Regarding the canvas cover between the hood and cab, Tamiya chose to mold what looks like sheet metal with rivets.

https://flic.kr/p/2cZ3858][/url]Flak-13 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

https://flic.kr/p/2cZ38aD][/url]Flak-14 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

Comparing the kit to the box art, it is pretty easy to see what I'm talking about.

So anyway, there are lots of ejector pin marks and mysterious, deeper, smaller holes to fill inside the cab before it's glued together.  Some fettling and sanding of the floor board was necessary to get the cab sides to fit.  I really don't remember having any of these problems 40 years ago.

Closer inspection of the front grille reveals "Krauss-Maffei" lettering - something not seen in these stupid, greedy, trade-marky, license-obsessed days.

https://flic.kr/p/2eifvZU][/url]Flak-15 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

But mum's the word, okay?  We don't want to set off the clittering hoofed lawyers clutching C&Ds to Tamiya headquarters.  Mum...  Mum...

I finally set aside a little time to work on something.  With the cat supervising from the bed, I started to fit the cab together.  I don't remember it not fitting so well when I was in 7th grade!  But yeah, the various panels need some careful test fitting to make sure everything lines up.  I also noticed the depiction of the canvas strip between the hood and cab is not right, but that is what 40 years of modeling experience is supposed to be used for!  Tamiya's box art is always a good reference for corrections and detailing, and this kit is no exception.  Herr Kommandant is wondering where the heck his arms are.  Can't scan the sky for jabos!

https://flic.kr/p/23KJSjD][/url]Flak-12 by N.T. Izumi, on Flickr

Gamera

 

Bobby: Ack, hang in there! 

 

Thank you my friend.  And we will.  We are overcomers! 

I would like to join this Group Build.  It has been too long since I built any Armor.  I will enter with the Tamiya 1/35 Pzkf IV Ausf J Sd.Kfz.161/2

PF: Looks good to me, and cool looking A7V. They'll make a great pair. And congrads on finishing before my kit even gets here! 

Bobby: Ack, hang in there! 

Hey everyone!  I haven't forgotten abou the GB......just been rougharound here with the shutdown.

Great work!  Very inspiring.  I'm still deciding if I'm going to try my hand at some Zimmerit, but not sure I have what it takes to do it material wise...and buying some really cool stuff isn't an option right now, but maybe soon! 

Great builds everyone!

Sailing_Dutchman

Nice work there PF, I have added the Mk. IV to the front page. Congratulations on being the first to finish, you are an inspiration to us all.

Hi,

Cool, thanks.  It was really a reasonably easy build though (except for maybe the ditching rails).  Nothing like some of the other builds going on here.  I can't wait to see how they turn out.

PF

waynec - Sorry that I forgot to add you . The roster has now been duly updated. Good luck on your build.

Hi,

I enjoyed experimenting around on the last build so much that I went ahead and bought an Emhar German A7V to go with it.  Its an even simpler kit than the Mk IV tank, but since it doesn't have any locator pins either, and ost the parts have beveled edges for joints, it does require a little bit of clean up and care when assembling. 

Overall I got most of it done in one evening, except for the tracks/suspension, which I just want to clean up a bit before glueing them in place.  They are actually  very simple with everything molded as two pieces (one for the left side of the tank and the other for the right side).  The only real problem that I experienced in the build was for the main gun mount, which didn't seem to want to sit right.  So I trimmed it a bit, before glueing it in place.

Hopefully I will get it primed tomorrow so that I can paint it shortly.

It looks kind of interesting in comparison to the ex-British Mark IV model that I previously built, as shown below.  In general the A7V is just a little shorter, with the main body looking to be just a bit wider (though narrower than the overall width of the Mark IV tank, with its sponsons).  However, it is a fair bit taller than the ex-British tank.  

In looking at the two vehicles, it is hard enough to figure out how 8 people fit into the Mark IV tank, let alone 18-23 in the A7V tank.  You can also kind of see that each nation appears to have had different ideas in mind in their early tank designs.

As I understand it, for the Mark IV, the tracks that go all around the tank, so that they are not covered by anything, and are the furthest extents of the vehicle foward and aft, plus the overall rhomboid shape of the tank all were driven by a desire to be able to cross "no man's land" between the opposing sides, destroy obstacles and barb wire, and cross the enemies trench lines.

On the other hand, the relatively high height of the German vehicle, combined with its body which overhangs the tracks, seem to potentially limit operating in very rough terrain, and give the whole vehicle more a look of being a "mobile fortress" or "mobile pillbox".

PF

Now I know why when I do a model and all the hatches and doors are closed I don't particularly care if there is an interior or not. Well most of my interior will not be seen, but I figured it would give me added modelling experience. So I thought I'd post these pics of the interior; some built, some not; then they were primed with ModelMaster White Primer. I gave it a light priming and then airbrushed with Tamiya Buff and handpainted with ModelMaster Steel and Tamiya Gun Metal. I decided against the dark red metal primer paint and I thought the Buff color would be a little lighter. Oh well.

Hi,

Since I've never down a Group Build before, I guess I should ask, am I allowedd to downlaod one of the group build logos and add it to my signature now?

PS.  I noticed that my tank still looked a bit glossy this evening so I gave it a coat of Tamiya XF-86 "Flat Clear" which really helped knock the shine down a bit.  Below is one last photo, after adding the flat clear coat, and with a penny in fornt for scale, and the box art in back for reference.  Overall I didn't try to model my camoflage directly on the tank shown on the box (which was for a captured tank that the Germans nicknamed "Hanni"), but it is kind of loosely based on another similar captured tank (that was nicknamed "Annchen").  As such the colors are similar but the camoflage patch locations and shapes differ a bit from what was shown on the box art 

[Please click for a closer view]

Nice work PF. Those washes and the Micro-flat spray really downplayed the colors and the Iron Cross insignias.

we need some warwheels here.

WW I tanks were the first, so naturally they were cumbersome to operate and were mechanically unreliable.  Throw in poorly developed tactics with bad designs like the German A7V or French St Chamond, and it’s no wonder they had so many problems.

The A7V had 16-18 men because it had 6 machine gun positions in addition to the main gun.  It must have been awful inside, since there were TWO exposed engines!  The commander and driver sat directly above them, so I can imagine the heat and fumes were quite lovely.

Compare that to modern AFVs with their air conditioning, ergonomics, safety systems, and comfy ride (well, as opposed to having NO shock absorbers like the rhomboid tanks).  Of course today’s tankers still have to worry about being a bullet magnet on the battlefield, plus there’s more stuff to manage, like all that sophisticated electronic equipment.

Real G

PFJN,

That turned out great!

Most people have not a clue how hard it was to operate a WW I tank.  There was a mock-up of a Mk.IV interior at the Tank Museum in Bovington, where visitors were invited to take up stations and try to start the simulated engine.  Detailed instructions were given, but it noted that THREE people were needed to get it running.  Since I was with only one friend, we were unable to get the engine turned over, despite mad efforts to work all the controls!  Two guys were needed just to work the transmission, and with no intercom in a hot, lurching metal box with an exposed engine in the middle, one can imagine how hard it was to effectively communicate and coordinate actions.

Thanks Gamera, RealG and Rambo.  That sounds like an interesting experience at the museum.  The more I have read abou these early types of armor the more I realize that they were at the same time both very advanced for their time while also being fairly primitive by modern standards.  As I understand it, the biggest advantage of the Mark V over the Mark IV was that its new gearbox meant that it actually only took 1 person to stear the tank, instead of 3 like you noted for the Mark IV.  I have also read that the German A7V tank, which was actually just a bit shorter than the Mark IV and Mark V, but taller, actually had a crew of 18-22 as compared to the 8 men on the British tanks .  I can't imagine how they crammed them all in.

PS.  On a similar note about engines, at the college I went to they had an old submarine diesel generator in the basement for emergency power, and part of our freshman indoctrination was taking us down there to show us how to assist in starting it up.  It was amazing how long it took several different students had to try to pump up the starting air reservoir.

PF: Yeah, she looks great! Enough detail that I'd think she were 1/35th if you hadn't said she was 1/72nd. Good show!!! 

Real G: When I first saw two of the eight man crew listed as 'mechanics' as a kid my first thought was 'did they break down so much they had to carry two mechanics along?' I think they were the guys that worked the transmission actually. 

PFJN,

That turned out great!

Most people have not a clue how hard it was to operate a WW I tank.  There was a mock-up of a Mk.IV interior at the Tank Museum in Bovington, where visitors were invited to take up stations and try to start the simulated engine.  Detailed instructions were given, but it noted that THREE people were needed to get it running.  Since I was with only one friend, we were unable to get the engine turned over, despite mad efforts to work all the controls!  Two guys were needed just to work the transmission, and with no intercom in a hot, lurching metal box with an exposed engine in the middle, one can imagine how hard it was to effectively communicate and coordinate actions.

Hi,

I couldn't find my flat clear spray paint today, but I did get a chance to brush on some Micro-Flat instead.  So I think I am going to call this build pretty muchly done.  It was a really fascinating learning experience, not just in playing around with different paints and such, but also in learning a bit more about WWI and early armored land vehicles.

Here are two close ups that I tkk with my digital camera, instead of my cell phone.  I guess I should have put something in frame to give the images a sense of scale because looking at them now it doesn't really convey how small the kit is at 1/72 scale (the overall length is only about 4.75in/121mm). 

[you can click the images for a close up view]

PF: Looks good! I'd agree that everything worked out really well.

I'm glad that YOU are happy with how your kit came out. I like using pin washes too, but sometimes you have to do a complete model wash to downplay colors that stand out too much. I use a darkened base paint wash. The good thing I like about those kind of washes is that when done right they can double as pin washes for they get into those nooks, crannies and slots.

Gamera

PF: I'd try to give you some advice but I'm probably the worst guy to ask about washes. I will tell you though I generally use 'pin' washes these days where you add a little bit around details with a small brush instead of laying it over the whole model.

She looks good though, seems like in the end it worked out for you. 

...

Cool,

Thanks for the suggestions.  This build has really been a lot of experiementation for me so far

PF

PS.  Other than repainting the gun barrels and adding a top coat of flat clear paint, I think I am almost down with my first ever completed group build (I have another "Race to Space" entry that is close to complete too )

I'm kind of happy how the various washes and stuff helped mute out the colors that I used and kind of softened the edges of the different color patches.

PF: I'd try to give you some advice but I'm probably the worst guy to ask about washes. I will tell you though I generally use 'pin' washes these days where you add a little bit around details with a small brush instead of laying it over the whole model.

She looks good though, seems like in the end it worked out for you. 

Nick: Ohhhhhh, looks cool! 

I have been watching this GB with interest I would like to enter a tamiya king tiger in 1/35th scale.

friulmodel tracks.

still have a few GB's to start and finish. I have a year lol ...

Thats come on nicely PF.

She's looking good.

Hi,

I've started adding the decals, but am still in the process of trying to get them to lay flat with microsol.

PF

Hi,

I recently picked up some Testors washes at a local craft store and decided to give them a try on my tank build.  This build (and another that I am currently working on for the Race Into Space group build are my first forays into messing around with washes so it has been a bit of a learning experience.  In particular, I first tried using a dark gray wash, which went on fairly thinly and looked pretty good, but decided to try a darker black wash over it. 

I suspect that my forst wash may not have been mixed well enough, because my black wash went on very darkly, which I let set for a short period before lightly wiping it off.  In addition, afterwards I grabbed a wrong bottle and inadvertantly gave e verything a light coat of thinner instead of Future.

Overall that wasn't really a bad thing, as it gave me a chance to try and "lighten up" a few spots where I didn't get all the black wash cleaned up.

Anyway, below are two images of my build still in progress, after there washes and with a coat of Future.  Hopefully tommorrow (or the next day) I may be able to try and add the decals.  I have a new bottle of Micro Set and Miro Sol to use on them, and I am interested to see if they can help ensure that the decals set down nicely over the small rivets and other surface detail .

Regards

PF

PS. The figure in the background is a 3D printed Maj Healey.  He's a 1/60 scale 3D printed astronaut that I printed for my Race into Space group build entry.

Ohhhhhhhh, looks great!!!