1944 M36 B1 Tank Destroyer

PainlessWolf · Post by **PainlessWolf** » Tue Apr 18, 2017 4:54 am

Back from the Holiday ( and so was the Post ) Got a couple of needed items in, the diamond plate decking material and the U.S. Antenna mount. I started out tonight with the antenna mount and while I was able to assemble the correct antenna and base, the actual brass mount included is more for a truck or halftrack ( which will come in handy later ). I will get out some styrene tomorrow and scratch a correct mount for this TD and epoxy it into place. It is a simple flat and single upright welded to the M4A3 hull by the Radiomans side headlight and shouldn't make too much of a fuss ( famous last words ) ;o) Pics of tonights progress:

sassgrunt · Post by **sassgrunt** » Tue Apr 18, 2017 5:17 am

That is one awesome-looking antenna mount! Certainly worthy of your usual super detail efforts.

On a side note, Alpha and I got that Meng 'World War Tons' Tiger I, as well as the Sherman, (which he promptly turned into a Firefly). They have also announced the next two in the series, which are a King Tiger (Porsche turret) and a -wait for it - KV-2! Maybe you can turn that into a caricature of your Crackerbox Palace....

PainlessWolf · Post by **PainlessWolf** » Tue Apr 18, 2017 6:03 am

Mike!
It's a step up for Aber, definitely one of their better kits. Thank you, Doc. I'm watching one of those Meng KV-2 versions. It does look like fun. ;o)
regards,
Painless

PainlessWolf · Post by **PainlessWolf** » Wed Apr 19, 2017 2:20 am

Not much going on tonight. No Post so I went back to working on the antenna mount. Also, I removed the MATO headlight covers and am in the process of ordering either a Tamiya or Schumo set. Pics:

Soeren · Post by **Soeren** » Wed Apr 19, 2017 10:15 am

Details incoming

. Question, you went with a scratch styrene support for the antenna. What was wrong with the piece shown in the aber instructions, was this not included in your kit?

PainlessWolf · Post by **PainlessWolf** » Wed Apr 19, 2017 3:05 pm

Good morning, Doc,
I had mentioned in the previous Reply that the included brass mount looked like it was for a truck or half track and that I would save it for another build. The mount depicted in photos for the M36B1 is as I built it, a simple, open 'L' welded to the front glacis. ;o)
regards,
Painless

Soeren · Post by **Soeren** » Thu Apr 20, 2017 7:38 am

Ok, I must have missed that. Thank you for the comment.

Ludwig von wigbearer · Fri Apr 21, 2017 7:05 pm

Hi painless, the headlight lenses look excellent, a big improvement over standard, do they make any difference to
the very bright leds. also did you get the guards off in one piece.

regards john.

PainlessWolf · Post by **PainlessWolf** » Fri Apr 21, 2017 9:43 pm

Good afternoon,
It was your experience with the guards that led me to remove them, John. One came off whole and the other one broke in two pieces. I'd already sent MATO a letter on their website mentioning how nonsense like that really hurts their business and the Hobby as a whole. They never got back to me but they never will change unless lots of people complain so it was time well spent. The Schumos I ordered will be a much better fit for a 700.00 tank destroyer, eh? ;o) They are part of a general Sherman upgrade pack so I'll get a couple of other things that will help the M36B1 shine. Speaking of shining, I've not had the upper plugged back into the lower again yet. I'm working on the turret interior currently. I will test and let you know how they worked.
regards,
Painless

PainlessWolf · Post by **PainlessWolf** » Sun Apr 23, 2017 4:19 am

Nothing in the mail today and threatening weather cancelled all my outdoor projects to boot. Plenty to do on the M36B1 so I went to the counter and spent some time looking it over for hull gaps and seams, etc. I filled the obvious ones in the two piece turret and cleaned up the bow MG mount. The headlights did work, John, I was pretty pleased. Looks just like a bulb in a lens. For bigger ones like the KV-2, I will just use a bigger bit. They had some light gaps round the edges so I filled those in. The paint later will finish off any escapee beams there. Lastly, I did some work on the main gun to make it look a little more authentic to the passing glance. Pics: