A Tale of Two Kitties - Tiger I Early & Late

Post by **iflytb20** » Sat Jun 04, 2016 9:34 am

Evening Folks

Ever since I saw a Tiger tank in a Commando comic as a kid, I was hooked to the Tiger. As a teen, my desktop's wallpaper was always a Tiger tank. Fast forward a few years and I started to try my hand with scale modelling. I am still a WIP, but I feel that I now have enough courage to tackle a Tiger kit. So, without any further delay, I present to you the two victims ..... er.... kits

1/35 Academy Tiger I Early & 1/35 Tamiya Tiger I Late/Final.

My plan is to build them side by side as far as possible. As the Academy one has the full interiors, I will be concentrating more on it initially do that the external finishing and painting can be done together.

I have not yet decided what unit/markings to go with. Just that the Tamiya one would be an Late version as the kit can be build as either a late or a final version.

Kits

For the Academy Kit the only AM I will be using is a metal barrel as the kit one is too badly warped and is only good for shooting around corners

For the Tamiya kit i'll be using an Zimmerit kit from Atak and a PE set by ET Models for the engine hatches.

So please stay tuned for more updates and please feel free to give me suggestions / tips / advises etc

Cheers

Post by **AridTalons** » Sat Jun 04, 2016 4:31 pm

Sounds like you'll be busy for awhile. I have the Academy Tiger kit on my wishlist so I'll be following with interest.

Have fun and keep us posted!

Post by **chalkyw** » Sat Jun 04, 2016 9:02 pm

Wow, this looks like a long one.....ok, kettle is one....please continue

Post by **Bissyboat** » Sat Jun 04, 2016 9:24 pm

Nice kits. More like big cats.

Post by **iflytb20** » Sun Jun 05, 2016 9:05 pm

Thanks for joining me onboard. Time for an update

Update #1

STEP 1

So like I mentioned in the beginning, I would try and match the two build step by step. The Step 1 for both involve attaching the torsion bars to the lower hull. Unlike the Dragon kits, these two don't have the full torsion bars - just the arm. The Academy kit has half bars to be attached inside the hull to complete the illusion but they are not workable.

STEP 2

Step 2 involves invoking the gods of insanity - the road wheels

And since i'm building two of them, please standby for a selfie in a straitjacket

The final drive housing, final drive sprocket and the idler wheel.

While both kits have a decent amount of fine details, the academy one had a fair bit of flash as well.

Impending Insanity. Even Lt Minion can't save me now.

The hull roof and rear plates are dry fitted in the above picture. I glued the zimmerit sheets on the Tamiya kit already. I'll post some close ups in the next update.

Thanks for looking and Cheers

Post by **AridTalons** » Sun Jun 05, 2016 9:33 pm

I see Lt. Minion is keeping a close eye on your work. I wouldn't disappoint him if I were you.

Post by **Augustus** » Mon Jun 06, 2016 4:29 am

What a great idea, looking forward to this.

Post by **Kevthemodeller** » Mon Jun 06, 2016 10:08 am

Augustus wrote:What a great idea, looking forward to this.

I'd second all that

Post by **iflytb20** » Mon Jun 06, 2016 8:49 pm

Thanks for dropping by folks.

Now I need help from the tiger experten here. For the Tamiya Late, I plan to finish it as Tiger 312 of sPzAbt 505. I hope that was a late and not a mid or a final version.

The Kitty in question.

For the Academy early, one of the choice of markings is for Otto Carius's Tiger 217. I am a bit of a Tiger noob but as per my (pathetic) research, 217 was a mid. Two questions that I have :

1. Did he command an Early Tiger?
2. Was 217 an Early or a Mid / Late?

Hope to get a reply soon.

Cheers

Post by **InitialProduction1** » Tue Jun 07, 2016 9:19 am

This will be fun to watch. Great start iflytb20.

Post by **gustavlekstal** » Tue Jun 07, 2016 11:43 am

Cant help you with carius but how do you feel the two kits holding up against each other and against a dragon kit. Good luck

Post by **MarkVerploeg** » Tue Jun 07, 2016 2:00 pm

Nice to see the comparison between the 2 kitties
As for the Carius Tiger witg number 217
That was a mid production Tiger but a special one
It had initial production mirrored tracks that you would normally find on the Tigers from the 502 Schwere Panzer abteilung at Leningrad (the very first Tigers in action)
Besides that it had a Tiger P (Porsche) mantlet wich had a little sunscreen over the gunners sights and a notch in the bottom righthand corner (viewed from the front)
Other features that the mid production had where the cast commanders cupola and a travel lock on the rear to the right
The Carius Tiger featured all of those things and they where not on a early
But if you do want a Panzer or Tiger ace Early prod. Tiger then i would suggest the 1331 from Wittmann at Kursk
That was a normal Early production Tiger
And there are decalsets for that tank

Hopefully this helps a bit
Keep up the good work

Post by **Tomi** » Tue Jun 07, 2016 2:45 pm

Good start

I tried something similar while back, JSU triple build it was and didn't end well

Good luck.

Post by **privatepete** » Tue Jun 07, 2016 3:25 pm

Hi interesting idea the side by side build to see the different between the two manufacturers I wonder who's will look better

Pete.

Post by **iflytb20** » Fri Jun 10, 2016 3:40 pm

Gustav
So far my biggest complaints about the Academy kit:
1. Mould misalignment
2. Very hard yet brittle plastic.
The fit has been good so far. The real picture would emerge when is start the major assembly.

Mark
Thanks a lot for that detailed post. I'm still undecided on the markings, but I guess I still have time

Tomi
Thanks for dropping by

Pete
Please stay tuned. If I survive this twin build, I have a triple build planned . Tamiya, Academy and Dragon Mids

Update #2

I have cleaned up all the roadwheels. Only lost 4 fingers in the process

I didn't realise till today that the steel wheeled Tigers had only 16 roadwheels per side as compared to the rubber one's 24. Sure saved me a ton of sanding.

At this point i've set aside the Tamiya kit and am building the interiors of the Academy kit. Working with various sub-assemblies so to speak. Hope to prime the interiors and paint the interiors colors over the weekend.

Finished the engine assembly. But i'm not too happy as the exhaust pipe stops about 5-6mm before the rear plate. Hope to scratch build a few parts. Please stay tuned for updates on that front.

Test fitting the driveshafts. I plan to assemble it from the transmission to the engine. And to enable me to do that I plan to attach the rear plate the last Let's see how that goes

Did a bit of scratch building in the firewall. The kit firewall does not have the access panel to the engine and as a result the engine is visible from the fighting compartment. No point in having a firewall if you can't keep out the fire right. I covered the gap with some sheet styrene. I also added part # G27 which, strangely, is marked as not to be used. I modified it a bit so that it could fit over my scratch built firewall panel. As per my references that is the fan for the ventilation system and therefore should be present. Dunno why Academy wants us to leave it on the sprue

That's all for now folks. Please feel free to comment on my build till date and please point out any mistakes that i may have done.

Cheers

Post by **Eusi** » Fri Jun 10, 2016 6:07 pm

This is a brilliant build log, really like how you're comparing the two side by side. The academy kit seems to be a bit wider, or is that just my eyes playing tricks on me?

I'm tempted to pick up the academy kit if only for the interior details. Great looking build, excited to see this progress.

Post by **Kevthemodeller** » Tue Jun 14, 2016 12:16 am

I'm eagerly watching this

Post by **iflytb20** » Tue Jun 14, 2016 10:08 pm

Eusi & Kev

Thanks for dropping by.

Folks.

I wanted to detail up the engine bay a wee bit and was wondering if anyone has a good picture of the same. I've been trawling the interweb but so far have been unsuccessful. What I am looking for is the location of the coolant pipes in the engine bay mainly. The engine in the academy kit looks like a cross between an HL 210 & the 230. It has both the 210's & the 230's magnetos. I have their Mid kit in my stash as well and it has exactly the same engine in it - the 3 air filter edition. So any detailed picture of the two engines would be highly appreciated as well. Hope to have update # 3 posted soon. Cheers & thanks for dropping by.

Post by **Kevthemodeller** » Tue Jun 14, 2016 10:35 pm

Take a look here http://tiger1.info/index.html

Post by **iflytb20** » Tue Jun 14, 2016 11:02 pm

Kevthemodeller wrote:Take a look here http://tiger1.info/index.html

How on earth did I miss that site

Thanks a bunch kev

Post by **Kevthemodeller** » Wed Jun 15, 2016 6:55 am

You're welcome:

Post by **iflytb20** » Wed Jun 29, 2016 10:12 pm

Evening folks.....I'm back

Update

Like i mentioned in my previous post, I am concentrating on the interiors of the Academy kit. I have still not decided how I will display the interiors, but most likely i'll be leaving the hull and the turret roof unglued.

Did a wee bit of scratch building on the engine. I added wire to depict the pipes for the engine coolant, styrene rods to depict the shafts, built the connector of the inertial starter (not seen in this pic

) and extended the exhausts till the real panel.

As I plan to keep the engine bay hatch opened, I tried to add some details to the inner side of the hatch. Hope it looks acceptable

The power pack of the tiger - the engine and the transmission.

Did some modifications to the turret. It is still a WIP at the moment. Hope to finish it in the next few days.

Painted the hull as per an early tiger scheme.

The various interior parts painted and ready for a bit of weathering.

Dry fitting the interiors have so far revealed a few fit issues. So far i've only managed to fix this one.

While surfing the shops online for some Tiger AMs, I found this little kitty on sale. And the best part - it has both the Magic Tracks and the DS tracks in the box

And for 120$, I would call this eBay shopping a good deal

Thanks for looking folks. Please feel free to point out any glaring mistakes this Tiger noob is making.

Cheers

Post by **digger303** » Thu Jun 30, 2016 1:12 am

well your gonna hate this....tigers in combat, softcover new ...$19usd hardcover like yours is $141.
But I would like to know how good are the contents ?

YouTube · Post by **NorthernModeller** » Thu Jun 30, 2016 2:01 am

I recently bought the Academy kit, looks stunning. cant wait to see how yours turns out

Post by **iflytb20** » Thu Jun 30, 2016 10:29 am

digger303 wrote:well your gonna hate this....tigers in combat, softcover new ...$19usd hardcover like yours is $141.
But I would like to know how good are the contents ?

Thanks for bursting my bubble

I was searching online for the book and found the average price to 250$+. And read some reviews online saying that the pictures in the paperback edition are of a poorer quality than the hardcover one. That's why I thought it was a good deal

I also managed to snag the Modellers guide to the tiger tank for 39£. Hope that's not too high

Cheers

Post by **digger303** » Thu Jun 30, 2016 1:29 pm

iflytb20 wrote:
digger303 wrote:well your gonna hate this....tigers in combat, softcover new ...$19usd hardcover like yours is $141.
But I would like to know how good are the contents ?

Thanks for bursting my bubble

I was searching online for the book and found the average price to 250$+. And read some reviews online saying that the pictures in the paperback edition are of a poorer quality than the hardcover one. That's why I thought it was a good deal
I also managed to snag the Modellers guide to the tiger tank for 39£. Hope that's not too high

Cheers

good to know that about the quality......you did well

I was silly I passed up on Modellers guide to the tiger tank....could have got it for equivalent 25 Bp....still kicking myself

Post by **Noobmodeler521** » Mon Jul 04, 2016 9:03 pm

Looks like it coming together great, love the engine detail. Cant wait to see your idea come to shape here.

Post by **iflytb20** » Thu Aug 04, 2016 10:31 pm

Update #4

Evening folks. It has been a while since I posted here. Got busy with work and couldn't find any free time to hit the bench. Had a couple of off day recently and managed to restart the build.

Completed the interiors on the Academy kit finally. Tried a bit of scratch building here and there. Will be adding the ammo later.

I wont be adding the pipes as I want to display the engine hatch in the open position. That and the fact that the vinyl part is completely glue and paint proof

The resin mantlet was damaged as the gun sleeve was broken. No matter what I tried, I couldn't fix it. So decide to make some home made zimmerit. I think I made a hash of it - oh well, i'll chalk it up to experience.

Finally I can restart the twin part of the twin build.

Had to ditch the escape hatch also as it was of mid and the lower half didn't have the mod to clear the turret ring.

That's all folks. Hope to post an update soon on the painting process. Thanks for looking.

Cheers

Post by **digger303** » Fri Aug 05, 2016 1:55 am

Looking at the zim applied to the mantlet. Yes it doesn't look like the resin one, all neat and tidy. But I think I like yours better, it looks way more realistic and when you paint of course it will then all be one colour and looking good I believe.

Post by **InitialProduction1** » Fri Aug 05, 2016 2:56 am

Great looking builds iflytb20. Looking forward to the next update.

Post by **DoubleDigit12** » Sat Aug 06, 2016 9:19 am

Haha lieutenant minion is right that's one nice barrel... sweet build and love the scratch building.

Post by **chalkyw** » Sat Aug 06, 2016 7:09 pm

Fantastic job on the interior......which one is winning so far??

Post by **iflytb20** » Sat Aug 13, 2016 10:36 pm

digger303 wrote:Looking at the zim applied to the mantlet. Yes it doesn't look like the resin one, all neat and tidy. But I think I like yours better, it looks way more realistic and when you paint of course it will then all be one colour and looking good I believe.

Thank you for your encouragement. I'm now feeling brave enough to tackle the full zimmerit on my next Tiger

InitialProduction1 wrote:Great looking builds iflytb20. Looking forward to the next update.

Thanks for dropping by

chalkyw wrote:Fantastic job on the interior......which one is winning so far??

Thanks for dropping by. It's a tie as of now. I plan to do a sort of a report card at the end to see who is the winner. Please stay tuned.

UPDATE #5

Finally managed to get some paint on the kitties.

Next step would be painting the various tools. Then the madness begins - indi tracks

Thanks for looking

Cheers

Post by **InitialProduction1** » Sun Aug 14, 2016 6:15 pm

This is awesome! Did you cut the Circle on the air Cleaners? I do love the Tiger, and your doing a great job. Looking forward to the next update.

Post by **chalkyw** » Sun Aug 14, 2016 6:29 pm

Looking great, love the paint jobs

Post by **iflytb20** » Sun Sep 04, 2016 9:12 pm

InitialProduction1 wrote:This is awesome! Did you cut the Circle on the air Cleaners? I do love the Tiger, and your doing a great job. Looking forward to the next update.

Thanks. I used punched styrene discs to simulate the effect

chalkyw wrote:Looking great, love the paint jobs

Thanks

UPDATE #6

I finally managed to gather enough courage to tackle the tracks. Cutting, cleaning and sanding 390 pieces surely took a toll on my sanity and my lifespan. I can still hear voices coming from my workbench

I also finished painting the exhaust stacks. I used a base coat of rust and built up on it using MIG pigments.

Next up, chipping and weathering of the hull and the turrets. It will be not much as I'm still learning the art of weathering and will be taking baby steps. Battle damage et al will be experimented on my future builds.

Thanks for looking.

Cheers

Post by **Stokesy44** » Mon Sep 05, 2016 9:24 am

They both look absolutely awesome. Talk about a labour of love. Fantastic stuff.

Post by **Madmattmodels89** » Wed Sep 07, 2016 12:39 am

Fantastic job my friend!!!

Post by **iflytb20** » Wed Sep 07, 2016 10:20 pm

Stokesy44 wrote:They both look absolutely awesome. Talk about a labour of love. Fantastic stuff.

Madmattmodels89 wrote:Fantastic job my friend!!!

Thanks a lot for your kind words

FINISHED

And I'm finished

Tried my hand at chipping and filters for the first time. I'm afraid I may have overdone it a bit. Ah well, I'll chalk it up to experience.

Academy 1/35 Tiger I Early

The Academy kit had good details but had a lot of fit issues. I had to use styrene fillers to make some parts fit. The kit also has some accuracy issues - both in the interiors and the pioneer tools. But for the price I got this kit (23 Euros), I got a lot of bang for my buck.

Tamiya 1/35 Tiger I Late

The Tamiya kit was a dream to build. Hardly any fit issues and the sprue gates were placed thoughtfully. The only place where I had a bit of a struggle was the zimmerit but I can't blame Tamiya for it. The biggest complaint was the lack of a coaxial MG in the kit and the solid guide horn on the tracks. But even the Academy kit has the same issue.

So how do they compare?

The Academy kit wins on value for money. The biggest negative is the fit issue followed closely by the accuracy issues.

The Tamiya kit wins on ease of construction and the fit. The only negative for me is the accuracy issue.

In the end, both were winners for me. I learned a lot while building them and I leveled up on my scratch building skills - I'm no longer a noob. I'm a Senior Noob now

I thank you all for dropping by and commenting on my build. See you all in my next project.

Cheers

Post by **Kevthemodeller** » Wed Sep 07, 2016 10:45 pm

Really enjoyed this build great idea thanks for sharing and all your hard work

Post by **Stokesy44** » Wed Sep 07, 2016 11:06 pm

They both look superb. Well done mate.

Post by **Phil67** » Wed Sep 07, 2016 11:30 pm

Awesome builds, love the comparison of the two kits, and the attention to detail you applied to both the little kitties. I have both to build, so will now have some advanced warning of the potential problems I will have when building them.
Thanks for the posts and pictures.

Post by **chalkyw** » Thu Sep 08, 2016 6:58 pm

2 superb builds, got my first Tiger waiting for me, so I'll be using this post for some tips and tricks

Post by **Bissyboat** » Mon Feb 13, 2017 3:25 pm

Wow! You nailed it.