Secured another big feline for my build stash…
My mind is set on building this one as an Ardennes Tiger - belonging to “Schwere Abteilung 501”, maybe evewn one of the KTs belonging to “Kampfgruppe Peiper”.
Köenigstiger 008; Schwere Abteilung 501 - 1944.
I’ve heard of the issues with the roadwheels being tilted, but that’s not going to stop me. I’ve dealt with worst. But I would love to pick brains here on how to best replicate a King Tiger involved in the Ardennes Offensive.
If I understand correctly, two long bars are glued inside the hull of this model. These bars have holes to receive pegs on each suspension swing arm. The bars sit just a little high, causing the pegs to go in at a slight angle. This causes the swing arms to be at a slight angle, and later the wheels. As a result, all road wheels end up being pigeon toed.
If the bottom of each bar is sanded slightly such that it sits a little lower in the hull, the swing arm pegs go in perpendicular to the hull side walls and the problem described above never happens. This seems like a fairly easy thing to monitor and correct.
Hopefully I have that right. I look at so many kits, it gets hard to keep everything straight in the memory banks. I gave this model a serious look, only passing because of two Dragon King Tigers already in the closet.
In my opinion, King Tigers are not especially difficult to build but getting one perfect requires serious research. That can be daunting, for sure.
I’m willing to do the research… I have several copies of “Military History” and “WWII Hostory” magazines on my bookshelf that i can pull out and read up.
I think I’ve settled on the markings… I might go with King TIger 332; currently on display at Ft. Moore (formerly Ft. Benning).
Interesting History…
"332 “Tiger” II tanks
Commander: Corporal Otto Blase
Location: Abandoned by the crew on the N33 at Hugh-Bicester on December 25, 1944, and captured by the U.S. Army. In 1945, after repairing No. 332, the U.S. military sent it to Aberdeen Proving Ground for testing. In 1991, No. 332 was acquired and restored by the Barton Museum in Fort Knox. Since 2010, 332 have been kept in Fort Benning, Georgia.
Note: It is possible that the paint is painted by spraying, but it is not a “light and shadow” paint. The turret number of the 332 is painted in medium blue paint, and yellow paint is used to outline the figures. The “Balkan Cross” identification mark is not drawn, and the tactical mark of the SS 1st Panzer Army is not drawn. Upon arrival at the Aberdeen Proving Ground, the body of No. 332 had been painted by the Ordnance Technical Inspection Team with a number of markings, such as the yellow or orange circles with white crosses on the nose, sides and rear of the car. The chassis serial number of the 332 is 280243 and the serial number of the turret is 280001, which indicates that it was built at the Henschel factory on September 11, 1944. No. 332 was initially delivered to the 509th Heavy Armored Battalion, but it was quickly recalled and handed over to the SS 501st Heavy Armored Battalion in early December 1944."
And apparently; the 463th Ordnance Company DID NOT capture KT 332, but the 470th Tank Battalion… Here’s more…
Tiger 332: How Americans Captured a German King Tiger, Mark VI Tank (veteransbreakfastclub.org)
It will forever be FT Benning. Bleeding hearts can call it what they will. But anyone who trained there and became a man there will likely call it Ft. Benning
As it should be.
@Damraska
Yes I had the same problem and threw my one in the bin.
Andy on The Modelling News complained as well.
There is a UTube build encountering this problem … as I recall the holes of inner torsion bar alignment part, glued to the sides inside the hull, are more “elliptic” than circular and need to be drilled out.
Damraska is correct, the issue relates to fitting part C3 and it’s opposite hand, shown below:
I have 3/4 built this kit, and I had no issues with the road wheels. I did notice when I was building that part C3 didn’t fit very well, so I sanded the bottom, and chamfered one of the long edges to get a better fit. I wasn’t aware of the issue prior, but I can see how it could be a problem.
Just spend a bit of time manipulating C3 and it’s partner, and you should be right 
Helped you with the titel of this thread. The “e” is too much if you use “ö”. So it’s “Königstiger” but you could also write “Koenigstiger” 
