Warrior FV510 TES(H) AIFV 1/35 by Meng

[Faraway]

Made a start today.

Usual Meng high standard of part to part fit and detail.

And the new track link assembly is most excellent. Far better than the tracks I had to deal with on a couple of their WW1 tanks.

Jon.

[ivan-o]

Right I’m in 👍

Carry on please😀

[Bish]

Will be following this. Out of interest, do you have a photo of the running gear on the right sid.

[Faraway]

4 hours ago, Bish said:

Will be following this. Out of interest, do you have a photo of the running gear on the right sid.

I can do one of the right, but it’s the same as the left. There’ll be more to see, as my build progresses. I’ll be painting it as I build, an certainly before the wheels go on.

Jon

[Faraway]

4 hours ago, ivan-o said:

Right I’m in 👍

Carry on please😀

Cheers ivan. Will do, good to have you along for the ride.

Jon

[Bish]

29 minutes ago, Faraway said:

I can do one of the right, but it’s the same as the left. There’ll be more to see, as my build progresses. I’ll be painting it as I build, an certainly before the wheels go on.

Jon

Thanks. I'm just curious to see if they have the suspension the correct way round as the Academy kit i bilt a few months back didn't. Looking at how the wheel stations are lined up on either side, it does look like they have it right.

 

I like the track jig, loks like it will make things easier.

[Faraway]

10 hours ago, Bish said:

Thanks. I'm just curious to see if they have the suspension the correct way round as the Academy kit i bilt a few months back didn't. Looking at how the wheel stations are lined up on either side, it does look like they have it right.

 

I like the track jig, loks like it will make things easier.

The track jig is brilliant, you'd never join the links without it. I hope the following photos are what you wanted.

Jon.

And because of they way they are fixed in the centre of the hull, they provide a simulated torsion type of suspension. Clever.

[APA]

This looks really cool. I'm intreaged. 

[Bish]

Thank you. Thats good news. I was so dissapointed when i saw the error on the Academy kit, bt there was nothing i could do about it. At least if i decide to bild a 510 i know that will be right.

[Faraway]

Didn't do much over the weekend, so had a bit of a binge yesterday and today.

First the wheels and rollers, I'm so glad Meng included a round metal mask for the wheels, although I kept blowing it off with the airbrush. But at least it allowed me to paint the rubber and then use it to spray the camo colour.

Jon

Next the hull, before and after painting. Still lots of small parts to fit, but shouldn't take too long.

Then the beginnings of the turret.

And finally the track, which I have to say when together far better than I thought it would. I will paint the rubber pads tomorrow, when the metallic grey has hardened off. A quick dry fit, just to be sure.

[Bish]

Coming on nicely, the detail on this looks very good.

[ivan-o]

Looking good👍
Are the tracks good enough to not bother with after market stuff?

Ivan

[Faraway]

1 hour ago, ivan-o said:

Looking good👍
Are the tracks good enough to not bother with after market stuff?

Ivan

Ivan.

I have no idea about any aftermarket tracks.

The only comparisons I can make are against the plastic tracks on the Tamiya ‘Easy 8’ Sherman, which do look like plastic tracks. And the other three Meng kits I’ve built, the British MK.V, the Whippet and the French FT 17. The MK.V and Whippet had the same track links, which clipped together and were very easy to break and some were not very well moulded, the French FT 17 had a similar system just a different shape. None of these were, for me, much good, they didn’t fit the vehicle very well and I certainly would not be expecting them to actually work. But that was probably down to my lack of skill. The links on this Warrior are a bit more substantial and quite easy to assemble and do actually work, not that I tend to push my models about.

So, I guess my answer is, the tracks are good, once assembled and painted (to my eyes) they look like they should. Although I’ve yet to finally fit them to the vehicle, that will happen in the next day or so. I’ll post some piccy’s so you’ll see.

Jon

[Faraway]

Good Morning.

A few little bits fitted to the body and few more still to fit. I finished painting the tracks, very glad there was a metal mask which stopped me getting black paint all over the previously painted metallic grey.

Jon.

[Faraway]

That's it for today.

Tracks fitted and suspension working. Bar armour attachments fitted to the side armour, then painted assembled and fitted to the body. Then the corners fitted.

And thats the body just about done. I will be starting on the turret next.

Jon

[Bish]

Thats coming on very nicely. The track looks to tigt in your first pic, but that might be because its not sitting on the drive sprocket teeth.

 

Its interesting that the kit includes features that are completly covered by the add on armour, such as the NBC filter dor and external fire extinguisher handle covers. This might indicate an un-armoured version in the future.

[robw_uk]

very nice build... have my first MENG kit waiting for some desk space (need to finish the 5 kits I have in progress and start a MIniArt interior kit)...

[Faraway]

And...................it's finished.

I'll post some more pictures in RFI.

Jon

[Faraway]

1 hour ago, Bish said:

The track looks to tigt in your first pic, but that might be because its not sitting on the drive sprocket teeth.

You're right, the track is tight. The destructions advised 79 links, which is what I used, I did try it with 80 links, but to be honest it didn't look much different. And anyway, with the bar armour fitted. who's to know 😚

Jon

[Bish]

Is that what they recomend. It should be 82 and never less than 80. On the Academy kit i used Fruils and had to use 85.

 

Thats come out nicely, nice clean build.

[APA]

On 9/25/2020 at 3:54 PM, Faraway said:

That's it for today.

Tracks fitted and suspension working. Bar armour attachments fitted to the side armour, then painted assembled and fitted to the body. Then the corners fitted.

And thats the body just about done. I will be starting on the turret next.

Jon

 

 

 

I've made the meng whippet which was very enjoyable and well designed. I've a few more in the pile which I'm looking forward to. 

Those fire extinguishers look very good indeed. Are they the kit ones? 

[Big_Bad_Bill]

Nicely done.  That colour is spot on.  If you want an idea for a diorama, I was waiting for a flight from PB5 in Afghanistan watching a couple of lads trying to launch a desert hawk drone.  Launch, nose dive. Launch, nose dive.  They eventually got it airborne to a massive cheers from myself and the others intrigued by their efforts for it to fly 30 meters and lodge itself in the bar armour on a Warrior.  All things considered they took the howls of laughter well.

[Faraway]

2 hours ago, APA said:

I've made the meng whippet which was very enjoyable and well designed. I've a few more in the pile which I'm looking forward to. 

Those fire extinguishers look very good indeed. Are they the kit ones? 

Everything you see is ‘out of the box’. The only things I added were the aerials, probably not to scale, but what the heck.

Jon.

Edited September 26, 2020 by Faraway

[Faraway]

48 minutes ago, Big_Bad_Bill said:

Nicely done.  That colour is spot on.  If you want an idea for a diorama, I was waiting for a flight from PB5 in Afghanistan watching a couple of lads trying to launch a desert hawk drone.  Launch, nose dive. Launch, nose dive.  They eventually got it airborne to a massive cheers from myself and the others intrigued by their efforts for it to fly 30 meters and lodge itself in the bar armour on a Warrior.  All things considered they took the howls of laughter well.

I don’t have the skill to do a diorama, but I can see it. Laughing soldiers, embedded drone. Brilliant.

Jon

[Bish]

22 hours ago, Faraway said:

Everything you see is ‘out of the box’. The only things I added were the aerials, probably not to scale, but what the heck.

Jon.

The antenna's look about right. I use the carbon fibre rod from Accurate Armour which are aimed at British armour. They look about the same as yours.