John F Smith Posted May 14, 2015 Author Share Posted May 14, 2015 Thanks, Peter. You're absolutely right.... so much more planning and thought go into a model that has extensive AM and PE. It's hard sometimes to keep it all straight. The Friulmodel tracks do look fabulous, but I may forego them this time in the interest of getting this build completed in a timely fashion. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John F Smith Posted May 14, 2015 Author Share Posted May 14, 2015 Thanks for the info, Saul I didn't know that, but it makes perfect sense give the way kit manufacturers do things. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John F Smith Posted May 14, 2015 Author Share Posted May 14, 2015 I appreciate your stopping by, Kevin. Yeah, I've about come to the same conclusion about the Friul tracks, at least for this build. Think I will save them for my "next" Merkava build! John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John F Smith Posted May 14, 2015 Author Share Posted May 14, 2015 Thanks for the compliment, Mark. I appreciate it. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Peterpools Posted May 14, 2015 Share Posted May 14, 2015 John Right with you and just enjoy the journey Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fooesboy Posted May 15, 2015 Share Posted May 15, 2015 Hi John, I was in one of my old favourite model shops here in Switzerland yesterday (Model Box in Lezern) and having a rat around in there dollar box and came across a set of Fiulmodel tracks for the Merkava and thought about your build... about time for some more photos right? They had a set of tracks for the Tiger 1, and I just couldn't pass them up.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John F Smith Posted May 17, 2015 Author Share Posted May 17, 2015 Sounds good, Chris. You won't regret the purchase. They really do make a great product. Been down with some illness but I'm back on my feet now and I'll be posting an update in the next couple of days. Hope your trip continues to go well John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John F Smith Posted May 19, 2015 Author Share Posted May 19, 2015 Okay.... time for another update. The lower hull is complete and the upper hull needs only the skirts and air conditioning units to be done. I've begun gluing them together in preparation for priming and that has revealed just how poor a fit they are. I'm in the process of clamping a bit, gluing a bit, repeat. It will take a little time but it will minimize the filling and sanding that I'm going to have to do. Finished the other work and the "pioneer tools" shown below. Lots of scraping and filing before the PE can be attached to replace the molded on items. Most of the work now is on the turret. The gun barrel is complete. I had the option of replacing the other banding on the turret with PE and chose not to do so. I think that the molded on detail is fine and there is really no value added with the PE. Like the hull assembly, the turret is also a poor fit, but I've got it together now. Still to come are more filling and sanding and lots and lots of additional detail to add. In the photo below, the PE "D" rings are in place as well as the hatch, but that's about it. There is so much more to do that the turret is almost a kit in itself.... More after the photo. All of the additional turret items are being assembled off the body of the turret itself and will be added just prior to priming. Includes stuff like 3 machine guns which have amazing detail (23 parts for each, minimum), ammo boxes, vision ports and periscopes, antennae, rocket tubes, and so on, and so on. The PE work seems endless, but I'm sure it's going to pay huge dividends in the end. .....and, it's really a lot of fun. Here are a few examples of the kinds of things that are being built which will be added to the turret. (Apologies for the lint on my black background; the Xacto blade is for scale) Thanks for everyone's input on the tracks. I agree, the Friulmodel tracks are outstanding. But, I've already spent so much time on this model that I'm going to use the kit tracks this time around in the interests of actually finishing this project. Next time, I'll build the Friulmodel tracks first, instead of the kit tracks. I'm getting a good amount of build time each day, and things are progressing well. I'm hoping to be in primer in a week or so and I'll be doing another update by the end of the weekend, I'm sure. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you are all enjoying the build. John Girlscanplay2, scvrobeson and Bill Cross 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Peterpools Posted May 20, 2015 Share Posted May 20, 2015 Hi John Some amazing work and the fit problems just never seems to go away but you sure are conquering them one by one, as the Merkava is looking fantastic. The PE looks terrific and the level of the deal it adds, just brings the build up to a new level. Looking forward to see her in primer and paint and can't wait to see the MG's. Keep 'em coming Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSP_K2 Posted May 20, 2015 Share Posted May 20, 2015 P.E. can add so much, but it's sort of a pain in the rump. John F Smith 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Cross Posted May 21, 2015 Share Posted May 21, 2015 I finished the Meng Merkava IIID kit a few months back, and went with the Friuls: Uncarina, Girlscanplay2 and John F Smith 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John F Smith Posted May 21, 2015 Author Share Posted May 21, 2015 (edited) Wow, Bill! Just had a look at your build on Armorama....what a humbling experience! You did a really superb job! I'll be using it as a reference as I complete this build. Since this is my first piece of armor, I'll content myself in trying to put out something presentable and hope to improve with each build. Thanks for stopping by. I appreciate it. John Edited May 21, 2015 by John F Smith Bill Cross 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John F Smith Posted May 21, 2015 Author Share Posted May 21, 2015 Yup, you're right, Kevin. It can add a lot, but I've almost come to the conclusion that it's really worth it for armor because so much of it can be seen, as opposed to cockpits where a lot of it goes unappreciated. Thanks for stopping by and for taking the time to comment. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John F Smith Posted May 21, 2015 Author Share Posted May 21, 2015 Thanks so much for the kind words, Peter. Almost have those hulls glued together and work is progressing well on the rest. The PE does seem endless and I haven't even begun the ball and chain skirt for the turret yet. It's like the old proverb about how to eat an elephant......one bite at a time. Got the big MG finished today and on to the 7.62s now. Making a lot of progress these days. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Cross Posted May 21, 2015 Share Posted May 21, 2015 John, your build is going to be great. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to PM me. I'm not familiar with the HB kit, but you should be fine, especially with the Friul tracks. The Live Resin guns will also do a lot to upgrade the kit parts. I didn't use them, but they are really terrific from what I have seen. John F Smith 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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