Zvezda 1/35 T-35

[Guest]

Good to have you along Steve. With all the bodies now crammed into it, the shed will be warm as toast in no time!

[Guest]

Glacially slow progress on this by my standards, but we're still moving forward. Much of the time has been taken up with minor adjustments to the fit and filling/sanding. It's not that the fit is in any way poor, I'm just going a little further than maybe I need to, reminding myself it's the process, rather than reaching the finish line, that this hobby is all about.

Anyway, enough flannel.

The guns and mantle for the medium turrets went together. Lots of small detail parts on the inside which will never bee seen as the hatches will be closed, hence me not bothering to fill the joints. They will get painted though.

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Hard to pick out in the photo but the hatches were moulded as one with a shallow groove between them, as seen on the left. I deepened this groove almost all the way through so it's more in keeping with the outer panel gaps (the one on the right).

[ATTACH]373370[/ATTACH]

And with everything together. The barrels are just dry fitted for now to make painting easier. They are made up of 3 "rods", so no seam line down the middle, but they needed the mould parting line cleaning up and a bit of filler between each section. The muzzle end was moulded with a decent depression, but I drilled it out much further. The gap around the mantle still needs attention.

[ATTACH]373371[/ATTACH]

And the small turrets. As with my T-28 I'll be fitting the MG's from the inside once painted. Again, hard to see in the picture but a few hours of sanding and filling were lavished on each of these to get the fit just right, and the exposed edges of the plates were finished with a very course grit sandpaper to give the flame cut look. Hatches still need a bit of work here to get them to sit down correctly.

[ATTACH]373372[/ATTACH]

Fitted these bits to either side of the main turret support structure. They look like some form of fuel or oil tank and have what appears to be a jack fitted to them. I also added some of the tools, which I'm sure I'm going to regret when I get around to painting.

[ATTACH]373373[/ATTACH]


And a quick dry fit of everything I've done so far.

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[scottie3158]

Andy,
Looking good so far mate.

[Mini Me]

Mr. (rivet) Jones is correct. This thing is a Beast. Nice progress so far and I have moved to the back row by the door as JR keeps drooling on my shoes and making audible grunting sounds while flicking his Bic.:sick: Posted myself as Corona Virus watch...

[Guest]

Thanks Paul & Rick.

As usual I'm at that point of what to add, what not to add, when to start painting, what won't I be able to reach later, that kind of thing. I'm hoping all that will become clearer as I get more builds under my belt as it's been a real head-scratcher up to now.

[Guest]

the exposed edges of the plates were finished with a very course grit sandpaper to give the flame cut look.

That offhand comment now has me wondering whether these things were flame-cut, or if they used a guillotine at the time For some reason, flame-cutting feels very American to me.

Fitted these bits to either side of the main turret support structure. They look like some form of fuel or oil tank and have what appears to be a jack fitted to them.

I can’t find it just now in my documentation, but I seem to recall they are indeed fuel tanks, and the thing on the outside is definitely a jack.

Nice progress, this is quite a complex tank to build (I’ve got an unfinished ICM one sitting around) so not going overly fast probably isn’t only down to you taking your time

[Guest]

That offhand comment now has me wondering whether these things were flame-cut, or if they used a guillotine at the time :smiling3: For some reason, flame-cutting feels very American to me.

You're much more likely to know than I am, but since I'm more concerned with trying new things than historical accuracy it was a good opportunity to try it out.

Certainly looks better than the mould line and flash anyway lol

[Guest]

One question you probably could answer for me Jakko if you don't mind.

Am I right in thinking the "paint" on these was an all in one, applied straight onto the bare metal? I'm sure I've read that somewhere.

I want to try out some chipping on this one but don't want to be revealing a primer if they never had one. That's a detail too big for even me to fudge over! :smiling5:

[Mini Me]

Red Oxide Primer would be correct for interwar production and even into WW2 production. I have a photo in my collection of a KV-1 with what actually appears to be war time paint that is chipped to the bare metal (rusty now) and right next to it the (very old) topcoat is chipped down to the Red Oxide. If the Russians skipped the primer process for the sake of expediency it was probably later on in the conflict. I can post this if you would like to see it, but will not without your prior consent. Rules, you know. Rick H.

[Guest]

Hi Rick, a picture would be great thanks.

Glad I checked as I've definitely read it somewhere. Just proves you can't believe everything you see on the internet. Who'd have thought it lol

[Guest]

You're much more likely to know than I am, but since I'm more concerned with trying new things than historical accuracy it was a good opportunity to try it out.

Certainly, and because I can’t really tell from the photos, would you say it succeeded? Because it sounds like a useful technique to keep in mind.

Am I right in thinking the "paint" on these was an all in one, applied straight onto the bare metal? I'm sure I've read that somewhere.

I’m afraid I don’t know, but I would think red lead primer would be underneath it, given that it was pretty much the norm for anything metal painted until, at a guess, the 1970s or so? Desperate wartime production might easily do without, of course, but the T-35 was built before the USSR got onto a wartime footing, so I doubt shortcuts like that would have been taken at the time.

I want to try out some chipping on this one but don't want to be revealing a primer if they never had one. That's a detail too big for even me to fudge over! :smiling5:

I’d say that’s probably because you do a lot of painting of real things, meaning this is something you’re knowledgeable about and so you try to get it “right” more than things you’re not as familiar with. Everybody does that in some ways

[Steve Jones]

Terrific update Andy. You certainly have been busy. Good luck with the chipping

[Jim R]

Hi Andy
The photo of the dry fit so far looks great. Neat, careful, accurate work. A most complicated looking tank.
Jim

[Guest]

Thanks Jakko, I've searched to see where I'd read that but can't find it. Maybe it was a figment of my imagination! And yes, I think the effect worked ok. Seemed quicker than other methods I've seen of cutting with a blade. Will try and get a picture later.

Cheers Steve, I'll keep chanting "light coats, light coats, light coats" :smiling5:

Jim, I'm trying my best thanks. As Dave has already mentioned there's lots of detail that'll never get seen, not just in the running gear but all over. I'm still taking the time to clean it up and fit it though.

[rtfoe]

Andy, you don't need to only use a brush for the chipping...a tooth pick will do. Watch how it's done on a Fock Wulf Here. It's somewhere in the middle of the build and I'm surprised at how long he left it before scratching the paint off.

Cheers,
Richard