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A7V (Krupp) - Meng 1/35


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Made a start - Unlike the single piece track links in the FT-17 that I built previously, these are two piece tracks that require but a quick swipe with a file once they've been detached from the sprue - this length took about a quarter of an hour to do, only another 88 to go.

 

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Along with these track links, the was the small matter of the 30 wheels, comprising 2 pieces each - Once again, very little fettling needed and before I knew it, one bogie had been completed.

 

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Think I'm going to enjoy this, although I must admit a certain bias as I've really enjoyed building all the Meng kits that have passed through my hands so far...

 

IanJ

Edited by Bonhoff
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Bogies went together without much trouble - If you are really careful with your glue it might be possible to have all the wheels rotating.

 

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Bogies are loosely placed on the baseplate here - Next will be all the supporting framework for the return rollers.

 

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KR's

 

IanJ

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On 8/9/2018 at 5:23 AM, Robert Stuart said:

That is looking good Ian, very 'industrial' :)

 

Exactly what I was going to say!

 

AW

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And now onto the tracks - On Meng's FT17 that I built previously, the tracks were a single piece that simply required clean up and clipping together.

 

On this the track is in two pieces, the track plate and the wheelguide / hinge thingy and you require a total of 96 to do both sides.

 

Fortunately - Once the parts are removed from the sprues, they need minimal clean up and if you do them in batches, can be done approximately one a minute.

 

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Only a couple of hours work there - Took me longer to do the link and length tracks on my 1/72nd Sherman Firefly....

 

Next - I taped together the basic superstructure to check for fit and to see if it'll be necessary to do something about the missing engines that are only provided in the limited edition version of the kit.

 

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I was hoping to leave the top of the hull loose so you could see all the interior detail, but it isn't quite a perfect fit - I may see what I can do about that, if anything.

 

This is the view of the engine bay if you leave the "Cab" off - Visible engine bay outlined in red.

 

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IMHO engine detail only necessary if you have the whole roof or the side off - Think I can get away with painting the hole black .

 

Now into brush priming hell

 

IanJ

Edited by Bonhoff
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  • 4 weeks later...

Hi All,

 

Still beavering away, brush priming / painting as I go - Suspension is now all together and one of the tracks completed and installed.

 

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Observations as follows...

 

1:  Make sure that you have all the track links moving after painting or the two ends won't meet.

2:  Paint the inside faces of the flanged wheels, at least the ones on the ends of the bogies, as they will still be visible once everything is assembled.

 

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3: I removed the locating pins from the tie bars between the bogies - Your life will also be made easier if you leave the exhaust silencers off until after you've installed the tie bars.

4: The tie bars are different lengths depending on location.

 

Hopefully I'll get the other track painted and installed this week - Then we can start on the superstructure.

 

Till the next thrilling installment.

 

IanJ

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  • 2 weeks later...

Update

 

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Running gear now complete - In case you're wondering the tracks were primed with Humbrol Primer then painted with Citadel "Leadbelcher." They were then washed with a couple of coats of very thinned Humbrol Rust and finally a coat of Citadel's "Agrax Earthshade" brown wash to tone them down.

 

Can now finally get on with the superstructure. 

 

IanJ

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  • 3 weeks later...

It's been painful so far priming all the bits by hand - Time to break out the spray cans and find a quiet bit of car park at work...

 

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IanJ

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  • 2 weeks later...

Moving onwards...

 

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57mm cannon, driver/commander's station, machine gunners seats and radiators constructed and loosely test fitted.

 

Really like the two leather seats - They seem, from a design point of view, very much of their era but wouldn't look too out of place in an executive furniture catalogue today. The leather is painted with Vallejo "Hull Red" with a Citadel "Agrax Earthshade" wash to highlight the upholstery.

 

Radiators have a P/E mesh overlay on the outer face - Pity a lot of this detail may not be visible after completion.

 

I have a little bit of work to do to the supports for the driver station as the two rads are causing a bit of distortion.

 

Thanks for looking.

 

IanJ

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  • 2 weeks later...

Bit more done...

 

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The interior walls have had a couple of coats of Vallejo Off White followed by a wash of Citadel Nuln Oil, floor washed in Citadell Agrax Earthshade.

 

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The "Conning Tower" has been constructed - The vision hatches can be constructed in fully open, half and fully closed positions and include nifty little P/E rails that are just about doable without an etch folder. 

 

The walls have been lodged in place to see how much of the interior will be visible once it's done.

 

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The answer would appear to be "Not Much" 

 

Still - It's kept me out of mischief for a while.....

 

KRs

 

IanJ

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