Working on Tamiya’s M551
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I used Tamiya Extra Thin (with the dark green cap) on mine and it worked OK. But it reminds me that kit is still in the “unfinished” stack, and I must get back to it…
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I agree it can work and have done the same. That said I am not fan of Tamiya link and length and to be fair might not be just theirs, but the concept. It’s idea is solid but the easy of the individual links around the sprocket and to each other is less than ideal imho.
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Personally I prefer Revell Contacta because it takes longer to cure, so I have time to make any adjustment needed. Then I just leave it for a day (to be on the safe side) and it’s done.
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thanks for the advice on the glue.
My thought is to glue the road wheels on.
press fit the sprocket and idler. glue the track in place around all the wheels and sprockets.
Leave one link unglued at the idler.
When dry, carefully spread the track at the idler and pull the sprocket off with the track then paint the track and reinstall.
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It depends on what type of link and length it is. The Tamiya French Armored Supply Carrier UE had fixed upper and lower “length” with connecting “links”. The top length had the sag built in. I glued the upper length to the return rollers first. Then fitted the links to the drive sprocket (Still loose) and rotated it until they met the upper run then glued them together. Then I put the links on the idler. I think I had glued the idler since there were no teeth. I started with from the upper length and went around. The last was the bottom length. I used Testors Liquid Cement as that was all I had. I think Tamiya Extra Thin would have worked better.
I’m pretty sure I painted the tracks first before gluing.
Their SU-76M is a different story. You build the upper run from individual links then put them on a jig to get the sag in the correct places. For that, I would use Tamiya Cement (Orange Cap) to get the extra drying time. Hopefully I won’t end up tie the track and jig glued to each other.
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Greg,
I hate link & length tracks but have used them many times. My best results were NEVER with Tamiya Extra Thin for several reasons.
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One must very sparingly apply TET or that excellent capillary action takes it to the wrong places.
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Link & Length tracks get jostled around alot going on, coming off, being painted, weathered going back on etc. A good bond is critical. I tend to apply Tamiya Extra Thin to sparingly and the track typically breaks when weathering or being installed after weathering.
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TET sets too quickly for this task because I have two building speeds…SLOW and SLOWER
I much prefer Testor’s Liquid Cement in a Tamiya bottle for track installation. It has more viscosity and less aggressive capillary action plus it’s slower. I can install and tweak and adjust etc. Likewise, I really like Mr Hobby Mr. Cement S.
There isn’t a right or wrong Liquid Cement in my opinion, it’s finding the one that matches your building style best.
HTH
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You need to leave more.
Two to three links, maybe four depending on the geometry of the sprocket and the teeth.
I have 2-3 links at one end of a track run onto the sprocket,
have 2-3 in a short segment for the sprocket
and then 2-3 links on the opposing track run.
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Top,
Your plan for track installation is sound. It will work perfectly. That’s exactly what I do. Use Revell Contacta or Testors (Model Master) glue in the black needle nose bottle. These glues have a little viscosity so they stay where you put them, give you a couple of minutes set up time, and have excellent adhesion. They are the perfect glue for doing plastic tracks.
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