Leopard 2 A4 1988 1/35 Meng

[Bullbasket]

You've done a great job on those road wheels Dmitriy. They look well used. I think that the rollers that you are referring to are known as return rollers. And there's nothing wrong with your English.

 

John.

[Dmitriy1967]

3 hours ago, Bullbasket said:

You've done a great job on those road wheels Dmitriy. They look well used. I think that the rollers that you are referring to are known as return rollers. And there's nothing wrong with your English.

 

John.

 

I must admit that this is not my English, but Google translator. 🙂

[Bullbasket]

1 hour ago, Dmitriy1967 said:

I must admit that this is not my English, but Google translator.

Then we have something in common. I live in France but do all of my communications with French establishments via Google Translate.

 

John.

[Dmitriy1967]

The question arose how to glue large round air grilles engines from photo etching. How to orient the rays of this eight-pointed star. I began to look at the photos and was very surprised that on Leopards they are not parallel or perpendicular to the axis of the tank. They are turned at a small strange angle. And it's the same on all machines. Even on more modern versions.

 

 

 

 

 

Therefore, in order for the model to match the original, I also turned the grilles to this strange angle.

 

 

 

 

If you build Leopard 2, don't forget this strange feature.

 

 

 

[Terry1954]

A surprise for me Dmitriy to find you here in the AFV section, but a very pleasant one! 

 

This looks like a great kit from Meng, of a seriously neat tank IMHO, and you are doing a wonderful job here already. Amazed that you falso found an answer for the missing polycaps!

 

Nice choice of camouflage too............. I'll stick around and watch this one.  

 

Terry

[Dmitriy1967]

13 minutes ago, Terry1954 said:

A surprise for me Dmitriy to find you here in the AFV section, but a very pleasant one! 

 

 

Glad you found me, Terry. 🙂

It's amazing to me that I'm building a tank. But I wrote at the beginning of the topic why I bought it. And most importantly, I want to learn how to paint with an airbrush and try weathering. I want to learn it. The Leopard will be the object of my first experiments.

 

Dmitriy

[Mippie]

10 hours ago, Dmitriy1967 said:

The question arose how to glue large round air grilles engines from photo etching. How to orient the rays of this eight-pointed star. I began to look at the photos and was very surprised that on Leopards they are not parallel or perpendicular to the axis of the tank. They are turned at a small strange angle. And it's the same on all machines. Even on more modern versions.

 

 

 

 

 

Therefore, in order for the model to match the original, I also turned the grilles to this strange angle.

 

 

 

 

If you build Leopard 2, don't forget this strange feature.

 

 

 

Damn...I missed that important fact when I built mine 😭

[Dmitriy1967]

10 minutes ago, Mippie said:

Damn...I missed that important fact when I built mine 😭

 

Don't worry, I noticed it myself quite by accident when I was thinking about how to glue. On a painted Leopard, these stars do not catch the eye.

It's excusable for us modelers. But I looked at Leopard models from different manufacturers. And they also make these lattices straight! I'm talking about those whose grilles are cast together with the body. And some even manage to do 8 rays, and 6. I don't understand how this can be? After all, creating a form for a model is a very precise and meticulous work.

[Cklasse]

On 06/07/2023 at 07:42, Dmitriy1967 said:

It is a pity that MENG does not complete this model with interior details and an engine. So I want to leave the engine compartment cover open.

I will not make the engine myself. After all, I am not Wilhelm Maybach and I am afraid that my engine will start badly.

 

 

 

If you want an internal details, then you will need to get the RFM Leopard. It comes with interior for turret, driver and engine, just like the RFM M1A1. I am still building the M1A1 with interior, so my RFM Leopard will have to sit in the stash. 
Your attention to detail for your Leopard is outstanding. Can’t wait to see your completed tank.

Edited August 16, 2023 by Cklasse

[Dmitriy1967]

41 minutes ago, Cklasse said:

If you want an internal details, then you will need to get the RFM Leopard. It comes with interior for turret, driver and engine, just like the RFM M1A1. I am still building the M1A1 with interior, so my RFM Leopard will have to sit in the stash. 
 

 

Thank you for the information on RFM Leopard. If I'm ever going to make a Leopard with an interior, I'll keep that in mind.

[Dmitriy1967]

Today I glued a few more parts on top of the engine compartment.

 

 

 

 

 

And finished gluing all the details on the front. In addition to the transparent elements of the headlights and other light bulbs, which I will install after painting.

 

 

 

 

 

I wanted to try to hang a side armored screen today, but I couldn't lift it. It's very heavy. Tomorrow I'll ask my neighbor to help me. I think the two of us will lift it.

 

 

 

 

 

The next stage will be the assembly of the turret.

 

 

[Stef N.]

Look after yourself when lifting, don't do anything to risk pulling your back bone. None of us are getting any younger. 😜😂

[Dmitriy1967]

1 hour ago, Stef N. said:

Look after yourself when lifting, don't do anything to risk pulling your back bone. None of us are getting any younger. 😜😂

 

Yes, I've started taking care of myself now. I still have the strength and habit, I can lift something heavy and work physically. But the next day I already understand that this should not have been done...  🙂

[Dmitriy1967]

Amazing is nearby.

 

I don't know much about Leopards, and a lot of questions arise during the building process. That's why I'm reading a lot now, watching photos and videos on this topic. Sometimes funny things come across. Please note that in this old photo, the tow hooks are turned down, not up, as they should be.

 

 

 

 

But the correct and convenient position of the towing hooks. So the MENG instruction and common sense requires to install them.

 

 

 

 

And then I began to look more closely at the photos and found a few more similar ones.

 

 

 

 

 

 The more I learn, the more I realize that I don't know anything. 🙂

 

 

Does anyone know why tankers turn the hooks down?

 

 

[Terry1954]

Great spot on the alignment of those grills Dmitriy!

 

23 minutes ago, Dmitriy1967 said:

Does anyone know why tankers turn the hooks down?

 

I don't know the answer to that one, but .......... I volunteer at the Tank Museum for a day each week, and I'm there tomorrow, so I will ask. There may be someone there who knows, as many of the staff are ex army tankers, and they also have their own engineers who maintain the vehicles. We have some Leopards there, but they are all Leopard 1's currently, although I do recall a Dutch operated Leopard 2 at last years Tankfest.

 

Great work on this.

 

Terry

[Dmitriy1967]

4 minutes ago, Terry1954 said:

I don't know the answer to that one, but .......... I volunteer at the Tank Museum for a day each week, and I'm there tomorrow, so I will ask.

 

Thanks, Terry, I'll be interested to know.

So far, I can assume that under some conditions, this position of the hook holds the cable better. But it's weird.

 

 

One thing I can say for sure - if someone incorrectly glued any part to the model, do not rush to open it. Search the Internet for an excuse for your mistake. 😀

[Mippie]

Ah classic soldiers....doing whatever they feel is convenient at the time....confusing anyone looking for a consistent approach to modelling haha

[Bullbasket]

I know that these are the towing hooks, but are they also the lifting points? If they are, it would make more sense for them to be in the downward position.

 

John.

[Dmitriy1967]

1 hour ago, Bullbasket said:

I know that these are the towing hooks, but are they also the lifting points? If they are, it would make more sense for them to be in the downward position.

 

John.

 

Yes, John, you're right! It makes sense. 

 

Lifting Massive German Made Leopard 2 to Access Tracks and Suspensions

[Dmitriy1967]

And so, I move on to the tower.

 

You may be surprised, but there is a cannon in the Leopard 2 тower! I'm a bit of a pedant. My wife says a lot, but I don't believe her, these women always exaggerate. I first looked on the Internet about this gun. It turns out that modelers like to change the gun from the kit to others that are sold separately. I decided to follow their example. I don't know why. I decided to cheat a little and save money. I am ashamed, but I hope you will understand me. A new gun is very expensive. That's why I did it. I wrote a letter to the leopard manufacturer Krauss-Maffei Wegmann in Munich. And he attached a photo, explaining that their gun was torn in half when fired. I asked to replace this gun with a new one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Krauss-Maffei very quickly replied to me that she would forward my claim to Rheinmetall, the direct manufacturer of the gun.

Rheinmetall reacted very quickly and literally the next day sent me a new gun! Oh, this is great German precision and commitment!

 

 

 

 

 

But, Rheinmetall, for reasons known to all, could not send a team of specialists to Russia to mount the gun.

I had to turn to a local country specialist. This guy carefully examined the gun and said that he knows how to fix and mount everything related to cats, and a Leopard is a big cat. I believed him and calmed down.

 

 

 

 

 

I gave him the instructions for mounting the gun. I am a little concerned about these small details of photo etching, which are indicated in red in the drawing...

 

 

 

 

 

This photo is for comparing metal and plastic guns. To be honest, they both have their pros and cons.

I will hope that the metal one shoots more accurately. But this will only be shown by testing at the landfill.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nothing depends on me now. And I can only drink vodka for the success of this case according to the old Russian tradition. 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 17, 2023 by Dmitriy1967

[Meter rat]

In response to the tow hooks. I remember reading somewhere that they are installed this way as they are less likely to get caught up in undergrowth, especially if they are located lower down on the hull front.  This does seem to work on RC tanks. 
They may be more aerodynamic positioned that way. 😂

[Dmitriy1967]

28 minutes ago, Meter rat said:

They may be more aerodynamic positioned that way. 😂

 

This is probably why, in further modifications of the Leopard 2, sharp aerodynamic armor plates were made on the front flat surface of the turret.

The speed has undoubtedly increased!

😆

 

[coneheadff]

Great build...Will definitely follow from here on 👍

 

Alex

[Dmitriy1967]

Today, a mustachioed and striped master came, who will install the cannon. I introduced you to him in the photos earlier.

We carefully compared the old and new cannon.

 

 

 

 

 

After a long meeting, we decided that the right part of the barrel is better metal, and the left part of the barrel is better for the old gun. It is clear that it is difficult for plastic to compete with metal. But the plastic from MENG is undoubtedly excellent. Therefore, we will make a gun from two parts from different manufacturers. The tailed master said that we were lucky that the gun was smoothbore. Because a rifled barrel would be very difficult to dock from two parts.

 

 

 

 

Here are some photos of the original guns so that you can imagine what should happen in the end.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The master brought with him a team of installers. I decided to feed them before work.

 

 

 

 

To be honest, I'm a little worried. There is no idea yet how to splice two parts of the barrel from different guns.

But there is nowhere to retreat. We must do it!

 

 

[Dmitriy1967]

The tank's cannon.

 

In this model, the lifting mechanism holds the gun in a certain position due to the friction of the plastic. It will hold a light plastic cannon. The new barrel is carved from a whole piece of brass and is very heavy.

In the photo, I hold the barrel of the gun with my hand.

 

 

 

 

So that the barrel does not fall down from its weight and the Leopard does not suffer from impotence, I decided to lighten the barrel.

I drilled it from the inside. A blue ribbon on the drill protects the barrel section from the drill's side faces. A barrel nozzle will be inserted there.

 

 

 

 

Have you ever sawed the cannon of the Leopard 2 tank with a hand saw?

I sawed! 

 

 

 

 

 

This is how I will connect a Rheinmetall cannon with a MENG cannon. But the metal is dangling in the plastic.

 

 

 

 

I made a sealing sleeve out of a plastic tube.

 

 

 

 

Glued the sleeve inside the barrel.

 

 

 

 

The metal barrel fits tightly inside the sleeve.

 

 

 

 

The connection of parts from two different guns into one, turned out successfully.

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks for watching!

Stay with us, there will be many more interesting things!

🙂