"PRODUCTION" TURRET KING TIGER

[ALPHA]

I had problems with track throwing both plastic and metal. ... Not throwing but shifting out of place on the idler...I love the KT but the metal tracks are massively heavy after all. Eto armor sold me the Henntec idler system for $56, with my new panther and other projects haven't put it in yet or I'd show the pictures. It's that or the torro lower hull I guess because I've tried everything else.

I always see if I can get the tracks correct first Marc...if need be I will reinforce the Idlers...my KT didn' t need it... I ran it through every torture test...it passed with flying colors..I've found the amount of slack plays well into how these things track and perform...for me... I haven't really found tensioners to be of much benefit because of the limited travel on them...if anything..they are IMO...designed to add more rigidity to the rear end...the major problem with track derailment is because the idler wobbles ...so stabilizing those...and not running the tracks too tight helps keep them stable

ALPHA

[HERMAN BIX]

The metal idlers I have required the drilling out of the mountings. They then went in with just enough clearance to allow the snug fitting of the C-clip on the end of the idler axle inside the hull.
The nature of the links means that adding '1' (made up of 2 short links)actually means adding 7/8" (22mm) to each track !!

Worked up the "post traumatic eating/drinking disorder" that is xmas day food today & got the paint on the tracks.
This time I kept track of what I used.
German grey, base colour.XF 63
Red Brown, a splash, XF 64
Flat black XF 1 to tone down.
Dark Copper XF 28 to get that slight rust/weathered tinge.
Gun Metal X 10 to give the light refracting metalic look.
Entire lot made up 15mls of a tamiya mixing jar, then the thinners wentin to fill it up.
I knew from White Tiger tracks that these things would eat the paint, so a full 35 odd mls was in order.
Put the tracks outside to warm up & hit them with the airbrush.

[HERMAN BIX]

Also tonight over a few egg-noggs I tried out a Humbrol dark brown wash on a couple of spare roadwheels. Not scared off I took it to the King & did the left idler & one roadwheel to see how it ended up.
Gives a great effect of grime & dirt in the nooks of each wheel without being over the top.
I think I will use it on the entire lower hull gelb area & not use any heavy compound on the sponsons to mud up.
As this machine was delivered & disabled within two weeks, it really would not have had a lot of weather effect on it.
All the pictures were taken in the '50's apart from the first few.
My vehicle is a representation of how it may have looked the day it took on the Autobahn vantage point before it was disabled by crew or action, we will not really know for sure which.
Happy with the wash though...............seems like good stuff.

[HERMAN BIX]

Well lads here it is................seems like I left the door open a bit last night and a Sherman sneaked in & got its freak on with my King Tiger

Used a mix of XF13 JA Green & XF 58 Olive Green roughly 60/40 to give a lighter dark green than the XF 70 or 73 by itself. Dark green is just to dark after testing.
Thinned 25mls of paint 50/50 in a big mixing jar that used to hold thinners.
Rotated the turret 90 degrees & hit the rear deck. The turret overhang is long & would have left a real patch on the deck if not rotated out of the way long enough to spray the covered section.
Again with the controler on the deck, kept turning the turret out of the way until I had suffiecient cover under the areas exposed by the different positions.
Paint shortage or not at this time in the war, I cant help feeling that with the threat from the air a King Tigers greatest problem outside of fuel supply that a factory would have left the turret fixed straight ahead & painted over the outside, leaving a mosaic pattern of primer red visible from the air by a drunk ,blind pilot when the turret was rotated. !
Some areas are thinner on the green than others, mainly around raised features, which shows the red oxide through just a bit.
Rushed paint application, with short supply..............thats my pick.
Still no smarts in leaving the primer under the turret exposed though

Seems to have worked.
Next of course is the masking up of the gelb patches & then.....................
The rings.

[ALPHA]

Studying the intricacies of your airbrush Grasshopper ...nice fading on your bogies ...good wide pattern flow over the majority of your tank...Now we will await fine "flow" on the tentacle pattern

Nice Job so far Herman

ALPHA

[SovereignZuul]

Color looks great. Getting it looking like this is a nice step in bringing attention to the details.

[HERMAN BIX]

Sweet as mate. I have to get the masking right first. Cannot have any leaching over of the Gelb at all or it will be impossible to correct.
I might try new blue tack in thin strips............the kids have it for school use. The strips should allow controlled edging into the right pattern for the Gelb to stay put so to speak.
I will test it though so as not to pull a sheet of green off the primer with the bluetack...............that would get me well cross threaded

[HERMAN BIX]

Studying the intricacies of your airbrush Grasshopper ...nice fading on your bogies ...good wide pattern flow over the majority of your tank...Now we will await fine "flow" on the tentacle pattern

Nice Job so far Herman

ALPHA

"until I can walk across the ricepaper, drunk, with the airbrush, and still get the rings right Master"

Wish me luck but Im going to free hand them.
New brush, cut off all bristles leaving a stump. Test first- try later.

[HERMAN BIX]

The top coat has bought out a few ticks.......................
The super glue coating on the large flat surfaces seems to have done the trick of rolled armour texture, the primer has soaked up just the right amount of top coat leaving patches of varying colour, and the green over Gelb roadwheels sure does make a contrast. The patch on the left side turned out pretty good as a first go at filling a hole.

Masking next

[ALPHA]

"until I can walk across the ricepaper, drunk, with the airbrush, and still get the rings right Master"

UHHHHHHHHHHHH YEAH..........Something like that

Wish me luck but Im going to free hand them.
New brush, cut off all bristles leaving a stump. Test first- try later.

I do wish you luck Sir ....stipple technique might work well with bald stick keep blowdryer handy for fast application


ALPHA