1/35 BR-52 - Germany's WW2 Workhorse

[Madhatter]

Time for a quick update

I have almost finished detailing the cab - I still have a few things left to add, but that'll be done once the floor is painted and attached to the back wall.





I've also detailed the walls - both inside and out - although the outside isn't much more than adding some hand rails. I would love to add some raised rivet heads, but I don't have any, so it'll have to go without.







And lastly, I have bitten the proverbial bullet and filed off the piping that ran along the side and have replaced them with brass. It looks much more natural now that before. I still have to add the holders etc, but that will come in due course. I also broke off 2 of the sand tap handles, in a small accident so not sure how to fix that...









Well, that's all for now. I'll do some more work on it tonight and hopefully post an update again tomorrow - if I get anything worth while done!

Thanks for stopping in

MH

[Madhatter]

well I tried a new trick of using shoe polish to color the wood, and I must admit, it's exactly what I was hoping for - a good, rich natural base color

The back of the floor doesn't look as dark and that's because that's where I started to use CA to seal the wood before I gave up on that idea and sealed it with a flat coat. I'm not worried about the discoloration because it'll be weathered with coal dust and mud, so you won't even notice it.





Both of these items will look a bit better with some weathering which I'll do once the polish has hopefully dried. I'll seal it all in with a flat coat of enamel which all being well won't screw it up. It'll also help ensure that the paint will adhere to the plastic to once I get to it.

MH

[Madhatter]

hi all

As of now, I am putting this away for a little bit. Not because I have cracked the sad's with it or anything like that - it's just that I just can't hold back the urge to start on another 2199 ship any longer. It's screaming at me to build it, so I have to silence it by doing exactly what it wants me to do. Just like listening to the wife......

Once it's done and I've satisfied the monster (the kit - not the wife) I'll resume this build.

Besides, I did say this might take a while

Thanks everyone

MH

[Madhatter]

Well, the astro battleship is finished so it's back to the BR52 and then finsh that too.

I have started to put the cab together. The main frontage has been primed and looks good. The roof has had it's PE stuff added and is also primed ready for painting - which I will start doing tonight if the rain lets up.

I've also rusted the frame of the engine and it is currently waiting for the matte coat to dry before I start work on that too. I won't be doing too much rust - just a little bit on the inside as active engines weren't all that rusty, but in contrast to that, I have also seen pics of the inside of the chassis being quite rusted and dirty - so I'll have to be restrained and selective about what and where I rust

I also need to replace the brass pipes that run down the side of the boiler with thinner rod, so it'll be off to the hobby shop shortly to see what I can find

Enough talkin' - time for some pics. First up, the cab as it stands now. Bear in mind, the floor has yet to be weathered - but that'll be the last thing to do:















Well, that's all for now. Once this is finished, I'm seriously eying up the K5 Rail Gun to go with this - it's just a matter of finding some extra shelf space!
thanks again
MH

[Buzzbomb]

those extra details look really nice

[Madhatter]

greetings

Well, work continues with the driver's cab and it's now not far from completion.

For a long time, I admonished my painting skills as being rather....lacking. However, on this project, I am really happy with how things have come out so far and they look just like how I pictured and in some cases, how they look in real pictures. This is the case for the cab - I am super happy with how it's come out so far.

There are still a few things to tidy up - ie: the dials, the wooden grip on the bar thing in the middle and some other smaller bits and bobs, and most of those will be done today

I am seriously reconsidering not having any lighting int his - the cab will be dark and even the wife (who has zero interest in modelling) said it would be a shame not to be able to see it once it's all closed up. So now, I'm thinking on how to install an SMD into the roof space and how to hide the wires - which won't be an easy task. I am thinking I may have to drill a hole in the top of the boiler and run them through that into boiler itself - which will be where I house the battery. As for a switch - well, not sure about that either, but I'll figure something out.

Anyway, enough blabbing, here's a couple of pics:















The side walls also need a bit of fixing up here and there. but so far, I'm really happy with it

Well, that's all I have for now. Will be back again soon enough

Thanks for looking in
MH

[Old Wombat]

Cool!

[Brian da Basher]

Those wonderful details show a level of patience & skill I can only dream of.

Magnificent work!

Brian da Basher

[Buzzbomb]

All the woodwork painting is a treat. You certainly have captured that worn, well used look

As to the lights, go, go, go.
I would not believe that any wiring would be hard to disguise for exactly what it is, wiring conduit.

Flickering LED behind the firebox as well, since you are going down that path

[Madhatter]

it'll just be the one SMD in the roof space I'm afraid. I can't do the flickering LED behine the firebox as that's all sealed up now. It's not the first time someone suggested that to me - maybe I should have done that, but I wanted this to be as simple a build as possible.
Of course, simple isn't quite how that's panned out.....but I have found a unique and easy way to run the wires from the cab to the boiler without them being seen
I'm hoping to out the cab together this weekend and then move on to the frame and finish the detailing off on that.
I'll paint the boiler/cab shortly before I finish the frame.
Thanks for stopping in
Si

[Madhatter]

Greetings all

Well, it's been a great Father's Day today - been a beauty day for it! Sun's been out, it's warm but not to hot. Just beautiful.

As for this build, well, it's slowly coming together. The walls of the cab are now on, the back wall is painted and the roof has an SMD on it ready to light it. I ended up making my own seats as all the pics I have show that were wooden. Not the straight blocks Trumpeter would have you use. What cracks me up though is Eduard give you this wooden grain access door but the rest of the kit part looks nothing at all like wood, so instead of enhancing the look, it makes it stand out. Therefore, I remade my own one's using balsa and I like them. I've tried to recreate the worn look of vinyl and one worked pretty well - the other one....not so much, but it'll do. You won't see it once the roof goes on anyway.

Speaking of which, I should have the roof on this soon and then it's back to the chassis and fun with air tanks :)













I've tried my hand at texturising my painting using pigments and I like the effect it has. The below pic shows this quite well I think:





I thought I'd gotten rid of all the ejector marks, but it seems I haven't done a very good job on that. But because it'll be dark in there, no one's going to see them, so they'll do fine.

Well, that's all I have for now, but thanks for stopping in and having a look

MH

[elmayerle]

I'd say you've got the very worn vinyl look down quite well with both of those seats.  This is absolutely superb.

[Madhatter]

thank you - It's my first time..... making seats like that 

Today's progress has been good - the frame has been base painted and I'll start doing the weathering on it tonight (rusting etc)

The wheels are pretty much done - they just need a touch of grime in the center and other moving part areas/ I'm happy with how they've come out in in the right light have that light sheen making them look like metal. The tops of the wheels are painted with Alclad.

And I have put a couple of bits of coal on the cab floor and on the tray below the firebox door just to give it some interest. I'd like to find some appropriately scaled oil cans etc to sit on the tray above the door, but I haven't found anything of use. I also need to find a suitably sized spade.













Well, that's it for today. I'm working on the air tanks and the plumbing at the moment, so pics once they're done and on. The boiler is pretty much sorted so it's onto the final stretch I think

Thanks again for stopping in

MH

[Old Wombat]

That cab is truly awe inspiring!

The rest looks well on the way to keeping pace with it!

[Madhatter]

quick update

Have made a decent start on the chassis and the cab is all but finished. I've been adding a couple of small things here and there to humanise it - like propaganda posters and a news paper held down by a chunk of coal

I spent ages editing these pics in photobucket, but the changes don't seem to have taken. Not sure why. Anyway, the raw pics:



















well, that's all for now. I'm currently dressing up the generator thing on the side, so pics of that shortly

till then

Thanks for looking

MH

[Old Wombat]

Knitting? Knitting? Where'd I put that bloody knitting?


Man, that is looking great!

[elmayerle]

The chassis is simply gorgeous and the final touches on the cab are inspired.

[Madhatter]

   -thank you guys

Well, time for the final update this week. Next up - the compressor

Trumpeter give you an OK one - but when compared tot he real thing - well, it's like most of Trumpeter's detailing - imaginary and sparse. Still, it gives you a great template to do something with and even despite the above comments, it still looks like a compressor - so I can't complain

To be honest - I didn't do a heck of a lot - just added some missing nuts, wires and raised surfaces on the bottom. Nothing special











Now looks like this:











Well, that's all I have for now, but thanks for stopping in again and having a look

See you all later

MH

[finsrin]

Yee Gads - Major league all the way.  Thatz so darn excellent

Will knitting improve one's dexterity for model building?

[Madhatter]

LOL - I've asked my self something similar on many occasions - although it was more the question of "how do I knit?" as opposed to knitting being of some benefit :)

[Buzzbomb]

Still enjoying the Hatter master class on this build.

[Madhatter]

Good evening everyone

Sorry, this is not an update post - I haven't touched it for a week as I have has to build SWMBO's raised vege gardens and it's zapped any build enthusiasm I have. However, I do have a question which I am hoping someone can answer.

For all the references I have, including the walk arounds and so on, not ONE of them shows me what and where that big spring up front actually attaches to and what it is for. I'm assuming it's something to do with the brakes but I don't have any pictures of where the bottom of it attaches to. I can see where the top of the spring goes though - which is great.

Can anyone shed some light on this?

I could follow a couple of other builds, but I want to make sure the info I have is right. I can not guarantee that the builders of the kits I've seen with them on are correct - despite the masterful quality

Thanks in advance

Si

[Madhatter]

greetings everyone

It's been a couple of weeks since I last updated this as I hadn't done much, but over the last couple of days, the engine has finally seen some movement.

The cab is now attached to the boiler and most of the external details have been added ready for paint - which I hope to start either today or later during the week.

I can't add all of them as I need to add those sand pipes (which I am dreading because from what I've read - they don't stick down to well, but hopefully, CA will do it's job)

I don't know whether it's a testament to Trumpeter's engineering or my building skills (the later I think is more likely) but there was an enormous gap between the wheel housing and the boiler, so out came the plastic strips and a patch job ensued. It worked fine in the end, but man - what a PITA.

Also, if you've ever built on of their kits, but Trumpeters PE stuff is so stiff and hard to fold when compared to Eduard. There's meant to be a little lip on the side window surround but I just couldn't get it to bend - even with annealing, so I just didn't bother with it. I might make up a thin plastic lip instead.

Anyways, enough talking, here's where I am at currently. The paint is so close I can smell it!



















Well, that's it for now, but I'll be back again once I start the painting.

As always, thanks for stopping in and having a look

MH

[elmayerle]

That's looking gorgeous as it comes together.

[Madhatter]

thanks bud., I put down the pre-shading today (well - only where  dirt, grime etc build up - not a full on panel line shade like you would a plane - if you did that kind of thing) and now am getting ready to start masking it all up. However, I've run out of masking tape and I forgot to buy some whilst I was in town today, so it'll have to be a trip to the city during my lunch break on Saturday