RC Tank Warfare community hobby forum

There are nice V shaped tie downs.


I had previously scratch built two for the sides of the air filters, no need to replace them. I have identified another location at the rear of the engine deck for two more. The rear deck is getting there...


The front is also getting there. Next step will be to add the missing ERA tiles at the front.

That's it for now.

Regards, Louis

Thats IT for now !!...............I have a nose bleed just reading & watching the progress.

The driver's hatch doesn't really fit in to the stop because the hatch is not correct on the TongDE. The hatch doesn't swing open...it slides to the right on the real tank. The phone box was more than likely raised up on that platform because the M60 looses it's fenders pretty easily. At the museum we tore one off crushing a car one day.

Hi,
Thank you Herman and Ecam for your encouragements.

Thank you Tankme for your posts on the headlights, road wheel types and driver's hatch. Always very informative. This build made me realize how little i knew about the M60.


The following posts are for the two ERA blocks on both sides of the driver's hatch.

I had to do some investigative research to determine how to attach these using what was available to me. Starting with the block on the right side, we can see two attachment points at the bottom, and a bar what links up with the stand for the exhaust pipe. Now you can see why i added that strip between the two poles on the left.

The bottom is an L shapes rack.


Here we can see a bit about the structure behind the block.


The L shape rack is prepared.


The upper bar and the vertical supports are added using the best information i had.


The right ERA block is installed.


I just need to add a 1mm plasticard strip above the support on the left. Comparing the picture below with the first one on this post, it should be about right.


Then i noticed a bracket that connects the hatch stop to the joint between ERA tile 1 and 2.


With very little info, this is how i made it.


Continuing on following post.

Another view from the back.

Now for the ERA on the left side, It looks simpler but i did not find a single picture providing details of the mount behind it. What we can see from the front are two attachment points at the bottom of the L shape rack, quite visible.


Based on the limited info, this is the structure i created.


The left ERA block is installed, and ensuring that the turret rotates correctly without touching it.


The model as it stands today. Next step, the turret smoke grenade dischargers.


Regards, Louis

lmcq11 wrote: ↑Tue Aug 15, 2023 11:21 pm
Always very informative. This build made me realize how little I knew about the M60.

This thread is all I know about the M60. And the fact they were used often as Tiger tanks in films.

Hi,

The following posts are for the smoke grenade dischargers.


These are the parts coming with the TONGDE model. The main part looks similar to the Heng Long Abrams. The base part has a limited resemblance to the required mounts of the M60, and is actually inverted and is way too low. Complicating things is the fact that the parts are different between left and right and must not be mixed at any time during the build.

Looking at the 1/35 Academy M-60A1 Rise kit for information to help me out, there is not much there either. It is similar to the TONGDE model and also wrong.


Looks like i have to rely entirely on the Sabot/Verlinden photo book on the M-60A1 and eyeball some specs. I am fortunate to have this book because i would otherwise not have any information other than some vague pictures from far away.

We can see the shape of the grenade discharger sides (different here), the intricate mount and especially the extensions pipes with the base that must have been installed because of the spaced ERA blocks. The dischargers are much higher than the parts provided.

This sight is enough to discourage the most hardened modeller. It is highly visible. On my model, which is a scale and RC model, it would need to be accurate and solid. I studied this picture for quite a while, I determined the best way to build this is to do exactly the same thing... No way around it. DKLM will likely one day create a detail set from their 3D printed turret, if not a complete turret replacement but it would be expensive and not much would be left of the original Tongde model. It would also still require mods for the M-60a1 with ERA.


Another clearer picture show that the base is actually made of soldered metal plates. Ok, I can do that and it would be solid.



I extended the dischargers a bit with a bottom plate as they seemed short.


As seen in M-60A1 reference pictures that i am using, i also modified the two sides with the irregular piping to add a flat plate covering some of it from the bottom. Also added putty to give it a smooth joint and make the pipe joints a bit less deep, also seen in pictures. I carved the mount points. Then i probably polished them for a further two hours after this picture was taken.


The core of the mount is a thin brass plate. i did my best to determine its shape using the dischargers and pictures. Be aware of left and right part at all times. I know the shape is not perfect but it will have to do. It is not a perfect V, one side has a stronger angle than the other.


Then thick brass strips were cut and soldered under the plate for a really solid mount. Looking good compared to the plastic part provided. At the point, the legs are longer than they should. Each leg will be cut and filed to the proper length once dry fitting with the turret can be done after having calculated all the positioning points and angles in relation to the ERA blocks.


The dischargers are installed on their mounts. At this point, the legs have a basic shape that allow for dry fitting and then a series of adjustments.


I have temporarily put the smoke grenade dischargers on the turret with a couple of superglue drops. It for display and analysis purposes. The dischargers cannot be permanently installed until i have installed the surrounding ERA blocks and determined the ultimate position for everything. There are so many variations as to where these dischargers can be mounted that it is currently impossible to determine exactly where. The fit between the ERA blocks is tight.


Continuing on following post

Some more views of the temporarily installed smoke grenade dischargers. As mentioned above, the exact position will be determined later once the ERA blocks for the turret are installed and after i have studied their positioning. At this time, every piece of information i got left and right can be considered suspicious until i have figured it out the mystery around their position and the various angles.

The model as it stands today.
Regards, Louis

Louis, next year the National Show for the International Plastic Modelers Society is right near me in Madison, Wisconsin. Your M60 should be there to show modelers what incredible detail can be accomplished on an RC tank.

Herr Dr. Professor wrote: ↑Fri Aug 18, 2023 3:18 am Louis, next year the National Show for the International Plastic Modelers Society is right near me in Madison, Wisconsin. Your M60 should be there to show modelers what incredible detail can be accomplished on an RC tank

Thank you Herr Dr. I am doing this for fun and without any competitive pressure. I just like to post here so that others might be inspired.

Continuing with the build.

The next two posts are for the ERA on the right side of the turret and show the progress there. When i purchased the TONGDE M-60A1 model, i really did not know what was underneath the ERA.


The Academy kit makes the installation of the ERA look so simple. Unless you do additional research, you would not know the required mountings are mostly inexistant or dramatically simplified.


The Israeli ERA on the Centurion was much simpler... The US Marines really made the job of the modeller complicated for the M60 with intertwined, spaced mountings with different heights, angles and positions on an uneven cast turret, with variants.


It is when i saw this picture from Prime Portal that i fully realized what i got into.


And with the walk around pictures from the Verlinden/Sabot book, i also realized that all the mountings under the ERA were sometimes raised by as much as 2 feet and highly visible. As this is a RC scale model, i had no choice to do my best to repro that. This section on the middle of the right side is highly elevated from the bottom, exposing all the mounts and pipes.


To speed things up, i started an assembly chain for the brackets, with specific configuration for each ERA group.


The cutting of the 2mm pipes leaves a rim on the end points that allows the M1.2 bolts to be rapidly screwed inside after being soaked in superglue.


The pipes are roughly calculated to leave enough lenght for any possible adjustment when positioning on the turret. These mounts are very resistant.


Each ERA group is prepared the same way. Looped attachment brackets are only created for the exposed sides. They are thinner than reality because thicker brass breaks with a 180 degree bend. Someone with more patience and material could really do a perfect job here but i am happy to work and present details only when it shows.


The positioning is the critical step and very difficult. After much calculations but mainly hoping for some luck, holes are drilled in the turret sides for the pipes to go in where i think they should, and dry fitted one at a time. It is technically possible to make mistakes, and holes need to be enlarged to push the ERA a bit on the sides or up, down... Anything can happen.


Continuing on following post