Sd.kfz.6 and 88mm project

Justsendit it’s never to late. I have a big hammer and more glue.

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Sorry folks. Health has intervened again.
I’ve been procrastinating and have taken on some of the above comments.

justsendit I can’t see a way of steering the front axle of the 88mm. So I’ve straightened the whole rig up.
petbat the front suspension is an issue I hadn’t considered. Other than pulling it out and starting again I think I’ll just ignore it!!

I’ve lowered the embankment. Not as aggressive and a bit move believable.
The ‘notch’ in the embankment is for a culvert. Too much real estate that side so I’ll put in a drain of some sort.

The track isn’t to scale. Just there to check the concept.

I need to determine if these guys are following a worn track or if they are blazing their own trail. What should it be?

bruce


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Good decision Bruce to flatten the embankment & with some judicious groundwork around the tracks (i.e. to sink them into the ground a tad in an uneven way) it should look fine - and in answer to your question suggest it’s blazing its own trail over the line. I really like that there are some differences between the general appearance of the half track & gun, I’d suggest dustying up all tyres to match the base’s dirt colours when you’ve decided them :tumbler_glass:

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You build it however it makes you happy. That is the important point.

I appreciate the more dramatic pose of front wheels up in the air, but if it does end up bugging you, you could consider turning the combo around and have the 88 coming down off the tracks.

The Display base is evolving nicely! To spice things up a bit to this already spicy build. Do up the RR ties as below,…

ASig00

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Looking good! I like the idea of there being a pre-existing trail, or at least a continuation of some muddy tire tracks, as if they’re following other vehicles in a convoy. I can’t see an AA unit like this just plowing through the bush willy-nilly. There would be other supporting elements travelling with them.

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Thanks guys.
ArmoredSprue you’re onto something. I never thought of the track being ripped. Now the creative juices are really flowing. Thanks.

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Not Jack the Ripper but a Schienenwolf (Rail wolf) Track Ripper

Don’t know if the Soviets had time to rip the rails when they retreated. They were
the wrong gauge anyway but the Germans usually ripped the tracks during their
retreats if they could.
The Flak unit could be on the retreat and cross rails that have been ripped apart
by the engineers.
Changing the gauge isn’t horribly difficult but if the ties are all shredded then it
gets time consuming and time/speed is essential in war. Always make life as
difficult as possible for the enemy.

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Robin my understanding is that the soviets used the ‘rail wolf’ during WW!. And in WW2. So the idea was a late one by the Germans.

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I really like the idea of adding the RR trackage to the dio!

For those interested; I suggest us Armor Modelers also slide on over to the Railroad portion on the Armorama site. There is more than a little “Military Scale” 1/35th modeling going on over there!

Sorry for the slow updates. Health has been crap. I also think I’m over thinking it. :thinking:

I’m trying to make the track believable. But research on WW2 German railroads simply confused me more. Not hard to do! Anyway I got the sleeper size right for a branch line. Made from balsa and groved with a wire brush. Stained with a weak solution of acrylic paint.
Rail weight is a bit on the light side. But hey it could be a siding. Then I hit the wall on the sleeper plates. Hmmm. So I cut some from styrene. The image show some superglued under the rails. Then I drill the holes for the rail spikes. No I don’t have spikes so I’m trying to modify some long tacks I have. See bottom far left for the only two I have done.

Up side is that ballast and weeds etc will hide most of it. Come to think of it why am I over thinking it if I’m going to hide it. Modelers dilemma?

The look I’m after is a line that isn’t used that much and weeds and crap have hidden a lot of it.

bruce

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Dry fit before I start throwing plaster and glue around.
I intend laying some small logs between the rails as they did to protect the tracks.
Sorry about the crap image.

bruce

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Hello. They are destroying that RR track. The rails are still good but the bed has to be re-established and the rails relaid. In an old John Wayne cavalry movie, his troopers tore the rails up, heated them, bent them, and dumped them in water to set the bend. This was in the Civil War and they could not replace those rails. Maybe the Soviets could not either. John

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Composition of the display is looking really good. Though the ripped ties would have been kool too. :smirk:

ASig00

A bit of procrastinating going on.

Track is in place. Yet to lay the ballast. The logs/pole on the track are an issue. Too uniform. So procrastination #1

I want the halftrack and gun going through ‘virgin’ ground so I thought grass would be best. Along with a few squashed bushes. So what to use? Procrastination #2

A summer scene is ok so dry grass is in order. I’m not a fan of static grass. Too uniform!! I have some fur that is used for toy bears etc etc. Bottom pic shows a leopard piece. Top pic has had the black fiber removed. A few bits of lichen and some rocks and sticks may help. Or will it? Procrastination #3.

I’ve watch Night Shift of YouTube and he sprays all is work black then sprays the colours on. I’m not good enough with the airbrush to try that method.

Thoughts and ideas welcome. Remember the theme will be, “through the grass and bushes and over the tracks”.


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A dry fit. I think it will work. Need a gravel base and some larger stones.

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OK an update. I’ve been unwell for a lot of the past few weeks so progress has been slow.
I’ve hit the proverbial brick wall and my enthusiasm for the project has tanked.

It’s not what I have envisioned. Things started to go wrong so it became a case of near enough is good enough. Maybe sometime down the road I will dust it off a fine tune it.

My base timber refused to stick. Grrrr.
The driver wont work for me so he is just a ghost for the time being.
The paint work on the 88mm is too glossy.
I cocked up my water in the drain. I had it just right and thought I would add some white water. Well no. I went too far and it looks horrible.

Over all just blah.

The 88mm and halftrack were nice kits. It’s just my finishing off and the diorama that has killed it.

Oh well. Onto the next project. I’ve got a Meng M1A1 on the bench to start. First modern tank. So maybe that will fire me up again? Maybe!!

Thanks to those who have followed along.





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Yep, take a break from it, do something else, then have another look at it.
Ken

Hello from Texas. You have inspired me to break out my two 88’s and their tracks. I like what you have done Thanks. John in Texas

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John in Texas I’ve at least I’ve achieved something. Have fun.