T-34

[James Tainton]

Like I don't have enough kits going... :lol:
but I could not resist the new Trumpeter 1/16th scale T-34/76 1942.
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/Trumpeter/meholdingbox.jpg

the box top cracked open- (love that smell that vents out of a new kit)
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/Trumpeter/boxopen.jpg

some of the contents
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/Trumpeter/boxopen2.jpg

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/Trumpeter/wheels.jpg

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/Trumpeter/wheels2.jpg

[gordy]

woohoo! when ya gonna start it?!?
Can't wait to see this :)

[James Tainton]

Thanks for the "token" reply Gordo- ;)
Where the hell is everyone??
I plan on starting this real soon... now ....get your rear in gear and get us some 1/16th scale Ruskie tanker boys!!! :lol:

[Stuke Sowle]

I'm looking forward to your build thread on this one. For those of you who haven't seen this kit in person, you cannot believe how big it seems!! They had it down at my LHS and let me fondle it for about fifteen minutes. Of course only after the mandatory bib was in place to catch my drool.

The kit is amazing, and IMO far ahead of the rest of the pack in kit of the year voting. I pray that they give the same treatment to the Panther and/or Tiger. Sorry Allied fans!

I don't have much interest in Soviet armor of WW II, so I probably won't get this kit. However, I do have a lot of interest in Soviet armor in the Balkan conflict and lo and behold, T-34/85's were a common site in that theatre. Perhaps I do need one of those !? :)

Keep us updated sir!!

[James Tainton]

Yes, it is a fomidable kit! :lol:
I managed to get some time putting the early steps together today .. the ammo and started cleaning up the spring parts.
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/ammosanded.jpg

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/spring.jpg

[James Tainton]

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/spring2.jpg

[Stuke Sowle]

Real springs...how cool! :)

I think you should do a side-by-side comparison of size with your Panzer I. Let these guys see how big this thing really is!

[James Tainton]

here is a pic I took to show someone the scale- this is a 1/72 scale Jagdpanzer next to the main enginge block half part. :lol:
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/enginejagd.jpg

[Stuke Sowle]

Ha...missed that shot. Good example of the sheer size of this brute.

Any progress lately?

[James Tainton]

I secured some primo after market ammo rounds from Hussar.
Decals and metal base plates included.
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/Hussarammo.jpg

[Sticky]

Nice! I have some of their 1/35th rounds and they are the tops! They should compliment that kit very well!

[James Tainton]

Well I have started to get somewhere on this but it is slow going for me on this one... many distractions lately.
The hull. I have painted it flat black first followed by a red primer colour, which I sprayed on the floor and sides (and underneath while I was at it.)
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/1hull.jpg
same with the interior side pieces.
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/2sidepieces.jpg
The spring holders are painted FB.
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/3springholders.jpg
and ammo
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/4ammoflatblack.jpg
The springs are primed with a metal primer and then painted FB and red primer.
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/5springsprimer.jpg

[James Tainton]

Suspension arms FB
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/6suspensionarms.jpg
And now after rubbing down the red primer with a toothbrush to get a nice smooth surface(I use laquer thinner to thin my paint- this sometimes dries to much before it hits the surface of what I"m painting causing microscopic pebbling. Normally this not a big deal but with the removal of the liquid mask I need a smooth surface with no tooth at all. The paint is not totally cured- I did the toothbrush polishing about an hour after spraying.)
I use Vallejo's liquid mask and a piece of a 3M scrubbing pad and/or sea sponge to lay in little areas that later will portray the chips of wear and tear.
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/7liquidmask.jpg

[James Tainton]

here you can see the liquid mask applied.
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/8closeuponliquidmaskonprime.jpg

This collage shows the basic idea using liquid mask and a bit of 3M pad and sea sponge(water colourists use this)
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/9liquidmaskonprimer.jpg

[James Tainton]

Here I am airbrushing white on top of the dried liquid mask. Then after the Tamiya white had dried I used a Q-tip that has a bit of the liquid mask on it I remove the underlying liquid mask.
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/10paintingwhite.jpg
and here the results
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/11.jpg
and a closer look.
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/12chips.jpg

[Sticky]

Lookin good! I like this technique, kinda like Salt but easier to clean up.

[James Tainton]

It's more predictable, most likely more stable,
(salt left on model may continue to absorb moisture),
and more controllable than salt technique.

[Tuna]

Hi James,

Thanks for sharing this technique.. question.. how long has the tamiya white dried before removing?

also.. doesn't putting new liquid mask on the qtip then get more on the subject?

thanks

charlie

[James Tainton]

Not long did I wait- maybe an hour after I sprayed the white. As for the Q-tip w/ more liquid mask- it dries as you rub it on the surface, any wet stuff that gets on the surface comes off very quickly as it all gets tacky as the Q-tip is moved around.

[Stuke Sowle]

Hmm, just noticed that you updated this build. Looks like you have made some great progress with this beast. I have a jar of the Vallejo masking agent as well and was very pleased with the results that I got on my Shilka radar using it.

Looking forward to seeing some more progress.

[James Tainton]

I've been lazy to post images- these are a couple off weeks old- I decided to redo the back wall in greyish green colour after seeing some reference- my interpretation. ;)
When I did this I discovered something that I'll pass on The things that glue in on the other side that hold the springs should be glued in and then these holes filled prior to painting. I don't feel like typing a lot now so I'll just give you the pix.
Stripped the white and red primer off with Oven cleaner
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/13stripped.jpg
here you can see the holes that need to be filled
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/14pinholes.jpg
the end pieces here are what need to be glued in thoose holes- the pistons are metal coloured
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/18springholders.jpg
springs rusted up
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/19springs.jpg
grey paint
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/15greypaint.jpg
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/16closeupgrey.jpg
test fit
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/16hull.jpg
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/17hull-.jpg

[James Tainton]

some more pix..
http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/DSCF0001.jpg

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/DSCF0005.jpg

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/DSCF0007.jpg

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/DSCF0008.jpg

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/DSCF0009.jpg

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/DSCF0010.jpg

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/DSCF0011.jpg

[James Tainton]

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/DSCF0014.jpg

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/DSCF0015.jpg

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/DSCF0016.jpg

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/DSCF0017.jpg

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/DSCF0019.jpg

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/DSCF0020.jpg

[James Tainton]

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/motor.jpg

http://members.shaw.ca/hetzer/T-34/motor2.jpg

[Stuke Sowle]

Looks fantastic! Too bad I just can't justify buying one as I really don't have much interest in the T-34. :(

Where do you get all the time to get this work done? After work, family, chores, and the internet I have about two hours a week of bench time.

Hmmm, anyone got a hunch about six lucky numbers?? :)

[Reddogfive]

Hello James. I have envied your skill and the amount of kits you get built (I have followed you here from Track Link).

I was wondering if you display all your complete kits in one room (hint, hint maybe take a picture)

Keep up the great work!

Reddog

[Stuke Sowle]

Any progress on this beast James?? It was looking real good.

[James Tainton]

I am sort of bogged down trying to finish these two 251/9's right now- with this T-34 I was actually looking at a thread at Armorama on it and saving the pages for use later. One thing that derailed me was when I made those "Stoopid!" brakes drums. I did manage to wrap one of the around the drum with out it breaking but the other one had some problems and then I sanded the patch losing some of the rivets and I just balked at replacing them. I just looked at the parts again and now it doesn't seem to be too daunting- I should be able to tackle this later this month or so... and the other issue was the wiring details of the engine-it just hurt my head to think,lok,do anything about it so- that's when I took a break. I think it will be the next thing I need to do before stating any of the other kits I have on the shelf- God I have about ten kits still not done sitting around... :(
I will try to take some pics of some parts not shown yet. Here is the address for tha T-34 thread.
http://www.armorama.com/modules.php?op=mod...id=31779&page=1 (http://www.armorama.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=SquawkBox&file=index&req=viewtopic&topic_id=31779&page=1)

[DCG]

Hi Jamie,

I noticed Imperial Hobbies out in Richmond has a set of Hussar 1/16 76mm ammo if you feel like you need to bomb your model up a bit more... that and I wanted to run a test on my new membership here. Tee hee... ;)

Darren

[James Tainton]

Mr. Gawle- what a treat. Now we're gettin' some real big guns! :lol:
as for the Hassar ammo- got em.
Hey so what are you working on these days- got a vBench yet- get a kitpic account and post some pics.
P.S. Love the avatar! http://www.teenclub.ru/forum/html/emoticons/wub.gif

Now if we can only get MIG to get a bench and Mirko, and others.... ;)

[DCG]

Big guns? Dude, after the replies on ML for your 251/9, I think you've arrived in your own right!

I signed up for a vBench last night, but I'm still awaiting confirmation. What's with kitpics? Are people having trouble linking from other sources - say. a Net54 account? I have the new DML TIger II on the go right now (kit #6232) - I'm not working at the moment, so I'm going to try and see if I can finish it before my next job posting. (Union work, I know you know the score!)

Anyway, re: the avatar - it was either him or G. Gordon Liddy ;)

Darren

[James Tainton]

Hmmm I'm not sure if you will have probs linking to N54 - doubt it - I was just doing some pimpin' fer Gordo- the illustrious Wizard behind the curtain. ;)
As for not workin'- it has side benifits in that it allows work to be done in the modelling realm.
And yes I must say I was pleasantly surprised by the comments at ML and the distinguished modellers they came from. But truth is I stand on the shoulders of giants. :lol:

[James Tainton]

I have been asked to do some artwork for a company that makes stuff for war gaming
http://www.flamesofwar.com/
and T-34's may be involved- and the way I do my art is to build a model and then I can photograph it from any angle and use that in the composition
so what better than a 1/16th model.
In any case I was stuck trying to get the metal ammo boxes in the fighting compartment to look right and I think I'm getting there.
http://members.shaw.ca/panzeriv/Trumpeter%20T-34/ammoboxesblackmetal.jpg
there is still more to do with these...

[tony55]

Hi,
I just bought this kit today and have been reading your blow by blow account with great interest It appears to have stopped some months ago.
Am I missing a link or something?

Cheers
Tony

[James Tainton]

Nope- got bogged down when the engine became a stalling point- I want to do the wirirg and all but need to find the right references. I'll pick this up again sometime when I get re-inspired. (and can find some time- Maybe in April?) ;)