Leo2A6 Owner

I usually give mine a base wash and drybrush session. maube some artificial paint chipping then let mother nature do the rest. Take it out on a dusty day, dont clean it then take it out on a lightly drizzly day. repeat and modify that as needed. After a few trips round through the dirt and damp it will start to pick up alot of realistic weathering.

dinodog

[8D]Absolutely! The larger the scale the better the natural weathering! Stone chips on the front etc.

dinodog

Whoops! double post...

darticus

Great info! I have a 1/9 ABRAMS and it has good features but I would like to add cannon up down and variable speed and shooting airsoft instead of 1 missile. Just need about 2 or 3 channel more. maybe a second radio ?

darticus

Double post how do we delete it!
Great info! I have a 1/9 ABRAMS and it has good features but I would like to add cannon up down and variable speed and shooting airsoft instead of 1 missile. Just need about 2 or 3 channel more. maybe a second radio ?

chaman

Go with a darker shade of the base color. If you dont find one that really satisfies you, add a bit of black to base color and experiment. You dont want thinned out paint but more of a tinted solution. Let it go in all nooks and crannies, clean up excess with a towel.

dinodog

Hi Guys, you could add a basic acoms type 2 Channel 27mhz or 40mhz to use in addition to the existing TxRx, cheap enough and easy to remove and upgrade later as the servo mounting and setting up is where the work is and that would be reused and not wasted... Adding a 3 Channel rig seems hardly worth it though, comparing the cost to a 4 or 6 channel rig, unless you already had one... it depends what you have got in your spares box

Because of the nature of the servo arm swing, for example, you could use a 2 Channel TxRx to raise and lower the Gun, using 1 servo and a microswitch arrangement, and at a push you could get at least another function out of it, and the other channel with it's servo to fire the Gun and maybe a machine Gun sound or lights etc. arranging the mircoswitches to use the full swing of the servo wheel or arm to do more than 1 job... There is so much room in the Turret and Hull of a 1:12 or 1:9 that anything is possible!

Chaman, spot on! Finding the right colour colourwash has always been the key. I find browns for dirt and buff for dust work well on desert yellow. As it seems Ron already has a good colour Topcoat and finish (BTW Ron, what colour and type of paint have you used?) then chosing the right colourwash would set the Tank off nicely, excuse the pun. Use your eye to adjust the colour to compensate. Have a few trys and when it looks "right" stop!

Another old trick, often used on gloss or satin solvent based paints, as years ago these were the only ones strong enough available to the modeller, is to use a Fine "Wet and Dry" or waterproof sandpaper and lightly sand or "key" the surface of the Tank using some slightly soapy water to act as a lubricant, leaves a nice matt worn finish which can be pretty scale. Happy Trails![8D]

darticus

Now we are talkin' I was thinking of somehow adding a 2 channel radio to this but not really sure of how to do it. A servo could lift the cannon and lower it by just a servo arm pushing it up, right? It does fire a missile now so I would have to take it apart to see what its doing. At present I push a 81/2 inch missile shaft in the cannon and it locks after pushing a spring inside back. Than when I push a button on the tx it shoots 15 feet. Need an airsoft system! What frequency 2 channel radio would I need. I don't want to get something to cause the original radio to screw up. How can I tell the frequency of the original equipment? Thanks Ron

darticus

After checking I find the Abrams 1/9 tank to be 27MHz and the Stuart M5 tank to be 49 MHz. What does this mean? Are thes just ground RC frequencies? Ron

dinodog

Hi Ron, 27mhz and 49mhz are different operating frequencies, so it might be prudent to add a 40mhz 2 channel TxRx rig to the 1:9 which you say is on 27mhz so they don't clash.

[8D]You can't just lift the cannon up and down with a servo, you have to use a bevel gear system of some kind. Have a look at the tamiyaclub.com homepage and click on reference and then click manuals. These are very well laid out manuals and will give you some idea on the layout of Tank internals. Look down the list of models and find some Tamiya Tank models chose a few to look at and find the page number by elimination for the cannon assembley in the turret area and have a look on how it's normally done, it varies a lot from one make to another but rest assurred that the Tamiya method is one of the best. As far as I know non members are free to view the manuals. I don't know your models setup at all but doesn't your Abrams 1:9 have some kind of cannon up down movement control already fitted? Dino.[8D]

darticus

The 1/9 Abrams has a manual lift only as far as I know. I now know some move on a cam as the terret turns but this I think is manual. I bought a 2 channel radio to add maybe 2 servos and maybe move the cannon up and down. Ron

dinodog

Hi Ron, you could have a look at modifing Heng Long spares to fit as I think I have seen an elevator unit for sale but I can't remember where... Without seeing what internals you have got to work with it's difficult. Anyone?[sm=71_71.gif]

Just had a quick look at the Tamiya Manuals, try page 27 28 29 30 of the manual for the Pershing Tank or Tamiya model number 56015. It shows close up the internal design.

darticus

Any chance you have the site address. Trying to find it. I just bought a 2 channel 75MHz radio to add A few channels to the tank if needed. Thanks Ron

dinodog

I can't seem to sort out a link, go to the tamiyaclub.com homepage, click on "reference" and then click "manuals" and you should get all the Tamiya manuals come up on a list, have a look and let me know. Dino [8D]

dinodog

Sorry Ron, don't click on reference just rest pointer on it and then click manuals when the list appears whoops....

dinodog

[8D]Hi Ron, try http://www.tankzone.co.uk/cart/hl_spares.htm they have elevators and turret turn units etc., cheap enough and they might just fit.... You will get some similar more local to you.

darticus

DINGODOG
Checked out the tamiyaclub.com looks like a lot of good stuff. Also checked out that Tankzone link and looks real good. They seem to have the cannon up and down units but I would like to know how they hook up. I see that the end of the cannon rest on a tapered lifter but I don't know how its wired in. The HL people know how they hook up Maybe they will share info. Thanks for all you help! I am a learning newbie. Ron

dinodog

[8D]Hi Ron, got you on the right track at least, excuse the pun! Now you see what I meant about making things up as you go along! Thinking on your feet is very useful when doing homebrew "conversions" there are never 2 alike!

Yes you need to more on know how the Heng Long elevator is set-up inside the Turret and how it's mounted in relation to the Cannon etc., there are lots of Heng Longs out there! Copying the mounting points could be made using alloy, ABS (2mm plastic sheet polywelded, sorry, glued...) Milliput Epoxy Putty or a combination of each, using the putty to mould custom fittings or parts for mounting if required.

The Elevator unit, once set-up, could be driven by 1 channel, 1 servo and 1 microswitch (as you have no DMD control unit)
You need a microswitch which goes 2 ways, like the Maryland Attack Group Speed Control seen at rctankcombat.com Speed controls, but wired to just have the servo push activate the microswitch to turn the motor clockwise or anticlockwise (forward and reverse if you like) this movement of the motor controls the Cannon elevation. Phew! You could add another microswitch controlling yet another funtion using the same servo and channel, but with the extra microswitch further around the servo arm "swing", maybe more on that later....

CQ CQ CQ CALLING ALL HENG LONG TANKERS ON THE NET! Can a Heng Long elevator be used like that? I have done it in other Tanks using small 3 to 4.8 volt motors, but I have never been inside a 1:16 Heng Long, any ideas anyone.... It might be an idea to start a new thread on this subject as we have wandered far away from weathering Tanks!

BTW Ron, did you see the Heng Long electronic infra red battle system? Wow! And it's compatable with Tamiya! Now I am impressed! Last time I heard about these non Tamiya battle units it was all a pipe dream! The WSN AKA Trumpeter models are also very nice! Just what the 1:16 scene needed, Russian Tanks at last and they are expecting a 1:16 Half Track!! Sweet Dreams!