Cerberus Posted March 20, 2021 Author Share Posted March 20, 2021 The Engine Deck The next job is to build the engine deck, and again it has to said that there's nothing wrong with the Tasca parts, they are all very good and can be used no probs, I'm simply scratch building the engine deck because it's fun to do, and it's good practice to make stuff like this from plastic card and strip, plus I wanted to try out something with regards to holding thin plastic strip (on edge) in the right position and in the right shape while it's being glued to thin card, a job that very often drives me nuts, and leads to much swearing... Pictures above, The strange tool that looks like a mushroom (might even be magic, who knows) simply holds the thin strip of plastic that will form the bullet splash guard on the engine deck, keeping it in the right place and holding it to the required shape while glue is applied, and the flat C shaped piece of card forms the front section of the engine deck, this might seem a bit over the top, and probably is, but getting thin plastic strip to behave itself while glue is being applied can be a complete pain sometimes, especially when tight curves are involved. Pictures above, the deck itself is then formed from two layers of card which is glued together with ca, the holes in the bottom layer of card just allow ca to be fed into the joint, poly cement is not a good idea with just two thin layers of card as it will probably warp the card over time, it's maybe ok with three layers, as the two outer layers should counteract each other, but thin card warps very easily with aggressive glues. Then further detail can be added such as all the bolt detail, grab handles, etched vent screen/mesh (Tasca etched brass, kit item) fuel filler holes and the armoured cover itself with its strange upstanding hinge setup, this is just two pieces of card glued together at an angle and then roughed up a bit because it's a cast part on the real thing. Pictures above and below, and that's pretty much it to be honest, I was worried that the plastic strip (on edge) that has been used to form the splash guard would crack or split over time in the corners where it makes a sharp turn but it seems to be holding up after many years. And now the build log is pretty much back at the start, the stand spiralled into some silly nonsense with feet and some etched brass floor plate, but there's no point posting that I don't think, now is probably a good time to put the tracks on and then spend some time correcting the mistakes that have been made so far, like sorting out the applique armour and I think my middle bogie units need shunting forwards a tad to sort out a spacing problem, not looking forward to that... Matt 15 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edjbartos Posted March 20, 2021 Share Posted March 20, 2021 Coming along brilliantly Matt, more very skilled work, just looks amazing Ed 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pig of the Week Posted March 20, 2021 Share Posted March 20, 2021 I've been looking forward to some more of this...! 👍 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vytautas Posted March 21, 2021 Share Posted March 21, 2021 8 hours ago, edjbartos said: Coming along brilliantly Matt, more very skilled work, just looks amazing I second to Ed - tremendous work! And I really like the tools you make Vytautas 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bullbasket Posted March 21, 2021 Share Posted March 21, 2021 Sorry Matt, but I'm completely out of superlatives. Back later once I've been down to the superlative shop. John. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nenad Ilijic Posted March 21, 2021 Share Posted March 21, 2021 Great work Matt! It's really interesting seeing all these tools you are making. You should make a thread about that. Nenad 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerberus Posted March 23, 2021 Author Share Posted March 23, 2021 @edjbartos and @Pig of the Week and @vytautas and @Bullbasket and last, but not least @Nenad Ilijic Thank you very much for all the kind words folks, It's very much appreciated, and with regards to tools, someone once said - necessity is the mother of all invention, and that about sums it up, if you need a tool, and you can't buy it, then you have no choice but to make it yourself, there should be another track skid forming tool at some point, because I need to make some late track skids, and might do a tools post in the thread as well, tends to be a touchy subject though to be honest, blokes and their tools lol How about some slightly (lol) better pictures, photography was never my strong point, what I lack in photography skill, I make up for with,...waffle and nonsense... If nothing else these pictures do at least show that my applique armour needs to be toned down quite a lot, It's too thick and needs to be extended in places to widen the cast in applique armour lumps (as I tend to call them) The armoured cover on the engine deck needs to be sitting lower as well, it only just clears the bottom of the turret, which is not right, plus there is a ton of things that now need to be made, hatches, gun travel lock, gun mounts, storage box, It's a long list... Matt 14 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hamden Posted March 23, 2021 Share Posted March 23, 2021 7 hours ago, Cerberus said: what I lack in photography skill, I make up for with,...waffle and nonsense... Don't see anything wrong with your photography skills and I certainly don't hear or see any waffle or nonsense just good old fashioned modelling/engineering skill! Thoroughly enjoying what you are doing here and look forward to every update. Stay safe Roger 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pig of the Week Posted March 23, 2021 Share Posted March 23, 2021 Looking fab!.... also the care and precision you've put into the thing it's standing on...I'd have just bunged it on a scrap cardboard box or something ! Special tools and jigs are always interesting, so be good to see stuff you invent..👍 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bullbasket Posted March 23, 2021 Share Posted March 23, 2021 I stocked up at the superlative shop over the weekend Matt, so good to go! Even with the adjustments that you say that are needed, it still looks superb. Can I ask, what is that that it's standing on? It in itself, looks like a work of art. John. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerberus Posted March 23, 2021 Author Share Posted March 23, 2021 @Hamden Thank you Roger, If I had to describe myself in terms of model making, I would say that I'm old school, meaning that I just like to have a go at making things, sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't, and that's where the fun is for me to be honest @Pig of the Week and @Bullbasket Thank you both, and as you have both mentioned/asked about the stand, I'll do a quick post on it later, let's just say I had some etched brass floor plate laying around that I bought for a build that never got started, so I wanted to use some of it, so what started out as a temporary stand (for when the model had bogie units but no wheels) kinda morphed/spiralled into what you can see in the pictures. Matt 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerberus Posted March 23, 2021 Author Share Posted March 23, 2021 Simple Stands This post is just for anyone who might be wondering about the model stand that my Grizzly keeps appearing on, It started out as a temporary stand just to hold the model when it was just a hull and six bogie units with no wheels, the bogie units were a bit delicate so I needed something that would let it all sit on the brass axles that are fitted to the bogies, and then as things progressed it went from temporary to permanent and spiralled into what it is now, all nice and easy stuff, thick card, plastic beams, thin strip, that kinda stuff. Pictures above, top left, that's the temp base that I started with, top right, two planks of card that are wide enough for the tracks, with the corners cut at 45 because that always makes things look nice, bottom left, some very thin strip added to create sliders, so that the planks can slide on and off the beams that are mounted on the base, bottom right, the thin strip bends just enough to grip the beams, so the planks can taken on and off if I want. Picture above, etched brass floor plate is then cut to size, burnt over a gas flame and given a nice antique finish to get rid of that horrible new look, and then glued to the planks, I had the etched brass floor plate laying around and it needed to be used for something, It gives a nice mechanics workbench kinda look. Pictures above, then the planks get some edging strip added using L shaped plastic strip and some end caps with bolts to finish them off, a little bit of tidying up on the ends and it's job done, later on it then got six feet added as can be seen in the pictures in the last post, with some recessed bolt detail just to give it a kind of industrial look, and we have a simple nice looking model stand Picture above, and they even do the same thing in real life (except that they need a very big crane) Here's a very nice Sherman Jumbo balancing on two steel beams, see, I'm not the only crazy dude in the world Matt 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M3talpig Posted March 25, 2021 Share Posted March 25, 2021 On 23/03/2021 at 23:48, Cerberus said: I'm not the only crazy dude in the world Yes you are ..........................crazy talented (god don't ya just hate those kind) ................. so i'm assuming as your spending so much time lurking in my thread this must be finished then NO i hear you whisper....well pull your finger out then....god the excuses ........ 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pig of the Week Posted March 26, 2021 Share Posted March 26, 2021 He visits the tiger thread for some light comic relief I expect.... 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerberus Posted March 26, 2021 Author Share Posted March 26, 2021 41 minutes ago, M3talpig said: Yes you are ..........................crazy talented (god don't ya just hate those kind) ................. so i'm assuming as your spending so much time lurking in my thread this must be finished then NO i hear you whisper....well pull your finger out then....god the excuses ........ I'm currently going backwards, to go forwards lol, my upper hull is starting to wish it had never met me I think, and finished is a word that I can only dream about, one day.... 19 minutes ago, Pig of the Week said: He visits the tiger thread for some light comic relief I expect.... I like to check in and see how the Tiger dudes are doing, they always know how to do 'bling' very well Matt 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vaastav Posted March 26, 2021 Share Posted March 26, 2021 Absolutely lovely work mate. That looks just right and very realistic. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerberus Posted March 26, 2021 Author Share Posted March 26, 2021 4 hours ago, Vaastav said: Absolutely lovely work mate. That looks just right and very realistic. Thank you Vaastav, much appreciated Matt 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edjbartos Posted March 26, 2021 Share Posted March 26, 2021 (edited) Cracking job Matt, it all looks superb...👍 Ed Edited March 26, 2021 by edjbartos spelling 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerberus Posted March 26, 2021 Author Share Posted March 26, 2021 (edited) Canadian (CDP) Tracks and Sprockets It's time to put the tracks and sprockets on (plus two idler wheels, which always help) and with a Canadian M4A1 Grizzly I think it's fair to say that there's not much choice really to be honest with regards to tracks, It's either Friulmodel, Panda or steal some tracks from an old Dragon Sexton kit, which is not really an option because the kit costs more than other track sets, anyway, long story short I'm using the Friulmodel set (ATL-127) which come complete with two white metal drive sprockets, which it has to be said are not exactly fantastic quality wise, but on the plus side the track links themselves are very good. (Note - If you have track fitting problems try spacing the sprockets by 0.5-0.75mm) Pictures above, on the left is the Friulmodel sprocket as it comes straight out of the box, and it's fair to say that they need quite a lot of clean up work, and on the right we have the two idler wheels that are needed, the Tasca kit provides both the pressed steel hub (shown here) and the spoked version in the kit, and for a Grizzly I think you have to use the pressed steel version, below the idler wheels are the two Friulmodel sprockets after a huge amount of clean up work and some polishing with Autosol metal polish, these sprockets have also been spaced out slightly with plastic card in an effort to make them fit the tracks better. Picture above, the detail on the sprockets is not bad I suppose, but they do have mounting holes that are not centred and not square to the sprocket itself, but this can be sorted out with a rotary bur in a Minicraft or Dremel tool though, plus a drill bit if you fancy being really brutal, the sprocket teeth need a lot of clean up work with needle files to get them to a sensible shape because the tracks just don't seem to fit the sprockets very well, having seen quite a few Grizzly builds over the last few years, quite a few seem to display tracks that don't fit very well, so it's probably not just my set that are not good. Note - It's probably best to align and glue the two sprocket halves using a short length of track to line them up, or in other words, just ignore the alignment notch on the back of the sprockets. Picture above, I decided to put the tracks together with brass pins (never again) because I really didn't fancy using the supplied thin wire, this however meant that I had to rework the heads of about 200 brass pins which tried my patience to be honest, plus I discovered that if you reduce the size of the pin head too much, then the head just flies off, and yes this job took forever and is best done in small amounts at a time, like 20/40 links or so and then go do something else, plus of course the Friulmodel track links also had to be drilled out to accept the pins, which also took forever, I swear to god I'm never doing this again... And after a very long time, and much swearing I ended up with this (picture above) I used 102 links with the idlers set low and back slightly, and with some track sag, this probably won't be right for a more normal kit build though, you would probably only need 100/101 maybe, hard to say and I suppose it all depends on how much track sag you are ok with, and Canadian CDP track can have some sag, It doesn't have to be fitted like a bow string. Picture above, the tracks fitted to the model at long last, with the track fitting the sprocket not too badly in this picture, nothing is fitted permanently at this stage, the idlers can still be adjusted to reduce sag if I want, and the front sprockets are just hanging there, one of them still needs work to sort a wonky mounting hole. Picture above, the upper hull has had the applique armour lumps reduced in thickness quite a bit to tone them down, this required a huge amount of careful sanding and trashed my Mr Surfacer paint job, so it's been repainted yet again with Surfacer 500 just so I can see what they look like now, the harsh edges need smoothing out a bit I think to be honest, then it will need another stippled coat of Mr Surfacer 1200 to get it back to where it was before I butchered it. And after all that I deserved a cup of tea, and that's a proper cup of tea, the milk went in after the hot water, with two sugars, and made in a dirty work cup, plus it's half cold now because I was busy taking pictures, plus, now you can see why the base has a 45 degree cut, it lets you set up angle shots, lol Matt Edited March 31, 2021 by Cerberus 16 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vytautas Posted March 26, 2021 Share Posted March 26, 2021 Sorry to hear about your cold tea! Life is sometimes ruthless... But there are good things in life, like a tank that looks great! Vytautas P.S. I’m not kidding about the tank, your work is really fantastic 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hamden Posted March 26, 2021 Share Posted March 26, 2021 3 hours ago, vytautas said: Sorry to hear about your cold tea! Life is sometimes ruthless... But there are good things in life, like a tank that looks great! Vytautas P.S. I’m not kidding about the tank, your work is really fantastic What he said! Stay safe Roger 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bullbasket Posted March 27, 2021 Share Posted March 27, 2021 23 hours ago, Cerberus said: I swear to god I'm never doing this again... Ah, but the outcome was worth it in the end. Nice mug BTW. John. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WYATT Posted March 27, 2021 Share Posted March 27, 2021 very very kool, I been reading the thread while at work (can't log in at work other than on my phone and tbh the phone doesn't do this justice). just a quick one regarding the track pins, I cant remember were I read it but you can use staples with one "leg" bent flat or cut off and that should do the trick?!?! Just food for thought now but thought it might help in the future. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerberus Posted March 27, 2021 Author Share Posted March 27, 2021 On 26/03/2021 at 07:39, edjbartos said: Cracking job Matt, it all looks superb...👍 Ed Thank you Ed, see I didn't forget you, you posted while I was writing that last update On 26/03/2021 at 09:30, vytautas said: Sorry to hear about your cold tea! Life is sometimes ruthless... But there are good things in life, like a tank that looks great! Thank you Vytautas, life is so full of choices, drink tea when it's hot, or drink tea when it's cold On 26/03/2021 at 12:31, Hamden said: What he said! Thank you Roger, much appreciated. 12 hours ago, Bullbasket said: Ah, but the outcome was worth it in the end. Nice mug BTW. That's my fav Owl mug, "Do you like our Owl?" Which is a reference to... Blade Runner 2 hours ago, WYATT said: just a quick one regarding the track pins Thank you Wyatt, I think the best plan with Friuls is to just use wire, but thicker than the wire supplied in the box, and then add track pin detail on the ends with plastic, brass pins work ok if you can get some with much smaller heads. Matt 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bullbasket Posted March 28, 2021 Share Posted March 28, 2021 10 hours ago, Cerberus said: That's my fav Owl mug, "Do you like our Owl?" Which is a reference to... Blade Runner So that's what it means. Pete @Pete in Lincs uses it as his signature, and I'd always wondered about it's significance. John. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now