The Calculus Affair (Bordurian Tank)
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I do like a new box. It's like the beginning of an adventure.
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Wow... it's... smaller than I expected. I don't usually build tanks, so I must just used to seeing 1/35 on display.
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First thing to do... move and remove those hatches!
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Did I mention the Bordurian tank only has 4 wheels? Some surgery required.
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A quick dry-fit to make sure the new spacing is correct.
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Spacing looks ok. Now to fill in the gaps.
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Also, the back of the turret needs to be heightened and filled.
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I didn't like how the turret hatch looked, so I called in reinforcements... even though it's 1/76, the hatch is exactly the same size as on the 1/72. Go Firgure.
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Here's the sprues... look at that base... hmmm...
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Yeah, new turret hatch is much better. Now to take care of those side supports...
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So i decided to just sand off the end ones and re-space the centre ones. Seemed like the least amount of work for an acceptable outcome. 🙂
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Turret, check! Side wall, check! Now for the back end... luckily the donor M26 scheduled for my Tintin Moon Tank project doesn't need those grates.
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Ok, got the new grates in place.
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Also, cut open the driver's view hatch.
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Hmmm... something's not quite right...
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After checking the comics, I noticed the tank is supposed to be larger around the rear of the turret.
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So added some bulk to the turret, the wheel skirts, and started sanding.
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Primer test. Not bad, but still a few little touch ups needed
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I can start adding the extra details.
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Added on some scratchbuilt lamps and guns.
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Also added some of the vent tubes and armour plating on the back.
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Now for the external mufflers. Just a bit of squashed tubing.
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Maybe I can use some wire for the turret fence...?
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Nope... styrene tubes work better... but something's still not quite right...
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That's better. Trimmed the anchors a bit more and used thinner tubing around the perimeter.
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Ok... looking good. Still that stubborn gap on the back corner of the turret to deal with.
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Red circles masked and painted.
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Hmm... a bit of overspray. That will need to be corrected.
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Added a few tank tracks to some angel clay “mud” and painted it brown. Now we have a base.
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And... we're done!
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Ta-dah!
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Комментарии
12 22 March 2018, 22:25
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After finding a really great example (albeit in 1/35) of how to build a Tintin "Bordurian Tank", I decided to tackle this subject myself. It's based off the M-24 Chaffee. I don't know what I was expecting, but it's a lot smaller than I thought it would be. I don't usually build tanks (this will be my first) so it's like an undiscovered country. The tank is fictional though, so modifications are necessary. Chief among them is moving the main hatch and re-spacing the track for 4 wheels instead of 5.
22 March 2018, 23:49
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Well, I'm going to go lie on a beach for about a week, but when I get back at it I'll have to decide what to do about those side... brace-like thingys. There are only three on the Bordurian, so I have to decided if I want to just cut two off, cut all of them off and move them around... or just cut them off and make new ones.
I'll think about it as I stare off into the ocean...😉
23 March 2018, 08:07
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Back and refreshed. The body still needs more work, but I decided to tackle the turret. The Chaffee's downward slope at the back needed to be raised, so out comes the styrene and the putty.
30 March 2018, 23:35
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Greg and Choppa, men of twisted minds, warped modelling ideas and the skills to pull it all off. Wouldn't want to miss it, will learn a thing or two each time. Is there a seat available next to Spanjaard? Can we catch up a bit and nibble some popcorn together.
5 April 2018, 21:27
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Greg, you are magnificent! You never fail to get a "what the f......." out of me! Don't EVER change my friend! Love following your fun!
30 April 2018, 08:26
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Hah! Thanks Peter! Let's hope I can keep surprising you. I scratched up some external details and put the turret hatch back on. The hatch-less tank was freaking me out a bit... reminded me of those eyeless fish you find in deep underground caves... it just didn't look natural!
1 May 2018, 00:52
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About the only thing left is to add the... barrel wrapping thingy... around the base of the... uh... barrel. I'm not quite sure what that thing is, and I'm not quite sure what's the best way to replicate it. Any mates with any brilliant suggestions out there?
3 May 2018, 06:22
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I dunno... it looks like a tank cozy... pinterest.com/pin/496310821413629594/
3 May 2018, 06:38
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That my friends is a blast bag. Used regularly on ship guns. When the guns are fired, these holes can allow overpressure or "blast" to enter the the turret, which can disrupt the operation of the turret and injure the gun crew. These holes may also permit water to enter the mounting. The use of blast bags over the gun ports provide some measure of protection from these hazards.
Finally I have some added value here! Took me long enough.
You can make it with some 2component putty. Youtube Video
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3 May 2018, 07:36
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Hey Greg? Have you ever noticed that a rivet counter will always come up with more information than was asked for? You can be innocently chatting with a friend about anything at all when some self appointed expert (a drip under pressure) will drown you with trivial details? Bloody Dutchmen, they're everywhere these days!
3 May 2018, 07:45
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another very nice project I managed to miss so far.....Are you going to be making your own decals for this one?
3 May 2018, 08:15
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A blast bag eh? I dunno... I kinda like "tank cozy"...😉
@Wim = yep. The decals are already printed!
3 May 2018, 09:36
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I've seen people soak tissue paper in PVA glue to recreate canvas, never tried it myself though, might be worth looking into for the "cozy"
3 May 2018, 11:28
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I tried Wim's suggestion and it worked well. I used PVA glue diluted in water and the wrapped the tissue paper around the barrel. It took a few attempts, but seemed a more forgiving choice than the 2-part putty (which was plan "b"😢. I'ven't painted it yet, but so far so good.
I also masked off and painted the red circles. The tape and red paint looked an awful lot like bandages (see pic), so the whole time I was worried that Peter was going to call the model abuse hotline on me... No models were injured in this operation.😉
5 May 2018, 00:07
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Sorry Greg, I have cancelled the call. I will have a little practice with the PVA glue trick. I hate it when Wim is right!
5 May 2018, 07:05
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Don't get used to it Peter my success to fubar ratio is pretty average 😉
5 May 2018, 14:44
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And... we're done! This was quite fun build... my first tank! All in all, I'm quite happy. The weathering wash might've been a bad idea... makes it look much more "real world" than "comic book", but all of my Tintin projects are like that... so... consistency. i guess.
6 May 2018, 14:42
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Some of the images from my photo album seem to have been lost, so I re-uploaded them. The "placeholders" were still there... and the captions... but no images. Perhaps they were corrupted? deleted?
27 August 2018, 23:07
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I remember a couple of albums from Phenix having the same problem some time ago. Tim said that a hardware issue caused some data loss and some pictures were lost. Maybe you were affected too?
28 August 2018, 11:02
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Thanks Lode. I appreciate the comment. Last night, when I was just about to give up on (re)sanding a piece for what felt like the millionth time, I said to myself "Well, Lode spent a week cutting itty bitty bits of masking tape..."
...
..
.
Then I got back to work. 🙂
28 August 2018, 22:31
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LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
29 August 2018, 00:11
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Yep. I dunno how you did that though. I masked the windows on a 1/144 DC-10 and it took me 5 sessions to get it all done.
29 August 2018, 05:26
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Man... I gotta find some "lower performers" to hang out with on this site... LOL!!!!!!!
29 August 2018, 05:50
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looks good. My Girlfriend is a huge fan of TinTin, so maybe I should try some of these too...
29 August 2018, 11:48
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Thanks Torsten! This is actually a completed build, but check out my project collection for plenty more Tintin builds. I'm currently hip-deep in my Area 88 projects, but I'm getting an itch to do another Tintin build. Not sure which one to to. I was leaning towards the yellow float plane, but am now fighting the urge to take on the Savoia-Malachi 82...
2 September 2018, 10:59
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Good luck with your A88 project 🙂
I hold a some collectibles from TinTin. Also I get an Arado with some detail sets and a TinTin with Milou, I will build on this base the plane from the L-Etoile-mysterieuse
2 September 2018, 11:14
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I've got the Arado with just that plan as well. 😉
If you want to know more about my overall Tintin project, check out my blog - strobez.ca
And do let me know when you start your project. I'd love to see it!
2 September 2018, 14:28
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Thank You Greg, I will check it 👍
And I let you know more about my project after the start😉
2 September 2018, 14:43