Here it is. It is something quite different for me as my main interest is in racing cars which or course don't have tracks - well not in this sense anyway! This is an HO scale model of a logging bulldozer (something like a D6 ?) from around the 1950's and 60's. When I was involved in logging in NZ during the late 1970's technology had moved on, to rubber tyred arches of simpler design (as well as the rubber tyred logging skidder which is something quite different) and the dozer always had a blade.
The dozer and the logging arch are both just resting on the tracks and the logging arch is not yet attached to the dozer. The control levers, exhaust and air intake also need to be fitted. The mainline and chokers or strops (the chains that go around the load and attached to the mainline) need to also be attached from the winch on the back of the dozer through the fairlead on the arch. The kit supplies a white metal "load" of 3 logs. I'm going to use pieces of a real small branch. As you can see I've started weathering but the tracks need much more work. There would have been no rust on the tracks or undercarriage because of the constant daily contact with bush, scrub, stumps, earth banks, rocks etc. The tracks themselves will be painted in a silver or aluminium colour but the driving wheels (what ever they're called??) and beam will have some yellow colour as they were largely protected by the tracks themselves. Plenty of oil and grease marks though.
All the logging arches I can remember were not painted but again had virtually no rust because of the constant contact between the load, the strops, passing vegetation etc. However I think any "audience" is expecting some colour so I'm thinking of dry brushing some colour on the main arch beam and parts of the frame that would have less contact with logs to represent remanent paintwork. The arch has been painted with a light gunmetal with silver drybrushed along all the area where the load would constantly bump. It doesn't show in these photos though.
Any comments welcome especially about weathering and appearance.
Kia ora,
Mark
"Time flies like the wind, fruit flies like bananas"