Comet A34- Ludwig kit

[43rdRecceReg]

Chris is still waiting for the drive sprockets to be machined, and they will come later. In the meantime, the main part of the Comet kit arrived finally, last week. It's a mouthwatering build prospect ..and just to whet the appetite a tad, here are a few pics from the menu :
The running gear:

Kit in general:

The sides, showing a strong family resemblance to the Cromwell it is based upon:

The hull floor, showing Christian's new etched logo/webpage:

Mantlet and Gun assembly:

When it's built, I want it to have details sufficient to pass it off as a reasonable 1/16 facsimile of one of these:




I'd quite like my version to have the 'Normandy' cowling, as it adds character and an indication of the Theatre of operations in Northern Europe. The Regiment and markings will involve research later.
It will be a while before I can begin, not simply because i don't have all the parts I need, but also because I'm looking after a sick Westie at the moment (she has cancer). I want to make her remaining time in her beloved Highlands as comfortable (and discomfort free) as I possibly can, given the 13 years of love and entertainment she's given me....

[43rdRecceReg]

...and speaking of entertaining animals, I spotted this one a few days ago in our local woods. It was a very shapely Easter Bunny.

She might have been spooked if I'd been trundling around there with my King Tiger...

[Model Builder 4]

Very nice kit Roy, your Cromwell build should stand you in good stead with this one

Cheers, Lee.

[Son of a gun-ner]

I think you made the right choice going with this kit Roy

I'm so very sorry that your prior diagnosis for your Wee Westie turned out to be true, such a sad thing when pets get ill

[c.rainford73]

Roy I will await your build of this kit with great anticipation it's really a fantastic piece.

It's sad when a pet falls ill and I know she is in great hands. As a pet owner myself we are lucky to have each other.....

I've often wondered why pets are with us for what seems a short time, but the unconditional love they give us could span a century.

All the best

Carl

[43rdRecceReg]

Thanks, lads, for the thoughts on the Comet's build potential ( ) and- sadly, the terrible mismatch between human life expectancy and that of man's best friend.
Having built the Cromwell, Christian's build instructions are less of a factor here (and that's probably just as well... ). One improvement I've noticed is that location holes for the Henntec unit's shafts are already in place. With the Cromwell, it was a bit hit and miss, and I had to improvise my own position template before drilling them.
All in all, I have to hand it to Christian once more for his enterprise, and touch of genius.

[jimbo_wa]

Lovely kit, can't wait to see your progress!

Sorry to hear about your Westie.

Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk

[43rdRecceReg]

Lovely kit, can't wait to see your progress!

Sorry to hear about your Westie.

Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk

Thanks, Jimbo. As wonderful as life can be, it's always fatal- for all living things. Time for an armoured defence against The Grim Reaper's depressing antics, I think...Pics following shortly

[43rdRecceReg]

I've decided to do this build from the turret down to the tracks. I'm still waiting for running gear parts for the lower hull, and so while I'm waiting, I thought I'd have a go at the turret.
Anyone wishing to check Christian's build manual out, can download it here:
http://www.ludwigs-hobby-seite.de/Comet ... eitung.pdf

Should you decide to have a bash at one of his wonderful kits, I'd recommend scanning the full manual first, and not to follow the order the instructions appear in religiously. Why? Well, because the order can be random at times, and if you assemble the turret with the roof glued in place, for example..as per the path the manual leads you down( a mistake I made on the Cromwell ), you will have to be a modelling contortionist, or have double jointed extendible fingers, when coming to fitting the recoil and elevation mechanisms you've chosen
I lightly bonded the mantlet in place to help with alignment. Glueing it firmly would have led to the sort of disaster I've just described. Later, when fitting the gun assembly, I shall bond it in using drillings, pegs (to pin it) and epoxy.

Cutting the relevant bits out

Clamping the side wall in place. Having an extra hand would have been beneficial.
This is Christian's initial pic, by contrast:

Assembling the turret sides and Mantlet.Comet A34

Another thing to be aware of, if you happen to pick the Comet as your intro into the Ludwig world of Armour, is that the flexible sides don't exactly line up with their corresponding edges on the turret floor plate


I had to trim the apex slightly, and the ends by the mantlet, in order to get the best alignment I could. Even then, one side refused to fit perfectly. Still, it looks OK from above.

[43rdRecceReg]

Having cursed and tweaked my way into getting the symmetry I need in the turret walls, I thought I'd assemble the turret ring mounting. It's important to get the two bits centred properly. I used my trusty old compass to draw out a guideline. After all, we don't want the turret revolving eccentrically, do we?

Here they are bonded together:

..and then glued onto the turret floor: