Tiger S33, Kirowograd forrest - December 1st 1943 - WIP

This may be helpful; a review with photos of 6600 completely built:

http://www.modelarmour.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=897:dragon-tiger-i-initial-production&catid=37:kits&Itemid=60

David

Boarder:

I'm surprised that you're using 6600 for this, it will make things more difficult because it's such an early vehicle.

On the rear wall, you'll need to remove the antenna base stub at top right, and the 4 tiny clips for the toolbox at top left. But worse, the two poles for holding the adapter are at the wrong angle. They should be at 60 degrees:

AS for the toolbox at the lower left, it was missing in the Bundesarchiv photos, so you'd only need to build the frame that held it. I can post diagrams if you need.

The correct turret bin is the standard one, you can get it from a Late Tiger etc.

In the photos, the rear mudguards of S33 are missing, so there's no problem there. The front ones are the standard ones with a hinged side portion; don't know where you'll get them!

The crane holes at the front should have the reinforcing rings.

You're using side panels from a Late kit if I read you correctly? The track cable on the left side will have the wrong layout, so even the clips will need replacing.

S33 didn't have the two small holes above the driver's visor.

S33 had at least the clips for a full set of tools on the hull roof; you won't find them in 6600. That includes the large shovel on the glacis plate.

The holders for the tow cables were different; closer together. There were 6 portions in the cleaning rod, not 5, and they were shorter.

The front edges of the lower hull were different, and the tow shackles were slightly moved.

The S-mine launchers were partly missing or damaged; I can post diagrams of their construction if needed.

There was a shaft stored on the bottom of the rear wall; that's not in 6600.

S33 had the loader's periscope on the turret roof; is that in 6600 at all? It also had track holders on the turret sides, albeit with some damage.

And it must have had the triangle on the rear engine compartment cover, another difference from 6600.

All in all it's  a lot of detail change. I just know that Dragon will release two or three kits to cover this time period.

David

                              What the he** Boarder, you take six months off and then return with no pics!!. Just gotta give a bit of harrassing fire. Hope everything is turning around for you and you can share some time on the build scene.

                                                 Greg"Detailfreak"Rowley

Wow.
That was 6 month of my life I never want back.
But here I am and I am dusting off the old boxes again.

Won't promise any updates on Sunday ever again though :)

What colour would you guys anticipate this vehicle to be?
Bison Decals have a set of stencils and they give you too options;
Gren over yellow or yellow over green.
The colour looks uniform on the BA picture appart from an area on the right hand turret side.

As always
Boarder

Detailfreak, thank you for taking interest in this build - as you might have guessed you are firmly tagged from this end as well :)

According to TIIF the first picture is GD 3'd PR turret # A23.
If I can help you with anything from the Bundesarchive just let me know.
If there is a particular turret # you are interested in www.tiif.de will probably have it.
David Byrden who was kind enough to help me with background information on S33 is one of the moderators of TIIF.
S33 has no exhaust shields, no air cleaners and probably no exhaust flame guards.

I have a late style bin (no cut-outs for the ports) from Dragon left, PM me and I get it over to you.  

Bill, thanks for the kind comment, very much appreciated

Disastermaster, thank you for taking interest in this build - it is a sheer joy to come back to these pages and look for your latest update  
Eyes are recovering fine, thank you for your comments!

The Griffon and GW stuff has arrived, that is 5 mine dispensers and the detailed detail set from GW  which I only wanted for the front fenders.

S33 has the hinged, wide style fenders but I am not sure about the reinforced holder for the sprocket wheel  crane.
Pictures to follow Sunday.

Thank you for stopping by

As always

Boarder 

Thanks for putting up all of this extremely interesting information. I'm bookmarking it for future reference as I have about five different Tiger I's for future builds. I can understand how aggravating eye problems can be..... my left eye is a constant source of aggravation as the long term result of an operation from long ago (that's what the eyepatch on my sign-off is about).

 I hope your vision problems go away permanently so you can further enjoy this hobby for a very long time yet to come.

Good luck!

Got that one through The Military Book Club several years ago.  Its a wonderful source of information and could provide many ideas for dioramas.

Glad you were able to secure a copy.

                          WOW am I off in left field. I thought it was GD,s  Tigers you were interested in my apologies.

                                                                  Greg"Detailfreak"Rowley

                          Here is a recent e-bay purchase that is chock full of pics. Just not alot of real good close-ups of the GD,s tigers.

                        The following pics taken from the book are for discussion purposes only.

 This image clearly shows the exhaust shield/one is missing,and the correct starter plate position.

                           Another good shot of the rear plate of another GD tiger.

                         Unfortunately non show the stowage bin very well. And I cannot make out any s-mine dischargers.

                          Any luck on your end Labour in Vain  I would be very pleased if you would share.

                                                                     Greg"Detailfreak"Rowley

Nice to see you're able to get some work done on this on Boarder. Off to a good start!

                             Labour in vain, I  am following along on this for sure. I to would like to find the correct stowage bin. Voyager makes them both but I am having no luck finding a stateside vendor as of yet. Aber makes some really nice side fenders,not really sure which exhaust guards you need or if the Groosdeutchland tigers used them.. Also wonder if I need to acquire different style front fenders? Oh and the Aber set also supplies the s-mine dischargers. Well I shall check often for your updates.

                                                           Greg"Detailfreak"Rowley

MAJ Mike, Thank you for stopping by .
The pictures are always from open resources like the Bundesarchiv if not stated otherwise.
They are free to be published or referenced in forums like this.
The collection is from www.tiif.de , Tiger Im Focus homepage. Some of these pictures are not to be found in the Bundesarchiv and are Copy Right protected but my understanding is that it is OK to reference the pictures for discussion purpose as long as the source is clearly defined.
 
Tigerman, thank you for stopping by, I hope changing the name of the thread is OK .

Now it is time for a walk in the spring, the sun is out and this is a day that has to be celebrated

As always
Boarder

Hi. You might want to start a separate WIP thread, since the title is misleading.

Looks really good.  Mind if I use your pictures as a guide for my future Tiger I project?

Hi again,

I have made very little progress since I had my eyes fixed but here you go...
The gun mantlet has had the reinforcment seen in the photo added, I could bot find any mantlet in any of the kits that looked right;

Also I have added the velded nuts for the air cleaners and the heat shield;

I am using the side panels from Dragons Zimmerit kit 6383 since they have the nuts for the side skirts already welded on, unfortunately this results in an irritating gap that will need to be filled where the panel meets the back plate;


Time for the roadwheels

As always
Boarder

Time to kick off this build, Das Reich - turret # S33.December 1st 1943. 

I am going to use Dragons # 6600 which means that I need to get hold of the correct stowage bin but I actually do not know what type to go for.
I will cannibalize Dragons Zimmerit kit for the hull sides and CH's Fehrmann Gruppe for the v-shaped engine duct and the side mounted mud guards.
I need a tools box as well but that should be fairly easy to scratch.
# 6600 actually comes with the escape hatch so that should be OK.
Unfortunately it also comes with the 2 part torsion bars, I much prefer the later style which actually can be made workable.
Add ons for this one will be mine launchers from Griffon (5 mine launchers add +110 pieces to this build, I might be to impatient for this) and some well produced MG34 barrels from an unknown maker, LB models distribution.
... + a stowage bin, shape and make to be decided.
Progress so far is limited, I am closing the hull with no detail added.

Could you please advice if the stencils are available?
The sources I have looked at so far have all been out of stock.

As always
Boarder 

The 6600 Initial has arrived.

This kit is still at a 50% discount at a local sprue shop close to you!

I think I can pick bits and pieces of the Fehrmann Gruppe #6335 to make this work.
Need the transfers though especially for the funny guy.
This is a cutout from a thread on TIIF, www.tiif.de , the author is Hartmut von Holdt.
Most of the pictures are from open sources but displayed in this context subject to copyright law.
Das Reich S33 and S13 on the passage through a russian forrest near Kierowgrad on the 1st of December 1943.
The pictures are taken by a propaganda unit, interestingly only every second shot is on the Bundesarchiv.



Thank you for stopping by.

As allways
Boarder

What is the best 1/35 Early Tiger I that is arround?

The one that is priced under 30.00...

Labour In Vain

David,
thank you for digging the C01"Grossdeutschland" reference out for me, very much appreciated.
I spent 8 hours on the Bundesarchiv and finaly signed up for an account.
This is the one:


The text says:
Sowjetunion-Nord, bei Kirowograd.- Zwei Panzer VI "Tiger I" des II. SS-Pz-Korps "Das Reich" bei Fahrt auf einem Weg in verschneitem Wald; PK Fs AOK
North Soviet Union close to Kirowograd, two Panzer VI "Tiger I" from the SS-Pz-Korps "Das Reich" driving through a snowy forrest.

Erik,
I guess that Tamiya's kit is stil my best option?

Thank you for your interest.

As allways
Boarder

Labour In Vain

Thank you all for your interest in this subject.

Rob - Unfortunately the Africa Standard is no longer available.

As allways
Boarder

At least you know which one is the best. Who knows, in a year or so an even better one will appear on the market. Questions like this are often time sensitive. As I stated, 10 years ago, Tamiya's Tiger set a new standard. Ten years from now it could be XYZ company's kit. Today's answer is Dragon's.

I guarantee that in 6 years someone new to this forum will resurrect this thread and tell us we're all wrong and that the new Tiger he just bought is the best. And he'll be right, in 6 years.

ACESES5

I've got the Dragon Tiger 1 6406 in my stash  3 in 1 kit it will do Tiger 1 Tiger 1 late command and Tiger1 final .     ACESES5                         On bench academy M3 Lee 1/35          

I think the author is looking for an EARLY as stated in the title.

Btw, I have that Tiger kit too. I wish it came with magic tracks.

I've got the Dragon Tiger 1 6406 in my stash  3 in 1 kit it will do Tiger 1 Tiger 1 late command and Tiger1 final .     ACESES5                         On bench academy M3 Lee 1/35          

Boarder:

S33 probably had the V-shaped duct on the engine hatch, though the air claners and pipes were removed.

It certainly had the welded mounts for the exhaust shields.

Almost every Tiger that we can see in the unit had the frontal spare tracks, so I'd bet on them.

Some of the S-mine launchers are missing.

David

Thank you all for your interest in this subject.

ERIC Von - I guess you are thinking about the newly released 6600, I am actually waiting for 2 to arrive from Spruebrothers January sale.

Rob - Unfortunately the Africa Standard is no longer available.

Spacepacker - I have the Academy Mid or what is left of it in the wardrobe. Ruined it with badly applied Zimmerit but will take your inspiration and pick it out again :) #122 of sPzAbt.509.

Ilustrated by Peter Sarson

Marc - sorry m8 you are confusing me and Tigerman to apparently.

David - thank you for your important input, I would be very interested in any details on S33.
Adding to your comments it looks like:
No air cleaners but mounting brackets.
No heat shields and no mounting brackets.
Maybach HL210
Escape hatch
Standard bin
Not sure about spare tracks on the front hull, it looks as if S13 has them. 
No clue about the colour scheme and very curioues about the "Chinese Sign".

As allways
Boarder

Mansteins revenge

The early release of the early Tiger, not the initial release of the initial Tiger...

Sorry to sound stupid, but have they released an Early yet? I'm thinking an Initial and a Smart Initial. Kit #6252 was the first release and the Smart kit number is #6600.

The early release of the early Tiger, not the initial release of the initial Tiger...

Manstein's revenge

Dragon's initial Tiger...

The initial, initial Tiger or the initial release of the new smart kit of the initial Tiger?

The Tiger in your photo is S33 of Das Reich. It's the second Tiger that they fielded with that number.

Once again, you can start with the Tamiya kit 35216, or wait until Dragon produce a better one; might be tomorrow, might be in five years.

The known photos are not good enough to fully characterise the tank. It had the loader's periscope and spare track holders on the turret; it had the old welded frames for the rear mudlfaps; but I don't know if it had the new sprocket hub, or supports on the engine hatch.

David

Hi, I built the Academy "Tiger Early" builds up quite easy with "Das Reich" markings.

The turret shape is not quite right and you might want to make a few mod's but not too much.

I don't know if it is as good as the Tamiya kit.

Cheers....Kenny