Sd.Kfz. 251, Pak 43 and an unhealthy dose of olive drab

Participants in the 2015 HALFTRACK Group Build post here.
User avatar
Philipp Gross
Site Admin/Founder
Posts: 5122
Joined: 19 Jul 2014, 23:40
Location: Frankfurt
Contact:

Re: Sd.Kfz. 251, Pak 43 and an unhealthy dose of olive drab

Post by Philipp Gross »

Regrettably it's very much standard that any driver figure will never fit into a vehicle, especially not the one they are supposed to fit into. You can imagine what happens when you try to put an American Jeep driver into a German halftrack. :roll: After several hours of cutting, re-arranging and more cutting, I managed to get him into position. He's from Miniart set 35047, by the way.

Image

The other fellows come from Bronco set 35159, assembly here took only a few minutes... :roll:

I also added a few Pak 43 ammo crates made by AFV Club to get a first impression of the internal layout.

Image

For obvious reasons I need to finish the interior work before I can glue on the top half.

Thanks for looking. :)

Philipp
Completed Campaigns:
ImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImage

User avatar
Vincent Power
Senior Site Contributor.....
Senior Site Contributor.....
Posts: 2634
Joined: 31 Jul 2014, 23:49
Location: Melbourne Australia

Re: Sd.Kfz. 251, Pak 43 and an unhealthy dose of olive drab

Post by Vincent Power »

All the hard work assembling the hull is going to pay off Philipp. :D I like the figures you've chosen. Nice touch with the puppy too! ;)

Vincent
Completed Campaigns:
ImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImage

User avatar
Philipp Gross
Site Admin/Founder
Posts: 5122
Joined: 19 Jul 2014, 23:40
Location: Frankfurt
Contact:

Re: Sd.Kfz. 251, Pak 43 and an unhealthy dose of olive drab

Post by Philipp Gross »

Thanks Vincent :)

The puppy comes with the Bronco set. It's my first attempt at their figures and so far I like them. Sharp details, few mould seams and natural poses.

I also found out why the upper hull refused to fit - the floor plate ended up 1-2 mm too high and the firewall with it. Since I couldn't correct it any more, I ended up sanding away the excess lenght from the top. Thankfully it'll be hidden afterwards.

The problem with Dragon's 251s is that they require a high amount of precision during assembly to go together without problems. However the kit makes it very hard to achieve that since neither parts nor instructions give any clue about the proper position of the major components. It wouldn't be much of a problem to mould the entire lower hull of the 251 as a single piece with all plates at correct angles. Maybe Tamiya will make a new 251 some day...

Philipp
Completed Campaigns:
ImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImage

User avatar
Gary Boxall
Site Admin/Founder
Posts: 2476
Joined: 18 Jul 2014, 21:34
Location: Auckland New Zealand

Re: Sd.Kfz. 251, Pak 43 and an unhealthy dose of olive drab

Post by Gary Boxall »

Those figures look like they were made to sit in a 251. Excellent work Philipp 8-)

Gary
Hi. My name is Gary and I'm an ex-Shermaholic....

User avatar
Philipp Gross
Site Admin/Founder
Posts: 5122
Joined: 19 Jul 2014, 23:40
Location: Frankfurt
Contact:

Re: Sd.Kfz. 251, Pak 43 and an unhealthy dose of olive drab

Post by Philipp Gross »

Thanks Gary! :)

I was lucky the other two fit in without much struggle :lol:

Just a few more pieces left to add before I have to paint the interior. The next unholy heat wave is coming (up to 38 degrees celsius are predicted) so that may take a little :? :lol:

Philipp
Completed Campaigns:
ImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImage

User avatar
John Everett
Senior Site Contributor
Senior Site Contributor
Posts: 712
Joined: 20 Jul 2014, 20:15
Location: Denver, Colorado
Contact:

Re: Sd.Kfz. 251, Pak 43 and an unhealthy dose of olive drab

Post by John Everett »

38c is the best temperature for painting. Everything dries super fast. :x :lol:
"You used up all the glue...............ON PURPOSE!" - Darren McGavin

Completed Campaigns:
Image

User avatar
Shawn Ramsey
Senior Site Contributor.....
Senior Site Contributor.....
Posts: 1987
Joined: 20 Jul 2014, 00:26

Re: Sd.Kfz. 251, Pak 43 and an unhealthy dose of olive drab

Post by Shawn Ramsey »

The figures look great. Cant wait to see some paint.

Shawn
Completed Campaigns:
ImageImage

User avatar
Philipp Gross
Site Admin/Founder
Posts: 5122
Joined: 19 Jul 2014, 23:40
Location: Frankfurt
Contact:

Re: Sd.Kfz. 251, Pak 43 and an unhealthy dose of olive drab

Post by Philipp Gross »

Thanks gents!

We had peak temperatures of about 39 C during the last few days so you can imagine my motivation to do just about anything. It's slightly cooler now, so here's a little update:

Image

I'll have to paint the interior next before I can glue the upper half on, which I should do before I add the missing external parts.

Philipp
Completed Campaigns:
ImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImage

User avatar
Raoul Kunz
Senior Site Contributor.....
Senior Site Contributor.....
Posts: 1655
Joined: 20 Jul 2014, 01:16
Location: Karben, next to Frankfurt, HRE

Re: Sd.Kfz. 251, Pak 43 and an unhealthy dose of olive drab

Post by Raoul Kunz »

Nice! :D
It looks more ordered than my 251C :lol: .


Best regards

Raoul G. Kunz
~fiat iustitia aut pereat mundus~

Completed Campaigns:
ImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImage

User avatar
Philipp Gross
Site Admin/Founder
Posts: 5122
Joined: 19 Jul 2014, 23:40
Location: Frankfurt
Contact:

Re: Sd.Kfz. 251, Pak 43 and an unhealthy dose of olive drab

Post by Philipp Gross »

The simplified construction of the original is definitely a benefit for both the kit designer and the modeller :lol:

Methinks I'll try my luck with the Pak 43 next before I start painting. Knowing the weather here in the Hessian Death Valley I'll probably won't be able to paint for at least another month.

Philipp
Completed Campaigns:
ImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImageImage

Post Reply