ARMOR - M1 Abrams Group Build

QUOTE: Originally posted by hugedom Hey all, newbie here, just started visiting this board recently. Anyway, I have the Trumpeter M1A2 just sitting around so this is THE motivation I needed to get started. Thank you very you guys ! One question, anyone know of a good source of reference material for oper. freedom Abrams ? I am particularly interested in markings, weathering and other misc. details. Thx.

Welcome newbie! Though I do not have the answer to your question, you may wont to try posting this question in the regular forum.

We all hope ours are as good as that!

QUOTE: Originally posted by Dwight Ta-ala OK her she is... This is my 1/35 Dragon M1A2 which I built over the weekend. It is supposed to be my entry to the M1 Abrams Group Build but I got impatient.. I hope you'll still accept it. After all today is MArch 15, 2004 here in Manila. This the 3rd M1 kit that I worked on and I can't say that this will be the last.

DT:
u r the fastest gun in the East, 4 sure !
not only a likely 'fast build' record, but a fine bit of modeling as well !
how do u do it ?
if i was wearing a hat, it would b off 2 u rite now, pare !
i only hope my NATO abrams looks half as good as this one...
congrats !

frosty

QUOTE: Originally posted by M1abramsRules I don't feel like naming a paint scheme........ somebody else do it. Captain Caveman came up with an awesome name for the scheme on jhulks e100. he called it Berlin Ambush.

how about "Purple Flurp", after Jimmy Neutron's fave soda ?
LOL...
looks great, no matter what u want 2 call it !

frosty

Hey it worked!! What I did was use the dremmel to thin it out then I used a candle for heat and presto perfect first try. Thanks again swerdna nowonly if I had that digi cam.

I'll give it a try thanks swerdna

Thundergod,

I would use a Dremmel on low and thin the fender from the inside untill its real thin, 10 thousandths of an inch maybe, hold it up to a light bulb to check for uniform thickness then carefuly dent and bend it. Practice on an old junker first.

Good luck,
Brian.

I had a friend do that with a block of cheese-he "lava-ized" it.

lol thundergod, but I think that the toaster will kill the fender!

Well I am now building 3 M1's just got the trumpiter kit not bad for 8 dollars.If you get that M2 you gotta share how it goes speedy LOL Almost forgot does anyone have any suggestions on how to make my front fender on my M1 looklike it has run intosomething? was thinking about putting it in the toaster oven to heat it up.

I think that unless it is something non-tank, like small afv's or figures*they are really a steal with all those extra weapons included* I will buy dragon-do to the indy tracks and the hassle of complexity. I will have to finish up two or three that I have now-though.

I previously buy only Tamiya and shy away from Dragon kits because of the many negative feedbacks I have heard. But with the price almost 40% (sometimes 50%)cheaper than Tamiya I found it to be the cheaper alternative as I don't have a big budget for the hobby. I just try to make the best of what the box offers. It's often irritating to have all the sanding and filling but you are right it is all in the fun.

Anyway it has been sometime since the last time I built a Tamiya kit and the next Tamiya kit I will be doing would be the 88mm Flak 36 (not even a tank) for the Towed Gun Group Build. If I have the money, I might get the Tamiya M1A2.

Boy, this talk about M1s makes me want to build another one. LOL.

Ya Dwight you are right on the money with that I think i am gonna re do the M1 I built in 1995 which was my first armor build the tamiya #35156 (its in bad shape ) and turn it into a M1A2 so alot of sanding seams and flash and who would of thought at one time I used to much glue ...sorry kinda lol at myself Its amazing how much you learn over the years and how each kit gets better but I will keep ya updated on how she goes. I havent givin up on the dragon kit though gonna do them both at the same time I usually do this anyway sometimes it leads to one stting around longer but hey its all in fun.

Hey all, newbie here, just started visiting this board recently. Anyway, I have the Trumpeter M1A2 just sitting around so this is THE motivation I needed to get started. Thank you very you guys !

One question, anyone know of a good source of reference material for oper. freedom Abrams ? I am particularly interested in markings, weathering and other misc. details. Thx.

Take a look at this Trump Abrams. Very inspiring. Looks like he did ALOT of the stuff found on the "Tweaks" list....http://tanxheaven.com/m1a2mod/m1a2mod.htm

QUOTE: Originally posted by thundergod Hey Dwight I believe I have the same M1 and Im having a fitting problem with just about every part I put together. Did you have this too. Gotta hand it to ya for a rush job you make it look GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!

You are right about the fit problems:

1.) Upper to lower turret (worst in the gun root) (need filling up to remove gap)
2.) Upper to lower hull (need putty to fill gaps in some areas)
3.) Side skirts (need some sanding to fit)
4.) Indy track links (need some sanding to fit)

But the Dragon M1A2 has basically the same problems with the M1A1-HA which I have already built so I am quite familiar with how to handle them.

Anyway nothing that sanding and putty can't handle.

Hey Dwight I believe I have the same M1 and Im having a fitting problem with just about every part I put together. Did you have this too. Gotta hand it to ya for a rush job you make it look GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!

I am gonna spray my M1 on thursday? Maybe? or this weekend? possibly friday!

Zok:

I did mine with a soft edge and I did not use any masking. However, if you wanted to do the hard edge my only experience is when I did my Challenger. I used ordinary masking tape for masking. I have read around here about using "silly putty" but I can't find that here in my area.

When I did my Challenger, I did not mask the whole thing right away. I worked on specific areas until I completed the whole thing. I cut the 1" masking tape with irregular edges and lightly stuck them on the area I am working on.

I just made sure that the paint is not too wet and I shoot it with the airbrush nozzle direct perpendicular to the tank surface so that no paint will go under the tape. I also sprayed lightly each time making sure that the paint is thin and will not flow or make the masking tape edges soggy or wet. Then since I am using acrylic, I can immediately remove the tape as the paint usually dries fast.

Also one thing that I have learned around here is to work my way from the lightest to the darkest colors.

Good luck.

BTW it should be NATO Green and NATO Brown, sorry.

QUOTE: Originally posted by beav Oh yeah, what color are the crew helmets used in the gulf? and do they use that 3 color desert scheme-with tan green and brown for tanker uniforms?

Hey beav,
Kind of a brownish/od green for the tanker covealls and od green or tan for the CVC helmets I have seen both.

Good stuff. I'm still totally undecided. But Dwight's paint job REALLY tempts me. I'm off to the hobby shop tomorrow, so then I'll have to decide. I'm leaning more towards the 3 tone camo

I am going to do it in desert colors-I hate camo-and I don't have an airbrush-so it makes camo kinda hard-gross solid lines look bad.
I can't wait to see it finished too!

Saw the pics beav. The M1 is definitely comming along nicely!! Lucky you that you have a digi cam. Can't wait to see it finished.
What paint scheme are you going with?

Oh yeah, what color are the crew helmets used in the gulf?
and do they use that 3 color desert scheme-with tan green and brown for tanker uniforms?

Hey, unfinished pics of my M1 are in the forum, under something like "My latest adventure into pics" by beav(did I really have to add by beav?)
have a gander when you have the time!

Take ur time with it. Tamiya kits usually have really good fit and quality. Not that I'm not enjoying my trumpeter though. Don't you love a challenge? Makes it looks just that much better when you finish it :)

Hey, MGM, the Tamiya Mine Plow M1A1 has chains and wires-don't worry, you are not alone-I have never even made an antenna in my life-and they want me to put all that stuff on! lol

Wow! i hadn't noticed i'd hit 500!

As far as finding stuff on e-bay it's all in the search criteria. Also i set my self a price limit. If it aint cheap i leave it. In you price limit try to factorin the most you would pay for shipping and subtract it from the most you want to pay. Say you want to spend $20 max then put between $10 and $15 in the search criteria. You can also set it up so that it will e-mail you whenever something you are looking for or are interested in shows up in your price range for up to a year!
Like right now if any resin Hummer wheels show up on e-bay within the next year i'll get an e-mail.

Thanks Dwight. How would you suggest painting hard-edge camo?

MGM: hehe, made it to 500, did ya :)
Happy to hear about the e-bay win. I don't know, i've NEVER been able to find something there that I like, at a reasonable price. Maybe I'm just searching for the wrong thing....

I didn't get any work done on the tank this week so far, but I'm hoping to sometime tomorrow. Gf and sister comming to stay with me for a little while, so that means a lot less free time, but other things to keep me busy ;)

I JUST WON A TRUMPETER M1A2 ON EBAY FOR $6!

I can't wait to get it. It'll have all those new goodies on it like the sites and such!