I’m about half way into a build of Academy’s K9, “FIN” and have gotten very limited results from Google and PrimePortal. The kit comes with Finnish markings but I seem to remember Finland performed some mods to the vehicle before putting in use. I’ve also read that S. Korea has sold the K9 to a variety of users but again, limited results from Google. If I’m going to build it as Finnish, I’d like to make whatever corrections/additions I can, or maybe build it as used by someone else.
It’s a nice kit btw, aside from the tracks which are old school melty-pin types with soft detail and a fair amount of flash. I subbed Tamiya Challenger 2 tracks.
It also begs for an interior. Not only is the rear hull door separate and detailed on the inside, the turret access doors are all separate, and the engine access doors as well. A conversion for the K10 ammo carrier would be nifty as well… DEF? Legends?
Any suggestions welcomed.
Must do! I did a quick search and I can tell I’ll need pics of the new gun travel lock for sure, and rear 3/4 views of the hull to see what’s been changed there, but oh yeah, I’m in. Any reference links you could share would be appreciated.
Don’t we live in great times? From request to suggestion to photos to starting of project, all in four hours. How did we ever get things done thirty years ago?
Yeah, you’re already halfway there.
Ah, for those vents on the back, Cannon and Co. Inertial air filters may work. Actually one is large enough to cut into two.
'Tis a great time to be a modeler! Even more into left field than this, freeing up the K9 turret has me started on a “what-if” I’ve had in mind for a while too. I’ll throw up a pic later, but it’s also blocked up, should come together nicely.
And yeah, 30 years ago seems like, well, 30 years ago. What did we do.
I give up, “Cannon and Co inertial air filters”? 'Splain please.
Robert: looks like the louvers on a Challenger 1 engine deck. I’ll have to get an idea of size of course, but lots of possibilities there. Thanks.
Torsten: very nice! And yeah, the camo looks “fun”. Hopefully the KRAB sports NATO colors.
There are quite a few small items to be changed on the hull, and then there’s that wacky basket on the back of the turret to figure out.
And since I found myself with a K9 turret with no home, I got busy on this too, using up an old Academy Merk 3:
It was pretty easy to get it on. I had to build up the turret ring about .080" to get it out of the depressed Merkava turret position, and the centerlines of the ring are different to give room to open the driver’s hatch, but the proportions are good, probably better than this one: IMG_1874 by Russel Baer, on Flickr
It actually looks more like the “real” Slammer… IMG_1360 by Russel Baer, on Flickr