Contemplating a Panzer IV build? Then...

[jarndice]

"That aside, let's hope the sound coming up the lane will be the courier bringing you a Tamiya Panzer IV for Christmas, and not a trip to Stentland [/quote]"

He/She will have to come up the lane with a winning lottery ticket first
Shaun.

[43rdRecceReg]

"That aside, let's hope the sound coming up the lane will be the courier bringing you a Tamiya Panzer IV for Christmas, and not a trip to Stentland

"

He/She will have to come up the lane with a winning lottery ticket first

Shaun.[/quote]

I know we Boomers are legendary for our financial prudence, but surely a spot of wild extravagance is called for every now and then, Shaun Anyone looking though the discussions over the years on the PZ IV, will have twigged that it's probably your favourite tank. That's why I'm a little surprised that the Jarndice Collection doesn't sport a Tamiya Pz IV already, nay, e'en a brace of 'em
Maybe you could try my 'piecemeal' Panzer approach!. It'll probably cost a lot more in the long run, and may lead to the birth of a true hybrid; but it's also quite an immersive back door means of acquiring the Tamiya model.

[jarndice]

The thing about being the proud owner of a Tamiya Tank disregarding the electronics is that I would miss tweaking the Tank.
The number of times I have seen other members of the Forums "mods" and newly found photographic references which ensures the most finished of my Tanks is no such thing.
I remember when I had finished my early Tunisian Tiger 1 complete with early twin pot Feifal Air Cleaners and hand made exhaust shrouds and hand made front and rear fenders that "Tom Hugill" mentioned that the tow ropes on the early Tiger were transposed and that the Turret did not have an escape hatch but did have two gun ports, one each side of the Turret box,
Thanks Tom
There is a lot to be said for Heng Longs imperfections
Shaun.

[43rdRecceReg]

Below, indicated by the red arrow, is the dread retaining clip Taigen, Asiatam (and presumably) HL use to keep the spring 'Leaf' assembly in place. Here we are looking at the plastic floor of my Taigen Winter ed. Pz IV. When it arrived, clips were missing, and two were adrift...and that's before I even started it up for its maiden clank.
Sometimes these even fall apart in hand, when one is attempting to rectify the problem. They're very flimsy. Should you happen to chose this metal assembly, for your build, make sure the swear-box is near at hand
Even superglueing them to the leaf unit doesn't guarantee that it won't fall apart the moment that stress is put upon it:

Taigen/Asiatam Spring Lead retaining clip..

Long term, the only workable solution would be to use square profile pipe tubing (nylon for strength, perhaps), or even PE, as an alternative fitting. Even twisted wire would probably work, although it might look a tad incongruous.

[Raminator]

The thing about being the proud owner of a Tamiya Tank disregarding the electronics is that I would miss tweaking the Tank.

I know exactly how you feel, Shaun. You could always take the Trumpeter hybrid route, which should scratch (build) the accuracy itch while providing for plenty of adjustment and modification.

Sometimes these even fall apart in hand, when one is attempting to rectify the problem. They're very flimsy. Should you happen to chose this metal assembly, for your build, make sure the swear-box is near at hand
Even superglueing them to the leaf unit doesn't guarantee that it won't fall apart the moment that stress is put upon it:

Taigen Pz Iv A.JPG

Long term, the only workable solution would be to use square profile pipe tubing (nylon for strength, perhaps), or even PE, as an alternative fitting. Even twisted wire would probably work, although it might look a tad incongruous.

How does the leaf fit into the bogie assembly? I'm wondering if it'd be possible to modify the inserted end of the leaf with a short right-angle bend to hold it in situ.

[43rdRecceReg]

The thing about being the proud owner of a Tamiya Tank disregarding the electronics is that I would miss tweaking the Tank.
The number of times I have seen other members of the Forums "mods" and newly found photographic references which ensures the most finished of my Tanks is no such thing.
I remember when I had finished my early Tunisian Tiger 1 complete with early twin pot Feifal Air Cleaners and hand made exhaust shrouds and hand made front and rear fenders that "Tom Hugill" mentioned that the tow ropes on the early Tiger were transposed and that the Turret did not have an escape hatch but did have two gun ports, one each side of the Turret box,
Thanks Tom
There is a lot to be said for Heng Longs imperfections
Shaun.

One reason I moved from the 'Windows' platform to the 'Mac,' a decade ago, is that the 'tweaking' obsession.. that often accompanies the PC builder's efforts, was gradually becoming onerous. The seemingly endless search for the ideal graphics driver, or system drivers, defragmentation tools, and an ever growing collection of utilities needed to deploy on a daily basis...was immersive at first. Then we had 'overclocking' options, with exciting speed and performance trials, followed inevitably by tiresome windows indecipherable 'error messages' ('e.g..'You have performed an illegal operation..this computer is shutting down), or the smell of overclocking burnout. Eventually, the remorseless quest for the speediest PC persuaded me that I was actually getting nothing done with Windows. I had no collections of photos, or music, nor any creative outlet that could be depended upon. All that changed with the Mac. At first, like an addict suddenly going 'cold turkey', I was desperate to find something tweakable...but found that- slightly to my annoyance- everything worked, with no involvement of fiddling from me. I felt sort of 'locked out', like Toad of Toad hall. Eventually i began to overcome the tampering tendency, and started to build some satisfying home entertainment options. On the Mac, you can (and sometimes have to) tweak, but mostly, the engine purrs nicely below the bonnet- and productivity generally unhindered.
Having a Tamiya is a bit like using a Mac, but there still remains the possibility of tweaking (or hybridising) it; adding smoke (just look at Radical Rad's pimping efforts ), swapping the electronics out, or even making a different version of it.
I would like to add airsoft to mine, for example, as tanks acting as flashlights have no appeal for me.

[jarndice]

Roy I know that it is fashionable to blame anyone else for what one perceives as life's failings BUT I hold my hands up, I am now and always have been a tinkerer.
But I wont spend large sums of money on my obsessive behaviour, not when I can do it on the cheap-ish,
As to Puters, In the dawn of home computing I replied to an advertisement in the "Daily Telegraph" (I only bought it for the cartoons) for a Sinclair ZX 80,
A week later a big parcel was delivered to our house, It comprised of two big books and little packets of electrical gubbins,
One book was teach yourself "Basic" and the other was a manual on how to build the thing and how to operate it. Oh joy
I moved on to a ready built ZX 81 with 16K expansion pack and then to a 48K ZX Spectrum , Heady days, but it taught me how to program and how to save memory, both talents apparently now redundant in the world of multi-Giga byte PCs. I have this "Packard Bell" PC on my Desk which I am certain could if I only bothered to find out would probably polish the car and fix the fence but the service taught me that thinking for oneself is no bad thing.
So still ploughing my lonely independent furrow.
I am even prepared to come out and admit I have NEVER TEXTED nor will I,
This resolve is often followed by cries from the Grandchildren of "Oh come on Grandad its easy",
Well Shant, Shant so there.
Shaun.

[43rdRecceReg]

How does the leaf fit into the bogie assembly? I'm wondering if it'd be possible to modify the inserted end of the leaf with a short right-angle bend to hold it in situ.[/quote]

Well, Dan the leaf spring assembly looks very much like a real layered unit, but only the bottom spring does any actually 'springing'. At one end is curls around a stub in the 'leaf' housing, where it is secured by a self-tapping screw. In the centre section, it is clipped to the leaf assembly by the fragile square profile clip. At the far (sliding) end it is not retained in place, and merely slides between the leaf housing and a little stub. Under pressure, it could deform and detach sideways from the stub.
With the Tamiya arrangement, both ends of the spring are secured in place by locking plates.

Taigen/Asiatam Pz IV suspension bogie components

The locking plates on the Tamiya system are indicated below by red lines...

Pz IV suspensions compared

The Tamiya system therefore looks well secured in comparison to the chinese alternative.

[43rdRecceReg]

Roy I know that it is fashionable to blame anyone else for what one perceives as life's failings BUT I hold my hands up, I am now and always have been a tinkerer.
But I wont spend large sums of money on my obsessive behaviour, not when I can do it on the cheap-ish,
As to Puters, In the dawn of home computing I replied to an advertisement in the "Daily Telegraph" (I only bought it for the cartoons) for a Sinclair ZX 80,
A week later a big parcel was delivered to our house, It comprised of two big books and little packets of electrical gubbins,
One book was teach yourself "Basic" and the other was a manual on how to build the thing and how to operate it. Oh joy
I moved on to a ready built ZX 81 with 16K expansion pack and then to a 48K ZX Spectrum , Heady days, but it taught me how to program and how to save memory, both talents apparently now redundant in the world of multi-Giga byte PCs. I have this "Packard Bell" PC on my Desk which I am certain could if I only bothered to find out would probably polish the car and fix the fence but the service taught me that thinking for oneself is no bad thing.
So still ploughing my lonely independent furrow.
I am even prepared to come out and admit I have NEVER TEXTED nor will I,
This resolve is often followed by cries from the Grandchildren of "Oh come on Grandad its easy",
Well Shant, Shant so there.
Shaun.

I was nagged into having a Facebook account; but have zero interest on giving the World, or even my wee microcosm of it, a running account of my quotidian activities...it's like being a volunteer minor player in "The Truman Show'.and I try to avoid it..
but I do use my iPhone for 'What's App"now and again. I try to make technology work for me, and not vice versa. I also try to avoid the endless nagging by social media to spill more of the beans on oneself, in order to facilitate a more detailed profile for them. Global Marketing- that's what it's for, or maybe even surveillance.
Like you, Shaun, I'm still a dyed-in-the-wool (or Tartan ) Tinkerer! Long may it last

[HERMAN BIX]

On the PzIV?..................crap-least favorite, and toy like no matter what version.

On social media expectations ?...............(turns around, lifts Kilt and presents with gusto)