Meng Chieftain Mk10 build

Armor/AFV Cold War
#1

After screwing up my AFV Centurion build and then having Covid 19 I have got my mojo back. I will try and RTFM properly this time.
It will also make a interesting sided by side comparison with the Takom one on my display shelf.

Sprue A
Sprue A1920Ă—1281 255 KB

Sprue B
Sprue B1920Ă—1249 174 KB

Sprue C
Sprue C1920Ă—2012 247 KB

Sprue D
Sprue D1920Ă—1381 216 KB

Sprue E
Sprue E1920Ă—1433 169 KB

Sprue F
Sprue F1920Ă—1209 195 KB

Sprue H
Sprue H1920Ă—850 138 KB

Sprue K
Sprue K1920Ă—694 137 KB

Sprue L
Sprue L1920Ă—1279 136 KB

Turret
Turret1920Ă—1282 115 KB

Photoetch
Photoetch1920Ă—1020 256 KB

Hull bottom
Hull bottom1920Ă—1084 56.8 KB

Hull top
Hull top1920Ă—1077 109 KB

Finally the tracks.

Tracks
Tracks1920Ă—1519 257 KB

Sprue M
Sprue M1920Ă—1146 176 KB

The fit of the hull halves is excellent and my example has no discenable warp on any of the supplied parts.

hull dry fit
hull dry fit1920Ă—945 45.7 KB

Six parts for each idler.

001
0011920Ă—1640 365 KB

Three parts for each drive sprocket and two for the return rollers.
002
0021920Ă—1898 312 KB

Finally for now nine parts per roadwheel.
003
0031920Ă—1282 177 KB

8 Likes
#2

Will be tagging along with this one @Catsrcool , although looking at the complexity of the wheels alone I am having doubts about unnecessary work needed to do it… I did like the Takom ones, the Mk 10s and 11s.

1 Like
#3

The suspension units are assembled from sub-assembilies and have two different types the first of which is underneath. The top five components at the top make up the sub-assembly below them.

004
0041920Ă—1793 397 KB

Next these parts are added to the above stage. The instructions show the part circled as C24 but do not tell you the other one is C25.

005
0051920Ă—1282 256 KB

Assembled it/they both look like this.
006
0061920Ă—1282 163 KB

Then these parts are added. There should be two arm linkages in the picture but I missed including one.

007
0071920Ă—1281 300 KB

Now it/they look like this. The return roller is not glued on and neither is the arm to support the side plates.
008
0081920Ă—1282 199 KB

The two parts circled below are both called out as part C15 but one is C13. I have assumed they are some track return “skids”, so they would be on the side facing the front of the wagon? If the above is correct one has to be put on the opposite side as per picture but the instructions would have you put them on the same end.
009
0091920Ă—1282 155 KB

1 Like
#4

Oh Man - what happened to the Cent? It was the Berlin Brigade one wasn’t it?

#5

I did not read the instructions properly and screwed up the suspension. That alone would not be too bad as you would not see it. The icing on the cake was with the metal tracks on the drive sprockets have a noticable “toe out” and the rear of the track does not sit flat.
Now I know it is like that I can’t unsee it.

#6

IMG_1572
IMG_15721920Ă—1241 141 KB

And yes it was going to be a 4RTR vehicle.

#7

Update the parts call out is correct but the instructions in step 4 say same both sides but step 5 actually deals with the other side and the result is as it should be and as I have the picture above.

#8

Looking good Cats. Have this on order with my guys in Glasgow so I’m glad you’re building it before me and can spot all the spurious parts call outs first! I happened to be in Edinburgh yesterday and did the obligatory visit to wonderland models and they had just got a delivery of these, looks like a lot of plastic, and I should think so at three quarters of a hundred quid!

Keep up the good work, J.

1 Like
#9

Shame; doesn’t look that bad but I take your point.

#10

https://forums.kitmaker.net/uploads/default/original/3X/1/0/10b5708026120bd84ed4788bebbf3401aadecfb7.jpeg
You have inserted the pins from the wrong side on the left hand unit.

#11

Yes I shall try and turn them round.

#12

Thank you.
I bought mine here:

It was the best price I could find in the UK.

1 Like
#13

Cats looking at the Centurion is it just a case of the bell housings sticking out at the bottom?

#14

I’m having the same thoughts, I dislike doing roadwheels etc. at the best of times but these would full on finish me off I think.

1 Like
#15

The spring packs look the same… The real ones were a biblical pain in the a** … It will be nice seeing this built, but I’m going to keep an eye out for the Takom Mk11 to do as my last chieftain ride.

#16

No. I think it is the kit mounts for the sprockets.

#17

What scheme are you going for on this one Colin ?

#18

John it has to be the Berlin Brigade.
I have Tankograd 9001 coming as reference.
I bought it from the Bovington Shop.

I am waiting on some AM stuff for it. I have Masterclub tracks coming from Wildcats Models, a resin Barrel from Accurate Armour and 3D Printed headlights from FC Modeltrend.

#19

@Johnnych01 @BootsDMS
The Postman has just delivered the Tankograd book.
Meng have got the roadwheel colour as light grey, the wagons in the book have black roadwheels and are very shiny and dark.
So firstly do you think it is Nato Black with a gloss coat or something darker please?
The machines also look pristine even the track pads look very new. Were they always kept like that or are the pictures depicting “show” standard for the pictures?
Thanks

#20

If you look at Berlin Brigade Chieftains in their place of work so to speak the wheels are black or at least very dark, the grey seems to have come from museum examples.

1 Like