I have a side project to mess with and have been chewing on it for about a day or two now. Here are a couple shots of the lower hull coming together.

hmmmm trying to figure out what its going to be
can you tell me why most German Tanks had drive sprockets in the front where the Russian and American except the Sherman style tanks had the drive sprockets in the rear

Best as I can tell, it was simply a difference in designing. I doubt it was intentionally done the way.</p>

I know what it is but I ain't tellin' .

simply a location of the tranny. A tranny in front adds a bit of protection, but a well placed HE can mess up the gears. (or sprocket) ....tranny at the rear allows more armor in front....then the old argument.....is it better with a sprocket pulling in front or pushing from the back....? A sprocket is less vunerable to enemy fire at the rear..

With most tank power packs being built with the engine-tranny as a single unit, it's a lot easier and faster for maintenance without a drive(propeller) shaft, differential, couplings etc. The Merkava is unique....it's the only tank ever designed as a defensive weapon, as a tank, by design is offensive....the Merkava, engine and tranny are in front with the driver to the left rear of the power pack....with all crew members having access-exit thru a door at the rear..reasoning is that a tank is easier to replace than a trained crew.

Well it looks like a T-55

ding ding ding!!! YHR has won the free trip!!!!

Yes Dan you have won an all inclusive trip to Grande Prairie, Canada



Cheers
Wade

LOL!! Well, Dan knows a T-55 when he sees one. This kit is not for the faint of heart. it is time consuming and requires some work, as it is one of the first kits releases. Some of the sprues are hardly what anyone would consider good at best. I have the lower hull completed and am currently working on the turret, though I may be stalled waiting on some parts...cough cough.. if you're reading this cough cough. LOL

Regardless pf the setbacks, it is a fun build and the tank seems very solid with the suspension design and road wheels. I ran the gearboxes in on a power supply and checked for clearance. Everything was good, so oiled and greased and installed. Track links are at about 88 or 89..can;t rememerb at the mment, but they are good at length. I will wait to finish so I can get them painted up.

The T-55 generally is good mechanically, and as you noted less than desirable modeling wise.

It makes a good runner with surprisingly good tracking on all surfaces including grass.

The inside can get cramped as the profile is lower than the Pershing making electronics and wires sticking up a problem compounded with the elevation that uses some of the inner hull for max elevation.

I conserved space by installing an i-pod speaker in the extra fuel drum so as not to have to have a speaker box inside, and I was still able to install a slip-ring for 360+ turret rotation.

Did you have any issues with your tracks skipping off when turning on grass? I had to add bearings to the road wheels modify the suspension arms to stop them slopping and tighten the tracks right up before I could get mine to run on grass....

Interesting you mention.

I did have to remove one link per side to have adequate tension to run flawlessly in grass.

No other modifications.

I left the tensioner at it's tightest point and took a link out to make sure I could get the track on and then make needed adjustments later. It has plently to go on the idler, so I can see no problem with it throwing a track.</p>

being that it is titles "Side Project", hereis another tidbit that is part of the project.

Nice! [8D]

The kid is good, ain't he? I've sat here and watched Yellow advance from someone who was worried about painting the tool handles on his first HL turn in to quite the master. Warms the cockles of me heart, it do.

I have been trying to get out for 30 years.

Bob,
That may be the understatement of the year! With Yellow trolling this site and sharing his skills and churing out one beautiful work of art after another, I think I will hang up my airbrush and relegate myself to learning from the sen say!

Joe, seriously the VW looks awesome, and I'm sure the T-55 for all of the kits problems issues and shortcomings with be nothing short of amazing.

Unfortunately my friend once you set the bar as high as you have, you can't go backwards. People expect to see amazing things comin out of your shop and you have yet to dissapoint. Like I told you before, I invite you to reflect on where you started and where you are now. You have become a premier builder on this site and your name is synonomus with quality models that have a level of detail and realism that few accomplish. It's been a true pleasure watching the student grow into the master. I'm telling you, and have been - you're a lot better at this than you beleive you are. This takes more than just skill, its also a combination of talent, learned knowledge, artistic know-how and a creative eye, along with enough courage to take risks, and you possess all of these!


Keep rolling my friend I'll be watching with interest!

Squid

Not really........lol

Cheers,
Wade

You guys are far too kind. I am learning as I go. Fouur years now in the hobby, and I have found that I enjoy all aspects of it. I get satisfaction from building them, and also battling them. But there is something about making a specific one unique. that is what I learned from guys like Sevoblast, Streetsquid, EOT, and a bunch of others here. The end result doesn't always mean right or wrong, only that in the builder's eye, it is what he envisioned before anything was done to it. That brings the most satisfaction. I only share my work here to be involved. Constructive crtiiscism is always aprpeciated.
On the Bug, I did a basic camo scheme and thought it would look good on this particular vehicle. Is it correct? Who knows...well, someone does, just not me. I think it looks cool though.
Now, speaking of side projects, I had this turret laying around from my KV-1 build way back when. It was done in whitewash and I since converted the tank to a Beautpanzer, KV-2. I diecided I would no longer need the KV-1 turret and thought it might be cool to practice some technique on it, and then use it as a battlefield prop. Blown off turret sitting for a few years...and forgotten about. It is not finished yet, but here it is so far....Let me know what you guys think. Any questions are also welcome, as always

Awesome Joe.

Thank you Dan! Here is some more of the turret after some light washes and oils applied.

Yellow,
Absolutely awesome...................... thank you for proving my point! I guess a picture truly is worth a thousands words, nothing I could write here could do your work more justice than a few snapshots. Gotta see it to appreciate it! Well played sir, well played

Regards,
Squid

I agree....You've really seem to be a natural when it comes to weathering...unbeliveable....

Well, now that the storm is passed and it is night time, I had a moment to photo the finished paint on the T-55. not much in the way of weathering here, but a few little details I couldn't resist. Anyway, here it is.Hope you guys like it.Honest opinions are always appreciated, of course. I did not add any of the insignias to the tank, becasue I am not sure he wants it done. They can always be added later though.