Chiefs AFV Club 1/35 M3 Stuart

[chief5437]

Hi guys

Been having some issues with photo bucket, as you'll see from the following pics.

I started this back in June, then put it aside to finish the ship sig. But for some reason I can see the pics in my phone library, but when I open the photobucket app, it doesn't see them all?! So I tried it on my iPad, and that even worse, just shows all my pics as pink boxes, wtf!?

So, as a workaround, I took screen shots of my photo library, and then put them on pb. Seems to have worked for now.

I must find an alternative to the pb app!

Right then, box shot.



A shed load of plastic, especially considering the small size of this thing!




A bit of PE, metal barrels, tow cable and decals.




Extras I got, eduard PE set and AFV Club Indy link tracks.



The kit supplied rubber tracks actually look very good, nice clear detail, and very clean, no flash at all.




Running gear went on with no trouble.



I did find a problem with the drive wheels though. They're held on by poly caps, but the fit isn't too good.

The two pics below show the amount of play left and right.




This will certainly cause a problem if you use the rubber tracks, and will probably be an issue with Indy links. Simple solution is to just glue it in place, which is what I'll do. Just wanted to point it out for info

* back to normal pics now! *

Rest of the hull went together fast, great fit from AFV Club! Then it was onto the PE!






That's all the hull PE done. At which point I needed a break, so went back to the 'if it floats' sig, lol!

Next I'll start work on the turret. Thanks for looking in guys,

[OliveDrab]

Very cool Chief, the PE sure does dress it up
(This one is waiting in the stash somewhere, looking forward to seeing this come alive!)

[chief5437]

Quick update fellas

Worked on the turret last night.



Some nice weld details

Then it was back to the PE!




That's that done! Think I might have a look at the tracks next.

Thanks for looking guys

[chief5437]

Well, what a complete sack of shi.... these tracks are!

To start with, they're the same as the spare links you get in the kit anyway. They're supposed to be 'snap fit' but the joint is that loose, by the time you assemble a few, the first ones have fallen apart! Also, each pad has an epm on it.

To be honest, they aren't any better looking than the rubber ones, probably worse. Being that it's for a Stuart, I don't really need any sag or articulation, so I think I'll go back to the rubber ones.

Here's a pic with the Indy links upper, rubber track lower. What do you guys think?



Cheers fellas

[Nev]

I'd go with the rubber mate, look at all those pin marks you would have to remove

[chief5437]

Hi fellas

Got all the assembly done!





Then got it primed up in Ultimate black.
I also did a quick mock up with some figures I found. The guy on the rear deck looks a bit lonely, don't worry I've got some one to stand near him but I just wanted to test fit the veh crew at this stage. Still don't know if I'll definitely use them yet?!





That's all for now, catch you later

[chief5437]

Hi guys

Update time!

Base coat on, Tamiya OD.



Then added some highlights with a lightened OD.

** from here on, those highlights seem to look very light in my pics, not sure why, but in reality they aren't that bright! **



Coat of Aqua gloss, ready for decals and a wash.



Decals on, painted the tools etc. Then after a Matt coat, I painted on some light chipping, and added some streaks using oil paints.



Time to start on the rubber tracks. 8mm tamiya tape was perfect for masking the rubber pads.



Edges were then painted with a rusty colour.




Then I dry brushed the rust parts with a silver paint mixed with a little brown, to tone it down. (That rhymes, lol!)



Finally, I dry brushed the pads with a light gray.



Not quite burnished fruils, but not too shabby for rubber bands!




So that's the main build done for now. I'll add some more weathering when I know what I'm doing far the base.





That's all for now fellas, sorry for the short, sharp descriptions but the mrs is waiting for me. Must hurry!!

See you later

[PrivateMansoor]

Nice build, and it looks like the stuart turned out pretty nicely chief!

[chief5437]

Hi guys

Got some more of this done.

Finally made the decision to paint the figure, something I very rarely do! Lots more practice needed, and maybe a decent brush!





I also made a start on the base. Picked up a picture frame and removed the glass. I used some paper towel brushed with water and klear to make a bit of a feature.



Then glued a grass Matt over. I cut a little slit in the side of the feature and filled it with some stones from my garden.



Also added some grass tufts and a few more stones.




I randomly sprayed some Ultimate wash over the whole base, to break up the uniform tone of the grass. I also sprayed some dark Ultimate wash where the vehicles will go, to create shadow.

I used some 'mud in a pot' from reality in scale, to depict fresh tank tracks. I'm hoping this will stay like mud, when I opened the pot it had a mouldy crust on it?!



My next problem is levitating tanks! The grass is quite stiff, so the model just sits on top of the grass rather than in it. Not very convincing! Not sure how to correct this without cutting strips out of the mat and re-doing the mud?

Any ideas greatfuly received!

Thanks for stopping by fellas!

[AridTalons]

Great work so far. Really nice job on those figures. Keep up the good work!

[Kevthemodeller]

Looking good mate

[chief5437]

Hi fellas

Final update time.

I couldn't think of another way of solving the levitating tank problem, so I cut strips out of the grass mat.



Worked out ok I think? Looks a lot better to my (poor) eyes!




Vehicles and figures in place. That's a mini art dingo I built a while back, awesome kit, one of my most enjoyable builds.
I added carbon fibre antennas from accurate armour. IMO they're the best, super straight but flexible and strong.



I was going to print off one of those scale maps but thought it would be fun to use this... A small cut out of where I live from an old Ordnance Survey map!



Final touch was creating headset and handset cables using ezline, so many uses for this stuff!



Final layout.



And that's me all done. As usual, I'll get some better pics and history for the reveal section.
Thanks for the kind comments fellas

[sheppsea]

Looking fantastic

[Madmattmodels89]

You're such a source of inspiration buddy! I am currently gathering all the parts I need to build my M5 Stuart and your build absolutely represents the top quality I will try to recreate. Awesome job mate!

[chief5437]

You're such a source of inspiration buddy! I am currently gathering all the parts I need to build my M5 Stuart and your build absolutely represents the top quality I will try to recreate. Awesome job mate!

Thanks very much! You're too kind. I hope you enjoy building yours as much as I did this one. Looking forward to seeing your progress. Hope you can find some useful info in here somewhere, lol!
Thanks again mate