This week I have been mostly making 1/72nd kits of tanks......
My embryonic British desert forces for Operation Crusader received some reinforcements. The PSC Honeys are hugely overscale, so the only option I could find was an ancient Hasegawa model (I couldn't face another PSC model) - the idea being this would become the brigade HQ tank.
While hunting for reference material, I chanced upon a modelling site with a 1/35th version which may have influenced my subsequent actions.....
The Hasegawa model come with separate hull hatches and somewhat unadvisedly and ambitiously decided to model the driver hatch in an open position , realising belatedly that this may require an actual driver.....
A suitable donor was provided from the Airfix Quad and 25pdr kit, mounted on a seat from the spares box (probably Roco) and a lot of fettling followed to ensure he fit when the top hull was mounted....
The major challenge became the rubber tracks......foolishly I attempted to melt them together and then tried to use superglue to set them in a suitable position.......lets just say it was "challenging"!
Lots of details were added to the model to make it more British and the gun required some work to make it look right.
The horror that is the tracks when they eventually set....
Out of focus picture of the driver...
And when the top hull is in place, you can just see his face peering through the hatch if you look closely...... the important thing is I know he's there!
The Yeomanry of 22nd AB received a command Crusader, in this case Armourfast; despite miniature instructions and not obvious locating points it went together reasonably OK. I added various details and decided to scratchbuild an auxiliary MG turret - the turret hatch was modelled open so an Airfix Crusader was used as it was much nicer - initially I'd used the Airfix MG turret but it was too small. It will be donated to a Cromwell Comber Ready model mark I.
Scalewise, it's huge. Much bigger than the S-Model Crusaders, but not so big as to be jarring. The turret needed heightening after completion.
I was intending to add another A10 Cruiser - 7th AB had a mix of Crusaders and worn out cruisers - in the end I discovered I had the BEF model which is totally different, so the Airfix model came to the rescue as I couldn't face the amount of scratchbuilding required to convert the A10.
The Airfix model must have been at least 40 years old and came without instructions! The internet does have its uses and I found a PDF. I was hesitant as I know there are problems with the Airfix kit - lengthwise it is 1/72 but widthwise 1/76, the turret is too small and it had those rubber tracks - in this case very old rubber tracks....
Despite this, it went together very easily and even the tracks cooperated to some extent - I tried sewing them together with invisible thread - one worked, but the other split - I ended up melting more rubber to join them and lathering the join in superglue. Amazingly, they were slack enough to fir on the model without problems and were secured by more superclue and covered by the side skirts. Despite the issues with it, it seems to represent the worn-out crocks the 7th AB were equipped with....
The turret was modelled closed, using the Armourfast part and another MG turret was constructed. All in all it has turned out OK.
When I find time they will receive some lovely AB crew and various stowage. I have already spotted some bits I need to tweak....
I remember that Hasegawa kit! I used to save up my money and buy a number of these Hasegawa kits for the princely sum of $1 each at a local drug store. Many of the kits were superb.
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