Emhar Mk. IV Female, EM 5002

[Panda Commander]

Having been out of the modelling game for decades, I decided to dip my toe in the water by starting with the Emhar Mk. IV Female in 1/72, because 1/72 has to be easier and cheaper, right? (Ha-ha...) So I bought the kit, then an airbrush, then a compressor, then loads of paints, adhesives, brushes, tools, references...

 

Anyway, I've now accumulated enough stuff to (a) Drill an oil well, and; (b) Make a start, so here goes:

 

I read Al Magnus's review, but decided that I wanted to model D51 "Deborah", the Mk. IV Female miraculously discovered and preserved by Philippe Gorcynski in 1998:

 

 

D51 took part in the Battle of Cambrai, and was knocked out by German artillery on 20.11.1917 in the village of Flesquières. Several of her crew tragically lost their lives. She was subsequently buried a few hundred yards from where she was knocked out, remaining underground for almost 90 years...

 

Here are some of the materials I've amassed:

 

 

Also the principal references:
 

 

I'd forgotten just how tiny 1/72 pieces are, and ageing eyes don't help!

 

 

Two reviews mentioned that the instructions tell the modeller to instal Part 5, the external rear-mounted petrol tank, the wrong way round. The hatch detail should be at the top, together with a handle which is represented by a blob on the part. I made a 20 thou. base, and a wire handle, the first plastic I have cut in many, many years:

 

 

It's a tiny (literally...) start, but I'm still acquiring tools and all the other gubbins necessary for the hobby. More over the next few weeks.

 

Wish me luck!

 

Panda Commander

 

 

 

 

Edited February 5, 2021 by Panda Commander
Corrected pics.

[vytautas]

Good tank and a great start. I wish you success in building 👍

 

Vytautas

[Courageous]

I have the same kit in the stash but not the extra bits which has got me wanting. Does the JKT tracks include the hull sides as portrayed in pic? And whose decals are you using?

 

Stuart

[Panda Commander]

9 hours ago, Courageous said:

I have the same kit in the stash but not the extra bits which has got me wanting. Does the JKT tracks include the hull sides as portrayed in pic? And whose decals are you using?

 

Stuart

 

The resin tracks comprise three lengths of track for each side, total 86 links per side (IIRC); and a total of 30 grousers, 15 per side. That’s all you get in the box.

 

I’ll be using transfers from Fox Transfers for the lettering.

 

Panda Commander 

[Panda Commander]

A wee bit more millimetric (literally!) progress:

 

 

0.5mm holes drilled into the Lewis mounts; MGs superglued into the mounts, then dry-fitted into the sponsons.

 

The photo of D51 Deborah about to be interred shows that she had asbestos wrapping around her exhaust, but only one section of it:

 

 

White sewing thread wrapped around the pipe, then "tacked" into place with superglue.

 

An issue I foresee is the track grousers: JK Resin supply 30 and only 30 grousers, i.e. 15 per track. It's unclear how many grousers should have been fitted to D51 in real life; I've looked into it, but the only input I could find was a post on another modelling forum where a member stated - with no attribution - that he'd seen a figure of 44 grousers quoted as issue per tank. As I say, I have only 30... Looking at the burial photo of D51, the only grousers I can see are 3 fitted in the pattern:

 

Grouser-Blank-Blank-Grouser-Blank-Blank-Grouser

 

With some head-scratching, I've come up with the following arrangement to use that pattern, but spread the grousers I have evenly:

 

 

So: the "Deborah pattern" as described above, followed by ten "blank" links, for a total of seventeen links; 5 of these 17-link sections making up one track.

 

It may not be correct, but I believe that crews were given a lot of leeway, and it makes the best use of the resources I have available.

 

Panda Commander

 

Edited February 8, 2021 by Panda Commander

[Courageous]

Those MG's look rather nice in their mounts. I also like how you tackled the exhaust wrapping, wished I'd noticed this wrapping on my current Whippet build. As for your grousers, short of buying another set, the only option you have is to space them as best as.

 

Stuart

[Panda Commander]

Inching ahead despite poor fit, ambiguous part location etc.

 

I had to lop off these two "Polos" to get the side plates into some sort of fit:

 

 

As she looks now (except that I had to remove and replace the spud box, as it would have interfered with the tracks):

 

 

(Much filler required around the "cupola"). Exhaust shortened & end angle modified to match photos of Deborah.

 

I'm starting to come up with odds & sods to be paced in the spud box to give the appearance of stores:

 

 

Aluminium foil from an oven tray, shaped with the end of a paint brush in the 3mm hole of a Helix stencil, then cut out with an appropriate size of spring-loaded craft cutter: Voilà, a Brodie helmet!

 

I'm reaching the stage where soon I'm going to have to bite the bullet, and learn how to use my new airbrush, compressor and spray booth...

 

Panda Commander