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SPz Abt 503, 123, Jan/Feb '43


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Great idea for a project Robert! It will be interesting to see how the different kits build up. Not seen either kit close up so I will follow with interest - I'm always on the lookout for possible Tiger 1 kits to buy!

Kind regards,

Stix

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1 minute ago, Robert Stuart said:

Thanks @PlaStix, @Ozzy

I'll have a few challenges here - not least trying to get these to an advanced state by D-Day   :whistle:

I know what you mean, it’s going to be challenging to keep up with hosting and building in another GB.

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Is that  zvezda kit old dragon molds, or original zvezda, I'm doing the  zvezda king tiger in 35th, and that's ex dragon (early) turns out I could get a load of pe cheap for it.  You might be able to do similar

All the best

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Thanks Hewy

3 hours ago, Hewy said:

Is that  zvezda kit old dragon molds, or original zvezda, I'm doing the  zvezda king tiger in 35th, and that's ex dragon (early) turns out I could get a load of pe cheap for it.  You might be able to do similar

All the best

I took a quick look on Scalemates, and no, I don't think this is ex-Dragon.  Zvezda did, apparently, use Italeri moulds for an earlier Tiger I, but this is a new tool.

 

Assuming it all works, there should be lots of images of Zvezda plastic hidden below.

 

Spoiler

pzvi-stgb-004.jpg

 

pzvi-stgb-005.jpg

 

Known issue

Spoiler

pzvi-stgb-008.jpg

 

Those ripples around the fender lugs will need filling.

 

pzvi-stgb-006.jpg

 

There was one loose exhaust tower(??) in the wheels pack.  The same part has been loose in other reviews.  I suspect this is deliberate on Zvezda's part, to avoid damage or loss in transit.

 

pzvi-stgb-007.jpg

 

Track details ...

Spoiler

 

Tracks, road side

pzvi-stgb-007a.jpg

 

Tracks, wheel side

pzvi-stgb-007b.jpg

 

 

Periscopes & vision ports

pzvi-stgb-009.jpg

 

Decals (any distortion seen here is deliberate)

pzvi-stgb-010.jpg

 

AM stuff, an RB barrel, a Pz III turret bin (!), some Eureka cables, and Airwaves mesh

pzvi-stgb-011.jpg

 

I've unpacked the Eureka tow eyes, past experience suggests they are vulnerable when being removed from their display packs.

 

 

Comments ....

 

The kit ... most reviews suggest that Zvezda released their Tiger I with vinyl tracks; this one has link and length tracks.

 

There is a report by vlogger John Moore who took a best in show with his build of the model -  "beautiful, beautiful kit"
Video ...

Spoiler

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Spue shots of the RyeField model (Zvezda shots are hidden up here )

 

Lower hull and Afrika components.

pzvi-stgb-012.jpg

The detached pieces are power cables for the head lights.  On of cable was broken on the sprue, so I snipped them out to prevent further damage (these should be easy to replace with wire).

 

Upper hull, tools &c

pzvi-stgb-013.jpg

 

Running gear and ammo - there are two spues each of these ...

pzvi-stgb-014.jpg

The loose ammo is nice to have, but ... why the racked shells too?

The eagle eyed reader will note that there are three outer drive spoket styles and two inner styles (I can not see the difference between the inners), and three pistol ports.

 

Outer road wheels

pzvi-stgb-014a.jpg

 

And two of the outer drive sprokets

pzvi-stgb-014b.jpg

 

The turret components

pzvi-stgb-015.jpg

 

Tracks, glazing, etch, tow cable and kit decals.

pzvi-stgb-016.jpg

 

 

AM stuff

pzvi-stgb-017.jpg

 

Early (or 'Afrika' style) fenders and Pz III turret bin.  The Afrika fenders wouldn't be needed for this kit, except that I want to model a battle scarred version, and feel these will give better results.

As with the Zvezda kit, the turret bin is the real frightener here.  If I can get that right, the rest of the model looks buildable.

 

 

Comments

Early issues of RyeField's Afrika Tiger had two issues that have been addressed in this copy:

  1. The main gun barrel was 2.5 mm too long, reviews of later kits suggest that this has been dealt with, so logically shouldn't be a problem with my kit.
  2. RyeField's early (Afrika Tiger) pressings of the model had the wrong bolt spacing on the fenders.  My kit's bolt match the Aber etch, so should be fine.

 

Oh, and just to prove that I'm under the delusion that I know what I'm doing ...

Some decals:

pzvi-stgb-018.jpg

 

The upper set will supply turret numbers for the Zvezda kit, the lower for the RyeField model.

 

Reference

For the Zvezda kit, Tiger 123 of s.PzAbt 503 in January / February 1943.

 

pzvi-stgb-003.jpg


And for the RyeField model, Tiger 123 of s.PzAbt 503 in July 1943 ... this link: http://www.alanhamby.com/gallery5.shtml

And some notes ...

pzvi-stgb-019.jpg

 

 

 

Now .... one more sleep before I can start work ....

 

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Started work on the turret bin? No - that will have to wait

 

But I have started on the Tiber builders (least?) favourite part ... the running gear.

 

The painting of the wheels ... start with the easy bit

pzvi-stgb-020.jpg

 

I'm also trying to track which kit is involved - hence the (changing) mark in the corners.

 

The drive sprockets and torsion bars

pzvi-stgb-021.jpg

 

The tracks, almost as easy to photograph as to build (this is the best of 13 shots) ...

pzvi-stgb-022.jpg

 

Each track link consists of the main pad and two guide plates / blades.  I think I've worked out a system, but it does need a good raking (i.e. NOT overhead) light.  More later if I'm happy with it.

Joining the complete links with the pins is easy, easier than Fruil Model.  But those guide plates, they are testing. 

 

When made properly, the tracks are very flexible.

pzvi-stgb-023.jpg

 

The RyeField model has deceptivly little flash - apart from a little flash behind the spokes of the drive sprocket, I have not tried any cleanup ... it is only seeing flash in these photos I know it is there.

 

 

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Nice start Robert, I wish I had painted my road wheels before I took them off the sprue. Looks like you’ve got some nice bits to help you along

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Hi Robert. Great to see this underway and I'm the same as you - I try to paint the wheels while they are still on the sprue. The tracks to look good too.

Kind regards,

Stix

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Whilst battling the boredom of RyeField's tracks (three parts per link plus two pins, 194 times :yawn: ) ...

... I've made a start with the turrets.

 

Apart from the loader's hatch, these are, more or less, at the same stage.

pzvi-stgb-024.jpg

 

Zvezda's turret interior will, probably, be missed.  This will be a winter vehicle, and pretty much buttoned up.

 

pzvi-stgb-025.jpg

 

Back views - cleaning and filler needed here ...

The main difference between these two is the escape hatch on the Zvezda build vs the pistol port on the RFM model (RFM have both options in the box).

 

Both turrets with their rooves dry fitted dry fitted ...

pzvi-stgb-026.jpg

 

 

 

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22 minutes ago, PlaStix said:

Hi Robert. Great to see this underway and I'm the same as you - I try to paint the wheels while they are still on the sprue. The tracks to look good too.

Kind regards,

Stix

Thanks Stix

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To be fair there doesn't look like there's much to sway it at present, inside of the cupolas are the most obvious, I'm totally oblivious to accuracy so I don't know which one is correct, but the both look good, I bet the zvezda is miles ten cheaper to buy  though, good job so far robert

 

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Hello @Hewy

 

15 hours ago, Hewy said:

To be fair there doesn't look like there's much to sway it at present

 

I'd say both are nice kits, though I do have a personal preference.

 

So far, the Zvezda is not bad for a quick easy build, and it does come with a turret interior.  The price is similar to Tamiya's Tigers.  I don't believe the Tamiya kit has photo etch; the Zvezda certainly does not.

 

The RyeField model is ten miles pounds more expensive than the Zvezda Tiger, and does come with photo etch.  It is also harder to source.

(Checking big H's site: Zvezda ~ £30 and in stock; RyeField ~ £ 40, this one is OOS, though other versions are available.)

 

It is in the detail and finess that the RyeField model stands out ...

 

The drive sprockets:

pzvi-stgb-027.jpg

 

The RyeFields Tigers come with a choice of at least two types of outer sprocket and two of inner.

The Zvezda kit comes with one type, with no nut/bolt detail on the inner rims (suggestion - compare Zvezda's drive sprockets with those from the similarly priced Tamiya equivalent).

 

The main guns

pzvi-stgb-028.jpg

 

Both guns quickly made up for comparison.

The Zvezda version is two parts split lengthwise.

The RyeField takes more care to build.  The barrel is made of two lengths and a collar, plus another three components for the muzzel.  Some of the joints between components are slightly sloppy, and need attention to keep straight while the glue drys (no great hardship).

 

Hull details:

Zvezda, one piece:

pzvi-stgb-029.jpg

Note, this is for a March/April 1943 production vehicle.

 

 

RyeField, slot in front sides

pzvi-stgb-029a.jpg

Note, this is for a November/December 1942 production vehicle.

 

The difference in detail is clear between these two photos.  RyeField's detail does come at a cost, with a joint and ejector pin marks that will need dealing with.

 

Cheers

Robert

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Fascinating to see the differnce in detail between the two kits. I suppose the Zvezda one will be top if you are looking for ease of build and saving a bit of money but, if you have the time and don't mind paying a bit extra, then the RFM kit will win. It will be interesting, however, to see how much the detail differences will be noticeable in the final models. A lot of the extra detailing on the RFM kit may not be that visible eventually.

Kind regards,

Stix

 

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As stix points out, both decent kits, some modellers budgets are very different to others and £10 is a lot, but agree the the rfm one pips the zvezda atm, I'll enjoy this comparison build, great idea robert

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Nice comparison as your going along Robert, I’ve just been catching up. Looking forward to the next instalment, the torsion bar suspension on the RFM kit looks very similar to a Dragon kit.

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On 21/05/2019 at 14:34, PlaStix said:

Fascinating to see the differnce in detail between the two kits. I suppose the Zvezda one will be top if you are looking for ease of build and saving a bit of money but, if you have the time and don't mind paying a bit extra, then the RFM kit will win. It will be interesting, however, to see how much the detail differences will be noticeable in the final models. A lot of the extra detailing on the RFM kit may not be that visible eventually.

Kind regards,

Stix

 

 

On 21/05/2019 at 16:10, Hewy said:

As stix points out, both decent kits, some modellers budgets are very different to others and £10 is a lot, but agree the the rfm one pips the zvezda atm, I'll enjoy this comparison build, great idea robert

If you are looking at price, compare the Tamiya kits with the Zvezda, they are much the same price.

RyeField is priced similarly to AFV Club (do many AFVC kits get built here?), both cheaper than Dragon.

 

 

On 25/05/2019 at 12:41, Ozzy said:

Looking forward to the next instalment

Look no further ...

 

Tracks, specifically Zvezda tracks have been my chore for the last few days ...
The main runs
pzvi-stgb-031.jpg

 

And in detail
pzvi-stgb-032.jpg

The guide hornes come in two strips per track set.  Locating them is a tricky task, I have a few slightly out of position, and will have to trim to fit :(

 

The single tracks are even worse, with nearly fifty to make up (three parts per link).  They do have a 'locating pin' that I only recognised when gluing the last ten guide hornes  🤔
pzvi-stgb-033.jpg

 

I have looked at other stuff, like the return rollers and tyres.
pzvi-stgb-034.jpg

This tyre worked, most will need more TLC before I dare show them here.


The Zvezda kit represents a March or April 1943 build.  The vehicle I want to make with it was active in January of that year, so I need to back-date the model.

 

This involves changing the shape of the front tow hoop attachement (or whatever it is called).

pzvi-stgb-035.jpg

Of course, I forgot where I was with this task when I decided I wanted to start painting under the hull :doh:

 

pzvi-stgb-036.jpg

 

And I need to remove the track brackets on the turret - it started like this ...

 

pzvi-stgb-026.jpg

 

 

 

 

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Ohh dear Robert those tracks are no fun I'll wager, now we're getting into the nitty gritty perhaps £10 isn't a lot all, those recesses and molded on brackets on the turret are a bit ott too aren't they, maybe It might have crossed zvezdas mind that  perhaps not everyone wants the tracks on the turret, I like this comparison build though robert, continue please

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It will be a matter of personal preference @Hewy, the RyeField model tracks are made from plastic, and fully flexible, so ... EVERY link has to be made from three parts, with no longer runs.

pzvi-stgb-022.jpg

 

 

More modelling, and a bit of cross-kitting now ...

I said Zvezda's kit is for a March/April '43 Tiger.  This means that its drive sprocket has a star style hub, which is too late for my Tiger ... but the RyeField sprocket has three styles of hub, two domed and one star.

 

pzvi-stgb-037.jpg

 

One nice feature of the RyeField sprockets is sockets for bolts and ?guide pins? are included on the back of the hub. 

pzvi-stgb-038.jpg

 

This does mean it lacks a locating pin.  The pin can be recovered from the Zvezda sproket

pzvi-stgb-039.jpg

 

 

RyeField sprocket with Zvezda pin

pzvi-stgb-042.jpg

 

And used to fit the RyeField sprocket to the Zvezda hull

pzvi-stgb-041.jpg

RyeField drive sprocket dry fitted to Zvezda hull

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