Detailing that Italeri HEMTT Crane: Resurrecting an old thread that did not quite survive the Archiving:
A lot of additional detail can be added to the model of the HEMTT / Groves Hydraulic, 3 section Crane from Italeri. No notion as yet of how the coming version from Trumpeter will stack up. (I suspect it will surpass this earlier offering.)
Lots of hydraulic lines can be added to the model without hindering its’ movement and the Italeri offering can be modified to produce the actual 3-section boom whereas Italeri currently gives you only two sections and basically fakes the third.
Creating that missing center section of the crane boom is not really as much of a challenge as one might think.
First ~ Standard Assembly of the two halves of the main boom arm as instructed but then . . . . You need to carefully remove that small hint of the second boom section that Italeri gives us. (Keep it, as we will need it in a minute!) I suggest using a jeweler’s bow saw as the kerf of this blade is so fine you will loose very little of the part itself.
You have now built a brand new telescoping box beam out of Evergreen Plastic Shapes to form boom section #2. You have added the two parts cut off the other sections of the boom. Once the glue has dried use a small flat file to insure that all three boom sections fit tightly but still function properly while telescoping in and out of each other.
The Crane Wiggles on it’s base: A larger pivot shaft is needed and that big gear that forms the moving crane base needs to mate better with the flat surface below.
The cable that appears to run from the main shive pulley back to the hydraulic lift motor is actually a piece of thin Evergreen rod that simply retreats into the first boom section when the boom is compressed.
A lot of good work here in detailing that crane. The M984 Wrecker conversion by Hobby Fan has a decently presented (but only stowed) crane, including the hydraulic hoses… well, some anyway.
I’m surprised that someone hasn’t yet offered the crane unit up as a 3-D printed item yet.
Yup, lots of great info. I will be using a lot of it on the M985A2 I am currently building. Also, you can use the same technique as the crane boom extension on the outrigger legs to extend them to stabilize it.
I too am surprised there has not been anything available in the 3D printed realm.
Hopefully, this will mostly be a moot point when Trumpeter’s upcoming M984A2 Wrecker comes out (even thought the front suspension is incorrect in the drawing). The crane should be much better on it.
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