SimonT - Hobbyboss 1/35 Russian T-18 Light Tank

[Jim R]

Hi Simon
Glad the shim has made it 'look' ok. Every model has it's compromises.
Jim

[SimonT]

If I hadn’t mentioned it Jim no one would have been any the wiser

[Guest]

That’s always the thing with building models, isn’t it? You spend ages correcting things and then nobody notices your hard work because they don’t know any better Unless it’s Tigers or Panthers, when someone will come along and say, “That wing nut was only put on with serial number 1532747, and yours is clearly much earlier because it’s got two bolts here.”

[SimonT]

cleaned up and added the six pairs of wheels to the front suspension unit


a new set of rivets to the tail skid top plate


and some bolt heads to the hinges on the rear panel

not a lot done but at least it is going in the right direction for a change

[Steve Jones]

Nice additions. Was the turret ring easy to do. Is it layered or cut from one thick sheet of plasticard?

[SimonT]

Morning Steve,
Easy to do - Olfa compass cutter

Not very thick either as it only needed a shim to lift turret away from engine deck - 10thou
Fits on top of the kit turret ring

[JR]

I appreciate it Simon:smiling:

[SimonT]

front return rollers assembled and installed both sides


front access hatches installed after a bit of a fight as the fit was hopeless - the door edges overlapped by 1mm rather than meeting edge to edge

had to sand them down until they fitted together


stuck the first two lengths of track together then clamped them in the track vice to keep them straight while they dry

[JR]

Simon .
Glad to see that I was not alone on the hatches, I thought it was just me.
Like the track jig, where from please.

[Jim R]

Hi Simon
Glad the hatches now fit. When you get a poorly fitting kit as fast as you sort one problem you create other fit issues further down the line. The track jig does look useful. Presumably it is adjustable for different tracks and scales.
Jim

[SimonT]

John - no, not you. There is a definite problem with those hatches. Even after fettling them they are not a perfect fit to the triangular armour plates at the top edge.

Jim - on some of my chop and go builds there is definitely a knock on effect with one correction leading to another problem. The Tamiya Panther A and Stug IV builds were particularly bad for that as the kits were so skewed in the first place. This one though is a new kit and the problems are just that, they are not the result of me chopping things about. The hatches are just too wide for the aperture in the hull

The track vice is MasterTools made by Trumpeter - I think I got it from John at the site shop. Cost about £28 if I remember rightly but it is very well made with a nice anodised finish

Undo the big black knob you can see in the pic and it slides open to about 35mm so should be good for most links

I have found the best method is to just glue the links together holding them in your hand then place in the vice and clamp them so that it keeps them straight as the glue dries

If you need to get curves/sags in for the top runs and ends just remove before the glue totally sets - at least the links should be lined up

First time I used it I put the links in the vice dry then ran glue across the joins but capillary action drew the glue under all the links and they melted into a bit of a blob and lost all the detail plus they stuck to the matt surface of the tool and had to be prised off

It is of course just a big clamp so you can use it to hold things other than track links - I used it to clamp the road wheels in line the other day

[JR]

Thanks Simon.

Your links look a nice and tight fit.
I was going to ask about gluing them in the jig and what happens to the base with the glue, this is one reason why I glue on the chopping board the glue doesn't stick to it. Need to think about making one with a board and a router cutting the slots out. Would need to get some bolts and knobs.Can see this taking place.

[scottie3158]

Simon,
Looking at the suspension and rollers it all looks very flimsy, I don't know how robust it would have been on the real thing.

[SimonT]

John - yes the links fit together pretty well really. Hold two together, add a drop of TET to the join and push together.

The tool is metal so they wouldn't stick normally but the anodised finish is ever so slightly rough - the melted links gripped on to the finish - doesn't dissolve or anything so the links can be prised off once the glue dries

I found it easier and less damaging to just hold the links together and glue

Scottie - it is very flimsy in plastic, hopefully not so much when made out of steel. Certainly seemed to be belting about in the YouTube footage



Track on one side completed

I made it in three removable sections - a top run, bottom run and a front curved section around the idler - however given the fragility of the suspension I decided to glue it all together so that the track can help support the wheels

I won't have the problem of fitting once covered in paint either


bottom run done on the other side - hope to get the rest done tonight

[rtfoe]

Hi Simon, I'm just happy to see it at this stage. No doubt the additions were minimum but I see you had a hard time with it...lack of solid reference being the source.

The tracks I think have given the kit a premium look. :thumb2: The front of this tank configuration looks like a carry forward design to the later BT's.

Cheers,
Richard