RC Tank Warfare community hobby forum

Time to don the surgical mask, and get the saw out...
(Click on pics ENLARGE) I cut some internal support brackets using the template I'd made. These will help me bond the two sections of roof together at the new angle.
Here, I cut a ring of styrene tube to form the lip that's apparent on the bomb-thrower/smoke grenade launcher. Having determined that a removable one-piece roof (as with Tamiya's Tiger 1) is preferable to the partially, or wholly bonded one, I've begun adding an internal supporting flange that will allow the roof to slot into place. It's a good interference fit with these bits in place (I'll tidy them up later... ) and, with a magnet or two, should keep the roof in place when the tank's outside running on the rough ground. Next, I drilled some holes for some copper wire to represent the brackets that hold the spare tracks in place. They were bonded in place with JB Weld (metal). So far, I've found no other product that bonds metal to metal, metal to resin, and metal to styrene, as well as this able to.
I'm basing the brackets on the ones visible in these two pics. They're also supplying supplementary visual details for the storage box. Finally, the Mantlet has now been permanently bonded in positon. That's a relief.

This is what I've come up with so far:
Right now, I only have the top brackets in place. To make the bottom ones (which function like clips), I'll have to flatten the copper with a hammer... (Before i I fit them to the turret !)
Eventually, I'm going to use Milliput around the edges of the (detachable) roof to simulated a long welding bead, and to make the parts blend in.

Getting details right is one of the driving forces in rc tank modelling. Flaws and imperfections, which occur naturally in the manufacturing process (especially in WW2 Russian foundries)- those rough bits, in other words, are sometimes difficult to scale down. Pitting in cast turrets is tricky to replicate. So are weld lines Still, all you can do is try.
Here are some examples of examples of roughness found on the Comet's Turret (Click to ENLARGE these):
I copied the full-scale Comet pics from : http://www.primeportal.net/tanks/paul_a ... a34_comet/ Thus far, I'm happy with the Mantlet weld line. Later, I'll have to create a weld line right around the turret roof which will conceal the rough edge above, and the fact that the roof is detachable.
Some added details below. Provisional painting is a good way of determining how well the build is going, and where details need to be added, or enhanced.
Turret with rough details:

I've added some tiny captive nut brackets (they're used for the canvas waterproofing mantlet cover) on top of the Mantlet. I still have to add the Commander's gunsight, and the main aerial (cone shaped-triangular type). I won't begin the hairpulling over that design feature, until I'm satisfied that the exterior is finished. Having seen those casting letters, I'm wondering whether the 2mm styrene ones, available on Ebay, will be a good size? They'll certainly enhance the look. I'll have to ponder that one
In the meantime, here's an idea for the elevation function. This unit is the one from the Sherman and Panther, if I remember correctly.

She’s coming along nicely!!

Ad Lav wrote:She’s coming along nicely!!

Thanks, Adam It will take a lot of time, and thought, to get it right.

A ludwigs kit is not born overnight.

I do fancy his Matilda but alas I have different projects afoot

You have a great eye for detail. I wish I had your modeling patience.

Ad Lav wrote:A ludwigs kit is not born overnight.

I do fancy his Matilda but alas I have different projects afoot

Me too! Freddy did a fantastic job with his prototype, and managed to keep the internals fairly basic Projects...yes...well, I have the Tamiya Jagdpanther, and Tamiya Tiger 1 to unbox, and then the StuG IV gathering cobwebs, next to the Tauchpanzer and the...well, you know how it goes.

Jimster wrote:You have a great eye for detail. I wish I had your modeling patience.

Thanks! I'll admit to being a wee bit obsessive about these things; but not to the point where every nut, bolt or squashed fly has to be replicated. If a model looks ok at arm's length, that's good enough for me.
Some modelling maestros here go well beyond that; almost down to the microscopic level, in fact
The trouble is, scaled-down parts are often weak, leaving them with a fragility that doesn't sit well with tearing through long grass and vegetation. So...a compromise is needed, if you want your pet project to be properly mobile, and even combative.

Many Comets had a spotlamp fitted to the turret, just like the Cromwell Mk IV. I'd like mine to have one, as well. To make this happen, I bought the T34 lamp; made a mounting bracket out of styrene; bonded them, and then ran the wires through a hole in the turret wall. On the actual Comet, the wires enter the turret through the turret roof, near the bullet splash plate. But since I want the roof to be detachable, it's best to have the wires go through the wall.
Click to ENLARGE following pics: Not much point in going to the trouble of fitting the lamp, if it doesn't actual light up...
But...Fiat Lux!...and lo, there was light. Yippee Normally, lamps and headlights are soldered to the upper hull 8-pin connector in HL, and Taigen models; but now that V6.0 MFU package has made the 8-pin connector block obsolete, all components will have to have their own JST connectors.
The Elevation unit is supplied without wiring, making it necessary to solder a JST to it. I tested to unit to make sure it actual works, but I'll also have to run trials to determine where the optimum position for the unit to be in the turret, in order to elevate the gun properly.
Here's the lamp in position on the turret:

Coming along great brilliant work