Meng 1/35 Char 2C

[NormanD]

Hi Guys and Girls

For my first W.I.P build here on the Armour forum, I'll be building the Meng 1/35 Char 2C, I intend to build a few world war one subjects this year, being primarily an aircraft / helicopter modeller, this will be my only second armour kit I've ever built



NormanD

[NormanD]

We have eleven sprues, plus a bag full of track links which have already been separated for you, just minor clean up needed with a Ultimate sanding stick.
in the box

Here we can see the sheer size of this kit with a test fitting of the main parts, the top plate is a little warped, but nothing that can't be cured when glued into position, the test fitting shows how well engineered this kit is, fit of parts is exceptional.

Wheely going to enjoy this kit, judging by the amount of wheels that will have to be built up
NormanD

[privatepete]

Hi Norman it looks like very nice kit, lots of detail,good luck with the rest of the build.
Pete

[NormanD]

Part-2

I started by skipping straight to stage six and began to build up the side sponsons, I omitted fitting the wheel assembly's to parts A32/34/35 as this allowed easy access to fill and smooth the gaps.


The fit of parts is well, shall we say excellent, not encountered any problems at this stage, although some clean up of parts is required, but a few swipes with a Ultimate sanding stick and you're done.



The next stage was to assemble the main tank body, again fit is excellent, I fitted the bottom half, again omitting adding the wheels to easy handling and access to any joint requiring attention.









The main engine and air cooling stage was tackled next, the roof section was a little warped when detached from the sprue, but once glued down, it didn't pose any problems.





Next stage I assembled to the two gun turrets and again I encountered no problems with the main gun, the gun breech is simply pushed into position, requiring no glue, the rear machine gun turret, Part B4 needs some attention in order for the machine gun to move freely, the holding peg, within this part is square, while it should be rounded to allow free movement, I guess this is a limitation of the moulding process, but a bit of fettling with a scalpel blade and it was fixed.







The tracks are simplicity itself, these are provided already removed from their sprue, the only clean up is a single nib, which requires a few swipes of a Ultimate sander and click them together, I only managed to break two track links during assembly, which is not bad considering their are 67 links per side, Meng also provide ample spares



Now we bring all the main assemblies together to get a view of the sheer size of this kit, this is test fitted together and not glued.







All that remains it to assemble the wheel bogies and add the fuel lines, since these look very fragile on the sprues, I shall make them from copper wire and use the kit parts as a guide. Add the other three machine gun parts (left these until final assembly for fear of breaking them off) really enjoyable build so far.

NormanD

[Mikellesk]

Man that is a nice whale. Will follow the build. So far very nice. Keep up!

[privatepete]

You sir have been a busy boy,looks really great
Pete

[SergioSolo]

Looks like a great kit, and you're off to a great start!

[jjab99]

It's a big old beast, but looks great, well done.

[NormanD]

Many thanks for the comments guys

She's ready for the spray booth, wheels and etch added, just the fuel lines to add, the kits is easy to break down into smaller components to easy painting, which I like, I really recommend this kit if you're looking for something a little more obscure than the normal looking tank. Some clean up of parts is required, but then name a model that doesn't, fit is excellent, real pleasure to build to this stage.

I shall prime first with Ultimate black, the lighten the inner panels with Ultimate white, before adding a dark brown to areas that'll show rust and dirt build up, before the main colour is added.

I have to say a big thanks, to the guys who join the off air Hang Outs, modelling is so much more fun with them around, you don't feel you're building alone. What I have found is I spend more time building and enjoying the hobby again.

Now the pictures













NormanD

[digger303]

pic's are broken