Thanks Tom and I would love to build a 2nd kit being that I just picked this up

ICM MB G-4
But I am signed up for 20 other campaigns and school starts tomorrow

Yikes, Sal's done and may go for a second, and I haven't gone beyond the sprue shot! My hat's off to you Sal -- you sure can manage all those campaigns at the same time. Cheers, Tat

It's the "signed up for 20 campaigns" that stuns me!

Tom

Tom I completed 26 Campaigns last year, retirement is good for things like that
And in 2011 I only completed 24 put at that time I worked midnights and sleep was optional

So I think 20 is a good number to strive for this year, the GAZ jeep was my 3rd build that i finished so far this year

Well, inspired by Sal's phenomenal build speed, I got crackking on my own little car! As previously mentioned, the suspensiion is very fiddly, and best tackled in several sittings just to let enough glue-drying to make it solid as more bits are added.




I gave up on the "moveable" linkage at the front - it's too tiny for the heat-rivet procedure in my opinion. And the two tiny arms that hold the hubs to the steering spindles are farcical - these should have been a one-piece affair for the sake of my sanity!

On the rear, I tried doing it all at once but soon found it was too flimsy, so instead I built the springs and let them set overnight before adding the axle.


Rear seat assembly is a bit "loose" in terms of fit, but is a doddle compared to the front bulkhead with the steering wheel! That bulkhead has two tiny locating nubs that make for a weak and uncertain fit, so after I glued it on I added the body shell and set the whole thing upside-down to dry - that's the only way I could find to make sure it was at the right angle. And don't get me started on those microscopic floor pedals...



Up front, I wonder why they made the Opel badge as a separate PE part? It needs painted anyway, and the multi-part tooling would make it easy to cast it into the grille... And that "torpedo" hood ornament really needed a short mounting pin - it was so small that I wondered how to hold it in the tweezers and still get at the sprue gate for clean-up.

The side mirror is interesting - it fouls the door such that any attempt to open it would push the mirror through the front quarter-light window! But when I looked online at real ones, that seems to be how they were built.


Round back, there is a very fiddly PE bracket behind the license plate - I almost replaced it with plastic. Otherwise, the only challenge was the folded roof - it is hollow underneath and fits as though it was designed for a different kit.


Speaking of fit, take a look under the front fenders! Yuck!


Now I wait for good enough weather for primer spreaying out in the shed...

Tom

Those designers at Bronco are nuts!!! If Tamiya leads the pack in ease of assembly, and top of the line instructions, than Bronco sure is pushing up the rear. The Bronco kit of the Triumph 3HW is the only kit from them I've ever built, talk about tiny parts!! But that was a motorbike, figured that was to be expected. Sure picked a challenging kit Tom. but sure is looking good...

Hi Tom,

Thanks for putting up those pics and comments. Man, your observations make me think whether a Tamiya kit could have been a better start on military cars for me!

I got curious about the side mirror you mentioned so I also looked around. Unfortunately the period pics I've seen either have no side mirror, or has someone very conveniently posed to obscure the subject mirror from view.

Here's some I dug up:

It seems Bronco got it right. Maybe one needs to have to the quarter window opened so it doesn't get in the way when the door is opened -- I find it weird.



Another one, which seems to be a later Olympia (?) Take a look at how the top folds back, compared to the one on the kit. I know I saw one Bronco build on the net which has a better looking tarp...



Hey, I think this was the inspiration for the 3rd kit option



Anyways, enough of the talk, I'd better get crackin' on this build. Will post pictures soon.

Cheers,

Tat

My progress so farfront suspension wasn't as fiddly as your kit Tom, thankfully, but I left the stub axles loose so I can position the tires laterthe fenders had a sink hole next to spare tire well that required fillingmold marks all over the front fender needed sandinggonna finish the engine next, and wire up the ignition circuit... by the way Tom, thanks for the tip on the bigger pics...Tat the hobby shop I went to in Makati was at the Glorietta site, it sure was packed full of stuff...

Hello,

Finally, I was able to get this build started. Tom, your advice on where to start is very much appreciated -- really helped alot to keep me sane! It looks like a simple build, but I guess having such small parts make it challenging -- I guess that's for a newbie auto builder like me.

The back rests for the front seats are still spongy so am just letting it harden before putting it on -- am a bit surprised though as its been a few hours already.



So far my serious hiccup was when I broke the wishbone part -- not too sure if that's how its called but I sure wished it didn't happen!



Man, those tiny bits of plastic are too soft! The opposite part seemed it wanted to go same way -- good thing I saw it as the plastic was showing signs of stress. A bit of glue and time to cure seemed to work. Well its not perfect, but I think its fine now.



Didn't have much difficulty putting on the bulkhead -- the dry-fit with the body seems ok. But those pedals are an exercise in the virtues of patience and much needed prayers that it doesn't fly off to nowhereland!



This is the side that had the repaired part. Its a bit off the horizontal -- hopefully its not a major issue when the wheel assembly gets on it.



More updates soon.

Cheers

Tat

Roland, that would be Lil's Hobbyshop then. They've been around for as long as I can remember. I was there yesterday to get some supplies...had to contain myself from picking up a kit...

Looks like your build is progressing well. Cheers man, all the best!

Tat

Here is what I’m planning to build for this campaign. I’m actually going to build two since both are very simple to build. First up the Austin Tilly. I’m going a different route with this model and pressing it into civilian post war service. I’m building mostly from the box except the back cab has been blanket off and wooden slats added to the cargo bed.

I had some free time to complete the suspension work today.

However, its as if lightning had to strike twice -- the side with the repaired wishbone had another go at me again.

The small hub which the wheel mounts to decided it had wings and fly off somewhere!

Nearly wrote it off as it took me the better part of an hour looking for it. I finally found it resting on one of the boxes under my work table -- quite an unexpected landing spot!

I wanted to do a quick "level" check, so here's where its at right now:





Am happy to see that all four wheels sit nice and level on the surface -- it makes me forget all those suspension troubles. Well, I think my most challenging part of he build is over, the rest should be fairly straightforward, or should say, I hope?..

Cheers,

Tat

Wow - nice work guys!

Christopher, I really like that Tilly conversion!

Roland, that limo is looking good. Glad to see the seam down the roof is not a problem.

And Tat, you've done well on the Opel. Adding the front & rear details is a doddle compared to that front suspension! The only real nightmare left is that torpedo hood ornament...

Tom

Christopher, the Tilly is looking good, I'm building one myself, for a British checkpoint diorama, it's a fun little kit. Tat, glad you were able to save the stabswagen, might have to pick up one of those myself. Tom, yes I was able to fix the roof seam, but it will still be a problem. Cause the underneath seam is even worse, and since I decided to open up the doors, it will be visible. So I have to fabricate a headliner to hide it . I think ICM got the front doors wrong? They are molded as suicide doors also, maybe it was a custom order from Stalin A friend of mine owned a Packard 12 in college and it had regular doors in front and suicide doors in back, confirmed it also in some light research I did on google. Should be an easy fix though, should have pics of these "alterations" by this weekend... Happy modeling everybody

Hello,

Thanks for the comment Roland, am sure glad that get over the suspension work.


As a newbie to doing autos, I'm a bit stuck on the window / windshield department -- as there are areas on the inside frames that will need to have paint on.

I found this out when I fixed both rear side windows only to see bare plastic peeking through, that I had to take it apart and screwed up one of the windows.


Anyways -- since glue won't work on a painted surface, will Future be a good adhesive for these clear parts? Else, any alternatives you may suggest? TIA


Cheers,

Tat

Hey Tat, yeah clear parts are tricky The tried and true solution is Elmers white glue, Testors has a clear parts glue, but I've never tried it. A friend of mine has used future to glue clear parts and had good results. Also there is a non crazing CA glue that doesn't fog, but I'm not sure of the manufacturer. I actually use CA glue myself, but you have to be VERY careful Then I apply it with a pin and tiny drops. You have to leave the cap off for several minutes to vent out the vapor so you don't have crazing(fogging). Good luck pare

Thanks Roland for the quick reply!

Good to hear that white glue can be used -- at least I have both Elmer's and Future on hand. CA for me is touch and go -- its something I just couldn't get a good handle on, and once the cap dries stone hard...

Anyways, will try the non-CA approach for now. All the best pare! Tat

Hi Tat,


I leave the clear parts until I have painted the rest. Then I use Gator's Grip ( a kind of super-grip PVA glue) to hold them in. I left the inside panels off for separate painting precicely because they trap the side windows in place - I'll add them all after painting. Otherwise, as you found out, the bare plastic of the edges shows through!

I find that CA glue often "fogs" clear parts, so I stay away from it when adding windows!

Now I need to get good enough weather to go out and spray some primer in the shed - we have had snow flurries for the past few days here...

Tom

Thanks Tom. Yeah, weather's a bummer especially when its time to paint.

It was too late when I re-checked the pics you posted -- the clear parts were off! Re Gator Grip -- is that the one that you may use water to thin? I bought a couple of bottles awhile back, and the one I opened was like a creamy, thick paste. instructions said water is good to thin it, but I didn't get much adhesion so I shelved it. I better go look for the other one and give it a try again.

Cheers,

Tat

Hi Tat,

I use it straight from the bottle. It is thick and pasty, and takes a while to get a good grip on plastic, so I tend to glue things and then leave them untouched overnight to set. Thinning it will only weaken the grip, so best to avoid doing so. The good thing is it dries clear, so if there is any excess it hides very well.

Tom

Thanks Tom -- all this time I thought that its consistency should be like that of liquid cement so I just followed what the label said about thinning. I understand this works as well for PE parts. Anyways, let me give it another try then.

This just came in today:



The reviews I've come across were not favorable on the authenticity side -- I recall reading that it is a mix of different 770K configurations such that it doesn't build into something that existed (???). Although so far I haven't come across any negative review on how it builds.

Anyways it was on clearance sale at Hobby Easy so I thought it was a good buy. I think someone's building this for the campaign (?). Time permitting, I may try this as a a follow-on build to the Olympia.

Cheers,

Tat

I'm curious to see how ICM did the tires on this one. The ones on my Packard are terrible

Roland,

I had a quick look at my ICM 770K: the tires are styrene (to me this is good), though the downside is that its a 5-piece assembly of wafers / discs -- well, it could have been made simpler.

Less parts compared with the Bronco Stabswagen's 8-piece affair, but I'd say they're of the same build concept.

I guess this would be one of those moments when you'd thank Mr. Tamiya for those one-piece tires!

With the Bronco Stabswagen, I spent a fair amount of time figuring out how the wafers first go together as they eventually build up to form the treads.

Saw you tire pics on the previous page -- were you able to correct it?

Cheers,

Tat

Tat, I'm gonna leave that till last, still plenty of other stuff to do, hopefully I can find an aftermarket replacement, if not I'm gonna fill with putty and wipe away most of it, maybe that would leave just a hint of a tread, it sure would be better than the V groove pulleys I have now , take a pic pare when you get the chance

If you think we've got it bad, pity those with Miniart GAZ AAA trucks - they have ten of these multi-slice wheels to build! (Got one in the stash, for when I'm feeling brave...)

Tom