I almost feel like this is going to be an unofficial New Years resolution for me this year...clear out the backlog of old builds. I've got so many old builds piled up that I felt like it was time to do something about it. I grabbed the most complete tank build I had and decided to finish it. It just happened to be the Trumpeter T34/76 1943 conversion built on a Taigen T34 lower. It doesn't have it's own build thread here as I started it way before being a member here, you guys will just have to catch up with this posting.
Previously the tank has had magnets added to the turret halves, magnet mounts were built for the upper hull to mount to the lower hull, bearings were added to the kit wheels, the Trumpeter upper deck was adapted to the Taigen lower, a Henntec adjustable idler was added, a Visaton FRS7 speaker installed, a Clark TK50 installed, a HL rotation unit adapted to the Taigen rotation gear via a custom mounting solution, and a custom recoil/elevation built from some aluminum angle/servos.
Magnet mounts for the hull:
Speaker box that also acts as a hull brace. I can be easily removed if needed.
Rotation mounting:
Completed lower next to it's sibling - the 1942 T34/76 with applique armor.
With those pics you should be caught up.
The tank was pretty well complete except for wiring issues. I finished the wiring on the turret rotation, the spot light, the IR LED (mounted below the gun), and the MG LED. I also mounted the 3D printed apple base in one of the hatches. I lowered it enough that I can still put the hatch on when the apple isn't installed. I will be adding a small magnet to the hatch and one on the mount to keep the hatch in place. Russian hatches of this era weren't designed to open fully so removing it was kinda the best option for when the apple is needed for battle.
After the wiring was complete I tested all it's functions and ran it around on the carpet for a few minutes. The barrel position wasn't right for some reason so I adjusted both the servo recoil arm and the elevation servo. I then did a functions check and verified all functions were working on the Clark TK50. You can see the barrel elevation and depression is pretty good now.
Some additional texture was added to the tank on the turret and the MG port as the factory texture in the plastic was a little too consistent. There were a few details that got knocked off during the build like one of the lifting eyes on the turret and the turret hatch stops. All were reinstalled. I put the weld lines in around the towing hooks, the turret air cleaner, and along the mantlet sides. Most of the other weld lines were already present on the tank. They are small, but there none the less. I kinda forgot to get pics of that stage as it is a tad rougher than just the Mr. Surfacer that is on it in the pics.
With so many T34 variants laying around, I decided I needed to mix and match some of the dished road wheels along with the steelies and spoked wheels. They will be grouped on the front right of the tank together. I figured if the tank was hit it's possible both of those wheels took damage and got replaced with whatever was on hand. The wheels that were replaced will be distributed to the T34/76 1942 tank and my SU-122.
And then with great enthusiasm...paint. I actually really hate the painting stage, but since this project has gone so long it was good to see it all in one color. It's now off to the side to cure.
This is the set of decals I will be using. I will be adding the camo pattern as well. When this one is finished I was going to tackle it's sibling, but it seems the sound has died on it's TK50 and there are other mechanical issues to sort out with the turret elevation. Those things will have to wait as there are other vehicles with less issues that can be knocked out first. Gonna get all that low hanging fruit first.
That's all for now...
Previously the tank has had magnets added to the turret halves, magnet mounts were built for the upper hull to mount to the lower hull, bearings were added to the kit wheels, the Trumpeter upper deck was adapted to the Taigen lower, a Henntec adjustable idler was added, a Visaton FRS7 speaker installed, a Clark TK50 installed, a HL rotation unit adapted to the Taigen rotation gear via a custom mounting solution, and a custom recoil/elevation built from some aluminum angle/servos.
Magnet mounts for the hull:
Speaker box that also acts as a hull brace. I can be easily removed if needed.
Rotation mounting:
Completed lower next to it's sibling - the 1942 T34/76 with applique armor.
With those pics you should be caught up.
The tank was pretty well complete except for wiring issues. I finished the wiring on the turret rotation, the spot light, the IR LED (mounted below the gun), and the MG LED. I also mounted the 3D printed apple base in one of the hatches. I lowered it enough that I can still put the hatch on when the apple isn't installed. I will be adding a small magnet to the hatch and one on the mount to keep the hatch in place. Russian hatches of this era weren't designed to open fully so removing it was kinda the best option for when the apple is needed for battle.
After the wiring was complete I tested all it's functions and ran it around on the carpet for a few minutes. The barrel position wasn't right for some reason so I adjusted both the servo recoil arm and the elevation servo. I then did a functions check and verified all functions were working on the Clark TK50. You can see the barrel elevation and depression is pretty good now.
Some additional texture was added to the tank on the turret and the MG port as the factory texture in the plastic was a little too consistent. There were a few details that got knocked off during the build like one of the lifting eyes on the turret and the turret hatch stops. All were reinstalled. I put the weld lines in around the towing hooks, the turret air cleaner, and along the mantlet sides. Most of the other weld lines were already present on the tank. They are small, but there none the less. I kinda forgot to get pics of that stage as it is a tad rougher than just the Mr. Surfacer that is on it in the pics.
With so many T34 variants laying around, I decided I needed to mix and match some of the dished road wheels along with the steelies and spoked wheels. They will be grouped on the front right of the tank together. I figured if the tank was hit it's possible both of those wheels took damage and got replaced with whatever was on hand. The wheels that were replaced will be distributed to the T34/76 1942 tank and my SU-122.
And then with great enthusiasm...paint. I actually really hate the painting stage, but since this project has gone so long it was good to see it all in one color. It's now off to the side to cure.
This is the set of decals I will be using. I will be adding the camo pattern as well. When this one is finished I was going to tackle it's sibling, but it seems the sound has died on it's TK50 and there are other mechanical issues to sort out with the turret elevation. Those things will have to wait as there are other vehicles with less issues that can be knocked out first. Gonna get all that low hanging fruit first.
That's all for now...
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