HL Panther G customization diary

[jeff1101]

Update Apr 11

The PE parts from EtoArmour.com finally arrived. I ordered



- Aber engine deck PE details
- Aber various (24 pcs) clasps and clamps. ( I thought this would be useful to detail the rear stowage boxes and tool racks)
- Schumo Rear tow cable holders.

I just can't get around how small these parts are. Not to mention these parts are in 1/16 scale. I pity the poor souls working on 1/32 and even 1/72 scale. I mean how much detail do you really want in these PE parts? I was surprised because they even included butterfly nuts for holding down some of the engine grilles!

Having no experience soldering and working with these small parts, assembling them will be a challenge. And my eyesight not what it used to be will not help either. Also the engine deck details are for Tamiya Panther so I am already seeing some issues fitting them to the HL. Although non that are major and I am already thinking workarounds for them to fit.

But this is a long term build so I will take my time to get it right.

[ausf]

Nice work so far Jeff. I have a HL Panther on the way, I'm interested to see the quality myself, but I'm definitely encouraged by your build.

In terms of the Aber, I was a PE junkie years ago. Mostly 1/35, I used to be able to make the 4 piece clamps that would function. That was using a resistance solderer though, I don't know how successful using a regular iron would be.

I found the best methods to apply to styrene was to use either an epoxy putty (sort of like what you used on the welds) or a an acrylic binder (binders are what acrylic paint is made with, but without pigment). Aves Apoxie Sculpt and Bindex are the two brands I'm familiar with. The problem with using CA is it has very little shear strength, so the parts tend to come off when dinked.

Here's a couple of links:

http://ausfwerks.com//techniques/apoxie/stren.html

http://ausfwerks.com//techniques/apoxie/pe.html

Other things to keep in mind are the pieces love to fly off the sprue when cut. A good idea is to run some masking tape across the back to keep it in place.

http://ausfwerks.com//techniques/block/main.html

I put the Aber kit on my Tamiya Tiger I using those methods and they survived crashing around without fail. Good luck. Just remember to take your time, I've probably lost more PE over the years than actually applied from tweezerpult, inhalation and my exhaust vent sucking it up.

[jeff1101]

Thanks for the info ausf. I'll certainly look into this Apoxie product. One thing I also dislike about CA glue is it dries almost instantly.If you make a mistake positioning a PE part on the plastic, its over. You can't even wiggle it to reposition. You basically let it dry, scrape it off and start over.

Also have fun on your HL panther. The reason I went with 1/16 scale RC tanks is that you can continue to enjoy your scale modelling and detail it to your heart's content, but the one really cool thing about it is it moves. The engine sound, the clacking of the tracks. I have spent hours just staring at how that beautiful interleaved suspension moves up and down on my tank as it traverses obstacles in my living room. Just staring at it as the turret rotates is very satisfying.

[ausf]

You could also use the acrylic binder, I'm sure a local art store would have one, if not a Michaels may. It's kind of like an extremely strong, yet somewhat flexible glue. I assembled and installed the rear jack and tail lamps with it on my Tiger and they didn't come off with all the abuse.

I'm the same way regarding the tanks, but when I bought the battle systems for it, it became a whole new level. My sons and I have a huge smashing battle almost nightly in the backyard. We're building a set with buildings and bridges.

The StuG and the Panther will be nice additions.

[jeff1101]

Apr 15 Update

Decided to detail the rear stowage boxes by adding the lid. This was pretty straightforward.

First cut a piece of cardboard as a template for the lid.



Use plastic sheet as the lid. Here I measure twice and cut once.





Here the plastic sheet looked too thick so I thinned it down using black marker method.





I used tamiya plastic cement since Im going to use the glue over a large area.



And here it is fitted.

[jeff1101]

Update (contd.)

Decided to add the hinges for the rear stowage boxes. Got My idea from this link. http://miniatures.about.com/od/techniqu ... lhinge.htm

For the hinges decided to use soda cans as they are much thinner and hopefully easier to work with.



I cut it into a broad sheet.



Then cut it into strips.



Then began to cut the hinges.



Here is the progression from strip of aluminum sheet to hinges. I had to repeat this for all four hinges making a conscious effort to make them at least the same size.







And here are the finshed hinges fitted to the stowage boxes.

[jeff1101]

Update Apr 29

Lots of work done today. I bought some zip ties and a new (hopefully better) soldering iron.



I used the zip ties to tidy up the wires on the turret connector I made.


I also used it to bundle up some of the loose wire in the tunk hull.


Next, last week the antenna connector got loose. It seems it was attached to the connector by solder alone.



It always annoyed me that I had to unscrew the antenna connector if I wanted to separate the upper and lower hull. Doubtless I think that was the reason the solder bond worked its way loose from the connector. I thought of an idea to fix it and at the same time make it a quick release connector.


I bought this type of connector.


It slides to the tongue of the old connector and holds it by friction alone. Here it is attached to the old connector.


The only thing left is to attach both to the tank and the antenna wire.


The new connector also has clips at the end so all you have to do is crimp it to attach the connector securely to the wire.


I attached the old connector back to the antenna base. When you want to attach the antenna wire to the base. Just slide in the new connector in place.

[jeff1101]

Updates contd.

Next I was excited to start on the PE work. Since I was planning to do metal to plastic bonds I was really looking to get a good CA glue. None of the stuff I bought before satisfied me. I then saw the Loctite glue and decided to buy that. This was the best CA glue I have tried thus far.



I glued the metal grill guard to the exhaust port on the left as that was the simplest step. However one note. The metal grills will cover the holes were you attach the rear end of the tow ropes on Heng Long tanks. (see pic below). If you add the PE grills you will have no way of attaching the tow ropes to the rear of the tank.



This is where the rear tow cable holders come in. For HL tanks if your planning to add metal grill guards then 'don't forget to also buy the rear tow cable holders.

They are attached to the fret and since the metal is thicker here you will not be able to bend it loose. (Trust me I tried)


I used a filing saw to make a cut and then bent it loose.


Next I marked the spot with pencil were I will put the cable holders.


Then drill a hole.


I shaved off the furrows I made when drilling the hole. This is so that the cable holder base will sit flush to the rear deck and will glue properly.


And here are the cable holders attached and in place.

[jeff1101]

Updated contd.

I then put my (barely there) soldering skills to work. I added all the grills guards in the radiator and the crew compartment heater tower. The pics below show how I soldered them together.

The instruction sheet for the rear deck detail set. I did almost all of them except the bolts as I cant do them no matter how hard I tried. I will just DIY some plastic bolt heads instead.



Here is the four piece grill set for the crew compartment heater. I skipped the vertical tub (part 2) as I couldn't make them round and neat. I used the original plastic tub molding of the tank and just put the grill on top of that.

I used the metal rod included with the kit to align all the pieces together. I used a chopping board as a mat for when soldering the PE parts together.


I then filed the excess solder so that the grill will sit flush in its tub.

[jeff1101]

Updates contd

For the right side engine deck, the radiator ports also have louvres that attach on top of the grills. Its a 2 piece set that you can set either in the open or close position. For aesthetic and practical reasons I chose to leave the louvres open.

Since its a 2 piece set, I again used the metal rod that came with the kit to align all the pieces. I also used a paper binder as a vice to hold the pieces in place while I solder them together.



You can also stand the paper binder to hold it steady when you file down the excess solder.



One last note on the radiator louvres. The louvers slide open/close in one direction only which begs the question in what direction do you attach it to the radiator openings? I found this forum discussion very useful in determining that. Turns out all captured panther tanks (that have slats) have the 2 radiator louvers opening and closing in opposite directions.

http://planetarmor.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6066

And here is the tank with the grills attached.