WIP: 1/72 scale ACE Iraqi T-55 Enigma

Looks good, Duke. I'm even more impressed because I have that kit and haven't had the courage to get it started... One look inside the box was enough.. (should have looked before buying!)

Suspension arms going the wrong way..?! Easily done..

Keep up the good work.

Thanks DJ! I felt the same way you do. I was afraid to start it as well when I looked at it. But then I realized that the only way to get it out of the way was to hunker down and build it! So, I took three deep breaths and dove right in! I suggest you spend a good two days just cleaning the flash!

Nice guess, but the ones near the rear are supposed to be reversed. I checked it out in my Modern Armor book. Look closer! :-)

Drive sprocket?

Those look pretty cool so far, I was wondering how detailed are those 1/72 kits? I did a couple of generic ones and they had like 10-15 parts and you're done (granted I pull some stuff outta my but to get a somewhat good build, they're on rons site. ).

Putting the idler wheels where the drive sprockets go.

Man I hate when I do something like that!

It's OK, you did a great job on the save. We've all shot ourselves in the foot from time to time. It's good to know that I'm not the only one!

it looks great
is it a shot after a Challenger has finished with it

Looking good so far Duke. I can't wait to see the finished model. Thanks for sharing.
mark956

QUOTE: Originally posted by djmodels1999 Drive sprocket?

QUOTE: Originally posted by latch66 Putting the idler wheels where the drive sprockets go.

BINGO! Got it in one!

QUOTE: Originally posted by latch66 Man I hate when I do something like that! It's OK, you did a great job on the save. We've all shot ourselves in the foot from time to time. It's good to know that I'm not the only one!

Thanks latch! I agree, I hate doing that kind of thing!

I thought everyone would get a kick out of seeing that mistake. Yeah, the fix was pretty easy too. Now I have the tracks on and the top hull on, and she's almost ready to paint!

QUOTE: Originally posted by Redleg1-7FA Those look pretty cool so far, I was wondering how detailed are those 1/72 kits? I did a couple of generic ones and they had like 10-15 parts and you're done (granted I pull some stuff outta my but to get a somewhat good build, they're on rons site. ).

Well, Redleg, in all the time I've been building 1/72 scale Armor, I've only run into three kits that had 10-15 parts, and all were from JB Models. All the other tanks from Revell/Germany, PST, ACE, and others have anywhere from 75 to 150 parts or more, NOT counting the individual track links. Try one on for size. If you are building small scale armor for the forst time, go with PST or Revell/Germany. They have the best quality with ease of construction.

QUOTE: Originally posted by Captain Caveman it looks great is it a shot after a Challenger has finished with it

Well, it hasn't been shot yet, and hopefully I'll get it built before it is!

Again, great work so far, Duke.

Im paying close attention on this one; I have the T-55 kit myself. Looks like its gonna take a lot of work.

Well, I got ther tracks installed on this Bad Boy, and they are looking pretty good. Here are a couple shots of the tracks.





This brings me to the reason I lke ACE kits: After getting all the tracks on, I find that I have plenty of additional 'tweezerpult ammo'!



As you can see above, with these kits a few track links can go flying, and you can let them lay wherever they land and get a new one!

After letting everything dry overnight, I put together the top and bottom hulls. You'll need to clamp the nose to get it to glue properly, otherwise there'll be a gap. Also, there was a gap between the back panel of the lower hull and the top hull, but it was easier to fix with a gap-filling CA glue and sanding.



Then I test fit the turret. It went on great!



Now she's starting to look like something!

The next day after that, I painted it with it's basecoat. That's when it really starts looking good! Made all the earlier hassles worth it!

Here it is ready to be detailed:





I hope you like these pics. It feels good to finally be through this tough build! I also apologize for those with slow systems and dialup modems. I tried to set the pics to be small as possible without compromising the detail I wanted you to see.

Bottom line: Some of the wheels aren't exactly in the right place, and the tracks are higher on one side than the other, but I'm quite proud of the work I've done. Besides, it's Iraqi! By this time, every one of the 1:1 scale Enigmas are sporting a smoke and rust style camouflage pattern!

Great stuff, Duke!!! Gonna have to get mine out...

Duke,

Well you should be proud, my friend. Thats a hip looking MBT you got there. After reviewing the parts of my kit just now Im impressed your Enigma turned out so neat.

Dj,

Im with you. Time for some traction!

Thanks DJ, Allen. I am almost done with it and I daresay, it is looking better and better as I go along!

Pics forthcoming!

Here's something I discovered while going about my Ace kit:

If you blow up the paint plan on Ace's instruction sheet by 152%, the resultant copy is in exactly the same scale as the kit. Just a piece of trivia, really.