Author Topic: Unmanned Recovery, Disaster Response and Hazard Mitigation vehicle.  (Read 351 times)

Online Frank3k

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I bought the Takom 1/35 ZRZ-100 Unmanned Combat Ground Vehicle


and the ZRY-222 Unmanned Combat Ground Vehicle


...both have easy to remember and not at all confusing names.

The ZRZ-100 was smaller than I expected, so my intention of making it a manned vehicle went out the airlock. The ZRY-222 is even smaller and I didn't feel like dealing with the track system. I did use one of the Boston Dynamics "robo dogs"

Making it an unmanned combat vehicle wasn't too interesting, so I decided to make it and extreme environment Recovery, Disaster Response and Hazard Mitigation vehicle.
The kit itself is OK. The fit between the upper and lower hull isn't great but the build is otherwise fast and uneventful. The robo dog was a bit more difficult, since it has many small parts and occasionally confusing instructions. I also added a recovery arm to the dog:



The yellow flange on the front left bumper was going to be where the arm went, but it made more sense to put it on the turret. Now it's a secure sample container. I'm going to add a fire hose to the left arm on the turret and a liquid foam tank to the rear. I'll fix the right platform and use it as a landing pad for a small drone, which I modified from a Spalah FPV drone model.

Steve is unimpressed as usual. I'm going to add a platform for the robo dog just below the exhausts, which will be removed The dog can get on and off from the platform on its own and "resting" it will be below the LiDAR (the semi-cylinder in the middle). This will be an electric vehicle as a result. It makes more sense if it's sent into areas with low oxygen:



I painted the tires in an aluminum color to represent a metal weave instead of rubber. Similar to the XB-70 tires.

Offline Buzzbomb

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Re: Unmanned Recovery, Disaster Response and Hazard Mitigation vehicle.
« Reply #1 on: October 09, 2026, 02:40:08 PM »
Nice plan. So something akin to fitting into the thunderbirds universe, a specialty vehicle that does ……

Online Frank3k

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Re: Unmanned Recovery, Disaster Response and Hazard Mitigation vehicle.
« Reply #2 on: October 11, 2026, 08:41:19 AM »
I put on a layer of rust primer and a layer of Ammo orange, which looks closer to red to me, but that's fine. This is the starting point  - some masking ahead:



The drone hasn't been painted:


Offline apophenia

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Re: Unmanned Recovery, Disaster Response and Hazard Mitigation vehicle.
« Reply #3 on: October 11, 2026, 10:35:29 AM »
Looking good, Frank! And this mod is dead clever  :smiley:

ps: Steve is a really tough audience (I think he needs to lighten up a bit so he can appreciate the world around him!).
It's all fun and games until someone chews through the tree with the eyrie on top.

Offline Old Wombat

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Re: Unmanned Recovery, Disaster Response and Hazard Mitigation vehicle.
« Reply #4 on: October 11, 2026, 04:46:03 PM »
 :smiley: 8)
"This is the Captain. We have a little problem with our entry sequence, so we may experience some slight turbulence and, ah, explode."

Online Frank3k

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Getting there. Just some weathering and minor touchups. I added a white strip, some fluorescent orange markings and black and white orientation markings on the side - in part to break up the monotonous color but also to indicate the vehicle's orientation remotely, if it can't communicate or breaks down. The square order is reversed for the other side. I also replaced the solder used in the main arm with wire-wrap wire. The solder was breaking with the repeated motion:



The drone launching pad has a decal from the 1/350 Moonlander to act as a locator marking:



I painted the radars and LiDAR sensors in tan or off white, both for color and to indicate that they shouldn't be painted for best performance:

 

Steve is slightly more impressed now; he likes the racing stripe. Cell phone guy thinks his Waymo just arrived:



The tank at the rear is from a Tamiya Gama Goat and a Stryker wheel part from the AFV M151 kit, which comes with an extra sprue of random kit parts:


Offline Old Wombat

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That paint & decal work has done wonders, Frank! Looking fantastic!  :icon_alabanza: :icon_alabanza: :smiley:
"This is the Captain. We have a little problem with our entry sequence, so we may experience some slight turbulence and, ah, explode."

Offline apophenia

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That paint & decal work has done wonders, Frank! Looking fantastic!  :icon_alabanza: :icon_alabanza: :smiley:

Seconded! I thought it looked great before but your detailling - and, especially, that white stripe - really make it  :smiley: :smiley:
It's all fun and games until someone chews through the tree with the eyrie on top.

Offline Buzzbomb

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Super good !