Tamiya 1/35 British Army Chieftain Mk5

[gaz45]

This is my entry for this GB



Here are the sprues and there is some very nice detail for an old kit





































The decals



The Instructions

















I think i'm going to do the 2 tone camo

[gaz45]

The History of the Chieftain



The Chieftain was an evolutionary development of the successful cruiser line of tanks that had emerged at the end of the Second World War. British engineers had learned during the war that their tanks often lacked sufficient protection and firepower compared to those fielded by the enemy, and that this had led to high casualty levels when faced with the superior German tanks in World War II. Centurion addressed this to a great degree, combining higher levels of armour and an improved gun, which made it at least equal to any of the contemporary medium tanks. However, the introduction of the Soviet IS-3 heavy tank forced the introduction of their own Conqueror heavy tank, armed with a 120 mm (4.7 in) gun. A single design combining the firepower of the Conqueror's 120 mm gun with the mobility and general usefulness of the Centurion would be ideal.



Leyland, who had been involved in Centurion, had built their own prototypes of a new tank design in 1956, and these led to a War Office specification for a new tank. The General Staff specification drew on experience of Centurion in the Korean War and Conqueror. The tank was expected to be able to engage the enemy at long range and from defensive positions, be proof against medium artillery. To this end the gun was to have a greater angle of depression than the 8 degrees of Conqueror and better frontal armour. The tank was expected to achieve 10 rounds per minute in the first minute and six per minute for the following four.



The first few prototypes were provided for troop trials from 1959, this identified a number of changes. Changes to address engine vibration and cooling resulted in redesign of the rear hull. This increased the design weight to nearly 50 tons and as such the suspension (which had been designed for 45 tons) was strengthened. Track pads had to be fitted to protect roads from damage and the ground clearance increased. The design was accepted in the early 1960s.

Britain and Israel had collaborated on the development in its latter stages with a view to Israel purchasing and domestically producing the vehicle. Two prototypes were delivered as part of a four year trial. It was eventually decided not to sell the marque to the Israelis however which prompted Israel to follow its own development programme.

In 1957 NATO had specified that its forces should use multi-fuel engines. The early BL Engine delivered around 450 bhp (340 kW) to the sprocket which meant a top road speed of around 25 mph (40 km/h) and cross country performance was limited. This was further hampered by the Horstmann coil spring suspension, which made it a challenge to drive cross country and provide the crew with a comfortable ride. Due to the cylinder linings being pressure fitted, coolant leaks within the cylinder block were common, resulting in white smoke billowing from the exhaust.

In the late 1970s engine design changed with the introduction of Belzona which was used to improve the lining seals. Engine output also increased with later engines delivering some 850 bhp (630 kW) to the sprocket. This meant better performance and an increased speed. Cross-country performance remained limited, however.

Several aspects of Chieftain design were trialled by the production of the FV4202 "40-ton Centurion" with a reclined driver position and mantleless gun mounting.



The design of the Chieftain included a heavily sloped hull and turret which greatly increased the effective thickness of the frontal armour – 388 mm (15.3 in) on the glacis (from an actual thickness of 120 mm (4.7 in)), and 390 mm (15.4 in) on the turret (from 195 mm (7.7 in)). It had a mantletless turret, in order to take full advantage of reclining the vehicle up to ten degrees in a hull-down position.

For security reasons, early prototypes had a canvas screen covering the mantlet and a sheet metal box mounted over the sloping glacis plate to disguise the configuration of the vehicle.

The driver lay semi-recumbent in the hull when his hatch was closed down, which helped to reduce the profile of the forward glacis plate. The commander, gunner and loader were situated in the turret. To the left side of the turret was a large searchlight with infra-red capability in an armoured housing.

The Leyland L60 engine is a two-stroke opposed piston design intended for multi-fuel use so that it could run on whatever fuel was available. In practice the engine did not deliver the expected power, and was unreliable, estimated to have a 90% breakdown rate, but improvements were introduced to address this. Primary problems included, cylinder liner failure, fan drive problems and perpetual leaks due to vibration and badly routed pipework. However, as the engine power improved the tank itself became heavier.

The tank was steered by conventional tillers hydraulically actuating onto external brake discs. The discs worked via the epicyclic gearbox providing "regenerative" steering. The gearbox was operated motorcycle-style with a kick up/kick down "peg" on the left which actuated electro-hydraulic units in the gearbox; the accelerator was cable operated by the right foot. In the turret the loader was on the left and the gunner on the right of the gun with the commander behind the gunner. The suspension was of the Horstmann bogie type, with large side plates to protect the tracks and provide stand-off protection from hollow charge attack.


Detail of the 120 mm L11A5 rifled gun
The main armament was the 120 mm L11A5 rifled gun. This differed from most contemporary main tank armament as it used projectiles and charges which were loaded separately, as opposed to a single fixed round. The charges were encased in combustible bags. Other tank guns, such as on the Conqueror, needed to store the spent shell cartridges or eject them outside. The combustible charges were stored in 36 recesses surrounded by a pressurized[1] water/glycol mixture – so-called "wet-stowage". In the event of a hit which penetrated the fighting compartment, the jacket would rupture, soaking the charges and preventing a catastrophic propellant explosion.[9] As there was no shell case, the firing of the charge was by vent tubes automatically loaded from a magazine on the breech. Due to the length of the gun which required balancing and the need for storage space, the turret has a large overhang to the rear. This contains radios, ammunition, fire control equipment and has further stowage externally.

The gun could fire a wide range of ammunition, but the most commonly loaded types were high explosive squash head (HESH), armour-piercing discarding sabot (APDS), or practice round equivalents for both types. Chieftain could store up to 64 projectiles (though a maximum of 36 APDS, limited by the propellant stowage). The gun was fully stabilised with a fully computerized integrated control system. The secondary armament consisted of a coaxial L8A1 7.62 mm machine gun, and another 7.62 mm machine gun mounted on the commander's cupola.

Chieftain had an NBC protection system, which Centurion lacked.

The initial Fire-control system (FCS) was the Marconi FV/GCE Mk 4. A .50-inch (12.7 mm) ranging gun was mounted above the main gun (with 300 rounds available). This fired ranging shots out to a maximum of 2,600 yards (2,400 m), at which point the tracer in the ranging rounds burned out. The tank commander had a rotating cupola with nine vision blocks -giving all round view – and a periscope, plus the 7.62 mm machine-gun and an infrared (IR) projector coaxial with the weapon. The aiming systems were provided for both gunner and tank commander; they had 1x or 8x selectable magnification power, and they were replaceable with IR vision systems for the night operations (3x magnification power). The commander could rotate his cupola to bring his sight onto a target and then engage the mechanism that brought the turret round on to the correct bearing so that the gunner could complete the aiming.

The left side of the turret had a large searchlight with an infra-red filter inside an armoured box, with a relatively long range – up to 1–1.5 kilometres (0.62–0.93 mi).

From the beginning of the 1970s, the Mk 3/3 version replaced the ranging gun with a Barr and Stroud LF-2 laser rangefinder with a 10 km (6.2 mi) range. This allowed engagements at much longer ranges, and also could be linked to the fire control system, allowing more rapid engagements and changes of target.

On later models fire control was provided by the Marconi IFCS (Improved Fire Control System), using a digital ballistic computer. The upgrade was not finished until the end of 1980, when some examples (but not the majority) had the IR searchlight replaced with TOGS. Many later examples had Stillbrew armour, intended to defeat Soviet 125 mm tank guns and heavy anti-tank missiles. These became the Mark 13 version

Like its European competitors, Chieftain found a large export market in the Middle East, but unlike Centurion, it was not adopted by any other NATO or Commonwealth country.

Chieftain proved itself capable in combat and able to be upgraded with enhancements both for overall improvement and to meet local requirements. The marque was continuously upgraded until the early 1990s when it was replaced by Challenger 1. The final Chieftain version used by the British Army until 1995, incorporated "Stillbrew" armour named after Colonel Still and John Brewer from the Military Vehicles and Engineering Establishment (MVEE), the Improved Fire Control System (IFCS) and the Thermal Observation Gunnery Sight (TOGS). The last British Regiment equipped with Chieftain was 1st Royal Tank Regiment, who were based at Aliwal Barracks, Tidworth.


Ex-Iranian Chieftain in Russian museum

Chieftain target hulks at Lulworth Ranges 2008
The first model was introduced in 1967. Chieftain was supplied to at least six countries, including Iran, Kuwait, Oman and Jordan. An agreement for sales to Israel and local production was cancelled by the British Government in 1969, despite considerable Israeli technical and tactical input into the development of the tank, especially the capacity to operate successfully in desert environments, and the provision for the tank to make good use of hull-down deployment. Two examples were delivered to and extensively trialled by the Israeli Armoured Corps. This experience spurred the creation of the indigenous Israeli Merkava, the development programme of which was led by General Israel Tal, who had worked closely with the British in the Anglo-Israeli Chieftain project. The largest foreign sale was to Iran, which at the recommendation of General Tal, took delivery of 707 Mk-3P and Mk-5P, 125–189 FV-4030-1, 41 ARV and 14 AVLB before the 1979 revolution. Further planned deliveries of the more capable 4030 series were cancelled at that point.

It was in the Middle East that the Chieftain was to see all of its operational experience. First, it was used extensively by Iran during the Iran–Iraq War of 1980–88, including the largest tank battle of the war, with mixed results as many suffered from chronic engine problems. The Cheiftain remains in service in Iran, the Mobarez tank being a locally upgraded version.

Kuwaiti Chieftains participated in the 1990 Iraq–Kuwait War. The Kuwaiti 35th Armored Brigade fought at the Battle of the Bridges against elements of the Iraqi Hammurabi and Medina divisions before withdrawing over the Saudi border 136 Kuwaiti Chieftains were lost. Only 7 tanks managed to survive the war with Iraq.



Specifications
Crew: 4
Combat weight: 55 tons
Overall length: 10.8 m (35 ft 5.2 in) gun forward
Hull length: 7.5 m (24 ft 7.3 in)
Height: 2.9 m (9 ft 6.2 in)
Width: 3.5 m (11 ft 5.8 in)
Powerplant: Leyland L60 (diesel, multi-fuel compression ignition) 695 bhp (518 kW)
Range: 500 km (310 mi)
Maximum road speed: 48 km/h (30 mph)
Cross-country speed: 30 km/h (19 mph)
Armour: turret front, 195 mm (7.7 in) RHA (60°)
Armament
120 mm L11A5 rifled tank gun
Rate of fire: 10 rounds per minute for the first minute and 6 thereafter.
Elevation: -10 to +20 degree
Laser rangefinder
Coaxial L8A1 7.62 mm machine gun
Cupola-mounted L37A1 7.62mm machine gun
Mark 1 and Mark 2 models had a coaxial Browning .50-inch (12.7 mm) ranging machine guns prior to the introduction of the laser rangefinder.

Equipment
Twin Clansman VRC 353 VHF Radio sets
1 C42 1 B47 Larkspur VHF radios
2 X 6-barrel smoke dischargers on turret
Bulldozer blade (optional – fitted to one tank per squadron)
Variants
Chieftain Mk 1
40 training vehicles for 1965–1966. Issued to 1 RTR and 5 RTR for troop trials.
Chieftain Mk 2
First service model with 650 hp engine.
Chieftain Mk 3
Extra equipment fitted giving rise to several sub-marks. New cupola.
Chieftain Mk.5
Final production variant, with upgrades to the engine and NBC protection system.

[Dunhill2005]

Awesome, Kit!!!

'll follow this thread!!

[chief5437]

Great kit this, goes together really well. Nice choice!

[Nige201980]

Looks like a great kit mate good luck buddy.

[burnie43]

great choice, i really enjoyed building this ...enjoy
Mark

[gaz45]

Thank you for your comments they are much appriciated I apologise for the picture quality but the dark green plastic does not help

So on with the build

To start with i decided to do the wheels and sprockets first along with the idle wheels i think they are called











Next up was the suspension







The struts for the side armour



















The rear panel parts were assembled which included the exhausts







the rear panel plate



This part is movable which asked for the pin on this part to be melted into like a rivet so for this i used my trusty zippo to heat up a paint stirrer









The wheels and sprockets were then primed and painted up using Tamiya XF-5 Flat Green and Tamiya XF-1 Flat Black



Thats were it stands for now
Thank you for looking and as always your comments are welcome

[gaz45]

Ok on with the build starting with the upper hull and parts

















The upper hull inside parts







Now for the barrel which went together really well as all of the kit has so far





and the turret and the turret parts









the cupola









the small part circled in blue was lost to the carpet monster so i decided to replicate this with some copper wire i had

















Thats where she stands for now
thanks for looking

[gaz45]

With the turret almost complete i stretched some sprue for the antennas, built the skirts and figures



















After that was all dry it was time to get this primed























With it all primed you can see the level of detail
Thats it for now next up i will get some paint on this
Thanks for looking

[gaz45]

Now its time for some paint firstly i painted the crew for this i used Tamiya XF-1 black, XF-5 flat green, XF-61 dark green,Humbrol khaki drab and Humbrol matt flesh



The tracks had a coat of vallejo model air black metal not sure yet what else i,ll do with these



The under side of the hull got a coat of Tamiya XF-61



The upper hull, turret and skirts got a coat of Tamiya XF-5 which i,ll do the dark green camo over















That is all for now thanks for looking and as always any comments are very welcome

[TheTroyster]

I love the look of this model! Going to do one of these myself at some point.

[gaz45]

Next up the dark part of the camo pattern here i used Tamiya XF-61 Dark Green and i did this free hand











When this was dry i started some of the detail paintng for the exhausts i used Revell 83 Rust Matt then Tamiya XF-1 flat black and revell 90 steel for what i think is the hesdlights






Now with the wheels attached i made up a mixture of Ultimate Dark Dirt and baking powder to simulate some mud which i put on the lower parts of the wheels







That is all for now thanks for taking a look ans as always your comments are welcome

[chief5437]

looking very good so far buddy! Love the look of the chieftain.

[gaz45]

Just a small update a bit more detail painting the scopes wre picked out with Revell 52 Blue gloss and the guns with with Tamiya X-10 gun metal
Added the tracks which were painted up with Model air black metal and given a little dry brushing with Tamiya XF-16 alluminium













It was then given a couple of klear coats ready for the decals
thats all for now thanks for looking

[gaz45]

well here it is all finished the decals applied and the figures added





















overall a very good kit for its age went together really well with no dramas.