DML Bison II Complete 04-28-12

Karl, definitely a croweded little gun-buggy, no question about it! Happy to help with pointing out the kit's little traps and foibles along the way...hopefully it helps others have a more enjoyable build when they decide to tackle it. Painting will have to be done in modular sections with the interior set up the way it is...the sIG33 gun will get built next and that will really crowd things once it is in place!

Mike, have to keep you on your toes! I'm thoroughly convinced that whoever does DML's instructions doesn't have any connection with the actual engineering or build process of the kit. That's the problem with CAD-based stuff in this regard I think and without any bridging QA/QC to go with it, they are bound to have defects...it's just a question of how many!

Just popping into check your progress, yep it looks crowded........looking good Will pop back to check your progress.

All the best Bill.

Terry.

Thanks Terry, glad to have you pop in now and then!

Made a lot of progress with the build and completed the sIG 33 gun. Work on this begins in Steps 15 and 16 and deals with the sides of the gun carriage. One of the expedient characteristics of the Bison II was the fact that they essentially took a regular sIG33 and plopped it into a Pz II modified hull with very little changes to the actual sIG33 itself.

I did a couple of modifications. I drilled out the holes in the gun sight elevation/range calculation mechanism to provide some detail and I held off installing parts A26/27 until I had added the rear spade plate in Step 17 (not that it really matters much as that entire portion gets hidden away by the rear compartments). I also didn't install the optics portion of the gun sight as those are provided as clear parts and I want to detail them separately before installation later on.

In hindsight, I would have held off installing the hand wheels as their attachment points are very small and in subsequent steps they had a tendency to be in the way and get knocked off repeatedly.

Steps 17 and 18 add parts to the interior and exterior and bring the two halves of the gun mount together. You have to give some thought to this in terms of the order you do this as there are a lot of parts that all have to line up just so to keep the halves in alignment. I found that the best approach was gluing all the necessary inside parts to the right frame side as called for, then gluing the two halves together, then adding all the different additional detail parts. The one exception was part A50, this has a very snug fit at the front and should be added before gluing the halves together. 

One area that you have to be extremely careful with is adding the rear spade and towing eye. These are essential to line up the gun carriage correctly in the vehicle lower hull but there's no guide provided to get the spade exactly centered, so I broke out my small metal mm ruler and used that to insure I got things centered correctly before committing to glue.

Step 19 is a very involved step. It assembles the gun and recoil sled as well as the recoil housing trays. A small amount of putty was needed along the join line of the breech halves but otherwise the gun itself assembled cleanly. I left the breech block removable to facilitate detail painting later on. The gun itself is also removable for the same reason.
 

That took me to Step 20 and deals with the front splinter shields. The instruction diagram isn't too clear on exactly how the support arms for the left side shield should install...you need to have the curved support inside the L shaped support in order for it to line up properly to the holes on the gun mount. I added the support rods first and test fit them to insure they held at the right angle and let them set a bit before installing the shields to the gun mount. I left off the PE chalk boards for now and will add them later after painting.

I also did a test fit with all of the other hull interior components to make sure I had things aligned correctly.

Now everything is broken down and the interior is ready for painting which is the next step to come!

You are on a roll Big Guy,on a roll

I told you the gun was a kit by it self

Burn Baby Burn

Tony lee

I love your Bison and want to ride it...

Folks at Dragon- You'd be an idiot not to hire Bill as a consultant to review your crappy instructions.  

Bill-  Great process!  You and Tony... trying to get us to buy those Bison kits.  I think I am going to add it to my wish list.  I am not sure if I missed this... does it come with the aluminum barrel too?  

Looking forward to see it with paint next... 

WOW, Bill, that gun is as busy as the waffentrager's. Boy, it's amazing the level of detail they're putting into these things these days.

Looking great--I'll be interested to see how you paint this....Desert Yellow?

Tony, no kidding about that! The gun assembly involves about 80 parts when everything is included (PE details, gun sight, etc.).

Andy, I definitely recommend adding the kit to your wish list if you're a fan of open topped SPGs. This one has a unique look to it and is light years better than the Alan kit for sure. The aluminum barrel is a kit-supplied item and includes very nice fine rifling detail on the muzzle as well.

Karl, DML raised the detail bar as the sIG33 is a mountain of fine rivets and bolts all over the place and they captured it beautifully. As far as planned paint schemes, this one will receive the authorized two-tone Tropen scheme for December '41 (two-thirds RAL 8000, one-third RAL 7008, what Testors Model Master enamel line designates as "Afrika Grunbraun" and "Afrika Khakibraun") as that is when the 12 units were shipped over to Africa after the program was cancelled. There's no such thing as "Desert Yellow" in German paint schemes, that's a Tamiya invention!  

Bill - Nice progress. I always make it a habit to leave off the hand wheels and sights until the last minute. The are broken sooooo easy. Painting this guy could be challenging to get complete coverage like under the barrel or between the lower carriage and the upper carriage. It is one of the reasons I ale the "assembly" method....make painting easier.

Nice weekend wrap up

Rounds Complete!!

wbill76

Andy, I definitely recommend adding the kit to your wish list if you're a fan of open topped SPGs. This one has a unique look to it and is light years better than the Alan kit for sure. The aluminum barrel is a kit-supplied item and includes very nice fine rifling detail on the muzzle as well.

Thanks for the recommendation!   With Tony's help he sent me a PM that Sprue Brothers was selling Bison kit for only $29.99.  Placed an order... I doubt I can find a better deal at upcoming shows in April. 

Just report me missing if you don't hear from me in few days... hope my wife doesn't find out I brought THREE kits this week.  Thank you Tony and Dupes. LOL!  I love this forum... 

Let lay the blame on Bill.he lives a lot farther from us.

Tony lee

Mike, the little voice in the back of my head was telling me to wait but I didn't listen...the other voice saying that I should test out the instruction order instead was just a tad louder and offered donuts! I did however give some thought to the necessary areas for paint coverage and that's why the gun is removable from the recoil tray, the recoil tray is fully elevatable, etc. All that will help get paint in all the little nooks and crannies.

Andy, Tony's got a great idea...just blame me! Sprue Brothers is where I got mine from during their Black Friday sale...same price as yours.

wbill76

Andy, Tony's got a great idea...just blame me! Sprue Brothers is where I got mine from during their Black Friday sale...same price as yours.

I think I should warn you and Tony to vanish and hide for a while... my wife may be looking for you.  Of course you can take some of your stash with you to keep you entertained.  Look what has arrived at my doorstep today...

Screw my New Year resolution... my stash count hasn't hit 50 yet so its still a small stash. 

Bill- You were correct... this Bison II is real NICE set!  Came loaded with pretty everything that I don't have to bother ordering aftermarket sets except for figures of course. 

Tony- Thank you for letting me know about the big sale at Sprue Brother earlier.  Owe you ...

Quite the score there Andy! My current stash stands at 72 unbuilt kits (not counting accessories and other items, just kits in the box) and at one time was over 100. I rarely add kits to the stash now unless it's a subject I a) don't already have and b) have an interest in. It is always a good idea to snag kits you're interested in when the price is right...as some of them can become hard to find as time goes by depending.

Does that aluminum barrel have rifling?

Yes.

@ Tony: if not too much trouble show the guys what I've sent you concerning the mounting of gun in that small and tiny (!!!) compartment of Bison II  !!!

And we have try to find more informations, looked for amodification to get the limber hooked up ... no chance, it's not possible by use of this kit.

The other drawing is on the H/D in my crashed computer Lothar.

Tony lee

That's the same ammo loadout arrangement that the Achtung Panzer #7 arrangement suggests was used. Given the way the compartmnet is arranged, I find it virtually impossible for that to be a workable storage for 2 reasons. 1) there's no practical way for the crew to access those areas even though there is space there conceivably and 2) the arrangement of the fuel tanks and engine gear, drive shafts, etc. present a severe limitation on the right side of the area in question.

DML's arrangement instead has 7 rounds stored in the large box on top of the engine deck and I've used accurate resin 1/35 scale 15cm sIG 33 rounds with it and it does work...leaving the other 2-3 rounds presumably stored on the floor under the gun on a wicker mat based on the info that Tony dug up earlier in his build on where the remaining rounds might be kept.

The simple truth though is that we will probably never really know for certain one way or the other...the amount of hard evidence available for this particular vehicle leaves gaps for interpretation that may never be completely filled.  

AMEN and Amen Brother

Tony lee

Managed to get the interior base painting done. I masked off the contact surfaces on the fender and hull front edges that are critical to getting all the compartment panels to join properly to avoid having to scrape paint later on. I applied a primer coat of MM enamel Italian Dark Brown by air brush and let that air dry.

This was followed by an airbrushed coat of MM enamel Afrika Grunbraun (Testors version of RAL 8000). Because of the tight spaces on the hull front once the gun is installed, I also painted some of the exterior areas while it's still easy to get to them without becoming a contortionist.

I also discovered during the painting process that the splinter shields limit the elevation on the sIG33...something I hadn't fully anticipated. This is the maximum elevation that the gun can be posed at before the splinter shield interferes with the guard on the recoil tray (part B19). I'm not sure if this is a limitation that was also on the actual vehicle but it's something for the builder to be aware of. I intend to pose the gun in a flat elevation in the final analysis so it's not a big deal to me in the long-run, but will make life a little more interesting in terms of painting the camo scheme to the vehicle exterior later on.

Now I get to work on all the little interior details and weathering.

Coming right along, Bill!

I would think that that elevation thing would have been intrinsic to the real vehicle. It would seem hard to believe that they engineered the kit THAT far off?!

'Now I get to work on all the little interior details and weathering'.... Gee Bill, don't say it like ya wern't looking forward to it !......looking great my friend

tread

Karl, I don't think it's an error either. However on the standard sIG33 it was capable of a much higher angle of elevation than what is possible with the Bison II mount. I was only commenting on the fact that it changes what areas of the gun are accessible for painting after the shields are attached vs. before.

Tread, thanks my friend! And I am indeed looking forward to the interior...lots to do in that cramped space, so will be busy with it for a while for sure.

Bill - the assembly painting method is one I usaually follow, especially with artillery as it becomes difficult to get to some areas once assembeled.

As for the elevation question, many times a weapon designed as a towed weapon which was adapted for a self propelled operation could not reach the maximum quadrent (elevation) for a number of reasons. Most times it had to do with the recoil length which in WWII weapons was a fixed length. The variable recoil system was not invented until after the war. With a fixed recoil on a howitzer, most had to dig a pit called a high angle pit, near the breech. This would give space for the recoil when firing at high angles. Since the floor of the SP carriage could not have a hole!!! Many times the elevation was limited to the max elevation where the breech would not hit the floor.

Good crews would counter this problem by emplacing the weapon on a slight rise. This would then add elevation to the system and allow for futher range or high angle fire with the limited system. This is why many times you see SP guns set up on a rise.

With the advent of the variable recoil system, the recoil length varies depending on elevation and thus keeps the breech from hitting the ground or in the case of an SP wapon, the floor plate.

Keep up the good work....looking gooooood

Rounds Complete!!

Wow, not much room to move around in there. Must have been hectic.

Good to see her coming along.

Mike, that makes perfect sense...there's zero room for any recoil beyond the extent of the tray in that compartment for sure!

Eric, thanks for the comments. It's a tight space to work in as a builder/finisher as well, have to put thought into every step before committing to it...so now it will be a struggle of mms for a bit before returning to the exterior stuff.

The devil's always in the details and the cramped interior of this little gun buggy is no different.

I started in by weathering the floor of the fighting compartment. The Bison IIs were prototype vehicles that weren't originally meant for N. Africa so I'm running with the scenario that they would've been originally painted Panzer Gray before receiving their Tropen paint prior to shipment across the Med. To that end, I added some scuffing/wear to the floor using a round 0 sable brush and stippling first Panzer Schwarzgrau and then Burnt Umber in random patterns until I had the wear to the level desired. I blended the stippling back into the original paint work by lightly dry brushing the RAL 8000 base coat used earlier. Free space is at a premium in the fighting compartment so I assumed that any open spot like the top of the large box, the drive shaft cover, the open space beside the box, etc. would be used to move stuff around and wear in the process.

Also spent a good bit of time on the miscellaneous details like the crew seats, the radio gear, and the ammo pouches for the MP40s.

Still more to come in this department!

Ahhh....sneaking in a late Sun update!!! Love the seat....nice work on the details

Rounds Complete!!