WSN T34 Full Option Mods
Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2008 9:47 am
Hopefully this might be of help to Brian (BeeKay) with his T34 Mods and other people wanting to do something similar .
I got my WSN T34 in 2005 I think. The first thing I did was to gut it and kept only the final drive axels and the turret rotation module.
I fitted mine out with Tamiya Sherman gearboxes. They are a good fit and I’m sure any Tamiya gearboxes would fit just as well. I had to cut away the back of the hull to fit the gearboxes though and then re-glue it at a slightly different angle but this doesn't show too much. I don’t know whether the HengLong gearboxes would fit but they might be an option.
I cut down each steel final drive axel that comes with the WSN model leaving just a stub about 12mm-15mm long. This then fits into the threaded hole at the end of the Tamiya drive axels (the hole that normally takes the threaded screw that holds the Tamiya sprocket in place).
I had to drill out the end holes slightly in the Tamiya axels to make the stubs of the T34 axles fit tightly. I then fixed them in place with a few drops of cyan. Of course a better way of doing it would have been to cut a thread on the T34 steel axle that matched the Tamiya one but I didn’t have the hardware to do that at the time.
I also replaced the retaining clip on the Sherman axle by drilling a small hole and inserting a piece of copper wire. I did this as it was much easier to remove the final axle (with it's now-permanently attached drive wheel) this way.
The tracks are very robust as they use steel pins to hold the links together. I had reservations about the longevity of the plastic swing-arms, drive-wheel and wheels but they have run around the garden for the last 3 years without any problems.
I had a 'spare' Pershing hanging around I bought second-hand on e-bay a long while ago and so I used the DMD and MF units from that in the T34. It sounds and moves very well but the axel/swing-arms do bend slightly under the increased weight and the wheels have a slight 'toe out' appearance when you look closely. I intend to fabricate metal swing-arms at some stage.
As a temporary fix for the 'toe out' problem I glued a small block of wood on the outside of the hull on each side just behind the front idler so it rubs against the top part of the first wheel. This helps to hold the wheel in an upright position and disguises the 'toe out' appearance (see the photos).
As an incidental, I left the red LED in the muzzle of the barrel as the Tamiya flash unit did not have much of an effect (no muzzle brake). However, I did replace the funny green LED in the headlamp and fitted both Pershing bulbs instead. It gives a nice bright headlamp.
Cheers
Chris
I got my WSN T34 in 2005 I think. The first thing I did was to gut it and kept only the final drive axels and the turret rotation module.
I fitted mine out with Tamiya Sherman gearboxes. They are a good fit and I’m sure any Tamiya gearboxes would fit just as well. I had to cut away the back of the hull to fit the gearboxes though and then re-glue it at a slightly different angle but this doesn't show too much. I don’t know whether the HengLong gearboxes would fit but they might be an option.
I cut down each steel final drive axel that comes with the WSN model leaving just a stub about 12mm-15mm long. This then fits into the threaded hole at the end of the Tamiya drive axels (the hole that normally takes the threaded screw that holds the Tamiya sprocket in place).
I had to drill out the end holes slightly in the Tamiya axels to make the stubs of the T34 axles fit tightly. I then fixed them in place with a few drops of cyan. Of course a better way of doing it would have been to cut a thread on the T34 steel axle that matched the Tamiya one but I didn’t have the hardware to do that at the time.
I also replaced the retaining clip on the Sherman axle by drilling a small hole and inserting a piece of copper wire. I did this as it was much easier to remove the final axle (with it's now-permanently attached drive wheel) this way.
The tracks are very robust as they use steel pins to hold the links together. I had reservations about the longevity of the plastic swing-arms, drive-wheel and wheels but they have run around the garden for the last 3 years without any problems.
I had a 'spare' Pershing hanging around I bought second-hand on e-bay a long while ago and so I used the DMD and MF units from that in the T34. It sounds and moves very well but the axel/swing-arms do bend slightly under the increased weight and the wheels have a slight 'toe out' appearance when you look closely. I intend to fabricate metal swing-arms at some stage.
As a temporary fix for the 'toe out' problem I glued a small block of wood on the outside of the hull on each side just behind the front idler so it rubs against the top part of the first wheel. This helps to hold the wheel in an upright position and disguises the 'toe out' appearance (see the photos).
As an incidental, I left the red LED in the muzzle of the barrel as the Tamiya flash unit did not have much of an effect (no muzzle brake). However, I did replace the funny green LED in the headlamp and fitted both Pershing bulbs instead. It gives a nice bright headlamp.
Cheers
Chris
