PRAVDA's Blizzard Buster "GIGANT"

[ALPHA]

Thanks dgsselkirk... for suggesting the asiatams ... my machine gun fabrication came out to about a dollar a piece



lol took a look at them again... beh.. close enough

ALPHA

[PainlessWolf]

Good Evening,
Serious Machine Guns for a Serious Tank! Pictures please of how you wired them in.
regards,
Painless

[ALPHA]

Day ... I don't know ....this build has been filled with so many twists and turns... but though at times frustrating... still fun...

Anyway... Had to take a break from the ol' KV... she's been a challenge for sure... with the turret and exhaust being what they were.. and since I cut the louvers out... now the detail to the hoods had to be done... I had to do a little research before coming to the decision to make them go straight across... instead of taper down like how they are provided and commonly done...took three hours to do one... so far this is the result... it's only the frame... so the three hours obviously doesn't include the time it will take to add three brass rods across the assembly and the screen


So I thought making both ends symmetrical would be easy... Ha Ha ... it wasn't lol ... drilled and cut out the molded screens.... then built the tapered end back up with yes... HENG LONG scrap plastic .... thoughtfully provided by the armor plate that was removed from the hull ...the hardest part of the detail was redoing the recessed area where the screen and bars will rest


Apologies for the poor lighting... but it was the best angle to show the taper and the modified panel...the lower piece shows the modded side... which now looks like the side molded side ...the top obviously shows the tapered side

This build is taking much longer than I initially planned.. there is still a lot more to do... so instead of picturing each step... I am going to just work... and before paint show the result of the labor.... as only minor details remain from here.... just the antenna... the shackles and cables... the shackles I found available through only one dealer....but I don't want to wait for something so small... so I will fabricate them out of copper wire...the cables will also be fabricated... as I found the perfect gauge cable at my local hardware store ...the antenna I already spoke of and will in all probability be the last thing I will have to fabricate on this build

Happy Holidays Everyone

ALPHA

[PainlessWolf]

Good Evening, Alpha,
Don't forget to have fun while you are mastering the intricate bits of this build. You may simplify them for the Anime but the quality of your work is obvious. Happy Holidays to you and yours!
regards,
Painless

[ALPHA]

Good Evening,
Serious Machine Guns for a Serious Tank! Pictures please of how you wired them in.
regards,
Painless

Hi there Painless... sorry I didn't notice your post when I posted about the KV grills... the wiring for the machine guns was pretty easy....did a parallel "piggy back" hook up... so they fire at the same time....all it took was a wire stripper... the kind with the sized holes



found a place midpoint on the neg and pos ... pulled the insulation back... and soldered them

I couldn't find a "rice" LED for the turret machine gun... so I had to use a normal sized red LED... to accommodate that... I drilled out a HENG LONG body support.. and glued it to the interior of the turret... then slid the LED into it...I didn't want to glue the LED just in case I have to service the turret for some reason... this way I can just bump it out with a rod (as it is pretty snug in there) and pull it out so I can access the interior workings of the turret since it is soldered to the upper hull... plugs would have been better... or even a screw connecter... for the wires... but I didn't have any on hand .. and I'm not going to do it over again lol

And if you plan on doing this later to your KV someone suggested I line my guns with fiber optic... it would be nice... I might do it later if I can locate the proper size ...but they both do work pretty well... and still can be seen during night or day

I'll take a picture later... when I install my helicopter wire... It's the last bit of soldering I have to do... but I want to create the receptacle for it first

Sorry this is such a slow moving build ... but most of what is planned is in mind... and not yet built... so at times things have to be done ..then redone..crazy fun

ALPHA

[ALPHA]

Good Evening, Alpha,
Don't forget to have fun while you are mastering the intricate bits of this build. You may simplify them for the Anime but the quality of your work is obvious. Happy Holidays to you and yours!
regards,
Painless

You know Painless... I never thought the KV would take so much effort... As the KV doesn't lend itself to too many options detail..wise...the lower hull is pretty basic... almost kleenex box like ..and just like my conversion to the KV2...if you want to change to a different variant...stripping it is one of the things to do lol

I think I got a little enthused after doing the T34..which I really enjoyed ...this one has just been a challenge... one wrong decision after another luckily nothing so drastic that would lead to the destruction of it with a hammer...and now that everything is pretty sorted ... and she's running pretty smooth... the enjoyment has re entered the build.... it is probably part of the reason I stepped away from it for awhile ...Something I couldn't do in the beginning

I really like this tank...Big head and all ...Though she isn't under paint...I smile when I watch her run

Have a great one Painless

ALPHA

[ALPHA]

Pushed the edge last night.. finished those engine grills....


These things are about 2.5 inches long... and about .5 inch wide ... very small... it was a pretty tedious thing to clean out the molded plastic grills to replace them... but as you can see it isn't impossible with a little luck and concentration

Above is the grills with and without mesh... I just wanted to show the bars I spoke of earlier.... the mesh is just household nylon screen... I chose that one... because to a certain degree... you can still see through them... I have five different meshes to play with... the one I used on the T-34 was too large... two others I have were about the same but different weave... the last is what dgsselkirk recommended.... but it was so fine... once painted all the work would be lost ...held this one to the open grates ... and it looked perfect (I could see the bars ) so I went with it





The picture above are of the grates on the tank...it just show why I regretted cutting out the louvers... as once painted ... visibility of the louvers will be little to none.... in addition to that... the top of the louvers would have to stay below or level with the top of the hull... as the grates will not snap on properly.... but what is done is done... and hopefully the way I did the grates will substitute for the mistake I made removing the louvers

This mod with the raised ends is for the KV-2 only.... the KV-1 requires the tapered vents... as they provide clearance for the turret... with the KV-2 you have the choice...as the early models with the rounded tail turret ... still had them from the KV-1...the later models were changed to the symmetrical grates to facilitate the opening of needed larger louvers ...the bars going across were so no would be tanker or soldier would put his foot through the mesh

ALPHA

[cupoftea]

Nice work Alpha

[ALPHA]

Nice work Alpha

Thanks cupoftea....at this point I'm really enjoying this tank... every time I finish something I switch her on and play with her for about a half hour or so

ALPHA

[PainlessWolf]

Good Morning,
Stellar work on the grills, Alpha. ;o) Indeed, the play is the reward for all of your hard work. I love the perspective shots of the grills from the turret top. ;o)
regards,
Painless