Dragon 1/72 Sd.Kfz.251 Ausf D

[nsmekanik]

Thanks Bob, yeah I figured as much so I sealed them with enamel.

Since I got 4 of them and I only plan on using 2 of them I got a little crazy with one set for fun, tried out my new Sotar

Works the treat but I still have a long way to go with the skills thing :dance . I've seen a lot of nice work out there using this stuff, but my main concern was how well would it work in 1/72 scale. I'm sold.

It is a bit tricky and one has to be careful as it is to easy to remove to much paint but all in all a nice result can be had

It looks really much better in person then I can get a picture of, I'll have to fool around with the settings a bit later on I guess

:drinks

 

[jknaus]

Cool
James

 

[nsmekanik]

Man it's a busy place around here :fencing ..........or it's just that time is flying by faster then I'm up to the challenge of realizing :java but it sure don't take long to disappear off the front page. I haven't been slacking off, just busy with domestic issues known as the "honey do list" :smack but I have managed to squeak in some play time so here is where it's at

Great work goin on around here, Cheers to you all
:drinks

 

[moon puppy]

Looks good, very subtle chipping

 

[reconron]

Looking good so far Tim!

The square shaped things on the roof of the driver and radio operator places are leather cushions you might want to paint them leather brown.[...on the other hand you might not notice them if the upper structure and lower one are glued together]

Greetings,Ron.

 

[nsmekanik]

Thanks Ron, They probably won't be seen once these are done but I painted them black anyway

Yes I have been slackin off......still made some progress just waitin for the paint on some guns to dry so i can finish painting them then it's time to put the lid on things and start on the exterior finish

:drinks

 

[reconron]

looking good Tim!

greetings,Ron.

 

[moon puppy]

They really do look good Tim, especially in this scale!

 

[razordws]

those a looking really good Tim! Keep the pics coming.

 

[nsmekanik]

Thanks Dudes

Finaly got the lid on things :woohoo:

:drinks

 

[nsmekanik]

Never been fond of the rubber band tracks, but at least Dragons are glueable, still don't like them though. Anyway a bit of a heads up for anyone building one of these kits, as seems to be the norm with Dragon, there are the

instructions

, and then there is reality :evil: . The tracks are numbered 1 and 2, this should have been a clue :pinch: , anyway I thoughtlessly sniped the tracks off the sprue while pondering how to deal with them. The latest fad in 1/72 tracked kits is to mould the running gear wheel runs as one piece layers, the down side is that all the wheels are in the least likely position they would ever be found in with all the holes and whatever in perfect symmetry. So after thinking about it I thought I'd try glueing the tracks and wheels together as a single removable unit just like one might do with link and length tracks. Worked out so well I'm gonna try it with my T-34.

The other good thing about those horrid Dragon rubber band tracks is that if they are a bit tight they can be stretched a bit to gain some slack, or if they are to lose one can knock out a link or two to tighten them up and then glue the ends together preferably on a road wheel.

K so on the first set I did I noticed one track was nice and snug and the other track was a bit lose, I discovered the lose one after I glued up the snug one, so I cut a link out of the lose one and glued the thing together and set the runs beside each other. It was at this point I discovered why they were numbered 1 and 2.

Yes, just like the real thing one side is longer then the other, of course no where in the instructions does Dragon tell you that, in fact the tracks are labelled D(D). Oh, and if you decide to try this at home don't do like I did and glue the track all the way around the front road wheel, the rear one is just slightly higher so the wheel sets are handed. Yes I managed to get the track off with out damaging anything.

Another thing is that the alignment slot for the front fender has a bit of play, make sure you glue the fender all the way to the front, not the back like I did, other wise there is not a lot of clearance.

Next up, the front steering
:drinks

 

[moon puppy]

Neat idea, good job. Just slap some mud around and you're golden

 

[Duke Maddog]

This brings back some memories. I had built a couple of these as well some time ago when I built about seven at one time. I had found six of these plus an old ESCI kit in the stash and decided to build them all to get them done. Yours are already far better looking than mine. Way to go!

It's great to see someone else building this small scale armor. I felt like I was the only one, given that small scale is the scale that I build exclusively when it comes to armor.

 

[razordws]

I have one of these in the stash Tim. Hope I remember all this when I'm ready to build it. I have been working on a dragon Kubel wagon in this scale that came in a kit with the Tiger I. They used some of that DS track plastic on a whole bunch of parts. The tires I can understand but I can't figure out why they used it for the exhaust. :idonno

 

[wbill76]

Some very impressive work here, I'm a big HT fan and seeing that level of weathering/detail in 1/72 is a real treat.

 

[jknaus]

James