1/6 scale Panzer II

[lmcq11]

Hi,

I am in the planning phase of building my Dragon 1/6 scale Panzer II. I'm not really a big fan of the panzer II itself so I am thinking of making a Marder II which would be more interesting. There is a plastic 1/6 Pak40 on the market so this should not be too difficult. I am investigating if i can make it RC. I assume the plastic kit sprocket would be good, and tracks can be reused with metal pins on them.

Does anyone have an idea of the kind of gearboxes and motors that could be used just to drive it around, slowly ? I am looking for something small, enough to drive the 1/6 Panzer II around but not too powerful, and not too expensive either. No need for fancy suspension either.

I would likely add additional RC gizmos once I am more advanced in my thinking. But I want to keep the model as accurate as possible.

Thanks, Louis

[Max-U52]

I thought about trying to RC one of these, but the guys tell me it's been tried before and there are issues, especially with the tracks. I'll be watching with interest if you go forward, and I hope you're able to get a decent RC tank out of the project. If Rivetcounter chimes in, he knows quite a bit about the scale and also this kit.

[sassgrunt]

This will probably sound kind of crazy, but I when Dragon came out with this Panzer II kit, I bought one just for the tracks. I always wanted to have a 1/6 Maultier, (the armored version, with the 10 Nebelwerfer tubes on top), and was able to get this kit for less money than it would have cost for a set of just resin tracks. (And, I figured that the plastic track links would hold up better for use than resin ones would, anyway). I parted out most of the kit to people who were modifying their kit in some way, and bought the suspension parts from Panzerwerks. Collecting these parts is as far as I've gotten.
Anyway, I found that nails that I bought at Home Depot worked really well as track pins. The box says Bright Common 6d 2" and the company is Grip Rite Fas'ners. The nails have a large, flat head, and the way they make the point causes a little "raised" area behind the point. When you insert the nail into the link, this raised area feels like you should want to grind it down so that it will slide in smoothly, but don't - it does not prevent you from inserting it, and it holds the nail in place without glue. You can just barely feel the tip of the point on the far edge, and I figure that the large head won't be that visible on the backside of the track link. I wish I could have gotten then just a little bit longer, in which case I would have cut off the head and most of the point, (still leaving that raised area), and inserted them from the front of the link. But, I couldn't find any 6d nails longer than 2". -Mike

[lmcq11]

Thank you,

I found the link below on the East Coast Armory website showing videos of a static but super detailed buildup of the Dragon Panzer II, and explaining how to make all the wheels roll and how to setup the tracks as you explained. He also sells parts to help the builder with the wheels.

http://www.eastcoastarmory.com/pzII/archive.htm

Left to figure out is how motorize the sprockets.

I have the Dragon 1/6 Sherman built as a static. Although it looks good with many improvements using parts provided by East Coast Armory, it is kind of sad to see it sitting there on the shelf. I feel it is crying to come to life but It is all it will ever do, sitting there helpless. I said to myself not to build another 1/6 tank like that.

regards, Louis

[lmcq11]

Oh, I think I got the motorization figured out. It won't be a Leopard 2 at 60mph but it will move the Marder around for sure.

Electric screwdriver

driver.JPG (14.5 KiB) Viewed 1521 times

2 of these for about $20 each... Includes shaft, motor, gearbox and battery...

Will figure out the RC installation once project is started, through servos or otherwise.

I think the feasibility study is done.

[Max-U52]

Louis, please post as many photos as you can of the screwdriver conversion. That might be just what I'm looking for to RC the Sd.Kfz.250 I have in 1/6 scale. I'll be running it through a differential (I better get on the stick and order that) so that will reduce output a bit. How do you plan to get the power from the screwdriver to the sprockets? Chain drive, maybe, or is there enough space to mount them inline with the axles? And what's the voltage on the screwdriver batt?

[Markocaster]

Will also be following along. I have an unbuilt one stashed away
For a rainy day. I have seen a few rc ones on YouTube etc.
saw one powered with Heng long motors.

[lmcq11]

Ok, it's probably going to be a autumn project. Got to finish the Nashorn first and take a break. I've been hiding the Pz II box from my wife in the basement for a couple of years now. The main issue being what to do with these 1/6 monsters once they have to leave the work area.

1/6 Panzer II

Marder II

msarder.PNG (101.46 KiB) Viewed 1479 times

[sassgrunt]

There's a pretty good thread on converting one of these to a Marder (if you haven't seen it already): http://www.sixtharmygroup.com/forums/sh ... ght=marder

[c.rainford73]

Ok, it's probably going to be a autumn project. Got to finish the Nashorn first and take a break. I've been hiding the Pz II box from my wife in the basement for a couple of years now. The main issue being what to do with these 1/6 monsters once they have to leave the work area.

rsz_img_7879.jpg

msarder.PNG

I know exactly how you feel Louis.... I'm very interested in this build as the Marder series is one of my favorites