heres a couple of pics to kinda show where im at now..

ok just a quick update...I HATE ACADEMY DECALS...ok phew that felt good the yellow theater band was just a nightmare so i pulled off what i could with tape and masked it. the yellow band wasnt too bad but boy getting the black "cheat line" was tough.i thought about finding solid black decal, but i figured with the compound curves it would be better to just paint instead. so here i am getting ready to throw black all over my NMF!!

Hey Stik;

Will the LCVP and the T-34/85 be making it to the front page soon?

Thanks! 

Calling it done on these three...  The Fujimi M-30 and M-7 and the Matchbox M-7.  Take a look at the canvas covers and the hoops that were added to the Fujimi kits,   I also added a camo net and some extra stowage to the Matchbox kit.  The matchbox kit came with three figures, but the commander didn't look right so I added the left over Hasegawa commander from my spares box.  I really enjoyed this build!  The kits themselves wer oob, but the extras wer nearly all hand made; the exceptions wer the crates and bedrolls on the Matchbox/Revell-Germany M-7.  The Fujimi kits will be used later as part of a convoy across a river on one of my bridges.  The Matchbox/Rev-Ger. kit is set up in firing position.

Hope you folks like these!

Greg , with my armour builds I took a little artistic licence with the OD colour finish .

I airbrush with Gunze and Tamiya Acrylics , unfortunatly a lot of the LHS are no longer stocking Gunze , so it's getting more difficult to come by these days . Anyway for my Hobbyboss M4A3E8 Sherman and M19 Tank Transporter , I was mixing Gunze 3 parts H-330 Dark Green and 1 part H-304 Olive Drab . I use the same mix on the other Armour builds except for the LVT-3 , which I sprayed Gunze H-340 Field Green . (Marine Green)

The two T-34/85 tanks I'm currently working on , I have mixed Tamiya Acrylic 3 parts XF-58 Olive Green and 1 part XF-2 white .

Gunze have three Olive Drab colours H-52 , H-78 and H-304 ; but to me those three colours tend to look more earthy brown and Tamiya's XF-62 Olive Drab is quite dark olive . So I messed around with a few different paint mixes and settled on the ones I mentioned earlier .

I have two Trumpeter M26 Pershings and a Dragon M4A3 105mm as well as another 2.5 Ton truck which I was thinking of finishing in Gunze H-340 Field green for the USMC and sitting them inside the HUGE LCT-6 Landing Craft .

BTW , nice work on the M30 and M7's Andy

I really like the M30 and the canvas covers , great stuff !

                         John .

USA vehicles in Korea will be Olive Drab. The same shade as you saw in late WWII. I am partial to Testors MM and Polly Scale Olive Drab 319 for this shade. But use wahtever your preferred shade of OD makes you happy. Some camoflage pattern schemes were seen later on as well. White in winter and earth brown in summer. From what I have read USMC vehicles in Korea were orignally were also OD, but in 1951 or so Marine Corps Green made its appearance. This is a darker Bronze Green. Tetors MM has the shade in enamel and acrylic.

Happy Birthday John!  I hope you have a good one!

Good looking armor Draken.  I'm glad to hear good things about the truck.  I haven't had the best luck with Academy kits.  All the extra accessories will come in handy too.  I am thinking about getting the 3 vehicle set too, as it comes with a jeep and more accessories.  I'm sure I can find a use for a ketten and a kubelwagen at some point.

It was suggested to me, to remove the Sabre article.  If anybody wants it, just pm me with where you want it emailed to.

My Sherman came in today.  It turns out that I think it is the same one John built earlier.  Trumpeter has the paint down as Olive Drab.  Is that the correct color?  Maybe it is just me, but it seems like the color is lighter in the Squadron book.  For the LVT too.  Tank guys, what color should USA and USMC vehicles be in Korea?  Any info will be greatly appreciated.

Happy b-day John!

Cheers gang,

Greg

So, Okay...  NOW I'm going to bed!

Everything but decals on two of three vehicles.  Maybe I'll work on a plane tomorrow? 

The M-30 is at a stopping point.  I'm going to work on the other two tomorrow evening.  I'm adding canvas, hoops, and camo netting where applicable.  Here's some pics of where I am at the end-o-da-day today.  I've also got the camo cut for the Matchbox/Rev-Ger kit as well. 

And, the entire stable, at this point!

BTW, these are in the correct order, the two Fujimi kits and then the Revell kit.  I've included two of the three figures that I'm going to be putting in the Revell kit when it's done.  I'll be draping Camo netting over top, INCLUDING the squiggles in it, as soon as I buy some needles and black thread...

Working on my "Three-In-One" M-30, M-7 build.  Heya Helo!  Get the Fujimi M-7, it's actually got the higher pulpit!  Things I've noticed whilst building these three, the Matchbox/Rev-Ger. kit has incredibly horrible fit.  I can't BELIEVE how horrible.  I've built some bad Matchbox kits before, but this one is BAAAAAAAAAD!  The positives are that the tracks are wonderful and the gun can be positioned with a change in azimuth.  Also, the back end is far more correct than the Fujimi kit.  If I were going to do it again, I'd kitbash them  The Fujimi has the larger ammo storage and higher pulpit of the KW vehicles and the later bogeys with the offset return rollers.  The Matchbox has the original M-3 Early WWII bogies with the center return rollers.  It's wonderful to have the engines, trans, driver, and interior details in the Fujimi kits, but so much of it is entirely enclosed that it's a loss anyway.  The Fujimi kit also has a much better detailed gun versus the Matchbox/Revell.  The biggest drawbacks to the Fujimi kits are the weird track lengths, huge holes in the lower hull, incorrect diameter road wheels, and the fact that the upper hull DOES NOT FIT TO THE BOTTOM HULL!  Frustrating as heck!  It's almost like the thickness of the tracks wasn't even a concept in the design of the kits.

So, here's where I am at the moment.  I accidently put the Matchbox/Rev-Ger. kit in the center for this picture.  Notice the 'canvas' on the MG for the M-30 and the barrel end of the M-7!

I would be most gratefull if you could scan me a copy of the F-86A conversion as well Greg .

It's my birthday today , 48 .....

                           John .

Gregbbear

A little while back, somebody was talking about building an F-86A.  I remember Draken got a Matchbox, but wasn't somebody talking about doing a conversion?  If so, I ran across an article in the July 2000 FSM on converting a Fujimi 1/72 -F to an -A.  If anybody needs the info, I can scan it for you.

By the way, John was right.  The Armor in Korea book is great!  I'm looking forward to when my first tank comes in!  The old Amtracker in me might have to build an LVT first.  I ordered the Academy 2 & 1/2 ton truck, so I will have the .30 cals to convert the Dragon LVT.  You guys are bad influences!

Hey Gregbear, can you post it for me?  I'd really appreciate it!  I'm going to see about getting that Armour in Korea book when I go home, too.  Sounds like a seriously awesome tome.  You're going to love that Academy deuce and a half; I've done one already and did some serious detailing to it.

http://sites.google.com/site/modelingthekoreanwarin172scale/home/ground-vehicles-of-the-korean-war/allied-armour/us-support-vehicles-includes-towed-artillery/academy-cckw-353-gmc-truck

Is where I've got a build of it, including detail pics of the engine and what I did there.  Check out the rest of the site while you're at it.  You're going to love that kit, and not just for the extras!

In other news, I've snagged a couple a/c books (MiG-15 and F-84) and also bought the Dragon LVT(A)-1 and the LVT(A)-4.  It'll be nice to see inside those boxes!  I've also bid on a couple of kits on eBay, as well.  I can't wait to get home and see some of the stuff waiting for me.

Still working on the M-7's and the M-30.  Weirdly enough, the Nitto M-7 (same kit was re-issued by Fujimi later) has vinyl tracks that are too short by at least half an inch.  While the Fujimi M-30 has tracks that are too long by 1/4"...  I'm gonna go nuts if I think about this too long.

A little while back, somebody was talking about building an F-86A.  I remember Draken got a Matchbox, but wasn't somebody talking about doing a conversion?  If so, I ran across an article in the July 2000 FSM on converting a Fujimi 1/72 -F to an -A.  If anybody needs the info, I can scan it for you.

By the way, John was right.  The Armor in Korea book is great!  I'm looking forward to when my first tank comes in!  The old Amtracker in me might have to build an LVT first.  I ordered the Academy 2 & 1/2 ton truck, so I will have the .30 cals to convert the Dragon LVT.  You guys are bad influences!

Cheers,

Greg

Pepper: Yay!! I've had one of those in my stash for over a decade now, looking forward to seeing how your kit comes together. Please let us know of any problems you might encounter here.

Andy (draken),  sorry about the job.  Good luck, I hope it works out.  Real nice on the T-34 and priest, though.  My LHS has a  RoG 72nd scale T-34/85 for only $12.50.  I wonder how it compares out to the UM?

Pepper, F-80, I like it!  There are so many cool paint schemes for it too!  It is such a good looking plane, too.

John, nice T-34 production line!

Cheers,

Greg

Hi All:

Had to make a quickie trip to Arkansas and just returned home late last night ...

Here's the new airplane I'm starting this morning for the GB ...

Monogram - 1/48 F-80C Shooting Star with Aeromaster decals ...

pepper

Stoping point tonight on the Fujimi M-7.  Enjoy! 

Hah! Didn't even think about it. There's an old joke about an American co-ed that goes on an Aussie game show and lists one of her interests as 'rooting for the home team'.

One of the contestests replied 'the whole bloody team!?!'

Anyway- we're CHEERING for you.

Gamera

Draken Andy: Ouch! Sorry to hear that, best of luck with things- we're rooting for you.

Heh, heh, heh...  Hey Gamera, I bet Helo is giggling his butt off at that comment.  The word 'root' is a rather coitally oriented verb down under.  If you're all really 'rooting' for me, that's kind of, well...  awkward, to say the least. 

Thanks for the, even if unintentional, laugh.  I need it today.

Draken Andy: Ouch! Sorry to hear that, best of luck with things- we're rooting for you.

Helo John: Cool stuff, don't think I've ever seen a recovery T34.

Andy , I'm sorry to hear about your job being cancelled ; Especially at the 11th hour . To say you would have been stunned is probably putting it mildly .

I'll keep positive thoughts for you and your continued employment in Korea .

As for me , I found a couple of hours this afternoon to get some airbrushing done . Despite it's been raining quite heavy these past 24 hours , spraying flat paints seems to go okay .

Anyway here's some WIP pic's of my continue Armour builds  ....

Airfix 1/76 Churchill Bridge Layer ;

Some assembly done ;

I started to notice some gaps with the track top cover piece not fitting very well and also both side wheel assembly pieces didn't fit nicely up against the main tank body . I discovered that the front and rear wheel sprokets didn't line up inside the track cover piece and a small piece that covers the two lower front windows on the hull is slightly to wide , so both these issue's seem to prevent everything from fitting snuggly .

So I removed both wheel/track assembly side pieces from the hull and with some fine point tweezers pushed the front and rear wheel sprokets into position and re-glued the track covers back in place .

I had to do the same on two other Airfix Churchill MK VII builds at the same time ;

Everything is airbrushed and ready for final assembly and hopfully there shouldn't be any nasty gaps between the hull's and the track sides .

This morning I saw Andy's awesome UM Model T-34 which only took him 7 hours to complete , That's pretty good going Andy , talk about being in the zone . In fact you inspired me to break out my two UM Model T-34 and T-34 Recovery Tractor for a look over and some preliminary  airbrushing ;

1/72 UM T-34...

1/72 UM T-34 Recovery Tractor...

I airbrushed some Tamiya Olive Green (3 parts XF-58 + 1 part XF-2) to the road wheels and then some metalic gray to the tracks ...

After dinner I fitted the rubber tyre's to the wheels and glued the bottom hull pieces in place along with the wheel lugs and then starting glueing some parts on the upper hull and turret ;

I'm quite suprised how well everything is fitting together , however it will take me a lot longer than 7 hours to complete , so I'm sure Andy's build record time is safe for the time being .

I got a lot more done this afternoon and evening than I thought I would , perhaps for a little while I was in the "draken zone"

Hopefully it will stop raining by the weekend and I can airbrush some clear gloss on a few other builds sitting in the spraybooth as well as some of the Armour builds that are 90% complete .

All the best Andy and thank's for looking everyone .

                         John .

Talk about a reversal of fortune! 

Got a phone call four hours ago from y area coordinator, she wanted to call me first and let me know that all funding for my program has been denied for the rest of the year.  Basically, as of Sept. 17 I'm out of a job here in Korea.  The resume has been dusted off, inquiries are being made, networks are being tapped.  A good friend of mine and fellow modeler was told he was out of a job and had one the next day.  We'll see what happens.

Until that time, I'm still building kits.  I've got a friend up the road with an apartment that's too big and is willing to store stuff for me.  I'm going home for a three week vacation (Non-refundable tix!) in a week and a half, and the program guarantees me a plane trip home.  So, I'd be able to put stuff in storage and I'd have four pieces of luggage to take home at different times.  Still, it's heartbreaking, the phone call came an hour before I had an appointment to sign my contract.  Lots of teachers are getting laid off, not just me, but the timing is just so bad for me at the moment.

Either way, if I have a job in September or not, I'm still going to continue the build, my collection will simply reside on two continents!

Chin up, stiff upper lip, wot?

Thanks for the info Stik!

I'm far more into wings than tracks, I try to do as much research as I can, but sometimes in 1/72(6) you just take what you can get.  The work is progressing nicely, the Matchbox/Rev-Ger kit is falling together quite well.  A few gaps here and there that need filled, but nothing drastic.  The Fujimi kits are also going together very nicely.  I've got to figure out how the M-30 was set up with tarps or else put it in the deployed position with the Matchbox M-7.  Ya gotta admit, the Fujimi kits will look cool crossing one of my pontoon bridges!  Tarps on them, following some trucks and such.

I'm actually remembering to take pictures of stuff nowadays while I'm still in the middle of the build.  I don't usually remember in time because I get so engrossed in the build.  When I can figure out my website a bit better it's going to look pretty cool with all of the WIP photos.

Type to y'all later! 

The bolted 3 piece transmission cover and M3 style bogies (centered return roller) are initial production WWII. Those would have been removed during overhaul between WWII and Korea. Korean War M7s woulsd match late WWII ones with the M4 style bogies (trailing arm return rollers) and later single piece cast transmission covers. Another modification that was added in Korea was raising of the gun mount to allow higher elevations of fire for the hilly Korean terrain.

Yo, Stik, I prefer your version of real T-34's as well. 

In the mean time, between work, wife, taekwando, and avoiding decals on the Commando, I've started some more armour.  I'm doing three at one shot:  Fujimi M-30 Ammo Carrier, Fujimi M-7 Priest, and Matchbox/Revell Germany M-7 Priest.  I'm going to have the Fujimi units in traveling configuration and the Matchbox in deployed/firing with a few figures.  So far I'm pretty happy with them.  Although I'm not sure which one is wrong:  The Matchbox has the bolted trans cover and return rollers centered above the bogies while the Fujimi M-7 has the cast trans cover and offset return rollers.  Can anyone give me a quick shout out on that one?  Just curious, I'm building them oob except for added detail (no scratchbuilding or corrective surgery). 

Thanks!

John: Ditto on best wishes for your father's swift recovery.

Pepper: I hope your brother is feeling better as well. Not sure about your airbrush issue. I guess at worst you can drill a small hole in the adapter and bleed off some of the excess pressure while airbrushing.

Draken: Again two more great models- when do you sleep?

I did pull out my T34 over the weekend and look the thing over. It's the AFV Club kit with the full interior including the engine. And it's the right version for the N Korean vehicles. I just need to find some good detail photos of what one looks like shot up. Or maybe I'll just build it as an abandoned vehicle. I'm not sure yet but I haven't intended to start the thing for some time so I'm not too worried about it.

I prefer when NKPA T-34s look like this...

But yours' will do Draken (even if it is not 1/35) Those quick 1/72 builds never cease to amaze me...

We now have the first T-34/85 of the group build!  Unfortunately (for some) it's in 1/72 scale instead of 1/35th.  I present to you now, the UM 1/72 scale T-34/85:

I'm incredibly happy with the above image, it looks incredibly realistic to me!  Well, for its scale, at least. 

So, anyway, there ya go.  We now have our FIRST T-34 of the group build and it's NOT in 1/35th scale.  BTW, this thing was completed in only two evenings.  Total time spent, under 7 hours.  all insignia is hand painted, including Hanguel lettering.

So neener neener! 

Yo, Gregbear!

I can't for the life of me find the link I used to determine that I couldn't 'rebuild' the Il-2 into a -10...  I did find THIS link, though:

http://www.militaryfactory.com/aircraft/detail.asp?aircraft_id=547

About the 5th paragraph it mentions that the wings and control surfaces were larger, and I know from photos that the upper surface of the engine area was different.  The -2 had an air scoop for the oil cooler which was moved to the bottom of the a/c in the -10

Hope that this helps! 

John, I wish your Dad a speedy recovery.  Take care buddy.

I didn't get the Il-10 yet.  There is one rather reasonably priced on evilbay, but I wanted to get an idea of what I would be getting myself into.  How big of a difference is it between an Il-2 and an Il-10?  Eduard makes an -2, so that would mean aftermarket to make up for difficiencies.....

Cheers,

Greg