Puma lookin’ good….
Paint booth gets a workout
It’s gonna be in the 70s tomorrow. I see yard work in my future because it’s the last day before the Wife has her knee surgery.
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Last week I restarted a project stalled since 2017- the scratchbuild of the 75 mm Soviet AAG mod.1931(aka 3-K):
I’ve built the gun and its platform back in 2016-2017:
But then- mainly due to the complexity of features present and some real modelling life- I lost mojo and shelved the pieces…
4 years ago, I found and purchased a late 1940’s Bulgarian Manual for the gun.It contained thorough descriptions and a lot of drawings thus became a sound base for finishing the build.Yet there was always something in the way.
On March 3d(National Day of Bulgaria) I went with some modelling buddies to the National Museum for Military History-Sofia.
There is a 3-K AAG in the outdoor exposition and I felt my mojo back.
Herewith the progress on the restarted project in the last 8 days:
The gun as it was and the Manual
Work from 2017(trailer frame) compared to drawing from the Manual
New trailer frame and wheels under construction
Getting wheels(modified from sFH wheels, casted for me by a modelling buddy several years ago) true to the frame
Leafspring and winch added
Cheers,
Angel
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Angel, your build looks great - beautiful really 
(as defined by a model building enthusiast, hey - we are all friends here!).
Looking at the complexity and level of detail you have accomplished, I can imagine some fatigue and burnout setting in.
I’m glad that you now have renewed interest, as this is a pleasure to see, and aspirational as always. I’m looking forward to watching your work progress.
Cheers
Nick
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@Barney, well sir, that is a darned good guess, the basic form is very similar, alas, as our friend @Uncle-Heavy points out, there is that feature in the front - which is indeed pretty wide, and different than the load handler, which as your pictures shows, also includes the chassis projecting forward, but it is narrower.
Over the weekend, I kept going:
For scale, I included a driver in the picture - and, you can see there is a lot going on up front. This structure suggests that it’s an all terrain crane, but it’s not that -
Happily, the real version of this includes open sides on the hood, so, when it’s done, you’ll still see at least some of the engine - I’m afraid the turbo might not be seen, but, who knows? I took some artistic license with the nose, forward of the radiator - in real life this area is flat - but, I just liked this look more. The bolt heads are mostly from Meng, those that you cut off of the flat sheets. It’s funny, I’ve been using hex rod for this purpose for so long, I find using these to be really slow - but, I do like the look.
If you look carefully in the lower right image, you’ll see a driveshaft, running from the transfer case to the rear (ahh, Robin, I recall our discussion about PTO’s 
and their operation). The lead foil popping out, will eventually get wrapped around a sprocket, driving some gears. What you can’t see is that there’s also a hydraulic pump that’s also driven by the transfer case.
@Barney, as a hint about this vehicle, you might see one of these running around parts of the Province of Alberta…
OK, on we go -
Cheers
Nick
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“Alberta’s economy is based on hydrocarbons, petrochemical industries, livestock and agriculture.[14] The oil and gas industry has been a pillar of Alberta’s economy since 1947, when substantial oil deposits were discovered at Leduc No. 1 well.[15] It has also become a part of the province’s identity.”
Something like this
The sloping front is a lot more stylish
Not a perfect match. The patio is just a frame not a surface, the rear pillars are not vertical.
Close but no cigar …
Not a crane but shares some of the features of a crane.
I was thinking about forestry, the Wikipedia article mentioned oil industry and agriculture but failed to mention forestry → oil drilling
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Looks wonderful with all that copper !
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Really looks good. I know what you mean about yard work and the wife, knee surgery or otherwise…
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Worth the effort and prolonged time scale - looks really great. Beautiful detail, and interesting subject.
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Beautiful, slushy mess!
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I put some finishing touches on the interior of my Sd.Kfz. 251/17. The strange dirt pattern goes with the base of the 2cm Schwebelafette. I’ve got some gaps to fill between the top and botto halves of the hull.
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Angel, that looks superb!
Nick, I’m liking this new project! 
Bert, that snow on the base looks awesome. I’ve heard good stuff about AK’s snow, but I’ve not gotten a chance to pick some up.
TeeAge, nice job! The truck and the base look great by themselves, but together they’re even better!
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I really, really like this. The generator and power cable look perfect along with everything else.
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Sweet looking 251/17!
A++
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Like many, I have recently returned to modeling after life continued to get in the way. So far I have been relearning my old skills and lurking in forums to learn new tricks. For one of my projects I needed a short section of chain link fence, so instead of buying one I decided to try and make my own. I used plastic window screen I found at Ace Hardware and some small Styrene rod. Tomorrow I will have to finish cleaning up the edges and start the painting. Any tips or suggestions are weclome. Thanks in advance.
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You and me brother! I scrape a bit of dust using an Exacto
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Fantastic work all around, guys!
Al, love your various Bundeswehr M113 variants! We used to call them cookie tins sometimes …
Though I have been a bit quiet in this thread in the last weeks I have been quite active working on my new project, the De Havilland DH 100 Vampire in 1/48 from Airfix and this is the status quo from Sunday afternoon with finally primer all over … 
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Some sot of logging vehicle???
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