is spectacular. All the little details are masterpieces of their own...and when they’re blended together...WOW. Not sure what you did to the windscreen but I think it’s my favourite bit.

Very nice job, I’m sure you’re glad you stuck with it given this result.

PHASE 1: CONSTRUCTION Part 2: Removing parts from the sprue + part preparation I got the T-55 in the mail about 4 or 5 days ago and immediately set about removing all the parts from the sprue as well as any mold marks and lines. The only bits of the kit not included are the AA machine-gun and spare ammo boxes since these were not equipped on Hungarian T-55s of this unit. Same applies to the tubular piece of equipment on the left of the turret, that was found on tanks of the USSR. Not too much work given how Tamiya are careful to locate these things in places where they a) are easy to remove and/or b) won't be easily seen once the model is built. I'm not one for spending hours on this phase so the work is probably far from perfect but I think I'm content with it. Now where's my glue...

Glad to have you along Vaastav!

While I wait for the kit to arrive I've been cracking on with the research. It turned out to be a lot more complicated than anticipated. PHASE 1: CONSTRUCTION Part 1: References As always, my first stop was the Tank Encyclopedia website for a quick but very useful insight on the T-54/55. I have also ordered a book on the T-55 which might be able to help me out during the build. Aside from this, I chose one of many walkarounds available to bookmark and use throughout the project. This Tamiya kit is slightly unusual in the way it actually only proposes one single set of markings. On top of this, the markings correspond to "an unknown unit" of the Soviet Army according to the instructions. I never like this and I always try to make a point of finding the specific vehicle I'm building and its unit and whereabouts/operations. So I started the investigation. Said investigation was based on the only two pieces of information I had. That it was a Soviet unit and that the tank had a white dot painted next to the number on the side of the turret. Not much to work with. This hunt for the correct unit led me to Afghanistan and Vietnam by way of Ukraine. Still nothing concrete...until I found this image. A breakthrough...finally. After using the handy Google search function where you put a picture into the search engine instead of words, I found someone on a Hungarian forum mentioning that these tanks were in fact Hungarian and not Soviet. To be precise, they belong the the 8th Tank Regiment of the Hungarian People's Army. I believe these images are part of the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968 or the preceding exercises. Anyway, mission complete. I seem to have found my unit and this enabled me to make my plan. Kit: Tamiya T-55 Russian Medium Tank - No. 32598 - 1/48 Aftermarket: None - OOB Vehicle: "No. 826", 8th Tank Regiment, 8th Motor Rifle Division, 5th Hungarian Location/Time: Forests of the Little Carpathians, Czechoslovakia, mid-September 1968 Decals: Decals in the box Finish: Produced and delivered in 1967. Has not seen combat. In exercises since its arrival. A few branches about but no other extras of note. Machine-gun removed. Number on the external tanks. No damage of note besides bent fenders. Forests in the area of operations. 18 degrees C, windy and raining heavily. Cheers, Jack

That’s a distinct possibility John, but I wrote to the website and they told me that they had no idea when they could get it to me and that they were “looking for alternatives”. I guess maybe the fact that it’s an on-demand aftermarket part might be a playing factor. Good to hear the T-55 is on the way though, I’m going to get down to that one v. soon. The research phase is causing me a lot of headaches... I hate the “unknown unit” above a certain camo scheme.

Unfortunately, due to the Covid-19 outbreak, the Polish postal service has suspended its international shipping. This means my aftermarket parts could be significantly delayed. I'll have to put this project on hold till they arrive. Till then I'll work on my T-55 which can be followed here.

Thanks Soeren, this one will take a backseat on the modelling bench until I finish the Renault R35. But I’m looking at potentially turning this one into a Soviet War in Afghanistan diorama once I get around to it.

Fantastic build Carius. Really love the weathering on that T-34. I especially appreciate seeing one that isn’t the usual Red Army T-34. Jack.

Hi John, Indeed it is, although not widely at all. If you’re interested, scalemates.com has a list of distributors which have it in stock here. Most of them are in Poland or not in Europe. It seems maybe the coronavirus has affected the release of this one. Jack.

Just a quick post to mention that I've completed the separation and preparation of all parts from the Tamiya kit. I'm just waiting on the arrival of my aftermarket set for the "tail" from Poland. Once it comes I'll have the whole thing constructed in a day.

Hey fellas, A new project on the horizon for me as I'm about to order the 1/48th scale T-55 Russian Medium Tank from Tamiya. I'll be working on this in parallel to my current Renault R35 project (link to that WIP). This should be a pretty short but sweet build, as I've gotten used to from Tamiya. More details to come once the research phase is complete. Cheers, Jack

Okay, a week has gone by and still no sign of the kit in the mail. I guess I shouldn't be too surprised given the current situation. I think it's fair to say I'm itching to get going on this one so hopefully it'll arrive in the next couple of days and I can actually start cutting some pieces off sprues. On the + side this meant I had loads of time to spend doing research, which I concluded today. PHASE 1: CONSTRUCTION Part 1: References I've ordered the Osprey Book about "French Tanks of WWII" but that has to be printed first so I'll be lucky if it arrives before the construction is finished. The first step for me in any project is to get some general information on the subject. For armour, this inevitably starts by reading the relevant article on the Tank Encyclopedia's website. This gave me a good overview of what the R35 was about. I like to "force" myself to use the decals from the box so it gives me boundaries to work within. In the case of the Renault R35 this limited me to two different vehicle markings. "Le Buffle" of the 21e Bataillon de Chars de Combat (BCC) or a tank from the 23e BCC. After hours of research, much helped by my understanding of the french language, I came to the conclusion that I would roll with the "Buffle" from the 21e BCC. This is mainly because of the pictures available below (albeit almost exclusively taken by the Germans after its capture) but also because this particular tank operated in the town of Sarrebourg, which is my mum's home town, making it all the more personal and interesting. Now, I did have one major issue with both of the markings given by Tamiya in this kit. Both the vehicles represented operated with a trench skid similar to the one commonly seen on the Renault FT. However this trench skid is not at all included in the Tamiya kit so I had to order an aftermarket one designed for an older Hobby Boss model. Hopefully I get it to fit properly on "Le Buffle". In case you're wondering why it isn't on the pictures that's because the Germans removed it upon capture. So, as I mentioned I'm going to represent this particular tank at the time it was operating in the region of Sarrebourg, France on the 17th of June 1940 during the German invasion. So, with a bunch of articles on the 21e BCC, a handy 120+ picture walkaround, a little homemade dossier of photos and a book on its way, I felt ready to set in stone my plan for the project and conclude the research part. PLAN KIT: Tamiya French Light Tank R35 - No.35373 - 1/35th scale AFTERMARKET: - French R35 Metal Track Links (Friulmodel - No. ATL-168) - "The Tail" for Renault R35 (Niko Model - NP35002) VEHICLE: "Le Buffle" No. 50836, 2e Section, 1ere Compagnie, 21e Bataillon de Chars de Combat, Groupe de Bataillons de Chars de Combat 501, Ve Armee LOCATION/TIME: Sarrebourg, France, 17th of June 1940 DECALS: Decals in the box FINISH: Produced and delivered between May 1937 and June 1939. Has not seen combat yet, reconnaissance missions for the last three/four days. No extras of note on vehicle besides trench skid. No damage of note. Fields/Forests around Sarrebourg. Presumably not much cross-country travel to date. Decent weather, light precipitations.

Hi all, I felt like I needed a new project to help get through this period in which I'll be spending much time at home. The kit I've chosen to work on is Tamiya's brand new Renault R35 in 1/35th scale (pictured below). I'm pretty excited to get going on this one once it arrives in the mail. If there aren't too many delays due to the lockdown, I should be ready to go next week at the latest. This gives me enough time to do research and choose the particular vehicle I'm going to build. In the meantime here is how I've decided to breakdown my project. PHASE 1: CONSTRUCTION Part 1: References Here I'm mainly going to compile a selection of images taken from internet as well as a few "walkarounds" I know are available. Also, I expect to use a book called "French Tanks of WWII pt.1" from Osprey Publishing. Part 2: Removing parts from the sprue & part preparation It might not be the usual way of doing things but I'm planning on detaching and sanding all parts before actually gluing any of them together. This being a Tamiya kit, I really don't expect much trouble in the way of mould marks etc.. Part 3: Basic exterior assembly Here I assemble all the parts that will be painted in the base colour, in other words the core of the model excluding certain details that are easier to paint individually. I'm not sure how often I will post updates during this part but most likely every 3-4 "steps" in the instructions. Part 4: Textures This part is something I guess I'm going to experiment with. The R35 was made mainly of 3 large casted pieces bolted together. The Tamiya kit tries to replicate this cast texture but from what I've heard it isn't pronounced enough. If this ends up being the case I'll redo it myself as well as the various weld lines. Part 5: Battle Damage I haven't decided which particular R35 I'm going to represent but it is possible that I might add some light battle damage to the model depending on what the real one went through. Part 6: Exterior Detailing Finally, I'll end the build phase by constructing the metal tracks I'm going to purchase to go along with this kit. This is also where I'll add any extra details or accessories if I feel the need. Well, there's the plan. Now to execute! I'll post again once the research is completed. Cheers, Jack

1. Separating Parts From The Sprue + Part Preparation Today I completed the first step of the construction phase. I've disconnected every single part needed for the assembly from its respective sprue besides the figure. I then cleaned all these parts up, removed any mould marks, sanded the connection points in order to make them 100% ready to be put together. It ought to be said that, being Tamiya, this kit does not require much work besides removing the connection points. These new Tamiya kits are excellent because the mould marks are strategically located so you can even leave them and they won't be seen for the most part. The only real bits that needed work are all the pieces that make up the commander's hatch and cupola. Since these parts will be exposed from both sides I had to remove the circular mould marks present on the inside of these. Other than that, a real piece of cake...on to the interior. If I decide to do any interior detailing at all that is.

Hi people, I hope you're healthy and coping as well as possible with the current situation wherever you may be in the world. Not much progress has been made on the Pz.38(t) since last month but expect the amount of updates to increase in frequency since I'm permanently @home. One thing I thought would be useful to post is my main reference image. This is an Ausf.E from the 19th Panzer Division in Russia just like the one I'm working on. I'm not entirely sure if its the exact vehicle (Nr.522) but there is a good chance. Note the "22" you can almost decipher on the turret. Going from the other numbers of tanks in 19th Panzer Division it is likely that a number five precedes it. Anyway it was good enough for me and I'm going with it in the absence of anything else. If you have any extra information the could help me figure out exactly which tank it is or if you have any other reference material on Nr.522 I'd be glad to see it! Keep well, Jack

Hi Simon, Not a single issue of note so far, the parts fit perfectly. As you say, Tamiya hardly ever disappoints. I'll make sure to point out any issues if indeed I encounter any. Cheers

Hey guys, 2020 is here and it's time for a new project. This is the first step of my diorama called "Soviet Supplies", more on that soon in the diorama section of the forum. This particular build though is of Tamiya's brand new Panzerkampfwagen 38(t) Ausf.E/F in 1/35th scale. A useful and interesting overview of the vehicle history and characteristics is available on Tank Encyclopadia.com. https://tanks-encyclopedia.com/ww2/nazi_germany/Panzer-38T.php Here is the plan I always do before commencing a build. Kit: 1/35 Tamiya Panzerkampfwagen 38(t) Ausf.E/F - No. 35369 Aftermarket: None Vehicle: Nr.522, 1st Company (light), 1st Battalion, 27th Panzer-Regiment, 19th Panzer-Division Location/Time: Velikiye Luki, Russia, 17th July 1941 Markings: Decals in the box Finish: Produced in late 1940. Has been in combat for ~ a month. Extra spare tracks mounted on top of transmission cover. No damage of note. Marshy terrain around V.Luki, nice weather. Bit of a short one here since I did my research ages ago and have therefore forgotten most of it already. The build is already well underway so we'll pick up from here. Lower hull is completed and turret assembly about to start. Cheerio, Jack

Hey bigfoot, I appreciate your interest. Here is a picture of the painting/marking scheme I'm going to use for the Type 16. It's essentially the standard JGSDF olive drab and brown, with the lower hull painted in a slightly lighter shade of green. I chose this particular scheme and markings because of the four provided by Tamiya this vehicle is the only one with a nice array of real-life pictures available online.

Hey guys. The construction of the Type 16 is finally completed, (figures excepted). The process of painting is now about to begin with priming and a base coat. Here are some pics of the vehicle before it gets its paint and light weathering.

Quick update : I've completed the main structure of the turret, a really smooth build with hardly any extra sanding required besides the sprue connection points. Gun barrel and many extra details to construct next before moving on to the fun part of painting and weathering Cheers, Jack

After a fortnight of very little progress on the modelling front - the return of the football season being the main obstacle - I'm back with a progress report on the Type 16. The hull is now completed with all of its details and tools in place. No difficulties of note here , very straightforward business. The turret is next and I've bought the metal gun barrel to make things even easier for myself.

Thanks for the tip Matt, I'll bear it in mind when I start weathering my current build. Cheers, Jack