Stikpusher

Well I finally have some progress work worth showing. To keep in the spirit of this old kit, I’ve been painting with a brush and enamel paints, mostly Humbrol, and some Xtracolor as well. And this is where is at now. Everything is pretty much just test fitted for this photo. I still want to work on the cockpit opening padded collar a bit, and that’s much easier to do with nothing yet attached. I also drilled out the front of the guns I still need to do some more clean up work there. More to follow in a few days...

Looking very sharp Chris! Can’t wait to see the next two.

Thank you Chris. Next up is some primer in there...

Congrats on the completion of a shelf queen Joe! It may have fought you all,the way to the end, but you won. Well done!

Joe, if I can find a snoopy to sit by this Camel when it’s all done, you’re on. Thanks Bob. That’s cool that you have the collection of old kits. They do have their own charms. I never had or saw the infamous red Aurora Me-109 myself. But I would love to see one someday.

Thanks Joe. I’ve detailed aircraft engines before, but this is my first time doing a tank engine. And yeah, your work has definitely been inspiring in that respect. Your car engines are fantastic. And as for HvH, well, break out a Monogram kit and have a toast in his honor, wherever he may be.

Today, it was back to work on the Camel. First priority, clean up the seam gap on top of the fuselage Add some strip styrene shims sand smooth and paint... I also test fitted the cowling and guns... more in a couple of days

Yes, hopefully he is drinking some wine, eating some cheese, and soaking up some rays in a nice quiet sector somewhere.

Looks fine by me. I don’t know squat about the FT-17 aside from the fact that they existed and were essentially the first “modern” tank with a rotating turret. The camo looks good, and if it looks good on your display shelf, and fills a gap in your collection, what more does one need?

Thank you Bob. I do hope that old VonHammer is doing well, wherever he is. I miss his style.

So today I finished the final bits of work in the engine compartment. Using a jeep engine, I turned it into a two cylinder auxiliary motor then I added the lead line for it, and the compartment fixed fire extinguisher nozzle and feed line so now the power pack has gone from this to this painting to take place over the next few days...

Bravo for another one of your awesome motors Joe!

Beautiful work! I remember the days when Brookhurst Hobbies kept a good stock of vacuform kits in the shop.

My friend, you live in paradise. Go catch some waves, enjoy the island life, and your issue will arrive. All in good island time. Aloha.

Thank you Chris. This is my first time tricking out an AFV engine compartment, so it’s a learning experience for me as I do this. A couple more items to add, then the paint goes on and then installation.

My final update for today. I finished up the carburetors and intake ducting, detailed the oil coolers, and finished the plumbing in those areas. I still need to add the auxiliary motor and battery lead cables. Next session.

This just keeps on getting better! I’m loving all that you’re showing here so far Bradley. 👍🏼

and deeper down the rabbit hole I go... oh Mr. Rabbit! So today’s session has to be broken up, I have so much planned. First off I’m using some sort of idea wheel mounts and sections of sprue here to create the carburetors and intake manifolds So quite a while later of sanding and filing to resemble what I want and make it fit, I had one completed And then I added the air ducting from the air cleaner to the carburetor. Now to finish the other side and get to work on the oil coolers...

That’s my usual pace Chris... 😉

Im sure that it’ll be a good one.

So today’s session of plumbing the engine was longer. But it feels like there is less to show. It was lots of trimming, fitting, drilling, and bending to get the stuff in place. And I added an oil filler tube and in the corner between the oil cooler and transmission housing on the left rear. And the view from each side Tomorrow I plan to work on the oil coolers and add in the carburetors and ducting, since it should be raining here all day.

Well, the kits are still out there. But what potential market does such a book have now?

Thanks Mark. Can’t wait to see what sort of rabbit that you pull out of your hat for this one.

So the last couple of days I've been working on the engine. Yesterday I cut off Italeri’s sorry excuse for the auxiliary motor and generator Which looks nothing like the real thing And I also sanded off all the incorrect detail molded on the oil coolers, and drilled in holes in preparation for plumbing lines. Today I measured and cut lengths of styrene rod to make up the ignition harness for the cylinder banks, then glued them in place. I also created a section of the right side hull fuel tank that goes under the auxiliary motor Then a test fit into the hull with the top on to show what will be visible I still have a couple more sessions worth of work to add more details in there.

My November/December 2020 issue arrived in the mail yesterday.