M3A1 Troop Carrier
02-26-2011, 05:18 PM
#1
Thread Starter
M3A1 Troop Carrier
I snagged a pair of WSN halftracks in a Dino-Direct sale recently. Both had broken main guns (reason for the sale?) so I mixed and matched to make a 'good' M16. The left overs are getting rebuilt as an M3A1 troop carrier, not decided if it will be from an Armoured Infantry unit, or if it will be a command track for the 8th Tank Battalion. The M16 will be from the 4AD's attached anti-aircraft unit, the 489th Anti-Aircraft Artillery (Automatic Weapons) Battalion.
The M16 is nothing more than a simple strip and respray, Tamiya TS-5 for the main colour and TS-2 for stencilling the toned down stars of the 4th Armoured. I have a set of the next gen El-Mod halftrack electronics on order - you can just see the IR emitter tube poking out where the gun sight used to be...
So, on to the M3...
The main mods (besides removing the quad 50's) will be as follows:
Remove the boxes from the rear of the troop compartment.
Fill in the cut-outs in the front and sides for the gun turret.
Add a door to the rear compartment.
Add the 50cal gun mount and shielding to the right front of the troop compartment.
Add the tarpaulin hoops
Add some better electronics - a combination of a robot ESC (scorpion mini) for the track drive, and an EGS battle circuit (no emitter)
Strictly speaking I should get rid of the winch on the front and replace it with the proper roller assembly, but its probably stronger the way it is...
So, filled and sanded the notches in the sides. I also cut the out line of a door with a razor saw - I decided it would take too much strength out of the troop compartment if I cut the door out completely.
I'm using one of my 1/18 toys as a reference:
Bending the plastic needed a little heat from a cigarette lighter, the 1/18 toy made a useful form tool too...
The M16 is nothing more than a simple strip and respray, Tamiya TS-5 for the main colour and TS-2 for stencilling the toned down stars of the 4th Armoured. I have a set of the next gen El-Mod halftrack electronics on order - you can just see the IR emitter tube poking out where the gun sight used to be...
So, on to the M3...
The main mods (besides removing the quad 50's) will be as follows:
Remove the boxes from the rear of the troop compartment.
Fill in the cut-outs in the front and sides for the gun turret.
Add a door to the rear compartment.
Add the 50cal gun mount and shielding to the right front of the troop compartment.
Add the tarpaulin hoops
Add some better electronics - a combination of a robot ESC (scorpion mini) for the track drive, and an EGS battle circuit (no emitter)
Strictly speaking I should get rid of the winch on the front and replace it with the proper roller assembly, but its probably stronger the way it is...
So, filled and sanded the notches in the sides. I also cut the out line of a door with a razor saw - I decided it would take too much strength out of the troop compartment if I cut the door out completely.
I'm using one of my 1/18 toys as a reference:
Bending the plastic needed a little heat from a cigarette lighter, the 1/18 toy made a useful form tool too...
02-26-2011, 05:20 PM
#2
Thread Starter
RE: M3A1 Troop Carrier
Painted the gun tower:
Now on to the interior, I have the beginnings of the troop benches - the seat cushions will probably be formed from milliput.
Got the floor in and the 30Cal MG mounts fitted.
Right now I'm running a Scorpion Mini for an ESC ( http://www.robotmarketplace.com/prod...ORP-MINI2.html ) and plugged the steering servo direct into the receiver after crimping on a standard RC plug (white is signal, Red 5V, Black return). Works really well, but I'd like engine and machine gun noise - but on the plus side the electronics are tiny and easy to hide. The EGS will get mounted behind the troop bench, it will take hits but maybe not be able to fire - initial intention is that it would be used in an escort type game, where the team has to escort the troop carrier to a point on the battlefield without it getting killed...
Installed the electronics, the EGS is a bit of a squeeze (and I still have a bad joint in there somewhere, as it refuses to work) but the rest isn't so bad.
False floor now with 50cal tower prop
I have a micro receiver on order, that will fit into the fuel tanks (need to make a false floor to keep the dirt out), and the EGS sits behind the troop bench.
Nearly there, just got a few more bits to make for the external storage racks, a battery connector on order to allow be to hook up my compact 6-cell pack in the battery box out of sight, and the seat cushions.
Now on to the interior, I have the beginnings of the troop benches - the seat cushions will probably be formed from milliput.
Got the floor in and the 30Cal MG mounts fitted.
Right now I'm running a Scorpion Mini for an ESC ( http://www.robotmarketplace.com/prod...ORP-MINI2.html ) and plugged the steering servo direct into the receiver after crimping on a standard RC plug (white is signal, Red 5V, Black return). Works really well, but I'd like engine and machine gun noise - but on the plus side the electronics are tiny and easy to hide. The EGS will get mounted behind the troop bench, it will take hits but maybe not be able to fire - initial intention is that it would be used in an escort type game, where the team has to escort the troop carrier to a point on the battlefield without it getting killed...
Installed the electronics, the EGS is a bit of a squeeze (and I still have a bad joint in there somewhere, as it refuses to work) but the rest isn't so bad.
False floor now with 50cal tower prop
I have a micro receiver on order, that will fit into the fuel tanks (need to make a false floor to keep the dirt out), and the EGS sits behind the troop bench.
Nearly there, just got a few more bits to make for the external storage racks, a battery connector on order to allow be to hook up my compact 6-cell pack in the battery box out of sight, and the seat cushions.
02-26-2011, 06:59 PM
#4
Thread Starter
RE: M3A1 Troop Carrier
We are here to temp you... 
I wanted to do something different from the usual, hoping to get the EGS working for Danville...
I wanted to do something different from the usual, hoping to get the EGS working for Danville...
03-04-2011, 07:03 PM
#5
Thread Starter
RE: M3A1 Troop Carrier
Quick update:
got the equipment rails on both sides, next up will be fixing the EGS before I button it all up.
Battery leads are on order - I found out that the 1600mAH battery I bought for the M3A1 is now likely out of stock for good, so the M16 will have to make do with the 800mAH packs from rctankwars.
I'm now looking into using this as a camera truck as well - my experiment with my old 5MP HP R707 camera at the last DTC club meet proved that it was a smooth and stable platform for this, but the video shot from the camera was poor due to being indoors (its a 6 year old pocket camera with limited mpeg recording, so its not surprising really...)
Has anyone tried one of these cameras?
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00426D9KQ/...5370_pe_epc_d1
Other than the short life (so I have to buy a stack of spare batteries for it - its not like I don't take a ton of them to airshow's anyway for my still cameras!), it seems to fit the bill - cheap, good in low light and light weight...?
got the equipment rails on both sides, next up will be fixing the EGS before I button it all up.
Battery leads are on order - I found out that the 1600mAH battery I bought for the M3A1 is now likely out of stock for good, so the M16 will have to make do with the 800mAH packs from rctankwars.
I'm now looking into using this as a camera truck as well - my experiment with my old 5MP HP R707 camera at the last DTC club meet proved that it was a smooth and stable platform for this, but the video shot from the camera was poor due to being indoors (its a 6 year old pocket camera with limited mpeg recording, so its not surprising really...)
Has anyone tried one of these cameras?
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00426D9KQ/...5370_pe_epc_d1
Other than the short life (so I have to buy a stack of spare batteries for it - its not like I don't take a ton of them to airshow's anyway for my still cameras!), it seems to fit the bill - cheap, good in low light and light weight...?
03-04-2011, 08:47 PM
#6
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RE: M3A1 Troop Carrier
I am suprised that as long as these half tracks have been out, that no one has made a tank destroyer conversion. Iknow some of you guys could build a nice looking unit for your IRbattles!
03-04-2011, 09:12 PM
#8
Thread Starter
RE: M3A1 Troop Carrier
If they would have stayed at the price I paid for another month I might have gone there... [8D] But in all honesty the TD versions were short lived and would only fit with the North African part of my collection - both of the clubs I belong to are ETO orientated, so thats where my build priorities lay. [&:]
Truth be told I think they are over priced (for what we want out of them) at their usual $150-$200 range - if somebody were to offer them for ~$100 without the quad .50 cal turret assembly and the crappy electronics (which we are all going to bin anyway!) I think we'd seem more of them being converted... (any vendors listening? )
The Blitz still owes me an El-Mod set up for the M16, so I can't speak for how well that works, but the scorpion mini is amazing in the M3A1 - super smooth and about scale speed on a 7.2V pack
Truth be told I think they are over priced (for what we want out of them) at their usual $150-$200 range - if somebody were to offer them for ~$100 without the quad .50 cal turret assembly and the crappy electronics (which we are all going to bin anyway!) I think we'd seem more of them being converted... (any vendors listening?
)The Blitz still owes me an El-Mod set up for the M16, so I can't speak for how well that works, but the scorpion mini is amazing in the M3A1 - super smooth and about scale speed on a 7.2V pack
03-04-2011, 11:50 PM
#10
Thread Starter
RE: M3A1 Troop Carrier
@city hunter
Can't speak for the stock version - tho the promo vid showed it zipping around like a crazed weasel!
Suspension is limited to the 2 bogie sets pivoting around their individual axles - not much, but better than nothing - I'm sure some brave soul amongst us might tear it all apart and add VVSS to it, but that's a lot of work...
@BIGMIG - thanx! how you doing these days
?
Can't speak for the stock version - tho the promo vid showed it zipping around like a crazed weasel!
Suspension is limited to the 2 bogie sets pivoting around their individual axles - not much, but better than nothing - I'm sure some brave soul amongst us might tear it all apart and add VVSS to it, but that's a lot of work...
@BIGMIG - thanx! how you doing these days
?
