This weekend was a very productive one but didn't quite get all of the construction complete, which means I'll have a little bit still to do this holiday weekend before I can start painting.
First order of business was to add the zim panels for the front and rear mud flaps that I didn't get to last time. These were attached using the same combination of Gator Grip and CA gel as the hull panels but a little bit more trimming was necessary around the edges to get everything lined up. With that out of the way, I continued on with Step 12 in the instructions and added the remaining front hull details in the form of the Bosch lights and the periscope guards. The instructions have an error regarding the bases of the Bosch lights, the parts numbers are reversed in the instructions from the way they ought to install. The bases also have a half-post socket but unfortunately the way the light posts are molded, it is necessary to remove the little step on the post in order to mount the lights facing in the right direction. I also added some detail by drilling small holes with a #72 finger drill in the base of the lights and in the hull panel and using short lengths of 0.5mm diameter solder to create the wiring conduits. I used the LR PE periscope guards in place of the kit supplied items and used some Squadron White putty to fill in the gaps in the hull roof since the PE items are thinner than the kit parts.
Step 12 also calls for the installation of the side and rear intakes on the engine deck. The rear intake is supposed to have two framed screens and the LR set replicates this beautifully using bent brass rod frames and PE mesh but their assembly is very intricate. To accomplish this, I used some T-pins and a piece of fiber-board as a set of "extra hands" to hold the rod frame and mesh in place and then used tweezers and the tip of a #11 blade to bend the mesh "fingers" over the rod and secure the mesh in place.
The screens were then glued down in place over the intakes with CA gel and the four small support posts at the front added by using short lengths of styrene rod cut to size and glued in position with regular glue. The side intakes were assembled and the DML provided brass screens added as well to complete the step.
Step 13 adds more details to the rear deck in the form of the hinge blocks, rear fender supports, antenna mounts, rear Notek light, the jack, and the sledge hammer. I drilled out the antenna bases with a #72 finger drill before gluing them into position in preparation for installing brass antennas later on. The sledgehammer mount was replaced with the LR PE cover for the head and a Griffon clamp for the handle.
Step 14 begins work on the turret and main gun so this meant my first order of business was to assemble the RB Model Tiger I initial barrel to replace the two-part kit barrel. Since the muzzle brake threads on just like on the real thing, it's important to attach/assemble the barrel completely first before mounting to the turret to insure proper alignment.
Since the Atak set replaced the turret in its entirety with a resin turret shell and separate roof, I assembled the mantlet using the Atak zimmed resin exterior mantlet and interior styrene mount parts. The coaxial MG's muzzle was drilled out with a #76 finger drill since it was molded solid and installed as well. The mantlet was able to elevate since I didn't apply any glue yet to the mount pins on the inside and the barrel was installed. The fit inside the outer sleeve was a bit loose and CA gel by itself wasn't strong enough to hold the barrel in position, so I mixed up a small amount of Aves Apoxiesculpt two-part putty and applied that in a thin layer around the base and then inserted the barrel into the sleeve, allowing the putty to ooze out a bit around the sleeve and trimming that excess away with a knife point to restore the small gap around the barrel for the recoil. I propped up the turret and barrel and let gravity do the work for me while the putty hardened over a couple of hours. This effectively completed the work called for in Step 15.
While the barrel was setting up, I worked on the turret roof. Atak provides a full resin roof part that accurately places the pilzen crane sockets and also has some very nice weld detail around the cupola and hatches. I assembled the commander's cupola as called for in Step 17 and also added the loader's hatch and fume extraction fan cover as outlined in Step 16. I didn't notice until just now that I forgot to add the grab handle to the loader's hatch, will take care of that shortly. With the gun barrel set, I did a test of the turret to the hull to determine what elevation the barrel needed to be at since it was too heavy to hold position on its own and then applied CA gel and liquid glue to the mount pins and let that set up. The turret roof was then installed to complete Step 16. I added the LR bracket mounts for the smoke grenade launchers from Step 17 and also added the LR PE strip that creates the small rain drain holes around the edge of the commander's cupola. I added the smoke signal basket to the rear of the cupola from Step 18 but didn't quite get to the rest of that step before having to call a halt for the night.
Not much is left, just need to work on the rear turret basket and spare track mounts before this one will be ready for paint.
