ska2d2's Panzer III Build(II)

This section is to 'show and tell' about any customizing or re-modeling you have done (or are doing) to a Heng Long tank.
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This section is for posting a build log of your Heng Long tank.
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ska2d2
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Re: ska2d2's Panzer III Build(II)

Post by ska2d2 »

Cheers philipat! Yes i'm pretty sure they are steel gears. I bought the tank from toyzcastle.com as it was the cheapest deal i could find with upgraded gears, metal sprocket and idler wheels (since upgraded to the set with hub caps) and metal tracks. Not sure what make the gearboxes are but they work fine! :)
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brooksy
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Re: ska2d2's Panzer III Build(II)

Post by brooksy »

:D stunning work,realy enjoying this blog :)

brooksy
"A Tiger!....in africa!!"
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ska2d2
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Re: ska2d2's Panzer III Build(II)

Post by ska2d2 »

Thanks for the messages! :thumbup:
Spent this week getting the lower hull ready for some paint. Still undecided what colour to paint the model, grey, dark yellow, winter camo, mixed colour camo, my heads spinning! :crazy: Any thoughts or images welcome. ;)
Started by reworking the towing eyes. The hole is too small and a little low. Plastic strip was added to the top to bring it flush with the sloping frontal armour.
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I filled the holes with some suitable plastic and sanded it smooth prior to drilling.
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A 4mm HSS bit was used having first drilled a pilot hole.
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Finally the corners were rounded with a sanding block.
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A couple of posts back i was asked about how i do neat weld beads. Sorry for the delay 'wildboar44', i hadn't forgotten. I have been waiting on a chance to do a little demo and as the lower hull needed a couple of simple beads here goes. I hope the pictures are ok but its not that easy to photograph the process as your doing it.
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I used 'Apoxie sculpt' for these beads to see if it was any easier to use than 'Milliput'. Having now used both i can say there is nothing between them. Like 'Milliput' its mixed 50/50 to a uniform colour to start with.
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Rolling out the putty on cardboard stops it sticking to the surface and applying 'talc' to the finger tips stops it sticking to them. I roll out the putty to a consistent 1mm thickness whilst removing the excess from the ends as i go.
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Wetting the surface with a little water helps with positioning.
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Using a wet paint brush to position the putty is essential as a dry tool will stick to the putty.
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Nipping the ends down with a knife also helps hold the putty in position as you work on it.
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Here i have made one pass with my improvised beading tool.(as explained earlier in the build). The tool is constantly dipped in water as its worked along the putty to stop it sticking to and lifting the putty. Leaving it for five minutes at this point for the water to dry helps.
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Using a small steel rule press down and draw outwards from the very edge of the putty. Repeat on both sides.
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As you can see the bead has straightened up and is starting to look the part.
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The process is then repeated as many times as needed until the bead is the required width and has been flattened to the surface its being applied to. After all its a weld and not an 'eyebrow'. :haha:
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I hope this was of some help!
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Some more added detail. :wave:
Last edited by ska2d2 on Tue Apr 21, 2020 12:43 pm, edited 1 time in total.
philipat
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Re: ska2d2's Panzer III Build(II)

Post by philipat »

I'm going for a Kharkov M...assigned to the Tiger battalions. So, I'm going with a grey. Partial to the III in grey...IV in desert...don't know why...just am. :haha:

Nice tutorial on the beads. Added details...the rivets or the starter? 8)
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ska2d2
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Re: ska2d2's Panzer III Build(II)

Post by ska2d2 »

Both! :D
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Wildboar44
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Re: ska2d2's Panzer III Build(II)

Post by Wildboar44 »

Thank you for showing the tutorial Ska , they are very need natural looking welds , think the file is being taken to my Tiger hull tonight ,
off with the old miliput beads .... you certainy raise the bar Ska !
Yesterday is our history, Tomorrow is an eternal mistery, Today is a gift, its why its called "The Present".
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ska2d2
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Re: ska2d2's Panzer III Build(II)

Post by ska2d2 »

Good evening! Thank you to everyone who has helped with advice over the last week or two!
Base coated hull, road wheels etc etc... Had a moment when i realised i would have to remove the gear boxes in order to bolt on the two front return rollers and then......
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Worried, upset, a bit of both!? :sick: Doing up the retaining nuts on the return rollers resulted in two of the mount fixings shearing off! :thumbdown: The hole you can see in the picture isn't where the threaded rod should be but the inside of it! If it is the same with all of them i couldn't say! Equally, if this is going to be a problem at a later date, who knows? :problem: Watch out!!!!!!
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I've gone with 'Tamiya TS-3' dark yellow, for the base coat. I had in mind building a Panzer III from the Russian front when i started but i think i'm heading towards a paint scheme from Tunisia. Cheers 'dgsselkirk' :thumbup:
PZDF.jpg
PZDF.jpg (53.1 KiB) Viewed 2796 times
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Some of the detail like the spare tracks and exhaust has been picked out by brush. Painting my models is always a tense time as i find it tends to make or break them. I intend to paint the whole model without any weathering, texturing etc and then go from there. Part of me quite likes the factory finish but the fun is definitely in weathering!
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PZDR2.jpg
:wave:
Last edited by ska2d2 on Tue Apr 21, 2020 5:50 pm, edited 3 times in total.
philipat
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Re: ska2d2's Panzer III Build(II)

Post by philipat »

Paint is looking good. Tunisia will be a good option. Confused, though...you are or are not going to weather it?

Question: I have the same metal hull and running gear from Asiatam. I've found in my test runs that the outer road wheels are constantly popping off. How have you secured them together? They only seem to press-fit into place.

Also, when you tweaked the front tow extensions, how thick was the styrene strip that you used to level it off? It looks to me like it should be about 1 mm.

TIA
jeff1101
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Re: ska2d2's Panzer III Build(II)

Post by jeff1101 »

Nice build. Track tension looks a bit tight though. The tracks on the return rollers are taught. Have you tried adding another track link?
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ska2d2
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Re: ska2d2's Panzer III Build(II)

Post by ska2d2 »

I've had a play around with the track tensioner and here are the results!
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This is just about at its limit. I haven't had a chance to test run the chassis at this point but i can see that it would be a good idea! I'm hoping that the outer road wheels won't pop off. 'phillpat' have you fitted the metal set of road wheels? The only thing that i could see that might be a problem (rightly or wrongly) was that the 'idler' wheels don't seem to align with the road wheels. From what i've built up so far the 'idler' wheels sit inboard of the road wheels. If the slot between the 'idler' wheel was outboard of the slot between the road wheels, would that cause the outer road wheel half, off? :think:
Yes i am going to weather the model. The plan is to paint all of the base colours, add decals or stencilled markings and then 'clear coat' the model prior to weathering. Thanks for looking. :wave:
Last edited by ska2d2 on Tue Apr 21, 2020 12:48 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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