M4 HST Dio begins

[mic bradshaw]

Ok so I finally have the mojo back and have found some inspiration. I have always loved the lines of the M4 HST, there is just something about the vehicle that has interested me from the first time I saw it.

Well now my wishes have come true and Hobby Boss have released a kit, so I get to finally build one. I have decided to combine it with a Pak43 from AFV club and whip out a small dio. For our local competition Wheels and Tracks in March.

So off we go. As I am not one for SBS's, mainly just due to a lack of time for pics, I have managed to take the pics at a fair distance down the build track. The HST while partially assembled will receive a fair bit more attention before it gets hit with some paint.
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9468a.jpg
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9467a.jpg
The kit boxes.
First the Pak43 which is almost complete. This is almost OOB, and will have some tool clamps straps etc added eventually. I used the brass bolt head set AFV club sell, as it was much easier than trying to cut the tiny plastic ones off the sprues. There are still some detail bits to add to the kit at present.
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9452a.jpg
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9457a.jpg
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9455a.jpg
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9456a.jpg
Now the M4 HST was another story. It is one of those kits that fits in the good kit category. Overall nice crisp detail and it looks the goods, but you end up with those niggly little misaligned parts, mold slips and ejectors in bad places. Just the sort of frustrating niggles that make modelling interesting, but make you think with a little more care in the mold making process it could have been a great kit. This one will have a pile of scratch details added, and some new tracks from the spares box. You will see what I mean by bad ejectors in the pictures.
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9458a.jpg
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9465a.jpg
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9459a.jpg
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9462a.jpg
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9463a.jpg

Oh and thanks to Anders and his posts on figure building now I might give it a whirl.... :)
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9466a.jpg

Regards
Mic B

[panamadan]

Mic, Looking great so far! Seats seem a little smooth however. There is one a few hours from here that is used as a snow plow! Dan

[ECLIPSE]

Coming together nicely Mic. Thats one big ass looking gun.
What do you think off the AFV Pak? Ive often thought about building one off there arty pieces.
Peter

[RickLawler]

I also like the look of the HST's - There is one a few hours from here that is used as a snow plow! Dan

Yep, here too. There are a few of them running around the ski areas nearby. The Hobby Boss my be in the "good" catagory, but your's is looking very good indeed.

Also, you are a brave man with the sculpting...darn that Anders! :D

Rick

[Uruk-Hai]

What plans for composition do you have?
Are you going to vinyl tyres for the pak or are there replacemnts to be found?

Cheers

[Panzergrenadier]

I like these builds quite a lot. As an axis/soviet armor builder, I especially like the PAK 43.:)

[mic bradshaw]

Thanks for the comments guys.
Dan, yes the seats are way to smooth, and I will use some epoxy sculpt to roughen them up.

Peter the Pak 43 is a great kit. I have built a couple of the AFV club arty kits now, and if anything the only problem with them is to many little parts.... :D The only thing I will add here is you need to source the brass shield bolts they just make life so much easier.

Rick and Dan is there anyway you could get a pic or two of one of these civy M4's. I would love to do another one outside the normal military persona.

Rick you are very right. Anders made it all look so easy..... so now I just have to try it. Damn him.... :D

Janne I will be using the kit Vinyls for the Pak 43. They look fine on the vehicle and with a little chipping and damaging up should look great once painted. I have found the AFV club vinyls to be good to work with in the past, unlike some other brands.

I will try and post some more pics updating the work I have done to the HST today.

My plan is to have the PAK43 in an emplacment being towed out by the M4 as the crew recovers the captured gun. Very simple, and as yet I am still working out the layout.....

Mic B

[panamadan]

Mic, In "panzers in the gunsight II" there are some photos of this gun being used by the US Army and being towed around by a 251/1. Sounds very much like your dio idea. Dan

[Flak]

Looks nice...

[jimmy66]

looks nice so far mick ,mmm might have too get me one maybe towing an 88 ,can i ask where you got your resin torsos from ??? yep dam that anders

[mic bradshaw]

Jamie,
Good to hear from you. I made them myself. As Anders suggested I carved up a DML figure and pared away the detail and slimmed it down a little then dropped it in some rubber and cast them up myself.
Funny you should mention the 88 that was my first choice. Then while rumaging thru my stash I found the Pak 43 so that idea went out the door. There is a good pic of one towing an 88 in Allied Axis number 13, although that is the arty version rather than the AA version which I am doing.

Dan,
There is also a picture of an M4 which is captioned as towing a Pak 43 and you can just make out the edge of the gun in the photo, in this issue. Although I am not going to set mine in the winter.

[panamadan]

Mic, I do not have any photos of the tractor being used as a snow plow-it was one of those days that you just run into a something differant. But I did grab a track block from it! It was New Ulm, MN USA. Dan

[mic bradshaw]

Ok so I didn't get things updated when I wanted to, such is life. I have done a little work on the M4 now.
Replaced all the tools with items from the DML halftrack, replaced the 50cal with a DML item. The interior of the cab got some work with rivets added, the rifle in it's rack from the spares box and new seats from apoxy sculpt.
The rear stowage box got some welds and new brackets added.
Almost ready to start interior painting now.
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9469a.jpg
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9474a.jpg
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9473a.jpg
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9472a.jpg
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9471a.jpg
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e149/micbradshaw/m4hst%20dio/DSC_9470a.jpg

[Bravo Tango]

Nice one Mic.. seats are looking fine and the adds and deletions are good as well.

Yep only 5 weeks until Wheels.. so get painting

BT

[Anders Heintz]

Would ya'll please quit damning me!!! :)

Its great to see you are trying out the figure thing. By looking at your work with the models I am sure you can do equally well with figures. Regarding your mannequin, the torso looks quite good, the pelvis looks a tad big and could use some trimming down. Either way, great to see someone acyually doing something that I suggested! I hope it is great fun.

If you need any help just holler and I will do my best to help you in any way that I can.

[mic bradshaw]

No problems. I will also quit damning you although it was more for tempting me into doing it than anything else.....

[panamadan]

Looks great! Dan

[skeletondude]

Great, as always! :thumb:

Marek

[Flak]

Looks great...

[panamadan]

Mic, Not about the HST, but a question about your PaK 43/41-what did you use to replace the plastic "boots" (part R2-the part that looks like a accordian) that AFV gives you? Dan

[mic bradshaw]

Dan,
This was probably the worst part of the kit. So what I did was glue a bunch of disks together from the punch and die set, alternating small and large disks. I did this until I had the length I required then drilled a hole down the centre and sanded off the sharp edges of the plastic disks to make them look soft and that was it. From memory I used two different grades of card thickness with the smaller disk being thinner as well.

Hope this answers the question.

Mic B

[panamadan]

Mic, Thanks for writing back on this. I just used the kit parts and hope that they will be hidden when the shields are on. What was AFV thinking when they came out with these parts? Dan

[mic bradshaw]

Most of their gun kits have them. They are impossible to clean up and they look dodgey when you put them on. The other advantage to making my own was that I could then glue it all up and it was a solid assembly. Of course the gun is now in the set position but this was also fine as it is for a dio.

Mic B

[panamadan]

Mic, I might rip mine off and try your idea. Thanks again. Dan