djizomdjinn Posted October 2, 2015 Author Share Posted October 2, 2015 Still a bit slow. Still no progress on the assault gun, a combination of the SPG looking better, being easier to think through, and being almost done. A bit of a light update (haha, puns!) The searchlight now has a seat, donated from a half-broken 1/35 motorcycle kit that I want to use to scratchbuild something else... (I'm NOT working on it further until at least one of these two tanks is done though!) Built a light platform, built a mount out of square pipe and a short round pipe section. The end of the searchlight stand will just sit in there, nothing holding it in place so it can pivot freely. Forgot to mention last update, but I got some treadplate patterned styrene. So the turret basket floor and the light platform both have nice treadplate floors. Also, that rear sprocket swap. Nothing more complicated than shaving the pins down slightly. Sanity checking with the 1/35 figures that came with both kits. It's not the five feet off the ground that I thought it'd be (and wrote into that story short), and the gun shield's high enough to give some protection to the legs, but it's still pretty exposed up there. 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Chaoswolf Posted October 3, 2015 Moderator Share Posted October 3, 2015 That's pretty neat! I'd hate to be the poor bar-steward manning the light, though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knarthex Posted October 3, 2015 Share Posted October 3, 2015 That's pretty neat! I'd hate to be the poor bar-steward manning the light, though! Agreed! (To both!) Maybe give the guy manning the light some kind of articulated plate armor, aka the trench armor some guys wore in WWI? So in the back story, is the Navy in charge of building and crewing these, the way it was in England in WWI? That way at least no honest Soldier will have to hang his arse out in the wind up there! Or maybe the search light specialists all come from the navy? I mean after all, squids hung out on open bridge wings while they were under fire to man the silly things...... 8) George 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Chaoswolf Posted October 3, 2015 Moderator Share Posted October 3, 2015 That's 'cause it takes a real man to do such things! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knarthex Posted October 3, 2015 Share Posted October 3, 2015 That's 'cause it takes a real man to do such things! Yeah... Let's not derail djizomdjinn's thread... 8) George 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djizomdjinn Posted January 14, 2016 Author Share Posted January 14, 2016 Who remembers this? Good, because I didn't either. (Actual reason: ran out of plastic weld, ideas, plastic weld, and time. But now I'm in the process of restocking on all of those.) 13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Chaoswolf Posted January 14, 2016 Moderator Share Posted January 14, 2016 I like it! I'm glad to see you making more progress on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robinh Posted January 14, 2016 Share Posted January 14, 2016 I too missed the updates and I am also happy to see you are back at it. It is definitely looking more scale model than scratch built now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djizomdjinn Posted January 17, 2016 Author Share Posted January 17, 2016 Sprayed a simple mottled camo pattern over the whole thing, using Jungle Camo and Walnut Brown. Then I realized my white primer wasn't all that white (more of a light grayish), so I went back and dotted it with a bit of Pure White. Of course, an airbrush sprays very even coats of paint, so I had to bring back the details and edges with Brown Liner diluted to a wash. Story time! The rolling boom of distant thunder jolted Charlotte awake in the Dover's commander seat, and she sat up too quickly and banged her head on a periscope. Cursing quietly, she stood up, quietly lifted the top hatch, and scanned the forest for signs of the enemy. Nothing but black awaited her, save for an occasional flash of light lost somewhere in the trees. The new moon offered no light, and what little succor starlight gave was blocked by thick, dark clouds. She couldn't even see her hands in front of her face. So what were those men out there shooting at? ----- Christian looked upon a world of hazy, blurry green, but it was far and away a better view than the night outside his gun sight. There were men trying to kill him, but he was unconcerned. Blind and confused, their bullets and shells ripped through the brush a hundred meters to his right. Cranking the traverse and elevation wheels, he laid the gun on a squat, ugly tank with a multitude of antennae bristling from its hull and turret. Like having a duel with blind men, he mused as he yanked the firing lanyard. 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hosercanadian Posted January 17, 2016 Share Posted January 17, 2016 Looking nice, and I like the story. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Chaoswolf Posted January 17, 2016 Moderator Share Posted January 17, 2016 Nice!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djizomdjinn Posted January 19, 2016 Author Share Posted January 19, 2016 Big update today! Painted up the tracks by spraying them a mottled pattern of burnt sienna and black, and then drybrushing steel onto the treads and the sprocket teeth. So, the SPG is more or less done in terms of paint, just need to wait a bit and then seal the thing before trying to add a light dusting of snow. But wait, there's more! Been making some progress on the assault gun as well (finally!) There's been a gap between the hull top and bottom since I sawed off the piece that indexes the two together. Here's a stab at fixing it (by covering it up). The command tower has finally been welded on once and for all, and I cut a bit of the treadplate styrene to cover up the terrible join at the sponson and add more texture. A bit of brass I-beam adds detail to the side. Not shown: The engine deck floor has been treadplated as well. The gun mount is also being welded into place. The odd shape of the gun mantlet is being a pain, but I can manage. The gunner's doors / ammo loading doors will be inset slightly, to give them a bit more protection. A bit of Apoxie Sculpt to make the rest of the turret face look like it's been cast as well. I'm not sure about that flat side face, I may end up molding some Apoxie over that and stippling it too. 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glitterwolf Posted January 19, 2016 Share Posted January 19, 2016 It looks like a mean machine! Very good work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Chaoswolf Posted January 19, 2016 Moderator Share Posted January 19, 2016 The SPG looks great, nice job! Keep up the good work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djizomdjinn Posted January 21, 2016 Author Share Posted January 21, 2016 SPG's been posted in the Show Off section. Been working on the casemate. There's a slot that has to be there for the turret to elevate freely, unfortunately, but oh well. I'm not anywhere near the level of dedication of "rivet-counting" scale modellers, so I don't really mind. On a side note, I don't even know what this hobby would be called anymore, if it's not scale modelling. Tinkering? Other little improvements include the same treadplate and I-beam treatment of the area under the gunners' doors, and treadplating the track guards to be more like the SPG. Sawed off the commander's cupola off the Panzer II turret, it'll be the gunner's cupola now. I think it's coming together quite nicely. Another detail pass over the engine bay after this, plus the addition of some "field modifications" and I might call it ready for paint. Currently debating whether to give the gunner the last periscope off the M41 or reserve it for the driver's vision port. Decisions, decisions... Though the gunner's rear-facing, pintle mounted anti-aircraft gun was intended as a last-resort defense against enemy aircraft when no heavier AA was available, most Dover tankers disdained its use. As many Dovers were used as impromptu infantry fighting vehicles, with sandbags stacked high on the rear engine deck for protection, it was often an infantryman who instead swung the heavy gun forward and used it to devastating effect against enemy forces on the ground. Cooperation between Dover tankers and infantrymen was high; the tankers welcomed the many extra sets of eyes to point the forward-facing gun into action faster, and infantry welcomed the extra protection of its thick steel armor to hide behind and the sheer blast effect of its explosive 40 kg shells. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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