Some progress, actually quite a bit, mostly due to the fact that Tamiya's Pershing is such a fine kit:

Tracks are from a previous build, on just for pics. I'm now at the point of deciding whether or not to use a mantlet-mounted 50-cal, search light, or leave it clean, and where to mount the jerry can racks that every IDF vehicle needs.

Ohhhhhhhhhhh, very cool!

Thanks, Gamera.  I'm having fun here, nice simple "conversion", really good kit, and I like Pershings and IDF armor a lot.

I did a little re-arranging of the items on the turret sides, and added a couple of ventilators to the turret roof, now I'm happy with it.

More soon, I hope....

Bobo been a busy boy.....

Engine intake covers robbed from the Tamiya M51 with a couple of small Dragon pieces, rear bin from an Academy M51, exhaust from MP Models' M50 and Academy M511.

Great concept, RBaer!  Two of my all-time favorite tanks combined into one!  It looks great so far, and I'm eagerly following your progress.  Thanks for sharing! :)

Thanks, guys.

I kind of think that the IDF would have passed on the M26 due to the fact that it was under-powered, but you never know. Of course, my "what-if" fixes that....

I'm also a big fan of the M26, and the Tamiya kit. I grab them whenever I see them at shows, having at least one in the stash keeps me happy.

Wow this is like a Major Overhauling on a tank.

Nice concept and lot of scratchbuilding. I guess it was time to do some dispose of old parts.. =)

Are we going to see same innovation on the paint?

Like a Luftwaffe bomber cammo on a tank?

Great work and thanks for letting us see all details.

Thanks, Hugo. I like to keep lots of parts kits around. Most of the M50/51 parts are coming from kits I bought for a song somewhere, and the Tamiya parts are left over from the M1 Sherman I did for the Orphaned Armor GB.

Tempting on the camo, but I plan (you what they say about plans) to paint it in period correct IDF sand gray.

Nice, the air intake covers and extra storage bin look pretty cool!

Thanks, guys.

Russ, you ought to get on that "Panzer 46" site on Facebook. You'd fit right in there.

Cool idea there. :)

Cool. I am getting into IDF equipment, have a HH-53 in the works, a Sherman, and a Patton I will be doing in IDF markings. I am using Testors Sherman kit and Tamiya's Patton. Any help would be appreciated.

Karl, I have actually thought seriously about it. I actually did a TigerB a couple of years ago in an actual "Panzer '46" sscheme, using the ancient Tamiya original release, and lots of love. It was fun....  I have a pic:

I never really thought of myself doing anything but "historically accurate" vehicles, but this is serious fun, and a really good antidote for my particular strain of AMS.

Russ, that's a great looking Tiger!!!

Thanks, Karl.  I bought the kit for $5, added a set of Friuls (!) , a CzechMaster barrel and mantlet for another $5, and LOTS of white styrene for my take on the Panzer '46 theme. The green is rattle can and the brown is brushed on over rattle can tan, and it actually did well at an IPMS show. I had a blast doing it. I've actually done three Tamiya Tiger2's: one (Tiger "P") my wife bought as a Christmas gift, this one, and another "late" from the "Ardennes kit, in an octopus scheme.

I guess I'm not quite so fixated on IDF/US stuff as I thought..... maybe.

I know zilch about Israeli or allied armour, but that looks damn good to me, and I would not have known it was a what if if you had not said.

Your Tiger there is spray can and brush painting!?! WOW!!!

Thanks, Bish. That's my goal, to do a plausible "what-if", make people scratch their heads and go "huh?"

Cliff, thank you. I don't have a place to use and airbrush and model at the same time, so even though my wife gave me a very nice airbrush and compressor last Christmas, I still use rattle cans (outdoors) and brush lots of secondary colors indoors. That Tiger was base-coated in a tan enamel spray, then masked with Silly Putty and the green sprayed. The brown was acrylic, applied by brush.

Speaking of rattle cans:

Well, P-bucket's having a really hard time this morning, I'll post pics later......

I love following these things. I find that doing unusual subjects, whether ships, a/c or armor- you learn a lot thinking about the whys and hows.

I guess this is my way of "branching out"....

Anyway, pics of paint:

I shot my usual Tamiya TS-46 over Krylon khaki, wanting a sand-gray color appropriate for the mid-'70s. I like it so far.

I now have the majority of the wash done, using ModelMaster acrylic black and brown. These are new to me, and the first time I've used a commercial wash of any kind. So far I really like them. They thin with water and don't bead up, flow well and can be tidied up with water as much as an hour after application. Schweet! I also primed the tracks with Krylon gray, then painted with thinned ModelMaster burnt umber acrylic. They've only come apart in one place since I put them together, better than I expected, but I'll know more about the durability of the teeny plastic nubs that hold them together after I install them. I've still got a few Friul links from the "Almost Super" to use as spare links on the turret rack, good thing.

Anyway, pics:

More later, still trying to have this ready for the show Saturday, might happen.....

wow, it looks like an oil wash. The way it settled into the rear deck grille is excellent 

Looking really good, Russ, but please don't rush it for a show. Better to make it look perfect first, and save it for a later show. :)

S1: thanks. I really like the effect, and it was quick and easy to use, no odor at all.

Karl, I'm going to do some more tonight, as a normal pace, and if it looks like I could realistically get it ready on Friday night, I will, but I'm kind of thinking I should slow down, for the reason you've stated, and because I'm really enjoying it and almost want to maximize that...   make sense?

Oh, so close...   but there's simply too much to do for me to be happy about it by this weekend, and the HobbyBoss tracks are going to be troublesome, so I went this far and stopped:

I still need a 50 cal, jerry cans, a TC figure, and stowage, and that's just what I'm aware of. The tracks fitted are Tamiya kit tracks, nicely detailed but a little on the thin side, so I'm either going to fiddle with the HB tracks, splice two sets of Dragon M46 DS tracks to get them long enough, or hang tight and pop for some Friuls or SpadeAce. Now that I'm not under any sort of time pressure, I have more choices.

More as soon as I get back to it......

Very cool, I love how she's shaping up!