Tamiya 1/35 Tiger I WIP *update*

I found some pins for the tracks antd they work great! I have a question though, What should I cut them with? I don't have any wire cutters that cut the pins close enough to the edge. Should I buy on? or does a hobby saw work?

I don't think saw will work well... those pins are tough.  I used a mini wire cutter to cut the pins as much as possible then I used metal file to smooth the edges out. 

Was it was easier to use the dress pins than kit supplied wiring this time?

Yes it worked much better! the pins actually stay in when I put them in!

What I do with the pins is raise them slightly then cut them with wire snips then push the cut ends back in and they are slightly below the level of the hole so there is no need to file them.

101stAirborne

I found some pins for the tracks antd they work great! I have a question though, What should I cut them with? I don't have any wire cutters that cut the pins close enough to the edge. Should I buy on? or does a hobby saw work?

 

Excellent tip Mike!  Why didn't I think of that earlier?!?!  Thanks!

101stairborne is there a definite left and right hand side to your tracks? Of all the "Handed" Friul tracks I worked with there were only left hand tracks in both bags but I don't have a problem with thatat all.  And a trick I learned when working with those type of tracks is to work with the right side of the tank and have it propped at a 45 degree angle so that when you put on the road wheels and the idler and sprocket wheels without gluing them you can put on the track and make any adjustments to the length of the track to get your desired sag. Once done you can work on the other set and make your adjustments and final work before you trim the pins and get the tracks set for use of the blacken it solution if you have any. I also suggest after painting the road wheels and idler wheels and thesprcket wheels you can attach the road wheels if you want but leave the Idler wheels and the sprocket wheels off till you install the tracks to make instlling them easier and hassel free.

It came with two bags. I think one is left and the other is right. I will probably just paint them black with a spray can or my airbush. Is that going to work?

101stAirborne

It came with two bags. I think one is left and the other is right. I will probably just paint them black with a spray can or my airbush. Is that going to work?

probably best to use the airbrush spray paint would probably make them stiff. But Blacken it does make them the right color in a few minutes though.

Mike I might use blacken it but I don't know where to find it or how much it is. I don't think I've seen it at my hobby shop, but I might have missed it. I also think I heard somewhere that it attacked CA. Not sure if thats true.

Alo I am thinking about what unit # I should have for my Tiger. It's come down to:

Number 213 - fought in Normandy in 1944. Not an SS division though and I painted SS insignia on my figures. 

Number 231 - fought a Villers Bocage France in 1944. It is an SS division tank, but the English fought at Villers Bocage. I don't believe the US did so that wouldn't work. 

Number 134 - Panzer Ace Willi Fey was in normandy 1944. It is an SS division tank.

Number 211 - went through France in 1944, is an SS division tank. 

Try Micro Mark

http://www.micromark.com/blacken-it-4-fl-oz,7267.html

might try doing my metal MG barrels with it to see how it goes.

101stAirborne

Mike I might use blacken it but I don't know where to find it or how much it is. I don't think I've seen it at my hobby shop, but I might have missed it. I also think I heard somewhere that it attacked CA. Not sure if thats true.

Alo I am thinking about what unit # I should have for my Tiger. It's come down to:

Number 213 - fought in Normandy in 1944. Not an SS division though and I painted SS insignia on my figures. 

Number 231 - fought a Villers Bocage France in 1944. It is an SS division tank, but the English fought at Villers Bocage. I don't believe the US did so that wouldn't work. 

Number 134 - Panzer Ace Willi Fey was in normandy 1944. It is an SS division tank.

Number 211 - went through France in 1944, is an SS division tank. 

 

101st, does the tank you build have to be one that fought against US troops, if so, does it have to be Normandy.

Bish I would like it to be Normandy and Against US troops since those are the figures I have for the Dio. I think I found a Tank # that will work though. # 211 fought in Normandy in the Falaise gap. I'm pretty sure the US fought in Falaise.

I also bought the last bottle of Blacken it at the hobby shop today. SO how should I apply it to the tracks? Should I do it in sections or all together?

What you need to do is finish your tracks first before you use the Blacken it makes things easier if you do.

when you are done get a plastic container and use half of the bottle of blacken it (you need to keep half of the contents in the bottle to reactivate the amount that was poured into the plastic container after it is poured back in) pour it into the container and dip your completed tracks into the solution and turn it over a few times to get both halves with even coverage. The Blacken it creates a chemical reaction that blackens the metal sort of like the reaction Eduards PE sets have when touched by oily sweaty fingers (They darken to a gunmetal color).

101stAirborne

Bish I would like it to be Normandy and Against US troops since those are the figures I have for the Dio. I think I found a Tank # that will work though. # 211 fought in Normandy in the Falaise gap. I'm pretty sure the US fought in Falaise.

I also bought the last bottle of Blacken it at the hobby shop today. SO how should I apply it to the tracks? Should I do it in sections or all together?

Thank You very much Mike you have been a great help to me! So when the tracks are done after about 20 mins of soaking in the balcken it I can por the blacken it back into the bottle and re-use it?!? because there is so little in the bottle.

101stAirborne

Thank You very much Mike you have been a great help to me! So when the tracks are done after about 20 mins of soaking in the balcken it I can por the blacken it back into the bottle and re-use it?!? because there is so little in the bottle.

I'd say the Blacken it works in less than a minute so to do both sides would take no less than 4 minutes since you will need to use soap and water and a toothbrush to wash the tracks afterwards to deactivate the solution so it wouldn't eat through the track pins. Definitely reuse the Blacken it it will last you at least 10 to 20 tracks.