Cromwell Mk 4 1:16 scratch build Ludwig kit

[Model Builder 4]

I was looking through my spares bin yesterday evening Roy and found 2 plastic damper units that came off of an old panzer iii, I may try and incorporate them on the last roadwheel suspension arm before the drive sprocket as I feel this is where it could be needed with the extra weight of the gearboxes

Cheers, Lee.

[43rdRecceReg]

Here are the two models compared. Rivet-counters will, of course, find a few rivets missing. Nae bother, I like to balance good detail a modicum of practicality. Anyway, a thing to note is that in the real world, the Comet was wider ( 6in, or so ?) than the Cromwell, to accommodate the larger turret ring needed for the cut down 17-pounder derivative. In fact, on the real thing, the turret ring on the Comet actually extends slightly outside the upper hull walls. The Comet was also longer than the Cromwell.
Checking the dimensions of the two models, I found that length- and width, wise, they're identical. I'd hoped that the Comet would a be a tad larger, in order to fit the motors with greater ease, as it was quite a squeeze fitting gearboxes in the Cromwell...and also to be more accurate. But hey ho, I think they look pretty good. Many of the embellishments are scratch-made. Mostly by me, but thanks to Enginepeter and others for their efforts
Now I have to automate the Comet, and tweak the Cromwell. The wheels on the Cromwell locked up the other day, as the track tensioner collapsed inward- and I nearly stalled/ burned the Clark unit out...
My advice- DO run test the running gear with a 6VDC battery pack before connecting it to any MFU, otherwise it could be a day for a good sulk. Then check on a regular basis afterwards. The weakness in the overall suspension system could lead to stalls if you're unlucky.

[43rdRecceReg]

I was looking through my spares bin yesterday evening Roy and found 2 plastic damper units that came off of an old panzer iii, I may try and incorporate them on the last roadwheel suspension arm before the drive sprocket as I feel this is where it could be needed with the extra weight of the gearboxes

Cheers, Lee.

Best of British, Lee- and do post the result! The drive sprocket is certainly the key area for support, but don't forget the arms behind the idler. They're the ones to cope with obstacles, rocks and collisions with stuff on terra firma

[43rdRecceReg]

It strikes me that the best solution for a Comet/Cromwell suspension would be the one fitted to the Taigen T34. While the spring units take up valuable space on the inner walls of the hull, it's not enough to creat any problems when adding the MFU and smoker. These units work very much like the real ones on the Comet and, with the addition of the second wall to enclose the swing arms, could work very effectively, as well as looking the part
These swing arms are about the same length as the Comet ones, and could be adapted fairly easily to fit Christian's wheels. As a footnote, the T34 hull has actually been used as an ersazt hull for the Comet on a couple of occasions. I think Michael C built his Comet using the T34 base.

Taigen T34- suspension units fitted to inner hull
and this is how they appear on the outside. On the Comet, or Cromwell, the arms would then be enclosed by the outer bolt-on plate (as per the real deal)

With hindsight, this is an arrangement I would have preferred. The main drawback would have been sourcing the suspension units and arms- without recourse to buying the whole lower hull, that is.
Yes, I have them here on this hull (from Forgebear), but it would be way too extravagant for me to scrap the hull for the sake of the units. Nah,the hull is for another project...
If the cheapo plastic T34 hull has detachable units like these, then it might be worth using a spare hull as a donor

[Exhibitedbrute]

The henglong hull has a different spring system so it wouldn’t be of any use

[43rdRecceReg]

The henglong hull has a different spring system so it wouldn’t be of any use

Those spring holders could be scratch built fairly cheaply, and compression springs found for them. But it would be time-consuming. I wouldn't be surprised if the arms are available independently Here, for example:
https://www.taigentanks.com/collections ... hl-chassis

[Exhibitedbrute]

Oh I have some of the arms from when I upgraded my su85 arms and wheels to metal ones and I think the spring mounts would be quite simple and easy, it would only need to be something at the top and bottom of the spring when thought about because the 2 hull sides would enclose it

[General Jumbo01]

If you dare to delve into club racing car spares youll find standard high quality shock bodies with hundreds of various grades of shock fluids, pistons with varying hole number and sizes, some with one way valves, hundreds of standard sized coilover springs of varying compression rates, lengths and even dual rate springs and variable ride height colars. ALL of the above hundreds of parts are interchangeable as all are to a standard. They are far, far better spec than even Tamiya tank parts but will need to be mounted inside the hull so will need to employ linked suspension arms (even these parts can be found in the car race specialist hobby shops). The four corners may cost about £30-60 for all the bits but take your hull to the race shop to get guidance. Remember, you are entering a world of carbon fibre and titanium so be prepared!!

[43rdRecceReg]

Autumn's approaching, and I don't have a bucket list project going now, having finished the Firefly Ic and the Comet A34. Autumn and Winter certainly need some productive time-fillers, even if tank painting's generally a no-go area of the hobby in Winter (here in the Far North, anyway). I can't actually grasp the fact that I've finished not one, but two projects lately. For me, projects generally get to the 95% complete state (a bit like downloads in the 'dial-up' Eocene period), before I quit, and begin something else.
Still, there's this legacy Cromwell build.
This ground to a halt- literally- because of an issue with the RH motor (looking forwards) sticking slightly every revolution. This I discovered, by test-running the motors with my standard 6vDC battery pack. Believe me, it's better to use a battery pack for initial testing, than to boot up the expensive Control unit up(TK 60, in this case), to trial the motors, tracks and running gear.
One of the gears isn't perfectly round, I discovered, and has a slightly high point ever rotation, adding a slight braking effect.
I did connect the Clark up to test the sound effects (Meteor engine, Stian 'installed'), and lights, but didn't want to try it in drive mode.
These gearboxes came from Asiatam and, whilst they look pretty solid, the gearbox frame appears to be made of the sort of 'bendy' metal Uri Geller would have approved of.
However, having realigned them slightly, and added extra screws for rigidity- plus lashings of grease- I'm going to take up the Cromwell challenge again.
Partly because of the fiddle tuning a Clark board takes, and also the motor issue, I've decided to gut the Cromwell- which was looking a tad too complex internally, and go with the formula that worked so well with the Comet A34, to whit:
-HL TK 6.1s controller (the best that HL has to offer, IMHO)-
-V6.0 compatible smoker
-new HL speaker. It's a major improvement on the bulky, weighty square one found in Taigens and earlier HL offerings.
Click on images to ENLARGE them.
-T34 headlight, to double as the Cromwell turret spotlight.
The bits eviscerated from the Cromwell interior, can go into 'stock' or be sold off.
As ever, Forgebear came though with the bits I need, as well as a packet of sweets to encourage a bit of tooth-decay ...and speed the need for dentures.

New Cromwell electronics package

Clark TK 60 with R-R 'Meteor' sounds

Cromwell- gutted

download/file.php?id=62055&mode=view
as a reminder, this is what the interior used to look like:

[Estnische]

Keep at it Roy - one step at a time will get you there.