Marder Madness

Would you include the 5cm Pak 38 auf Panzer II a Marder as well?  I don't know if it held that official designation but it was built concurrently with the early Marder IIs.

MARDER 1 (Hotchkiss Chassis) by Pvt Mutt

The kit i'll be building is from Trumpeter

This machine was built on the captured French H-39 Hotchkiss chassis and armed with the German 7.5cm PaK 40 anti-tank gun to aid the Germans combat the T-34/76 Soviet tank. There were somewhere between 24 and 60 of these built. They also carried a 7.92mm MG 34 within the 4 man crew fighting compartment.

Oct 17 Step One-Lets take a look at what we have to work with:

I took a picture of the box contents,not a very good one but it'll do. The molding looks pretty good but there are knock-out marks galore that will have to be filled, that's the down side of open top armor,no where to hide. Not much in the way of decals but better than nothing. I'll likely get a set of after market tracks to replace the bands but other than that this will be OOB.

btw Bronco also has a offering of this Marder 1too.

OCT 18 Stage 1

I got the first 4 steps of construction completed today. Pretty straight forward process really, mold seams were not too bad other than the road wheels that took a little extra effort to smooth out.

Trouble in river city,can you see those big gaps on the drive sprocket housing where it meets the lower hull? Those housing in no way fit like they should but some filler will smooth those out,I hope.

That's all for today,Thanks lookin in.

Tony Lee

OCT 19 Stage 2

The next step in the directions is building the Pak 40. Since it's a total unit all by itself I skipped over it and went on to the casement and interior parts.

One thing for sure is the fact that Trumpeter doesn't short you on knock-out pits. Just the two casement sides and the rear panel have 31 of those puppies.  Do you suppose Trumpeter charges extra for them?

Moving right along, the parts fit today was good and without problems so I stuck thing together to show you folks how it went.  Walk lightly please or the whole thing will fall apart.

The forward armor plate is double walled and the instructions tell you to cut off those two ears that protrude into the gun opening,i'll do that tomorrow.

That's all Folks

Tony Lee

OCT 20 up-date Stage 3

What a Day it has been and it's not over yet.

I've spent all day building just the gun. Partly my fault and partly Trumpeters fault. I took a reviewers at his word that the breech block needed to be turned around but failed to check until the job was done. The model will be a shelf queen anyway so i'm not going to change it back.

After the gun was built it was time to test the fit to the fighting compartment. I installed the gun mount base per the instruction but the gun just wouldn't fit.  I checked the gun assembly against the instructions and all parts were where they belonged so I checked to see if the parts on the front armor plate were in the right place,no problem there.  I stuck the gun back in and took a closer look at that mount base. AHaaaaaa! the direction tell you to install it with the flat face plate to the front,WRONG. Luck was with me and the glue hadn't cured very much so I pried the mount out and turned it around with the flat face plate to the rear.problem solved.

See that curved plate in front of the mount base? It fills the gap under and behind the gun armor shield. The kit has two,one you don't use and one that you do but looks nothing like the drawing and just didn't fit that well so I modified the don't use piece which works and looks much better.

All is right with the world again

Just to show the size of model I place a small bottle of Tamiya paint next to it.

This was the second time i've typed this,the first just disappeared so i'll quit while i'm ahead.

Later Folks

Tony Lee

OCT 21 Up-date Stage 4

I had to make a honey-doo run today but still managed to make some good progress on my Marder Madness assignment.  I started to install all the interior components and the first step was to install the fuel tank,ammo lock and the center gun deck at the rear of the fighting compartment but for some unknown reason it was too wide to fit between the walls,not just a little but a bunch.

The upper edge of the ammo locker base was the only area that an adjustment could be made so I trimmed back about 3/32nds which was about right and by the time I flat sanded the edge to square it up it was perfect.  The rest of the interior assembly went along just fine.

I know I said this was going to be a straight out of the box build but temptation was too great.  Since this Marder 1 will be in transit mode I scratch built an armor plate cover for the sighting slot in the forward shield.

Sorry, will you forgive me?

Tony Lee

OCT 22 End of Construction Phase:

Well I ran out of parts just in time to have a long weekend.  Next step will be to look it over and fill or smooth up any boo boos then shoot some color on the interior so the upper hull can be attached.

You Folks have a nice weekend,it's suppose to rain here

So Later Guys and Gals

Tony Lee

OCT 29  Painting Phase Underway:

Primer and base coats of Hull Red and Nato Brown.

Dunkelgelb will go on tomorrow.

Later Folks

Tony Lee

NOV 05 Friulmodel Tracks

I know I said I was going to put the dark yellow on next but I changed my mind and decided to go ahead and assemble and fit the tracks first.  The supplied rubber bands were just way to big and I didn't want to cut and sew or staple them together so I fell back on my old reliable Friuls once again.

I finished up one side today,one side to go.

Getting cold around here,I think summer has come to an end.

Tony Lee

NOV 11 Tracks Assembled and Fitted

Folks that's one job i'm glad is done and over with.  I've put together several sets of Friuls but these were a bear due to their size and shape.

I'll take them back off and paint the running gear and lower hull.  Color the track before putting them back on too before installing the upper hull. As you can see there's not much room to maneuver under those fenders.

Until next time

Tony Lee

That is a good question Roy. I don't think that one held the title "Marder"......or if it did, I am unaware of it. I know that there were quite a few different panzerjagers built  around the same time including the 4.7cm. Pak  (f) auf. Pz.Kpfw. Renault 35.R (f), and the panzerjager I which also mounted the Czechoslovakian 47mm anti-tank gun, just to name two. In order to keep the build focused on the Marder series, we had decided to build only the vehicles that were known as "Marders", and that had kits readily available.If this was a general panerjager build, I would include anything with a 75 MM Pak 40 on it, which was just about anything the Germans could think of! But seriously, we are keeping it to just Marders this time around.

Which brings me to the Marder FCM 36; according to my research, there were ten of these built by mounting a 75mm Pak 40 on the French FCM36 Medium tank. Does anyone know if there is a kit of this particular version available, preferably in 1/35 scale? Tlivancso told me of one, but it was QUITE expensive. I'd be interested in hearing if there were alternatives. Thanks for the interest,

Nate

I'm in for the "M"... photos to follow.  Start time depends on the vote

Marder I 7.5cm Pak 40 auf Gw. Lr.S. (f) Sd.Kfz. 135 by Nachtflieger

I will build the Marder I that was based on the French Lorraine Tractor chassis. It mounted the deadly 75mm Pak 40 anti-tank  gun on a modified Lorraine chassis.

I'll be using the RPM kit in 1/35 scale for my build.

Nate

I've finally gotten some bench time on my Marder I Lorraine. The RPM kit that I'll be using consists of 6 sprues of somewhat soft plastic, with soft detailing in spots. Molded in two colors, there has been more than a little bit of warping.

The hull builds up with 4 sides, and the bottom, and here was my first problem: there are no locater holes, or even marks for the multiple running gear attachment points! I had to eyeball the positions of the return roller mounts, and also the leaf spring limit posts. Hopefully, I did a good job. I won't know for sure until I finish the entire running gear assembly.

Next up was the bogie assemblies with leaf springs. RPM have molded U-shaped shackles for the leaf springs, but after trying a couple, they seemed way too big to me, so I left them off.

I built up the upper hull, and rear fighting compartment next. Finally, I built the armored gun housing, and placed it on the model without glue.

I've got a lot more work to do including filling and sanding some good sized gaps, and a sink mark that is very visible.This is definately NOT a Tamiya, or Dragon build, but in the end, it's an injection molded Marder I Lorrainne!

Running gear, lower hull, and tracks done.10-27-10. Not too bad considering no alignment holes of any kind for the suspension. Now it's starting to look like a Marder!

1-29-11 After a long absence from this build due to various life issues, I'm back to finish up my Marder I Lorraine.Everyone here has set the bar pretty high, so I hope I can do this build justice!

I've skipped around the construction sequence, and built the gun assembly. I replaced the kit barrel with a leftover one piece barrel from my recent Marder III H build from Dragon. The fit of the kit part was TERRIBLE, so I grafted the Dragon barrel to the RPM breech. I also filled, and sanded a couple of sink marks over the driver's compartment, and added the gun travel lock.

Right now both the gun assembly, and fighting compartment are just placed on the model with no glue. I still have to finish up a few hull details, and all of the fighting compartment interior, before I can move on to the painting stage. Here's a few pics of where I'm at right now. Thanks for looking.

Update: 2/6/11

I have finished the build portion of this project. I tried to spruce-up some of the details by adding Dragon tools, and Griffon clasps. I filled, and sanded the grab handle mounting holes because they were HUGE, and added various grab handles from the spares box in their place. I also added an RB Productions antenna.

I still have to fill and sand where the armor plates meet at the rear, then I will spray Tamiya Primer in preparation for painting. Normally, I don't prime but because this kit is molded in different colors, I thought it would be best to start with an even coat.

As I've said before, this hasn't been the easiest kit to build. But the more I work on it, the more it grows on me. It's like A Charlie Brown Christmas Tree: It's not such a bad little kit, it just needs a little love!

Comments always welcome.

Nate

Update:  2/12/11

I've primer-ed, pre-shaded, and painted the Marder I in a scheme that represents a vehicle operating in Normandy in the summer of 1944. I primed the model with Tamiya gray primer in a spray can, and then used Tamiya acrylics for the rest of the painting. 

Tomorrow, I'll add the markings and start on the weathering process. Thanks for looking.

Nate

Primed:

Pre-shaded:

Painted:

Final update: 2-27-11

I put the finishing touches on my Marder I Lorraine this morning. I used Archer transfers for the markings. Afterwords, I applied a filter using MiG's tri tonal filter which apparently made the transfers run a bit. I also used AK Interactive streaking grime to replicate rain streaks. I applied MiG European Dust to the road wheels and track sparingly.

The scratches are Vallejo German camo black brown.

Thanks for following along during the build, and comments welcome.

Nate

Guys, I will be building Marder II Sd.Kfz.131 as soon as I am done with my little Panzer I Ausf A. 

Marder II was built on Panzer II Ausf A to C then later Ausf F chassis and it fought at all fronts of the war mainly in the Eastern Front.  This Marder II had a redesigned (widened) fighting compartment and used the German 75 mm Pak 40 anti-tank gun. The silhouette was lowered by about 40 cm to 2.20 m, but the armor was too thin and the compartment was open to the top and rear.  651 Marder II was built making it second largest Marder class behind Marder III M.  This Marder was one of few tanks designed to fend off T-34 tanks when the Germans first encountered Soviet better tanks during Operation Barbarossa.

This is the kit I will be building... it comes loaded with PE stuff and aluminum barrel.  Magic Tracks set is included and it will be my first attempt. 

I have ordered this reference book today via Amazon.  I was surprised to find out that there is very limited number of reference books on Marders.  Publishers, if you are reading this.. perfect opportunity for you to make $$$!

I am working to order AM decal set for this famous 'Coal Thief' Marder II that my DML kit didn't come with.  I think I am going for this one. 

NOVEMBER 13-14:

Finally I am here while MIG pigments are drying on my little Panzer I have started the Marder II... you got to love those DML kits as it comes pretty loaded.  You will see why...

And more... three small sheets of PEs, aluminum barrel (not shown) and many decals.

Best thing about this kit... I brought it for only $26.95 two years ago at Hobby Lobby when they were getting rid of all Dragon kits.  How dumb of them...

Since I am going for the famous 'Coal Thief' Marder II, I ordered this AM decals from Echelon...

How typical of DML kits... sometimes they can be way over engineered like this.  Had to use a wet toothpick (shown) to glue nuts on.

It took me a while to get all shocks glued and wheels sanded... not exactly my favorite part.

Worked on the rear that contained 30+ parts.  Got some PEs but its nothing compared to our friend Marc. LOL  Yellow clay is being used to hold the muffler guard until painted.  I think I should drill a better hole inside the muffler. 

Thanks for looking!

NOVEMBER 15:

Engine and front interior completed... loving the details.

NOVEMBER 16:

Most of the hull interior and upper right interior are completed.  Had troubles making clamps from 3-4 tiny PE parts but after an hour of no success I gave up.  Is there a good tip how to make those tiny clamps? 

DML instructions continues to confuse me... LOL  Now I am seeing seams inside plastic clamp.  I better take care of it...

Because I am going for 'Coal Thief' Marder, they didn't have tools on the right external wall at all.  Look at the picture posted far below so I had all holes patched up and glued the steel bar out on the front as shown in the pictures.

The kit didn't come with wooden storage box so I will do my best to scratch build one.  It means another trip to LHS!

I am having hard times to see how clean this Marder is... not even one dent or scratch on it! 

NOVEMBER 20:

Managed to spend few hours every night this week... most of the interior and walls are assembled.  Drilled a hole into MP44 since it doesn't have a magazine. 

PE hooks have been added both exterior walls as they were pretty visible in the pictures shown earlier. 

I need your help with this rear travel lock... is it supposed to be loose or glued solid?  Right now its loose at the hinge.

This radio set alone took me little more than an hour... no kidding!  And I still need to clean it up.  Another example of DML over engineering using 20-25 parts but I love the result.  Only thing I didn't like where sprues were... very visible even tho they have been sanded real good. 

I need your help again... this time I want to add wires to the radio sets but unfortunately my awesome reference book is not much of help.  It doesn't show the radio sets but just empty shelves. 

Anybody has a good picture of the radio sets I just built so I can add wires???  Thanks for looking!

NOVEMBER 20- MORE UPDATE:

The front hull is complete. 

For the left exterior wall, it shows two shovels and is that a tree saw I am looking at the top?  If so, it means I will have to scratch build one since the kit doesn't come with a saw. 

I hope to post more updates tonight...

NOVEMBER 20- ANOTHER UPDATE:

Because the kit didn't come with the saw... I really want to make my Marder II look like 'Coal Thief' as shown in the pictures... I scratch built the saw using thin styrene sheet and rods.  I think it came out good?  I wish you could see the saw teeth but it is difficult to see because of too much whiteness.

Ammunition storage boxes have been assembled...

Because I am planning my Marder II in a travel mode as shown in the popular picture, those boxes normally would be closed whole on move but I will leave just one open for now so everybody can see inside one of the boxes.

Not much left to do... the gun itself and magic tracks are next.  Thanks for looking!

NOVEMBER 21:

Gun is in... complicated build with so many parts cramped into a tiny space.  But it was fun!

I guess Magic Tracks are next... I haven't done those before.  And some detail works before I can move to painting stage. 

NOVEMBER 23:

I am afraid I had too much fun scratch building again... first it was the saw... this time it was the wooden box for the front hull as shown in the 'Coal Thief' pictures.  Added an ammo box in the rear too...

The kit came with two wooden ammo boxes so I used the second for scratch building to start with...

Oh no I have been chopped!  Made it smaller to fit the front hull... used sheet of styrene to make wood stripes.

Used my saw to make scratches repeatedly until it looks like wood...

Almost there!

 Voilà!  I present you scratch built wooden storage box...

Here's the picture of the wooden storage box on 'Coal Thief'... close enough.  I need to make a hole at the bottom as shown. 

Two hours just for this little box... but it was fun anyway!  Thanks for looking...

NOVEMBER 24:

Finally glued the walls to the hull.  Left wall was a perfect fit!  Please keep in mind the upper hull hasn't been glued to the lower hull yet until the interior is painted.

But the right wall was the opposite... poor fitting that I had to cut and sand some parts off to make it fit better. 

By looking inside the fighting compartment it made me wonder how can four men fit in... looks too cramped!

Worked on the Magic Tracks... bear with me it is my first attempt as I have been doing MK tracks in the past.

 Glued five links per set for now.  Tomorrow I will glue them all together after I get the wheels on. I am hoping that they become soft and flexible again after another coat of glue.

Happy Thanksgiving everybody!

NOVEMBER 25:

Trust that y'all had a nice Thanksgiving... gonna loose weight so I will hit the workspace more over the weekend.

With help from Rob and Nate, I worked on one side of the Magic Tracks... I should have assembled the whole track within an hour but I didn't as I allowed the links to dry overnight.  With help of extra glue it made the track loose again.  It is really a learning experience for me... thank you both Nate and Rob!

While the track was drying, I added wire to the norlite as shown in my reference book...

Nate sent me a great link to youtube showing the radio system similar to the one used for Marder II.  It was very helpful!  Thank you Nate...

 I used the headphone from Tamiya StuG III that was never used.  A PE hook was added too to make it look realistic... hope I didn't go too far!

I

Tomorrow I will attack the other side of Magic Tracks and finish up the Marder before I can apply primer paint.  Thanks for looking!

NOVEMBER 26:

Worked on other side of Magic Tracks... it was a lot smoother than last night.  I allowed the glue do its work a bit longer then it was very easy to wrap them around the wheels.  I really like the Magic Tracks especially that it came with the kit so I didn't have to cough another $30-$35 for MK tracks.  You can see first completed tracks in the background...

Because I am going for famous Marder II "Coal Thief" show below, I worked on the tools for the left exterior wall while the tracks are drying.  Added PE clamps.  They are not glued to the wall yet... will paint them separately.

Added PE clamps to the axe in the rear... I hated DML three pieces clamp but I thought I'd use just one and cut off the plastic handle part off...

I hope to apply primer paint tomorrow if everything is all set.  Thanks for looking!

JANUARY 09, 2011:

Jeez, it has been nearly five weeks since my last update.  Sorry about that!  Since the New Year Eve charity ball is finally over and my life has returned to its routines, I had the Marder primed over the weekend, I added metal wire to the front hull where it is supposed to hold a spare wheel but instead in the picture it was used to hold either heavy rope or steel wire which I can not tell... very grainy picture below.

Found this at Michaels... worked better than the strings I tried to used earlier but they were too soft...

After its primer job... I think it came out OK.

FLASHING NEWS... I am a big fan of Mr Surfacer products.  In the past I have used either those rattle primer cans from Walmart or Tamiya primers but it was too messy and hard to control.  After hearing good things about this product I had to give it a try... mixed a ratio of 3:1 primer to thinner. 

Here's the result at closer view... amazing how it came out and very smooth because I used the 1200.  

Now everything has been primed...

However there is a drawback using Mr Surfacer that it is harder to clean the airbrush.  Tried the odorless mineral spirit and it didn't work too well so I had to use Mr Surfacer Thinner which is very expensive.  Is there something stronger that I can use to clean at cheaper cost if possible?

Then a tragedy has strikes again... my Iwata airbrush broke when I took it apart.  It is the second time a part came off within three months.   It will set me back another $15 for this part and a week of waiting.  I'd like to ask Iwata airbrush users if this happens often or not...

I suspect it broke because I have been using an aftermarket set added to my Iwata airbrush I brought at Hobby Lobby... this set makes it much easier to remove the needle for quick cleaning.  But I think it may have been too hard on the rod. 

Thanks for looking as usual! 

JANUARY 23:

For the first time I am healthily enough to hit my workspace with a working airbrushing... I did some pre-shading last night.  Hopefully it will eliminate the monotoned color...

Black paint also was used as base coat for the engine as shown in my reference books... 

Painted the rubber parts on the wheels... circle templates will be used next.

Can't wait to do next step this week... the base coat will be thinned pretty much so we can see the pre-shades.  Hope it works better than my last build!  Thanks for looking!

JANUARY 26:

I had to ship my broken Iwata AB to the factory in Portland, OR for repair.  I am not going to wait weeks for it to return.  So I went to Harbor Freight Tools store today and brought this AB for only $20.  Crazy, huh?

It definitely doesn't perform flawlessly like an Iwata AB but it wasn't too bad.  I had to use it with a great deal of care because it would spit out paint blobs if you squeeze the trigger quickly or take off the trigger absurdly.  It took a while for me to get used to it...

I used Bill's formula mixing 50/50 using MM Panzer Dunkelgelb & MM Light Gray.  I really liked it alot better than using MM DY straight out of the bottle.  Thank you Bill!

Sometimes you can go out of control over painting therefore hiding your previous paint job pre-shading like shown in the lower front hull. 

The wheels have been painted.  You gonna love those circle templates.  I brought those at Office Depot...

Even for those tiny wheels...

Fifteen minutes later all wheels have been painted...

I think they came out OK using that $20 airbrush... LOL  Now my next step will be painting green spots to the Marder.  I need to figure out what color the Germans used for this one.  Thanks for looking...

JANUARY 30:

Loved being a bachelor as my wife and boys went to my mother-in-law's for the weekend.   Did alot of the detail paintings.  Did minor chippings because the pictures of 'Coal Thief' Marder II showed us that it was in great and clean condition except for the mud!  I did my best not to go crazy on chipping this time!

Gluing the lower and upper hull together was a nightmare.  I have learned a lesson here... paint the interior first before gluing the hulls together.  There was fit issues and I had to use CA instead of plastic glue because of the paint.  It was a learning experience for me. 

More detail painting to be done especially the wood handles.  Will do after the green camo job. 

The wheels are not glued on yet... dry fitting and it looks good so far.

Now I am not sure what is the best way to attach Magic Tracks to the wheels.  Should I glue the rollers first before I can put the tracks on?  Or idle wheels will be glued on at the end?  Any suggestions would be helpful... thanks buddies!

JANUARY 31:

While sprockets are being glued to the Magic Tracks, I went ahead and applied dark green camo to the Marder II.  Using that cheap $20 AB was very tricky but at the end managed to get a better feeling of it.  Using the reference book and drawing that came with the AM decals...

Used MM Medium Field Green instead of MM Dark Green because it was a better match with the drawing. 

Then I used the base coat thinned with more thinner and sprayed farther from the kit to tone down the green camo.  Another trick I learned from Bill...

Don't ask me why did the crew did crappy paint job near the rear... I followed exactly what was seen in the photos and drawing.  He must have been on crack...

Safe to say that I don't have to use $20 AB for a while if my Iwata returns before my next build.  More detail painting to do and the decals are next... thanks for looking!

FEBRUARY 1:

Snowy day!  Did alot of detail painting especially the tools and radio and installed the Magic Tracks.  It was tricky doing this.  Believe it or not I'd rather to use MK tracks.  I applied another thinned base coat DY to tone down the green spots and it is looking alot better now.

Just realized I need to close the gaps on the floor by the radio.  I am going to apply a coat of Future tonight so I can do decals tomorrow.  It will be another snowy day tomorrow so it means more work bench time!

FEBRUARY 2:

Another great snowy day!  Airbrushed future wax on the kit last night so it could dry overnight.  Applied the decals.  No silvering so far...

I accidentally scratched the right wall so I had to make it look like a scratch afterall...

Thank you Bill & Tony for your inputs... I didn't like the hose part that came with the kit.  I am surprised that DML will do something like this.  So I cannibalized a part of long hose from Tamiya Flak 36/37 kit.  It is great to have old kits handy like this! 

I think it looks alot better now... more realistic this way.  I am going to allow decal dry overnight before I can apply another coat of future. 

FEBRUARY 23:

Sorry about the delay... I have been on a figures painting spree.  Here's the update...

Applied alot of Burnt Umber W&N oil paint thinned with Mona Lisa odorless thinner everywhere! 

Finally painted the steel cable using MM gunmetal... thanks wbill!

Bird view...

Used three different MIG pigments on the muffler.  According to the pictures of 'Coal Thief' Marder II, it didn't have the muffler guard at all so I am leaving it like this.  Like many Marder IIs shown in the pictures they were removed for some reason.  Bet you guys know the answer...

This is definitely my favorite shot so far... why did it come out better than most pictures?   I am so glad I worked on that damn radio set.  

I'd say it is about 95% completed... the final step is the weathering the wheels using more MIG pigments.  That's where I am stuck.  I was going to go crazy using Karl (doog) Logan's method of thick mud he applied on his King Tiger featured in recent FSM magazine.  Now I am afraid to ruin my Marder II because I think it is my favorite so far...

March 28:

Oops!  It has been more than a month since my last update.  I got caught up in building my first American armor... M24 Chaffee in Korea War GB.  I think I have this 95% completion syndrome that I'd start a new kit when the current build is almost completed!

Because I wanted to be as close to this picture as possible.  I did MIG pigment earlier but I was not satisfied because I wanted it to look like mud like shown in the picture.

Then I found a great article written by Karl AKA 'Doog' in Feb 2011 about his King Tiger.  He showed us to make mud and I had to give it a try.  I am afraid I may have used little too much of MIG resin acrylic.  I can always add more tomorrow... used 3 pigments, acrylic resin, & little Future to make it glossy.  And I cut up a good amount of grass from Woodland Scenics. 

I noticed in the real picture... more mud in the rear wheels than the front. Hope you can see grass...

It was still wet when I took the pictures.  Can't wait to see how it comes out in a day or two... thanks for looking!

March 29:

Safe to say my Marder II is 100% completed...

Closer shot of the radio... it is probably my favorite.

It is my goal to include figures in all builds so I have chosen those three figures.  I will probably paint those as soon as I am done with my current build M24 Chaffee for Korea War GB because of its looming deadline. 

Hard to believe... it had a crew of 3 and it is still pretty crowdy if the driver is not on his seat. 

Thank you for looking.  Hope we can do it again! 

Marder II D by Pvt Mutt

My Alan Marder II D kit that i'll be building.

And the AM along with the Nuts and Bolts reference book to help me build a much better model,I hope.

I believe ARK and Maquette sell the same kit but they use the same molds as Alan does. There are a lot of exterior shots of this Marder out there but to my knowledge only one showing a partial view of the forward right hand quarter of the interior floor. If you plan to detail the interior you'll have to use your imagination some what.

I started this build some time ago but got side tracked along the way and for those that did not follow my post, i'm going to start this as if I was just now putting glue to plastic. Sure hope you enjoy it and Thanks.

Oct 17 Lets get started:

With what I had in mind from my research,I figured I needed to build the Pak first since it would determine how to proceed with the build. I had heard that K2 produced a resin kit to replace the not so good main gun in the II D kit.  It took me awhile to find one and I bought it.  The K2 is not cheap and later I had heard that the Pak in the Tamiya Marder III 38(t) could be used as a replacement,that kit can be had cheaper too I suspect.

The aluminum barrels comes with the resin kit too.

By comparing the original kit hull deck, you can see just how much I had to cut out, I used the gun mount to eyeball that. Some simple scratch building was brought to bear to fill in what was removed but needed to rebuild the deck and the beginnings of the drivers compartment.

I'll post some more of this build tomorrow so check back folks.

Tony Lee

Oct 18 Step 2

Good Morning, continuing along with interior work. The II D carried 30 rounds of ammo for the  7.6cm Pak 36 and judging from that single interior photo I told you about the kit is all wrong. In the photo you can see a combination ammo locker and transmission cover located under the gun mount and possibly more ammo storage on both the right and left sponsons opposite the main locker.

Have I ever done any scratch building? No but I didn't let that stop me so I acquired one of those "Chopper" things and a couple of plastic For Sale signs from the Dollar Store and a couple of sheets of Evergreen stock,scratched my head,got my tongue in the down and locked position and jumped in with both feet.

The photo shows a speaker so I had to have one too.

From the opinions of two other guys that had build this kit already,they determined that the kit provided ammo boxes were useless and came up with this idea that I borrowed. The first set was way out of scale so I built another set that was much better and were mounted on each side of the casement just forward of the gun shields.

Until Later Have a good one

Tony Lee

Oct 19 Stage 3

With the major part of getting the drivers compartment built the instruction sheet for the gun said that the casement sides were to short and to add a strip of plastic to the top edges bringing them up to the correct height. After this was done I noticed from photos that more strips needed to be added to the casement bottom edge and the presents of joint seam plates were missing on the kit as well so these were added too.

With the casement installed it was time to break out the PE set. I made a jack block from balsa,found some better tools in the spares box and set about bending the tin for those items.  Most II Ds had a screened in back porch that was later replaced with armor plate to give the crew a little better protection from the rear. Mine is an earlier production model so the screen fence was used from the PE set. The fit was not what it should be but usable as far as i'm concerned. Front fender extensions were installed to close out the day.

I found a few odds and ends in the spares box that I added for interest and the cleaning rods I made that you see laying in the back will be installed later after I find a spot for them.

More tomorrow

Tony Lee

OCT 20 Stage 4

I continued to find useful bits and pieces in the spares box that added interest to the sparse interior. The tarp was an experiment that didn't pass the test.

The superstructure was ready to glue down so the drivers compartment needed paint before that could happen.

That's it for todays up-date,thanks for looking in.

Tony Lee

OCT 21 Stage 5

With interior painted and the upper hull fitted there was something missing and I thought it needed to separate it from other Marder II Ds I had seen build.  Being a small AFV it lacked room to carry the crews gear and supplies so they just hung it all off the outside of the screen on the back exposed to the elements.  Then someone came up with the idea of a storage box, small ones,large ones and even one that fit on top of the drivers doghouse up front. Here's a page from my Nuts and Bolts book as an example.

One of those was just the ticket to make mine just a little bit different from the crowd. Out came the Chopper again and this is what I settled on,  disregard the tarp it was another failed attempt.

After mounting the stowage box I installed the remaining parts on the rear hull.

Boy it's a beautiful day in the Ozarks

Tony Lee

OCT 22 Stage 6 up-date:

Looking more like a Marder II D huh?  With the aft end out of the way I turned to the front end. While turning I found the perfect spot for the clean rods after I marked off where to locate the tie down loops.

On the front I installed the spare track retaining bar and a few Friulmodel tracks. The tools were laid in place to see how things looked.

Next up is painting the lower hull and wheels along with making up the rest of the Friulmodel tracks.

Weatherman callin for rain the next three days

Tony Lee

OCT 24 Stage 7 Up-Date:

Wheels on and painted and since there was still some paint in the cup, used it up on the rest of the hull.  Assembled and fitted the tracks and stuck my third try at a tarp up there about where it will be hung from the loops with leather belts on the left side of the fighting compartment.

I'll be filling the slots on the edges of screen frame and getting the storage box painted. That added edge to the casement still needs some smoothing out too.

See Ya Later People

Tony Lee

OCT 29  Painting Continued:

I'm going to use the hair spray technique on the storage box to give it a worn look so the first step is to paint the box a wood base color and in this case I used MM "Wood".

I'll let this dry over night and tomorrow i'll apply a coat of "Raw Umber" oil as the next step.

Thanks for looking

Tony Lee

OCT 30  Up-Date, step #2 painting the storage box

OK the wood base coat is dry and it's time to brush on a coat of "Raw Umber" oil paint right from the tube.

After letting the oil pigment soak in the base paint for 35 or 40 minutes it's time to take the oil paint back off.  I used a Q-tip for this but left a thin film of oil. By leaving a little oil you can take a stiff brush and duplicate some grain.

I'll put this under a photo lamp for the rest of the day to start the drying process while I work on another build.  The oils need a few days to dry before sealing with "Future" and the hair spray can be applied.

Thanks for dropping by

Tony Lee

Nov 09 Step #3 Painting the stowage box

Time to give the box some character. I let the oil dry for a full week then applied a coat of "Future" floor wax (Klear or Pledge with Future Shine) and let that dry for a couple of days. the floor wax will dry faster than that but just for good measure I gave it an extra day.

Now we're ready to coat the box with Hair Net spray,any kind will do,let dry.  In this case I sprayed a light coat of Tamiya Acrylic panzer gray and let that dry for three hours.

With a short stuff brush dipped in water to soften the gray paint you start scrubbing and once you get through the paint the water will soften the hair spray and the paint will start to lift off easier. I scrub some and dab some to get the worn effect i'm after.  In no time at all you'll have this:

Hope you like the effect

Tony Lee

Jan. 22,12

Let me put this build to rest as completed,sorry to have kept you waiting.

Great GB,i've enjoyed it guys

Tony lee

Marder III Sd.Kfz.139 7.62mm Pak 36(r) Ausf. Gw.38(t) by Panzerwaffe.

This tank destroyer was an adaptation of the obsolete PZ 38(t) and the Soviet 76.2mm F-22 M1936 field gun.  30 rounds could be carried inside the vehicle for the main armament.  There was also a 7.92mm MG 37(t) machine gun mounted in the hull with a compliment of 1200 rounds.  The vehicle had a crew of four: driver, radio/machine gunner, loader and commander.

I will be using the Tamiya kit and try putting on a set of magic tracks.

Rob

Oct 19  Step 1

First opened and layed out all of the sprues to have a look.  All parts are what one would expect from Tamiya, nice, clean and crisp.  There are a few knock-out marks but not bad and easy to fill.  My only complaint would be the rubberband tracks but these will be replaced with magi tracks.

After examination proceeded to dry fitting the hull components, which fit flawlessly, but looking down into the hull, found it to be a bit plain.  Scratch building has started as a result.  The transmission has eaten most of the time with still more to do.

Biggest challenge I believe maybe the seats.  Still working those out in my head.

BEN - Have found your Marder III and have marked it and will be using it as part of my reference to build.  Hope you do not mind?  Can only hope mine comes out even a little bit as good as yours, nice job!

More to come soon.

Rob

Oct 20

Slow, slow work, scratch-building.  Dry fitting, dry fitting and OH YES more dry fitting.  So dry going to need some lube soon!  Here is the progress: for clutch axle assembly could not find anything of correct diameter, in the end unpacked my small homemade lathe and spun one.

Completed stearing / tiller arms, driveshaft / shaft cover.  Also just finished construction of the radio mount but it still needs much finish work.  Needs sanding and shaping after it has fully dried. 

Still have too make radio's and seats, two of each and these will have to be scratch also do not have any laying around.  I hope by sometime tomorrow to have the interior complete and painted and if lucky lower hull assembled.

So until next time

Rob

Oct 23 Interior complete

Interior finally complete!  Quick finished part assembly lay out:

Hull sides

Radio

Seats, transmission /stearing, glacis and drivers armor plate

There were minor additions during consruction of assemblies.  The drivers control handels were repainted too a lighter gray and a brake lever added to the right of the driver.  Put all assemblies togther, they fit perfect.  Here are some pics during consruction.

Wsa not quite honest, there will be more interior scratch when we get too the hull's top.  There will be a personal gear bin, Gas mask brackets and the main guns Ammo bins maybe added.  The front armor plate for the driver / radioman has not been permanently attached.  It still needs the MG and that will have some small scratch items.  Things should start moving a little faster now that the hull is basicly done (on the inside).

Thanks for looking

Oct 31 Step 2, wheels and tracks

Afraid too say not much of an update but it's a start on step 2.  First had too shim both the sprockets and idler wheels in order to accomidate the magic tracks.

Thanks too Tony's advice and some track trading the shims came out just fine and the magic tracks fit great.  Next went into prep of the road wheels.

pretty straight forward here.  I am a BIG fan of magic tracks but I have to admit these PZ 38 tracks have been kicking my butt, with some extra time they have been comeing out ok.  With all the trouble with the track construction and wanting too try some new painting ideas, Decided to stray from my normal routine and finish all wheel and track construction and attach to the hull and paint.  Here are the parts after painting but before a spray of dull coat.

Here is a shot with all parts attached and almost one track complete. 

Wanted too finish the tracks tonight but I just got called back into work so this will have too sit until my next chance. 

Thanks for stopping by

Rob

Nov 3    Wheels and tracks complete

Quick update - wheels and tracks are finished for now, they will receive their final weathering with the completed model.  Here is how they turned out.

Rob

Nov 12

Been a few days before I could get back to the bench so spent most of the night trying to catch up on things.  Got all of the big assemblies preped for tomorrow.  Hull received its drivers armor plate and the MG had the cables hooked to it and an ammo belt added on.  Fenders and brackets were put on.  Extended the ammo containers to the correct length then had to shape and fit them into the hull with the enterior.

Next went to work on the turret or should I say the gun mount.  This went togther very well besides being a bit delicate.  Started running out of places to hold onto it.  The shield fit perfect but did take some time to line everything up properly.  After assembly gave it a primer coat.

Finally started on the fighting compartment.  Decided to start paint around the interior openings before assembling to the hull.  Preped a few other small parts here and there while the other parts were drying.

Going to let everything dry for the night.  Tomorrow hope to finish painting the fighting compartment, get all the smaller pieces on and then attach to the hull.  Then will start painting the gun and the inside of the shield then assemble completly.

Until next time

Rob

Nov 14

Sunday very productive day, Saturday not so much.  Saturday got to the bench nice and early, set up the airbrush and tryed to paint.  NO PAINT came out.  Looking over everything found that the nipple had cracked and down into the shaft to the the jars lid.  It was just sucking air.  You would think living in one of the biggest cities in US there would be a few hobby stores around, NO.  I only have one near me and it is mostly RC and they did not have a new cap for my bottle.  To make a long story short with a lot of determination and after 9 hours of looking and driving I found a hobby store and bought 2 new syphone jars and tops.  After that i only did a little on Saturday.

Sunday, started painting and completing the fighting compartment, gun and gun shield and the smoke box on the rear.  Went ahead and put decals on the turret sides and the smoke box.  Nothing is permanently glued down yet, that will happen tomorrow.  Every thing has it's first wash on the insides and I will let that dry overnight before going any further.  Here are some shots of what was done.

Before permanent attachment of fighting compartment, will work on the intake grill and get some black paint in there before closing it up.

Might highlight some areas on the gun before attaching all togther, not sure what I want to do in there but I feel as if something is missing.  What do all of you think?

The last shots are the outside of turret.  This is what I plan on doing to the whole Marder.  Think it should look pretty good once I put some filters on.

First thing tomorrow will be to spray everything with a shot of dull coat to seal in the what is on now and then just go from there.  Dont have many parts left so it will be mostly painting from here.  Thats it for tonight and as always  Thanks for stopping by.

Rob

Nov 20

Ok, just spent 30+ straight hours at work and just got home this morning giving me a late start on the Marder.  This is a short update.  Applied the base and pre-shade coat to the hull, fighting compartment and all remaining small parts.  Here they are:

While this drys am working on all the tools, spare track and muffler.  Should have the the fighting compartment permanently afixed and the Buff color on by tonight.  Will post again when getting to that point.

Rob

Nov 21

Had some sucess today so far.  Was able to put coat of Buff down.  It took me a little bit longer then expected to get the chipping affect but it is one.

There is still much to do.  Have to do some touch-ups on the fighting compartment put the decals on then glue down, that wont take long.  Attach all of my small pieces and finish painting the spare track and exhaust before it goes on.  Before any of that, still have to finish the tools and put on.  That is were I am going to start from here.  Also still have to build the gun lock and paint.  After that as a whole it can receive a wash treatment.  Finally can then start with some filters.  So should have a few more updates but not many more on this one.  Thanks for stopping.

Rob

Nov 22

Have to admit been kind of milking the progress today but work has been done.  One step closer to the end.  Finished the tools and attached.  With the tools on left side of vehicle had to make brackets for the shovel and put tie down stap around cleaning rods.  Right side went pretty easy.

After tools were applied went ahead and permanently put fighting compartment in place.  Then went to work on rusting the spare track and afixing.

Now that the hull is one piece worked on rusting the exhaust and fixing into place.

That was about it for tonight.  Here is a sneak peak of what it may look like in the near future.

Thanks for looking

Rob

Nov 27

Hope all had a great Thanksgiving!

Well the Marder is finished.  Have not been posting photo's due to the camera being absent (been using the wife's camera she has been gone for the weekend).  Tried using dauthers camera but can not get any good pictures from it so pictures will be posted on Monday with the return of the camera

Went through spare part box to find just a few things to add for intrest and this is what it lead to.

Started a base for the Marder.  It will have a scratch built bunker / shack and gear laying about.  I know this falls in the dio section of the forum but would rather continue here with the Marder Madness (where it all started) if there are no objections.

Thanks for looking and stay tuned for Monday pictures with good camera.

Rob

Nov 28

I know I said no pictures until Monday but here is the basic lay-out of the base.  This is about as close as can get with this camera I'm using without going out of focus.

There still more gear to be added and the tarp put on the shack.  Wish had the figures in order to position them and the gear but they will have to wait

Tomorrow will be the up close pics of the Marder, so until then........

Thanks for looking

Rob

Nov 30

Completed pic's of the Marder.

Any comments good or bad or welcome.  Bad news is my base, when it finished drying, cracked and lifted up on one side.  Hopefully will be able to salvage if not will have to make new base

Rob

Hey guys,

This should be interesting - I do like a good Marder build!

It'll be of some help to me to as my first build of the new year will be Dragon's Marder III Ausf M (Command Version). It's in my stash ready to go!

http://www.missing-lynx.com/reviews/german/dml6472reviewcs_1.html

I have already built Tamiya Marder III that PANZERWAFFE is set to build. That is a great kit and was one of my first 1/35 builds.

Best of luck guys,

ATVB

Ben

PANZERWAFFE

Marder III Sd.Kfz.139 7.62mm Pak 36(r) Ausf. Gw.38(t) by Panzerwaffe.

This tank destroyer was an adaptation of the obsolete PZ 38(t) and the Soviet 76.2mm F-22 M1936 field gun.  30 rounds could be carried inside the vehicle for the main armament.  There was also a 7.92mm MG 37(t) machine gun mounted in the hull with a compliment of 1200 rounds.  The vehicle had a crew of four: driver, radio/machine gunner, loader and commander.

I will be using the Tamiya kit and try putting on a set of magic tracks.

Rob

How ironic. I was contemplating a Marder GB and another idea I was tossing around, but since you guys have started, I'll be lurking. I do have a couple of projects I want to finish before cracking another kit open anyway.

Rob, I hope the magic tracks work, because I have a set and the same kit.

Good luck guys, this should be very enjoyable from a spectators view.

Ben and Tigerman,Thanks so much for the support.

It's not going to be a Group Build in the normal sense of the word but  individuals building one subject each of a Armor Series. We would like for each build to stay in its own blog and not be scattered all over making it difficult for you guys to keep up with. This will work if the forum has no word limit per post but we'll just have to wait and see about that.

There's one down side in doing it the way we are and that is the blog title will not High Light as we add progress reports so you'll have to check the "Marder Madness" thread each day to find them.

Our goal is for everyone to enjoy our efforts with doing something different.

Tony Lee

Following closely on the heels of the Marder III with the rebored Soviet 7.62 cm gun (SdKfz 139) was the Marder III H (SdKfz 138). This mounted the 7.5 cm pak and had the engine to the rear of the vehicle.

The following picture is for discussion purposes only:

A total of 418 of these vehicles entered service.  243 were purpose built and an additionaly 175 were converted from 38(t)s.

I will be using either the DML (#6331) or the Tristar (#35030) kit for this build.

UPDATE #1 21 November 2010 - I'm the last to start, but I'm finally at the starting line!!!

Well, I have finally commited to the kit I will be building for this GB - Tristar #35030.  I got my hands on the kit yesterday and have not had a chance to start throwing any glue around, but I thought I'd share some initial impressions:

First, I LOVE Tristar kits.  They really do cram a LOT of detail in to a small space.  I have a photoetch set (for the DML kit) that I thought of swiping some parts from, but realized that with the level of detail, I probably won't need it.  The only 'regret' that I have is the kit does not come with a metal barrel, but the one piece plastic one looks pretty sharp, so I doubt I'll replace it.

Second: did I mention that I LOVE Tristar kits?  You don't touch the running gear until Step 5 in this baby!!!

I hope to get a start on this tomorrow, so I'll try to get some pics up when I've got some progress to show!

UPDATE #2: 24 NOVEMBER: WITH PICS THIS TIME!!!  (HAPPY WINGNUT?? )

OK, so this is where I am starting from:

The Tristar Marder III H (kit# 35030).  One little 'surprise' I learned about this kit (and confirmed when I looked at the parts) is that the mount for the Pak-40 is from AFV Club .  Everything else is Tristar, but there is one sprue marked 'AFV Club"...

I also hope to add the Warriors figure set displayed.  The 'title' is "Whermacht SP Gun Crew".

OK, so like I said, you don't deal with running gear until Step 5, BUT Step 1 is a bit of a ball buster.  The transmission is a pretty intricate assembly, including at least 18 pieces of PE:

I tried to follow the instructions, but they are too 'busy', so I cut all the PE peices (and some of the plastic) off the fret and laid them out on a piece of tape in 'order' - hence the pink highlights in the above pic:

It took me about ten tries (and a LOT of 'F-Bombs') before I finally said screw it and gave up and walked away from the bench.  Came back today and 'nailed it' on the first try:

The problem is that you've got this stack of PE that is supposed to slip over a single post.  The post is EXACTLY the length of all the PE pieces stacked together, so there is no wiggle room as you are assembling them.  Fiddly, but in the end, it was fun...

So this is where I am at: I've started several of the subassemblies for step 1.  What you see here includes at least 25 pieces of PE, and those assemblies are not done yet!!  The seats themselves each have more than a dozen pieces (of PE and plastic combined).

Hope to get some more bench time after the kids go to bed tonight, but don't cross your fingers for an update for a couple days!

 1 December 2010 UPDATE

Well, I've pretty much knocked out the first three steps of the build process, whcih focuses primarily on the transmission and interior.  I can't claim to have knocked out 145 pieces of PE, ala Wing_nut, but these three steps did include close to 50 pieces, which provided some challenge.  In the pictures, the interior elements are set in place for the purpose of the photo, but they are not glued yet.  I want to have some access as I consider how much of this I am going to paint...

28 December 2010 UPDATE:

Wow, has it really been four weeks since I posted an update... I am SUCH a slacker!!!  Actually, as I mentioned to a few people, I always forget how hectic the end of the semester/holiday season gets.  Between all the holiday obliigations and grade submissions, I tend to get a little bogged down in December.  However, I do have a bit of an update for y'all.  Nothing earth shattering, but at least evidence that progress is being made...

I had to give a lot of thought to how I wanted to paint this thing.  There is a lot of detail on the interior (much of which will be completely hidden, I know) so I wanted to make sure to give that stuff its due regard.  As a result, I spent a bit of time doing some 'fiddly' bits.  I got a coat of Hull Red on the interior floor and the rear engine compartment:

These sections have both since had the interior buff/white mixture applied.

I jumped ahead a couple steps in the instructions and did some work on the hull front plate, since this would need the same treatment.  Also did the engine transmission compartment 'roof'.  As with the interior, since this picture was taken, these have been primed and painted with a buff/white mixture.

In that first photo, you can see the ammo bins mounted on the interior of the radio operators position.  Many of the builds of this kit that I see show a vehicle with no ammo.  I've decided to try to load this one for bear.  The kit includes 32 rounds.  They are of two different types, however when I compare them to images of actual Pak 40 rounds it is difficult to determine which ammunition is portrayed.  As such, I've decided on a bit of artisitic license when it comes to painting them.  I'll do one set as HEAT (those with the projectile already painted) and the others are going to be APCBCHE, and will have a light green projectile...

Since these pics were taken, I've finished up painting most of the interior details - seats, seat cushions, etc.  The transmission and drive shaft have been painted in black metallic and, branching out a little to try a new technique, I've sprinkled some salt on their dampened surfaces.  The transmission will now get coated in green (some darkish, interior greenish...) and the gear box/driveshaft in the interior buff, then I'll chip the salt off for, hopefully, good effect!

Until next time!!!

6 January 2011: UPDATE

OK, in an effort to avoid a beatdown from wbill, I've got my next update up in less than a month!!  Now that is some progress, eh?

Anyways, the interior is done, and buttoned up.  I'll just need to do a couple of washes and some light weathering before I put the cap on it.  I've moved on to the running gear.  I really, REALLY like the Tristar workable bogie assemblies for their 38(t) series.  I'm not sure why, I just do.

Well, how about some pics:

It did take me longer than I had intended to get the interior done, but I had to do a couple things first.  Number one was to install some 'boom sticks':

Next was to wire my hi-fi sound system!

One note on this: I had wired the radio up once, with wire that I think was more to scale.  However, it was almost invisible.  So, I went back and redid it, using wire that is overscale, but which I think will show up better (it'll still be hard to see, but you should at least see it a little).  It was a judgement call, but one I am comfortable with.

So, with those two final housekeeping issues taken care of, it was time to attach the hull side:

Even though it is impossible to see, I added a couple of placards to the fire extinguisher, based on photos from the link wbill posted to a missing-linx conversation a while back.  I did it mostly to see if I could do it satisfactorily, since it will be pretty much invisible from the outside.

One other comment: YES, I painted the fire extinguisher red.  YES, I know that is not 'accurate'.  However, I like the 'splash' of color in the interior, so, once again, I made a judgement call.  I'm cool with it.  Call it artistic license.

17 January 2011 UPDATE

YIKES!!  We fell all the way to page four!!!

Let's get crackin' people!!

Anyways, just a quick update on the Marder III

I've been doing a lot of cleanup and fiddling with the running gear.  The rubber portion of the wheels is a seperate piece, which is nice.  I put those aside and blasted them with some primer.  Did the same to the metal portion as well.  Then attached the rest of the suspension.

Finished up the interior and am preparing to button her up.  Here is a dryfit of the rear engine deck:

One thing I know (and many reviewers seem to comment on) about Tristar kits, is that they are 'precise'.  Sloppy building ain't gonna cut it.  I had thought I was being pretty darn careful on this one, but found out I had slipped up, at least a little.  Apparently, when I installed the transmission, it was not fully 'seated', so when the top plate went on, it bulged up a little, which means when I dry fit the front plate, I got this:

Not catastrophic, and I should be able to fill the gaps OK, but just an opportunity for others to learn from my goof-up.

You have been warned!   Ignore me at your own peril!!

So, yeah, there you have it... a mini-update.

7 February 2011 UPDATE

Well, even though all I feel like I've done for the past couple of weeks is shovel snow, I have actually gotten some work done on the Marder. A lot of what I have done deals with little fiddly-bits: tools mostly. I'm not going to bother showing you painted tools. But, I did get some 'body work' done as well:

I got the front hull plate all take care of - still need to do some gap filling, but at least it is in place. Also got the fenders on. Trying to decide if I'm going to prop the engine hatch open a little or not. With the MG there, it does not have much room to open up, but I still might crack it just a bit...:

Had one of those 'Now why do they do it that way' moments when I got to work building the ammo racks for the back of the driver's compartment. I had intended to do them earlier, but forgot (thank goodness I didn't button it up!). Going to shoot them with some interior color and a wash or two tonight, then install them.

Dryfitted the 'roof' elements. Can't see much of that detail in there... dammit!

 14 March UPDATE: PIC HEAVY

Uh-oh... it has been another month since I did an update with pics... Don't hate my wbill!!!

Anyways, I've been plugging away at the Marder. I've just been too busy to post pics.

So, first, some work on the back deck. I have said before, I am a big fan of the Tristar kits, especially those based on the 38(t) chassis, but there are times I wish they offered both plastic and PE parts for some of the assemblies. The back deck was one. Getting the photoetch mounting arms bent to the right angle, then lined up properly, and then being able to hold them in place to apply some glue was... tricky. I ended up using small strips of tape, which I used to hold the parts on the 'baskets' (is 'deck' more accurate?), which allowed me to glue them to the hull, then I carefully removed the tape and glued the PE at the 'basket',

While I took a mental health break from the PE parts for the rear deck, I began to assemble the gun. Oi... what a mistake that was. I have mentioned elsewhere that the gun for this kit comes from AFV Club. I've had limited experience with AFV Club kits, but I find them to be needlessly frustrating - time attachment point (if there are any attachment points at all), fiddly bits, poorly placed ejector pin marks, etc...

One BIG gripe I have with AFV is the way they tend to use MULTIPLE sprue attachments for small and fragile parts - making removal and clean up difficult, if not impossible. The followin pic shows the gun cradle, a fairly small and flimsy part - held onto the sprue by four attachment points.  Add to that the huge pour stubs on the reverse side - grrrrrr...

Anyways, after getting that all cleaned up, the gun went together fairly well:

And I will say, AFV Club, does have a nice level of detail:

Work moved on to the fighting compartment. There are four clear periscopes with PE mounts (again - kinda wish there was a platic alternative, since I'm not convinced the PE has a really strong bond...)

Also got the fighting compartment finished up. Here it is with the three major components dry-fitted:

 I had to give a lot of thought to how I am going to paint this, so it'll remain in these three pieces as I apply paint - which has already commenced...

 8 June 2011

Here are a couple of 'completed' pics of the Marder III H. I've been meaning to post them for awhile, but it kept getting pushed to the back burner.

And, for a sense of scale, here is my (as yet unpainted) Marder crewmember, standing next to his mount...

I look forward to that one Boyd, even though I have the Dragon kit. I'm curious to see that built up.

Tigerman, I too hope those magic tracks work out.  It will be one of those wait and see for us both.

Ben thanks for stoping by.

Rob

Wow, this looks to be really cool! I really like the way you guys are planning of formatting the WiP posts and hope the forum mechanics allow you to do so. If the original poster edits the title, does that make the thread show up as having something new in it? Maybe everyone can know there is an update that way? I dunno, just thinking out loud....

tigerman

I look forward to that one Boyd, even though I have the Dragon kit. I'm curious to see that built up.

Hey Tigerman,

Which Dragon kit do you have?  6331 or 6420?  They are both listed as Marder III H Smart Kits, so I'm wondering about any differences?

bbrowniii

tigerman:

I look forward to that one Boyd, even though I have the Dragon kit. I'm curious to see that built up.

 

Hey Tigerman,

Which Dragon kit do you have?  6331 or 6420?  They are both listed as Marder III H Smart Kits, so I'm wondering about any differences?

Oops, disregard.  I didn't really read the 'fine print' before I asked...

OK so I'm up...

Marder III Ausf M,

Following photo is used for discussion purposes only.

The 1:1 taken in Russia Jan/Feb 1944

And the kit with 7 AM items.  5 PE sets and the barrel from Voyager and Friul tracks.

Progress report #1

While not much progress... progress none the less.  I think think I was away from armor for that long.  But wow did I forget about part clean up on dragon kits.  Between the sprue nub and all the nodes to reduce ejector pin mark there is a crap load of nipping, trimming and cleaning.  Luckliy... these are a few of my favorite thing (in my best Julie Andrews voice)

Got the running gear done.  I replaced the bolt head in the center of the leaf spring assembly with a scale brass bolt From Scale Hardware.  Can't go too far before the brass gets here since I am not sure what id staying and what is going.

Progress Report #2

I've start on the brass.  What have i gotten myself into?   Yes... each of the bolts are separate pieces.  The fighting compartment armor has about 5 times that amount too.  This set was about 10 short on the little bolts.  I had some leftover bolts form Scale Hardware that the heads were the same size but about 3 times as thick. So I filed those down to finish the plate.  Next come the working hinges

Progress report  #2 1/2

OMG those hinges were tedious.  The engine cover is finished and will remain in the open position.  Time to start on the interior details.

Progress report #3  11/16/10

Getting into the interior. New floor installed... more to cover up some holes made from fixing something I screwed on the suspension than anything else.  The tranny is painted steel and has hair spray the engine will get the same, then some green and chipped a bit.  I reposition the shifters on the tranny so they weren't all so straight.

Progress report  #4 11/20/10

Interior details are finished.  Engine and tranny with added details, painted and weathered.  Since these pics taken the interior has gotten  a couple of coats of elfenbein.  While it may not be 100% accurate, I want to be able to see the interior details.

Progress report #5  11/28/10

I think it was Tony that something to the effect of PE being a time eater.  Well holy crap he wasn't kidding.  The ammo storage too up 2 whole sessions.  the 3 ammo storage assemblies are 145 parts The gun is a kit by itself too.  I couldn't get the top for the front armor to solder neatly to the curved lower section.  The flange was to flimsy so I modified the top of the kit part and zip zip done.

Progress report #6  12/6/10

What the hell was I thinking? 

Boyd... I am not bragging... the numbers are meant to show that this is crazy and I am a seriously disturbed person.   I may need an intervention.

For the one side of upper armor...about  200 parts.  190 of them are bolt heads .8mm across.  The webbing inside was one piece.  I tried several different methods, soldering and gluing,  of getting things all lined up at the same time.  The best way ended up being getting the bolts inserted into a straight run then putting a strip of tape on them to keep them in place so it could be flipped over.  Then I cut the inside webbing into individual pieces that were lined up over the bolt shaft and glued on place.

There was a sense of accomplishment when it was finished no doubt about that.  And it does look pretty cool next tot he kit part.  But talk about wanting to go off screaming into the night...

Progress report #6B-addendum

Just after the other post I had a brain storm (that's of course assuming the presence of brains) and figured a way to do the inner reinforcing in 1 piece.  Get everything bent and tack a few corners with 1 or 2 bolts then glue the strip down with some CA.  If the holes don't line up 100% a quick drill from the outside, place the bolts and then literally paint them with CA. Once the zip kicker hardens it all the excess glue polishes off with a wire wheel in the Dremel.  This only took about 45 minutes.  The schmutz on the upper angled bit is from an attempt to solder the frame but it is not necessary.

I can almost feel some hair growing back

Progress report #7  12/11/10

Upper armor is complete for both sides and ready to install.  Finished the ammo storage under the floor.  Floor built but not in pics... forgot.  Prepared 34 round of AP and HE ammo ( which raised the AM sets to 9 with that addition of 2 set of shells) and the ammo storage for the fighting compartment has been primed... and loaded for the pic.

Progress report #8  12/19/10

Holiday activities has slowed me down too.  But I am making some progress.  I figured the fighting compartment would be easier to paint before completed to get the base coat down at least.  The floor will have one panel open and the tailgate will be down.  Eventually there will be figures loading ammo.  Dragon very conveniently makes a set of guy doing exactly that in winter garb.  It's like they knew.  The 3rd pic is a mock up of some of the sub-assemblies.  I have a bed feeling that get the sides of the fighting compartment lined up and attached is going to a nerve racking.

Since the Friul track came with new sprockets I made this little gizmo with the extra parts.  For when I make the base it is a roller to make the tracks marks in the mud.

Progress report #9  12/27/10 "The Blizzard of 2010"

No work for anyone in the house... state of emergency... and a full day at the bench   WHOOHOO!

Past the mock up stage and actually getting some stuff attached.  Lining up way better than I thought.

Update #10 1/10/11 Final mock-up

Except for just a few more little fiddly bit it is ready for the paint shop.  Here are all the sub-assemblies in place.  It will end up on a base with the figures for the set at the bottom.

Update #11  1/21/11

Was finally able to tear myself away from the TV..new shows starting... to get some painting done.  1st thing done was an all over coat of dark yellow to have an even color surface for the white.  Then came the white of course.  turned out I picked up gloss instead of flat so I had to put a coat of MM flat acrylic for the weathering.

1st layer. I made a filter of Tamiya Buff diluted about 90% and gave the model a spray.  Looked real nice.  A second coat was too much so i damped Q-Tips with alcohol and lightly removed some streaking it as I went  After a few passes I would blow on it to dry the alcohol real fast so it would not damage the paint.  This is seen on the gun shield.  I kind of like the effect.

2nd layer.  I applied MIG pigments and after blending, rolled a Q-Tip over the surface to blot the thinner and "texture" the pigments and remove any obvious brush marks or tide marks.  Texture may not be the right word but it's all I can come up with.  Pigments used are: Russian Earth, European Dust, Rubble Dust and Panzer Grey Fading.

Next layers will be pin washes, dry brushes, stains/rain marks etc.

DONE...

(finally)

The vehicle that is.  Well close enough. Need to put in the radio and a couple more vision blocks but it's done.  I know I broke the "rules" a little in that i did not replicate exactly the vehicle in the 1:1 photo.

It will be put on a base with a couple of guys loading ammo...eventually.

Comments and criticism welcome as always.

Holy &^%$ at the brass!!!

I might be interested in building [another] Marder III M from Tamiya... But I've got a ton of stuff on my plate right now, so I probably couldn't get around to it for a little while. I will also have to locate some indy tracks for it. Perhaps just some Magic Tracks will do. So I guess it depends on your start time... Well this looks like one hell of an interesting collaboration of builds on one subject so I'll keep a close eye on it regardless!

wing_nut

Following photo is used for discussion purposes only.

WHY??? There are limitations to both plastic and PE. Replacing a large portion of the plastic with PE won't result in anything more than abysmally crisper details. Well I suppose it would be interesting to see how a build like that would turn out.

Ryan you've got the idea. We are doing this to show all the examples of the Marder production series and the kits we are using to build one of each. OOB or a full blown AM model like Wing Nuts here.

Sorry but it's not really a Group Build like you would find in the Group Build section of the forum that are open to all and builds of the same kit by two or more people.

We would appreciate you watching and maybe pick up a pointer here and there to help build any Marder that might be in your future plans.

Thanks for checking out the Marder Madness Project

Tony Lee

Thats some crazy brass Marc.Also alot of cool builds going on here.

John

I love the fact that all of the family are included, not just the III H or M, which I do like a lot.

Wow Marc! Can't wait to see how that brass builds up. With that much brass will you solder , or use cyano?

Nate

I picked up a resistance soldering unit.  It passes a current through the joint with 2 electrodes that instantly heats the joint and melts the solder.  The advantage is you can solder very close to a previous joint without melting the other one.  On the antennae below that I made for a Betty bomber the cross pieces are  3/16 inch apart.  With a regular iron the previous jointed would fall apart by the time the last one got hot enough to solder.

Ryan, I have not done a full blown PE build like this and you may be right about the improvement may only be marginal.  It's more of a "can I do it" thing.  When you break down all the segments  of modeling... I get about 75% of my pleasure in the hobby from the actual building 

Good Morning: I posted a step 2 update for the Marder II D(pg #1) if you're interested.

Thanks

Tony Lee

Looking good Tony!

Nate

Thanks Nate btw I just posted the first up-date for the Marder 1 (Hotchkiss) pg #1

Thanks

Tony Lee