RC Tank Warfare community hobby forum

Thank you again, Hotte! Praise from a Master at the Craft gets the blood moving it does. ;o) Today was Martin Luther King Day in America and my Client Account was off of work and so was I. A huge snowstorm had blown in yesterday and we had over a foot when I got around to getting around this morning. The Mate ( who was not off work today ) gave me marching orders to the Grocers so off I went. 60 miles as the Jeep flies and a couple of hours later, I was home and we were well stocked. After lunch and a nap, I got back to the Tiger and decided to do the Rommel box from Tamiya RC Step 41. First off was adding weight to counter the aluminum barrel on this beast. I was going to use self stick tire weights but it hit me that a better solution was at hand. Once the box was lined with foam and ready, I balanced the turret using my steel shot method. I decided to use the Tamiya cover to help keep the weight from moving around, ( half the remaining Rommel box volume ). After that it was ABER time and I just finished up a little while ago. The box is permanently mounted now and has the turret sitting nice and even. Pics:

Foam padding ?

Clasps ?

Lock ?

Bloody KEY !!???????



Snow storm

hours in the jeep ??

for groceries.........................

What ? I didnt realise Levi's made jeans that held shot-puts behind the zip

Mr Sass will wing in from tropical Hawaii, on a nice day, hire a sublime car at the airport, swan up to your joint like a leisurely drive in the countryside , drink your beer or spirit kindly offered(well I would ) and uplift said documented Tiger & gracefully but efficiently exit barely leaving a ripple ( like ole Greg Louganis into an Olympic pool) & navigate nude all the way back (well I would)

Oi mate ................does 'Mr Angelo' know that he was lucky to be born a few hundred years before the "Painless Chapel" would have been assembled, painted and weathered

Good morning, Herman,
I'm going to come visit Australia one year. When I do, I want to come visit your seaside estate and have some BBQ with you. I need to shake the hand of a hardworking man who has my respect. A guy who can make a normal day in Colorado seem like it's movie-worthy. ;o) I love the description of Mike coming to visit ( eerily accurate when he does....except the nude bits ) *chuckles*
regards,
Painless

PS: A couple of pics after the storm passed last night:

Afternoon, Painless, and Herman
If I may interrupt the reverential blandishments for a moment, I've an idea for improvising vision blocks you might not have thought of (unlikely, though..he writes with all due humility ).
I'm away from my snow covered Highlands currently..and the Ludwig Cromwell waiting there impatiently. This absence has occasioned withdrawal symptoms of such unexpected severity, that I was forced to buy a Tamiya 1/35 Cromwell Mk4 to quell the restless fingers syndrome.
Now, in this remarkably detailed kit (also demanded the absent illuminated magnifier at home in Ross-shire ), has a transparent sprue holder/ branch for vision blocks on the kit. However, it occurred to me..that having already coughed one of these miniature portals into non-existence (carpet somewhere), I might cut one out of the sprue tree (or whatever its called). A sharp blade and a bit of heat ought to suffice. By the way, I got to fire the Lee-Enfleld .303 (Son's new toy) lately in Switzerland. Finally. That's four generations on the Lee now...two in wars (WW1 and 2), and two thankfully not.. Great rifle, and more on that later.
Anyway, the vision block improv. is just an idea. ...from an apprentice addressing the masters of the art! Also bemused by the counterweight option: a sterling example of perfectionism.
Regards,
Roy.

43R&R,
Awww, you're a hard man but Ok. We love our blandishments around here. ;o) That's a great idea with the clear sprue! I was going to do five mini clear resin pours and just fill up the vision block box but decided instead, to cut the little squares out of clear plastic that I had laying around. I'll be looking for pics of your 1/35 and 1/16 Cromwells, sir. Thank you!, I wanted something that allowed me to change the weight I was adding to the turret easily. My eyes fell on some of the many thousands of steel shot that infest my Office and it was pretty simple after that.
regards,
Painless

Today after work I looked through the remaining sub builds of the various steps and went with the Loader's Hatch from Tamiya RC Step 42 and 43. ABER added a page and 3 hours or so. While I was looking at detail pics of Tiger tank loader hatches, I noticed another thing that ABER did not provide for. Some wire and the Yankee Drill added some more needed detail. Pics:

Wow now that's what I call details! Mr Painless you an armored vehicle artist!

I continue to watch with amazement !

CR73,
Thank you very much, Doc. ;o) I can't leave well enough alone at times. Since the last post, I went back into the tank room and used a set of flat mini pliers to gently tweak the pull handle and wire. I may use some heat shrink tomorrow on the wire to give it a little more of a smooth appearance. We'll see. *chuckles*
Painless

Sat down after work to see what could be done with Tamiya RC Step 43. I went with the Turret Escape Hatch. Tamiya's parts are nice but no interior detail. Amazingly enough, ABER had nothing to offer for this part. I guess they figure that most people just cement it into place. I could have but no dice. Sassgrunt might want to open it one day and since the hinge works, some scratch building was called for. Pics:

Painless either Waylon misses you or that look on his face might be "wow that's some really great crafting you have done there, I'm stunned!"

Super job as usual really great thread that others can look to for future reference if they are brave enough to delve into the level of detail you are into

Uncharted territory for me I'm afraid...

Lol

Carl