Screw it, I'm Buildin' a Hetzer

[SKANKSTA]

So I've wanted to join this Sig for a while now but I've been far too busy to even work on my Tiger, let alone take on a new project. However, I'm coming to the end of the semester, and so things are starting to wind down a bit (only slightly). The only problem is there's only a month to go in the Sig and I may not be able to finish in time. So, I decided to let fate decide. Tails I enter the build, heads I skip.







But......

Fate be damned, I'm buildin' a Hetzer!



I've been wanting to build this kit for a while now and this Sig is the perfect excuse. Here's the date and a shot of the shrink-wrap to prove that I started today.



I decided that I will try to finish her by the end of the SIg, but I'm not going to rush; my quality standard would not allow it. I would like to finish with a simple diorama by Sig's end, but if not, I will just move this thread to the general armor page. We'll see

Sprue shots!



Sprue A: Main body parts, etc. Great detail on this, I'm used to crap kits and this is my first Dragon



Sprue B: Body parts, barrel, pig nose, etc



Sprue C&D (x4): Suspension and tracks. I may be replacing the tracks, they seem like a nightmare to clean up, but we'll see



Figures& Gen 2 MG: Nice looking, a nice touch from Dragon





Photoetch & Decals: Looks nice, I don't know what the model is going to portray in the end as far as theater and year of the War, but I don't think I will be using these decals since they are of a fantacy subject (the numbers maybe, but I'll have to find some German crosses).



Instructions: Look simple enough, easy to read






As a help in sprue identification, I usually color in the molded on ID letters



and separate connected sprues




Let's get this build started!!!

Up first: suspension and drives



These sprockets were a pain to clean and align . If I replace the tracks, think I will go ahead and replace the sprockets as well.





That's all for now. I can't wait to get into the nitty-gritty of this one. thanks for looking, as always comments and suggestions are encouraged.

[Twokidsnosleep]

Achtung, Achtung, SCHNELLLLLL!!!!!!!

Sorry, couldn't resist

[Nige99]

Looks a nice little build. Good luck with it and fingers crossed you finish in time

[MarkVerploeg]

You picked a nice kit for this
I have build one before and they are good
With only a month to go it can be done but it will depend on your free time ofcourse
Good luck with the build

[SKANKSTA]

Thanks, guys, I'll keep you posted. As far as free time goes, it may be tight. I'll have a tiny bit between now and the 14th, then the semester ends at UMaine, so I will only be working rather than working AND going to school. I probably will have to take an extension, but miracles do happen

[SKANKSTA]

Evening gents

Just a quick update n my Hetzer. A fair amount of progress:

Idlers:



Suspension bogies:



Final drives with casting texture applied and installed on the lower hull:







Stretched some sprue to sculpt weld beads on the front plate:









Attached the rear plate and began filling the seam around it:





And started working on the barrel:



As you can see, things are progressing at a reasonable pace, which should increase as the semester comes to an end. I'll be sure to kee you all updates. As always, comments and suggestions are encouraged.

Cheers!

[SKANKSTA]

I've come into some time, so... UPDATE!!!

Actually, a whole lot has gotten done, I may be able to finish this little critter in time. That is, if my tracks come in. I ordered a set of Freiulmodels which may or may not get here by the end of the year. We'll see.

Some progress shots:

Barrel Assembly built and sanded



Bogies attached



Hull halves mated and gun module installed



When I mated the halves, two problem spots arose:

At the front, a large seam appeared which I filled with paper thin styrene, trimmed, filled, and sanded









In the rear two holes at the edges were filled with strip sytrene and sanded







Two problems with this kit. The first, is that Dragon, in their infinite wisdom, has made it a habit to put ejector pin marks in visible, hard-to-get-to areas while leaving invisible parts clean. Needless to say, a lot of Mr. Copycat (Tamiya liquid primer) and creative sanding were used.







Second, Dragon's infamous instructions have not failled to dissapoint. I've noticed a few errors, the biggest so far being forgetting to tell me to install a vision port. I'm glad I caught it, as it would have been a real pain in the butt to get to after the fact.



All in all though, it's a fun build. I'm glad I decided to throw my hat into the ring As always, comments and suggestions are welcome and encouraged. Thanks for looking!

[OliveDrab]

Great build going with some really nice detailing work

[SKANKSTA]

Evening all,

Thought I'd give you all a quick update before I'm drawn away by Christmas festivities

The last sub-assembly to complete was the roof-mounted MG-38. Dragon provided a really nicely detailed one which I built and then gave a rough representation of a drum magazine.







The only problem is that to use it you have to perform surgery on the crappier part to get at the mount. I was going to try to save it... but maybe not





Either way I was able to get the mount free and mock up the assembly (the MG will be painted on its own).





So with that all major assembly (except for tracks, still waiting ) have been completed and are ready for primer!



I primed everything in Vallejo black. After a day I attached a few parts that should be painted with the model itself but that I wanted to be sure had black shadow rather than plastic gray.





I'm gong to let it sit over Christmas so that I'm sure that the primer is nice and hard and can resist painting and weathering.

So with that, Merry Christmas! I'll talk to you all soon. Thanks for reading and as always comments and suggestions are encouraged.

P.S. Here's the only picture of me you'll get this year. That pretty lady next to me is my wife. I like her Merry Christmas!

[SKANKSTA]

So, as was to be expected, I'm not going to meet the December 31 deadline. Oh well, what are you going to do? This will be my last update on this thread, but I will be starting another thread in the main armor thread for future updates.

Painting was put on hold for a couple days because these bad boys came in



They took a long time to build, but it was kind of therapeutic and they're worth the effort.







Besides track construction and priming, and making and priming this strapping, young, headless lad



The major accomplishment I made was painting. For the wheels, I used the old circle template trick.









I decided to try color modulation on the dunkelgelb. I think it turned out pretty well. The cammo is OK, I need more practice. It's acceptable though.



















Thanks for following this thread. I hope you all keep following as I continue this build in the general thread. As always, comments and suggestions are encouraged. Happy New Year!

[MarkVerploeg]

Too bad you won't be able to finish in time Andrew
but you don't have to put up a whole new thread for it
if you ask Lee or Paul they can move it for you
that way you don't have to do anything other then to finish your build at your pace

[SKANKSTA]

Thanks =)