Chariot of Fire- Meng Merkava IIID

[Road of Bones]

Paul- to be honest, I think trying to do the RPG screen in your scale would test my mojo! Thanks for the kind words though :thumb2:

Had a good couple of sessions at the bench this weekend. My new AB hose arrived on Friday, so I painted the lower hull and wheel hubs with Sinai Grey. I found the wheel mask I made when I built my Nagmachon (pretty much the same wheels), so I used that:

The tyres were left in black primer, so I used a little rubber black (more of a dark grey) to dry-brush around them, before using a Tamiya weathering compact to dry-brush the sandy colour over the top of that. I then used some gun-metal paint to do the worn steel of the idler wheels and sprocket teeth, before a pin wash around the hubs and bolts:

I then applied a little 800-grit wet ‘n dry to the tracks, adding some wear to the cleats and guide horns:


I may have mentioned that the kit came without the fret of poly caps. I scoured all my old kit boxes and spares tins for unused poly caps from other builds, but was only able to find a half-dozen or so of the right size. I found quite a few that were undersize though- I ended up by using these anyway, by cutting a single split in them, thereby allowing them to flex around the axle stubs. Rather than trust these completely, I elected to glue the wheels on with PVA as a precaution:

I’ll let these set thoroughly before wrangling the tracks on...

Thanks for looking chaps,

Alistair☠️

[Jim R]

Hi Alistair
Thanks for the answer regarding the track blackening stuff. Wheels look good. I hope they stay on when the tracks are fitted.
Jim

[Guest]

Alistair,
Getting close to the end now and looking better every time I look in.
Mike

[BigGreg]

Alistair... every time you add a picture is a pleasure...the wheels are really realistic i can't wait to see painting and the weathering ....

[Mr Bowcat]

Looking good Alistair. Out of interest, do the rubber wheels get that nicked and worn in real life?

[Road of Bones]

Looking good Alistair. Out of interest, do the rubber wheels get that nicked and worn in real life? :smiling3:

Thanks Bob - yes, they do. If you have a quick look at MikeC's Challenger 2 thread, he posted a few pics of some Chally 2s tyres earlier that show even more damage than I've depicted!

When I was building an M60A3 on another forum, a couple of US tankies contributed their experience of the guide horns of the tracks chewing up the rubber tyres on their mounts, especially when turning or driving in mud. I've seen plenty of pics of Israeli vehicles with extremely second-hand looking wheels too. If you consider the rocky desert conditions of the region, you can understand why the tyres wear out as quickly as they do. Interestingly, the kit provides steel wheels as well as the tyred ones - I chose the tyred version because I could scab them up like this.:thumb2:

[Mr Bowcat]

Thanks for that Alistair, I'll add that to the list of things I'm learning from you. :tears-of-joy:

[papa 695]

Coming along great guns Alistair.

[Road of Bones]

Bob- don’t follow me, I’m lost too! :smiling2:
Ian- thanks very much:thumb2:

The chariot now has wheels and tracks...

This thing is starting to get quite weighty now! Very pleased with the tracks and wheels so far though. Next up will be masking off the running gear, so I can mount the skirt hangers...
Thanks for looking chaps,
Alistair☠️

[papa 695]

Looking like the beast it is.

[Jim R]

Hi Alistair
Nice to see the running gear all in place with no mishaps. Looking great.
Jim

[Road of Bones]

Ian, Jim- thanks chaps! Jim- it was pretty mishap-free, but was tricky nonetheless.

Masking the tracks- I hit on this idea when making an Abrams a few years ago; rather than spend ages manipulating masking tape around the running gear, I use kitchen foil to cover the wheels & tracks. No need for tape, and it’s thin enough to extract from behind the skirts without too much trouble:


Fitting the track-hangers- I had to remove some locating pins from the hull sides to get them seated properly. I also reinstalled the outer mudflap at the front. Here are the skirt panels dry-fitted for now, though I may have to adjust the hangers’ sit to get them to line up a little better:

Not far off priming, once these are sorted out to my satisfaction!
Thanks for looking chaps,
Alistair☠️

[scottie3158]

Great work the running gear looks superb. Nice idea about using the foil.

[Jim R]

Hi Alistair

I use kitchen foil to cover the wheels & tracks

That sounds like a very clever idea :thumb2:
Jim

[JR]

Alister some great work around, love the PE.
I managed to treat 3 sets of tracks with one bottle, but did them all in one session. Found after a couple of weeks once mixed it lost its corrosive powers.
Would you mind saying where the tracks came from please ?