Hey Fellas
Got a couple more suggestions for all you AFV 251 builders, as a result of my ongoing build of the /4. I know I said I'd have pics up today - but I didn't take any yet and I am too tired to do it now... sorry ![Zzz [zzz]](/emoticons/icon_smile_zzz.gif)
OK, two little nuggets for y'all:
First, the tracks:
If you have a set of the AFV indy links (they came with my kit, but I also see them sold as aftermarkets for most of their other 251s), they would have you construct them by first attaching the rubber block, then snapping the link into place on the adjoining track-link. The locating pins that enable the tracks to articulate are supposed to spread open enough to pop over the next track, then pop into the slots they lock in. Well, if you wanna follow the instructions, go ahead, but I busted my first six links trying to do it that way. I found the 'neck' of the link, where the two arms (with the locating pins) join the 'body' of the link is too weak to expand that much. Instead, I ended up building a simple little jig: I took two paint stirrer that I had from Home Depot. I seperated them by breaking a Starbucks coffee stirrer in half and glueing one piece at either end (the coffee stirrer was glued 'on its side' so the gap between the two paint stirrers is pretty narrow. That gave me a gap to put the drive teeth for the links into so I could lay them flat, with the slots for the locating pins pointed up - it was then easy to slide the pins into the slots on the adjoining track and then attack the rubber block.
One other note on the indy-links - I found that their attachment points between the body of the link and the sprue is pretty narrow - it was almost impossible to get the tips of my sprue cutters in there. When I did, the pressure of cutting them often resulted in them bending and snapping (scratch another 4 links - dammit!! ![Banged Head [banghead]](/emoticons/icon_smile_banghead.gif)
). I ended up just using my x-acto knife and kind of hacked them off the sprue, leaving a pretty big attachment point plug to clean up - it was a little more labor intensive, but at least I didn't break any more links.
The links themselves are OK. No matter how you do it, there will be a good bit of clean up around the attachment points, plus a sinkhole on either side of each link, next to the sprocket tooth.
Second, the fenders:
Step 15 of the instructions has you attach the three tool/storage boxes on each fender before you attach the fender to the vehicle. I got it in my head to do that, then figured I could do a base coat on the underside of the fender with it off the vehicle to make it easier to get at all the nooks and crannies. Well, that turned out to be a dumb idea. It is impractical to paint it off the vehicle, because I suspect attaching it to the hull will wreck whatever painting I might have done. Allow me to explain:
After I attached the three boxes, I noticed just how much my fenders are bent. I was not too worried, figuring the mounting tabs would help with alignment. No such luck. What I have found is that my attachment tabs either don't quite line up with the slot they are supposed to fit into, or if the do line up, they are not really long enough to make significant contact. Additionally, if I mount the fenders as the locating tabs would have me, they will remain bent, which means the three boxes overlap one another at their tops. In addition, if I mount with the tabs, the fender sits at an inaccurate angle, so the boxes don't contact the hull at the top.
The moral of this story is to give some serious consideration to how you want to attach the boxes and the fenders. I am not convinced I would have done it differently, but I certainly should have been a little more careful with my dry fitting (once again, there it is!) before I glued those boxes on. The problem is that, at least on the C hull, I don't think there is clearance to get the boxes onto the fenders after the fenders are attached to the hull. The fix to this is pretty straight forward, but it'll be time consuming - I'm going to have to glue the fenders on about 1 - 1.5 cm at a time, trying to ensure proper alignment and holding everthing in place until all the glue dries.
As always, I hope this helps...
Hey Dupes: I thought of you today when a pack of about 20 - 25 cyclists cruised by me in a pretty sweeeeeeeeeeeeet paceline. They were truckin' right along...
Roads clear up there yet?