Gentlemen,
This is just a documentation of my assembly process, which I don't expect to involve much customization. I'll try to take photos of each and every step or at the very least, document some of the key features that makes the Tamiya Leo a unique and impressive kit that it is. I will also provide steps from theinstructionmanual so it can fill in blanks that give a better understanding of the assembly.

(Sorry for anyinconsistentphoto taking. I'm still trying to get used to this new camera.)




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Threw in a little size comparison for those notfamiliarwith motor sizes. These are 540's as opposed to the 380's in HL and Tamiya Stock tanks.
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You are putting some effort into this.

Well that does it for the gear box and axle assembly.
I want to thank Shenlonco for giving me a sample of his heavy grease to try in this build. It'sdefinitely provides avery smooth rotation of gears when used in appropriate amounts! Great stuff!

Stay tuned for the lower half assembly!

Before anyone says anything....it's my tank!
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......AHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAAA! I dare you to do that camo on the exterior of your Leopard.

Thanks Tony ... the inside of the tank looks cool..... your not doing this to the outside are ya?[X(]
Not going to post back here don't want to crud up your nice build thread with loads of replies.

Thanks guys. I don't mind the posting in here, I'm just going to limit the amount I post, since I do get carried away, lol.<div></div><div>Anyway. I did think about painting theexterioras a snow leopard skin pattern, just to have anotherweirdopainted tank that plagues the google searches...but it would only be temporary! lol Then I thought about the work. Although I freehanded the interior, I would have to use masking techniques on the out....not appealing for something I don't intend to bepermanent.</div><div></div><div>I wanted to paint the gear box, but it's Polycarbonate with reinforced glass fiber. (Tamiya does a good job of letting you know what kind of material each sprue is with abbreviations, as if to boast, lol) The surface, no matter how much I clean it with solvents, remains slick to the touch like it's lubricated. So, I won't bother troubling myself with that.</div><div></div><div>Just waiting on the primed swing arms to dry and I will continue on!</div>

Why if you don't mind the posts then.... Tony i do kind of agree on a different paint job I am kind of sick of seeing the leopards they always have the same paint job...If i ever do get one i am going to paint it another way even if they did not ever come that color there done the same so much it's a see one seen em all kind of deal.... kind of boring.

I agree. The nato camo is not at allappealingto me. This is one of the reasons why I didn't care for modern armor a whole lot, but because the deal I got for the Leo which issupposedto be the epitome of Tamiya's kits I figured I better get the leo. The Panther G, Jagd, PIV, etc which is priced $150 lower than their most advanced kit, made it a logical approach.<div></div><div>I do hope to make my tank a bit more unique in the final result but remain realistic. For the money I shelled out, I can't bring myself to get toofantastical, but whatever goes on in the interior is fine. I'd do it to the HE leo in a heartbeat though!</div>

nice camo pattern inside tony, very original too, do you have a few pics of your finished pershing,
i have decided i go for the superpershing killing all those meaning germanheavy tanks

Man! I have to say, assembling road wheels aren't exactly what I think of as fun, didn't care for that part much during the Pershing build....and can't say the feelings have changed much! Took longer to do this than to assemble the gearbox the first time.The shock absorbers I like a lot. Unlike the Pershing's dampeners, these are functional.

Swing arms and copper bushings have been replaced with metal swing arms and ball bearings.

Anyway, this is where I'm at.....moving on.

And Karel, still waiting on a shipment of putty so I can finish the Pershing. But it's practically done.

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Great job on the build!! I would love to build one of these!!

Ahh, I remember back when I put the gearbox together on mine. It seems like a lifetime ago (the first week of June really). I love the mechanical part of the build, so now that I am putting in the electronics and almost ready for testing, I am getting really excited about seeing mine come to life.

Being new to tanks, I went with the prescibed NATO paint scheme, and now that it is done, I rather like it (except for the few oops moments being new to airbrushing). I am glad that perfection is not what we are looking to attain.

By the way Tony. Those pictures are great. Are you using on camera flash? If so, what camera is it? It has great flash coverage.

I am looking forward to more pictures from someone with way more skill than I have.

Steve

Little further along.

Thanks Tex and Steve!

I agree, I enjoyed the gear construction very much. Even more the second time I didn't rush through the gear box assembly. Right now, I'm trying to figure out where 2 bearings go for the suspension. They supply 76 copper bushing or whatever metal it is and the bearing upgrade even supplies 76 bearings. I keep looking in the manual and I'm not actually sure if I've missed something or if it'll pop up needed elsewhere. Every torsion bar has the three required.....oh well, I'm sure it'll turn up after I've glued or screwed something down! lol

Anyway Steve, I'm using a Nikon L110 coolpix camera I just got the day before. I'm not quite sure how I feel about it. There still is a bit of grain no matter what I do. I am considering returning it for an SLR camera. Specifically Nikon's d300s, but I'll sleep on that more since I'm simply a casual picture taker, not a photographer.

Ahh...a REAL build thread. Unlike the other non-event thread.

Thats a wicked camo in there. Looks like a great kit.

Great build thread, Tony!

The paint inside the hull is awesome! Did you do it freehand with an airbrush? [X(]

The two 'extra' bearings will be part of the cannon elevation assembly (STEP 55), if I'm not mistaken.

Thanks Ron and 13BT!<div></div><div>As for the airbrushed innards, yeah I did that freehand while I was waiting for parts to arrive. Could have been better had I ran a masking job or even hand painted the black rings, but it's the inside which 85% of it will becovered...... and who's really going to see it, including myself? lol!</div><div></div><div>Also, thanks for clarifying about the bearings. I didn't realize it would be that far ahead into the assembly and for the gun unit. The convoy light has already given me an example of what's to come. While I've already don't the photo etched light guard.Right now, I'm trying to figure the best approach to this.I think this is the portion where things need to be left off unit after painting. I can't see how I'd be able to avoid painting over the clear housing if Ipermanentlymount this. Ah well, the joys of skipping things only to lose them when needed. lol!</div>

Tony, that thing is awesome. I never got to see the iner workngs of the Leo beofre. Very serious build you have going there. I love that camo job on the hull. Paint the outside to match! That would be a definite original!

Ah well, the joys of skipping things only to lose them when needed. lol!</div>
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Amen to that. Only to find it after ordering replacement parts

Amen to that. Only to find it after ordering replacement parts

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Amen to that, but it's always good to have spare parts LOL.

Jim

Now were getting somewhere Tony. I love the LEOPARD print on the underside of the hull. Are you going to keep that on ther. I think you should. It is actually a pretty good camo scheme. LOL.

Tony The Tiger "it's GREAT"