251 Halftracks GB 1 October '08 - 8 June '09

You know, while i'm building, I keep thinking of questions to ask. And then when I come on here to post I find myself answering them before I even finish typing it out, lol.

Mainly color questions but I think so far, i've got it figured out. I have a feeling that when an actual question comes up, it's gonna be along the lines of, "how do I undo this?".

Josh

Josh - got any pics of your progress we can take a look at?

Wingy - Ouch. what sort of recovery time are you looking at? You know, you should really have your wife handle rough tasks like that...we can't have you getting sidelined from modeling. That would be very bad.

FastasEF.. didn't Yoda say something like..."There is do or don't...there is no undo."

Dupes I am looking at a couple of months.  Got about 60% use of the arm.  Being right handed its a good thing it's my left that's messed up.

It doesn't hurt to paint though  Got the gun all done, still need to do the platform.  Interior is mostlt done.  Some dry brushing in the back and a wash still to do.  And WOW what a PITA the PE screen was for thew spent casing catcher

Couple of MONTHS? Yowzors. That must have been one big ladder.

Your 251, however, is looking pretty spectacular! I'm guessing that shell-catcher is 6 or 7 individual pieces you have to bend into circular form? Dang.

wing_nut wrote:

FastasEF.. didn't Yoda say something like..."There is do or don't...there is no undo." Dupes I am looking at a couple of months.  Got about 60% use of the arm.  Being right handed its a good thing it's my left that's messed up. It doesn't hurt to paint though  Got the gun all done, still need to do the platform.  Interior is mostlt done.  Some dry brushing in the back and a wash still to do.  And WOW what a PITA the PE screen was for thew spent casing catcher

Marc,

Awesome work!!!  I HATE YOU!!!   You, you, you aircraft guycomin' over here and kickin' butt on armor...  Better than anything I've ever done....  Did I mention that I hate you???

I don't have any pics as of yet but will try and post some by this weekend.

I did think of a question though. What color will the suspension be? I'm gonna guess black, but i'm thinking it could also be the same gray as the exterior color. Doesn't say anything on the instructions.

Josh

Hey guys, some really nice work getting done here! Sorry for my lack of participation, I've been super busy lately.

So far I've assembled the chassis and lower hull of my 251, and put together all those fun, tiny tracks. Then I filled all the locating holes for parts I won't use (meaning most of them), thinned the sidewalls down to correct thickness (LOTS of sanding) and added the relevant interior parts from the LionRoar 251 set. I'm waiting to get some sheet styrene on my next trip down south to Madison - my LHS recently closed and I can't justify a 2 hour trip both ways just for $7 in plastic

Should be getting down there next week, after that, the real fun begins - scratchbuilding a functional interior.

Here is one hastily taken, poor quality progress pic:

Great work Marc, really coming together now.

Im struggling to get the inclination to do anything at the mo. I know that the top and bottom half of mine is an awfull fit and i cant work out why. I havent been at the bench all week. Doh!

I need a plane to do, to ease my frustration.

...Guy

Luftwoller wrote:

I need a plane to do, to ease my frustration. ...Guy

Thnaks guy.  But you better be careful what you say out loud.  last guy the that only heard 3 words after that...

READY  AIM   FIRE

Hermesminiatures wrote:

Hey guys, some really nice work getting done here! Sorry for my lack of participation, I've been super busy lately.

Looks like you've got a good chunk done, Hermes...what else have you been working on? Bummer about your LHS.

Josh - Panzer Gray should be fine for a base - you're going to muck it up quite a bit with dust and dirt eventually anyway I'm sure.

Lufty - you can do it man! Just sit down and glue some plastic! 

dupes wrote:

Looks like you've got a good chunk done, Hermes...what else have you been working on? Bummer about your LHS.

Why don't you just find that photo of my stash I posted somewhere here, and I'll give you the list of what I'm not working on? It'll be quicker

The projects I have worked on in the past two months include my Jagdtiger for the Panzer Aces GB, the base and figures for the Jagdpanzer IV A-0 from the Hunters GB, my ages-old Firefly, and a T-34 for Red Storm GB. And kinda sorta the Henschel I was building for Mud Movers GB, but I started going crazy on the detailing and kinda sorta gave up on finishing it by the end of the year. Maybe the cockpit and engines by then.

[/end off-topic infomercial on my current workbench status]

Well i got home and decided, im either going to get some more of this thing done or bag it and come back to it later. Luckily i chose the former.

My main mission was to get the top and bottom buttoned up. Before i put glue to plastic i had to take a couple of interior shots before it gets hidden totally by the top half.

Well the top and bottom went on and there was a huge gap down the centre of the body on both sides. I tried everything including thinning the 'Bins' insde but still there was a small gap. I went with Superglue in the end and the finished result is liveable with. (Forgot to take a pic of the thing together.]

Oh this may help anyone having probs holding the tracks to paint them. I used a roll of 3" tape with some wide tamiya tape turned back to front on it. Works a treat.

...Guy

VERY glad you decided to snap some pics before closing her up...that interior is awesome, Guy! Tons of good work in there. I'm assuming that you can't see those big ejector pin marks in the rifle stowage boxes once the rest of the upper hull is attached...?

I won't tell if you won't.

I have no idea how accurate your radio wiring is...but sure looks spot on to me!

dupes wrote:

I'm assuming that you can't see those big ejector pin marks in the rifle stowage boxes once the rest of the upper hull is attached...? I have no idea how accurate your radio wiring is...but sure looks spot on to me!

LOL, Im one of those modellers who build stuff for my shelves. Not for comps. I also wouldnt dream of weathering parts that you wont ever see.

As for the wiring. As far as i can see so far its pretty accurate..ish. Theres still a couple of headphones, a speaker and a morse controller to go in yet.

...Guy

No, no, that wasn't a criticism, that was a question!

Can you really not see into the storage boxes once the upper hull is attached (or at least the side with the pin marks)? If not, then trust me, I'm with you.

panzer88 wrote:

That's some beautiful work there. Great job on that interior. I love those K98 rifles!!! They look like the real deal, are they the kit supplied ones and if so I'm sending mine to you so you can work your magic on my set. Great job

 Just came home from the gun store. Your absolutely right. Those K98's looked just like the ones that were hangin' in the case. Nice job!

 Mobious

First pics. Not much to show as of yet. Sides aren't glued on yet and neither is the front suspension setup. I hope to have some good progress shots tomorrow cause i'll be home all day watching football and modelling!

Josh

Looks good Josh.  What color did you use for the tires?

The rest of this post should be titled.. "WARNING...DANGER Will Robinson"  (arms flailing widly)

1st a question.  The extra ammo boxes for the Flak38 can be open or closed.  Does the top hinge at the back or would it come off completely?

Now the stuff.  Things I missed that, if you have not gotten this far yet, keep an eye out for.  BTW this is the Dragon kit and may be different depending on what parts are common.

(Note to self  PAY ATTENTION!!!!)

I totally missed this gap when test fitting.  The left side is fine so the right side was mounted the same way.  i would have had to remove the guide lugs on the fender to get the gap to disappear.

I saw the tiny gap that needed to be filled in the front wheel well. How did I miss the BIG one behind it

And look at all the holes here and in the pic above.  All the holes for alignment pins for stuff attached to the top of the fender go through. THROUGH??? WHY?  And what's with the one in the back that as deep as the Snake River Canyon.... wait... I think I see a tiny little Evel Knievel trying to jump across it... darn, missed again... that's 0 for 2.   I thought surelythat must be for a part to fit in... so deep... so round... so perfect.  But no    I need a bigger tube of putty.

YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED

wing_nut wrote:

Looks good Josh.  What color did you use for the tires?

ColorPlace interior/exterior fast dry flat black spray paint.

I'll post a picture of the can with the next round of pics.

Josh

FastasEF wrote:

wing_nut wrote: Looks good Josh.  What color did you use for the tires? ColorPlace interior/exterior fast dry flat black spray paint. I'll post a picture of the can with the next round of pics. Josh

Really?  Is just doesn't look like plain old flat black. has a nice "rubber" color to it.

Marc, stand away from the model. Sit down and relax my friend.

I think your panicking over nothing major.

In the 1st pic, Easy fix. Spot filler and wiped down with some acetone.

2nd Pic, that as has been said is supposed to be there. If you wanted to be 100% accurate, you could thin it down, but really, Why?

3rd Pic, You are never going to see those ejector marks EVER!!! once wheels and tracks are on.

If you want this build to be judged at competitions, you still neednt worry as they wont pick the thing up and im pretty sure they dont use tiny mirrors on sticks.

Its looking freekin fantastic mate.

...Guy