IanC

Add me too. It's interesting that @Corsairfoxfouruncle mentions the M7 because I've been working my way through Matchbox's back catalogue and, if it goes ahead, this GB would be a good opportunity to do the 1/76 Sexton I have in the stash. It has markings for 12 (HAC) RHA at Cassino.

Welcome! It's good that many of the old kits we built in our youth are still available, so we can recapture some of those memories.. I've been working my way through some Airfix vintage classics for that very reason. 🙂 Lots more choice these days, of course, and the quality is off the scale by comparison. We've never had it so good! I look forward to seeing some of your builds!

Great job on those indeed. The Bren gunner reminds me of Sean Connery in 'The Longest Day' 😃

Superb. The exhausts are particularly convincing.

And so to the paint stage. I was going to leave the tools and cables off until the camo was done, but I'm glad I didn't as they needed a bit of jiggling to fit. The track guards were also a bit fiddly and needed some filler. Anyway, the barrel is primed with Mr Surfacer and she's all ready for an undercoat. I've said it before but the detail is incredible on this kit - the tools come with delicate little clamps, the hatches are nicely done, inside and out, and the end of the bow MG is actually hollow! I managed to break the smoke dischargers off a few times though. 😄 The exhaust stacks will be added after painting. On this vehicle the Feifel air cleaners have been removed so I drilled out the ends of the intakes.

Those tracks look spot on to me, Stef. Nice work!

An incredible kit - good luck!

The magic of holidaying in Britain.. 😀

Maybe because of the maximum part count they allowed themselves? Remember, this is supposed to be a starter kit. Also, the lack of an aerial mast would be far more noticeable on the finished model than a missing instrument panel or stick.

Superb, Nenad. And timely in a way, as I've been reading Keith Douglas' memoir 'Alamein to Zem Zem'. He was a poet and Crusader tank commander, and presents some vivid descriptions of the desert campaign and fighting in a Crusader. Sadly, later killed in action in Normandy.

.. and being a rather large polar bear must help in that regard? 😉

Calm down. Italeri are just another producer of plastic kits selling their wares. There's no need to declare war. Personally, I'm quite partial to a bit of nostalgia bait, although it's their 1/35 armour models that I remember most fondly. 😀

I'm happy to report it's still possible to build something in an evening while watching the telly - for example, Airfix continues to punt out some of the kits you may have built as a lad. The hobby has moved on a lot, but the old magic is still available! 😀 Welcome to BM. Ian

The wheels look good with the wash on. As for the tracks, I've never used metal ones before but there's no denying they're going to look good and add some real heft to the model!

The hull is more or less done, and I'm well on the way with the turret. As you can see, a full breech is included, with a few other interior details.

From Tamiya, ideally, although they've probably got a dozen more Panzer IV variants to do before that happens!

Peroni in the kit box? Nice.

Thanks Keith, Now that bit is over I'm beginning to enjoy the build again. 😎 Hopefully some more progress next week.

Quite superb - I've been staring at it for a while now... 🙂

Hope everything went ok and you're now on the mend. All the best, Ian

Cracking job. Looks just right to me. But, I think it's about time British 1/35 tankies put down their brews and started pointing purposefully or looking through binoculars for the enemy. It's a wonder we got anything done! 😄

Good progress on both - those track pins look delicate!

Rapid progress there. I like how the wheels and tracks can be built up separately and then attached. Certainly less stress than the one I'm doing!

First a kit I wasn't aware of, then a decal company I'm not familiar with.. 😄 Looks interesting!

Excellent! I love these old Matchbox kits and you've spruced it up well. The base looks great too - nothing better for real dirt than real dirt!