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Operation Husky, 1943, Takom M31, 1/35th scale...


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A really big tow vehicle.  I love the box art, so I'll make this one.

 

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I have read that the cable for the tow is not flexible enough.  I'll use the supplied copper wire piece for something else and use something better for the cable, probably string painted grey metal.  I will also be adding chains.  I have some tools and whatnot in other boxes of stuff, so I'll be using some of that.  Lots of extra bits to be added along the way.  But that's mostly exterior.  First I have to build this beast.  Luckily I have a few months to do so.  It's my first large scale armour in quite a few years.

 

Sprue...

 

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Decals, etc...

 

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I like this profile.  

 

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Let me get some other stuff built and I'll jump in here next week.

 

--John

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7 hours ago, Corsairfoxfouruncle said:

His thread may be worth checking out for any tips ? 
 

That's an understatement Dennis.  Thank you for the link.  That is some superb work.  I can only hope to achieve something like that.

 

6 hours ago, Ted said:

Looks like a major project, looking forward to seeing it unfold.

Me too!  Thanks.

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Hi John. Welcome to the GB. Great to have you here. This is one of my favourite looking kits that I don't own!! I'm looking forward to following your build.

Kind regards,

Stix

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1 hour ago, PlaStix said:

Hi John. Welcome to the GB. Great to have you here. This is one of my favourite looking kits that I don't own!! I'm looking forward to following your build.

Thanks!  Nice to be here...

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Finally!  I sent a solid two hours tonight on the first two pages of this kit.  Very nice stuff, for sure, although there are little nagging bits of flash here and there that need to be trimmed off.  But very nice, nonetheless.

 

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Hull...

 

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The bogies, road wheels, etc...That was tricky, especially the bogies.  Many chances for the carpet minster to feast and I am here to say It starved tonight!

 

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Make 6...for each bogey there are 14 pieces.  14 x 6 = lots of little pieces, many of which are not to be glued!  

 

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12 of these...6 right, 6 left...

 

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First I added these little nuts...(24 of them).

 

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Attaching them all together was fun.  The wheel unit snaps into place inside the bogey.  Kind of nerve wracking, actually.  But it worked very well.

 

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Et voila!  All done!

 

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I'm very pleased with this..  Tomorrow I'll attach them to the hull and then I will need to ask the experts about painting and all that because they want me to attach the tracks right afterwards and I would rather paint first, or at least prime and then add the tracks.  I haven't built any armour since 1985, so...I'm out of practice here.

 

--John

 

 

 

 

 

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When I built my M3 a couple of year's ago I painted the tracks on the sprue. Built everything up, painted the tank, then added the tracks. I just left unpainted areas where the tracks/wheels came into contact for better adhesion. Here is a link It may help you


https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235051488-m3-lee-at-school/

 

 

Dennis

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Thanks Dennis.  I'll look at the link tomorrow.

 

...it's tomorrow now.  Thank you for the link @Corsairfoxfouruncle.  It was instructive, especially the track building.  

"fiddly" is definitely the term I would use for this kit as well...I'll take your plan and build the entire kit then paint it.  

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Thanks @PLaStix

 

 I have been lax in my modelling and have allowed everyday life--sleeping, eating, working--to interfere with what's really important--my model building!  

 

I assembled these pieces...

 

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--John

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Hi John. Well, despite life getting in the way a bit, it's good to see you've made some progress. The running gear is looking good.

Kind regards, 

Stix

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8 hours ago, PlaStix said:

despite life getting in the way a bit

I'll potter along with this one.  The Hornet is on the front burner, followed by the Mig, then this, the Vulcan and then the Corsair.  Lots on the bench!

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  • 2 weeks later...

I am taking my time with this one, obviously.  It'll be my only build for this GB.  IT really is a fine kit.  I might have to build another TAKOM kit just for fun.

 

My goal today was these two pages...

 

 

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Here are, roughly, most of the parts I will need.  All but the boxes (page 2) and the forward turret (also page 2).

 

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And it all ends up looking like this:

 

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--John

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Back at this.  This is a difficult kit for sure.  There are quite a few panels and angles that must be matched up to make sure there are no seams or gaps.  I am doing alright, but as you see I will need some filler...

 

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I doubt it will be noticed once all is said and done.  Onward to more building!  I wasn't able to document the whole of what I have done tonight stage by stage,  but here're the results:

 

PE cages around the lights...

 

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Rear section of the vehicle.  A lot of little pieces...fuel caps, more PE, etc...

 

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Rear fenders and exhaust pipes....I straightened them out, don't worry...

 

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Another good view.

 

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Tomorrow I'll start assembling the turret and the crane/winch system.   There are so many sub-assemblies in this kit, some of which are quite small.  It make for a complex and interesting build.

 

--John

 

 

 

 

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Hi John. That is looking very smart. I'm not surprised there are fit issues in some areas, it is quite a complexly shaped vehicle. Like you say, it won't be noticeable in the end. Hope the turret and other parts went together well.

Kind regards, 

Stix

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17 hours ago, Bertie Psmith said:

This is the first time I've followed a build that I have done recently enough to remember it. It's looking great so far!

Thanks!  I'll get back to it too...I am off-island for a few days as of this morning.  

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