Bowcat's 1/35 Tamiya M40 155mm Self Propelled Gun

[minitnkr]

Don't know about WWII, but I had a friend who back in the nineties subcontracted w/Lima Works to supply them w/vision blocks for Abrams tanks and they were all clear blocks of acrylic when shipped. They may have applied some coating later depending on sensors or humans looking through them. Just some trivia. PaulE

[Guest]

Don't know about WWII, but I had a friend who back in the nineties subcontracted w/Lima Works to supply them w/vision blocks for Abrams tanks and they were all clear blocks of acrylic when shipped. They may have applied some coating later depending on sensors or humans looking through them. Just some trivia.

I have some more trivia: I own an American M6 periscope like this one:



(that’s not mine, it’s just a photo I found online). These were used in most American armoured vehicles of the Second World War and the 1950s, and probably later.

Unless you actually look straight into the “window”, that appears dark. This is because when looking at it under an angle, what you actually see reflected in the top mirror/prism (not sure what it is), is the inside of the periscope body, and that’s painted black.

All that said, though, the vision blocks in the hatches on the M40 aren’t periscopes, they’re just glass blocks set in the ring, as this illustration from a tech manual shows:

[Mini Me]

My answer to this dilemma was to use exposed 35mm film negative. It's black, shiney and produces a nice effect.
Cheers, Rick H.

[Mr Bowcat]

Well, the hatches are glued on now, so the blocks are staying blue. :tears-of-joy:

Did a little bit tonight. Finished up the binos, hard to tell from the pic but I used clear glue to make lenses.

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Got the bodies glossed up ready for a wash. Here they are in some type of bizarre conga line.

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And this is where I'm at with the heads. Definitely going to have to revisit some of the eyes, 3 and 5 in particular are going to give me nightmares.

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[Guest]

My answer to this dilemma was to use exposed 35mm film negative.

Who still has that, then?

Like I mentioned earlier, I paint them black and then use a pencil to apply graphite for the shiny effect, which has the added bonus that it’s reflective from some angles but not from others.

[Mini Me]

Bob, I like the chorus line, reminds me of the Bunny Hop on "American Bandstand"
in days of yore!:smiling3: Cheers, Rick H.

[JR]

Your worried about those faces Bob.!
I've given up trying to do the pupil, all mine squint ! :smiling:
John.

[rtfoe]

I agree, I think they should be more greenish. Revell say blue as well though.

Pete

It's bluish because of the reflection from the angle to the sky just like sea water isn't blue and what we see as blue is reflections from the sky.

BTW Bob, build is looking nice with paint and weathering on.

Cheers,
Richard

[Mr Bowcat]

Thanks chaps.

[stillp]

It's bluish because of the reflection from the angle to the sky just like sea water isn't blue and what we see as blue is reflections from the sky.

BTW Bob, build is looking nice with paint and weathering on.

Cheers,
Richard

Don't they have an anti-reflective coating?
Agree, the build is looking good.

Pete

[scottie3158]

Bob,
Looking good mate.

[rtfoe]

Don't they have an anti-reflective coating?
Agree, the build is looking good.

Pete

You could be right, perhaps if it had reflective coating then all glass apatures would appear black. Just had a funny thought...shouldn't the periscope work both ways...imagine a pair of eyes painted on instead of a color coating. :smiling6:

Cheers,
Richard

[Guest]

You could be right, perhaps if it had reflective coating then all glass apatures would appear black.

My M6 periscope has nothing of the sort — it’s just plain glass at both ends of both prisms/mirrors (they’re detachable for cleaning and replacement if damaged).

Just had a funny thought...shouldn't the periscope work both ways...imagine a pair of eyes painted on instead of a color coating. :smiling6:

It does, but like I said above, you don’t really see anything through the periscope unless you’re looking straight into the “window.” From under any other angle, really all you see is the black interior of the periscope body.

What we need is a version of those novelty pictures that change when you look at them from under a different angle

[Steve Jones]

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[Mr Bowcat]

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